WJR AM 760 Detroit

Slogan/Positioner: NewsTalk 760, The Great Voice of the Great Lakes

Format: News/Talk/Sports

Web site: www.wjr.com

E-Mail: visit web site

Class: A
Power / # of Towers: 50,000 watts / 1, omnidirectional
Unlimited operations

FCC technical information:

• engineering data
• station details

More about station:

• Radio Locator coverage area
• FCCInfo.com listing
• Recnet Broadcast Query
• WJR on Facebook
• WJR from TuneIn
• WJR from Wikipedia
• Tower photos, thanks Tom Bosscher

Call Sign History:

• WJR: 1929
• WCX/WJR: 1925
• WCX: 1922

Call Sign Origin: Jewett Radio & Phonograph Co. (original owner)

On Air Date: May 4, 1922

Owner: Cumulus Media

Telephone: (313) 875-4440

Notes/History:

• 3/2011: Announced that Cumulus Media is merging/acquiring Citadel Broadcasting in a deal worth billions of dollars. The FCC approves the sale and it closes later in 2011.
• 6/12/2007: Citadel's acquistion of WJR, WDRQ, and WDVD from Disney/ABC closes.
• 2/2006: $2.7 billion deal reached between ABC/Disney and Citadel that results in 22 stations nationwide becoming part of Citadel Communications. In Michigan, Citadel will gain control of WJR-AM 760, WDRQ-FM 93.1, and WDVD-FM 96.3 Detroit pending FCC approval and closing. Disney maintains ownership of WFDF.
• 2/9/1996: Disney acquires Capital Cities/ABC.
• 8/16/1995: Tragic death of long time morning host J.P. McCarthy
• 1985: Capital Cities and ABC merge; WJR picks up ABC affiliation, dropping NBC.
• 1/1/1976: Station returns to NBC for its network affiliation, dropping CBS.
• 9/9/1964: Capital Cities Broadcasting acquires WJR from Goodwill Station Inc. First use of the slogan "The Great Voice of the Great Lakes".
• 12/30/1962: WJR and CBS agree to a new partnership, one that allowed WJR to censor any network advertisements and programs. This kind of arrangement was unique at the time, allowing WJR to be the only CBS station in America that didn't broadcast Arthur Godfrey's show live. Instead WJR aired one if its flagship shows, 'Adventures in Good Music'.
• by 1959: Station ends affliation with CBS and produces all programming on its own
• 1942: 24-hour operations begin
• 3/29/1941: Move to 760 AM
• 11/1940: 733 foot tower blows down in heavy winds and is replaced with 700 foot tower.
• 1935: WJR constructs a 50,000 watt transmitter and 733-foot tower in Riverview. Network affiliation changes from NBC to CBS.
• 1931: Power increase to 10,000 watts.
• 4/17/1929: WCX is bought out by WJR owners and ceases operations.
• 1928: Frequency change to 750 AM and WJR becomes Michigan's most powerful radio station. WJR and WCX physically separate their operations as WJR moves to the 28th floor of the Fisher Building.
• 12/1926: G.A. Richards, president of Pontiac Automobiles for Southern Michigan, purchases The Free Press' interest in the station and opens a studio in the General Motors Building. At the time, WCX/WJR was the only station in the world to operate a ground-floor studio, making entertainers clearly visible to passersby. WJR begins using the new air slogan "The Goodwill Station".

• 12/20/1926: Frequency change to 680 AM
• 8/16/1925: Station becomes known as WCX/WJR after Jewett Radio and Phonographic Company of Pontiac, MI takes control of the station. Operations move from the Free Press to the Book-Cadillac Hotel. Station upgrades to 5,000 watts. WCX programming consisted of news, sports, and The Red Apple Club while WJR aired commercial programming.
• 5/4/1922: On air at 580 AM as WCX with 517 watts, owned by the Detroit Free Press (which in turn was owned and published by E.D. Stair). Broadcasts originated from the Free Press' building in Detroit. AM 580 is shared by WCX and WWJ.
• Check out a history of WJR provided by the station: click here

Center of antenna array/transmitter location:

Wayne County; Near Allen and Sibley Rds. (Riverview)

Old logo gallery:

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