WIOU (AM)

Last updated

WIOU
Frequency 1350 kHz
BrandingFox Sports Radio 1350 WIOU
Programming
Format Sports
Affiliations Fox Sports Radio
Ownership
OwnerHoosier AM/FM LLC
Operator3 Towers Broadcasting
History
First air date
August 6, 1948;76 years ago (1948-08-06)
Call sign meaning
"I owe you" (the founders had to borrow money to finance the station's construction)
Technical information [2]
Licensing authority
 FCC
Facility ID 41849
Class B
Power
  • 5,000 watts days
  • 1,000 watts nights
Links
Public license information
Webcast Listen live
Website www.1350amwiou.com

WIOU (1350 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station in Kokomo, Indiana. It is owned by Hoosier AM/FM LLC, with studios and offices on Indiana State Road 26 in Kokomo. It broadcasts a sports radio format, mostly from Fox Sports Radio.

Contents

WIOU is powered at 5,000 watts by day and 1,000 watts at night, on 1350 AM. It has a directional antenna system using an in-line four-tower array, pushing a directional pattern north over Kokomo. The directional pattern is slightly different day and night. [3]

History

On August 6, 1948, WIOU first signed on the air. [4] It was owned by North Central Indiana Broadcasting and featured programming from the CBS Radio Network. It was originally powered at 1,000 watts around the clock, but later got a daytime boost to 5,000 watts.

WIOU was established by Richard H. Blacklidge, William Naftzger, and John Carl Jefferies. Blacklidge was the CEO of the Kokomo Tribune newspaper at the time. Naftzger was a local attorney. Jefferies had been with radio station WKMO as general manager. The call letters, WIOU, were chosen by Naftzger's wife, Alma, since all were in debt to start the station. IOU stands for "I owe you".

Former logo WIOU ESPN1350 logo.png
Former logo

On July 1, 2013, the station switched to a full-time sports format.

In July 2024, Hoosier AM/FM announced that it was selling its Kokomo stations—WIOU, WMYK, and WZWZ—to 3 Towers Broadcasting, with a local marketing agreement taking effect on August 1; [5] as of May 2025, the stations were still owned by Hoosier AM/FM. [6] On May 22, 2025, WIOU announced that it would close on May 31; its coverage of Kokomo High School sports will move to WZWZ. [6]

Sports teams

Transmitter

The main transmitter is a Harris MW-5A (circa '78) utilizing a single forced air cooled metal/ceramic triode vacuum tube (type number 3CX2500F3) in the final RF amplifier stage and a single forced air cooled tetrode vacuum tube (type number 4CX3000A) as a pulse duration modulator (PDM). Due to the innovative design of this legacy rig, plate efficiency in the RF final amplifier stage is on the order of 92%. The antenna system consists of four quarter wave towers in a phased array aligned in a single row to achieve greatest signal to the North during daytime operation.

References

  1. ↑ "WIOU leaving the airwaves". May 28, 2025. Retrieved June 27, 2025.
  2. ↑ "Facility Technical Data for WIOU". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  3. ↑ Radio-Locator.com/WIOU
  4. ↑ Broadcasting Yearbook 1949 page 124, Broadcasting & Cable
  5. ↑ Venta, Lance (July 28, 2024). "3 Towers Broadcasting To Acquire Kokomo Trio". RadioInsight. Retrieved May 27, 2025.
  6. 1 2 Venta, Lance (May 27, 2025). "WIOU To Shut Down". RadioInsight. Retrieved May 27, 2025.

40°25′00″N86°06′49″W / 40.41667°N 86.11361°W / 40.41667; -86.11361

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