WSGW (AM)

Last updated
WSGW
WSGW 100.5-790Newsradio logo.png
Broadcast area Michigan Tri-Cities
Frequency 790 kHz
BrandingNewsRadio 790 - WSGW
Programming
Format News - Talk
Network CBS News Radio
Affiliations Compass Media Networks
Premiere Networks
Westwood One
Detroit Red Wings
Detroit Tigers
Michigan Wolverines
Saginaw Spirit
Ownership
Owner
WCEN-FM, WGER, WSGW-FM, WTLZ
History
First air date
 1950
Call sign meaning
W SaGinaW
Technical information
Facility ID 22674
Class B
Power 5,000 watts day
1,000 watts night
Transmitter coordinates
 43°27′40″N83°48′48″W / 43.46111°N 83.81333°W / 43.46111; -83.81333
Links
Webcast Listen Live
Website wsgw.com

WSGW (790 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station in Saginaw, Michigan, owned by Alpha Media. It simulcasts a news-talk radio format with sister station 100.5 WSGW-FM. The two stations identify themselves as "100.5 and 790 Newsradio WSGW." The studios are on Tittabawassee Road.

Contents

By day, WSGW is powered at 5,000 watts. But at night, to protect other stations on 790 AM from interference, it reduces power to 1,000 watts. It uses a directional antenna with a six-tower array. The transmitter is on Uncle Henry Road in Blumfield Township. [1]

Programming

Weekdays on WSGW begin with The Morning Team, a news and interview show hosted by Charlie Rood, Denyse Sharron and Pat Johnson. Veteran broadcaster Art Lewis hosts his own talk show in late mornings, featuring interviews with local newsmakers and phone calls from the public. Agriculture director Terry Henne hosts The Farm Show just before noon, focusing on local weather, market conditions, and agriculture news. The rest of the day, nationally syndicated programs include Markley, Van Camp and Robbins, The Sean Hannity Show, The Tom Sullivan Show, The Ramsey Show with Dave Ramsey, Coast to Coast AM with George Noory and America in the Morning with John Trout.

On weekends, WSGW air specialty shows on health, money, technology, the outdoors, farming and home repair. Weekend syndicated programs include The Kim Komando Show and Our American Stories with Lee Habeeb , as well as repeats of weekday shows. Most hours begin with an update from CBS News Radio.

WSGW airs play-by-play sports coverage of the Detroit Tigers and Detroit Red Wings. University of Michigan basketball games from the Michigan Sports Network also air on AM 790, [2] while football games air on sister station FM 100.5. [3] Conflicting sports games that would usually air on WSGW are sometimes moved to sister station WGER. [4] Local minor league hockey team the Saginaw Spirit and Saginaw Valley State University athletics are also heard between the two stations.

National and international news updates come from CBS News Radio and statewide news from the Michigan News Network. WSGW is also airs financial reports from Fox Business, agricultural news from Brownfield, and weather reports from Weatherology. [5]

History

WSGW first signed on the air on August 11, 1950;73 years ago. The station had studios at Genesee and Washington Avenues on the third floor of the Mason Building in downtown Saginaw. [6] The six tower directional antenna complex is near Indiantown north of M-81 east of Saginaw.

The station was started by John Lord Booth, of Detroit who founded Booth American Company. In 1973 Booth built new studios at 1795 Tittabawassee Road shared with then sister station WIOG. Then in 1988 the facility was tripled in size with a major expansion. The Booth family operated the station for 45 years until 1995 when the station was sold to another Detroit area media family called Fritz Broadcasting. During the period of deregulation just prior to the turn of the century, the station changed hands several times with brief ownerships by 62nd Street Broadcasting, Citadel Communications and Wilks Broadcasting.

NextMedia bought the station in 2002. Digity acquired WSGW in 2014, which was sold to Alpha Media in 2015. [7]

WSGW was the home for big-name syndicated personalities Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity throughout the 2000s. However, in January 2009, WSGW swapped programming with its FM sister station. The swap meant WSGW no longer had to interrupt their shows for sports broadcasts while still keeping top rated The Rush Limbaugh Show and The Sean Hannity Show in the market. [8] WSGW 790 AM subsequently picked up personalities Tom Sullivan and Dennis Miller, replacing the latter with Dave Ramsey in 2015.

In June 2019, it was announced that WSGW-FM 100.5 would simulcast WSGW weekdays from 1am to Noon. It would also mark the end of longtime mid-morning talk show Listen to the Mrs. [9] Further changes were made to the schedule in December 2020, announcing a merger of FM 100.5 and AM 790's programming, effectively making WSGW-FM a 24-hour simulcast of its sister station with the exception of sporting events. [10] In 2022, longtime program director Dave Mauer and news director Ann Williams resigned from WSGW. [11]

Technical

WSGW 790's low dial position and corresponding long wavelength, along with a complex antenna array provides a strong signal to the Tri-Cities area and eastern portions of the Thumb. Adjacent channel interference from AM 800 CKLW in Windsor, Ontario limits WSGW's signal to the south and east. On most days, WSGW can be received as far west as Grand Rapids and north along the I-75 corridor to places like West Branch and Gaylord. [12]

WSGW's technical history can be traced back to October 1945 when Booth Radio applied for a construction permit to build a radio station licensed to Saginaw. The original construction permit called for WSGW to broadcast at 550 kHz with 1,000 watts of power from a location on Curtis Road east of US-10 (Dixie Highway) in Bridgeport, Michigan. [6] The Federal Communications Commission denied the application. An amended construction permit was granted in April 1949 for WSGW to operate on 790 kHz with 1,000 watts of power from a site on Uncle Henry Road in Indiantown in eastern Saginaw County. In 1961 a new Gates transmitter was installed, and WSGW was granted a power increase up to 5,000 watts during the day. WSGW gained FM sister station WIOG in September 1969, broadcasting at 106.3 mHz. In 1972, the main studios for WSGW were moved from the Mason building in downtown Saginaw to Tittabawassee Road in Carrollton Township, where WSGW and its sister stations continue to broadcast.[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WJMK (AM)</span> Oldies radio station in Bridgeport–Saginaw, Michigan

WJMK is a radio station broadcasting an oldies format, serving the Saginaw/Bay City, Michigan market from its transmitter in Bridgeport, its city of license. WJMK is owned by Northern States Broadcasting. WJMK broadcasts with a power of 5,000 watts daytime, 1,100 watts at night, directed towards the north.

WXLW is a commercial radio station in Indianapolis, Indiana. It is owned by Pilgrim Communications LLC. Along with sister station 95.9 WFDM-FM, it simulcasts a talk radio format, known as "Freedom 95." The radio studios and offices are on Industrial Road off U.S. Route 31 in Franklin, Indiana. After a local morning news and information show hosted by Todd Huff, the rest of the schedule is nationally syndicated talk hosts: Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, "The Ramsey Show with Dave Ramsey," Mark Levin, Joe Pags, Ben Shapiro, "Our American Stories with Lee Habeeb" and "This Morning, America's First News with Gordon Deal."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WTKS (AM)</span> Radio station in Savannah, Georgia

WTKS is a radio station licensed to Savannah, Georgia. The station is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc., with iHM Licenses, LLC holding the license. WTKS airs a news/talk format. Its transmitter is located behind WTKS's studios on Alfred Street in Garden City, Georgia, with a Savannah address.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KTRH</span> News/talk radio station in Houston

KTRH is a commercial radio station licensed to Houston, Texas. It airs a news/talk radio format and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. Its studios are along the West Loop Freeway (I-610) in the city's Uptown district. The transmitter site, a four-tower array, is in unincorporated Liberty County, off Cox Road in Dayton. KTRH is one of the oldest radio stations in the United States, first licensed to Austin on April 22, 1922. Programming is also heard on co-owned KODA's HD 2 subchannel at 99.1MHz, and on the iHeartRadio platform. KTRH is Southeast Texas' primary entry point station for the Emergency Alert System.

KNZR is a commercial AM radio station in Bakersfield, California. It is owned by Alpha Media and airs a conservative talk radio format. Its studios and offices are on Pegasus Drive in Bakersfield.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WOOD (AM)</span> Radio station in Grand Rapids, Michigan

WOOD is a commercial AM radio station in Grand Rapids, Michigan, serving West Michigan and owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. It has a news/talk radio format and is simulcast on co-owned WOOD-FM at 106.9 MHz. The studios and offices are at 77 Monroe Center in Downtown Grand Rapids. Following a local weekday drive time show, "West Michigan's Morning News", the station carries nationally syndicated talk shows from Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Dave Ramsey, Joe Pags, "The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show" and "Coast to Coast AM with George Noory". Most hours begin with an update from Fox News Radio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KNST</span> News/talk radio station in Tucson, Arizona

KNST is a commercial radio station in Tucson, Arizona, airing a news/talk radio format. The station is owned by iHeartMedia and serves Greater Tucson, including the suburbs of Marana, Oro Valley, Green Valley, Sahuarita, Sierra Vista, and Vail. KNST's studios and offices are on Oracle Road, north of Downtown Tucson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WMUZ (AM)</span> Radio station in Michigan, United States

WMUZ is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Taylor, Michigan, and serving the Metro Detroit radio market. Owned by Crawford Broadcasting, the station has a Christian talk and teaching format. Religious hosts heard on WMUZ include David Jeremiah, Joyce Meyer, Alistair Begg, Chuck Swindoll and Adrian Rogers. The studios and offices are located near Burt Road and Capitol Avenue in the Weatherby section of Detroit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WDTK</span> Radio station in Michigan, United States

WDTK is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Detroit, Michigan, and known as "The Patriot." It broadcasts a conservative talk radio format and is owned by Salem Communications. The studios and offices are on Radio Plaza in Ferndale, Michigan, shared with sister station 1500 WLQV.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WOOD-FM</span> News/talk radio station in Muskegon, Michigan

WOOD-FM is a commercial radio station licensed to Muskegon, Michigan, serving West Michigan and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. It simulcasts a news/talk radio format with sister station WOOD 1300 AM. The studios and offices are at 77 Monroe Center in Downtown Grand Rapids. Following a local weekday drive time show, "West Michigan's Morning News", the station carries nationally syndicated talk shows from Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Dave Ramsey, Joe Pags, "The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show" and "Coast to Coast AM with George Noory". Most hours begin with an update from Fox News Radio.

WSAM is a radio station licensed to Saginaw, Michigan and broadcasting at 1400 kHz with 1,000 watts of power. The station is simulcasted with FM sister station WSAG-FM at 104.1 MHz and are collectively known as The Bay, in reference to their close proximity to the Saginaw Bay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WTRX</span> Sports radio station in Flint, Michigan

WTRX is an American radio station broadcasting a sports format in Flint, Michigan. It is the Flint affiliate for Michigan Wolverines football and men's basketball, and Infinity Sports Network. Its studios are located in Mundy Township near U.S. 23 and Hill Rd. and its transmitter is in Burton at 3076 East Bristol Road near Dort Hwy.

WSGW-FM is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Carrollton, Michigan, and serving the Tri-Cities. It is owned by Alpha Media and simulcasts a news-talk radio format with sister station WSGW 790 AM. The two stations identify themselves as "100.5 and 790 Newsradio WSGW." The studios are on Tittabawassee Road in Saginaw.

WGER is a radio station licensed to Saginaw, Michigan, broadcasting a classic alternative format. The station broadcasts from a transmitter southeast of I-675 Exit 6 in Carrollton Township in Saginaw County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WKHM (AM)</span> Radio station in Jackson, Michigan

WKHM is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Jackson, Michigan. It is owned by Jamie McKibbin, through licensee McKibbin Media Group, Inc., and broadcasts a talk radio format. Studios, offices and the transmitter are on Glenshire Drive in Jackson.

WJIM is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Lansing, Michigan. It is owned by Townsquare Media and broadcasts a news/talk format. It is also the flagship station of the Michigan Talk Network. Studios and offices are on Pinetree Road in Lansing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WILS</span> Radio station in Lansing, Michigan

WILS is a commercial AM radio station in Lansing, Michigan. It is owned by MacDonald Broadcasting and airs a talk radio format. It features a local news department and a mixture of local and national talk personalities. The studios and offices are on West Cavanaugh Street in Lansing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WZAN</span> Radio station in Maine, United States

WZAN is a commercial AM radio station broadcasting a classic country radio format. Licensed to Portland, it is owned by Saga Communications. The studios and offices are on Western Avenue in South Portland, Maine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KDXU</span> Radio station in St. George, Utah

KDXU is a commercial AM radio station broadcasting a news/talk format. Licensed to St. George, Utah, the station is owned by Townsquare Media. The studios are on Ridgeview Drive in St. George.

WKJK is a commercial radio station broadcasting a talk radio format in Louisville, Kentucky. It is owned by iHeartMedia and serves North-Central Kentucky and South-Central Indiana. It features programming from iHeart subsidiary Premiere Networks as well as Compass Media Networks. The studios are in the Louisville neighborhood of Watterson Park.

References

  1. ↑ Radio-Locator.com/WSGW
  2. ↑ "U of M Basketball".
  3. ↑ "U of M Football Schedule".
  4. ↑ "WSGW Sports Broadcast Schedule".
  5. ↑ "WSGW Program Schedule".
  6. 1 2 "Broadcasting Station License Record" . Retrieved 2023-09-17.
  7. ↑ "WSGW among Saginaw radio stations sold to Portland's Alpha Media". 20 August 2015.
  8. ↑ "Radio station WSGW-AM, 790, shuffling talk radio lineup". 12 January 2009.
  9. ↑ "Screen grab of webpage announcing 2019 programming changes". www.wsgw.com. Archived from the original on 2024-01-13.
  10. ↑ "Screen grab of webpage announcing 2020 programming merger". www.wsgw.com. Archived from the original on 2024-01-13.
  11. ↑ "WSGW newsman Dave Maurer resigns after 43 years at mid-Michigan station". mlive.com. 2022. Retrieved 2024-01-14.
  12. ↑ "Radio Station Coverage Map".
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.