WVFJ-FM

Last updated

WVFJ-FM
Broadcast areaMid-Western Georgia
Frequency 93.3 MHz (HD Radio)
Branding93.3 & 102.1 The JOY FM
Programming
Format Contemporary Christian
Subchannels HD2: Contemporary worship music
HD3: Christian hip hop
Ownership
Owner Radio Training Network
History
First air date
1967;57 years ago (1967)
Former call signs
  • WFDR-FM (1967–1981)
  • WQCK (1981–1983)
Call sign meaning
"Victory For Jesus"
Technical information [1]
Licensing authority
 FCC
Facility ID 53679
Class C0
ERP 38,000 watts
57,000 watts (CP)
HAAT 491 meters (1,611 ft)
Transmitter coordinates
 33°5′10.4″N84°46′9.7″W / 33.086222°N 84.769361°W / 33.086222; -84.769361
Translator(s) See § Translators
Repeater(s) See § Repeaters
Links
Public license information
Webcast Listen live
Website georgia.thejoyfm.com

WVFJ-FM (93.3 MHz, "The JOY FM") is a non-commercial radio station licensed to Greenville, Georgia, and serving West-Central Georgia, including portions of Metro Atlanta and the Columbus-Auburn-Opelika area. It is owned by the Radio Training Network with studios and offices in Tyrone. WVFJ broadcasts a Contemporary Christian radio format. Its tower is located in Greenville, off Forest Road. [2] The station broadcasts online and on a network of rebroadcasters and FM translators.

Contents

WVFJ-FM is a Class C0 station. It has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 38,000 watts. The tower has a height above average terrain (HAAT) of 491 meters (1,611 ft). [3]

History

WFDR-FM and WQCK

The station's original call sign was WFDR-FM, signing on the air in 1967;57 years ago. [4] It was the sister station to WFDR AM 1370 in Manchester. The call sign was a reference to former U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who had his Little White House vacation home in nearby Warm Springs, Georgia.

On October 31, 1981, the station changed its call sign to WQCK. Two years later, it adopted its current call letters of WVFJ-FM on July 7, 1983.

Christian radio

On February 13, 1981, Atlanta businessman Bill Watkins and his wife Joyce founded Provident Broadcasting Company in order to create a radio ministry for the benefit of Christians and others seeking spiritual inspiration. WVFJ, which began using the moniker "The JOY FM", was their first station. It operated as a commercial radio station, selling advertising to support its operations. In 1998, it moved its radio studios from the small community of Manchester into Atlanta radio market as Metro Atlanta's first Contemporary Christian station. The transmitter was moved closer to Atlanta to Greenville.

Provident Broadcasting Company was a wholly-owned subsidiary of Watkins Associated Industries, Incorporated. The group's stated mission was to provide wholesome family programming filled with joy, hope, and encouragement.

In March 2011, WVFJ became officially owned by Radio Training Network. One of the changes under new ownership was that after 30 years, WVFJ became a non-commercial, listener-supported station instead of selling advertising. In May, WVFJ added 11,000 watts to its effective radiated power.

WVFJ-FM is in a three-way competition for the Christian Contemporary audience in the Atlanta market. Listeners can also choose 104.7 WFSH-FM, a commercial station known as "The Fish," owned by the Salem Media Group. And the Tennessee-based Educational Media Foundation owns 106.7 WAKL, part of the non-commercial K-Love network. [5]

Tower collapse

On January 12, 2023, WVFJ's transmitter tower was destroyed by a tornado. [6] A series of tornados in Georgia and Alabama resulted in seven fatalities and caused millions of dollars in damage.

Radio Training Network worked to restore the tower and get the station back on the air. [7] While the tower was reconstructed, programming continues to be heard on line and on a series of rebroadcasters and FM translators in Georgia and Alabama.

In May 2024, construction of the new tower was completed at the same location as the previous tower, and the station returned to broadcast at full power. [8]

Translator network

The station is retransmitted on W270AS 101.9 in Carrollton to the northwest and W231AO 94.1 in Columbus, all located southwest of Atlanta in Western Georgia. It is also listed as the primary station for multiple other translator applications filed by Edgewater Broadcasting in 2003, in what was called the "Great Translator Invasion".

All of its translators are in Western Georgia and Eastern Alabama. Two translators rebroadcast WVFJ's HD Radio digital subchannels, one airing Contemporary worship music and one airing Christian hip hop.

Repeaters

Call sign Frequency City of license Facility ID Class ERP
(W)		 Height
(m (ft))		Transmitter coordinates
WWWD [9] 102.1 FM Bolingbroke, Georgia 86172 A4,500115 m (377 ft) 32°54′30.5″N83°46′36.7″W / 32.908472°N 83.776861°W / 32.908472; -83.776861 (WWWD)
WLKQ-HD2 102.3-2 FM (HD) Buford, Georgia 36350 A4,200119 m (390 ft) 34°7′16.4″N83°58′34.7″W / 34.121222°N 83.976306°W / 34.121222; -83.976306 (WLKQ-HD2)
WCON-HD2 99.3-2 FM (HD) Cornelia, Georgia 25814 C1100,000246 m (807 ft) 34°31′24.4″N83°40′45.6″W / 34.523444°N 83.679333°W / 34.523444; -83.679333 (WCON-HD2)

Translators

Contemporary Christian music

Call sign Frequency City of license FID ERP (W) HAAT Class FCC infoNotes
W271CF102.1 FM Phenix City, Alabama 151095210117  m (384  ft)D LMS Relays WVFJ-FM
W262AL100.3 FM Gainesville, Georgia 151815105128 m (420 ft)D LMS Relays WCON-HD2
W223CQ92.5 FM Lawrenceville, Georgia 6721425060 m (197 ft)D LMS Relays WLKQ-HD2

Christian worship music

Broadcast translator for WVFJ-HD2
Call sign Frequency City of license FID ERP (W) HAAT Class FCC info
W270AS101.9 FM Carrollton, Georgia 15082610177.1  m (581  ft)D LMS

Christian hip hop

Broadcast translator for WVFJ-HD3
Call sign Frequency City of license FID ERP (W) HAAT Class FCC info
W292GF106.3 FM Morrow, Georgia 1539745133.6  m (438  ft)D LMS

See also


Notable DJ

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References

  1. ↑ "Facility Technical Data for WVFJ-FM". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ↑ RadioInsight.com "WVFJ Tower Destroyed by Tornado" Jan. 12, 2023. Retrieved Feb. 6, 2024
  3. ↑ Radio-Locator.com/WVFJ
  4. ↑ Broadcasting Yearbook 1977 page C-53. Retrieved Feb. 6, 2024.
  5. ↑ InsideRadio.com "Three-Way Format Battle in Atlanta in Christian Radio" Oct. 14, 2019. Retrieved Feb. 6, 2024
  6. ↑ "WVFJ-FM Tower Destroyed By Tornado - RadioInsight". January 13, 2023. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
  7. ↑ YouTube.com "Georgia Tower Update" Oct. 2023. Retrieved Feb. 6, 2024
  8. ↑
  9. ↑ "JOY Comes to Macon |".
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