Federated Media News/Talk 1190 WOWO/92.3 WOWO-FM Fort Wayne has launched 107.5 W298BJ Fort Wayne has the new FM home for the station.
The 75 watts vertical at 188 meters signal (Coverage Map) debuted at 3:40pm today. Federated had purchased the translator from iHeartMedia earlier this year for $100,000.
WOWO will also remain on 92.3 through the end of they year before a new format launches on that signal. We reported back in August in our Premium Daily Domains that Federated had registered Big923.com and social media profiles were already live with the logo for “Fort Wayne’s Greatest Hits”. In early November Federated changed the call letters for WOWO-FM back to its previous WFWI, but has yet to use those new calls on-air.
Interesting move on WOWOs part…Given that they stated when they went to FM a couple years back, the listeners were now 80%/20% FM over AM ……With 92.3 the FM coverage was excellent and covered the COL well ,especially at night when their AM signal gets QRMed from other stations…Now they go to a 75W translator…I’ve already heard complaints from listeners about not able to copy the signal no more than 10 miles out of the city…are they trying to force people back to the AM signal?? I know they want to revitalize 92.3 into a money maker…but again, at the expense of whom…Apparently WOWO FM listeners…
PD Ryan Wrecker has stated on other message boards that the majority of WOWO’s listeners still tune in to 1190AM.
What was once WOWOLand has now been reduced to the Fort Wayne metro, where the 1190AM signal has no deficiencies day or night, thus, 92.3 had been superfluous from the beginning. The simulcast only came about became Gregg Henson tried (and failed disastrously) to lower WOWO’s core demos while as PD/PMD host.
Does the Summit City really need another take on Classic Hits?
The 1190AM signal at night, for the most part, does the trick in the COL, however, it still has deficiencies in the NE section of the city…there are pockets of complete drops where NYC and others that are on 1190 can be heard…more of a graveyard garble of stuff as heard on ,let’s say, 1450khz…but, if the “rachet rule” is or will be eliminated…the pattern should be opened back up which, in essence, would solve any pockets of QRM and/or QSB…its a shame i can copy WLW at a stronger level by at least 3 “S” units than WOWO at night on the NE sections of town. (bodes well for the good ol Blaw-Knox now ,doesn’t it….)