WTRC (AM)

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WTRC
Broadcast areaSouth Bend metropolitan area
Frequency1340 kHz
BrandingMNC Nation
Programming
FormatNews/talk
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
WTRC-FM, WAOR, WBYT, WRBR-FM
History
First air date
1922
Former call signs
WJAK (1922–1932)
Call sign meaning
Truth Radio Corporation (former owner)
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID51728
ClassC
Power1,000 watts unlimited
Transmitter coordinates
41°40′28.00″N 85°56′51.00″W / 41.6744444°N 85.9475000°W / 41.6744444; -85.9475000
Translator(s)101.9 W270DK (Elkhart)
Links
Public license information
WebcastListen live
Websitemncnation.com

WTRC (1340 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Elkhart, Indiana, and serving the South Bend metropolitan area. It is owned by Federated Media. The station airs a news/talk radio format and is a Fox News Radio affiliate.

On the air since 1922, WTRC is one of Indiana's oldest radio stations. It has a power of 1,000 watts, and uses a non-directional antenna. The transmitter site is on Indiana Road near the Elkhart River in Elkhart.[2]

WTRC is also heard on a 250 watt FM translator, W270DK on 101.9 MHz.[3]

History[edit]

WJAK[edit]

1930 program advertisement.[4]

WTRC's self-reported histories commonly list its start date as November 18, 1931,[5] when the station made its first broadcast in Elkhart.[6] However, government records report that the station actually began broadcasting nine years earlier.

On December 1, 1921, the U.S. Department of Commerce, which regulated radio at this time, adopted a regulation formally establishing a broadcasting station category, which set aside the wavelength of 360 meters (833 kHz) for entertainment broadcasts, and 485 meters (619 kHz) for market and weather reports.[7] On July 28, 1922, a broadcasting station license, with the call letters WJAK, was issued to the White Radio Laboratory (C. L. White) in Stockdale, Ohio, for operation on the 360 meter "entertainment" wavelength.[8] The station's call letters were randomly assigned from a sequential roster of available call signs.

In 1923 the station was briefly deleted,[9] then relicensed to Reverend Clifford L. White of the Church of Christ in Greentown, Indiana, now on 1180 kHz.[10] In early 1926 the station moved to 1531 Washington Street in Kokomo, Indiana,[11] and was owned by J. A. Keutz, who was also the owner and publisher of the Kokomo Tribune.[12] The debut Kokomo broadcast, of a local basketball game, was made on February 5, 1926.[13]

Following the establishment of the Federal Radio Commission (FRC), stations were initially issued a series of temporary authorizations starting on May 3, 1927.[14] In addition, they were informed that if they wanted to continue operating, they needed to file a formal license application by January 15, 1928, as the first step in determining whether they met the new "public interest, convenience, or necessity" standard.[15] On May 25, 1928, the FRC issued General Order 32, which notified 164 stations, including WJAK, that "From an examination of your application for future license it does not find that public interest, convenience, or necessity would be served by granting it."[16] However, the station successfully convinced the commission that it should remain licensed.

On November 11, 1928, with the implementation of the FRC's General Order 40, WJAK was assigned to 1310 kHz with 50 watts, on a timesharing basis with WLBC in Muncie, Indiana.[17] WJAK moved to Marion, Indiana, in February 1929, after being sold to the Marion Broadcasting Company.[13]

In 1931 the station's license was assigned to The Truth Publishing Company, Inc., co-owned with The Elkhart Truth newspaper, and the station moved to Elkhart, Indiana, where it has remained to this day.[18] The debut broadcast at the new location, still as WJAK, was made on November 18, 1931, from the top of the Hotel Elkhart.[6]

WTRC[edit]

On September 2, 1932, the call letters were changed to WTRC,[19] standing for "Truth Radio Corporation".[20]

Due to the distance between Elkhart and Muncie, the requirement to share time with WLBC during daylight hours was eliminated.[21] WTRC's daytime power was increased to 100 watts in 1933.[22] In 1936, daytime power was increased to 250 watts and its nighttime power to 100 watts, and the nighttime timesharing requirement with WLBC was ended, allowing WTRC unlimited hours of operation.[23] In 1939, nighttime power was increased to 250 watts.[24] In March 1941, most stations on 1310 kHz, including WTRC, were moved to 1340 kHz, due to the implementation of the North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement.[25] Through the 1940s, WTRC was Elkhart's only radio station, carrying the programming of the NBC Radio Network.[26][27]

In early 1945 Truth Publishing filed an application for a companion FM station,[28] which began operating as WTRC-FM in 1948, originally at 100.7 MHz. That station today is co-owned WBYT.

In 1961, WTRC's daytime power was increased to 1,000 watts.[29]

Middle of the road and full service[edit]

In 1966, WTRC was one of the media holdings of The Communicana Group of Indiana.[30]

WTRC aired a middle of the road (MOR) format in the 1970s and 1980s.[31][32][33][34] In the early 1970s, the station aired a MOR format during the day and a rock format at night.[35] By the early 1990s, the station was airing a full service-adult contemporary format.[36][37] In 1994, it shifted to an all talk format.[38] In 1996, the station adopted an adult standards format.[39] It was branded "The Heartbeat of Elkhart" during this period.[40]

In 2000, the station switched to a full service format, airing news-talk programming during the day and soft adult contemporary music at night.[41][42] By the end of 2002 talk programming had replaced all music on the station.[43] WTRC was branded "News Radio 1340" during this period.[43] Hosts included Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, Michael Savage, and The Dolans.[44]

Oldies and talk[edit]

In August 2009, WTRC switched to an oldies format as "Hippie Radio 1340".[45][46]

In 2010, the station switched back to a talk radio format, as part of a simulcast with 95.3 WTRC-FM, and was branded "Michiana's News Channel".[47][48] The station carried syndicated hosts such as Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Jason Lewis, and Lars Larson, as well as a local morning show.[49] On May 5, 2014, WTRC reduced its fulltime simulcast of WTRC-FM, focusing on Elkhart through a partnership with sister newspaper The Elkhart Truth, featuring a separate morning show.[50] However, the two stations continued to jointly broadcast most other programming.[50]

Standards and soft adult contemporary[edit]

On February 17, 2017, WTRC fully ended its WTRC-FM simulcast, and changed its format to adult standards, branded as "Frank 1340", honoring popular 1940s, 1950s and 1960s singer Frank Sinatra.[51][52] WTRC-FM continued its talk programming.

In 2020, WTRC rebranded as "The Hart" and revived the "Heartbeat of Elkhart" slogan. The word "heart" was intentionally misspelled to match the city's name, Elkhart. The station refocused its era to the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, playing mostly soft oldies; the new branding dropped the reference to Sinatra, who now only had a few songs on the playlist.

MNC Nation[edit]

On April 3, 2023, WTRC changed its format from soft oldies to news/talk, branded as "MNC Nation". The station simulcasts local drive time programming, The O'Reilly Update, Ground Zero with Clyde Lewis, and Coast to Coast AM with WTRC-FM; the two stations otherwise have separate lineups of syndicated programming.[53]

Translator[edit]

In December 2018, WTRC began simulcasting on FM translator station W270DK 101.9 MHz.

Broadcast translator for WTRC
Call sign Frequency City of license FID ERP (W) HAAT FCC info
W270DK 101.9 FM Elkhart, Indiana 201230 250 106 m (348 ft) LMS

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Facility Technical Data for WTRC". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ^ AM Query Results: WTRC, fcc.gov. Retrieved April 26, 2019.
  3. ^ FM Query Results: W270DK, fcc.gov. Retrieved April 26, 2019.
  4. ^ WJAK (advertisement), Kokomo Tribune, July 2, 1930, page 3.
  5. ^ "Directory of AM and FM Radio Stations in the U.S.: Indiana: Elkhart", Broadcasting Yearbook (1959 edition), page B-147.
  6. ^ a b "WJAK Goes on Air Wednesday", South Bend Tribune, November 17, 1931, page 3.
  7. ^ "Amendments to Regulations", Radio Service Bulletin, January 3, 1922, page 10.
  8. ^ "New stations", Radio Service Bulletin, August 1, 1922, page 3. Limited Commercial license, serial #741.
  9. ^ "Strike out all particulars", Radio Service Bulletin, September 1, 1923, page 10.
  10. ^ "New stations", Radio Service Bulletin, October 1, 1923, page 2. Limited Commercial license, serial #1217.
  11. ^ "Alterations and corrections", Radio Service Bulletin, January 30, 1926, page 7.
  12. ^ "Alterations and corrections", Radio Service Bulletin, August 31, 1926, page 5.
  13. ^ a b "Publisher of Tribune Introduced Radio Broadcasting In Kokomo 24 Years Ago", Kokomo Tribune, October 30, 1950, Part III, page 10.
  14. ^ "List of broadcasting stations issued temporary permits", Radio Service Bulletin, April 30, 1927, pages 6-14.
  15. ^ "Extension of Broadcasting Station Licenses", Radio Service Bulletin, December 31, 1927, page 7.
  16. ^ "Appendix F (2): Letter to and list of stations included in General Order No. 32, issued May 25, 1928", Second Annual Report of the Federal Radio Commission for the Year Ended June 30, 1928, Together With Supplemental Report for the Period From July 1, 1928 to September 30, 1928, pages 146-149.
  17. ^ "Revised list of broadcasting stations, by frequencies, effective 3 a. m., November 11, 1928, eastern standard time", Second Annual Report of the Federal Radio Commission for the Year Ended June 30, 1928, Together With Supplemental Report for the Period From July 1, 1928 to September 30, 1928, page 210.
  18. ^ "Elkhart Buys WJAK", Kokomo Tribune, October 6, 1931, page 1.
  19. ^ "Alterations and Corrections: Broadcasting Stations", Radio Service Bulletin, August 31, 1932, page 22.
  20. ^ "NewsRadio 1340/Elkhart Features Bell Aquaculture President Michael Miller At Company Launch", Press Release. PRWeb. March 27, 2008. Retrieved April 26, 2019.
  21. ^ "More Time Granted", Broadcasting, April 1, 1932, page 30.
  22. ^ "Actions of the Federal Radio Commission: Decisions: March 17", Broadcasting, April 1, 1933, page 30.
  23. ^ "Actions of the Federal Communications Commission (Broadcast Division): January 27", Broadcasting, February 1, 1937, page 79.
  24. ^ "Boosts in Power For 106 Stations", Broadcasting, September 15, 1939, page 30.
  25. ^ "Assignments of United States Standard Broadcast Stations Listed by Frequency", page 1435.
  26. ^ "NBC Thesaurus" (advertisement), Broadcasting, December 1, 1938, page 32.
  27. ^ "NBC Network: Indiana", Broadcasting, August 15, 1949, Part II, page 22.
  28. ^ "Report of Applications For Broadcast Services Accepted for Filing', January 8, 1945 (Report no. 1706), page 2.
  29. ^ "For the Record: Initial Decisions", Broadcasting, June 5, 1961, page 96.
  30. ^ The Communicana Group (advertisement), Broadcasting, August 8, 1966, page 26.
  31. ^ "Directory of AM and FM Stations in the U.S.: Indiana: Elkhart", Broadcasting Yearbook (1974 edition), p. B-70. Retrieved April 26, 2019.
  32. ^ "Directory of Radio Stations in the United States and Canada: Indiana: Elkhart" Broadcasting Yearbook (1979 edition), p. C-72. Retrieved April 26, 2019.
  33. ^ "Directory of Radio Stations in the United States and Canada: Indiana: Elkhart", Broadcasting/Cablecasting Yearbook (1982 edition), p. C-78. Retrieved April 26, 2019.
  34. ^ "Directory of Radio Stations in the United States and Canada: Indiana: Elkhart", Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook (1989 edition), p. B-100. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  35. ^ Hall, Claude. "Vox Jox", Billboard. February 26, 1972. p. 21. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  36. ^ "Directory of Radio Stations in the United States and Canada: Indiana: Elkhart", The Broadcasting Yearbook (1991 edition), p. B-110. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  37. ^ "Directory of Radio Stations in the U.S.: Indiana: Elkhart", Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook (1993 edition), p. B-119. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  38. ^ "Format Changes & Updates", The M Street Journal. Vol. 11, No. 22. June 1, 1994. p. 1. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  39. ^ "Format Changes & Updates", The M Street Journal. Vol. 13, No. 42. October 16, 1996. p. 1. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  40. ^ "Welcome to The Heartbeat of Elkhart WTRC Radio". WTRC. Archived from the original on January 25, 1999. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  41. ^ "Format Changes & Updates", The M Street Journal. Vol. 17, No. 18. May 3, 2000. p. 1. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  42. ^ "WTRC Program Guide Radio". WTRC. Archived from the original on February 19, 2001. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  43. ^ a b "WTRC Program Guide Radio". WTRC. Archived from the original on December 9, 2002. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  44. ^ "WTRC Program Guide Radio". WTRC. Archived from the original on June 3, 2003. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  45. ^ Magallanes, Jodi (August 15, 2009). "WTRC tunes in to music". The Elkhart Truth. Archived from the original on July 18, 2011. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  46. ^ "Hippie Radio 1340". WTRC. Archived from the original on September 7, 2009. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  47. ^ "Indiana: Elkhart", The Radio Book 2010-2011 (nineteenth edition). p. 224. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  48. ^ "Michiana's News Channel". 95.3 MNC. Archived from the original on May 17, 2010. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  49. ^ "Program Schedule". 95.3 MNC. Archived from the original on May 16, 2010. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  50. ^ a b King, Marshall V. (April 29, 2014). "Coming soon: Truth Radio 1340 is launching on Monday". The Elkhart Truth. Archived from the original on May 15, 2014. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  51. ^ "Frank Brings Standards to Elkhart", Radio Insight. February 21, 2017. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  52. ^ Zimmey, Jon. "New music format premieres on WTRC-1340 AM", WTRC-FM. February 17, 2017. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  53. ^ WTRC Enters MNC Nation Radioinsight - April 3, 2023

External links[edit]

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