WEIC (1270 AM) was a

radio station Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based rad ...

licensed to

Charleston, Illinois Charleston is a city in and the county seat of Coles County, Illinois, United States. The population was 17,286, as of the 2020 census. The city is home to Eastern Illinois University and has close ties with its neighbor, Mattoon, Illinois, Ma ...

, United States.

History

The station signed on for the first time December 12, 1954 as WEIC, built by Charleston resident Jack Owens, who took a disability settlement from an injury suffered while working for the railroad, and used it to build the radio station. The station signed on with 1,000 watts of power on 1270 kHz operating during daytime hours only, from studios, transmitter and towers located at the same place they were when the station ceased operations—2560 West State Street (on what was formerly Illinois Route 16, now Illinois Route 316) on Charleston's northwest side.WEIC To Host 57th Anniversary Show
, ''DeWitt Daily News''. Retrieved July 15, 2018. The station was owned by Friendly City Broadcasters, which was a partnership of Jack Owens and Betty Jane Owens. Owens' family was involved in the operation of the station as well. Owens owned the station thru the 1960s, and they also began the work to file an application with the Federal Communications Commission to add nighttime service with 500 watts and 3 additional towers. WEIC-FM 92.1 signed on the air on October 1, 1965, providing the first FM radio station in Charleston.
Broadcasting Yearbook 1971
',

Broadcasting Broadcasting is the data distribution, distribution of sound, audio audiovisual content to dispersed audiences via a electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio waves), ...

, 1971. p. B-60. Retrieved July 11, 2018. In 1967, the station was sold to Community Communications Associates, along with its FM sister station. In December 1971, the station dropped the MOR format that it had been airing in favor a

top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is a list of the 40 currently most popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "To ...

format. The station was extremely popular with the students at

Eastern Illinois University Eastern Illinois University (EIU) is a public university in Charleston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1895 as the Eastern Illinois State Normal School, a teacher's college offering a two-year degree, Eastern Illinois University gradual ...

, also located in Charleston. In 1972, under the ownership of John Hurlbut and Rusty Russell who was also the general manager at the time, WEIC finally received authority to transmit on 1270 full-time.
Broadcasting Yearbook 1972
',

, 1972. p. B-60. Retrieved July 11, 2018.History Cards for WEIC
fcc.gov. Retrieved July 11, 2018. WEIC was purchased by

Withers Broadcasting Withers Broadcasting Companies is a radio broadcasting company based in southern Illinois. Founded in 1972 by the late W. Russell Withers, Jr., and now owned by his daughter Dana Withers, the company owns several radio stations across the United ...

in 1975. By 1979 the station was again airing a MOR format.
Broadcasting Yearbook 1979
',

, 1979. p. C-63. Retrieved July 12, 2018. In 1980, the station was sold to Macomb Broadcasting Co., along with its FM sister station, for $700,000. By 1984, the station was airing a

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

format.
Broadcasting/Cablecasting Yearbook 1984
', Broadcasting/Cablecasting, 1984. p. B-76. Retrieved July 12, 2018. In 1984, the station was sold to Steve Garman, along with its FM sister station, for $628,000. The station would continue airing a country music format until March 1992, when the station adopted a

talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. They may feature monologues, dialogues between the hosts, Interview (jo ...

format. WEIC-FM was sold to the Cromwell Group, Inc., which owns stations in Mattoon and Effingham, Illinois, in 1993. The station was purchased by Gary Lee in early January 1995.About Us.
weic1270.org. Internet Archive. July 28, 2011. Accessed January 1, 2014 Under Lee's ownership, WEIC began a Southern Gospel music format, which was heard on 1270 from November 26, 1994 until October 7, 2011. While airing the Southern Gospel format, it was a reporting station to the

Singing News Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define singi ...

magazine's top 80 chart. Lee died in 2003, and his son Brad inherited the station and operated it until he sold the station to the Miller Media Group's Kaskaskia Broadcasting, Inc. of Taylorville, Illinois, on October 7, 2011. Miller immediately took the station off the air to re-tool and re-program for its new

News-Talk Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. They may feature monologues, dialogues between the hosts, interviews wi ...

and agriculture format which premiered October 19, 2011. Miller changed the call letters of the station to WRJM at the FCC on January 4, 2012; the call letters officially were changed on the air on February 1, 2012. The News-talk format featured a live and local morning show with expanded local newscasts and 3 local interview shows each day.WRJM Program Schedule
WRJM Daily News.com. December 2, 2013. Accessed January 1, 2014 Hourly local news updates aired 24/7 at 30 minutes past each hour. WRJM featured over 6 hours a day of agriculture programming, including programming from the RFD Radio Network, and the AgriTalk Radio Network. Sunday's programming line-up on WRJM included the long-running Gospel Sing Time with Brad Lee from 7 to 11am. WRJM programming was also heard on a new FM repeater covering Coles County and surrounding area at 107.1 FM, which went on the air December 5, 2011. The repeater moved to 96.1 FM as W241BU on July 24, 2013.Application Search Details
fcc.gov. Accessed January 1, 2014 WRJM local programming was also streamed on-line on its web site, WRJMdailynews.com since February 1, 2012. The station began streaming on October 22, 2012, and available on smartphones through tunein.com, as of October 26, 2012. WRJM obtained the rights to Chicago Cubs baseball on April 9, 2012 and aired games in the 2012 and 2013 season. WRJM was the flagship station for

Eastern Illinois Panthers The Eastern Illinois Panthers are the intercollegiate athletic programs of Eastern Illinois University (EIU) located in Charleston, Illinois, United States. The Panthers athletic program competes at the NCAA Division I level and is a member of th ...

football, in 2012 and 2013. Charleston High School sports broadcasts moved from Eastern Illinois University's WEIU to WRJM on September 28, 2012.Hall, Erik.
Extended Online Version: Charleston sports return to AM 1270
, ''Journal Gazette'' & ''Times Courier''. October 28, 2012. Retrieved July 15, 2018. The NCAA, which regulates college athletics, issued a rule in August 2012, that high school sports could not be broadcast on a college station for fear the broadcasts would unduly influence recruiting at that university. WRJM broadcast the remainder of the 2012 Charleston High School football season, as well as all boys' and girls' basketball games, and a "Game of the Week" featuring Charleston baseball and softball. WEIC celebrated its 57th anniversary on the air with a four and a half hour interview show on Saturday, December 10, 2011. WEIC ceased operations at 12:01 a.m. January 1, 2014. The studio location was sold and turned into farmland. WEIC's FM repeater at 96.1 was sold to Bud Walters, owner of the Cromwell Group of radio stations in Mattoon.

Translator

References

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External links

in the FCC Licensing and Management System
FCC History Cards for WEIC
(covering 1953-1980) EIC Defunct radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1954 Radio stations disestablished in 2014 1954 establishments in Illinois 2014 disestablishments in Illinois EIC