commercial
Commercial may refer to:
* (adjective for) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and services
** (adjective for) trade, the trading of something of economic value such as goods, services, information or money
* a dose of advertising ...
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 ...
in
Central Illinois
Central Illinois is a region of the U.S. state of Illinois that consists of the entire central third of the state, divided from north to south. Also known as the ''Heart of Illinois'', it is characterized by small towns and mid-sized cities. Agri ...
with 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 ...
radio format
A radio format or programming format (not to be confused with broadcast programming) describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. The radio format emerged mainly in the United States in the 1950s, at a time when Radio broadcasting, ...
subsidiary
A subsidiary, subsidiary company, or daughter company is a company (law), company completely or partially owned or controlled by another company, called the parent company or holding company, which has legal and financial control over the subsidia ...
of Great Plains Media. Great Plains' CEO is Jerry Zimmer, a longtime partner in the Zimmer Radio Group based in
Cape Girardeau, Missouri
Cape Girardeau ( , ; colloquially referred to as "Cape") is a city in Cape Girardeau County, Missouri, Cape Girardeau and Scott County, Missouri, Scott Counties in the U.S. state of Missouri. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the ...
. WIBL features "20 Songs in A Row" music sweeps at various times each day, resulting in approximately 70 minutes of music without commercials.
WIBL has an
effective radiated power
Effective radiated power (ERP), synonymous with equivalent radiated power, is an IEEE standardized definition of directional radio frequency (RF) power, such as that emitted by a radio transmitter. It is the total power in watts that would ha ...
(ERP) of 14,000
watt
The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of Power (physics), power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantification (science), quantify the rate of Work ...
s, broadcasting from a
transmitter
In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter (often abbreviated as XMTR or TX in technical documents) is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna (radio), antenna with the purpose of sig ...
on South Pine Street in Lexington, Illinois. For a clearer signal in Bloomington-Normal, a 250-watt
FM translator
A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater ( two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or tr ...
The station signed on in . It was known as WBZM, 107.7 The Buzz. WBZM was owned by Cromwell Broadcasting, and was operated out of the company's Peoria cluster. It had an
Alternative Rock
Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...
disc jockey
A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at nightclubs or music fes ...
s were all the same as on 99X, which was, at the time, WIXO on its original Bartonville frequency of 99.9.
When Cromwell sold the Peoria cluster in 2001, WBZM was not included in the sale. Operations were moved to Cromwell's Decatur cluster and WBZM quickly went on the sale block. At the end of 2001, AAA Entertainment purchased the signal and began simulcasting 96.7 WIHN Normal, then later 99.5 WDQZ Lexington.
On March 28, 2003, AAA debuted WYST, an AC station branded as "Star 107.7". In June 2003 the station's signal was upgraded and moved from Fairbury to Lexington, Illinois.
In February 2007, the format was modified to R&B/Soul with the slogan "The Heart and Soul of the Twin Cities", which had more of a rhythmic lean than competitor 100.7 WVMG.
In April 2007 the station began a
local marketing agreement
In North American broadcasting, a local marketing agreement (LMA), or local management agreement, is a contract in which one corporation, company agrees to operate a radio station, radio or television station owned by another party. In essence, it ...
(LMA) with Great Plains Media. No immediate format change was made.
On June 29, 2007, at Noon, just several days after the closing the sale on WYST, Great Plains Media flipped the format to Country as "107.7 The Bull." The station is the first to take on heritage
WBWN
WBWN (104.1 FM, "B104") is a radio station licensed to the community of Le Roy, Illinois, and serving the greater Bloomington, Illinois, area. The station is owned by Cumulus Media.