WLLF (96.7 FM) is a

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 Mercer, Pennsylvania, and serving the Youngstown metropolitan area. It has a

sports Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in ...

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, ...

, much of it

simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of "simultaneous broadcast") is the broadcasting of programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simultaneously) ...

with co-owned WBBW 1240 AM, from the

Infinity Sports Network Infinity Sports Network is an American sports radio network. It debuted as CBS Sports Radio with hourly sports news updates on September 4, 2012, and with 24/7 programming on January 2, 2013. Infinity Sports Network is programmed by Audacy, In ...

. It is one of seven radio stations in the Youngstown market owned by

Cumulus Media Cumulus Media, Inc. is a broadcasting company of the United States and is the second largest owner and operator of AM and FM radio stations in the United States ahead of Audacy and behind iHeartMedia iHeartMedia, Inc., or CC Media Holdi ...

. The

studio A studio is a space set aside for creative work of any kind, including art, dance, music and theater. The word ''studio'' is derived from the , from , from ''studere'', meaning to study or zeal. Types Art The studio of any artist, esp ...

s and offices are in "The Radio Center" in

Hermitage, Pennsylvania Hermitage is a city in western Mercer County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 16,230 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the largest city in Mercer County. It is located about northeast of Youngstown and abo ...

. WLLF carries a variety of local high school and college sports as well as games from the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

and

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. The Penguins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), E ...

History

The station was first issued a

construction permit Planning permission or building permit refers to the approval needed for construction or expansion (including significant renovation), and sometimes for demolition, in some jurisdictions. House building permits, for example, are subject to bu ...

in March 1984. It

signed on A sign-on (or start-up in Commonwealth countries except Canada) is the beginning of operations for a radio broadcasting, radio or television station, generally at the start of each day. It is the opposite of a sign-off (or closedown in Commonw ...

in January 1985 as WKTX. It was purchased in August 1990 by Mercer County Broadcasting, headed by Patrick Engrao. For a time, this station was co-owned with WKTX in

Cortland, Ohio Cortland is a city in Trumbull County, Ohio, United States. The population was 7,105 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It lies on the eastern shore of Mosquito Creek Lake north of Youngstown, Ohio, Youngstown and is part of the Maho ...

. The WLLF call letters originated in 1991, when the station simulcast Youngstown rock station

WNCD WNCD (93.3 FM) is a commercial radio station serving Youngstown, Ohio, owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. and broadcasting a mainstream rock format. Its signal covers Youngstown, Warren, and New Castle, PA, and at times even reaches Erie and New ...

"The Wolf", then at 106.1

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base u ...

. The call letters have remained on the station since, including when it was a

Smooth Jazz Smooth jazz is commercially oriented crossover jazz music. Although often described as a "genre", it is a debatable and highly controversial subject in jazz music circles. As a radio format, however, smooth jazz radio became the successor to e ...

outlet. In April 2010, Cumulus ended the station's long run as "96.7 The River", a satellite-fed

adult contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul ...

format, and launched a new sports format featuring

ESPN Radio ESPN Radio, which is alternatively branded platform-agnostically as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the banner "SportsRadio ESPN". The netw ...

with the

and

radio networks. The station also carries a local sports show originating at sister station WPIC 790 AM in

Sharon, Pennsylvania Sharon is a city in western Mercer County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city, located along the banks of the Shenango River on the state border with Ohio, is about northeast of Youngstown, about southeast of Cleveland and about northwe ...

. WLLF also carries a variety of local high school and college sports. On January 2, 2013, WLLF switched its network to

CBS Sports Radio Infinity Sports Network is an American sports radio network. It debuted as CBS Sports Radio with hourly sports news updates on September 4, 2012, and with 24/7 programming on January 2, 2013. Infinity Sports Network is programmed by Audacy, Inc ...

, ending its affiliation with

External links

* {{Cumulus Media LLF Radio stations established in 1985 Infinity Sports Network stations Cumulus Media radio stations 1985 establishments in Pennsylvania LLF