WRKS (105.9 FM, "The Zone") is a radio station licensed to Pickens, Mississippi, although its studio is located in Ridgeland, Mississippi. Launched on July 2, 2009, the station's format is

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 ...

, with programming from

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 ...

. WRKS is owned by

Alpha Media Alpha Media LLC is a radio broadcasting company based in Portland, Oregon, and led by Bob Proffitt. The group does business under the Alpha Media name. It was formed from the merger of Alpha Broadcasting, L&L Broadcasting, and Main Line Broadc ...

through licensee Alpha Media Licensee LLC Debtor in Possession. Along with five other sister stations, its studios are located in Ridgeland, a suburb of Jackson, while the transmitter

tower A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...

is in Canton.

History

105.9 FM started out in 1980 with the

call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally as ...

WXMR. (A variety-format, low-powered radio station in

Marengo, Illinois Marengo is a city in McHenry County, Illinois, McHenry County, Illinois, United States on the Kishwaukee River. It lies approximately 60 miles west northwest of Chicago, Illinois, Chicago and approximately 30 miles east of Rockford, Illinois, Ro ...

has since taken over the WXMR call-letters.) On June 1, 1982, the call sign was changed to WLTD, then to WYJS on December 15, 1995. On January 16, 2004, the call sign was again changed to WOAD-FM with an urban gospel format as "Power 105.9". On July 3, 2009, the urban gospel format was dropped for a sports format as "The Zone" with the call sign again changing to WZNO. The station had been owned by Inner City Broadcasting of New York City until Inner City Broadcasting's

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the deb ...

in the early 2010s, at which time YMF Media took over the station. The WRKS callsign had been used for a New York station on 98.7 FM until its owner,

Emmis Communications Emmis Corporation is an American media conglomerate based in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. Emmis, based on the Hebrew word for "Truth" (''Emet'') was founded by Jeff Smulyan in 1980. Emmis has owned many radio stations, including KPWR ...

, flipped to an

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) ...

and sold the rights to the WRKS name to YMF, which then transferred it to WZNO.FCC Call Sign History for WRKS
/ref> WRKS and five other YMF Media stations were sold to L&L Broadcast Holdings on September 24, 2013. The purchase price was $9.4 million. Since July 1, 2014, the station has been owned by Alpha Media, following a further merger.

References

External links

*
FCC History Cards for WRKS
RKS Sports radio stations in the United States ESPN Radio stations Radio stations established in 1980 Alpha Media radio stations Holmes County, Mississippi 1980 establishments in Mississippi {{Mississippi-radio-station-stub