WVOG (600

kHz 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 uni ...

, "Gospel 600") is an

AM radio AM broadcasting is radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation (AM) transmissions. It was the first method developed for making audio radio transmissions, and is still used worldwide, primarily for medium wave (also known as "AM band") transmi ...

station in

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

. The station, whose

call letters 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 Identifier, unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be fo ...

stand for "The Voice of God", is owned by F.W. Robbert Broadcasting Co., Inc. and operates at with 1,000 watts by day and 31 watts night. The format is

Christian radio Christian radio refers to Christian media radio formats that focus on Christian religious broadcasting or various forms of Christian music. Many such formats and programs include contemporary Christian music, gospel music, sermons, radio dramas, ...

with preaching and instruction shows plus Southern Gospel music. WVOG's studios are located on Loumor Avenue in

Metairie, Louisiana Metairie ( ) is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, United States, and is part of the New Orleans metropolitan area. With a population of 143,507 in 2020, Metairie is ...

. The

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 ...

is off River Road, also in Metairie.

History

The first New Orleans station at AM 600

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 1950 as WMRY. It was originally a

daytimer A clear-channel station is a North American AM radio station that has the highest level of protection from interference from other stations, particularly from nighttime skywave signals. This classification exists to ensure the viability of cross ...

, broadcasting at 500 watts during the day and required to sign-off at night to avoid interfering with other stations on the same frequency. WMRY was programmed to the African American community. An advertisement in the 1951 '' Broadcasting Yearbook'', using the vocabulary of that era, said that a half million "

colored ''Colored'' (or ''coloured'') is a racial descriptor historically used in the United States during the Jim Crow era to refer to an African American. In many places, it may be considered a slur. Dictionary definitions The word ''colored'' wa ...

people" lived in the WMRY coverage area and that WMRY was "programmed for

Negro In the English language, the term ''negro'' (or sometimes ''negress'' for a female) is a term historically used to refer to people of Black people, Black African heritage. The term ''negro'' means the color black in Spanish and Portuguese (from ...

es by Negroes." In 1958, WMRY's programming moved over to AM 940 under a new

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 ...

, WYLD. After the move, a new station was launched on the AM 600 frequency by Dave Waagenvord as WWOM ("Wonderful World of Music"). It carried a beautiful music format of mostly instrumental versions of pop songs and music from Broadway and

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

. In 1965, Waagenvord launched 98.5 WWOM-FM (now WYLD-FM), and in 1967, he added a TV station, channel 26 WWOM-TV (now

WGNO WGNO (channel 26) is a television station in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, affiliated with American Broadcasting Company, ABC. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside WNOL-TV (channel 38), an owned-and-operated station of The CW. T ...

). In the 1970s, the station's power increased to 1,000 watts, but it still was not authorized to broadcast at night. In 1974, the station was bought by F. W. Robbert, the current owner. He switched to a

format as WVOG.Broadcasting Yearbook 1979 page C-95
/ref> In the early 2010s, the station received authorization to broadcast at night, although with the low power of 31 watts.

References

External links

WVOG official website

FCC History Cards for WVOG
WVOG Gospel radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1950 1950 establishments in Louisiana Christian radio stations in Louisiana Christianity in New Orleans {{Louisiana-radio-station-stub