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WKZX-FM

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
WKZX-FM
Broadcast areaKnoxville, Tennessee
Frequency93.5 MHz
BrandingLa Líder
Programming
FormatRegional Mexican
Ownership
OwnerBP Broadcasters LLC
History
First air date
September 19, 1967 (1967-09-19)
Former call signs
WLIL-FM (1967–2000)
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID73210
ClassA
ERP2,000 watts
HAAT176 meters
Transmitter coordinates
35°42′38.00″N 84°10′46.00″W / 35.7105556°N 84.1794444°W / 35.7105556; -84.1794444
Links
Public license information
Websitewww.laliderwkzx.com

WKZX-FM (93.5 FM is a radio station broadcasting a Regional Mexican format. Licensed to Lenoir City, Tennessee, it serves the Knoxville, Tennessee, area.

History

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Arthur Wilkerson, owner of WLIL (730 AM), applied for an FM frequency on June 16, 1967. The Federal Communications Commission granted the construction permit on September 1 of that year,[2] and WLIL-FM signed on at 93.5 on September 19, partially simulcasting the AM frequency.[3] It was the second attempt at FM radio from WLIL; Wilkerson had shut down the first, which operated at 100.3—later 100.5—MHz from 1952 to 1955, because he felt if WSM couldn't make a go of it in Nashville, he could not in Lenoir City.[4]

In addition to his radio stations, Wilkerson owned a lumber mill and built custom homes. He served as president of the Tennessee Association of Broadcasters. Wilkerson was also a pilot and restaurant owner.

Wilkerson died in 1998. Two years later, B.P. Broadcasters purchased WLIL-AM-FM, which at the time ran country music formats, for $1 million.[5] B.P. built a new FM tower in the Glendale community near the Loudon-Blount county line.[4] The call letters of the FM station were changed to WKZX-FM on September 20, 2000, and the station changed formats to adult contemporary.

In 2004, WKZX-FM flipped to Regional Mexican.

References

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  1. ^ "Facility Technical Data for WKZX-FM". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ^ FCC History Cards for WKZX-FM
  3. ^ "WLIL-FM" (PDF). Broadcasting Yearbook. 1969. p. B-159 (323). Retrieved March 9, 2020.
  4. ^ a b "WLIL Station History". WLIL. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
  5. ^ "Changing Hands" (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable. August 28, 2000. p. 72. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
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