View source for WOOD-FM

{{Short description|News/talk radio station in Muskegon, Michigan}}
{{about|the current WOOD-FM in Muskegon, Michigan|the station that bore the WOOD-FM call letters from 1962 to 2010|WSRW-FM}}
{{Infobox radio station
| name             = WOOD-FM
| above            = Simulcast of [[WOOD (AM)]], [[Grand Rapids, Michigan|Grand Rapids]]
| logo             = File:WOOD Newsradio106.9-1300 logo.png
| city             = [[Muskegon, Michigan]]
| area             = [[Grand Rapids metropolitan area]]<BR>[[West Michigan]]
| branding         = ''NewsRadio WOOD 1300 and 106.9 FM''
| airdate          = {{start date and age|1962|11}}
| frequency        = 106.9 [[MHz]] {{HD Radio}}
| format           = [[Talk radio|News/talk]]
| subchannels      = HD2: [[WKBZ]] simulcast
| erp              = 50,000 [[watt]]s
| haat             = {{convert|146|meters}}
| class            = B
| facility_id      = 25086
| callsign_meaning = Furn[[wood]] Broadcasting; WOOD (AM) was funded originally by [[furniture]] manufacturers
| former_callsigns = WMUS-FM (1962–1965)<br>WFFM (1965–1970)<br>WMUS-FM (1979–2005)<br>WMUS (2005–2010)
| affiliations     = [[CBS News Radio]]<BR>[[Fox News Radio]]<BR>[[Compass Media Networks]]<BR>[[Premiere Networks]]<BR>[[Grand Rapids Griffins]]<BR>[[Michigan IMG Sports Network]]<BR>[[Michigan Radio Network]]
| owner            = [[iHeartMedia, Inc.]]
| licensee         = iHM Licenses, LLC
| sister_stations  = [[WKBZ]], [[WMRR]], [[WMUS]], [[WSNX]]
| webcast          = [https://www.iheart.com/live/wood-radio-1069-fm-1300am-1165/ Listen Live]
| website          = [https://woodradio.iheart.com/ woodradio.iheart.com]
| licensing_authority= [[Federal Communications Commission|FCC]]
}}
'''WOOD-FM''' (106.9 [[Hertz|MHz]]) is a [[commercial radio|commercial]] [[radio station]] [[city of license|licensed]] to [[Muskegon, Michigan]], serving [[West Michigan]] and is owned by [[iHeartMedia, Inc.]]  It [[simulcast]]s a [[talk radio|news/talk]] [[radio format]] with [[sister station]] [[WOOD (AM)|WOOD]] [[1300 AM]]. The studios and offices are at 77 Monroe Center in Downtown Grand Rapids.  Following a local weekday [[drive time]] show, "West Michigan's Morning News", the station carries [[radio syndication|nationally syndicated]] talk shows from [[Sean Hannity]], [[Glenn Beck]], [[Dave Ramsey]], [[Joe Pags]], "[[The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show]]" and "[[Coast to Coast AM]] with [[George Noory]]".  Most hours begin with an update from [[Fox News Radio]].
WOOD-FM has an [[effective radiated power]] of 50,000 [[watt]]s.  Its [[transmitter]] is off South Hilton Park Road in Muskegon.<ref>[https://radio-locator.com/info/WOOD-FM Radio-Locator.com/WOOD-FM]</ref>  WOOD-FM broadcasts using [[HD Radio]] technology.  Its HD-2 [[digital subchannel]] carries programming from co-owned [[WKBZ]] [[1090 AM]].
==History==
The station originally [[sign-on|signed on]] as [[WMUS]]-FM in November 1947.  It was originally on 100.5 on the FM dial.  WMUS-FM was Muskegon's first FM station and came on the air just a few months after its AM sister, [[WKBZ|WMUS]].  By 1950, WMUS-FM had gone [[dark (broadcasting)|dark]], but the station was revived in November 1962.  It had moved to its current frequency of 106.9&nbsp;MHz and a power of 2,850 watts, gradually increased to the current 50,000 watts over the years.  WMUS-FM's original programming consisted of a simulcast of its AM sister station.
In 1965, WMUS 1090 changed format from [[middle of the road (music)|middle of the road]] (MOR) to [[country music]] as "Top Gun Radio". Rather than continue to simulcast, WMUS-FM separated programming and adopted the new call sign WFFM.  In a "storecast" arrangement with Hasper's, a local grocery-store chain, WFFM aired instrumental [[easy listening]] music in monaural sound, interspersed with promotional announcements about Hasper's.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.michiguide.com/history/fmhistory/case1.pdf |title=Essay on the early days of FM radio in Muskegon |publisher=Michigude}}</ref>
The WMUS-FM call letters returned to 106.9 in 1970 and the station resumed its simulcast of the AM's country format.  [[FM stereo]] broadcasting was added in 1975.  WMUS-AM-FM was the main affiliate and flagship station for the [[Grand Valley State Lakers|Grand Valley State Laker]] football radio network.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gvsulakers.com/tvradio/footballradionetwork.html |title=GRAND VALLEY STATE OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE |publisher=Grand Valley State Lakers |access-date=24 November 2010}}</ref> Eventually the AM and FM signals switched roles, with the 50,000-watt stereo FM signal becoming the primary station and AM 1090 becoming the simulcast.
The AM-FM simulcast ended in April 2001 when AM 1090 changed to a news/talk format.  The AM station took the call sign WKBZ which once belonged to one of WMUS' biggest competitor stations.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.michiguide.com/dials/rad-m/wmus.html |title=WMUS FM 106.9 Muskegon |publisher=Michigude}}</ref>
At noon on January 5, 2011, WMUS-FM ended its country sound.  It then switched to a News/Talk format, simulcasting sister station [[WOOD (AM)|WOOD]] [[1300 AM]].  It turned off the stereo equipment and broadcasts in mono, better suited to a spoken word format.  At the same time the WMUS calls and format were moved to 107.9 FM.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/index.ssf/2010/12/muskegon-based_radio_station_s.html |title=MLive article on WMUS |date=10 December 2010 |publisher=MLive |access-date=10 December 2010}}</ref> It acts primarily to fill in gaps in the AM station's signal. The AM station had always been all but unlistenable in Muskegon, [[Holland, Michigan|Holland]] and other areas west of Grand Rapids.
==Signal==
The station can be received across all of West Michigan and as far east as Alma, St. Johns, and Northwest Lansing, with reception also possible in Eastern Wisconsin across [[Lake Michigan]], especially in [[Sheboygan County, Wisconsin|Sheboygan]] and [[Ozaukee County, Wisconsin|Ozaukee]] Counties.  WOOD-FM's short-spaced allocation, lack of stereo limiting its coverage, and higher power means that the [[Brookfield, Wisconsin|Brookfield]]-licensed [[WRXS]] has a much smaller coverage area than most [[Milwaukee]] stations due to the heritage of the 106.9 signal in Muskegon. [[WSAE]] 106.9 "Home FM" in [[Spring Arbor, Michigan]], often overpowers the frequency across south-west lower Michigan.
On June 21, 2021, a lightning strike at the tower site caused a fire that destroyed the transmitter building, temporarily knocking WOOD-FM off the air.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://woodradio.iheart.com/content/2021-06-21-wood-radios-fm-transmitter-temporarily-down/|title = WOOD Radio's FM Transmitter Temporarily Down}}</ref>
==Programming==
WOOD's program director Phil Tower leads an airstaff that includes an [[all news radio|all-news]] morning program, ''West Michigan's Morning News'' with Steve Kelly, Bret Bakita, Lauren Smith, and Rick Albin. ''West Michigan Live'' follows with host Justin Barclay. The rest of the day is filled by: [[Glenn Beck]], [[The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show]], [[Sean Hannity]], [[Dave Ramsey]], [[Joe Pags]] and ''[[Coast to Coast AM]] with [[George Noory]]''.  Most of WOOD Radio's weekday lineup comes from iHeart's [[Premiere Networks]].
Weekend programs and hosts include:  "[[Leo Laporte]]: [[The Tech Guy]]", [[Gordon Deal]], "[[Michael D. Brown|The Weekend with Michael Brown]]", [[Bill Cunningham (talk show host)|Bill Cunningham]] and "Jill On Money".<ref>{{cite web|title=WOOD Radio Program Schedule|url=https://woodradio.iheart.com/schedule/|access-date=2013-05-29|publisher=woodradio.com}}</ref>
WOOD Radio's local newsroom provides local, regional and national news every day of the week, plus world and national news from [[Fox News Radio]]. It also utilizes reports and breaking news coverage through an ancillary affiliation with [[CBS News Radio]].
WOOD Radio is the Grand Rapids home of [[University of Michigan]] [[Michigan Wolverines football|Wolverines football]] and [[Michigan Wolverines men's basketball|basketball]].  It also carries [[Grand Rapids Griffins]] ice hockey.
==References==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
*[https://woodradio.iheart.com/ WOOD-FM official website]
*{{FM station data|25086|WOOD-FM}}
{{Muskegon Radio}}
{{Grand Rapids Radio}}
{{News/Talk Radio Stations in Michigan}}
{{IHeartMedia}}
{{coord|43.230|N|86.084|W|type:landmark_region:US_source:FCC|display=title}}
[[Category:Radio stations in Michigan|OOD-FM]]
[[Category:News and talk radio stations in the United States]]
[[Category:Muskegon, Michigan]]
[[Category:Radio stations established in 1962]]
[[Category:IHeartMedia radio stations]]
[[Category:1962 establishments in Michigan]]