WURD (900 AM) is a radio station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, broadcasting in an urban talk radio format and owned by LEVAS Communications, LP. It is also simulcast on FM translator W241CH on 96.1 MHz.
 | |
| Broadcast area | Delaware Valley |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 900 kHz |
| Programming | |
| Format | Urban talk |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | LEVAS Communications, LP |
| History | |
First air date | 1958 |
Former call signs | WFLN (1958–1985) WDVT (1985–1988) WFLN (1988–1989) WURD (1989–1999) WEMG (1999–2001) |
Call sign meaning | WURD = Word |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 52442 |
| Class | D |
| Power | 1,000 watts day 105 watts night |
| Translator(s) | 96.1 W241CH (Philadelphia) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Website | 900amwurd.com |
History
editThe station began operations around 1958 as WFLN, serving as a daytime-only AM simulcast of classical station WFLN-FM.
In the early 1980s, the station was sold to veteran Philadelphia broadcaster Frank Ford, who changed the callsign to WDVT and the format to talk. Weekday talk show hosts on WDVT included Peter Tilden, Philadelphia Magazine writer Carol Saline, former Philadelphia Bulletin columnist D.I. Strunk and Ford himself. Weekend specialty shows on the station covered subjects ranging from pro wrestling to gay issues.
WDVT made little impact in the ratings, and after a few years, Ford took the station off the air and returned its license to the owners of WFLN, who sold it to Willis Broadcasting, a Virginia-based religious broadcaster, which changed the call letters to WURD.
In 1996, Spanish broadcaster Alfredo Alonso bought the station for $1.5 million and turned it into a Spanish-language operation as WEMG, "Mega 900." The station became the first property purchased by Alonso, who founded Mega Broadcasting that same year. Eventually, Mega moved the WEMG call sign to 1310 kHz, and sold 900 AM for $8.5 million in 2002.
The new owner, Walter P. Lomax Jr., reinstituted the WURD call sign. After a period of apparent indecision, during which the station aired various types of music and CNN Headline News, management settled on the current talk format.
Post 2024 presidential debate interview
editRadio host Andrea Lawful-Sanders resigned from WURD Radio after acknowledging that her post-debate interview with President Joe Biden included questions pre-selected by Biden's campaign team, the station informed CNN on July 7, 2024. Sara Lomax, president, and CEO, said, "The interview featured pre-determined questions provided by the White House, which violates our practice of remaining an independent media outlet accountable to our listeners".[2]
References
edit- ^ "Facility Technical Data for WURD". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ^ Rothenberg, Eva (2024-07-07). "Radio host who interviewed Biden leaves station after admitting campaign aides gave her pre-selected questions". CNN. Retrieved 2024-07-08.
External links
edit- FCC History Cards for WURD
- Facility details for Facility ID 52442 (WURD) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- WURD in Nielsen Audio's AM station database