WCWA

Infobox_Radio_Station
name = WCWA
area = Toledo, Ohio
branding = Fox Sports Radio 1230 WCWA
frequency = 1230 (kHz)
airdate = April 10, 1938
format = Sports
callsign_meaning = W C-WA (after the St. Lawrence Seaway)
owner = Clear Channel Communications
erp = 1 k watts
class = C
website = [http://www.wcwa.com www.wcwa.com]

WCWA AM 1230 is a radio station licensed to, and serving Toledo, Ohio. It is the second-oldest radio station in Toledo, and during AM radio's heyday it was a close second in popularity to WSPD-AM for many years.

The station signed on in 1938 as WTOL-AM. For many years, WTOL was a family of three broadcast stations which included TV-11, AM-1230 and FM-104.7. Channel 11 remains WTOL to this day and is the most popular television station in Toledo. The call letters were changed in the late 60s, when the two radio stations split from channel 11. The call sign "WCWA," or "seaway," was meant to pay tribute to the St. Lawrence Seaway, of which Toledo was a major port (and the seaway itself a major boon to the city's economy).

WCWA transmits at a power of 1,000 watts, from studios located in the Fort Industry Square building in downtown Toledo. The transmitter is located near the intersection of Hawley & Whittier streets and can be easily seen from the Anthony Wayne Trail.

WCWA is an affiliate of Fox Sports Radio. The station also airs The Jim Rome Show. Starting on April 1st, 2008 the station began airing "DennyRadio" with long time Toledo radio personality Denny Schaffer. The show airs from 10am till noon Monday through Friday.

WCWA is the co-flagship station for Bowling Green State University football. In October 2007, the station was named the new flagship station for Toledo Mud Hens baseball, with all regular season games, playoffs and the Triple-A All-Star Game. The Cleveland Indians' weekday (and some weekend) games are heard on WCWA, with weeknight and other weekend games on its news-talk sister, WSPD. WCWA is also the flagship of University of Toledo women's basketball (with Rich Hoffer as the "Voice of the Lady Rockets"). There is also a big commitment to local high school football on the station, as WCWA broadcasts Toledo Central Catholic High School football, followed by a high school football scoreboard show on Friday nights in the fall.

"Seaway 1230" (as the station was known as for many years) had programmed a long standing pop standards music format until it changed format to talk radio in November 2002. The station's ratings subsequently crashed, and the current sports-talk format was adopted in May 2004; although this change also did nothing to help the station's ratings. Along with abysmal ratings, the format change away from music brought much heated protest within the community, specifically from an organiziation known as CORRAL. CORRAL stood for "Coalition Of Radio's Really Avid Loyal Listeners." This protest fell on deaf ears with station management, who were not looking for ratings but simply a "flanker station" they could use to sell advertising package deals to clients. Four years later, listeners still hope for a return to the Adult Standards music on WCWA.

Since 1967, the station engineer at WCWA and WIOT has been the legendary Dennis Moon. WCWA was known for having a clearer, fuller sound than most AM stations that offered music programming. This has been attributed by many who have worked there to Moon's decades-long devotion to WCWA's audio quality. The "Moon-unit" updated WCWA to digital HD Radio (IBOC) in the summer of 2007. With just 7 watts of digital power, the station can be received in hybrid digital all the way to the Michigan border.

WCWA has also featured a large schedule of ethnic and religious programming for most of its history. This includes shows devoted entirely to Polish, German, Mexican, and Irish music, as well as immensely popular Polka, Jazz, and Gospel programs. In addition to these specialty music programs, WCWA is also the home of several spoken-word religious shows covering many different faiths. Some of these religious shows have been on WCWA since its inception. All or most of these programs survived the format switch and can mainly be heard on weekends.

WCWA is owned by Clear Channel Communications, and is part of that company's Toledo cluster. WTOL/WCWA was owned by Frazier Reams for many years prior to radio deregulation in 1996.

Other stations in that cluster are: WSPD AM 1370, WVKS FM 92.5 (KISS FM), WRVF FM 101.5 (The River), and WIOT FM 104.7.

Former Personalities

*Terry (Gottschalk) Shaw
*Bill Charles
*Bill Stewart
*Rich Hoffer
*Dennis Williams
*Michael Drew Shaw
*Bob Martz
*Bob Kelley
*Dennis Staples
*Larry Weseman
*Jay Richards
*Larry Fletcher
*Cliff Jeffries
*Suzanne Carroll
*Don Edwards - longtime newscaster
*Gary Siegel
*Don King (Saturday Morning LIVE)(The Scoreboard Show)
*David Domanski (Saturday Morning LIVE)
*Joe Zalewski (Polka Spotlight Show)
*Bob Earl Jr. (Polka Spotlight Show)
*Janet Gawle (Melodies of Poland)(STILL ON THE AIR)
*Denny Kutylowski (Melodies of Poland)
*Lyn Casye
*Pete Petersen (German/American Hour)(STILL ON THE AIR)
*Kate Preston
*Fr. Raphael Biernacki (Melodies of Poland)(Orthodox Hour)
*Noah Cope
*John Connelly (Echoes of Ireland) (STILL ON THE AIR)
*Sylvester Duran
*Mike Morrin
*Sir Bernard J. Quayle
*Lee Fowler
*Bob Brown
*Paul W. Smith - later at KYW-AM Philadelphia and WJR Detroit.

External links

* [http://www.wcwa.com WCWA's official website]

The WCWA is also an abbreviation for Washington Civil War Association.