WBOW

WBOW was the first radio station in Terre Haute, Indiana. It began in 1927 as WRPI, a service of then Rose Polytechnic Institute. In 1932, it split from the school, went commercial, and took the call letters WBOW, which stand for Banks of the Wabash. It had at least one other frequency before receiving its assignment of 1230 kHz. For years, WBOW was a full-service news and top-40 voice, and often the leading station, in the Terre Haute area. It was long affiliated with NBC radio. In its waning years, its music had changed to adult standards and became affiliated with the ABC Information network. In 1992, WBOW moved to 640 kHz to gain a better signal and wider coverage, but shortly thereafter the station's programming became delivered entirely via satellite.

WBOW changed hands several times through the years, and ultimately went dark when Mike Rice, president of owner Contemporary Media, Inc., lost licenses to all his stations for lack of candor to the FCC during an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct with teenage boys.

The WBOW call letters were resurrected at 1300 kHz and at 102.7 MHz. On AM, WBOW relays ESPN sports programming. On FM, WBOW goes by B102.7.

WBOW AM is simulcast with WSDX AM, relaying ESPN, sports, and some local programming. John David Sell was made PD of the station in 2002 and hosted a call-in talk show, during which time the station was referred to as the "X"--a reference to the fact that the call letters ended in "X," which also provided the name of the show, which was called "Xtreme Sports Talk." Mr. Sell was released in April 2004 and replaced by John Sherman, who also took over responsibilities for the call-in Show. Mr. Sherman left the station in 2006 to pursue a career at Indiana State University and was subsequently replaced by Brent Holl. Mr. Holl changed the sports call-in show to be called "The Drive" and reduced the program to a one-hour show. Mr. Holl was released in April 2008 due to budget concerns, and the programming left to Jason Revere. The call-in show, still called "The Drive," is now hosted by Indiana Baseball Hall-of-Famer and local car salesman Brian Dorsett along with Jimmy Kendall, who also provides play-by-play coverage for local sporting events.

WBOW-FM is a HOT-AC format based on 1980's and 1990's music, along with new releases. It was previously WLEZ with an easy listening music format.

John David Sell programmed the station from 1999 through 2004. Mr. Sell was released in April 2004 and replaced by RJ (no last name given intentionally), who was also the host of the morning show. RJ programmed the station for the next few months until Chris Green was brought in for OM duties. Mr. Green changed the format from Lite Rock to Hot AC, and took over the morning program. During his tenure, Gen Timms cohosted and was released, and Doug Edge, also the GM, joined the morning program, now called "The Morning Buzz." Mr. Green added the program "The Cooper Lawrence Show" based in Atlanta, Georgia, to the late night programming. Mr. Green stayed with the station until March of 2006, when he accepted a position in Lafayette, Indiana.

Sketch Brumfield was then promoted from Production Director to OM and PD for the station. Mr. Brumfield programmed the station for more than two years, during which time Adam Michaels was hired following a dismissal from Mix-FM (100.7) to be the new Production Director. Also added was Dustin Anderson as a backup to Mr. Michaels. The Cooper Lawrence Show was removed the schedule following technical difficulties in October 2007. Mr. Brumfield was released in April 2008 due to budget concerns and replaced by Adam Michaels for programming and Matt Luecking for the afternoon drive program.

The lineup on the station has changed greatly, but the current lineup begins with "The Morning Buzz," which is comprised of Mr. Michaels and Julie Henricks. The Midday program is being helmed by Mrs. Henricks, followed by the afternoon show, which was formerly hosted by Mr. Luecking and is now jockless. Amanda (no last name given intentionally) and Mr. Michaels do weekends, Mr. Anderson was in charge of Production Duties until he recently resigned, and evenings and overnights are music based with no live personnel. Mr. Michaels currently programs the station and Mr. Edge is currently the general manager.

WBOW uses SS32 from Google for automation and Selector for music scheduling.

WBOW's facilities are located at 1301 Ohio Street in Terre Haute, Indiana. The transmitter is located south of Terre Haute at 39° 20' 12.98", -87° 28' 0.01".