WEAL

Infobox Radio station
name = WEAL


city = Greensboro, North Carolina
area = Greensboro and Vicinity
branding = "Big WEAL"
slogan =
airdate =
frequency = 1510 kHz
format = Gospel
power = 820 Watts (Daytime)
200 Watts (Critical hours)
erp =
class =
callsign_meaning = Pronounced Wheel
former_callsigns =
owner = Entercom Communications
licensee = Entercom Greensboro License, LLC
sister_stations =
webcast =
website =
affiliations =

WEAL ("Big WEAL") is a gospel radio station in Greensboro, North Carolina targeting African Americans. It is located at 1510 and broadcasts only during daylight hours allowing "clear channel" station WLAC in Nashville, Tennessee to cover the southern portion of the Atlantic coast.

History

WEAL signed on in the early 1960s as Greensboro's only black radio station. It provided music and information; for people who could not read, WEAL provided an important service [Jeri Rowe, "WEAL - When Guilford's First Black Radio Station Came on the Air in 1962, People Learned to Depend on It; The Same Is True Today," "Greensboro News & Record", February 20, 2000.] . In 1963, Bill Mitchell left WPET to run WEAL. Among his accomplishments: the program "Sounder", co-hosted by a black man and a white woman [Jeri Rowe, "'King' of Local Radio Dies at Age 78 - Radio Pioneer Bill Mitchell Helped Introduce Rock 'N' Roll to the City," "Greensboro News & Record", December 6, 2000.] .

Among WEAL's best-known DJs were Alfred G. Richard and "Merrill the Pearl" Watson [Tanya N. Ballard, "Radio Legend Still Riding High on the Local Airwaves," "Greensboro News & Record", October 11, 1997.] . Additional well known announcers were Prince Ike, Sam the Sham Tate, The "Cookin Ty Miller", Tony "TonyB" Welborne, and Bob Jones.

In 1997, Sinclair Broadcast Group purchased WEAL and WQMG from Max Media, which bought the stations in 1996. The deal also included WMQX and WJMH [Jeri Rowe, "Triad Radio Cranks It Up - The Triad's Radio Market Has Been Transformed from a Mom-And-Pop Outfit Into Big Business," "Greensboro News & Record", January 3, 1999.] . In July 1999, Sinclair announced it would sell its four Greensboro radio stations to Entercom Communications [Amy Joyner, "Popular Triad Radio Stations to Be Sold Soon - Four Stations Will Change Hands, But Their Formats Reportedly Won't Be Altered," "Greensboro News & Record", July 28, 1999.] .

With FM reaching the same audience by the 1990s, the station began phasing out secular music. For several years, the station's call letters were WQMG-AM.

References

External links

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Surname of sisters Lucy Weal and Amy-Lee Weal.