WMGO

WMGO (1370 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a full service format.[1] Licensed to Canton, Mississippi, United States, the station serves the Jackson, Mississippi area. The station is currently owned by WMGO Broadcasting Corp.[2]

WMGO
Broadcast areaJackson, Mississippi
Frequency1370 kHz
Branding1370 WMGO
Programming
FormatFull-service
AffiliationsSupertalk Mississippi
Ownership
OwnerWMGO Broadcasting Corp.
History
First air date
1953 (as WDOB)
Former call signs
WDOB (1953–1963)
Call sign meaning
Watch Madison Go
Technical information
Facility ID73259
ClassD
Power1,000 watts day
28 watts night
Transmitter coordinates
32°37′36″N 90°1′47″W

History

On July 10, 1952, the Madison County Broadcasting Company, owned by Annie Dee Davis, James T. Ownby, and J. Dige Bishop, received a construction permit from the Federal Communications Commission for a new daytime-only radio station on 1370 kHz at Canton.[3] Originally broadcasting with 500 watts, WMGO began broadcasting in 1953; it was approved to increase power to 1,000 watts the next year.[3] The original owners filed to transfer control of the station to W. E. Farrar, R. E. and Lucille Hook, and Hugh Hughes in 1956; Hook bought out Farrar and Hughes the next year.[3]

In 1963, the Hooks sold the station to Roy James Loflin, Jr., and Wilbur Rodney Williams. As the sale awaited completion, the station was briefly taken off-air in April when a tractor plowed into the transmission line; the engineer intervened in time to prevent the driver from touching the electrified wiring.[4] The new owners relaunched the station as WMGO on July 9, 1963, from new studios.[3][5] Two years later, they sold WMGO to the Canton Broadcasting Corporation.[3] Under Canton Broadcasting ownership, the station continued to have an almost entirely White air staff, with the only Black personalities featured on Sunday mornings.[6] Canton retained the station for more than 15 years, selling to two men from Fairhope, Alabama, in 1981;[7] they owned the station until 1990, when it was sold to McCulloch.[8] New investors were brought in in 1993.[9]

WMGO was joined by an FM sister station in 1997 when owner Jerry Lousteau built WMGO-FM 93.1, licensed to Yazoo City.[10] In 2014, WMGO owner Lousteau revealed that political ads placed on the station against United States Senate candidate Chris McDaniel, linking him to the Ku Klux Klan, had been placed by a Democratic Party operative.[11]

WMGO also broadcasts short form local news simply branded as "The Local Report". The program focuses on local news, weather, and obituaries in Canton, and airs at 7, 8 and 9 AM, and at noon and is anchored by WMGO owner Jerry Lousteau.

References
  1. "Station Information Profile". Arbitron. Summer 2009. Archived from the original on September 23, 2009. Retrieved 2009-10-07.
  2. "WMGO Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division. Retrieved 2009-10-07.
  3. FCC History Cards for WMGO
  4. "Tractor Put Radio Station Off The Air". Clarion-Ledger. UPI. April 9, 1963. p. A-6. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  5. "Something New With Radio!". Clarion-Ledger. July 7, 1963. p. E-4. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  6. Rucker, LaReeca (February 18, 2006). "Journey Awards to honor 3". Madison County Herald. pp. 1A, 6A. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  7. "Station sold". Northside Sun. August 13, 1981. p. 5A. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  8. "For the Record" (PDF). Broadcasting. April 30, 1993. p. 91. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  9. "Transactions" (PDF). Radio & Records. April 2, 1993. p. 8. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  10. Baswell, Allen (July 2, 1997). "Radio station sets air date for July". Yazoo Herald. p. 8B. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  11. Hall, Sam (August 5, 2014). "Radio station owner: Brand behind KKK ads (audio)". Clarion-Ledger. Retrieved June 26, 2020.


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