WDDW
| File:Wddw.png | |
| City of license | Sturtevant, Wisconsin |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Milwaukee/Racine |
| Branding | "La Gran D" |
| Frequency | 104.7 FM MHz |
| First air date | June 18, 1993 |
| Format | Traditional Mexican Music |
| ERP | 4,200 watts |
| HAAT | 103 meters |
| Class | A |
| Facility ID | 53506 |
| Former callsigns | WZXA (1989-1997) WEXT (1997-2005) |
| Owner | Bustos Media (Bustos Media of Wisconsin, LLC) |
| Website | http://www.radiolagrande.com/ |
WDDW (104.7 FM) is a Spanish language radio station licensed to Sturtevant, Wisconsin, and serving the Milwaukee and Racine area. It is owned by Bustos Media. WDDW is also known as "La GranD", and plays traditional Mexican music. The station's signal covers mostly the central and southern portions of the Milwaukee area due to WTKM-FM being next door at 104.9 and serving the northern portion of the market.
History
The frequency was licensed on September 26, 1989 as WZXA, and finally signed on the air June 18, 1993. In 1994, the station aired a mixture of satellite and local Hot Adult Contemporary as "Sunny 104.7", targeting Racine and Kenosha with their transmitter site located in Franksville, WI. The station was owned by Pride Communications.
In the spring of 1997, WZXA flipped to current country music as WEXT "Extreme Country 104.7". Pride Communications was sold to NextMedia in 2000, though no major format changes were made. In February 2004 NextMedia turned on their new Oak Creek transmitter, which gave the station an improved signal into the Milwaukee area. The format was tweaked on March 6, 2004, when it evolved into a mixture of current and classic country as "104-7 The Wolf". Instead of a jingle, The Wolf would usually play a wolf howling between songs.
On October 13, 2005, Bustos Media agreed to purchase the station from NextMedia Group for $10.2 million, with the intention of flipping to a Spanish-language format. On September 15, 2005, prior to Bustos taking over the station, WEXT dropped its country format and began simulcasting then-sister station WIIL Kenosha. To advertise the end that morning, The Wolf replaced the wolf-howling sound effect with the sound of a dying wolf howling. The Wolf signed off at 12 noon that day with Blackhawk's Goodbye Says It All. The new format, with new call sign WDDW, launched on September 16, 2005 to great fanfare as it became the Milwaukee area's first-ever full-time Spanish language FM station.
There were early problems before and after the launch of "La Gran D". For example, the station was supposed to launch at 10am on the 16th with the president of the Milwaukee Hispanic Chamber Of Commerce “pressing the button” to launch it. The station, in fact, did not sign on until 11:50 that morning with El Aretito by Los Morros Del Norte. The station had to operate from Kenosha even after Bustos bought it, and had to build their own studios. They still go through periods where their STL connection will be lost and the station will broadcast 5–12 hours of dead air while they get the connection back on.
In September 2010, Bustos transferred most of its licenses to Adelante Media Group as part of a settlement with its lenders.[1] Bustos Media bought WDDW back from Adelante for $1 million on July 31, 2015.[2][3]
Past Logos
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WZXA.jpg
"Sunny 104.7" WZXA logo from 1994-1997
-
WEXT1.jpg
"Extreme Country 104.7 WEXT" logo from 1997-2004
-
WEXT2.jpg
"104-7 The Wolf WEXT" logo from 2004-2005
References
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- Cheers greet switch to Spanish
- Spanish-language radio station gets new owner
- Bustos Media press release
External links
- Bustos Media
- Query the FCC's FM station database for WDDW
- Radio-Locator information on WDDW
- Query Nielsen Audio's FM station database for WDDW
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