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WNDZ

WNDZ (750 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station broadcasting an ethnic brokered programming format. LicensedtoPortage, Indiana, it serves the Chicago metropolitan area. The station is owned by Newsweb Corporation with studios on North Milwaukee Avenue in Chicago.

WNDZ is a daytimer station. It transmits 15,000 watts. To send its signal toward Chicago from its transmitter site, it uses a directional antenna with a three-tower array. Because 750 AM is a clear channel frequency reserved for Class A station WSBinAtlanta, WNDZ must go off the air at sunset to avoid interference. The towers are on Bay Road at Robbins Road in Portage.^[3]

Programming[edit]

WNDZ is a brokered programming station, where hosts pay for their time on the air and may advertise their products and services or seek donations. Much of WNDZ's ethnic shows are in Slavic languages including Serbian, Croatian and Macedonian. Other Eastern European languages including Romanian and Albanian.

Spanish-language and English-language religious radio shows are also heard, some of them from EWTN, a Catholic programming service. Automated adult contemporary music (in English) fills the rest of the airtime.

History[edit]

WNDZ began broadcasting on May 13, 1987, as a daytime-only station, running 2,500 watts, and was owned by Universal Broadcasting, with Rick Schwartz as its first General Manager.^[1] The business office and studios were located in Lansing, Illinois.^[1] They are currently on Milwaukee Avenue in Chicago.^[4] The station originally aired a mixture of religious and ethnic programming.^[5] In 1992, the station was sold to Douglas Broadcasting, for $2 million.^[6][7]

In 1994, the station joined Douglas Broadcasting's new AsiaOne network.^[8][9] In 1997, the station's power was increased to 5,000 watts.^[10][11] In late May 1998, the station switched from brokered programming to the motivational "Personal Achievement Radio" network, which moved from WYPA 820.^[12][13] Later that year, the station was purchased by Z-Spanish Radio.^[14][15] In 2000, Z-Spanish Radio was acquired by Entravision Communications.^[16]

In 2004, Entravision Communications sold the station to Newsweb Corporation, along with 99.9 FM WRZA, for $24 million.^[17][18] In 2007, the station's power was increased to 15,000 watts.^[19][20] The format has remained brokered for most of the station's history, even during the time it was owned by Entravision.

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• Facility details for Facility ID 73316 (WNDZ) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
• WNDZinNielsen Audio's AM station database