WQDR-FM
Quadraphonic rock | |
Technical information | |
---|---|
Facility ID | 9076 |
Class | C |
ERP | 95,000 watts |
HAAT | 512 meters (1,680 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 35°40′35″N 78°32′9″W / 35.67639°N 78.53583°W |
Translator(s) | HD2: WPLW-FM § Translators HD3: See WQDR (AM) § Translators |
Links | |
Website | 947qdr.com |
WQDR-FM (94.7
WQDR-FM's studios and offices are on Highwoods Boulevard in Raleigh.[3] The transmitter is off Business Route 70 in Garner, on an antenna used by many Raleigh TV and FM stations.[4] WQDR-FM is a Primary Entry Point (PEP) station for the
History
Early years
In August 1949, the Durham Life Insurance Company
The creative force behind a change to a rock music format was Durham Life Broadcasting's then President and General Manager, Carl Venters. Venters, who succeeded Richard Mason in June 1972, believed
Quadraphonic rock
Venters hired
The new format went on the air on December 26, 1972 at midnight. The last song on WPTF-FM was "
In its rock days, WQDR garnered some impressive listener ratings. Among the many memorable on-air personalities during the WQDR rock era were David Sousa, Frank Laseter, Mike Koste, Bill Hard, Jason Janulis, Roger Nelson, Bob Heymann, Steve Mitchell, Mark Silver, John Scott (John Chrystal), Chris Miller, Keith Wilson, Jim Huste, Sean Sizemore (Sean Scott), and Rad Messick. In later years, the air staff included Greg Wells, Jo Leigh Ferriss, Bob Kirk (Robert Kirk), Daniel Brunty, Tom Gongaware, Bob Walton, Rockin' Ron Phillips, Tom Guild, Tim Sullivan(Tim Sampair over-nights), John Lisle, Steve Kahn, Tom Evans, Brian McFadden, Cabell Smith (who was previously WDBS's morning classical DJ), Bob Robinson, and Pat Patterson, who was hired for mornings in 1978 after years at crosstown Top-40 station
In 1977, the Durham Life Broadcasting Company bought a local television station, Channel 28 WRDU-TV (now WRDC) in Durham. WQDR's transmitter joined Channel 28, renamed WPTF-TV, using a 1,200-foot (370 m) tower that stood off Penny Road in Apex.
Switch to country
Despite continued success as a rock station into the 1980s, the Durham Life Broadcasting Company decided WQDR would have more success in the country music format. Venters left to form Voyager Communications group in 1982. In the summer of 1984, Durham Life Broadcasting, under Don Curtis' management, announced plans to switch WQDR's format to country in September. This predictably set off a howl of protest from listeners, and added media coverage for the station and its staffers. When Durham Life flipped WQDR to country music in early September 1984, several fired DJs and a number of off-air personnel re-appeared on 106.1 WRDU-FM (now WTKK), owned by Voyager Communications.[7] WRDU-FM made the opposite switch, going from Country to Rock, on the same day as WQDR's format flip.
WQDR ended its run as a rock station exactly how it began 12 years earlier, closing out with "
WQDR's switch to country gave listeners in the Raleigh market the chance to hear their favorite country artists on a full-power FM station, broadcasting in stereo. Till the 1980s, most country stations were on the AM band. In 1987, Durham Life moved the studios for WQDR and WPTF radio from Salisbury Street to a new broadcast center at 3012 Highwoods Boulevard in North Raleigh, where they were joined by WPTF-TV, which moved from studios on NC Highway 54 in Durham. On December 10, 1989, WPTF-TV, broadcasting from a 2,000-foot (610 m) antenna near Garner, lost its tower when it collapsed due to uneven ice thawing. WPTF-TV returned to its former tower in Apex, with WQDR, to be joined by 101.5
After three nominations in previous years, WQDR won Country Music Association Large-Market Station of the Year in 2011.[12]
In 2010, the station's
Programming
WQDR's morning radio team, dubbed "The Q Morning Crew," features former overnight personality Mike Wheless and Amanda Daughtry. From 2004 to 2006 The Q Morning Crew also included the country singer Heather Green.[13] After Green's exit, the show added broadcasting newbie Janie Carothers and Marty "The One Man Party" Young to the lineup. It is one of the most popular morning radio shows in the Raleigh media market.
Until the end of 2010,
Some of the notable radio announcers that used to work at the radio station included long-time employee and morning man Jay Butler, Program Director and afternoon drive personality Dale Van Horn, and fan favorite Amy Ashe in mid mornings. In January 2018, then-Program Director and afternoon
During the mid 1990s Jerry Carrol hosted a show called Wild Man Wednesday. The show aired from 7 am to 9 am every week on Wednesday.[16]
References
- ^ "WQDR Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
- Arbitron.
- ^ 947QDR.com/contact
- ^ Radio-Locator.com/WQDR-FM
- ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "North Carolina EBS Training". YouTube.
- ^ "Broadcasting Yearbook 1950 page 228" (PDF).
- ^ Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 1985 page B-202
- ^ "The Day The Music Died: WQDR 94.7 FM". candidslice.com. 20 September 2014. Retrieved 21 September 2014.
- ^ Bailey, Sean (13 December 1990). "Trial puts focus on personnel; sexual harassment by woman alleged". The News and Observer. Raleigh, NC. p. 25. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
- ^ "Woman involved in custody dispute resigns job". The News and Observer. 28 February 1991. p. 16. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
- ^ "Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 1992 page A-255" (PDF).
- News & Observer. Retrieved 2011-10-27.
- ^ index
- Triangle Business Journal. Retrieved 2011-02-09.
- ^ "Listeners And Coworkers Mourn Loss Of WQDR's Lisa McKay". Insideradio.com. Retrieved 2018-04-08.
- ^ Davis, Richard (January 1997). "Wake-up Man Does Stand-up Job as Farmer, Comic". North Carolina Farmer. pp. 10, 11.
External links
- Official website
- WQDR in the FCC FM station database
- WQDR in Nielsen Audio's FM station database