KWTO-FM
KWTO-FM is a radio stations licensed to Springfield, Missouri, USA. KWTO-FM operates at 98.7 MHz and carries a sports talk format.
The station is owned by Meyer Communications. It and its sister stations KWTO (AM), KBFL, and KTXR, and Baptist Bible College owned KWFC are the only radio stations in the Springfield market to be locally owned and operated.
History
KWTO-FM went on the air in November 1972 at 98.7 FM with a rock format and was known as "Rock 99." This format lasted well into the 1980s until rival station KXUS went on the air in April 1985 with a similar format. Rock 99 was originally an automated music format utilizing the TM Stereo Rock format based from Dallas, TX. Several FM radio stations used this format during the 1970s into the 1980s. These stations had the same announcer and same call letter type music jingles. One example, WIBW-FM 97.3 in Topeka, KS was Rock 97 and sounded just like KWTO-FM Rock 99. That was a great automated music format without the talkative DJ's, it was rock, pop, oldies, and some album cuts. The on-air format basically went like this: Two new songs followed by two older songs then commercial break (usually four commercials) then call letter jingle and back to the music.
KWTO (AM)
KWTO (A.M. 560) is a radio station licensed to Springfield, Missouri, USA. It operates on 560 kHz, where it airs a news-talk format.
The station is owned by Meyer Communications, making it, KWFC, and KTXR the only radio stations in the Springfield market to be locally owned and operated.
History
KWTO was founded by Ralph D. Foster and began broadcasting on December 25, 1933. Foster applied for and got the call letters KWTO, which stood for "Keep Watching The Ozarks." Since the Federal Radio Commission prohibited playing recorded music on the air, the station had its own live bands.
From the 1930s through the 1950s, KWTO's staff musicians included Slim Wilson and the Tall Timber Trio, Chet Atkins, The Carter Family, Wynn Stewart, Les Paul, The Haden Family and The Goodwill Family. KWTO'S Korn's-A-Krackin', a weekly "hillbilly variety" program, was carried nationally by the Mutual Broadcasting System. During the late 1940s and 1950s, the station played a key role in launching the careers of stars such as Porter Wagoner and The Browns. In 1954, the station began carrying Ozark Jubilee, which became an ABC-TV and radio show. In 1959, KWTO broke with its live music tradition and began playing country records, and for the next 30 years was known as "56 Country."
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