WXKS (AM)

WXKS (1200 AM; "Bloomberg 1200") is an AM station licensed to Newton, Massachusetts, and serving the Boston, Massachusetts area. It is owned by iHeartMedia. The station carries financial news from Bloomberg Radio.

WXKS is highly directional to protect WOAI (another iHeartMedia-owned station and in fact the company's flagship) out of San Antonio, Texas. The station's studios are located in Medford and the transmitter site is in Newton.

History

The station signed on April 21, 1947 as WKOX, a daytime-only station on 1190 kHz in Framingham. WKOX signed on an FM station at 105.7 in May 1960; it is now known as WROR-FM and is owned by Greater Media. Fairbanks Communications purchased the station in 1970. In 1985, WKOX moved to 1200 kHz to gain authorization to go 24 hours.

For many years, WKOX functioned as a full service station, oriented towards the MetroWest region. However, during the 1990s, the station changed formats constantly; following stints with satellite-fed oldies and talk radio, it became a simulcast of the FM station (by then WCLB-FM, a country music station) on March 1, 1993 (except for morning drive, which continued to be programmed separately), which gave way that August to ABC Radio/Satellite Music Network's Real Country format (offering classic country music to compliment the more contemporary mix heard on WCLB). Another attempt at talk, including a show hosted by former WEEI and WRKO host Gene Burns, was made on October 2, 1995 (by this point, WKOX had begun to orient itself to the Boston market as a whole rather than MetroWest); after only one year, this was replaced with brokered programming in October 1996. Most of the station's programming during this time was ethnic, though for a time contemporary Christian music station WJLT (1060 AM, now WQOM) leased WKOX's overnight hours to extend its programming (at that time, 1060 signed off overnight to protect KYW in Philadelphia).

WXKS

WXKS may refer to: