Busy Radio Week In South Bend
• Mid-West Family Broadcasting just pulled off a rare double format flip in the space of two days — On Tuesday, the company pulled the plug on Country 96.1 The Ton (WQLQ-HD3/W241AD)/Benton Harbor, MI/South Bend, IN, and is now simulcasting Sports-Talk sister 960 WSBT/South Bend, IN. And at noon on Wednesday, the crew remained busy, transforming WQLQ/South Bend/Benton Harbor from Top 40 Live 99.9 to Alternative, while keeping the same name.
As the dust was still settling, RAMP contacted GM Bill Gamble, who laid out the reasoning behind these moves, starting with 96.1 The Ton — “We’re sad to see The Ton go,” he said. “It sounded great, always had huge turnouts at our events, and everyone in our building was a fan. However, we saw a greater opportunity in putting our sports station, 960 AM WSBT, on 96.1 FM, the former frequency of The Ton.”
Commenting on the new “Live 99.9, The Alternative,” Gamble said, “We decided to play better songs (the ones people like) while keeping the same name; why change your address and make it difficult for people to find you? There was a big void in the market for Alternative music, and that’s what we’re now offering on Live 99.9. We’re playing ‘Everything Alternative.’ We’re excited to bring back a lot of fantastic songs that aren’t currently getting any airplay in South Bend and Southwest Michigan.”
As for the on-air talent, Gamble notes, “Our top-rated morning show with Brooke & Jeffrey remains, Samantha James will do middays, followed by Brooke Hunter in afternoon drive. They both bring great energy and experience to the station.” Most importantly, Gamble added, “No animals or people were harmed or lost their jobs with these changes.”
