WTXT
 | |
| Broadcast area | Tuscaloosa metropolitan area |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 98.1 MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | 98 TXT |
| Programming | |
| Format | Country |
| Subchannels |
|
| Affiliations | Premiere Networks |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| WACT, WRTR, WZBQ | |
| History | |
First air date | January 29, 1977 (as WHKW) |
Former call signs | |
| Technical information[2] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 68418 |
| Class | C1 |
| ERP | 100,000 watts |
| HAAT | 274 meters (899 ft) |
| Translator(s) |
|
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast |
|
| Website | |
WTXT (98.1 FM, "98 TXT") is a commercial radio station licensed to Fayette, Alabama, and serving the Tuscaloosa metropolitan area and west-central Alabama. It airs a country music format and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. WTXT carries two nationally syndicated programs on weekdays: The Bobby Bones Show in morning drive time and After Midnite with Granger Smith overnight.[3] The studios and offices are on 11th Avenue, off Interstate 359 in Tuscaloosa. WTXT calls itself "98 TXT, Tuscaloosa's Country."
WTXT is a Class C1 station. It has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 100,000 watts, the maximum for most FM stations. The transmitter is off Boyd Road near Columbus Creek in Echola.[4] WTXT broadcasts using HD Radio technology. Its HD2 subchannel airs a classic country format known as "The Possum." The HD3 subchannel plays Southern gospel music. They feed FM translators at 92.1 MHz and 96.1 MHz respectively.
History
[edit]In the early 1970s, broadcaster Harlon Kenneth Watts sought to build a new FM station in Fayette and applied for a construction permit from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).[5] While it was still under construction, it was given the call sign WVEL. It signed on the air on January 29, 1977.[6] It used the call letters WHKW, representing Watts' initials.
During the 1980s, the format was Top 40 hits. Watts served as the president and general manager. WHKW was Tuscaloosa's affiliate for the Rick Dees Weekly Top 40. The station's Top 40 format lasted more than a decade.
In the early 1990s, the call sign changed to WTXT and a country music format was adopted. In August 2000, the station was acquired by San Antonio-based Clear Channel Communications, a forerunner to today's iHeartMedia.[7]
In 2006, WTXT added the Big D and Bubba morning show from WYNK-FM in Baton Rouge. The station also had Wild Bill Seckbach hosting afternoons. In 2014, The Bobby Bones Show from Nashville was added to the lineup, replacing Big D and Bubba.
On April 27, 2011, following severe weather known as the 2011 Super Outbreak, WTXT's 860 foot (260 m) broadcast tower in Echola was destroyed. That forced the station to broadcast with a reduced signal. In the Fall of 2012, WTXT returned to full-power from a new tower at the same site.[8]
WTXT's primary coverage area includes Tuscaloosa, Fayette, and Aliceville in Alabama and Columbus, Starkville and West Point in Mississippi. The station's signal extends into the western suburbs of Birmingham (e.g., Bessemer, Fairfield, Hueytown).
References
[edit]- ^ "FCC History Cards for WTXT" (PDF).
- ^ "Facility Technical Data for WTXT". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ^ "Radio Stations: Alabama". After Midnite with Blair Garner. Retrieved January 30, 2013.
- ^ Radio-Locator.com/WTXT
- ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1977 page C-4. Retrieved March 25, 2025.
- ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1980 page C-4. Retrieved March 25, 2025.
- ^ Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 2010 page D-44. Retrieved March 25, 2025.
- ^ Fitzpatrick, Mike. "Tornado Outbreak - Broadcast Engineering.info".
Previous logos
[edit]
External links
[edit]- WTXT official website
- Facility details for Facility ID 68418 (WTXT) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- WTXT in Nielsen Audio's FM station database
- Facility details for Facility ID 138815 (W221DB) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- W221DB at FCCdata.org
- Facility details for Facility ID 147818 (W241BT) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- W241BT at FCCdata.org