WJAG

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

WJAG is an AM radio station in Norfolk, Nebraska. It broadcasts at 780 kHz with a news/talk format.

WJAG was licensed on July 27, 1922, but didn't officially go on the air until September. At 12:15 p.m. on September 13, 1922, WJAG broadcast its first program: a news and farm market report. The station's initial power was 100 watts, and its first broadcasts consisted of three afternoon news and market reports: at 12:15, 3:30 and 5:30. The three reports were termed a "temporary schedule until enough (listener) cards come in indicating changes should be made."

WJAG was founded by the publisher of the Norfolk Daily News. The station's original slogan was "The Voice of the Norfolk Daily News." The newspaper's city editor in 1922, Karl Stefan, anchored the station's first news report and served as chief announcer until his election to Congress in 1935.

WJAG's first studio consisted of a single room in the building that housed the newspaper. Early programming consisted of performances by community choral groups, barbershop quartets and polka bands. The station's first remote broadcast was prompted by a performance by a 67-member choir. The choir was too large to fit in the one-room studio, and the station was able to obtain use of the automobile showroom at the neighboring Buick dealer. A wire was run across the street to carry audio of the choir's performance from the dealership to the studio.

The station did not begin to sell commercial spots until after its fifth year of operation.

Today the station has a news/talk format. It is affiliated with NBC and Westwood One, the Associated Press, and NOAA Weather Radio.

WJAG is the sister station to Norfolk's KEXL-FM.