Wikipedia

WOIR

WOIR (1430 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a Spanish-language Christian format licensed to Homestead, Florida, United States, and serving South Florida. The station is currently owned by ERJ Media, LLC, a subsidiary of the El Rey Jesús church in Miami, and programmed by the Iglesia Pentecostal Víspera del Fin.

WOIR
Broadcast areaMiami area
Frequency1430 kHz
Programming
FormatSpanish Contemporary Christian
Ownership
OwnerERJ Media, LLC
OperatorIglesia Pentecostal Víspera del Fin (sale pending)
History
First air date
November 2, 1957 (1957-11-02)[1]
Former call signs
  • WSDB (1957–1963)
  • WIII (1963–1972)
  • WRSD (1972–1974)
  • WQDI (1974–1985)[2]
  • WRBA (1985–1987)
Technical information[3]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID13776
ClassB
Power5,000 watts day
500 watts night
Transmitter coordinates
25°27′09″N 80°30′59″W / 25.45250°N 80.51639°W / 25.45250; -80.51639
Links
Public license information
Websitelacadenadelafamilia.com

History

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Early years

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On May 29, 1957—nearly two years after the filing was made—South Dade Broadcasting Co. was granted a construction permit to build a new radio station to serve Homestead on 1430 kHz, with 500 watts during daytime hours only.[2] The station went on the air November 2 of that year, becoming the first broadcasting outlet in southern Dade County.[1] In 1962, Seven League Productions purchased WSDB; the transaction closed in January 1963, and the call sign was changed to WIII that April.[2] Seven League, however, struggled financially. In 1964, two groups sought the license for themselves: one, another group known as South Dade Broadcasting Company, ended up purchasing Seven League in 1966, beating out Redlands Broadcasting, a group that included a former mayor of Homestead.[4]

In 1972, Clement Littauer purchased control of WIII. Littauer had owned two radio stations in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and had started the only English-language TV station there.[5] The call letters changed to WRSD on June 1 of that year,[2] changing to a middle-of-the-road format.[6] Two years later, WRSD became WQDI when Southland Radio, Inc., acquired it; Southland flipped WQDI to country, the only format it ran at its stations.[7] During Southland ownership, the daytime-only station was approved in 1978 to begin nighttime service, which was activated in 1980.[2]

Southland Radio sold WQDI to Miami physician Ramiro Marrero in 1984 for $1.265 million;[8] the station changed call signs to WRBA on September 15, 1985. However, WRBA's operational existence would prove short-lived. On the evening of August 15, 1986, the station informed its listeners it was going off air to perform construction work at its office; no such construction ever materialized, and the same day, the owners had filed for bankruptcy.[9]

Radio Continental

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WRBA was bought out of its silence by the Continental Broadcasting Corporation in 1987 and emerged as a Spanish-language station, WOIR "Radio Continental". The station's primary audience consisted of listeners of Mexican and Central and South American origin.[10] In 1991, Carlos and Angela López reached a deal to buy WOIR, making it the first Miami-area station to be owned by Colombian Americans.[10]

During Hurricane Andrew, Radio Continental was credited with saving the lives of hundreds of farmworkers in a labor camp. General manager Armando Gallegos remained on the air from the afternoon until midnight, pleading for listeners to evacuate; there were no deaths or injuries. The hurricane toppled both of the station's towers; after the storm, the engineer improvised a new antenna using a tree, and with aid from the city of Homestead and the Department of Defense, the station was back on air.[11]

Christian radio

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In 1995, Continental Broadcasting sold WOIR to Corpo-Mex, Inc.[12] The format continued, but the presence of religious programming on the frequency, branded as Radio Amanecer, increased, dominating by 1999.[13] In 2001, Amanecer Christian Network, Inc., purchased WOIR from Corpo-Mex for $2.58 million.[14]

Amanecer Christian Network went into receivership in 2008, and a new investment company replaced it as the licensee; one of the two major debtors was Corpo-Mex, which had sold the station to Amanecer Christian Network in 2001.[15]

ERJ Media filed to sell the station for $900,000 to Iglesia Pentecostal Víspera del Fin of Seattle, which airs Spanish-language Christian programming under the name Tu Familia Radio on stations on the West Coast, in December 2022. The church then assumed programming responsibilities for WOIR on December 16, 2022.[16]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Homestead Station to Broadcast". The Miami Herald. November 2, 1957. p. 7-A. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e

    FCC History Cards for WOIR

  3. ^ "Facility Technical Data for WOIR". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  4. ^ Du Priest, Bill (March 19, 1966). "Dade Group Buying Radio Station WIII". The Miami Herald. p. 2-B. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  5. ^ "Clement Littauer, Pioneer in TV". The Miami Herald. March 20, 1978. p. 3-B. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  6. ^ "'MOR'—something for everyone". The Miami News. pp. 1D, 2D. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  7. ^ Woods, Sherry (March 31, 1975). "Woman to manage WLYF here". The Miami News. p. 8B. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  8. ^ "Changing Hands" (PDF). Broadcasting. February 20, 1984. p. 78. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  9. ^ Ulrich, Yolanda (August 24, 1986). "Sole radio station in Homestead goes off the air". The Miami Herald. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  10. ^ a b Parga, Beatriz (March 6, 1991). "Radio Continental pasaría a empresarios colombianos" [Radio Continental to be sold to Colombian businessmen]. El Nuevo Herald (in Spanish). p. 1B. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  11. ^ de la Cruz, Rafael (September 3, 1992). "Emisora hispana salvó la vida a residentes del Campamento Everglades" [Hispanic station saved the life of residents of the Everglades Camp]. El Nuevo Herald (in Spanish). p. 19A. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  12. ^ "Transactions" (PDF). Radio & Records. November 2, 1995. p. 6. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  13. ^ Glasgow, Kathy (September 23, 1999). "Getting Organized". Miami New Times. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  14. ^ "Transactions" (PDF). Radio & Records. April 13, 2001. p. 8. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  15. ^ "Reception made for Miami AM". Radio Business Report. February 3, 2009. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  16. ^ Venta, Lance (December 16, 2022). "Station Sales Week of 12/16". RadioInsight. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
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