WCRO
| City | Johnstown, Pennsylvania |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Johnstown, Pennsylvania |
| Branding | AM 1230 WCRO |
| Frequency | 1230 kHZ (AM) |
| Format | Nostalgia |
| Power | 1000 watts (unlimited) |
| Callsign meaning | "Something to CROw About!" (former slogan; no longer used) |
| Affiliations | Music of Your Life |
| Owner | Greater Johnstown School District |
| Webcast | Music of Your Life web site |
| Website | WCRO page on school website |
WCRO is an American radio station, operating at 1230 AM in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. The station, owned by the Greater Johnstown School District, programs a nostalgia format provided by the Music of Your Life network, and simulcasts WJAC-TV's newscasts from 5 am to 7 am. WCRO broadcasts at the federally assigned frequency of 1230 kHz, with a full-time power of 1,000 watts.
WCRO has the distinction of retaining the same calls letters since first going on the air in September 1947, and that it has never had a sister FM station co-located with it.
WCRO's first owner was Century Broadcasting Corporation, headed by John Keel. John Hanssen served as the station's first general manager. The station operated then at a power of 250 watts, and was an affiliate of the ABC radio network. Studios were located at 317 Main Street in downtown Johnstown.
In March 1984, Century Broadcasting, after more than 37 years of ownership, sold WCRO to Hamilton Communications, a company headed by Robert Hamilton. Doris Lichtenfels took over as General Manager after Sandy D. Neri left to join WJAC-AM/FM, the latter being newly rechristened as WKYE "Key 95", in September 1983. Studios were then moved to 407 Main Street.
By this time, WCRO had gone into a decline, largely because of the collapse of Johnstown's lucrative coal and steel industries, resulting in a domino effect to the local retail economy. Hamilton Communications responded by selling WCRO to Tschudy Communications in August 1989.
Shortly after Tschudy's takeover, WCRO's full-time airstaff was laid off and replaced with ABC/SMN's "Starstation" adult contemporary format (known today as "Hits and Favorites") also used by neighboring stations WCCS and WOKW. Though the reduced operating costs did help the station's fortunes somewhat, a sale from then-owner Tschudy Communications was inevitable to keep the station from falling into bankruptcy.
WCRO was sold in February 1991 from Tschudy Communications to J. Richard Lee, who formed the Eagle Radio Network, making WCRO its flagship station. Lee had purchased two other AM stations north of Johnstown that had recently gone dark and their studios vacated and assets liquidated through bankruptcy proceedings. Because those stations, WNCC and WRDD, no longer had separate studio buildings or facilities of their own other than their tower sites, they became repeaters for WCRO.
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Wikipedia