WDWD

WDWD has a 24-hour schedule of Christian talk and teaching programs, some from local preachers but mostly from national religious leaders. They buy time on WDWD and may use their programs to seek donations to their ministries. Hosts include Jim Daly, James Dobson, David Jeremiah, Michael Youssef, Greg Laurie, Alistair Begg, Charles Stanley, Chuck Swindoll, Eric Metaxas and John MacArthur. News updates are provided by SRN News.

WDWD is one of three Christian talk and teaching stations owned by Salem in Metro Atlanta. WNIV 970 AM and WLTA 1400 AM have a separate schedule. They run some of the same shows as WDVD but at different times.

The station signed on the air on {{start date and age|1937|8|1}}.{{Cite web|url=http://jolomo.net/atlanta/radio-history.html|title=Atlanta Radio History|website=jolomo.net}} Its call sign was WAGA.{{cite web|url=http://www.jeffreyleachman.com/AtlantaAM.html|title=Jeffrey Leachman - Atlanta, Georgia AM Radio Directory|website=jeffreyleachman.com|access-date=April 23, 2018}} It was once the sister station of WAGA-TV, now Atlanta's Fox TV station.{{cite web|url=http://www.fybush.com/sites/2005/site-050218.html|title=A selection from a decade of visits to tower and studio sites in the Northeast and beyond|website=www.fybush.com|access-date=April 23, 2018}} WAGA was powered at 1,000 watts by day and 500 watts at night.[https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC-YB/1939/Radio-by-State-BC-YB-1939.pdf Broadcasting Yearbook 1939 page 100. Retrieved March 18, 2025.]

The Atlanta Journal newspaper, which owned Atlanta's top station, WSB, had difficulty choosing between the two NBC radio networks, the Red Network and the Blue Network. Thus, the Journal established WAGA to carry the Blue Network while WSB carried programming from the Red Network.{{Cite web|url=http://www.tangentsunset.com/radioatlanta.htm|title=Atlanta Radio History|website=www.tangentsunset.com}} WAGA's on-air slogan during the station's early days was "Atlanta's Wave of Welcome". The studios were located in the Western Union Building (current location of Telecom Tower, on the SW corner of Marietta Street and Forsyth Street) in downtown Atlanta. WAGA's transmitter was located at Sugar Creek, three miles from the center of Atlanta. The station moved from 1450 kilocycles to 1480 in 1941, following the enactment of the North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement (NARBA).{{cite web |title=WPLO (WDWD) FCC history cards |url=https://cdbs.recnet.com/corres/?doc=66218 |website=CDBS Public Access |publisher=Federal Communications Commission |access-date=November 18, 2018}} It then moved to the better dial position of 590 AM in 1942.{{cite journal |year=1942 |journal=RADEX Radio Index |title=Radio Index |publisher=The Radex Press |volume=18 |issue=January |page=51 |url=http://davidgleason.com/Archive%20Radex/Radex%20148%20January%201942.pdf |archive-date=March 9, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120309113542/http://davidgleason.com/Archive%20Radex/Radex%20148%20January%201942.pdf}} The 1480 kHz frequency later returned to the air under a new license as WYZE, with no affiliation to WAGA.

Due to FCC rules limiting station ownership, the Journal sold WAGA to Fort Industry Broadcasting of Toledo, Ohio, in the 1940s. In 1948, WAGA acquired an FM sister station when WAGA-FM (now WVEE) began broadcasting. A year later, WAGA-TV signed on as Atlanta's second television station. Fort Industry changed its name to Storer Broadcasting in 1952.

In 1959, WAGA began playing Top 40 hits.{{cite news|title=WPLO 590 Atlanta Playlists 1964-1965|last=Warden |first=Timothy J |publisher=Airheads Radio Survey Archive | year=2003 | access-date=April 25, 2010 |url=http://www.las-solanas.com/arsa/stations_item.php?rsid=833}} The call sign changed to WPLO, which stood for Plough. The station was sold to the broadcasting arm of Plough, Inc., a pharmaceutical company. (FCC rules at the time made call sign change compulsory if a sister television or radio station was sold.){{cite news|title=WPLO 590 Atlanta|last=Farrington |first=Steve |publisher=Steve Farrington | date=April 21, 2002 | access-date=April 25, 2010 |url=http://www.wakeatlanta.com/wplo1_0.html}}

The Top 40 sound ended in 1966, when WPLO switched to a country music format. In 1987, the station changed its call letters to WKHX and adopted the "Kicks 590" slogan still used on WKHX-FM 101.5. The two stations began simulcasting. WKHX 590 once broadcast using the Kahn/Hazeltine AM stereo system. It aired a classic country format beginning in October 1992.{{cite news|title=Offenders of The Faith|last=K. |first=Alex |publisher=Alex K. | date=April 30, 2001 | access-date=April 25, 2010 |url=http://users.eastlink.ca/~amstereo/offenders.htm}}{{Cite web |title=RR-1993-03-26 |url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1993/RR-1993-03-26.pdf |access-date=January 27, 2024 |website=americanradiohistory.com}}

===Radio Disney===

The country format ended in 1996. On November 18th at 5{{nbsp}}a.m., the station flipped to children's radio. It adopted the Radio Disney format with the call sign changing to WDWD.{{Cite web |title=RR-1997-08-29 |url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1997/RR-1997-08-29.pdf |access-date=January 27, 2024 |website=americanradiohistory.com}}

In September 2009, the station was forced off the air for a week when nearby Noses Creek flooded. The creek reached double its flood stage during the historic record-breaking 2009 Atlanta floods. The station had been shut down prior to the flood and the equipment was disassembled and thoroughly cleaned. When the flood waters receded, nearly all of the equipment was salvaged since there had been no short circuiting from the water.

On August 13, 2014, The Walt Disney Company put WDWD and 22 other Radio Disney stations up for sale, in order to focus more on digital distribution of the Radio Disney network.{{cite news|last1=Lafayette|first1=Jon|title=Exclusive: Radio Disney Moving Off Air to Digital|url=http://broadcastingcable.com/news/currency/exclusive-radio-disney-moving-air-digital/133166|access-date=August 13, 2014|date=August 13, 2014}}{{cite magazine|title=Radio Disney to Sell the Majority of Its Stations|url=http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/6214509/radio-disney-to-sell-the-majority-of-its-stations|magazine=Billboard|access-date=August 13, 2014|ref=August 13, 2014}} Disney originally planned to temporarily shut down the station on September 26, 2014.{{cite web |url=http://radioinsight.com/blog/headlines/89717/radio-disney-to-sell-all-but-one-station/ |title=Radio Disney To Sell All But One Station |date=August 13, 2014 |access-date=August 13, 2014 |last=Venta |first=Lance |publisher=Radio Insight }} However, the station remained on the air with Radio Disney programming until it was sold.{{cite web|title=NERW Extra: No Signoffs for Disney AMs|url=http://www.fybush.com/nerw-20140926/|website=Northeast Radio Watch|date=September 26, 2014 |access-date=September 27, 2014}} {{Subscription required}}

On February 25, 2015, Radio Disney Atlanta filed to sell WDWD to South Texas Broadcasting, Inc.,{{cite web|title=Application for Consent to Assignment of Broadcast Station Construction Permit or License|url=http://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/prefill_and_display.pl?Application_id=1671794&Service=AM&Form_id=314&Facility_id=8623|work=CDBS Public Access|publisher=U.S. Federal Communications Commission|access-date=February 25, 2015|date=February 25, 2015}} a subsidiary of the Salem Media Group.{{cite web|url=https://licensing.fcc.gov/cdbs/CDBS_Attachment/getattachment.jsp?appn=101671794&qnum=5130©num=1&exhcnum=1|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150226055644/https://licensing.fcc.gov/cdbs/CDBS_Attachment/getattachment.jsp?appn=101671794&qnum=5130©num=1&exhcnum=1|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 26, 2015|title=Parties to the Application - FCC|website=fcc.gov|access-date=April 23, 2018}} Salem bought the station for $2.75 million.{{cite web |url=http://radioinsight.com/blog/headlines/92099/salem-acquires-disney-properties-in-atlanta-pittsburgh/ |title=Salem Acquires Disney Properties In Atlanta & Pittsburgh |date=February 25, 2015 |access-date=February 25, 2015 |last=Venta |first=Lance |publisher=Radio Insight }} The application to assign the station license was granted by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission on April 13, 2015, and the purchase was consummated on May 7, 2015.

On March 10, 2015, Salem Media CEO Ed Atsinger revealed that Salem would move the WNIV/WLTA programming to WDWD after the completion of the sale.{{cite web|url=http://radioinsight.com/blog/headlines/92300/salem-reveals-pending-formats-for-disney-acquisitions/|title=Salem Reveals Pending Formats For Disney Acquisitions - RadioInsight|date=March 11, 2015|website=radioinsight.com|access-date=April 23, 2018}} On May 2, 2015,{{cite web|url=https://radiodiscussions.com/threads/the-mouse-selling-wdwd-to-salem.685208/|title= The Mouse selling WDWD to Salem |date=May 2, 2015|website=Radio Discussions|access-date=April 25, 2025}} WDWD dropped Radio Disney and went silent, ahead of the sale's completion. On May 11, the station returned with a Christian talk format, branded as "Faith Talk 590", with programming from Salem Radio Network.{{cite web|url=http://radioinsight.com/blog/headlines/92927/faith-talk-590-atlanta-debuts/|title=Faith Talk 590 Atlanta Debuts - RadioInsight|date=May 11, 2015|website=radioinsight.com|access-date=April 23, 2018}} At one time, Salem owned five stations in Metro Atlanta, including WDWD. However, WAFS 1190 AM has been sold to Relevant Radio for its Catholic radio network. And WFSH 104.7 FM was sold to the Educational Media Foundation for its Air1 worship music network.

{{Reflist}}

{{AM station data|8623|WDWD}}

• [https://cdbs.recnet.com/corres/?doc=66218 FCC History Cards for WDWD] (covering 1927-1979 as WKBJ / WTFI / WAGA / WPLO)

{{Atlanta Radio}}

{{Religious Radio Stations in Georgia}}

{{Salem Media Group}}

DWD

Category:Radio stations established in 1937

Category:1937 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)

Category:Salem Media Group radio stations

DWD