WFOR (AM)

WFOR broadcasts a sports format as an affiliate of the Fox Sports Radio network.{{cite web |work=Arbitron |url=http://www.arbitron.com/radio_stations/station_information.htm |title=Station Information Profile |accessdate=June 19, 2009}} Syndicated sports talk programming on WFOR includes The Dan Patrick Show.{{cite web |publisher=DanPatrick.com |title=Where To Tune In To The Dan Patrick Show |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/danpatrick/tunein/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080204122715/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/danpatrick/tunein/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 4, 2008 |accessdate=June 19, 2009 |quote=Hattiesburg, WFOR-AM 1400, 8:00a-11:00a}} Local programming includes "The Pine Belt Sports Drive" and "To The Top Talk" with Jamie Arrington.

WFOR's initial construction permit, with the sequentially assigned call letters WRBJ, was issued in March 1928 to the Woodruff Furniture Co. at 119 West Pine Street in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.[https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=osu.32435066938382&view=1up&seq=34 "New Stations"], Radio Service Bulletin, March 31, 1928, page 4. In late 1931 the call letters were changed to WPFB,[https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=umn.31951000842030e&view=1up&seq=259 "Alterations and Corrections"], Radio Service Bulletin, December 31, 1931, page 9. and in 1936 they became WFOR.[https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uiug.30112106763136&view=1up&seq=327&size=151 "Changes to list"], Radio Service Bulletin, August 15, 1936, page 2.

In October 1945 B. B McLemore joined WFOR as its chief engineer."Meet The WFOR Staff", Hattiesburg (Mississippi) American, June 24, 1949, page 6. The station's first high-powered 250 watt transmitter, hand built by McLemore, was at the time the most powerful in southern Mississippi. The original studio was in an old two story building on Hemphill Street. In the early 1950, a new tower and an office location on West 7th Street were constructed. While constructing the current tower the top section came ajar, and a {{convert|30|ft|m|adj=on|abbr=off|sp=us}} section fell to the ground, leaving a worker dangling by rope on the tower in shock. Weeks passed but finally the new section was installed and proper guide tension wires attached. When the original transmitter was retired it was returned to McLemore, who maintained it as a keepsake for over 50 years.

In September 1998, Radio Hattiesburg, Inc., reached an agreement to sell WFOR to Cumulus Media as part of a multi-station deal valued at a combined $4.5 million.{{cite news |work=Broadcasting & Cable |title=Changing Hands - 1998-09-14 |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-21153353.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021053228/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-21153353.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 21, 2012 |date=September 14, 1998}}{{cite news |work=Thomson Financial Mergers & Acquisitions |title=Cumulus Media Inc acquires WHER-FM, WFOR-AM, Hattiesburg, MS from Radio Hattiesburg |url=http://www.alacrastore.com/storecontent/Thomson_M&A/Cumulus_Media_Inc_acquires_WHER_FM_WFOR_AM_Hattiesburg_MS_from_Radio_Hattiesburg-789731020 |date=September 3, 1998}} The deal was approved by the FCC on December 18, 1998, and the transaction was consummated on April 2, 1999.{{cite web |publisher=FCC Media Bureau |title=Application Search Details (BAL-19981028EA) |url=http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=276186 |date=April 2, 1999}}

In October 2000, Cumulus Media, LLC, announced an agreement to sell WFOR to Clear Channel Communications (the forerunner to iHeartMedia) as part of a large station swap and sale, including seven Cumulus stations in the Laurel-Hattiesburg radio market.{{cite news |work=Business Wire |title=Cumulus Media Inc. Announces Several Transactions |url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-28389165_ITM?email=johnhodg@manfrerd.org&library=Mount-Prospect-Public-Library |date=October 3, 2000 |quote=Laurel-Hattiesburg, Mississippi (Market Rank #208 of 276) -- WEEZ-AM, WJKX-FM, WHER-FM, WUSW-FM, WMFM-FM, WFOR-AM, WNSL-FM.}} The deal was approved by the FCC on December 19, 2000, and the transaction was consummated on January 18, 2001.{{cite web |publisher=FCC Media Bureau |title=Application Search Details (BAL-20000817ADK) |url=http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=517075 |date=January 18, 2001}}

A fire was noticed at the station's transmitter site at around 7:45 p.m. local time on December 15, 2015. WFOR's owner iHeartMedia's senior vice president of programming Jackson Walker noted that there was no timetable for returning the station to the air and that the fire marshal said the building was a total loss.[http://www.wdam.com/story/30768510/1400-am-fox-sports-radio-channel-offline-because-of-fire Article on WFOR's transmitter fire from WDAM-TV: December 16, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2015.]

On July 20, 2016, iHeartMedia announced that WFOR would be sold to Eagle Broadcasting, LLC for $120,000,[https://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/155760/iheartmedia-sells-mississippi-am "iHeartMedia Sells Mississippi AM"], July 20, 2016 (allaccess.com) and the transaction was consummated on October 5, 2016. The next day "TheScore1400 WFOR-AM" was relaunched at 11:45 local time by the new owners.

{{Reflist|30em}}

{{AM station data|54612|WFOR}}

• {{FCC-LMS-Facility|200974|W224DP}}
• {{FXL|W224DP}}
• [https://cdbs.recnet.com/corres/?doc=52704 FCC History Cards for WFOR] (covering WRBJ / WPFB / WFOR from 1928-1979)

{{Laurel-Hattiesburg Radio}}

{{Sports Radio Stations in Mississippi}}

FOR

Category:Sports radio stations in the United States

Category:Sports in Hattiesburg, Mississippi

Category:Radio stations established in 1928

Category:1928 establishments in Mississippi

Category:Fox Sports Radio stations