WJAM

WJAM broadcasts an urban adult contemporary music format.{{cite web |work=Arbitron |url=http://www.arbitron.com/radio_stations/station_information.htm |title=Station Information Profile}} Notable syndicated weeknight talk programming once included Larry King Live and The Jim Bohannon Show.{{cite web |publisher=Larry King Live |title=Station Listings for Larry King Live in the state of Alabama |url=http://www.westwoodone.com/stationfinder;jsessionid=181A65FB35BC6D5C3E2DE92722BAF6C4?action=stateSearch&state=AL&programID=316 |accessdate=February 7, 2009}}{{cite news |title=Station Listings for Jim Bohannon Show in the state of Alabama |url=http://www.jimbohannonshow.com/stationfinder;jsessionid=DFD8EBC4539468F7372C22A569AC9E0C?action=stateSearch&state=AL&programID=309 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130127045022/http://www.jimbohannonshow.com/stationfinder;jsessionid=DFD8EBC4539468F7372C22A569AC9E0C?action=stateSearch&state=AL&programID=309 |url-status=usurped |archive-date=January 27, 2013 |publisher=The Jim Bohannon Show |accessdate=February 7, 2009}}

WJAM has broadcast Sunday morning services of the First Presbyterian Church of Selma for more than 40 years.{{cite web |first=Ron |last=Stone |publisher=First Presbyterian Church of Selma, Alabama |title=Winter Wonderland in Selma, Alabama? |url=http://firstpresselma.com/blog/?p=24 |date=January 19, 2008}}

This station first began regular broadcast operations on December 19, 1946, as a full-time 250 watt station licensed to serve Selma, Alabama.{{cite book |title=Broadcasting-Telecasting 1948 Yearbook |date=1948 |page=75 |chapter=Directory of Standard Broadcasting Stations of the United States |publisher=Broadcasting Publications, Inc. |location=Washington, D.C.}} Original owner G.W. Covington Jr. had the station assigned the call letters WGWC after his own initials. Covington died in 1949 and his estate transferred the license for WGWC to Dallas Broadcasters Inc., owned by Oscar Covington.{{cite book |title=Broadcasting-Telecasting 1950 Yearbook |date=1950 |page=69 |chapter=Directory of AM, FM, and TV Stations of the United States |publisher=Broadcasting Publications, Inc. |location=Washington, D.C.}}

Judge W.E. Farrar acquired Dallas Broadcasters Inc. on October 10, 1958.{{cite book |title=1960 Broadcasting Yearbook |date=1960 |page=A-109 |chapter=Directory of AM and FM Radio stations in the U.S. |publisher=Broadcasting Publications, Inc. |location=Washington, D.C.}} This ownership change would prove short-lived as on August 1, 1961, WGWC was acquired by Robert J. Martin.{{cite book |title=1963 Broadcasting Yearbook |date=1963 |page=B-7 |chapter=Directory of AM and FM Radio stations in the U.S. |publisher=Broadcasting Publications, Inc. |location=Washington, D.C.}}

In 1964 the station increased the strength of its daytime signal to 1,000 watts while maintaining a 250 watt nighttime signal.{{cite book |title=1965 Broadcasting Yearbook |date=1965 |page=B-7 |chapter=Directory of AM and FM Radio stations in the U.S. |publisher=Broadcasting Publications, Inc. |location=Washington, D.C.}} The station took on a new call sign in 1968 with a change to WAMA.{{cite book |title=Broadcasting Yearbook 1969 |date=1969 |page=B-8 |chapter=The Facilities of Radio |publisher=Broadcasting Publications, Inc. |location=Washington, D.C.}} The newly renamed WAMA changed hands again on February 1, 1969, when it was acquired by the Vogel-Hendrix Corporation.{{cite book |title=Broadcasting Yearbook 1975 |date=1975 |page=C-6 |chapter=Directory of AM and FM Radio Stations in the United States and Canada |publisher=Broadcasting Publications, Inc. |location=Washington, D.C.}}

In 1976 WAMA hit on hard times due to bad management and went off the air. The license was deleted. In 1977, a new station at 1340 was applied for by Thomas E. Alexander's Alexander Broadcasting Co., Inc.{{cite book |title=Broadcasting Yearbook 1979 |date=1979 |page=C-7 |chapter=Directory of Radio Stations in the United States and Canada |publisher=Broadcasting Publications, Inc. |location=Washington, D.C.}} Now a sister station to WALX, the station was assigned new call letters WMRK by the Federal Communications Commission.{{cite web |url=http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/call_hist.pl?Facility_id=947&Callsign=WMRK |title=Call Sign History |work=FCC Media Bureau CDBS Public Access Database}} WMRK went on the air in the spring of 1978 from the transmitter site and tower which had been used by WAMA. All new transmission equipment was used to put the station back on the air. At the same time a new studio/control room was built for WALX, WMRK inherited the old WALX studio/control room.

After the death of Thomas E. Alexander in April 1989, control of Alexander Broadcasting Co., Inc., was passed by his estate to his widow, Betty Hunt Alexander.{{cite web |publisher=Ancestry.com |title=Social Security Death Index Search Results |url=http://ssdi.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/ssdi.cgi |accessdate=February 8, 2009}} The transfer was approved by the FCC on June 9, 1989, and the transaction was completed on June 20, 1989.{{cite web |publisher=FCC Media Bureau |title=Application Search Details (BAL-19890531HO) |url=http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=129325 |date=June 20, 1989}}

Betty Alexander hosted the morning show on WMRK from the time her husband acquired the station in 1975 until her death in November 2004.{{cite news |work=Selma Times-Journal |title=Longtime radio host dies at 83 |date=November 26, 2004 |quote=In addition to being host of the "Betty Alexander Morning Show" for three decades, she also was chief executive officer of Alexander Broadcasting Co. She and her late husband, Tom, a retired Navy officer, started WALX-FM in 1974 and eventually added two other stations, WMRK-AM and WJAM-FM.}} In March 2005, the estate of Betty Alexander filed with the FCC to take control of Alexander Broadcasting Co., Inc. The transfer of control was approved by the FCC on April 20, 2005, and completed on April 26, 2005.{{cite web |publisher=FCC Media Bureau |url=http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=1050391 |title=Application Search Details (BTC-20050325ANM) |date=April 26, 2005}} In November 2005, the estate applied to transfer control of the company to Paul Scott Alexander, a son of Betty Alexander. The transfer was approved by the FCC on December 30, 2005, and completed on January 3, 2006.{{cite web |title=Application Search Details (BTC-20051110AFT) |url=http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=1096606 |publisher=FCC Media Bureau |date=January 3, 2006}}

In January 2006, Alexander Broadcasting Co., Inc., agreed to transfer the broadcast license for WMRK to Scott Communications, Inc. The deal was approved by the FCC on January 27, 2006, and the transaction was consummated on January 28, 2006.{{cite web |publisher=FCC Media Bureau |title=Application Search Details (BAL-20060111ACE) |url=http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=1106644 |date=January 28, 2006}}

On March 23, 2009, WMRK swapped callsigns with FM sister station WJAM-FM to become WJAM and WMRK-FM, respectively.

On March 27, 2009 WJAM changed their format from talk to urban adult contemporary.

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• [https://www.facebook.com/WJAM-963-FM-Selma-434817916607505/ WJAM 96.3 & 1340 Facebook]

{{AM station data|947|WJAM}}

{{Montgomery Radio}}

JAM

Category:Radio stations established in 1946

Category:Urban adult contemporary radio stations in the United States

Category:Dallas County, Alabama

Category:1946 establishments in Alabama