WJEK

"WEBX" redirects here. Not to be confused with Webex.

Radio station in Rantoul, Illinois

WJEK
Rantoul, Illinois
Broadcast area	Champaign-Urbana
Frequency	95.3 MHz
Branding	Christian FM 95.3
Programming
Format	Christian Adult Contemporary
Ownership
Owner	SJ Broadcasting LLC
Sister stations	WGKC, WQQB
History
First air date	1972; 53 years ago (1972)
Former call signs	WRTL-FM (1979–1984) WRBZ-FM (1984–1988) WZNF (1988–2000) WBNB (2000–2002) WEVX (2002–2006) WMYE (2006–2007) WLFH (2007–2010)
Technical information^[1]
Licensing authority	FCC
Facility ID	57466
Class	A
ERP	1,900 watts
HAAT	126 meters (413 ft)
Transmitter coordinates	40°13′5.00′′N 88°6′55.00′′W / 40.2180556°N 88.1152778°W / 40.2180556; -88.1152778
Links
Public license information	Public file LMS
Webcast	Listen Live
Website	christian953.com

WJEK (95.3 FM) is a commercial radio station broadcasting a Christian Adult Contemporary radio format, known as "Christian FM 95.3." Licensed to Rantoul, Illinois, United States, the station serves the Champaign-Urbana metropolitan area. The station is currently owned by SJ Broadcasting, LLC.^[2]

History

[edit ]

The station went on the air as WRTL-FM on 1979年07月30日. on 1984年11月21日, the station changed its call sign to WRBZ-FM, on 1988年07月01日 to WZNF, on 2000年01月03日 to WBNB, on 2002年03月01日 to WEVX, on 2006年09月18日 to WMYE, on 2007年09月14日 to WLFH, and on 2010年11月08日 to the current WJEK.^[3]

WRTL-FM was originally owned by Bob Brown and Dick Williams. Its musical format was Easy Listening. John Truscelli was eventually the morning drive personality, Mark Williams the morning news personality. Other on-air personalities were Bob Boice, Kevin Scott, Ann Bailey, Dan Jones. WRTL-FM was sold in the early 80's and became WRBZ-FM.

When the station was WZNF, it was a rock/classic rock station owned by Rollings Communications. At its height in the early 1990s, WZNF's signal was simulcasted into three additional markets. Those were WWDZ-FM (94.9 FM, Danville, IL), WZZP-FM (95.1, Kankakee, IL), and WZNX-FM (107.9, Charleston-Mattoon, IL). During this time, it employed the moniker "Z95" and then later "The Fox".

The WLFH callsign was previously used by an AM station in Little Falls, New York (currently WIXT).

On May 21, 2010 it was announced that RadioStar, Inc. was in the process of selling WLFH to SJ Broadcasting LLC. SJ Broadcasting is operated by Steve "Stevie Jay" Khachaturian and Clint Atkins (until Atkins' death in March 2011).

On November 8, 2010 WLFH changed their call letters to WJEK.

On November 29, 2010 WJEK changed their format to talk, branded as "Connect FM".

WSJK and WJEK broadcast a variety of programs, with owner Stevie Jay (formerly of WDWS) providing his show weekday mornings. Both stations offer Wall Street Journal This Morning, Fox News Radio, as well as ESPN Radio on nights and weekends. Connect FM became the new Champaign home of the St. Louis Cardinals in 2011, replacing WDWS after almost 70 years.

Before the switch, 93.5 was known as 93.5 The Beat, while 95.3 was 95.3 The Wolf.

In April 2012, WSJK/WJEK cancelled its late-morning and midday talk programs and replaced them with ESPN Radio programs. In September 2012, Connect FM was officially rebranded as 93.5/95.3 ESPN. Although the switch is to sports, two talk programs, Wall Street Journal This Morning and the Stevie Jay Show remain from the former Connect FM.

The afternoon-drive sports show, the Tay and J Show, focuses heavily on University of Illinois athletics and is co-hosted by former WAND sportscaster Lon Tay and former News-Gazette and DeKalb Daily Chronicle reporter Jeremy Werner, who also writes for Rivals.com.

On February 18, 2013 WJEK split from its simulcast with WSJK and changed their format to adult contemporary, branded as "Sunny 95.3".^[4]

On November 1, 2016 WJEK changed their format from adult contemporary to contemporary Christian, branded as "Christian FM 95.3".^[5]