• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

94.5 in Panama City...formats over the years

N

NWFLRadio10yrs

Guest
Hearing about 94.5 in FWB the other day got me to thinking about 94.5 in Panama City. I moved to Panama City in 1985 and moved away from there in 1996, but still visit it quite often. I have to say of all the stations there, it seems 94.5 has changed formats more than any other station I can remember. These are the formats that I can recall (and if I have left any out please feel free to add them).

1985-1987 - T-94, WJST playing CHR

1987 - They kept the same format and call letters, but now started referring to themselves as simply "FM 94".

1987 (fall) - They switched to country and started going by their call letters, WJST.

1988 (late summer / early fall) - They adopted a "hard rock" format and changed their call letters to WWZR. They were now known as "Z-Rock".

1989 (spring) - They became a "Southern Gospel" station and brought back the WJST call letters.

1989 (fall) - They went back to Country and started calling themselves "B 94.5"

1995 - They switched to oldies and became "Beach 94.5" and changed the call letters to "WPBH".

1997 - They began to move into more of an AC format, but still kept the same call letters and still called themselves "Beach 94.5".

2000 - They became "Pirate Radio 94.5" and brought back popular morning guys "BC and Bubba" and became a rock station.

(I think there may have been another format change here but I can't remember what it was)

2007-2008 - They became WFLA, news/talk station


Thats all I can remember. If anyone can add anything to this please feel free to. Thanks.
 
I remember when it started as WJST. It signed off about 10 p.m.

Do you remember WJOE-AM 1080 in Port St. Joe? That may have been a sister station to it in the early days.
 
Back in the '80's we (the listeners) thought Panama City's "Z-rock" format was "Heavy Metal".  I think of "Hard Rock" stations playing AC/DC and Zeppelin.  94.5 would have been the first commercial radio station I heard Metallica on.  I believe it was owned by a christian school or church at that time.  If it was, that has to be the most interesting piece of history connected to 94.5.

Oh yeah, wasn't one of the later format's called "The Fox" as classic rock or adult ac?
 
"If it's to loud, you're to old." I remember the billboards. I also remember the church vs. rock situation, but what it all was about is vague to me now. That station did rock out.
 
Tibbs2 said:
"If it's to loud, you're to old." I remember the billboards. I also remember the church vs. rock situation, but what it all was about is vague to me now. That station did rock out.
Click to expand...

I remember Z Rock very well because they had a shark as a mascot if I can remember correctly. I did look it up in the archives in the news hearlad a couple years ago and found an article about the format switch from country to Z-Rock. The headline said "Move over Merle, here comes Metallica." The article then said something like "On Monday morning WJST will hang up it's cowboy hat for good and make way for Z-Rock, WWZR."

I do remember the billboards that you are talking about.
 
Alan McCall said:
I remember when it started as WJST. It signed off about 10 p.m.

Do you remember WJOE-AM 1080 in Port St. Joe? That may have been a sister station to it in the early days.
Click to expand...

I don't remember WJOE, but I have heard of it before.
 
poledo said:
Back in the '80's we (the listeners) thought Panama City's "Z-rock" format was "Heavy Metal". I think of "Hard Rock" stations playing AC/DC and Zeppelin. 94.5 would have been the first commercial radio station I heard Metallica on. I believe it was owned by a christian school or church at that time. If it was, that has to be the most interesting piece of history connected to 94.5.

Oh yeah, wasn't one of the later format's called "The Fox" as classic rock or adult ac?
Click to expand...

Oh yeah, that's right. I forgot about the Fox. I think they were the Fox between the time they were Pirate and WFLA.
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom