WTSO

WTSO (1070 kHz "1070 The Game") is a commercial AM radio station in Madison, Wisconsin. The station is owned and operated by iHeartMedia, Inc., and airs a sports radio format. From 2014 until February 1, 2020, WTSO was simulcast on FM translator W265CV at 100.9 MHz.[1] W265CV now airs a 1960s-1970s oldies format as "U-100.9."[2]

WTSO
CityMadison, Wisconsin
Broadcast areaMadison metropolitan area
Frequency1070 kHz
Branding1070 The Game
SloganMadison's Sports Talk That Rocks
Programming
Language(s)English
FormatSports
AffiliationsFox Sports Radio
Ownership
OwneriHeartMedia, Inc.
(iHM Licenses, LLC)
WOKY, WIBA (AM), WIBA-FM, WMAD, WXXM, WZEE
History
First air date
January 19, 1948
Former call signs
WKOW
Call sign meaning
From the station's AM frequency, Ten Seven ZerO
Technical information
Facility ID41973
ClassB
Power10,000 watts (day)
5,000 watts (night)
Links
WebcastListen Live
Website1070 The Game

WTSO's offices and studios are on South Fish Hatchery Road in Fitchburg (but using Madison as its mailing address).[3] The transmitter is off East Tower Road in McFarland. WTSO operates at 10,000 watts by day. But at night it reduces its power to 5,000 watts, using a directional antenna, because AM 1070 is a clear-channel frequency. WTSO must protect Class A stations KNX Los Angeles and CBA Moncton, New Brunswick, from interference, so the nighttime signal is nulled away from the west and the east.[4] (CBA switched to the FM dial in 2008 but WTSO still must protect the Canadian AM station's former coverage area.) WTSO's former FM translator operates with 250 watts from a 243-meter (798 foot) tower off South Pleasant View Road in Madison.[5]

Programming

WTSO broadcasts local sports call-in shows during weekday morning and afternoon drive times. "Lucas in the Morning," hosted by longtime Wisconsin Badgers radio analyst and Madison sports columnist/reporter Mike Lucas. WTSO's schedule also features nationally syndicated sports shows hosted by Dan Patrick and Rich Eisen. At night and on weekends, programming from Fox Sports Radio is heard. Since the start of 2013, the station's local sports shows have been simulcast on Milwaukee sister station 920 WOKY, an unusual situation where a station in a smaller media market provides the simulcast for the larger market station.

WTSO's live sports coverage includes broadcasts of Milwaukee Bucks basketball and NASCAR races from MRN Radio and PRN Radio, as well as local high school events, including championships in the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association. WTSO also airs live broadcasts Of University of Wisconsin Badgers .

History

The station first signed on the air on January 19, 1948, as WKOW.[6] With Wisconsin known as "The Dairy State," the original call letters stood for the word "cow." The licensee was the Monona Broadcasting Company.[7]

In the mid-1970s, the call sign was changed to WTSO to stand for Ten Seven zerO, its frequency. At that time it was owned by Mid-Continent Broadcasting and aired a country music format. As country music listening switched to the FM dial, WTSO tried a talk radio format and later adult standards.

In 2000, WTSO went with its current all-sports format, originally as a network affiliate of ESPN Radio, calling itself "Madison's ESPN Radio 10-7-0." On January 1, 2009, WTSO parted company with ESPN Radio and rebranded as "The Big 1070, Madison's Sports Station," affiliating with Fox Sports Radio and later adding programming from NBC Sports Radio.[8] (ESPN Radio programming now airs on 100.5 WTLX.) On February 3, 2020, WTSO rebranded as "1070 The Game."

Previous Logos


WTSO's original logo under the "Big 1070" branding (c. 2010).


WTSO's Previous Logo used from 2010 to 2014.


WTSO's Previous Logo used from 2014 to 2020.

See also

References
  1. "WTSO Brings More FM Sports To Madison," from RadioInsight, 8/4/2014
  2. https://radioinsight.com/headlines/183979/iheartmedia-to-launch-u100-9-1070-the-game-in-madison/
  3. http://thebig1070.iheart.com/articles/madison-wibaam-contact-information-283215/contact-us-3915271/
  4. http://radio-locator.com/cgi-bin/patg?id=WTSO-AM&h=N
  5. http://radio-locator.com/cgi-bin/patg?id=W265CV-FX
  6. Broadcasting Yearbook 1977 page C-233
  7. "WKOW Madison, Wis., on Air with 10 kw" (PDF). Broadcasting. January 26, 1948. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
  8. "sports". madison.com. Retrieved November 11, 2009.

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