What happens when you take some really BIG country stars, play them in really BIG 20-in-a-row music sets, and put them on a really, REALLY BIG FM station???
You get 20-in-a-row country, 96.5 The Wolf!
Superstars like Kenny Chesney, Sugarland, Trace Adkins and Dierks Bentley...all in long 20-in-a-row music sets.
For over sixty years, AM 1220 WLPO has been serving listeners in the Illinois Valley. The station went on the air as a 250-watt non-directional daytime station and later increased to a 1000-watt directional daytime and 500-watt nighttime station. Because our station’s power is directional, listeners in some communities may not be able to pick up its signal as well after dark and prior to sunrise. As a news/talk station, WLPO’s focus is on topics that affect all of us (healthcare, money, etc) plus the most complete local news, sports, weather and talk.
Hot AC WAJK first aired as WLPO-FM in December 1964 as a 1000-watt monaural FM station. In 1979 the call letters were changed to WAJK. The station broadcasts in stereo and is a Class B1 FM signal. Start with Jon Shap (5:30-9a); then it's a 93-minute block of music to start your workday. Enjoy more of today's best music all day at work and drive home with JC Phillips from 3-7. Billy Bush rounds out your day at 7pm.
Joyce McCullough is general manager, Mark Lippert vice-president of sales and marketing and John Spencer serves vice-president of operations for all three stations. LaSalle County Broadcasting Corp. is the licensee of WLPO, WAJK and WLWF.
If you have questions or suggestions, please contact Joyce or John at 815-223-3100.
The stations take pride in serving listeners in the Illinois Valley. LaSalle County Broadcasting Corp is an equal opportunity employer.
History of Miller Group Media
The Miller family’s involvement with local media began in 1946 when Mr. and Mrs. Peter Miller, Jr., purchased the Peru News-Herald. Shortly thereafter, they purchased the LaSalle Post-Tribune and merged the two newspapers into the Daily News-Tribune.
In 1947 Peter Miller purchased LaSalle County Broadcasting Corp., which operated radio station WLPO-AM a 250-watt daytime non-directional station. WLPO-FM went on the air in December 1974, as a 100-watt monaural FM station. In 1967 the station’s signal was upgraded to 3000 watts and in 1979 the call letters were changed to WAJK.
The NEWShopper was added as a total-market-coverage product, to complement the NewsTribune, in early 1970s, as a means for advertisers to get their message to non-subscribers at a low cost. A business could run the same advertisement in each publication and receive a discounted rate for the “pick-up” advertisement.
In the mid-1970s, NewsTribune advertising director Lou Lesniak approached Peter Miller, Jr., with the idea of adding a farm publication as a monthly addition, available to NewsTribune subscribers and local area farmers. Illinois AgriNews was started as an offshoot of the NewsTribune. Its success was such that it was spun off as a weekly publication and Indiana AgriNews was added. Illinois and Indiana AgriNews are now circulated weekly throughout the two states with subscribers and readers throughout the Midwest, the USA and internationally.
Peter (Pete) Miller III joined the operation in 1982. He changed the name of the daily print publication to the NewsTribune.
In 1999, LaSalle County Broadcasting Corp. purchased WKOT. The call letters were changed to WLWF and known as 96.5theWOLF in 2010.
Pete Miller served as president of the newspaper operations, publisher of the NewsTribuneand general manager of the radio stations. In March 2002 he named Joyce McCullough publisher of the NewsTribune.
Peter Miller, Jr., died in January 2004.
In 2005, Pete named Joyce McCullough general manager of the radio stations. Pete maintained the title of president.
Pete Miller died in February 2011.
After Pete’s death, Catherine (Cathy)Miller assumed the role of chairman of the board and named Joyce McCullough president of media operations. Joyce continued in her role as NewsTribune publisher and radio station general manager.
