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Catholic talk radio network in the United States From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Relevant Radio (corporate name Relevant Radio, Inc.) is a radio network in the United States, mainly broadcasting talk radio and religious programming involving the Catholic Church. Relevant Radio broadcasts "talk radio for Catholic life" over a network of 206 stations. Relevant Radio owns and operates 133 stations, and distributes programs to an additional 73 affiliates.
| |
| Type | Radio network |
|---|---|
| Country | |
| Programming | |
| Format | Catholic radio |
| Ownership | |
Key people | Rev. Francis Joseph Hoffman, JCD, CEO and Chairman of the Board; Drew Mariani, Show Host; Patrick Madrid, Show Host. |
| History | |
| Launch date | December 12, 2000 |
| Coverage | |
| Availability | United States |
| Links | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | www |
Relevant Radio is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization headquartered in Lincolnshire, Illinois, with additional studios in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
The network airs a variety of programming aimed at Catholics and others interested in the Catholic Church.
The network was founded by a group of Catholic businessmen, including Bob Atwell and John Cavil (who purchased Kaukauna, Wisconsin-licensed stationm WJOK in 2000) and Mark Follett, the owner of Anchor Foods, an Appleton-based distributor of frozen appetizers known for its marketing of jalapeño poppers, which had been sold to Heinz and its proceeds being used to launch the network under the non-profit Starboard Media Foundation.
WJOK's calls, which formerly designated its sports radio format, now instead stood for the phrase Jesus, Our King. The network soft-launched on November 26 of the same year, and considers December 12, 2000 its official launch to honor the feast days of both Our Lady of Guadalupe and John Paul II, whom Starboard considers its unofficial patron saints.
"Morning Air", which the network describes as "a classic drive-time format that combines inspiration & entertainment" was the first program developed by Relevant Radio in 2003.
On October 13, 2016, Relevant Radio announced that it would merge with Loomis, California-based Immaculate Heart Radio, which owned and operated 36 stations in the western United States at the time of the merger.[1] The merger was completed on July 31, 2017, with all stations being licensed to Immaculate Heart Media, Inc., while Relevant Radio continued as the on-air branding.[2] The corporate name was changed to Relevant Radio, Inc. in February 2020.[3]
In 2019, Immaculate Heart Media purchased 13 AM stations and seven translators from Salem Media Group.[4][5][6]
In October 2019, Immaculate Heart purchased the 6 radio stations owned by Northern Michigan-based Baraga Broadcasting, as well as assuming the LMA of affiliate station WMQU, which is currently owned by Blarney Stone Broadcasting.[7] On May 17, 2021, the five stations carrying Relevant Radio's Spanish-language service began carrying the English-language network.
| Owned and operated stations[8] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Location | Call sign | Frequency | Area |
| Florida | Atlantic Beach | WZNZ | 1600 | Jacksonville |
| St. Petersburg | WWMI | 1380 | Tampa Bay | |
| Winter Park | WHOO | 1080 | Greater Orlando | |
| Illinois | Granite City | KXFN | 1380 | St. Louis |
| Indiana | Gary | WWCA | 1270 | Northwest Indiana |
| Texas | Harlingen | KJJF | 88.9 | Rio Grande Valley |
| McAllen | KHID | 88.1 | Rio Grande Valley | |
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