WTOD (FM)
 | |
| City | Delta, Ohio |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Toledo metropolitan area |
| Branding | 106.5 The Ticket |
| Frequency | 106.5 MHz (also on HD Radio) |
| First air date | August 1, 1994 (as WBUZ) |
| Format | Sports Talk |
| ERP | 4,800 watts |
| HAAT | 111.9 meters |
| Class | A |
| Facility ID | 67275 |
| Transmitter coordinates | 41°30′49.2″N 83°50′59.8″W / 41.513667°N 83.849944°W (NAD83) |
| Callsign meaning | Originally used on the current WWYC, whose dial position (1560 kHz) was regarded at the time as the Top Of the AM Dial |
| Former callsigns |
WUIA (1990) WMHE (1990–1994) WBUZ (1994–2000) WRWK (2000–2009) WLQR-FM (2009–2016) |
| Affiliations |
ESPN Radio Ohio State IMG Sports Network |
| Owner |
Mainstay Station Trust (Cumulus Licensing LLC) |
| Sister stations | WKKO, WRQN, WMIM, WQQO, WXKR, WQQO-HD2/W264AK |
| Webcast |
Listen Live Listen Live via iHeart |
| Website | 1065theticket.com |
WTOD is a radio station licensed for Delta, Ohio on 106.5 MHz and part of the Toledo radio market. It uses the postioner "106.5 The Ticket", and is the Toledo affiliate for ESPN Radio and the Ohio State IMG Sports Network. The station's studios are located in Toledo, and its transmitter is located in Whitehouse, Ohio.
History
The construction permit for this station was first issued in 1990 to Dickey Broadcasting, The first assigned call letters were WUIA and then WMHE, neither were ever used.
Dickey Broadcasting (which would slowly evolve into Cumulus Broadcasting) did not put the station on the air. This was due to confusion surrounding whether doing so would compromise FCC regulations. At the time, the FCC Rules prohibited a Broadcaster from having more than one AM and one FM property in the same market. Dickey Broadcasting already owned WWWM-FM (now WQQO) and WWWM 1470(now defunct).
The Buzz
The license was sold for $149,920 in August 1993 to Toledo Radio, Inc. 106.5 Signed on in the fall of 1994, taking the call letters WBUZ. The Buzz was a Hybrid format of Harder edged Alternative rock and Album orientated (AOR) rock. The station quickly became Popular and in June 1996, The Howard Stern Show.
Despite the station's popularity, many on the east side of Toledo complained about poor radio reception. So in August of 1998, WJZE's Classic rock format was dropped for a full time Simulcast of The Buzz. The station now referred to itself as Buzz 106.5 and 97.3. "Double the buzz 106.5 west 97.3 east" was one of the station's slogans.
Rock 106 Toledo's pure rock
The station was sold to Cumulus Broadcasting in early 1999. Once Cumulus took control, Over a Weekend in late February of 1999, The station Stunted with an odd mixture of different music and sounds. After the Howard Stern show on Monday, February 22, 1999, The station was re-launched as Rock 106 Toledo's Pure Rock. The Howard Stern Show was dropped in early 2000. On August 1, 2000 the WJZE simulcast was dropped in favor of a classic hits format, thus ending the LMA with RASP Broadcasting. The call letters were changed from WBUZ to WRWK.
Rock 106 never caught on with Toledo radio listeners, With low ratings along with being beaten by 88.7 CIMX-FM (89x) out of Windsor Ontario. In November 2001, The owners decided it was time for a change.
106.5 The Zone
In November 2001, after stunting for a couple days with Swans Splashdown by J.J Perrey & Gershon Kingsley and Lonesome Road by Dean Elliot & His Big Band, The format was changed to Alternative Rock as 106.5 The Zone. The first song on The Zone was "I'll be here awhile" by 311.
106.5 The Ticket
In June 2009, The Zone's 71⁄2–year run came to an end. The Station's format changed to Sports talk, simulcasting 1470 The Ticket (now defunct). The stations were re-branded as 106.5 The Ticket, only mentioning 1470 at the top of the hour. In August 2012, the simulcast with 1470 ended when that station took on a conservative talk radio format. In January 2, 2013, WLQR-FM became an affiliate of CBS Sports Radio, In early 2016, the station went back to ESPN Radio. The callsign was changed to WTOD in September 2016.
The Future of 106.5
On March 27, 2018, WTOD-FM and two other Cumulus stations, (WPCK and WNUQ) are placed into the Cumulus Reorganization Divestiture Trust for a future sale.[1]