STATION EDITORIAL

Posted January 17, 2022

This is a station editorial, I’m Randal J. Miller, station president.

On August 8th, 1950, a broadcast entrepreneur named Keith Moyer envisioned a local radio station for Taylorville.   He had been involved in building other radio stations in small towns across Illinois, and applied to the Federal Communications Commission for a new AM radio station for the Christian County seat.

The FCC granted his company a construction permit on August First, 1951.  The station was granted call letters WTIM, and after construction of the station was completed with studios and towers at the south end of Cherokee Street in Taylorville, it signed on January 20th, 1952.

Its first broadcast that day was at 4 in the afternoon from the Taylorville High School gym.  The high school band played the National Anthem signaling that Taylorville now had its own radio station.

In those 70 years, WTIM has had 7 different owners, has moved from an AM signal to an FM signal, then back to an AM signal, then adding 3 FM signals to its AM service, which is how you hear us today.

Plus, WTIM is streamed on the internet 24/7, plus on the WTIM mobile app, plus Amazon Alexa.

Those 70 years represent countless hours of local news, local play by play sports coverage, and agriculture information.

While the delivery methods changed over those 70 years, the one thing that has never changed, is WTIM’s commitment of service to Taylorville and Central Illinois.

Over the coming 12 months, you’ll be hearing features and interviews with many of those who were part of that commitment of service.  We hope you’ll help us celebrate WTIM’s 70 years of service, and feel free to e-mail us YOUR memories of WTIM over its 70 years of broadcasting.

Our e-mail address is editorial@randyradio.com.