Technical Profile: DWJDB

AM Technical Profile: DWJDB

Frequency:: 630
Format:: Variety Hits
Transmitter Location:: [map] [street view] Just south of Thomasville on US-43.
Power (ERP):: Day: 1 kW; Night: 49 watts (authorized)
Antenna:: 1 tower
Other Information:: [FCC]; [Radio-Locator]; [Wikipedia]

[Video] Facebook video of the AM tower being demolished from March 2016.

Owned by Griffith Broadcasting

Silent
History:: J. Dige Bishop (as WJDB Radio Incorporated) was granted a new construction permit for a station on 630 kHz in Thomasville in Februrary 1956, to operate with 1 kW during daytime only, from the same transmitter site listed above. The studios were also originally located at the tower site. A license to cover for the station was filed in September 1956, and it was listed as transmitting with an RCA BTA-1MX transmitter. A year later the license was transferred to WJDB, Inc., headed by Bishop. Of note is that Bishop put on several other stations in south Alabama, as well as being involved in starting up several cable TV systems. His main station was WCTA in Andalusia.

WJDB-FM was spawned by this station in 1972, and it originally simulcast the AM, which likely had a typical small town full service type format. It wasn't until the late 1980's that the Broadcasting Yearbook began listing a specific format for the station and its FM simulcast, Country.

In 1991 the two stations were acquired by Griffith Broadcasting Corporation for $375,000. They kept the Country format and the FM simulcasting the AM until well into the late 90's, when they finally flipped this station to Gospel while keeping the FM as a Country outlet. By 2001, the station was noted to be airing an Oldies format.

The station was reported as silent in December 2011. It was reported silent again in April 2016, when they were granted a Silent STA (Special Temporary Authorization). That authorization was extended again later that year. It's unclear if the station ever returned to the air after this; the FCC sent numerous letters of inquiry to the station in 2017, which weren't answered, so the license was deleted that year.