Regional Media-Virden Broadcasting

Regional Media-Virden Broadcasting headquartered in Davenport, Iowa is private owner of radio stations in the Midwest.

The company traces it founding to Randal J. Miller who at the age of 16 in 1971 started a 100 milliwatt transmitter station with a 300-foot range from his parents house in rural Shelbyville, Illinois. In 1982 he launched 3,000 watt easy listening music station WRVI with a range of 25 miles in Virden, Illinois.^[1] He sold the station in 1992 and acquired other small market stations in Illinois and sold the then Taylorville, Illinois based Virden Broadcasting to Fletcher M. Ford in 2013 who moved the headquarters to Davenport.^[2] Ford of Blue Grass, Iowa at the time was sales manager of Virden's Kewanee radio stations.^[3]

The Virden name frequently has been clipped to just Regional Media since Ford's acquisition. In December 2021, the company expanded outside of Illinois radio station base with the acquisition of KVVL and KNIM in Maryville, Missouri.^[4] The company's web reginonalmedia.info

Prestige Communications

Prestige Communications was a broadcast radio station group in Macomb, Illinois. It operated six stations in west-central Illinois owned by the husband-wife team of Bruce T. Foster and Nancy L. Foster. All six stations were sold to Virden Broadcasting Corp. effective November 30, 2015, at a purchase price of $725,000. The stations, with ownership as of 2009, were:

• Central Illinois Broadcasting Company — 74% Bruce Foster; 26% Nancy Foster shares voted by Bruce Foster^[5]
  • 102.7 WJEQ Macomb, Illinois — from bankrupt McDonough Broadcasting, Inc. on 14 June 1989^[6]
• Colchester Radio, Inc. — 100% owned by Nancy Foster^[5]
  • 1510 WLRB Macomb, Illinois — from WPW Broadcasting on 6 January 2009^[7]
  • 100.1 WKAI Macomb, Illinois — from WPW Broadcasting on 6 January 2009^[7]
  • 104.1 WMQZ Colchester, Illinois — licensed as new on 9 June 1999^[8]
  • 104.7 WLMD Bushnell, Illinois — from WPW Broadcasting on 6 January 2009^[7]
• Nancy L. Foster — as sole proprietor^[5]
  • 95.9 WNLF Macomb, Illinois — FCC construction permit granted by Auction #25, MX FM 51, in 1996;^[9] licensed as new 16 March 2001^[10]

Stations

Illinois

• KQCJ FM, Cambridge, Illinois^[11]
• WKEI AM, Kewanee, Illinois^[12]
• WJRE FM, Galva, Illinois^[13]
• WZOE-FM, Princeton, Illinois^[14]
• WZOE (AM), Princeton, Illinois^[15]
• WRVY FM, Henry, Illinois^[16]
• WZZT FM, Morrison, Illinois^[17]
• WSSQ FM, Sterling, Illinois^[18]
• WSDR AM, Sterling, Illinois^[19]
• WLMD (FM), Bushnell, Illinois^[20]
• WJEQ FM, Macomb, Illinois^[21]
• WKAI FM, Macomb, Illinois^[22]
• WNLF FM, Macomb, Illinois^[23]
• WMQZ FM, Colchester, Illinois^[24]

Missouri

• KVVL FM, Maryville^[4]
• KNIM AM, Maryville^[4]

External links

• Official website (as of January 16, 2022 redirects to a subsection the company's illinoisnewsnow.com website)
• Prestige Communications — former official site
• "Local radio stations sold" — July 17, 2008, article by Bill Ford of the Macomb Journal

References

1. "Virden FM Station Opens in 1982". Newspapers.com. 1981-11-09. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
2. "Regional Media Moving to Davenport". Newspapers.com. 2013-02-12. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
3. "Miller Media Group Company Profile | Management and Employees List". Datanyze.com. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
4. "Nodaway Broadcasting, INC Announces Sale Of Radio Stations To Regional Media – Nodaway Broadcasting". Nodawaybroadcasting.com. 2021-10-18. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
5. Colchester Radio, Inc. (2009-02-04). "FCC Form 323: Ownership Report for Commercial Broadcast Stations (File No. BOS-20090209ADM)". Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved 2009-07-25.
6. "Public Notice Comment (FCC File No. BALH-19890202GF)". Federal Communications Commission. 1989-06-14. Retrieved 2009-07-25.
7. Colchester Radio, Inc. (2009-01-06). "Consummation Notice (FCC File No. BALH-20080717ABN)". Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved 2009-07-25.
8. "Application Search Details (FCC File No. BLH-19990309KA)". Federal Communications Commission. 1999-06-11. Retrieved 2009-07-25.
9. "Public Notice Comment (FCC File No. BPH-19961017MN)". Federal Communications Commission. 2000-08-14. Retrieved 2009-07-25.
10. "Application Search Details (FCC File No. BLH-20001108AAC)". Federal Communications Commission. 2001-03-16. Retrieved 2009-07-25.
11. "FM Station KQCJ - FCC Public Inspection File". publicfiles.fcc.gov.
12. "AM Station WKEI - FCC Public Inspection File". publicfiles.fcc.gov.
13. "FM Station WJRE - FCC Public Inspection File". publicfiles.fcc.gov.
14. "FM Station WZOE-FM - FCC Public Inspection File". publicfiles.fcc.gov.
15. "AM Station WZOE - FCC Public Inspection File". publicfiles.fcc.gov.
16. "FM Station WRVY-FM - FCC Public Inspection File". publicfiles.fcc.gov.
17. "FM Station WZZT - FCC Public Inspection File". publicfiles.fcc.gov.
18. "FM Station WSSQ - FCC Public Inspection File". publicfiles.fcc.gov.
19. "AM Station WSDR - FCC Public Inspection File". publicfiles.fcc.gov.
20. "FM Station WLMD - FCC Public Inspection File". publicfiles.fcc.gov.
21. "FM Station WJEQ - FCC Public Inspection File". publicfiles.fcc.gov.
22. "FM Station WKAI - FCC Public Inspection File". publicfiles.fcc.gov.
23. "FM Station WNLF - FCC Public Inspection File". publicfiles.fcc.gov.
24. "FM Station WMQZ - FCC Public Inspection File". publicfiles.fcc.gov.