WERD in Atlanta – Celebrating Black Business Month in Alabama

The first Black-owned radio station, WERD in Atlanta, was purchased by Jesse B. Blanton Jr. in 1950. By the 1970s there were only 16 Black-owned stations in the country, although there were some 300 stations with Black-oriented formats. According to the National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters (NABOB), in 1996 there were 189 Black-owned radio stations. Today 168 of 10,135 commercial AM and FM stations are Black-owned. These stations are concentrated in the southern region of the country and are distributed among 30 states. We salute Black-owned commercial radio stations in Alabama:

  • Birmingham: V94.9 FM, WATV-AM, WSYP-LP 95.1 FM, WAYE-AM, WJLD-AM WLPH-AM
  • Carrolton: WRAG-AM
  • Citronelle: WHXT-FM
  • Dothan: WJJN 92.1, WAGF 101.3
  • Huntsville: WEUP AM/FM, WDJL-AM
  • Northport: WNPT-AM, WSPT-AM
  • Talladega: WNUV-AM
  • Tuscumbia: WZZA-AM
  • Tuskegee: WBIL-AM
  • Wetumpka: WAPZ-AM

About the Alabama State Black Chamber of Commerce (ASBCC) Network

The Alabama State Black Chamber of Commerce Network consists of the ASBCC, Birmingham Metro Black Chamber of Commerce, Mobile Area Black Chamber of Commerce, North Alabama African American Chamber of Commerce, Northeast Alabama Black Chamber of Commerce, River Region Black Chamber of Commerce, and the Tuscaloosa Black Chamber of Commerce. For information about and membership with the ASBCC visit www.alblackcc.org.

About the Author

Mike Sparks