Oral History of WWCT in Peoria, Illinois

Although broadcast radio faces fierce competition from streaming services and a generation of people growing up with iPods and similar devices, radio was once a major entertainment provider, even after television became the major source of electronic entertainment.

Frequently the histories of media institutions remain unwritten, and memories of the radio stations, what they were like, and how people connected with them, fade over time. Additionally, one can only glean so much from photos of bumper stickers, logos, or t-shirt designs. Short of on-air recordings of broadcasts, the stories of what took place in and around the station as told by the very people who played the songs, provided the news and weather, and told the jokes, can provide an interesting look into the existence of the radio station. Collecting these memories, stories, and other recollections comprise an oral history of not only a media outlet, but the communities surrounding the station. These oral histories can be supplemented with station artifacts, photos, news releases, and trade journal publications. This combined body of historical evidence helps provide a history of a station, but also a slice of the perceptions of a station, how it fit into the community, and the effects it had on individuals.

In my proposed presentation, drawing on interviews I conducted and have stored at the Internet Archive, I will chronicle how a small group of radio professionals created a heritage radio station whose heyday lasted for nearly twenty years. The radio station, WWCT from Peoria, Illinois, has been called a fraternity, and the stories that I will share can show how that station originated, rose to the top of the ratings, maintained its success, and became an integral part of the community for a large part of the nineteen eighties and nineties.