K 105 - WQXK

A commercial country music radio station licensed to Salem, Ohio, WQXK broadcasts at 105.1 FM and serves the Youngstown metropolitan area and the broader Mahoning Valley. It operates under the K-105 brand and is one of eight Youngstown-market stations owned by Cumulus Media, which acquired it in 2000. The studios and offices are located in "The Radio Center" in Youngstown, while the transmitter is situated off Franklin Avenue in Salem. The station holds an unusually high effective radiated power of 88,000 watts, grandfathered in at a level well above the 50,000-watt limit typical of FM stations in the region. The 105.1 dial position has a lengthy history in the market. The original occupant, WFMJ-FM, was founded by William F. Maag Jr., also publisher of The Youngstown Vindicator. That station received a construction permit in 1947, went on the air in January 1950, and surrendered its license to the FCC on January 5, 1954 due to low audience penetration. WSOM-FM, a new Salem station, signed on November 25, 1958, and by the late 1970s had adopted a country format. After several ownership changes, the call sign was changed to WQXK in January 1980 to establish a distinct identity from its AM sister. The station has received multiple Country Music Association nominations for Small Market Radio Station of the Year.