KKCB

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title: "KKCB" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["country-radio-stations-in-minnesota", "radio-stations-in-duluth,-minnesota", "radio-stations-in-superior,-wisconsin", "townsquare-media-radio-stations", "radio-stations-established-in-1966", "1966-establishments-in-minnesota"] topic_path: "general/country-radio-stations-in-minnesota" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KKCB" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox radio station"]

Field	Value
name	KKCB
logo	B105RADIO.png
city	Duluth, Minnesota
country	US
area	Duluth-Superior
branding	B105
frequency	105.1 MHz
airdate	(as WWJC-FM)
format	Country
erp	100,000 watts
haat	241 m
class	C1
facility_id	49686
callsign_meaning	"B105"
former_callsigns
affiliations	Compass Media Networks
owner	Townsquare Media
licensee	Townsquare License, LLC
sister_stations
webcast
website
licensing_authority	FCC
::

KKCB (105.1 FM, "B105") is a radio station in Duluth, Minnesota, owned by Townsquare Media, airing a country music format.

The 105.1 frequency came into use in January 1966 when WWJC-FM launched. WWJC and its successor, WGGR, were primarily beautiful music stations. After being acquired in 1983, the station flipped to country as WAVC-FM and became one of the leading stations in Duluth. The present brand and call sign were adopted in 1996.

History

The Twin Ports Christian Broadcasting Corporation, owner of radio station WWJC (1270 AM), applied to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on April 7, 1964, seeking authority to build a new FM radio station licensed to Superior, Wisconsin. It received a construction permit on July 1, 1964. WWJC-FM began broadcasting on January 15, 1966. It aired classical and semi-classical music as well as inspirational programming and news. After three years in operation, Twin Ports Christian sold off WWJC-FM in 1969 to a new corporation of Minneapolis investors: William Gregory, Herbert Gross, and Gordon Ritz. Ritz was a founding owner of the Minnesota North Stars and later served as the team's president. As part of the transaction, the new ownership, the Titanic Corporation, sought to change the city of license from Superior to Duluth. These applications were granted on March 11, 1970, Titanic relaunched the station as WGGR on July 17, 1970. Named for the last names of its three owners, it programmed a beautiful music format and broadcast in stereo. The station programmed just four commercial breaks an hour and limited talk, with news and weather reports kept to a minimum and no announcement of songs played. Ritz became the sole owner in 1976, and the licensee name was changed to ComRad Broadcasting Corporation in 1979.

In 1982, Midwest Radio of Duluth agreed to purchase WGGR from Ritz and general manager John Bartikoski. Midwest Radio owned Duluth AM station WEBC. Midwest relaunched the station on January 31, 1983, as WAVC with a country music format. It was the first Duluth-based FM country music station, arriving in town at the same time as a translator of WKKQ-FM from Hibbing. WEBC and WAVC were in turn sold to Northland Broadcasting—a subsidiary of Evansville, Indiana–based Brill Media—the next year.

As a country station, WAVC immediately eroded the listenership of Duluth's established country music outlet on AM, WDSM. Its program manager, Tim Michaels, told the News-Tribune & Herald that WDSM lost half its audience as a result of facing an FM competitor. After Michaels left WDSM to join WAVC, the station switched in 1989 from a satellite-fed format to a locally originated playlist, responding to a decline in ratings.

The relaunch of KTCO as a country station in 1994 prompted WAVC's ratings to decline, particularly among listeners, in the mid-1990s. As a result, in January 1996, station management opted to change tack. They fired Michaels—who sued, claiming the dismissal was based on his age. In March, the station was relaunched with new KKCB call letters and branded as B105. Between the spring and fall ratings surveys that year, KKCB increased its listenership to become the number-one station in Duluth. In 1999, the Brill cluster moved to studios on Central Entrance, which had previously been used by Color Tile.

Brill Media filed for bankruptcy reorganization in 2002 after missing a bond payment, which it attributed to the post-September 11 recession. The Brill Duluth cluster, which by this time consisted of four stations, was acquired by Regent Communications at auction. The company then traded the stations to Clear Channel Communications for Clear Channel's five-station cluster in Evansville, Indiana.

When Clear Channel was taken private in 2006, it opted to sell 448 stations located outside the top 100 radio markets. For more than $74 million, GapWest Broadcasting acquired the Duluth cluster and 56 other stations in four states. GapWest was folded into Townsquare Media in 2010. Townsquare moved its Duluth operations inside the Holiday Center downtown in 2019.

References

"History Cards for KKCB". [[Federal Communications Commission]].
(January 15, 1966). "WWJC-FM 105.1 Mc, The 100,000 Watt Clear Voice of the Northland". Duluth News-Tribune.
(March 13, 1969). "Superior Radio Station Sold to 3 Mill Citians". Duluth News-Tribune.
Greenwald, John. (June 24, 1976). "Ritz hopes to crack Stars' losing streak". The Minneapolis Star.
(April 10, 1969). "Transfer Asked For WWJC-FM". The Duluth News Tribune.
(July 17, 1970). "FM Stereo Station to Open Today". Duluth News-Tribune.
Eldot, Walter. (July 15, 1971). "Duluth Stereo Station a Year Old: No Time for Opera or Rock". Duluth News-Tribune.
(November 6, 1982). "WEBC buys WGGR, subject to approval". News-Tribune & Herald.
Ashenmacher, Bob. (January 22, 1983). "Second Duluth station going country". News-Tribune & Herald.
(May 26, 1984). "WEBC-AM radio station sold". News-Tribune & Herald.
Ashenmacher, Bob. (March 21, 1986). "The seasons change, but people don't". The Duluth News Tribune.
Mossberger, Irv. (November 22, 1989). "WEBC dumps Cosell, format; Friedman back in Sunday slot". The Duluth News-Tribune.
Furst, J.P.. (October 20, 1989). "A new way to catch TV's evening news — on radio". The Duluth News-Tribune.
Papatola, Dominic P.. (June 7, 1996). "Tune in for owner changes: 4 radio stations bought by chain". The Duluth News Tribune.
(March 7, 1996). "Radio fixture sues over firing: Claim of age bias could foreshadow baby boomer trend". The Duluth News-Tribune.
Papatola, Dominic P.. (August 15, 1996). "More radio choices splinter audience". The Duluth News-Tribune.
Papatola, Dominic P.. (February 12, 1997). "KQDS ratings drop: Classic rock station isn't ready to change format, but is concerned about Arbitron figures". The Duluth News-Tribune.
Casey, Chris. (May 4, 1999). "Northland radio makes the move to new studios: KKCB, WEBC and KLDJ stations relocate to former Color Tile facility". Duluth News-Tribune.
Lincoln, Craig. (March 6, 2002). "Stations' owner files for bankruptcy: Manager: Northland Broadcasting radio stations won't be". The Duluth News Tribune.
(September 6, 2002). "Company buys radio stations". Duluth News Tribune.
(February 28, 2003). "Radio giant obtains local stations". The Duluth News Tribune.
Coudret, Rebecca. (February 28, 2003). "Radio stations changing hands". Evansville Courier & Press.
(2006-11-16). "Clear Channel agrees to be taken private".
(January 1, 2008). "Company might buy Duluth radio stations". Duluth News Tribune.
(August 13, 2010). "Townsquare Media completes roll-up of GAP". Radio Business Report.
(2018-10-24). "Townsquare Duluth's Four Stations Relocate To Downtown Storefront". Inside Radio.

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