# WATT

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Radio station in Cadillac, Michigan

For other uses, see [Watt (disambiguation)](/source/Watt_(disambiguation)).

WATT Cadillac, Michigan United States Frequency 1240 kHz Branding News Talk 1240 Programming Format News-Talk-Sports Affiliations Michigan Radio Network Ownership Owner MacDonald Garber Broadcasting Sister stations WKAD, WKHQ-FM, WLXT, WLXV, WMKT, WMBN History First air date September 30, 1945 (1945-09-30) Technical information[1] Licensing authority FCC Facility ID 65928 Class C Power 1,000 watts Translators W291DE (106.1 MHz, Cadillac) Links Public license information Public file LMS

**WATT** (1240 AM, "News Talk 1240") is a [radio station](/source/Radio_station) broadcasting a [news](/source/News_radio)-[talk](/source/Talk_radio)-[sports](/source/Sports_radio) format. Licensed to [Cadillac, Michigan](/source/Cadillac%2C_Michigan), it began broadcasting in 1946.

WATT officially began broadcasting on September 30, 1945, as Cadillac's first radio station[2] on the frequency of 1240 kHz.[3] The station was founded by Les Biederman, a broadcast pioneer who had previously launched WTCM in Traverse City. WATT was a key member of Biederman’s Paul Bunyan Network, a group of small-market stations designed to provide localized news and entertainment to Northern Michigan communities.[4] During its early years, WATT operated with a power of 250 watts and served as an [NBC Radio Network](/source/NBC_Radio_Network) affiliate, bringing national programming and block-style variety shows to Wexford County residents.[5]

In the 1970s, Les Biederman sold WATT to Kenneth MacDonald Sr., the founder of MacDonald Broadcasting. MacDonald, a former hall-of-fame broadcaster from Saginaw, purchased the station alongside its FM sister (WLXV) and properties in Petoskey.[6]

In 1998, as part of a corporate reorganization of the family business, the Northern Michigan stations—including WATT—were spun off into a separate entity called MacDonald-Garber Broadcasting, headed by Patricia MacDonald-Garber.[7]

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-FCC-LMS-65928_1-0)** ["Facility Technical Data for WATT"](https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/public/tv/publicFacilityTechDetails.html?facilityId=65928). *Licensing and Management System*. [Federal Communications Commission](/source/Federal_Communications_Commission).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["Cadillac Gets Station"](https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-bay-city-times-cadillac-gets-station/188278727/). *The Bay City Times*. United Press. September 30, 1945. p. 10. Retrieved January 6, 2026.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["1240 AM WATT Media Kit"](https://macdonaldgarberbroadcasting.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/WATTMediaKit.pdf) (PDF). MacDonald-Garber Broadcasting. Retrieved January 3, 2026.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["WTCM (AM) History"](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC-YB/1976/B-1-Radio-1976-YB-6.pdf) (PDF). Broadcasting Publications Inc. p. C-104. Retrieved January 3, 2026.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["Michigan Radio History Records"](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-DX/Veries/Michigan/Michigan.pdf) (PDF). World Radio History. Retrieved January 3, 2026.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["MacDonald Broadcasting Hall of Fame"](https://www.michiganassociationofbroadcasters.com/hall-of-fame/). Michigan Association of Broadcasters. Retrieved January 3, 2026.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["Cadillac Chamber of Commerce Member Directory"](https://www.cadillac.org/list/member/macdonald-garber-broadcasting-91). Cadillac Area Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved January 3, 2026.

## External links

- [FCC History Cards for WATT](https://transition.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/HistoryCards/65928.pdf)

- [Michiguide.com - WATT History](http://www.michiguide.com/dials/rad-a/watt.html)

- [Facility details for Facility ID 65928 (WATT)](https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/public/tv/publicFacilityDetails.html?facilityId=65928) in the [FCC](/source/Federal_Communications_Commission) Licensing and Management System

- [WATT](https://www1.arbitron.com/sip/displaySip.do?surveyID=SP26&band=am&callLetter=WATT) in [Nielsen Audio](/source/Nielsen_Audio)'s AM station database

v t e Radio stations in Northwest Michigan This region includes the following cities: Traverse City Petoskey Cadillac By AM frequency 530 580 940 1110 1210 1240 WATT WCBY 1270 1310 1340 1370 1400 1610 By FM frequency 88.1 88.3 88.7 89.3 89.9 90.5 90.7 90.9 91.1 91.3 91.5 91.7 91.9 92.3 92.5 92.9 93.5 93.7 94.3 94.5 95.3 95.5 95.9 96.3 96.7 97.5 97.7 98.1 98.9 99.3 100.3 100.9 101.9 102.9 103.5 103.9 104.5 104.9 105.1 105.5 105.9 106.3 WJML WWMK 106.7 107.1 107.5 107.9 WCDY WLJN-FM LPFM 100.1 Translators 92.1 94.7 95.1 97.1 98.3 99.7 100.7 W264CF W264DQ 101.1 102.1 102.3 102.5 103.3 104.1 104.7 106.1 By call sign W221CA W234BU W236BU W246CW W252DA W259AH W264CF W264DQ W266CS W271AG W272CR W273CR W277DY W281CG W284DF W291DE WAIR WATT WAWM WBCM WBLW WBNZ WCBY WCCW WCCW-FM WCDY WCHY WCML-FM WCMV-FM WCMW-FM WFDX WGCP WGFE WGFM WGFN WIAA WICA WIDG WJML WJNL WJOG WJZQ WKAD WKHQ-FM WNHC787 WKLT WLDR-FM WLJD WLJN WLJN-FM WLJW WLJW-FM WLLS WLXT WLXV WMBN WMKC WMKT WNMC-FM WOLW WPHN WQHN WQON WSBX WSRJ WSRT WTCK WTCM WTCM-FM WTCY WTLI WVBI-LP WWMK WWMN WWSS WZTC Defunct WOUF (750 AM) Radio stations in Northern Michigan Alpena-Tawas City Ludington-Manistee Traverse City-Petoskey-Cadillac Other nearby regions Door County North Central Michigan Sault Ste. Marie–Newberry See also List of radio stations in Michigan

v t e News/Talk radio stations in the state of Michigan All-news Detroit WDFN WWJ Full-time news/talk Adrian WABJ Ann Arbor WAAM WLBY Big Rapids WBRN Cadillac WATT Detroit WDTK WJR Escanaba WCHT Grand Rapids WOOD Hastings WBCH Holland WHTC Jackson WKHM Kalamazoo WKZO Lansing WILS Ludington WLDN Manistee WMLQ Muskegon WKBZ WOOD-FM Niles WTRC-FM Saginaw WSGW WSGW-FM Tawas City WIOS Traverse City/Petoskey WMKT WTCM Part-time news/talk Coldwater WTVB Escanaba WDBC Farmington Hills/Detroit WFDF Grand Rapids WTKG Hillsdale WRFH-LP Lansing WVFN Port Huron WPHM Sandusky WMIC Sault. Ste. Marie WKNW Benton Harbor/St. Joseph WSJM-FM Defunct Alpena WATZ Flint WFNT Ishpeming WIAN Manistee WMTE Port Huron WHLS See also adult contemporary classic hits college country news/talk NPR oldies religious rock sports top 40 urban other radio stations in Michigan

Authority control databases VIAF

[44°13′27″N 85°24′0″W / 44.22417°N 85.40000°W / 44.22417; -85.40000](https://geohack.toolforge.org/geohack.php?pagename=WATT&params=44_13_27_N_85_24_0_W_type:landmark_region:US)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [WATT](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WATT) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WATT?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.