WSLM (AM) - Programming

Programming

WSLM AM came on the air in 1953, after a minor glitch—the station was broken into Christmas Eve 1952 and thieves cleaned it out. When station owner Don Martin came in on Christmas morning to turn on the station for all of Southern Indiana to enjoy—he couldn't. The equipment was gone.

"It was nice of them to make us tracks into the station," he later said.

In describing the story to the local press, Martin quipped that the station had equipment "most preferred by thieves." This comment along with the story made headlines distributed by the Associated Press.

Authorities tracked the equipment to near Cincinnati, Ohio where the young men were operating a pirate radio station. They were set up in a quonset hut.

Once the equipment was returned (in good shape), Martin restored the station to full capacity and was able to begin broadcasting on Valentine's Day 1953.

Consequently, the Associated Press carried the story naming the station "The Sweetheart Station of the Nation."

Notable local programming on WSLM-FM and WHAN-LP TV which is simulcast on WSLM AM, is Coffee Club, Blue Sky Church, four daily newscasts, Ag and market reports, Swap Shop, a trading program airing twice daily and Texas Ed's bluegrass show on weekday afternoons. The station also airs, by default, IU and Purdue broadcasts, as well as local high school footbal and basketball games.

Another local program called "Trivia" which is actually the Saturday edition of Coffee Club, airs on Saturday mornings offering listeners a chance to call in and win either a WSLM t-shirt or a Christian music CD by answering a trivia question on secular items and from the Bible.