Among his 65 novels are works titled “Desperation,” “End of Watch,” “If It Bleeds,” and “The Dark Tower.” Little did we know that those names would be apropos for what’s coming in days to Stephen King‘s trio of radio brands in Maine.
With “losses in the millions” and his “advancing age” as key reasons, King is signing his stations in the Bangor, Me., market off the air after 41 years at the end of 2024.
In 1983, the internationally renown author of horror and suspense works including “It” and “The Body,” used for the film Stand by Me, entered the radio business with “the enthusiasm and love of a lifelong rock and roll fan and as a listening member of the greater Bangor community.”
This led to the creation of The Zone Corporation, and ownership of WZON-AM 620 “Retro Radio,” a Class B with 5kw daytime/620 watts nighttime from 1 tower across from Bangor High School; Class B Rocker WKIT-FM 100.3 in Brewer, Me.; and Class A Adult Alternative WZLO-FM 103.1 in Dover-Foxcroft, Me., which simulcasts on W252CT at 98.3 MHz in Bangor.
Now, “in good health but feeling his 77 years,” Zone Corporation on Monday announced that King believes it is time to “get his business affairs in better order.” This means saying goodbye to the radio stations that “he personally has kept afloat and on the air all these years.”
In a statement, King said, “While radio across the country has been overtaken by giant corporate broadcasting groups, I’ve loved being a local, independent owner all these years. I’ve loved the people who’ve gone to these stations every day and entertained folks, kept the equipment running, and given local advertisers a way to connect with their customers. Tabby and I are proud to have been a part of that for more than four decades.”
In those four decades, however, the stations “consistently have lost money,” Zone said. “The amounts have varied from year to year but have been significant. King personally has covered those losses.”
WZON was first purchased by King in 1983. He reacquired it in 1993 after selling it in 1990, following a failed attempt to make it a listener-supported enterprise. WKIT and WZLO were then added, and have been within Zone Corporation ownership for at least 15 years.
Since 2014, the stations have been overseen on a day-to-day basis by General Manager Ken Wood. He said he is “certainly sad to see the end” but said he’s grateful for the Kings’ ownership and proud of the local voices that have a place in Maine’s broadcast history. “Independent, locally owned radio stations used to be the norm,” Wood said. “There’re only a few left in Maine, and we’re lucky we had these three as long as we did.”
With no mention of a broker shopping around the stations, operations are expected to cease at WZON-AM, WKIT-FM and WZLO-FM on December 31, likely under Special Temporary Authority from the FCC. This will allow Zone Corp. to abide by FCC regulatory policy while potentially seeking a buyer for the stations.
Zone Corp. noted that “there will be no interviews nor further public releases of information” regarding King’s decision.
