Civic Media is buying WNOV/860 (Milwaukee), W293CX/106.5 (Milwaukee), and the weekly Milwaukee Courier newspaper from Courier Communications.
The deal was first announced in a Dec. 17 news release. An application to transfer the stations’ licenses was filed with the FCC on Dec. 22, listing a purchase price of $1.4 million.
Civic will assume control of WNOV/W293CX under a time brokerage agreement on Jan. 1, 2026. The company announced that Dr. Robert “Biko” Baker will take over as operations manager for both the radio station and newspaper.
Dr. Jerrel Jones founded The Courier in 1964 as a voice for Milwaukee’s Black community. Courier purchased WNOV in 1972, making it Wisconsin’s first Black-owned radio station.
Following Jones’ death last summer, his daughter Mary Ellen Jones leads the company.
“My parents built The Milwaukee Courier and WNOV to give Milwaukee’s Black community a voice when few existed,” Mary Ellen Jones said in the news release. “Passing that responsibility forward was not taken lightly. Civic Media is committed to honoring that legacy while investing in the future of trusted media.”
WNOV carries a mix of talk and music, with local talk hosts in the morning and Rev. Al Sharpton and Tavis Smiley airing in the afternoon and evening. Music is block-programmed with a variety of genres including Gospel, Blues, and Reggae.
Civic also owns News/Talk outlet WAUK/540 (Jackson-Milwaukee), Full Service Oldies station WRJN/1400 (Racine), and WZTI/1290 (Greenfield-Milwaukee), which currently relays WRJN. WAUK has two FM translators while WRJN/WZTI is relayed on three FM translators.
This item was first posted Dec. 17 and updated Dec. 22 with information from the FCC filing and additional details from the press release.