 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Mass media |
| Founded | 1948 |
| Headquarters | headquartered in Elyria |
Key people | Bill Hudnutt, President Sandra Velez, WEOL Director of Operations Bill Forthofer, WKFM WLKR Station Manager |
| Products | Radio stations |
| Website | www.elbc.net |
The Elyria-Lorain Broadcasting Co. (also known as Elyria-Lorain or ELB) is a privately held holding company of various assets in the broadcast media, based in Elyria, Ohio. Its parent company is the Lorain County Printing and Publishing Company, which owns the Chronicle-Telegram of Elyria and Medina County Gazette.
The company was founded in 1948 with the establishment of WEOL AM-FM in Elyria, Ohio, the AM station of which continues to serve as the company's flagship. On May 15, 1958, Elyria-Lorain Broadcasting Co. was purchased by the Lorain County Printing and Publishing Company, making it a wholly owned subsidiary. As LCP&P owned the Chronicle-Telegram (and bought the Gazette in 1962) in effect formed a radio/newspaper duopoly. This arrangement has lasted to this day, grandfathered by FCC legislation that now prohibit such arrangements.
Other stations within the chain include the Sandusky/Lake Erie Islands area cluster of WLKR FM 95.3, WLKR AM 1510, and WKFM FM 96.1.
Throughout the 1990s, Elyria-Lorain Broadcasting also owned a station in the Mansfield market, WYXZ-FM in Crestline. In 2003, WYXZ was sold off to EMF Broadcasting, which now operates the station as WYKL with their "K-Love" religious format.
The company also owned WMEL (AM 920, now WDMC) Melbourne (1956 to 1993); WROD-AM 1340 Daytona Beach (1965 to 1982) and WELE-FM 105.9 (now WOCL) DeLand - Daytona Beach - Orlando (1982 to 1986), all in Florida. WEOL-FM in Elyria became WBEA in 1965, then WCZR and WNWV in 1987, and was sold off to the Akron, Ohio-based Rubber City Radio Group, Inc. in December 2011.