WHFS becomes Spanish station

Information has been compiled from The Washington Post article "WHFS Abruptly Changes Format." Additional information has been compiled from the NBC article, "WHFS Changes Format."

After playing alternative rock music for over 20 years, radio station WHFS has switched over to broadcasting entirely Spanish music as of noon today, Wednesday, Jan. 12, according to The Washington Post and NBC.

In October, the station's owner, Infinity Broadcasting, made an alliance with Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc. (SBS) and formed a new station, "El Zol," in order to target a larger audience. Infinity Broadcasting, which owns three other FM radio stations in the DC-Metropolitan area, found that WHFS' ratings had slipped lower than the others, making the station a viable candidate for the format switch advised by SBS.

"El Zol" will target 10-percent of the DC-Metro population, which consists of over 400,000 Hispanic people, and will play Caribbean and Central American music, according to Infinity. The station's slogan is "Siempre de Fiesta," which loosely translates to "always partying."

Several former WHFS listeners have created a petition urging the owners of the station to reevaluate their decision. As of 10:35 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 12, more than 3,600 people have signed the plea, claiming that the station has made a hasty choice.

According to The Washington Post, WHFS-FM 99.1, which stood for "Hi Fidelity Stereo," had many alternative rock listeners. The HFStival festival that the station sponsored yearly lured over 65,000 people to the RFK stadium in May 2004 alone.