Jacobs Media Corporation celebrated its 69th anniversary today by announcing the promotion of a longtime employee to lead the company and the addition of a new radio station.
Bill Maine, host of WDUN’s “Morning News with Bill & Joel” and a 38-year employee of the station, was named executive vice president and general manager. In his new role, Maine will oversee daily operations of Jacobs Media, which includes WDUN AM/FM, WGGA AM and AccessWDUN.com.
“Jacobs Media was built on serving the community and we will continue the tradition begun by John W. Jacobs Jr. and continued by his son, Jay,” Maine said. “As we move into our 70th year, we’re looking forward to developing more ways to inform and entertain both on the air, online and in person.”
John W. “Jay” Jacobs III will continue to serve as chairman of the board and CEO of the company, with a focus on how to grow the business.
“Bill is uniquely qualified for this position,” Jacobs said. “Given his 38 years with the company, I have the utmost confidence that he is the right person to lead us into the future. This will allow me to take a step back and explore ways we can generate new business for the company.”
Maine is a Gainesville native who fell in love with radio when he received a transistor radio for his 10th birthday. He began his career at 16 as a volunteer deejay for Brenau University’s WBCX. Shortly after, he landed a part time job with Jacobs Media.
Maine has been with Jacobs Media for 38 years, working as an announcer, news anchor, production director, and most recently, as director of radio operations. Maine will continue to co-host “Morning News with Bill & Joel” from 5:30-9 a.m. weekdays on WDUN AM 550 and FM 102.9
Also today, the company announced the addition of a new radio station. W233CO is an FM translator that will air at 94.5 FM. It will simulcast the WGGA signal at 1240 AM. The new station can be heard throughout Hall County and the immediate surrounding area. It will also be available for streaming on the company’s websites and mobile apps.
The format and other details about the station will be announced when the station launches later this month.
Jacobs Media was founded in 1949 by the late John W. Jacobs Jr., a successful businessman and philanthropist. Under his guidance, Jacobs Media brought North Georgia its first FM radio station, its first cable company and the region’s first online newspaper. Today, WDUN AM/FM is a popular news/talk station, offering a great mix of local and syndicated talk.
In 1999, Jay Jacobs brought the company into a compelling era of new media, launching AccessNorthGa.com, the region’s first Internet news service. In April 2015, the website was rebranded as AccessWDUN to combine the site’s consistent news coverage with the rich history of WDUN radio.
The company’s headquarters and studios are on Thompson Bridge Road in Gainesville.
Today, AccessWDUN is the North Georgia’s most read news website for local news. In 2014, AccessWDUN averaged nearly 240,000 unique visitors to the site each month, over 1.1 million sessions per month and almost 4.25 million pageviews per month.
