WIZE (1340 AM) — branded Dayton's BIN 1340 — is a commercial all-news radio station in Springfield, Ohio owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. as part of their Dayton cluster. While servicing the Dayton metropolitan area, WIZE is also targeted towards Springfield, and their transmitter - and former studios - are located in Springfield. WIZE functions as the Dayton market affiliate for the Black Information Network. In addition to a standard analog transmission, WIZE streams via iHeartRadio. History The station took the air on November 1, 1940, and was very active in the community. Its founder and first owner was The Radio Voice of Springfield Inc. In the station's early days, nationally known comedian Jonathan Winters had a program on WIZE. However, in the mid-1960s, WIZE adopted a Top 40 format, increasing its popularity and revenue. Under the leadership of Station Manager Steve Joos, listenership (and advertising revenues) grew to the point that WIZE was the most profitable station in the Great Trails Broadcasting chain. WING in Dayton, WCOL in Columbus and WGTZ, Eaton (formerly WJAI) were also owned by Great Trails. The station was moved from its downtown location on West High Street to a location on Miracle Mile. In order to comply with zoning regulations, the building had to be set back from the road and had to look like a residence. As a result, WIZE's studios had a country setting while remaining in the city. Among the list of past employees include Jim Baldridge(later of WHIO-TV), Duke Rollins, Sonny Palmer, Paul Carman, Ron Allen (now with ESPN International), the late John Hall (John Stalder), Johnny Walker (DJ born 1942) (later of WKEF-TV), Lee Brenner (Lee Aufdenkampe), Ric Jonns (formerly of Radio Caroline North), Fred "Buddy" King, John King (F. John Damewood), Geoff Davis, Jerry "T" Tritle, and Pat Barry (who achieved more recognition as a TV weatherman in Cincinnati). WIZE was also the home to news and sports director Gerry Allen (Gerry Pavelka) and notable news reporters Karen Anderson and Darryl Bauer (now of WHIO-AM). Will Harris also worked with Gerry Allen on high school and Wittenberg sports broadcasts in the 70's. He went on to work in Dayton at WHIO, WONE, WCLR (in Piqua) and WPFB FM (then known as the Rebel). He is now on the air and is one of the owners of Downtown Dayton Radio (DDR) which is an online radio station (www.downtowndaytonradio.com) dedicated to