ɪnðə mˈɪd nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɪksti z, ðə stˈeɪʃən, ðˈɛn nˈoʊn æz dˌʌbəljˌuːdʒˌeɪˌɛfˈɛm, swˈɪtʃt tʊ ɐ ˌɛmˌoʊˈɑːɹ slˈæʃ nˈuːz slˈæʃ tˈɔːk slˈæʃ spˈoːɹts fˈɔːɹmæt, ænd ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɪksti sˈɛvən bɪkˌeɪm mˈoːɹ mjˈuːzɪkɪntˈɛnsɪv, ɐdˈɑːptɪŋ ðə mˈɑːnɪkɚ "ðə mˈɑːdɚn sˈaʊnd," wˌɪtʃ fˈɛtsɚ ɹᵻpˈoːɹɾᵻdli sˈuːn dˈɪd ɐwˈeɪ wɪð bɪkˈʌz hiː fˈɛlt ðə stˈeɪʃən plˈeɪd tˈuː mʌtʃ "ɹˈɑːk ænd ɹˈoʊl."
In the mid-1960s, the station, then known as WJFM, switched to a MOR/news/talk/sports format, and in 1967 became more music-intensive, adopting the moniker "The Modern Sound," which Fetzer reportedly soon did away with because he felt the station played too much "rock and roll."