The Debs Memorial Radio Fund began operating WEVD on August 18, 1927. Broadcasting was not limited to the English language, however. One of the organizations behind the funding of the WEVD project, the widely circulated and financially successful "Jewish Daily Forward," launched what would become what one radio historian has called "the most famous Yiddish radio program of all time" — "The Forward Hour." The show was first broadcast every Sunday morning at 11 am and gained a significant following among the Yiddish-speaking immigrant community of New York City.