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KIRO-FM

For the former KIRO-FM at 100.7 MHz, see KKWF.
KIRO-FM
Broadcast areaSeattle-Tacoma
Puget Sound region
Frequency97.3 MHz (HD Radio)
BrandingKIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM
("KIRO" pronounced as "Cairo")
Programming
FormatNews/talk
Subchannels
NetworkCBS News Radio
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
KIRO (AM), KTTH
History
First air date
October 26, 1948; 76 years ago (1948-10-26)
Former call signs
  • KTNT-FM (1948–1976)[1]
  • KNBQ (1976[1]–1988)[2]
  • KBSG (1988–1989)[2]
  • KBSG-FM (1989–2008)[2]
Call sign meaning
See KIRO (AM)
Technical information[3]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID33682
ClassC
ERP55,000 watts
HAAT729 meters (2,392 ft)
Transmitter coordinates
47°30′14″N 121°58′29″W / 47.50389°N 121.97472°W / 47.50389; -121.97472 (KIRO-FM Tower)
Links
Public license information
WebcastListen Live
Websitekiroradio.com

KIRO-FM (97.3 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Tacoma, Washington, and serving the Seattle-Tacoma radio market. It airs a news/talk radio format and is owned by Salt Lake City–based Bonneville International, a broadcasting company owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The studios and offices are located on Eastlake Avenue East in Seattle's Eastlake district.[4]

KIRO-FM starts weekdays with a news block, hosted by Dave Ross with Colleen O'Brien. The rest of the weekday schedule is made up of local talk hosts. At night, nationally syndicated shows are heard, Prime Time with John Dickerson, CBS Eye on the World with John Batchelor, Coast to Coast AM with George Noory and This Morning, America's First News with Gordon Deal. Weekends feature shows on money, health, food, travel, home repair and veterans, some of which are paid brokered programming. Nights and weekends, an update from CBS News Radio begins most hours.

KIRO-FM's transmitter is on Tiger Mountain in Issaquah.[5] Its effective radiated power (ERP) is 55,000 watts.[6] KIRO-FM broadcasts in the HD (digital) radio format.[7] The HD-2 digital subchannel simulcasts co-owned KIRO (710 AM)'s sports radio format. The HD-3 signal airs KTTH (770 AM)'s conservative talk format.

History

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For an earlier history of KIRO, see KIRO (AM).

KTNT-FM (1948–1976)

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The station was founded as KTNT-FM and was owned by The Tacoma News Tribune. It signed on the air on October 26, 1948; 76 years ago (1948-10-26).[8] The station was powered at 10,000 watts, a fraction of its current output, and exclusively targeted Tacoma and South Puget Sound.

The Tacoma News Tribune added an AM station in 1952, KTNT (1400 kHz, now KITZ); and in 1953, KTNT-TV (channel 11, now KSTW). The call signs for the three stations were derived from the newspaper's initials.

KNBQ (1976–1988)

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In 1976, the call letters were changed to KNBQ.[9] While the AM station carried a personality adult top 40 sound, the FM station switched to an automated adult contemporary format ("Mellow sounds in contemporary music") branded as "97 KNBQ". In early 1977, that format evolved to an automated music-intensive Top 40 format as "Q-97 FM". That automated Top 40 format shifted over time from using syndicated programming tapes (such as from Drake-Chenault's XT-40 format) to a locally programmed approach, and eventually added live DJs. By 1980, the station was live and local with a full DJ staff and a personality intensive approach. (The KNBQ call letters later were found on FM 102.9 and currently on FM 98.5.)

In the 1980s, the Tacoma News Tribune boosted KNBQ's power to 100,000 watts. The Federal Communications Commission granted a construction permit to increase the antenna height to 1,480 feet, moving the transmitter to Tiger Mountain. That greatly increased the station's value, now able to compete in the entire Seattle-Tacoma media market. In 1987, KNBQ was sold to the original iteration of Viacom.[10] Viacom kept the Top 40 format but used a "no talking over the music" policy to differentiate KNBQ from other Seattle Top 40 outlets.

KBSG (1988–2008)

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On February 1, 1988, the station flipped to an oldies format as "K-Best 97.3". It picked up the KBSG-FM call letters.[11][12][13][14][15][16][17] K-Best concentrated on the biggest hits of the 1960s, with some 1970s songs with a few late 1950s hits. As the station moved into the 1990s, the 1970s titles were increased and the 1950s songs were removed.

Entercom bought the station in 1996. For many years, KBSG-FM was simulcast on co-owned KBSG in Auburn (1210 AM, now KMIA). This lasted until 2002, when KBSG flipped to all-news radio (KBSG would later be sold to Bustos Media, which specialized in Spanish language formats). On August 1, 2007, after Entercom traded KBSG, KIRO and KTTH to Bonneville as part of a multi-market station swap. KBSG was rebranded from "KBSG 97.3" to "The New B97.3", and dropped the word "oldies" from the station's title.[18][19] The station's playlist was moved to more 1970s and 80s music, with fewer 60s titles. The format moved from oldies to classic hits.

Exactly one year later, on August 1, 2008, the station's call letters were switched to KIRO-FM.[20]

KIRO-FM (2008–present)

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Logo for 97.3 KIRO-FM as used from 2008 to 2012.

On August 12, 2008, at 4:23 a.m., the 97.3 frequency began to simulcast co-owned news/talk radio station AM 710 KIRO. The final song on 97.3 as a classic hits station, "Start Me Up" by the Rolling Stones, faded out as the FM station joined KIRO AM's Wall Street Journal This Morning in progress.[21][22][23][24][25][26]

On April 1, 2009, KIRO-FM became the primary station as the simulcasting on KIRO (AM) came to an end. It marked the completion of the station's transition to the FM frequency that began in August 2008.[27] KIRO (AM) is now a sports talk station, branded as "710 ESPN Seattle".

Also moved from KIRO to KIRO-FM were the NFL broadcasts of the Seattle Seahawks Radio Network (later named the Bing Radio Network and the American Family Insurance Radio Network, currently the Delta Air Lines Seahawks Radio Network). KIRO-FM is now the flagship station for the team's play-by-play and the pre- and post-game shows. The Seahawks had been heard on KIRO (AM) since the NFL franchise was launched in 1976.

KIRO-FM programming

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Sports

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Syndicated shows

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Past programs

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Locations

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Towers: 47°30′14″N 121°58′29″W / 47.50389°N 121.97472°W / 47.50389; -121.97472 (KIRO-FM Tower), on Tiger Mountain
Headquarters: 47°38′8″N 122°19′29″W / 47.63556°N 122.32472°W / 47.63556; -122.32472 (KIRO studios), Seattle, Washington on the shores of Lake Union

References

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  1. ^ a b History Cards for KIRO-FM, fcc.gov. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c Call Sign History, fcc.gov. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
  3. ^ "Facility Technical Data for KIRO-FM". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  4. ^ MyNorthwest.com/contact-us
  5. ^ Radio-Locator.com/KIRO-FM
  6. ^ FCC.gov/KIRO-FM
  7. ^ "HD Radio station guide for Seattle–Tacoma, WA". Archived from the original on 2015-07-22. Retrieved 2015-05-31. HD Radio Guide for Seattle-Tacoma
  8. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1950 page 317
  9. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1978 page C-235
  10. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1988 page B-303
  11. ^ ""K-Best Story" - The KBSG 1988 Sales Tape". YouTube.
  12. ^ http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1980s/1988/RR-1988-03-04.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  13. ^ "97.3 KBSG - Seattle Radio Commercial - K Best - Oldies Station (1988)". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-19.
  14. ^ "KBSG - K Best - 97.3 - Seattle Radio Station - Television Commercial - Oldies (1988)". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-19.
  15. ^ "K-Best 97.3 FM Seattle 1989 Commercial (Re-upload)". YouTube.
  16. ^ "1994 KBSG 97.3 FM Seattle Radio commercial". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-19.
  17. ^ http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Mediatrix/Mediatrix-Seattle-1986.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  18. ^ Virgin, Bill (August 1, 2007). "KBSG-FM refocuses as B97.3". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  19. ^ "Entercom trades radio stations". 19 January 2007.
  20. ^ "Call Sign History". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved August 2, 2008.
  21. ^ http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/2000s/2008/RR-2008-08-08.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  22. ^ "KBSG-FM will stop music for news, talk". 31 July 2008.
  23. ^ Bonneville International (July 30, 2008). "KIRO Radio to begin simulcast on 710 AM and 97.3 FM". Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  24. ^ Gardner, Carl. "KIRO to simulcast on 97.3FM". Bonneville International. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  25. ^ "The music died at 4:23am on 97.3". Radio-info.com. Archived from the original on August 22, 2008.
  26. ^ "97.3 KBSG Begins Simulcasting 710 KIRO". 12 August 2008.
  27. ^ "Make the Switch". News Talk 97.3 KIRO FM. Archived from the original on February 21, 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-23.
  28. ^ Condotta, Bob (October 9, 2020). "Seahawks radio host Dori Monson suspended after transphobic tweet". The Seattle Times. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
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