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KTTH

KTTH
Broadcast areaSeattle metropolitan area
Frequency770 kHz
Branding770 KTTH
Programming
FormatConservative talk
NetworkFox News Radio
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
KIRO, KIRO-FM
History
First air date
April 5, 1925 (1925-04-05)
Former call signs
  • KTCL (1925–1926)
  • KOMO (1926)
  • KGFA (1926–1927)
  • KTCL (1927)
  • KXA (1927–1986)
  • KRPM (1986–1991, 1995)
  • KULL (1991–1995)
  • KNWX (1995–2003)
Call sign meaning
"The Truth"
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID27023
ClassB
Power
  • 50,000 watts (day)
  • 5,000 watts (night)
Translator(s)94.5 K233BU (Seattle)
Links
Public license information
WebcastListen live
Websitemynorthwest.com/category/ktth/

KTTH (770 AM) is a commercial radio station in Seattle, Washington. It is owned by Salt Lake City–based Bonneville International, a broadcasting company owned by of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It airs a conservative talk radio format. The station's transmitter site is on Vashon Island, while its studios are located in Seattle's Eastlake district.

By day, KTTH broadcasts with 50,000 watts, the maximum for commercial AM stations.[2] Because AM 770 is a clear-channel frequency, KTTH must reduce power to 5,000 watts at night to avoid interfering with other stations. Programming is also heard on FM translator K233BU at 94.5 MHz.[3]

Programming

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Bonneville owns three talk stations in Seattle. KIRO-FM 97.3 concentrates on mostly local shows while KTTH airs a mix of local and syndicated programming. KIRO (710 AM) is a sports talk station. On weekdays, KTTH has three local shows: The Bryan Suits Show, The Jason Rantz Show and The Michael Medved Show. Syndicated hosts include Dan Bongino, Mark Levin, Ben Shapiro, Michael Knowles and America's First News with Matt Ray.

On weekends, KTTH features shows on health, money, retirement and real estate, some of which are brokered programming. Weekend syndicated hosts include Guy Benson, Brian Kilmeade, Josh Hammer, and Armstrong & Getty. Most hours begin with an update from Fox News Radio.

History

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The station was first licensed, as KTCL, to the American Radio Telephone Company of Seattle.[4] The call letters stood for the slogan "Know The Charmed Land". Much of its facilities were obtained through the purchase of equipment previously used by Roy Olmsted's station, KFQX.[5] KTCL made its debut broadcast on April 5, 1925.[6]

In mid-1926 the call letters were changed from KTCL to KOMO, with the owner now listed as American Radio Telephone Co. (Birt F. Fisher).[7] Late that year the KOMO call letters were transferred to another Seattle station, with the now former KOMO changing to KGFA.[8] This was quickly changed back to the original call sign of KTCL.[9] In the fall of 1927 the call letters became KXA.[10]

In 1932, KXA was authorized to move to 760 kHz. In 1941, as part of the implementation of the North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement, KXA was shifted to 770 kHz. Because of the requirement to protect the nighttime signal of WJZ (later WABC) in New York City, the primary station on these frequencies, during its early history KXA was a daytimer station, and generally required to go off the air at sunset.

Classical music

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During the 1960s and 1970s, KXA had a classical music format. It competed with KING-FM 98.1 and KUOW-FM 94.9, which both aired classical music on the FM dial.

Oldies and country

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As FM became more popular for listening to classical music, on October 1, 1980, the station changed to an oldies format and was known as "Old Gold 77 KXA".[11]

Following a bankruptcy filing, the station switched from oldies to brokered Christian radio programming in 1983.[12] The station's license was transferred to new owners that same year, and on October 8, 1984, a format called "love songs" began, which was essentially a return to oldies.[13][14]

In 1986, following a sale to Highsmith Broadcasting, the station flipped to a simulcast of country music station KRPM-FM (now KBKS-FM) and changed its call letters to KRPM.[15][16] In 1991, the station changed call letters to KULL, returning to oldies.[17] Country music returned in January 1995, as did the simulcast with KRPM.

Talk programming

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In November 1995, a format swap was made with AM 1090, with 770 receiving the call letters KNWX and an all-news radio format, using programming from CNN Headline News. That was followed by a switch to business talk programming in 1998.

The station's call letters were changed to KTTH in 2003, along with a flip to conservative talk. KNWX moved to 1210 AM that same year and continued until 2004, when it was renamed KWMG (now KMIA).[18]

Sports

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KTTH was the last flagship radio station of the Seattle SuperSonics (now Oklahoma City Thunder) of the National Basketball Association, from 2006 to 2008. The station serves as a backup station to KIRO for Seattle Mariners and Washington State Cougars play-by-play when the Seahawks are playing at the same time. It also carries Seattle University men's basketball coverage.

References

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  1. ^ "Facility Technical Data for KTTH". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ^ "KTTH-AM 770 KHZ - Seattle, WA".
  3. ^ "K233BU-FM Radio Station Coverage Map".
  4. ^ "New Stations", Radio Service Bulletin, June 1, 1925, page 3.
  5. ^ "Radio Station Being Built", Seattle Star, March 14, 1925, page 16.
  6. ^ "Tune Into KTCL Sunday Evening on 305 Meters", Seattle Star, April 4, 1925, page 16. A wavelength of 305 meters corresponds to a frequency of 980 kHz.
  7. ^ "Alterations and corrections", Radio Service Bulletin, August 31, 1926, page 5.
  8. ^ "Alterations and corrections", Radio Service Bulletin, January 31, 1927, page 7.
  9. ^ "Alterations and corrections", Radio Service Bulletin, February 28, 1927, page 5.
  10. ^ "Alterations and corrections", Radio Service Bulletin, October 31, 1927, page 8.
  11. ^ Victor Stredicke, "Old Gold Rock Sound Heralds the New KXA," The Seattle Times, October 5, 1980, TV, p. 26.
  12. ^ "KYYX Bankruptcy: O'Day files Chapter 11, but vows to keep station on the Wave," The Seattle Weekly, March 9, 1983, p. 5.
  13. ^ "Legal Notices", The Seattle Times, July 15, 1983, p. B20.
  14. ^ The Seattle Times, October 8, 1984, p. D8.
  15. ^ "Radio Station KXA is Sold," The Seattle Times, September 26, 1985, p. H8.
  16. ^ http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Mediatrix/Mediatrix-Seattle-1986.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  17. ^ "Bouncing Around the Bands," The Seattle Times, 26 July 1992, p. L4.
  18. ^ "Radio Beat: Business talk will soon give way to Spanish-language music at KNWX". 25 November 2004.
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47°23′38″N 122°25′25″W / 47.39389°N 122.42361°W / 47.39389; -122.42361