KOUU

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KOUU
Frequency1290 kHz
BrandingCountry Classics 1290 AM/96.5 FM
Programming
FormatClassic Country
AffiliationsABC Radio
Ownership
OwnerIdaho Wireless Corporation
History
First air date
November 21, 1956[1]
Former call signs
KYTE (1956–1962)
KSNN (1962–1978)
KISU (1978–1981)
KZBQ (1981–1995)
Technical information
Facility ID28255
ClassD
Power50,000 watts day
24 watts night
Transmitter coordinates
42°57′28″N 112°25′46″W / 42.95778°N 112.42944°W / 42.95778; -112.42944
Translator(s)see below
Links
Websitecountryclassicsidaho.com

KOUU (1290 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a classic country music format, as well as local high school sports events.[2] Licensed to Pocatello, Idaho, United States, the station is currently owned by Idaho Wireless Corporation and features programming from ABC Radio.[3]

History[edit]

The station went on the air as KYTE on November 21, 1956.[1] J. Ronald Bayton, the original owner of the independent, music-minded KYTE, sold the station a year later for $60,000 to Thomas R. and A. H. Becker of Newport, Oregon.[4]

Further changes came during 1961 and 1962, when KYTE moved from its original base to a new downtown studio,[5] reopened after a month's silence under new management,[6] and changed its call letters to KSNN on February 26, 1962.[7] The new managers, Tommy Thompson and Daniel C. Libeg, also acquired the station itself: in 1965, Libeg bought out Thompson's share in KSNN.[8]

After a vandalism attempt in April 1967 in which someone shot out the tower lights with a .22-caliber rifle,[9] the station sought approval to move its transmitter site[10] as part of a $100,000 expansion that also included new studio facilities and the construction of an FM station at 93.7 MHz, KSNN-FM.[11] The new offices opened in September 1968,[12] while the FM outlet launched in 1969. KSNN also was hit with a lawsuit from the Associated Press in July 1969 for failure to pay a wire service bill.[13]

While the AM and FM outlets simulcast for the latter's first years in operation, the two stations split the simulcast in 1977, with the FM continuing to offer a Top 40 format while the AM flipped to oldies.[14]

In March 1978, KSNN-AM-FM was sold to the KSNN Broadcasting Company, composed primarily of three businessmen from Hutchinson, Kansas, for $159,000.[15] The new ownership changed the call letters of the AM station to KISU on May 1.[7] A format change in April 1981 resulted in new KZBQ call letters, allowing the television station at Idaho State University to pick up the KISU-TV calls later that year.[16]

KZBQ was acquired by its current owners, Idaho Wireless, in 1985 for $325,000; by this time, it ran an adult contemporary format.[17]

On January 23, 1995, the station changed its call sign to the current KOUU, call letters that had resided on the then-unbuilt 104.1 station at American Falls which became KORR.[18]

Translators[edit]

Three translators are listed as associated with the KOUU license:

Broadcast translators for KOUU
Call sign Frequency City of license FID ERP (W) HAAT Class FCC info
K243CJ 96.5 FM Pocatello 153928 99 61 m (200 ft) D LMS
K275BL 102.9 FM Pocatello 152298 99 64 m (210 ft) D LMS
K294CD 106.7 FM Pocatello 152582 250 485 m (1,591 ft) D LMS

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Radio KYTE To Open Here". Idaho State Journal. November 19, 1956. p. 3. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  2. ^ "Country Classics Idaho". February 15, 2019.
  3. ^ "KOUU Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
  4. ^ "KYTE is Sold For $60,000". Idaho State Journal. November 1, 1957. p. 1. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  5. ^ "KYTE Moves During Year". Idaho State Journal. February 27, 1962. p. B-4. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  6. ^ "New Managers To Reopen KYTE". Idaho State Journal. October 31, 1961. p. 11. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  7. ^ a b FCC History Cards for KOUU
  8. ^ "KSNN Owner Sells Interest". Idaho State Journal. February 28, 1965. p. 8. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  9. ^ "Vandalism At Tower". Idaho State Journal. April 23, 1967. p. 11. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  10. ^ "Zoners Favor Kennel South of City". Idaho State Journal. October 19, 1967. p. 2. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  11. ^ "Radio Station To Expand". Idaho State Journal. November 2, 1967. p. 19. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  12. ^ "Chiefs to Participate In KSNN Opening". Idaho State Journal. September 24, 1968. p. 2A. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  13. ^ "AP Sues KSNN Radio, Charges Contract Broken". Idaho State Journal. July 25, 1969. p. A7. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  14. ^ "KSNN Radio to Split AM, FM Operations". Idaho State Journal. June 7, 1977. p. A9. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  15. ^ "For the Record" (PDF). Broadcasting. March 20, 1978. p. 58. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  16. ^ "Station Changes Letters". Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. December 9, 1981. p. A8. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  17. ^ "Transactions" (PDF). Radio & Records. December 13, 1985. p. 12. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  18. ^ "KOUU Call Sign History". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=KOUU&oldid=1052144785"