KCPS

Last updated
KCPS
Frequency 1150 kHz
BrandingKCPS 1150
Programming
Format Talk/Personality
Affiliations Townhall News
Premiere Networks
Westwood One
Compass Media Networks
Motor Racing Network
Chicago Bears Radio Network
Chicago Cubs Radio Network
Ownership
OwnerJohn M. Giannettino
History
First air date
1965
Former call signs
KBIA (1965, CP)
KYED (1965–1967)
KYND (1967–1970)
KKUZ (1970–1979)
Technical information [1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID 5224
Class D
Power 500 watts day
67 watts night
Transmitter coordinates
40°51′11″N91°08′10″W / 40.85306°N 91.13611°W / 40.85306; -91.13611
Links
Public license information
Webcast Listen Live
Website kcpsradio.com

KCPS (1150 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a Talk/Personality format. Licensed to serve the Burlington, Iowa, United States. area, the station is currently owned by John M. Giannettino and features programming from Premiere Networks, Compass Media Networks, Townhall News, Motor Racing Network, and Westwood One. [2]

Contents

History

KCPS signed on the air in 1965 as KYED, changing its call letters in 1967 to KYND. [3] The call letters changed again in 1970 to KKUZ branded as "Your Country Cousin", as the station became an outlet for country music and the station was sold to Big Country Broadcasting. Studios for the AM station were located in a three-story brick building at 408 North Main Street in downtown Burlington.

The transmitter site was constructed on a pasture north of town along Irish Ridge Road. KCPS has a directional array consisting of three 214-foot towers and a daytime power output of 500 watts. KCPS was originally a daytime only station. Operating hours expanded and contracted each month from summer to winter. In the late 1970s the sign-on became locked in at 6:00am, but the sign-off time occurred at sundown. In December KCPS left the air as early as 4:45pm. In the summer months the station stayed on the air until 8:45pm. The FCC changed the rules for daytime stations in the 1980s and which enabled KCPS to broadcast at night with the transmitter power reduced to 67 watts.

DJs from the early years included Bill Deno, Lonnie Keeler, and Neil Zackmeyer, who referred to himself “The Old Gravy Sopper.”

KKUZ was purchased by Town and Country Broadcasting in 1978; the call letters were changed to KCPS on March 1, 1979. [3] CPS stands for Country-Politan Sound, a term the new owners defined as a cross between country music and adult contemporary. The morning man during this era was Wayne Smith, who also served as program director. The afternoons were hosted by David Ostmo, who called his program “The Smo Show”.

Terry Anderson was News Director for the station, coming to KCPS from crosstown rival KBUR. She delivered the news for the station during the morning hours; top of the hour newscasts for the rest of the day were handled by the program hosts.

David Ostmo was promoted to Program Director after Wayne Smith departed in 1979. Ostmo emceed a popular Sunday afternoon request show. He mixed in a greater amount of rock music to the station's play list. The approach was to play rock that sounded like country and country that sounded like rock. Charlie Daniels, Bob Seger, The Eagles, The Little River Band, Elvis, Kenny Rogers, and Dolly Parton were some of the artists receiving considerable air time.

Darrell Michelson moved from Fairbury, Nebraska to replace Smith as the new morning man. Michelson stayed with the station until 1990. Michelson succeeded Ostmo as Program Director in late 1980. He took advantage of the Urban Cowboy craze and returned the station to its country music roots.

The station was not affiliated with any major radio network until 1981 when KCPS signed up with the ABC Contemporary radio network. In the same timeframe, Town and Country Broadcasting lost a long fought battle with another company to acquire an FM license. It was a major blow to the owners, who had hoped to level the playing field with KBUR-KGRS. Time was running out for AM stations with a music-heavy format.

Chip Giannettino and his wife Val bought KCPS in 1987, and the station's musical programming gave way to talk driven programs, both local and syndicated, including a popular local morning talk show called The Big Show Incorporated, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Ben Shapiro, Michael Savage, Mark Levin, Lars Larson, Jim Bohannon, and the Red Eye Radio show. The station also carries Westwood One sports and the Chicago Bears and Chicago Cubs.

They painted a large mural on the exterior of the downtown studios depicting ladies of the evening through open windows; it was said that the building, originally constructed in 1870, was once a brothel on the upper floors.

The station later moved to another downtown location at 208 Jefferson. In 2008 KCPS relocated to modern studios at 205 S. Gear Avenue in West Burlington.

KCPS was Burlington's only locally owned station until November 2007.

In the fall of 2009, in coordination with the national Cash for Clunkers campaign, KCPS sponsored a “Blow Up My Clunker” contest. The contest allowed several listeners to compete in a competition to see who could destroy “clunkers” from the Deery Brothers auto dealership. The cars had been prepped for destruction by having the motor oil drained and replaced with a sodium silicate solution. Five of the six vehicles were nearly instantly destroyed, however, the sixth vehicle, a Nissan Hardbody Truck ran for over thirty minutes until finally succumbing to the sodium silicate.

In 2010 KCPS launched the “Triple-Cast” for their daily local broadcasts, including Streaming Audio, Studio-Cam, and a Chat room. Along with the live streaming, there is also an archive available of previously aired programs.

Former logo KCPS logo.png
Former logo

In July 2015. Morning man Fred W. Hofmann broadcast his 10,000th radio show, highlighted by an Official City Proclamation from Burlington Mayor Shane McCampbell commemorating the occasion.

Related Research Articles

WDLS is an adult contemporary radio station in the resort community of Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin simulcasting sister station WBOO 102.9 FM Reedsburg. WDLS is also relayed on an FM translator broadcasting on 98.5. In February 2024 WDLS and it's FM translator left the air due to a transmitter failure, the stations owner Mangum Communications also at that time took down the stations website and any mention of it on their companies website leaving the future of the station uncertain.

WPGO is a non-commercial AM radio station licensed to Horseheads, New York, serving the Elmira-Corning radio market. It is owned by Montrose Broadcasting, Corporation and airs a Christian radio format, mixing Christian talk and teaching programs with Christian music. Much of the programming is simulcast from sister station WPEL-FM 96.5 FM in Montrose, Pennsylvania. The stations hold periodic fundraisers on the air to support the ministry. The studios are on High Street in Montrose.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WRQX (AM)</span> Radio station in Salem-Youngstown, Ohio

WRQX – branded as AM 600 The Patriot – is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Salem, Ohio, and serving the Youngstown metropolitan area. Owned by Cumulus Media, WRQX has a talk radio format. It is the local network affiliate for CBS News Radio and carries talk shows from co-owned syndicator Westwood One. The WRQX studios are located in "The Radio Center" in Youngstown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KIKD</span> Radio station in Lake City, Iowa

KIKD is an FM radio station based in Carroll, Iowa. The station plays Country music. KIKD is part of Carroll Broadcasting, along with KKRL and KCIM.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KPHX</span> Radio station in Arizona, United States

KPHX is a commercial AM radio station in Phoenix, Arizona. It is owned by Jacob Garcia, through licensee La Hermosa Radio LLC. KPHX carries a Spanish language Christian talk and teaching radio format. It is also heard on FM translator 92.9 K225CT in Paradise Valley, Arizona.

WMIC is a full service radio station licensed to Sandusky, Michigan with a power output of 1,000 watts. WMIC covers Sanilac County, Michigan and The Thumb area of Michigan. The station is owned by Sanilac/GB Broadcasting and broadcasts from studios on Elk Street in Downtown Sandusky, along with sister stations WTGV and WBGV. Its programming is also simulcasted on FM Translator W237EQ, also licensed to Sandusky at 95.3 MHz, with an effective radiated power of 250 watts.

WYFQ and WYFQ-FM are two radio stations in the Charlotte metropolitan area of North Carolina that serve as the flagship stations of the Bible Broadcasting Network. The AM station operates with a power of 5,000 watts daytime and 1,000 watts nighttime, and is licensed to Charlotte. A directional antenna system is used during the station's nighttime hours. The FM station operates with an effective radiated power of 8,700 watts, and is licensed to the Wadesboro, North Carolina. The FM station serves mainly as a repeater for the eastern portion of the Charlotte radio market.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WBUT</span> Radio station in Butler, Pennsylvania

WBUT is a commercial radio station, licensed to Butler, Pennsylvania, in the northern suburbs of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. It is owned by St. Barnabas Broadcasting, a division of the Saint Barnabas Health System, along with its sister stations WJAS, WBVP, WMBA, WISR and WLER-FM.

WECZ is an American commercially licensed daytime-only radio station, licensed to serve the community of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. The station operates with a power of 5,000 watts daytime, and 1,000 watts during critical hours. WECZ is owned by Renda Media, a wholly owned subsidiary of Renda Broadcasting Corporation of Pittsburgh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KSTE</span> Radio station in Rancho Cordova, California

KSTE is a commercial radio station broadcasting a talk radio format. Licensed to Rancho Cordova, California, the station serves the Sacramento metropolitan area. The station is owned by iHeartMedia and features shows from Westwood One, Radio America, Compass Media Networks, and Premiere Networks, a subsidiary of iHeartMedia. The studios and offices are in North Sacramento near the Arden Fair Mall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KNST</span> News/talk radio station in Tucson, Arizona

KNST is a commercial radio station in Tucson, Arizona, airing a news/talk radio format. The station is owned by iHeartMedia and serves Greater Tucson, including the suburbs of Marana, Oro Valley, Green Valley, Sahuarita, Sierra Vista, and Vail. KNST's studios and offices are on Oracle Road, north of Downtown Tucson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KLIK</span> Radio station in Jefferson City, Missouri

KLIK, branded as Newstalk 1240, is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Licensed to Jefferson City, Missouri, United States, the station serves the Columbia, Missouri area. The station is currently owned by Cumulus Media and features programming from ABC Radio and Westwood One. KLIK also operates a local news operation with sister station KFRU. As of late 2018, KLIK has been operating on FM on 103.5 with translator K278CT.

KRDO is a commercial radio station in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The station is owned and operated by the News-Press & Gazette Company of St. Joseph, Missouri and it airs a news/talk radio format, simulcast with KRDO-FM. Both stations are aided by the news department of co-owned KRDO-TV, with some TV newscasts also heard on the radio stations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WDAK</span> Radio station in Columbus, Georgia

WDAK is a radio station broadcasting a news/talk format. Licensed to Columbus, Georgia, United States, the station serves the Columbus/Phenix City/Auburn area. The station is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. and features programming from Westwood One, Compass Media Networks, Fox News Radio and Premiere Networks. It also broadcasts Columbus State University basketball and baseball games and Troy University sports events. Its studios are in Columbus, east of downtown, and its transmitter is southeast of downtown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WJIP</span> Radio station in Ellenville, New York

WJIP is a radio station broadcasting a news/talk radio format. The station is owned by iHeartMedia, through licensee iHM Licenses, LLC, and is licensed to Ellenville, New York, United States. The station broadcasts with a power of 5,000 watts, daytime only, from a single tower located off Irish Cape Road in the hamlet of Napanoch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WKTY</span> Radio station in La Crosse, Wisconsin

WKTY is a radio station broadcasting a sports format. Licensed to La Crosse, Wisconsin, United States, the station serves the La Crosse area. The station is owned by Mid-West Family Broadcasting and features programming from Westwood One and Infinity Sports Network.

WANV is a radio station licensed to Annville, Kentucky, United States, and serving London. The station is owned by Forcht Broadcasting as part of a triopoly with classic country station WFTG and Hot AC outlet WWEL. All three stations share studios on Tobacco Road in northern London, while WANV maintains transmission facilities off Fence Road between London and Annville. The station features programming from CBS News Radio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WCYN (AM)</span> Radio station in Cynthiana, Kentucky

WCYN is a classic hits–formatted radio station licensed to Cynthiana, Kentucky, United States. The station is owned by WCYN Broadcasting, Inc. The station's studios are located on South Main Street in downtown Cynthiana, while its transmitter is located along US 27 and the Licking River just north of town.

KXRO is a commercial radio station broadcasting a news/talk radio format. Licensed to Aberdeen, Washington, the station serves the Grays Harbor section of Washington. It is currently owned by Alpha Media LLC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WSDQ</span> Radio station in Dunlap, Tennessee

WSDQ, is a radio station broadcasting a country music format. Licensed in Dunlap, Tennessee, United States, the station is currently owned by S. Travis Hickman and features a country music format with local personalities and programming along with news and features from ABC News Radio, Westwood One, and others. WSDQ's AM signal at 1190 kHz, operates as a daytime-only, Class D non-directional AM station at 5,000 watts daytime and 1,000 watts critical hours, while the co-located FM translator is allowed to operate around the clock.

References

  1. "Facility Technical Data for KCPS". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. "KCPS Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
  3. 1 2 "History Cards for KCPS". Federal Communications Commission. (Guide to reading History Cards)