KGGL

Last updated

KGGL
Broadcast area Missoula, Montana
Frequency 93.3 MHz (HD Radio)
BrandingEagle 93.3
Programming
Format Country
Subchannels HD2: Top 40 (CHR) "96.9 Zoo FM"
HD3: Alternative Rock "Alt 95.7"
Affiliations Premiere Networks
Westwood One
Ownership
Owner
KBAZ, KGRZ, KGVO, KMPT, KYSS-FM, KZOQ-FM
History
First air date
April 29, 1977 (1977-04-29)
Former call signs
KDXT (1977–1996)
Call sign meaning
"Eagle"
Technical information [1]
Licensing authority
 FCC
Facility ID 63874
Class C
ERP 43,000 watts
HAAT 777 meters
Translator(s) 96.9 K245AP (Missoula, relays HD2)
95.7 K239AP (Missoula, relays HD3)
Links
Public license information
Webcast Listen Live
Listen Live (HD2
Listen Live (HD3)
Website eagle933.com
969zoofm.com (HD2)
alternativemissoula.com (HD3)

KGGL (93.3 FM, "Eagle 93.3") is a commercial radio station in Missoula, Montana, airing a country music format. It is owned by Townsquare Media.

Contents

History

KDXT

On October 15, 1975, Rex Jensen submitted an application to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for a construction permit to establish a new radio station operating on 93.3 MHz in Missoula, with its transmitter located on Big Sky Mountain. [2] The FCC granted the permit on May 25, 1976, dismissing concerns from several local broadcasters who argued that the new station could interfere with their operations. [3] While the station was intended to launch that fall, equipment delivery and bad weather in the eastern United States prompted the project to be shelved for the winter; KDXT made its debut on April 29, 1977. Having been transferred to the Jensen Broadcasting Company [2] (owned by Rex and his brother Jack), the station started with an automated rock/adult contemporary hybrid format. [4]

The Jensens sold the station in February 1979 to a joint venture with Robert E. Ingstad of North Dakota, who became the sole owner in 1980 [2] before KDXT and sister station KGRZ (1450 AM) were sold to Wind Point 1970 Holding Company, which was owned by the S.C. Johnson Company, in 1982. [5] The two stations were then sold to Sunbrook Communications in 1986; during this time, the station dominated the Missoula radio market. [6]

KGGL

Sunbrook sold its radio properties—ten in Montana and a pair in Wenatchee, Washington—to Seattle-based Fisher Broadcasting in 1994, with Sunbrook becoming a division of Fisher after the sale was completed. [7] With the contemporary hit format long associated with KDXT in a national slump, Fisher opted to make a major change. It flipped KGGL to country, taking on established country outlet KYSS, in September 1995. This left Missoula without a station in the contemporary hit radio format. [6] The format change was a successful one: the fall 2005 Eastlan radio ratings for Missoula showed KGGL tied with public radio station KUFM and beating third-place KYSS. [8]

In a 24-station sale that was only partially completed, Fisher sold many of its small-market radio properties to Cherry Creek Radio in 2006 in order to fund an expansion into Spanish-language television in major Pacific Northwest markets. The 24 stations contributed just one-fourth of the radio division's revenue, with Fisher's three Seattle stations comprising the rest. [9]

Effective June 17, 2022, Cherry Creek Radio sold KGGL as part of a 42 station/21 translator package to Townsquare Media for $18.75 million.

References

  1. ↑ "Facility Technical Data for KGGL". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. 1 2 3 "History Cards for KGGL". Federal Communications Commission. (Guide to reading History Cards)
  3. ↑ "Radio Station Planned". The Sunday Missoulian. August 29, 1976. p. 40. Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  4. ↑ "New FM Radio Station Started". The Sunday Missoulian. May 8, 1977. p. 43. Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  5. ↑ "KGRZ, KDXT radio stations sold". The Missoulian. November 8, 1981. p. B-2. Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  6. 1 2 McInally, Mike (September 4, 1995). "Station switch sets up FM country showdown". The Missoulian. pp. A-1, A-9. Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  7. ↑ "Sunbrook sells radio stations". Great Falls Tribune. September 27, 1994. p. 4B. Archived from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  8. ↑ Struckman, Robert (January 10, 2006). "KUFM, KGGL winning radio wars". The Missoulian. pp. B1, B2. Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  9. ↑ Jamison, Michael (June 2, 2006). "Fisher sells 6 Missoula radio stations". The Missoulian. pp. A1, A5, A6. Archived from the original on November 15, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
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