KHIT

Last updated
KHIT
Broadcast area Reno–Sparks metropolitan area
Frequency 1450 kHz
BrandingESPN Radio 94.1 - 1450
Programming
Language(s) English
Format Sports
Affiliations ESPN Radio
Ownership
Owner
History
First air date
January 29, 1955 (1955-01-29) (as KONE)
Former call signs
KONE (1955–1991)
KOZZ (1991–1997)
KPTT (1997–1998)
Technical information [1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID 38458
Class C
Power 1,000  watts
Transmitter coordinates
39°34′27″N119°50′48″W / 39.57417°N 119.84667°W / 39.57417; -119.84667
Translator(s) 94.1 K231CS (Reno)
Links
Public license information
Website www.sportsreno.com

KHIT (1450 AM, "ESPN Radio 94.1 - 1450") is a commercial radio station that broadcasts a sports radio format. It is licensed to Reno, Nevada, United States and serves the Reno area. The station is currently owned by Lotus Communications. Programming is also heard on FM translator station K231CS at 94.1 MHz. Its studios are located on Plumb Lane in South Reno, and its transmitter is located in northwest Reno.

Contents

KHIT is the Reno affiliate of ESPN Radio.

History

KONE

KONE (referred to as K-ONE) went on the air January 29, 1955. It was Reno's first radio station with a dedicated musical format, airing easy listening and newscasts every two hours [2] and broadcasting with 250 watts. [3] The KONE call letters were released to the station when the United States Coast Guard ship that carried them was sold to Panama. [2] KONE was owned and operated by Tom Magowan, Jim Harford and Fred Jones, who brought experience in making sound installations in many of the hotels in Las Vegas and in Nevada radio. [2] By 1960, however, the station had defaulted on its taxes to Washoe County; [4] later that year, Leland Fuller bought 51 percent of the station for $15,500. [5] The station's financial difficulties at the very start of the decade were further illustrated in 1964, when the Associated Press won $4,520 in unpaid wire service bills that K-ONE never paid. [6]

Under Fuller's management, K-ONE changed formats to country in 1963. [7] After a 1966 relocation of its transmitter and tower, however, the station reverted to a "pleasant listening" sound. [8] It also found itself in more legal trouble when, later that year, the proprietors of 16 copyrighted musical works sued K-ONE for not paying the royalties they were owed for playing such compositions as "San Antonio Rose" and "Sweet Georgia Brown". [9]

KONE was sold to its present owners, Lotus, in 1967 for $135,000, marking the company's entry into the Reno radio market. [10] Among the features of K-ONE's programming in the late 1960s was a three-hour, commercial-free, underground music show aired at night. [11] Lotus expanded when it bought KGLR 105.7 FM in 1978 and relaunched it the next year as KOZZ. [12]

By 1981, KONE was airing a country format. [13] The station changed to adult contemporary in 1985. [14] Its classic hits sound was supplemented by a heavy dose of sports broadcasts, including Los Angeles Raiders football, Oakland Athletics baseball, and high school sports events. [15] It was also the first station in the market to broadcast in C-QUAM AM stereo. [16] 1987 saw KONE shift to satellite-delivered oldies music from Transtar while retaining popular morning show host Freddy Mertz. [17] Its sports coverage grew again in 1988 with the addition of Nevada Wolf Pack football. [18]

KOZZ and KPTT

After returning to automated country and finishing far behind its competitors in the format, KONE became a simulcast of KOZZ and became KOZZ itself in 1991, though it continued to break away for sports coverage. [19]

The simulcast with 105.7 FM remained until April 15, 1997, when 1450 AM began carrying its own programming again as talk-formatted KPTT "The Parrot". [20] KPTT carried a mix of political shows from G. Gordon Liddy and Tom Leykis and sports talk with Jim Rome and Pete Rose. [20] KPTT also aired the audio of KOLO-TV's newscasts. [21]

KHIT

A year after becoming "The Parrot", Lotus switched the formats of its stations at 1450 and 630. The talk programming moved down the dial to 630, while the KHIT country format relocated up the dial to 1450. [22] After a stint with ESPN Radio, the station yet again lost a format to the 630 signal when Lotus opted to put the sports network on KPTT and air adult standards music on KHIT. [23] The station later picked up an affiliation with Fox Sports Radio, which was changed to ESPN Radio in 2010 as part of another swap with the 630 frequency (now KPLY) and a larger format shuffle at Lotus Reno. [24]

KHIT switched to the Spanish-language ESPN Deportes Radio network on July 1, 2012; the station continued to air English-language broadcasts of UNLV Rebels football and the San Diego Chargers to satisfy contractual obligations. [25]

On August 1, 2016, KHIT switched to English-language sports, with programming from NBC Sports Radio. The NBC Sports Radio network became available in Reno when Wilks Broadcasting exited the market and spun off former carrier KFOY to Radio Lazer. [26] In addition, at this time KHIT added an FM translator, K231CS (94.1 FM). [27] In May 2018, KHIT changed sports networks to CBS Sports Radio.

Logo under CBS Sports Radio affiliation KHIT CBSSports94.1-1450 logo.png
Logo under CBS Sports Radio affiliation

KHIT has been operating at reduced power since 2018 due to a defect in its antenna system, which serves four AM stations; the filtering system presents the KHIT transmitter with a VSWR that is too high for the transmitter to use its full 1,000 watts. [28]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KLAV</span> Radio station in Las Vegas, Nevada

KLAV is a commercial radio station located in Las Vegas, Nevada. Owned by Lotus Communications, the station airs a betting-focused all-sports radio format featuring programming from the locally based Vegas Stats & Information Network. Its studios are located in the unincorporated community of Spring Valley in Clark County and its transmitter is located in North Las Vegas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KENO (AM)</span> Spanish-language sports station in Las Vegas

KENO is a Spanish language sports/talk AM radio station in Las Vegas, Nevada owned by Lotus Communications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KRLV (AM)</span> Radio station in Las Vegas, Nevada

KRLV is a commercial AM radio station in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, serving the Las Vegas area. Owned by Lotus Communications, KRLV airs a sports radio format focused on the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League. The station's studios and offices are located in the unincorporated community of Spring Valley in Clark County. A secondary studio is located at the Raiders headquarters and practice facility in Henderson. The transmitter is located off Wild Jan Drive, northwest of downtown Las Vegas.

KOZZ-FM is a commercial radio station in Reno, Nevada. It is owned by Lotus Communications and it airs a classic rock format. On weekday evenings, it carries the syndicated Nights with Alice Cooper Show.

WYRD, branded as "The Fan Upstate", is a sports-formatted commercial AM radio station, licensed by the Federal Communications Commission to Audacy, Inc. in Greenville, South Carolina, which serves Upstate South Carolina. Studios and transmitter site are located in Greenville.

Lotus Communications Corporation is a media company that owns numerous radio stations and a few TV stations, and is one of the largest privately owned radio station groups in the United States. Headquarters are located in Los Angeles, and the company's President and CEO is Howard Kalmenson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WPGG</span> Radio station in Atlantic City, New Jersey

WPGG is a commercial radio station licensed to Atlantic City, New Jersey. The station is owned by Townsquare Media and broadcasts a talk radio format. WPGG's studios and offices are on Tilton Road in Northfield, New Jersey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WHLL</span> Radio station in Springfield, Massachusetts

WHLL – branded as Nueva 98.1 – is a commercial radio station broadcasting a Spanish-language latin pop format licensed to Springfield, Massachusetts. Owned by Audacy, Inc., the station serves the Springfield metropolitan area; and the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts. The WHLL studios are located at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, alongside sister stations WMAS-FM and WWEI, while the station transmitter, shared with WMAS-FM, resides in Springfield's Brightwood neighborhood. In addition to a standard analog transmission, WHLL simulcasts over low-power analog Springfield translator W251CT (98.1 FM) and on the second HD Radio channel of WMAS-FM, and streams online via Audacy.

KDOT is a commercial FM radio station located in Reno, Nevada. KDOT airs an active rock music format. Its studios are located on Plumb Lane in South Reno, and its transmitter is located on Slide Mountain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KRNV-FM</span> Regional Mexican radio station in Reno, Nevada, United States

KRNV-FM is a commercial radio station located in Reno, Nevada, United States, broadcasting on 102.1 FM. KRNV-FM airs a Regional Mexican music format branded as "La Tricolor 102.1".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KFH (AM)</span> Sports radio station in Wichita, Kansas

KFH is a commercial AM radio station in Wichita, Kansas. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc. It airs a sports radio format. The station's studios and offices are located on East Douglas Avenue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KKGK</span> Fox Sports Radio affiliate in Las Vegas

KKGK is a commercial AM radio station in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, serving the Las Vegas area. Owned by Lotus Communications, its studios and offices are located on West Flamingo Road in the unincorporated community of Spring Valley in Clark County. The transmitter is located off North Martin Luther King Boulevard in North Las Vegas. KKGK airs a sports radio format, mostly carrying the Fox Sports Radio Network. The syndicated "Dan Patrick Show" is heard on weekday mornings.

KTHX-FM is a commercial radio station broadcasting a Regional Mexican format. Licensed to Sun Valley, Nevada, it serves the Reno metropolitan area and Lake Tahoe. The station is owned and operated by Lotus Communications. The radio studios are on Plumb Lane in South Reno.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KPLY</span> Radio station in Reno, Nevada

KPLY is a radio station broadcasting a sports format. Licensed to Reno, Nevada, United States, the station serves the Reno area. The station is currently owned by Lotus Communications and features programming from Fox Sports Radio. Its studios are located on Plumb Lane in South Reno, and its transmitter is located in Northeast Reno.

KQLO was a radio station broadcasting a Spanish-language news/talk format. Formerly licensed to Sun Valley, Nevada, United States, it served the Reno, Nevada area. The station, which broadcast from 1984 to 2011, was last owned by Jireh Media, Inc.

KZTQ is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Reno, Nevada. The station is owned by Americom Limited Partnership. The station airs an alternative rock format known as "96.1 The Zone", after its translator in Reno on 96.1 FM.

WBSR, on-air as The Fan 101, is a United States radio station owned by Miracle Radio, Inc. Licensed to Pensacola, Florida, it currently airs a sports format. WBSR is the second oldest radio station in Pensacola and one of the first AM radio stations on the Florida Gulf Coast to add an FM translator. WBSR can be heard 24 hours a day at 1450 AM and 101.1 FM. It has been at the same location since 1946.

KZDC is an all-sports-formatted radio station in San Antonio, Texas, owned by Alpha Media. Most of the programming comes from ESPN Radio. Its studios and offices are located on Eisenhauer Road in Northeast San Antonio.

KRZY is a radio station licensed to Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States, serving the Albuquerque metropolitan area. The station is owned by Entravision Communications. KRZY broadcasts a Spanish-language Sports format.

KXZZ is a commercial radio station licensed to Dayton, Nevada, and serving the Reno metropolitan area and Lake Tahoe. It is owned by Lotus Communications and broadcasts a classic country format. The radio studios are on Plumb Lane in South Reno.

References

  1. "Facility Technical Data for KHIT". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. 1 2 3 "Station K-1 Is On Reno Airwaves". Reno Gazette-Journal. February 5, 1955. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  3. FCC History Cards for KHIT
  4. "County to Act In Alleged Tax Default by KONE". Reno Gazette-Journal. May 7, 1960. p. 5. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  5. "KONE Reno, Nev" (PDF). Broadcasting. August 8, 1960. p. 89. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  6. "Judgment Won Over Contract". Reno Gazette-Journal. March 27, 1964. p. 13. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  7. "K-ONE Begins New Format In Programs". Reno Gazette-Journal. September 20, 1963. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  8. Long, Art (January 29, 1966). "Art Long's Nite Notes". Reno Evening Gazette and Nevada State Journal. p. 10. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  9. "Suit Filed Against KONE". Nevada State Journal. October 23, 1966. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  10. "Radio Station Sale Reported". Reno Gazette-Journal. May 4, 1967. p. 5. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  11. "Underground Program Tried". Reno Gazette-Journal. June 7, 1968. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  12. Oliva, Mark (January 31, 1979). "Crazy Reno wake gives KGLR-FM rousing sendoff". Reno Evening Gazette. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  13. O'Driscoll, Bill (August 1, 1981). "What do the radio stations offer? Variety". Reno Evening Gazette. pp. 2B, 3B . Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  14. Johnson, Belma (March 30, 1985). "Reno's radio facelift". Reno Gazette-Journal. pp. 1D, 4D . Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  15. Newman, Dave (February 17, 1986). "Reno radio has a great deal to offer listeners". Reno Gazette-Journal. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  16. "Reno radio station turns on in stereo". Reno Gazette-Journal. April 21, 1986. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  17. DeChick, Joe (October 27, 1987). "KONE to launch satellite format". pp. 1D, 4D . Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  18. "Radio/TV notes". Reno Gazette-Journal. September 10, 1988. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  19. Sion, Michael (November 28, 1991). "KOZZ sends album rock to AM station". Reno Gazette-Journal. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  20. 1 2 Anderson, Mark (March 27, 1997). "Reno radio station ends A's broadcasts". Reno Gazette-Journal. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  21. "8 on TV, radio". Reno Gazette-Journal. April 17, 1997. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  22. "Format Changes" (PDF). M Street Journal. March 18, 1998. p. 2 (24). Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  23. "Format Changes & Updates" (PDF). M Street Journal. June 13, 2001. p. 5. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  24. "Cub Country Switches to Sports; Smooth Jazz Goes Country". KOLO TV. September 13, 2010. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  25. "ESPN 1450 AM switching to Spanish-language ESPN on Monday". Reno Gazette-Journal . September 27, 2012. Retrieved September 27, 2012.
  26. Venta, Lance (April 29, 2016). "Wilks Splits Final Cluster To Two Buyers; Exits Reno". RadioInsight. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
  27. "Lotus Radio buys Reno adult alternative station 100.1 FM". MyNews4. August 3, 2016. Retrieved October 3, 2019.
  28. BSTA-20180516AAU Reduced Power STA Letter — KHIT