KSUN

Last updated
KSUN
Broadcast area Phoenix metropolitan area
Frequency 1400 kHz
BrandingLa Mejor 106.5 FM / 1400 AM
Programming
Format Regional Mexican
Affiliations MVS Radio
Ownership
Owner
  • Marquez Communications, Inc.
  • (Fiesta Radio, Inc.)
History
First air date
August 28, 1954
Former call signs
KONI, KXIV
Call sign meaning
Valley of the SUN (a common nickname for the Phoenix area)
Technical information
Facility ID 21430
Class C
Power 1,000 watts unlimited
Transmitter coordinates
 33°23′23″N111°59′52″W / 33.38972°N 111.99778°W / 33.38972; -111.99778
Translator(s) 106.5 K293CO (Phoenix)
Links
Webcast Listen (requires RealPlayer or Winamp)
Website www.lamejorphoenix1400.com

KSUN (1400 AM) is a Spanish-language radio station broadcasting out of Phoenix, Arizona and serving the Phoenix metropolitan area. It is locally owned by the Marques brothers and operates a regional Mexican music format under the branding "La Mejor". The station simulcasts on translator at K293CO 106.5 FM. The station is also the Spanish-language play-by-play home of Phoenix Suns basketball games and Phoenix Rising FC soccer matches.

Contents

History

KSUN Radio Fiesta logo KSUN logo.jpg
KSUN Radio Fiesta logo

1400 AM in Phoenix signed on August 28, 1954 as KONI, the 9th radio station in Phoenix; [1] originally KBLR, the station's callsign changed by the time it signed on. KONI became KXIV in 1961. Until 1982, KXIV was programmed with a middle of the road (MOR) music format. The station was co-owned by Ira Lavin and actor Dick Van Dyke (an Arizona resident). [2] [3] Disc jockeys included George Scott, Jack Dey, Jim Hutton, Paul B. Mundt, and Jim Spero (who also served as program director). [4]

Van Dyke and Lavin sold KXIV in 1982 to local real estate developer Michael Levin, who relaunched the station with a news/talk format as KSUN, featuring personalities from ABC's TalkRadio Network, NBC's Talknet and audio from CNN2. [5] The call letters had been sold to Levin by the previous KSUN in Bisbee, at the time silent and in receivership. [6] Hourly discount auctions through a segment called "BarterBank" were also heavily advertised. Levin's tenure running KSUN was marred by suspicious vandalism [7] and layoffs. [8] The station fell into bankruptcy and went silent on Memorial Day weekend 1983. [9]

CAZ Broadcasting bought KSUN out of bankruptcy in 1984, [9] and brought the station back the next year as an affiliate of the original Radio AAHS, a radio service developed for children, with adult-oriented music at night. [10] By 1986, KSUN was running jazz full-time with minor league baseball play-by-play of the Phoenix Firebirds, having lost Radio AAHS when Children's Radio Network opted to cease distributing it outside of its owned-and-operated stations. [11] After an abortive attempt to sell the station to TransCom, owners of KLZI 99.9 FM, [12] and going silent again at the end of summer, Fiesta Radio purchased the station in November 1986. [13] Radio Fiesta officially signed on March 23, 1987. [14] The station became a sports play-by-play specialist; it was the long-time home of Spanish broadcasts of the Arizona Diamondbacks (now on KHOV), first carrying all 162 games in 2004, [15] and continues to carry Suns games. In 2021, the station will broadcast Phoenix Rising FC games. [16]

KSUN La Mejor logo before translator sign on KSUN LaMejor1400am logo.png
KSUN La Mejor logo before translator sign on

In 2015, the station partnered with Mexican radio company MVS Radio to launch its regional Mexican La Mejor format in Phoenix.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KUTP</span> MyNetworkTV station in Phoenix

KUTP, branded on-air as Fox 10 Xtra, is a television station in Phoenix, Arizona, United States, broadcasting the MyNetworkTV programming service. It is owned and operated by Fox Television Stations alongside Fox outlet KSAZ-TV. Both stations share studios on West Adams Street in Downtown Phoenix, while KUTP's transmitter is located atop South Mountain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KPNX</span> NBC affiliate in Phoenix, Arizona

KPNX is a television station licensed to Mesa, Arizona, United States, serving the Phoenix area as an affiliate of NBC. The station is owned by Tegna Inc., and maintains studios at the Republic Media building on Van Buren Street in downtown Phoenix ; its transmitter is located atop South Mountain on the city's south side.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KNXV-TV</span> ABC/CW affiliate in Phoenix, Arizona

KNXV-TV is a television station in Phoenix, Arizona, United States, affiliated with ABC and The CW. It is owned by the E. W. Scripps Company alongside independent station KASW. The two stations share studios on 44th Street on the city's east side; KNXV-TV's transmitter is located atop South Mountain. KNXV-TV's signal is relayed across northern Arizona through a network of low-power translators.

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

KOMR is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Sun City, Arizona, and serving the Phoenix metropolitan area. It is owned by Univision and it airs a Spanish Adult Contemporary radio format, calling itself "Amor 106.3". The studios are on South 30th Street in Phoenix.

KVVA-FM is a commercial radio station licensed to Apache Junction, Arizona. It simulcasts a Spanish adult hits radio format with KDVA 106.7 FM in Buckeye, serving the Phoenix metropolitan area. The stations are owned by Entravision Communications, with studios near Sky Harbor Airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KESZ</span> Adult contemporary radio station in Phoenix

KESZ is a commercial radio station licensed to Phoenix, Arizona, featuring an adult contemporary format known as "99.9 KEZ". Owned and operated by iHeartMedia the station serves the Phoenix metropolitan area. KESZ's studios are located in Phoenix near Sky Harbor International Airport while the station transmitter resides in South Mountain Park. In addition to a standard analog transmission, KESZ is available online via iHeartRadio and broadcasts over two HD Radio digital subchannels using the in-band on-channel standard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KFYI</span> Radio station in Phoenix, Arizona

KFYI – branded News/Talk 550 KFYI – is a commercial news/talk radio station licensed to serve Phoenix, Arizona. Owned by iHeartMedia, KFYI serves the Phoenix metropolitan area as the market affiliate for Fox News Radio, The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show, The Sean Hannity Show, the Glenn Beck Radio Program and Coast to Coast AM.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KNAI (AM)</span> Regional Mexican radio station in Phoenix

KNAI is a Regional Mexican-formatted AM radio station in Phoenix, Arizona. KNAI is owned by the Chavez Radio Group. Its studios are located in Phoenix near Piestewa Peak and its transmitter is in South Phoenix near Broadway and 27th Avenue.

KBAQ is a public radio station in Phoenix, Arizona, United States, playing classical music. It is co-owned by the Maricopa County Community College District (MCCCD) and Arizona State University (ASU). The studios are located at MCCCD's Rio Salado College in Tempe, alongside MCCCD-owned KJZZ, while the station broadcasts from a transmitter on South Mountain. In addition to its FM signal, it is broadcast as an audio subchannel (8.5) of ASU-owned KAET television across central, northern, and southwestern Arizona.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KOY</span> Radio station in Phoenix, Arizona

KOY is a commercial radio station licensed to Phoenix, Arizona, featuring a Regional Mexican radio format known as "93.7 El Patrón". Owned by iHeartMedia, the station serves the Phoenix metropolitan area. KOY's studios are located in Phoenix near Sky Harbor International Airport, and broadcasts at 1,000 watts—non-directional—from a transmitter located near Downtown Phoenix. In addition to a standard analog transmission, KOY is available online via iHeartRadio and is relayed over low-power Phoenix translator K229DB, from which the station's branding is derived from.

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

KGME is a commercial radio station in Phoenix, Arizona, featuring a sports format known as "Fox Sports 910." Owned by iHeartMedia, the station's studios are located in Phoenix near Sky Harbor International Airport, and broadcasts with 5,000 watts—directional at night—from a transmitter site at the intersection of 30th and Maryland Avenues in north Phoenix. In addition to a standard analog transmission, KGME is relayed over the second HD Radio subchannel of KESZ and is available online via iHeartRadio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KDUS</span> Radio station in Tempe, Arizona

KDUS is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Tempe, Arizona, and serving the Phoenix metropolitan area. It airs a sports radio format and is an affiliate of the SportsMap network. It is owned by Hubbard Broadcasting, Inc., with the license held by Phoenix FCC License Sub, LLC. Its studios are on North 52nd Street west of Papago Park.

KIHP is an AM radio station licensed to Mesa, Arizona, serving the Phoenix metropolitan area. It is owned by Wisconsin-based Relevant Radio, Inc. It airs a Catholic talk and teaching radio format.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KKNT</span> Talk radio station in Phoenix

KKNT is a radio station broadcasting a conservative talk radio format in Phoenix, Arizona, United States. The station is owned by Salem Communications Holding Corporation, a subsidiary of the Salem Media Group. Studios are located at 24th Street and Camelback in Phoenix; the transmitter is on the city's northern edge.

KASA is a commercial radio station broadcasting a Classic Regional Mexican radio format. It is licensed to Phoenix, Arizona, and is owned by Kasa Radio Hogar, Inc. The studios are on West Baseline Road in Phoenix.

KTAR is an AM commercial radio station licensed to Phoenix, Arizona, United States. Owned and operated by Bonneville International, it features a sports format airing programming from ESPN Radio. The studios are located in north Phoenix near Piestewa Peak, and the station broadcasts with 5,000 watts from a transmitter site near the corner of 36th Street and Thomas Road.

KIDR is an AM radio station in Phoenix, Arizona. KIDR is owned by En Familia, Inc. and airs a Spanish-language Roman Catholic religious radio format. The station's transmitter is off South 23rd Avenue in Phoenix.

KBMB was a commercial AM radio station licensed to Black Canyon City, Arizona, and serving the Phoenix metropolitan area. Owned by Entravision Communications, it broadcasts a Spanish-language Sports format. Most programming came from the TUDN Radio Network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KDRI (AM)</span> Radio station in Tucson, Arizona

KDRI is a radio station in Tucson, Arizona. Owned by Bustos Media, through licensee Bustos Media Holdings, LLC, it broadcasts an oldies format. It is simulcast on FM translator K269FV at 101.7 MHz in Oro Valley.

KBSZ is a commercial radio station broadcasting a classic rock radio format. Licensed to Apache Junction, Arizona, the station is owned by 1TV.com. The studios and offices are on Broadway in Miami, Arizona.

References

  1. ↑ "9th Valley Radio Station Takes To Air 6 A.M. Today". Arizona Republic. August 28, 1954. p. 10. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  2. ↑ "Ownership changes", Broadcasting . August 23, 1965. p. 84. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
  3. ↑ "Changing Hands", Broadcasting . July 5, 1982. p. 69. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
  4. ↑ "KXIV Radio". Archived from the original on 2010-01-21. Retrieved 2008-09-30.
  5. ↑ Wilkinson, Bud (August 8, 1982). "Owner tones down programming game plan for KSUN". Arizona Republic. p. 99. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  6. ↑ Hatfield, David (June 4, 1982). "Quality picks are NBC, new 'Arizona Illustrated'". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved August 17, 2019.
  7. ↑ "KSUN down: Vandals twice knock radio station off the air". Arizona Republic. February 21, 1983. p. D20. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  8. ↑ Wilkinson, Bud (January 2, 1983). "Stiff competition inspired better programming in 1982". Arizona Republic. p. F12. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  9. 1 2 Wilkinson, Bud (June 21, 1984). "KSUN sold; new owners plan autumn debut". Arizona Republic. p. F5. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  10. ↑ Wilkinson, Bud (May 17, 1985). "KSUN plans to usher in dawn of children's radio programs". Arizona Republic. p. E15. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  11. ↑ Wilkinson, Bud (April 3, 1986). "Radio station KSUN forced to drop children's format". Arizona Republic. p. E5. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  12. ↑ Wilkinson, Bud (June 25, 1986). "'NewsChannel 3' adds new sportscasters to lineup". Arizona Republic. p. G5. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  13. ↑ Wilkinson, Bud (December 11, 1986). "NBC's '1986' TV news magazine will never see 1987". Arizona Republic. p. F6. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  14. ↑ Wilkinson, Bud (March 23, 1987). "KTVK-TV wins contract to show ASU sports package". Arizona Republic. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  15. ↑ "MLB: Diamondbacks". Arizona Republic. January 30, 2004. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  16. ↑ "Phoenix Rising FC 2021 Broadcast Schedule". Phoenix Rising Communications. November 11, 2020. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.