 | |
| Broadcast area | Corpus Christi metropolitan area |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 89.5MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | Good Company, 89.5 KLUX |
| Programming | |
| Format | Easy Listening -CatholicRadio |
| Subchannels | HD2:Relevant Radio |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| History | |
First air date | March 13, 1985; 40 years ago (1985-03-13) |
Call sign meaning | Lux means "light" in Latin; station's original motto was "Light of the Coastal Bend"[1] |
| Technical information[2] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 16945 |
| Class | C1 |
| ERP | 42,000watts |
| HAAT | 291meters (955 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 27°44′30″N97°36′10″W / 27.7417°N 97.6027°W /27.7417; -97.6027 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | |
| Website | klux |
KLUX (89.5MHz) branded as "Good Company 89.5," is anon-commercialFMradio stationlicensed toRobstown, Texas, and serving theCorpus Christi metropolitan area. It airs a mostlysecular,easy listeningradio format with someCatholicprogramming. It seeks listener donations on the air and on its website. It is owned by the Diocesan Telecommunications Corporation, which is part of theDiocese of Corpus Christi. Studios and offices are at the Our Lady of Corpus Christi Retreat Center on Lantana Street offInterstate 37.
KLUX is aClass C1 station. It has aneffective radiated power (ERP) of 42,000watts. Thetransmittertower is on County Road 34 in Robstown, nearTexas State Highway 44.[3] KLUX broadcasts usingHD Radio technology. Its HD2subchannel carriesCatholictalk and teaching programming fromWisconsin-basedRelevant Radio.[4]
In February 1984, theDiocese of Corpus Christi receivedconstruction permits to build new radio stations on 89.5 MHz inRobstown and 88.1 MHz inLaredo, which was then part of the diocese. The names KLUX, withlux meaning "light" in Latin, andKHOY, withhoy meaning "today" in Spanish, were chosen for the new stations. KLUX was also to be known as the "Light of the Coastal Bend".[1]
The construction of the radio stations represented part of an ambitious media project for the diocese, known as the Catholic Communications Network. It also included building a television station in Laredo. The diocese already produced television programs forpublic-access cable channels and commercial stations. An $860,000 grant from the John G. and Maria Stella Kenedy Foundation supported the project.[5]
KLUX began broadcasting on March 13, 1985; 40 years ago (March 13, 1985).[a] with a formal dedication ceremony being held at the studios in Robstown in late May. The station played blocks ofeasy listening music. The diocese hired a company to screen out songs with suggestive or degrading lyrics. There was alsoChristian music at specific times on Sundays, plusSpanish-language programming in the early afternoon hours.[7] Surveys carried out by the diocese indicated that 40 percent of Corpus Christi-area listeners preferred Spanish-language programming.[5] That figure was higher in Laredo, where KHOY began broadcasting on December 17.[8] The studios remained in Robstown until 1989, when the facilities relocated to the Catholic Communications Network complex on Lantana Street in Corpus Christi. Also at that time, the station increased power from 3,000 watts and adopted its current music format throughout the day.[4] The exception on Sundays continued, when it airs a mass fromCorpus Christi Cathedral as well as several local talk programs.[6]
From its beginning, KLUX has employed a "velvet hammer approach to promoting Christianity", in the words of Marty Wind, longtime station manager. Wind noted that it helped the station reach a larger audience than a traditional Christian outlet.[9] On at least one occasion, the Christianity soft sell was so understated that the station was heard ashold music for callers to Corpus Christi City Hall. That ended when a city official heard a message "about the evils of fornication and masturbation".[9]
In the 1990s, the diocese made an incursion into for-profit broadcasting with the establishment ofPaloma Communications, which ownedFox Television Networkaffiliate K47DF "KDF" andTelemundo station K68DJ "KAJA". This lasted from 1990 to 1997, when the firm filed for bankruptcy and sold the stations.[10][11][12]
In 2006, KLUX beganHD Radio broadcasting, making it the first such station in the Coastal Bend area. It carries Catholic talk and preaching programming fromWisconsin-basedRelevant Radio on its HD2digital subchannel.[13]