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|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Portland metropolitan area |
| Frequency | 97.1MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | 97.1 Charlie FM |
| Programming | |
| Format | Adult hits |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| History | |
First air date | September 3, 1946; 79 years ago (1946-09-03) |
Former call signs |
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Former frequencies | 94.9 MHz (1946–47) |
Call sign meaning | "Charlie" |
| Technical information[2] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 35034 |
| Class | C |
| ERP | 100,000 watts |
| HAAT | 386 meters (1,266 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 45°29′19.4″N122°41′44.3″W / 45.488722°N 122.695639°W /45.488722; -122.695639 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live (via Audacy) |
| Website | www |
KYCH-FM (97.1MHz) is acommercial radio station inPortland, Oregon. It is owned byAudacy, Inc. and airs anadult hitsradio format branded as "97.1 Charlie FM". KYCH-FM plays a fairly wide mix of music, mostly from the rock and pop genres, from the 1960s to today; much of theplaylist is made up ofmodern rock andclassic rock from theMTV music video era of the 1980s and 1990s. It switches to allChristmas music for several weeks leading to Christmas Day. The station does not have disc jockeys, instead playing amusing or ironic messages after every three or four songs.
KYCH-FM's studios and offices are on SW Bancroft Street inDowntown Portland.[3] Thetransmitter is atopPortland's West Hills, off SW Fairmount Court.[4] Theeffective radiated power is 100,000 watts, the maximum for most FM stations.[5]
The stationsigned on the air on September 3, 1946. Its originalcall sign was KPFM and it broadcast on 94.9 MHz.[6] KPFM was owned by Broadcasters Oregon, Ltd., and had an effective radiated power of 1,530 watts, a fraction of its current output. It was a stand-alone FM station, not affiliated with an AM station, and never had any connection to local television stationKPTV. KPFM moved to 97.1 MHz on July 31, 1947, broadcasting aclassical music format.
In 1960, KPFM was bought by Chem-Air, Inc., a subsidiary ofBoeing, a company known for building aircraft. Chem-Air supplied stores and restaurants with background music, via asubscription radio service not available on regular FM radio. Restaurants and offices would pay for background music not interrupted with commercials.
Chem-Air also put an AM station on the air,KPAM, on 1410kHz. KPAM was originally adaytimer, required tosign off at sunset; for the first several decades, the two stationssimulcast their programming. On December 16, 1961, KPFM became the first station in Oregon to broadcast inFM stereo. KPAM and KPFM were acquired by Romito, Inc. in 1965.[7]
On February 27, 1970, KPFM changed itscall sign to KPAM-FM. KPAM-AM-FM ran aTop 40 format as "K-Pam". In 1980, Duffy Broadcasting acquired KPAM-AM-FM.[8] In September of that year, KPAM-AM-FM changed to KCNR and KCNR-FM, as the "Center" of the FM dial. The two stations aired anadult contemporary format.
Most FM stations in larger cities could not fully simulcast after 1968, but because AM 1410 was a daytimer, the two were permitted to air the same programming most of the time. In 1985, the two stations were sold to different owners, with KCNR-FM being acquired by Fort Vancouver Broadcasting. On November 14, 1985, KCNR-FM changed callsigns to KKLI and rebranded as "K-Lite 97 FM", with asoft adult contemporary format.
In 1988, Heritage Media acquired KKLI, the owners ofKKSN in suburbanVancouver, Washington.[9] On February 5 of that year, KKLI switched its call sign to KKSN-FM, and the following day, changed its format tooldies, simulcasting with the AM, which had been carrying classical music.[10] The two stations called themselves "KISN" as in "Kissin'".
In April 1998,Entercom Communications acquired KKSN-AM-FM. On April 21, 2005, at 2 p.m., after playing "American Pie" byDon McLean, KKSN-FM flipped to the currentadult hits format as "Charlie FM". The oldies format moved to exclusively to the AM. The first song on "Charlie" was "Start Me Up" byThe Rolling Stones. The callsign was changed to KYCH on April 29, 2005.[11] In 2021, Entercom changed its name to Audacy, Inc.
KYCH broadcasts in theHD Radio format. KYCH-FM-HD2 aired adance music and classicdisco format branded as "Funkytown".[12] The HD2 subchannel has since been turned off.