| Frequency | 1080kHz |
|---|---|
| Branding | KOAN FM 95.1 AM 1080 |
| Programming | |
| Language | Spanish |
| Format | Spanish music |
| Affiliations | Salem Radio Network Westwood One Network Premiere Networks Fox News Radio |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Iglesia Pentecostal Vispera de Fin |
| History | |
First air date | May 10, 1975; 49 years ago (1975-05-10) |
Former call signs | KANC (1975–1982)[1] KTNX (1982–1985) KASH (1985–1988) KKSD (1988–1995) KASH (1995–2002) KUDO (2002–2013)[2] |
| Technical information[3] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 12961 |
| Class | A |
| Power | 10,000watts unlimited |
Transmitter coordinates | 61°7′12″N149°53′43″W / 61.12000°N 149.89528°W /61.12000; -149.89528 |
| Translator(s) | 95.1 K236CG (Anchorage) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
KOAN (1080AM) is a commercialradio station inAnchorage, Alaska. It is owned by Iglesia Pentecostal Vispera del Fin. Its studios are located on Business Park Boulevard in Anchorage, and its transmitter is located in South Anchorage.
KOAN is anAlaskanclear-channelClass A station, broadcasting with 10,000watts with anon-directional antenna.[4] Programming is also heard on 250-wattFMtranslator K236CG on 95.1MHz.[5]
Hot Talk 1080 aired atalk radioformat, with mostlysyndicated programs, many from theSalem Radio Network. Weekday hosts includeDennis Prager,Larry Elder,Todd Schnitt,Alex Jones andBrian Kilmeade. It used to be the home station of “Last Frontier Evangelism Radio,” a Christian talk show hosted by self-designated, controversial Christian “pastor” and former U.S. Department of Energy security guardDavid Grisham. Weekends feature shows on money, health, home repair, travel, cars and cigars. Hosts includeRudy Maxa,Ric Edelman,Gary Sullivan andLee Habeeb. Most hours begin with world and national news fromFox News Radio.
As of at least November 2020, the conservative talk format has been replaced with an all-Spanish music format. This was observed by a radio hobbyist in the central Interior of Alaska who can pick up the signal most winter mornings till a bit after sunrise, 230 mile miles away. The Spanish language format was noted in mid-November 2020 and a newspaper article says the change happened November 6 when the station was sold, despite nothing having allegedly been filed with the FCC yet.[6]
In the early 1970s, Mt. Susitna Broadcasting Corporation applied to theU.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for aconstruction permit for a new broadcast radio station. The FCC granted a permit for a new 10,000watts station to broadcast as aclear-channel station on 1080 kHz.[7] The new station was assigned thecall signKANC.[2] After construction and testing were completed, the station was granted itsbroadcast license and began regular broadcasting on May 10, 1975.[8]
KANC was launched with a "progressive"country music format. By 1979 the station had switched to aTop 40 radio format before shifting to "crossover country" music after the 1980 filmUrban Cowboy touched off a surge in country's popularity across the United States.
In September 1980, KANC applied to allow the control of broadcast license holder Mt. Susitna Broadcasting Corporation to transfer from Media, Inc., to Yukon Broadcasting Company. The FCC approved the move on January 16, 1981.[9] In June 1982, the KANC license and station assets were sold by the Mt. Susitna Broadcasting Corporation to Community Pacific Broadcasting through their Community Anchorage Broadcasting, Inc. subsidiary.[10][11] The deal gained FCC approval on October 21, 1982, and formal consummation took place on November 15, 1982.[10][11]
The new owners had the FCC change the station'scall sign toKTNX on November 16, 1982, while maintaining a format described as "continuous hit country".[2][11] Still a country music outlet, the station's call sign was changed toKASH on December 10, 1985.[2][12] Late in the 1980s, the station transitioned to amiddle of the road/adult standards music format with a corresponding call sign change toKKSD on September 15, 1988.[2][13]
In November 1991, Community Pacific Broadcasting applied to the FCC to transfer the KKSD license internally from its Community Anchorage Broadcasting, Inc., subsidiary to Community Pacific Broadcasting Company, L.P. The FCC approved the move on January 13, 1992, and the transfer took place on March 20, 1992.[14] Station management had the FCC return the station to the KASH call sign on November 20, 1995.[2]
In January 1997, Community Pacific Broadcasting reached an agreement to sell KASH to Capstar Broadcasting subsidiary Community Acquisition Company, Inc. The sale was approved by the FCC on March 13, 1997, and the deal completed on July 14, 1997.[15] This began a series of internal moves that saw control of the license passed from Capstar Broadcasting Partnert, L.P., to Capstar Broadcasting Corporation effective July 21, 1997,[16] and on to Capstar Radio Broadcasting Partners, Inc., on July 31, 1997,[17] and Pacific Star Communications, Inc., in August 1997.[18] (Capstar Broadcasting was itself acquired byClear Channel Communications in October 1999.)
In August 1997, Capstar Broadcasting subsidiary Pacific Star Communications, Inc., made a deal to sell KASH to Chinook Concert Broadcasters, Inc. The FCC approved the deal on October 14, 1997.[18] The new owners changed the format toprogressive talk radio and had the FCC change thecall sign toKUDO on January 25, 2002.[2]
In July 2005, Chinook Concert Broadcasters, Inc., contracted to sell KUDO toInternational Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1547 through aholding company called IBEW Local 1547 Investments, LLC.[19] The station sold for a total cash price of $244,000. The sale was approved by the FCC on September 19, 2005, and the transaction was completed on September 26, 2005.[20] With a mix of syndicated and local programming, including shows hosted by Camille Conte and journalistShannyn Moore, by late 2007 KUDO was the lowest-rated of the 22 radio stations in the Anchorage market.[21]
On January 21, 2010, KUDO's provider of syndicated talk programmingAir America Media filed forChapter 7 Bankruptcy and ceased live programming the same night. Reruns of Air America's programming continued to air until Monday January 25 at 4 pmAlaskan Time. In December 2010, KUDO was taken silent and its local talk talent (including Shannyn Moore) shifted to the newly reactivatedKOAN for its relaunch under the moniker "Fox News Talk 1020."[22]
On June 6, 2011, KUDO returned to the air with asports radio format, branded as "The Ticket" and affiliated withFox Sports Radio.[23]
In December 2011, theInternational Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (through their IBEW Local 1547 Investments, LLC, license holding company) agreed to sell KUDO and its assets for $5,000 to Falcon Broadcasting, LLC, which is owned and operated by local broadcaster Tettyana Sevvina Robbins. Her husband, Mike Robbins, has a significant financial interest in Anchorage radio stationsKVNT (1020 AM),KZND-FM (94.7 FM),KMVN (105.7 FM), andKLEF (98.1 FM) plus alocal marketing agreement to operateKMVV (104.9 FM). After overcoming several legal objections, the station's sale was authorized by the FCC on June 28, 2012.[24] The assignment of the station's license was consummated on July 9, 2012.[24]
On November 26, 2013, KUDO changed its format to talk, branded as "Hot Talk 1080", and changed its call sign to KOAN on December 2, 2013.
As of June 2021, KOAN is now broadcasting in an all-Spanish language music format. Effective July 30, 2021, Falcon Broadcasting sold KOAN and translator K236CG to Iglesia Pentecostal Vispera del Fin for $450,000.
An electrical workers union has stepped up to buy Anchorage's liberal talk radio station, allowing operators to upgrade equipment, promote the station and broaden the state's political debate, Rich McClear, a co-owner of KUDO-AM 1080, said Thursday.
