 | |
| |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Tucson metropolitan area |
| Frequency | 790kHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | NewsTalk AM 790 |
| Programming | |
| Format | Conservative talk |
| Affiliations | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| KHUD,KMMA,KOHT,KRQQ,KTZR,KXEW | |
| History | |
First air date | October 1, 1958 (1958-10-01) |
Former call signs |
|
Call sign meaning | "News, Sports, Talk" |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 53589 |
| Class | B |
| Power |
|
Transmitter coordinates | 32°14′54″N111°00′30″W / 32.24833°N 111.00833°W /32.24833; -111.00833 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live (viaiHeartRadio) |
| Website | knst |
KNST (790AM) is a commercialradio station licensed toTucson, Arizona, United States, and serves theGreater Tucson region. Owned byiHeartMedia, it features aconservative talk format, with studios and offices located on Oracle Road, north of Downtown Tucson.
KNST's transmitter is sited in West Tucson, off North Silverbell Road near North Grant Road.
790 AM in Tucson was originally the home of KCEE, which signed on the air on October 1, 1958.[2] It was owned by the Associated Broadcasters of Arizona and first began as a daytimer. It was powered at only 250 watts and had to leave the airwaves at sunset. By the early 1960s, the station got a boost to 5,000 watts by day, 500 watts at night, its current power.[3]
In 1966, Strauss Broadcasting purchased KCEE. In 1967, Strauss added an FM station, 96.1 KCEE-FM (nowKLPX). At first the FM stationsimulcast AM 790, but later switched tobeautiful music. In the 1970s, 790 KCEE was afull service station, playingmiddle of the road music and airingNBC Radio News. In 1980, KCEE was sold to a company calling itself "790, Incorporated." The FM station was sold toLotus Communications, becoming KTKT-FM, a companion to AM 990KTKT.[4]
The 940 frequency in Tucson first went on the air on August 10, 1963, as KHOS. From its sign on until the late 1970s, it was acountry music station.[5] From 1978 to 1981, it wassoft rock KMGX "Magic 94." But with music listening moving to FM radio, the station's owner, Grabet Radio Enterprises, wanted to make a change. In July 1981, AM 940 switched to a news/talk format, taking the KNST call letters.[6] A few years later, 940 AM was sold toNationwide Communications, a subsidiary ofNationwide Insurance. KNST carried talk shows from theABC Talk Radio Network, broadcasting on 940 AM until it was moved to 790 AM on April 4, 1993.[7] The 790 frequency has more power and a larger coverage area. Today, 940 AM is the home ofKGMS, aChristian radio station.
On November 28, 2011, co-owned 98.3 KTZR-FM flipped to a simulcast of KNST 790 AM, giving its talk audience the opportunity to hear the station on the FM dial. It changed its call letters to KNST-FM.[8][9] Two years later, the simulcast ended. KNST-FM 98.3 switched to acountry music format. KNST 790 continues on AM with its conservative talk programming.
On March 17, 1997, the Federal Communications Commission announced that eighty-eight stations had been given permission to move to newly available "Expanded Band" transmitting frequencies, ranging from 1610 to 1700 kHz, with KNST authorized to move from 790 to 1700 kHz.[10] However, the station never procured the Construction Permit needed to implement the authorization, so the expanded band station was never built.
Nationwide later sold its Tucson stations, including KNST, to Tucson Radio Partners, which in turn was absorbed by Prism Radio and thenClear Channel Communications in the 1990s. KNST was theradio flagship station forUniversity of Arizona men's basketball and football play-by-play from about 1984 until 2004, when the broadcasts moved toall-sportsKCUB, branded as "1290 The Source".
KNST simulcasts both the morning and afternoon programs ofKFYI inPhoenix, hosted by James T. Harris and Garret Lewis, respectively. The remainder of the schedule consists of nationally syndicated conservative talk shows, largely sourced fromPremiere Networks. Because Arizona does not observedaylight saving time, syndicated programs air on a one-hour recorded delay from mid-March to early November.
