 | |
| Broadcast area | Omaha metropolitan area |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 1180kHz |
| Branding | 1180 Zone 2, The Deuce |
| Programming | |
| Format | Sports |
| Affiliations | Infinity Sports Network Premiere Networks Kansas City Royals Omaha Storm Chasers |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| KOIL,KOZN,KMMQ,KQKQ-FM,KOOO,KOPW | |
| History | |
First air date | April 26, 1989; 35 years ago (April 26, 1989) (as KKAR) |
Former call signs |
|
Call sign meaning | Zone Two |
| Technical information[2] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 43237 |
| Class | B |
| Power | 25,000watts day 1,000 watts night |
Transmitter coordinates | 41°16′12.00″N95°47′10.00″W / 41.2700000°N 95.7861111°W /41.2700000; -95.7861111 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | 1180zone2 |
KZOT (1180kHz) is a commercial AM radio station licensed toBellevue, Nebraska, and serving theOmaha metropolitan area. The station is owned byNRG Media and the license is held by NRG License Sub, LLC. It airs asports radio format, with programming fromInfinity Sports Network. Radio studios are at 50th Avenue and Dodge Street inMidtown Omaha.
By day, KZOT transmits with 25,000 watts. As1180 AM is aclear channel frequency reserved forWHAMRochester, New York, KZOT must reduce power at night to 1,000 watts to avoid interference. It uses adirectional antenna with a four-tower array. Thetransmitter site is on Sunnydale Road inCouncil Bluffs, Iowa, nearInterstate 80.[3]
Since flipping fromtalk radio on June 4, 2012, the station has broadcast a sports talk format.[4] Weekday programs include shows hosted byDan Patrick,Jim Rome,Damon Amendolara, Maggie Gray & Andrew Perloff, Zach Gleb and J.R. Jackson. Patrick issyndicated byPremiere Networks, while the other hosts are syndicated by CBS Sports Radio.
KZOT is one of two sports radio stations in the Omaharadio market owned by NRG Media;KOZN (1620 AM, "1620 The Zone") airs some local sports shows along with programming fromFox Sports Radio, while KZOT mostly carries programs from CBS Sports Radio. KZOT is the Omaha-Council Bluffs affiliate for theKansas City Royals, and is the flagship station of theOmaha Storm Chasers, the Royals' affiliatedminor league baseball team.
This station received its originalconstruction permit from theFederal Communications Commission (FCC) on May 21, 1984, for a new station licensed toBellevue, Nebraska and transmitting on 1180 kHz.[5] The new station was assigned the callsigns KNPE on August 15.[1] On January 22, 1987, while still under construction, the station was granted the call sign KKAR.[1] After several extensions, two transfers, and a permit renewal, Mitchell Broadcasting Company received alicense to cover KKAR's operation on April 26, 1989.[6]
In September 1990, the station applied for an increase in daytime power to 25,000watts,[7] and theconstruction permit was granted in February 1991.[7] On August 24, 1993, the station was assigned its first use of the KOIL callsigns, a heritage Omaha broadcast call sign that dates back to 1925,[1] in a swap with the originalKOIL, which became KKAR.
On March 17, 1997, the FCC announced that 88 stations had been given permission to move to newly available "Expanded Band" transmitting frequencies, ranging from 1610 to 1700 kHz, with KOIL authorized to move from 1180 to 1620 kHz.[8] A construction permit for the expanded band station, also located in Bellevue, was assigned the call letters KAZP (nowKOZN) on January 9, 1998.[9] The new station began operating in September 1999.
The FCC's initial policy was that both the original station and its expanded band counterpart could operate simultaneously for up to five years, after which owners would have to turn in one of the two licenses, depending on whether they preferred the new assignment or elected to remain on the original frequency.[8] However, this deadline has been extended multiple times, and operations have remained authorized on both 1180 and 1620 kHz. One restriction is that the FCC has generally required paired original and expanded band stations to remain under common ownership.[10][11]
After a lengthy series of extensions, on June 23, 1998, KOIL was licensed to operate at the increased daytime power of 25,000 watts on 1180 kHz.[12] In August 1999, the station dropped itssports radio programming to become a full-time affiliate ofRadio Disney,[13] and the station began broadcasting inC-QUAMAM stereo. Unfortunately, it was short-lived, and the station stopped broadcasting in AM stereo due to technical problems.[14]
In April 2000, Mitchell Broadcasting Company, Inc. applied to transfer KOIL's license to JCM Broadcasting Co., LLC (John C. Mitchell, president). The deal was approved by the FCC on May 19, and the transaction consummated on July 5.[15] In December 2001, an agreement was reached to sell the station to Waitt Radio, Inc. (Norman W. Waitt Jr., chairman) as part of a 16-station deal valued at $36.6 million.[16][17] The transaction was approved by the FCC on February 26, 2002, and was consummated on March 5.[18]
On April 22, 2003, the station was assigned the call sign KYDZ to better match its status as the local Radio Disney affiliate.[1] The KOIL call sign was moved tosister station KKSC (nowKMMQ).[19]
In 2005, the entire Waitt Radio station group, including KYDZ, was transferred toNRG Media, also owned by Norman W. Waitt Jr.[20]
In June 2006, the station's format was flipped to Spanish classic hits, including a blend of Mexican and other Latin American music from the 1970s and 1980s, and given the on-air branding "La Bonita."[21]
On January 1, 2009, the station returned to the historic KOIL call sign as the format flipped to syndicatednews/talk.[22][1] As a news/talk station, notable syndicated programming on KOIL includedMorning in America hosted byBill Bennett, plus syndicated talk shows hosted byNeal Boortz,Clark Howard,Dennis Miller,Dave Ramsey,Rusty Humphries,Lars Larson, andMike Gallagher.[22]
The station adopted asports talk format and changed its call sign to KZOT on June 4, 2012;[1] the KOIL call sign was returned to its location prior to 1993, on 1290 AM.