KGLO (1300 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station in Mason City, Iowa, owned by Alpha Media, through licensee Digity 3E License, LLC. It airs a news/talk radio format.[2] The radio studios and offices are on South Yorktown Pike.
| Frequency | 1300 kHz |
|---|---|
| Programming | |
| Format | Talk radio |
| Affiliations | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| KIAI, KLSS-FM, KRIB, KYTC | |
| History | |
First air date | January 17, 1937 |
Call sign meaning | Globe Gazette (original owner) |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 30114 |
| Class | B |
| Power | 5,000 watts |
Transmitter coordinates | 43°03′15″N 93°12′17″W / 43.05417°N 93.20472°W |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | |
| Website | KGLOam.com |
KGLO is a Class B AM station, powered at 5,000 watts. It uses a directional antenna with a three-tower array. The transmitter is on 200th Street near Partidge Avenue (U.S. Route 65).[3]
Programming edit
Weekdays begin with The Tim Fleming Morning Show, including news, weather, farm reports and interviews with newsmakers. There is also a midday news block and sports most evenings. The rest of the weekday schedule is nationally syndicated talk shows: The Ramsey Show with Dave Ramsey, Markley, Van Camp & Robbins, The Sean Hannity Show, Ground Zero with Clyde Lewis and Coast to Coast AM with George Noory.
The station airs local high school football and basketball games. It also carries Minnesota Twins baseball games. Most hours begin with an update from CBS News Radio.
History edit
Globe Gazette newspaper edit
KGLO signed on the air on January 17, 1937. Originally it was assigned the frequency of 1210 kilocycles.[4] It was owned by Lee Enterprises, which also owned the Globe Gazette. The call sign derives from the daily newspaper's name.[5]
The founding general manager of KGLO and Lee Broadcasting was Francis C. Eighmey. KGLO began operation with only 250 watts of power by day and 100 watts at night. It was the lowest wattage radio station to be an affiliate of the CBS Radio Network, but the station served what was recognized as a key market area in the Midwest.
Signal upgrade edit
In the early 1940s, the station moved to its present frequency of 1300 kHz, coupled with a power upgrade. On March 29, 1941, power was increased to 1,000 watts day and night with a non-directional antenna.[6] The transmitter was on old Highway 18 just west of Mason City. Shortly thereafter, power was increased to 5,000 watts and two flanking towers were added to produce a directional signal at night with deep nulls to the east and west. In 1998, the transmitter was moved to six miles south of Mason City with directional pattern both day and night to provide a better signal over Mason City.
The revenue generated by KGLO radio provided for significant corporate expansion. Eighmey began this process with the acquisition of WTAD in Quincy, Illinois. Additional radio stations were later added in Wisconsin. Lee Broadcasting established KGLO-TV, the area's CBS affiliate, in 1954. That station is now KIMT-TV.[7] Other television stations were acquired, including KGMB-TV in Honolulu and KOIN-TV in Portland, Oregon.
Full Service and News-Talk edit
In the 1960s, the Lee Newspapers were merged with Lee Broadcasting. As network programming shifted from radio to television, KGLO began a full service, middle of the road format of popular adult music, news, sports and farm reports. The station shifted to adult contemporary music in the 1980s.
By the 1990s, listeners were tuning to FM radio stations for music, so KGLO made the transition to all-talk with frequent news, sports and farm reports.
In 2007, Clear Channel Communications sold the station to Three Eagles Broadcasting.[8] In 2014, KGLO was sold to Digity, LLC. Two years later, Alpha Media acquired Digity, LLC, including KGLO, for $264 million.[9][10]
References edit
- ^ "Facility Technical Data for KGLO". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ^ "Winter 2008 Station Information Profile". Arbitron.
- ^ Radio-Locator.com/KGLO
- ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1939, page 112. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
- ^ "Call Sign History". FCC Media Bureau CDBS Public Access Database.
- ^ "KGLO Ups Everything Including the Rates". Variety. April 2, 1941. Retrieved November 13, 2015.
- ^ "KIMT history".
- ^ Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 2010, page D-222. Retrieved on October 9, 2023.
- ^ "Alpha Media/Digity Sale Price & Details". RadioInsight. August 12, 2015. Retrieved May 28, 2018.
- ^ "Alpha Closes Digity Deal". RadioInk. February 25, 2016. Retrieved May 28, 2018.
External links edit
- KGLO official website
- KGLO's news website
- KGLO in the FCC AM station database
- KGLO in Nielsen Audio's AM station database