KCFO (970 AM) is a Tulsa, Oklahoma talk radio station. KCFO airs national shows such as Dave Ramsey, J. Vernon McGee, David Jeremiah, Dennis Prager, Mike Gallagher, and Albert Mohler.
 | |
| Broadcast area | Tulsa, Oklahoma |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 970 kHz |
| Programming | |
| Format | Talk |
| Affiliations | Salem Radio Network |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| KMYZ-FM, KTSO, KXOJ-FM | |
| History | |
First air date | Christmas Eve 1946 |
Former call signs | KAKC (1946–1984) |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 22665 |
| Class | B |
| Power | 2,500 watts day 1,000 watts night |
Transmitter coordinates | 36°11′46″N 96°02′22″W / 36.19611°N 96.03944°W |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | kcfo.com |
The station has been assigned the KCFO call letters by the Federal Communications Commission since October 21, 1984.[2]
History
editBeginnings on 1570
editKAKC 970 first signed on the air on December 24, 1946;[3] it was founded by Sam Avey.[4] Avey was a local businessman and sports promoter, who owned the Tulsa Coliseum.[5] When KAKC first went on the air, it was a day-time only station, called "The Hometown Station," with a focus on serving the Tulsa community, broadcasting local sports, local news, and some music. It began at 1570 on the AM dial.[6] In April 1948, the station got permission to move to 970 AM, and it also received permission to broadcast in the evenings as well as during the day.[7]
The Top 40 era
editIn the mid-1950s, the station got new ownership and hired Vic Lundberg and Greg Chancellor as announcers.[8] From the late 1950s to the mid-1970s, KAKC 970 AM was a Top 40 station in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Known first as "The Big 97" and later "The Rockin' 97", the station was owned (along with KAKC-FM 92.9) by S. Carl Mark. Both stations used consultant Bill Drake for their programming, with KAKC (AM) being the dominant music station for many years until the mid-1970s when long-time Top 40 competitor KELI (now known as KTBZ) and FM upstart KTFX "The Superfox 103" (now KJSR "Star 103.3") cut into their audience.
Simulcast on FM
editKAKC-FM 92.9 FM in the 1970s used a Drake-Chenault programmed automated oldies format during the day. From 6 p.m. to midnight, the FM simulcasted with KAKC 970 to make up for the AM's weak 250-watt nighttime signal. In the summer of 1977 KAKC-FM flipped to the then-popular "Beautiful Music" format and changed the call letters to KBEZ-FM.
Adult standards & gospel (1979–1984)
editIn January 1979, KAKC shocked the Tulsa radio market by dropping Top 40 programming after 21 years for adult standards, with rapidly declining ratings as the result. A year later the station was purchased by the owners of KCFO-FM (now KVOO-FM) which changed the format to Southern Gospel music and Christian talk programming. In 1984 the legendary 970 call letters were changed to KCFO.
References
edit- ^ "Facility Technical Data for KCFO". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ^ "Call Sign History". FCC Media Bureau CDBS Public Access Database.
- ^ Steve Clem. Tulsa's KAKC Radio. Charleston SC: Arcadia Publishing Co., 2013, p. 11.
- ^ "Tulsa Hall of Fame 2006 Inductees" Archived 2010-04-14 at the Wayback Machine at Tulsa Historical Society website (accessed March 25, 2010)
- ^ "Sam Avey." Tulsa Historical Society
- ^ Steve Clem. Tulsa's KAKC Radio. Charleston SC: Arcadia Publishing Co., 2013, p. 11.
- ^ "FCC Actions." Broadcasting, April 5, 1948, p. 64.
- ^ "Tulsa Radio KAKC" at Tulsa TV Memories website (accessed March 25, 2010)
External links
edit- KCFO station website
- Facility details for Facility ID 22665 (KCFO) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- KCFO in Nielsen Audio's AM station database