KYNS (1340 AM) is a commercial radio station that is licensed to San Luis Obispo, California, United States and serves the San Luis Obispo area. The station is owned by Martha Fahnoe, through licensee Dimes Media Corporation, and broadcasts a classic country format featuring hits of the late 1980s to the early 2000s.

KYNS
Broadcast areaSan Luis Obispo, California
Frequency1340 kHz
BrandingThe Grade
Programming
FormatClassic country
AffiliationsWestwood One
Ownership
Owner
  • Martha Fahnoe
  • (Dimes Media Corporation)
KPYG, KWWV, KXDZ, KXTZ
History
First air date
1948 (as KATY)
Former call signs
KATY (1948–1992)
KGLW (1992–2003)
Call sign meaning
Your News Station (previous slogan under news format)
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID73039
ClassC
Power790 watts
Transmitter coordinates
35°14′3″N 120°40′33″W / 35.23417°N 120.67583°W / 35.23417; -120.67583
Translator(s)See § Translators
Repeater(s)106.1 KWWV-HD3 (San Luis Obispo)
Links
Public license information
WebcastListen Live
Websitethegradecountry.com

History

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KATY

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The station first signed on in 1949 as KATY.[2] The station originally was owned by Morden R. Buck and John R. Rider under the name of licensee San Luis Broadcasting Company. In July 1952, San Luis sold KATY to Sweetheart of San Luis Obispo Inc., a group headed by Maynard Marquardt and former WCFL (Chicago) station engineer Glenn Porter for $30,000.[3] Sweetheart held KATY for 14 years, selling the station and its FM counterpart (now KSLY) to Grandy Broadcasting Inc. for $200,000 on October 25, 1966.[4]

In 1973, Grandy divested the AM station to Hill Radio Inc., owned by Duane E. Hill and Velma Faye Tabor, for $275,000.[5] Hill sold KATY just four years later, in June 1977, to Riverside Broadcasting Company for $400,000; former station owner W. John Grandy brokered the deal.[6] The station changed hands yet again in April 1981, when Riverside Broadcasting sold KATY to Coastal Broadcasting for $750,000. That company was owned by Frederick Herdt, Jr., a former disc jockey at KPOP in Roseville, California.[7] However, after Coastal filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy (liquidation), ownership of KATY reverted to Riverside. On January 3, 1984, Riverside sold the station to Wischnia Communications Corp., majority owned by J. W. Stream, for $300,000; the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved the sale February 17.[8]

KGLW

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In April 1989, Great Electric Communications Corporation attempted to purchase KATY from Wischnia for $160,000; this sale would have brought the hybrid adult contemporary/talk-formatted station under common ownership with KUHL and KXFM in Santa Maria. However, the FCC refused to approve the deal.[9][10] Ultimately, in 1991, Wischnia sold the station to Rocglo Communications for the lesser sum of $25,000.[11] The new owner changed KATY's call letters to KGLW ("K-Glow") the following year.[12]

KYNS

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Former branding

After Rocglo sold KGLW to Mapleton Communications in 1997, the call sign was changed to KYNS, which stands for "Your News Station". KYNS aired programming provided by Air America, a progressive talk radio network, until the network's demise in January 2010. In January 2013, the station switched to an all-news format and rebranded as "SLO Radio News 1340 AM".[13][14]

On November 26, 2013, the station dropped its all-news programming and began stunting with an all-Christmas music format as "Christmas 93.7". With the move, public radio station KCLU in Santa Barbara remains the only station on the California's Central Coast with an all-news format. On December 26, the station introduced a soft adult contemporary format with the branding "B93.7".[15]

Mapleton Communications sold KYNS and sister stations KPYG, KWWV, KXDZ, and KXTZ to Martha Fahnoe's Dimes Media Corporation for $1 million; the sale closed on January 15, 2015. On September 26, 2016, KYNS changed their format from soft AC to alternative rock, branded as "Alt 93.7". The soft AC format moved to KWWV-HD2 (106.1 FM) and translator K253BR (98.5) and was rebranded "B98.5". The station was again rebranded "Alt 100.9" in mid 2018 with the addition of translator K265FI (100.9).[16]

On February 28, 2023, KYNS switched to a Classic country format as "The Grade." The station continues to carry the syndicated morning program The Bob & Tom Show.[17]

Translators

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KYNS is rebroadcast via two FM translator stations as well as on KWWV-HD3, the third HD Radio subchannel of KWWV (106.1) in San Luis Obispo.

Call sign Frequency City of license FID ERP (W) Class FCC info Notes
K229AK 93.7 FM Baywood-Los Osos, California 144956 99 D LMS Relays KWWV-HD3
K265FI 100.9 FM Pismo Beach, California 200633 250 D LMS Relays KYNS

References

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  1. ^ "Facility Technical Data for KYNS". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ^ "Directory of AM and FM Stations of the United States" (PDF). 1952 Broadcasting Yearbook. Broadcasting Publications Inc. 1952. p. 93. Retrieved August 13, 2018.
  3. ^ "KATY is Sold" (PDF). Broadcasting/Telecasting. Broadcasting Publications Inc. July 14, 1952. p. 65. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  4. ^ "For the Record" (PDF). Broadcasting. Broadcasting Publications Inc. October 31, 1966. p. 99. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  5. ^ "For the Record" (PDF). Broadcasting. Broadcasting Publications Inc. March 19, 1973. p. 141. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  6. ^ "Changing Hands" (PDF). Broadcasting. Broadcasting Publications Inc. June 13, 1977. p. 41. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  7. ^ "Changing Hands" (PDF). Broadcasting. Broadcasting Publications Inc. April 20, 1981. p. 90. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  8. ^ "For the Record" (PDF). Broadcasting. Broadcasting Publications Inc. March 5, 1984. p. 74. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  9. ^ "Taylor Tackles Orlando FM For $12 Million" (PDF). Radio and Records. April 7, 1989. p. 10. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  10. ^ "For the Record" (PDF). Broadcasting. Broadcasting Publications Inc. February 5, 1990. p. 90. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  11. ^ "For the Record" (PDF). Broadcasting. Broadcasting Publications Inc. February 17, 1992. p. 62. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  12. ^ "For the Record" (PDF). Broadcasting. Broadcasting Publications Inc. March 16, 1992. p. 50. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  13. ^ Cuddy, Bob (February 14, 2013). "Local talk-radio station KYNS-AM changes format". The Tribune. San Luis Obispo, California. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  14. ^ "KYNS/San Luis Obispo Flips To News". AllAccess.com. All Access Music Group. January 30, 2013. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  15. ^ Venta, Lance (December 26, 2013). "KYNS Relaunches As Soft AC B93.7". RadioInsight. RadioBB Networks. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  16. ^ Venta, Lance (September 27, 2016). "Alternative Returns To San Luis Obispo". RadioInsight. RadioBB Networks. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  17. ^ "Classic Country Makes the Grade in San Luis Obispo". RadioInsight. February 28, 2023. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
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