KFTK-FM

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KFTK-FM
Broadcast areaGreater St. Louis
Frequency97.1 MHz (HD Radio)
Branding97.1 FM Talk
Programming
FormatTalk Radio
SubchannelsHD2: CBS Sports Radio
NetworkFox News Radio
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
History
First air date
1977; 47 years ago (1977)
Former call signs
  • KSCF (1977–80)
  • KCFM (1980–85)
  • KLTH (1985–89)
  • KHTK (1989–92)
  • KXOK-FM (1992–2000)
  • KFTK (2000–16)
Call sign meaning
"FM Talk"
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID73890
ClassC1
ERP100,000 watts
HAAT171 meters (561 ft)
Transmitter coordinates
38°46′44.40″N 90°43′44.40″W / 38.7790000°N 90.7290000°W / 38.7790000; -90.7290000
Links
Public license information
WebcastListen live (via Audacy)
Websitewww.audacy.com/971talk

KFTK-FM (97.1 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Florissant, Missouri, and serving the Greater St. Louis area. It airs a talk radio format and is owned by Audacy, Inc. The studios are on Olive Street in downtown St. Louis.

KFTK-FM is a Class C1 station. It has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 100,000 watts, the maximum for most stations. The transmitter is on Magdalen Lane in O'Fallon.[2] Besides a standard analog transmission, KFTK-FM broadcasts using HD Radio technology, carrying CBS Sports Radio on its HD2 digital subchannel. KFTK-FM is available online via Audacy.

Programming[edit]

KFTK-FM specializes in conservative talk. It has mostly local shows on weekdays during the day, with Marc Cox in mornings, Annie Frey in early afternoons and Mark Reardon in late afternoons. The rest of the weekday schedule is nationally syndicated programs: Brian Kilmeade and Friends, Fox Across America with Jimmy Failla, The Dana Loesch Show, Coast to Coast AM with George Noory and This Morning, America's First News with Gordon Deal.

Weekends focus on specialty topics, including money, health, guns and home improvement. Some shows are paid brokered programming. Syndicated shows include Our American Stories with Lee Habeeb, The Guy Benson Show and Markley, Van Camp and Robbins. Most hours begin with an update from Fox News Radio.

History[edit]

Early years (1997-1980)[edit]

The station originally signed on the air in 1977; 47 years ago (1977). The original call sign was KSCF, which stood for St. Charles and Florissant. The station featured a middle of the road - easy listening format. One of the original owners was Harlan "Grant" Horton, a longtime St. Louis broadcaster at KSD, WRTH, KMOX, KXOK and WEW.

The original power was only 32,000 watts, a third of its current output.[3] The studios were at 1281 Graham Road in Florissant. To accommodate a new FM station at 97.1, KADI-FM agreed to move from its original frequency of 96.5 to 96.3 MHz.

Adult Contemporary (1980–1989)[edit]

After the KCFM call letters were dropped by a station at 93.7 MHz in 1980 (now KSD-FM), they were picked up by 97.1. The new KCFM aired an adult contemporary format.

In November 1985, the call sign changed once again, this time to KLTH, representing the new moniker "K-Lite 97". The station had a soft adult contemporary format. KLTH gradually segued into a format called "new adult contemporary", an early predecessor to the smooth jazz format, and re-branded as "Breeze 97".

Top 40 (1989–1992)[edit]

On August 2, 1989, the station was sold once again. The new owners flipped the station to Top 40 as "Hot 97" with the call letters KHTK.[4][5]

The Top 40 format ended when then-rival WKBQ was briefly under lease by the station's owner Saul Frischling of Pittsburgh. Both top 40 stations were merged at 106.5, taking personalities from both stations.

Urban AC (1992–1998)[edit]

On November 11, 1992, KHTK changed call letters to KXOK-FM. It flipped to urban AC as "Mix 97.1", after the urban oldies format from the former KXOK 630 AM was moved to FM.[6][7] KXOK 630 and KXOK-FM 97.1 simulcast for a short time before the AM was taken off the air completely, pending a sale to a Christian radio broadcaster.

"Mix 97.1" planned to challenge the Urban AC leader in St. Louis, KMJM-FM ("Majic 108"). KXOK-FM carried the syndicated Tom Joyner Morning Show, a popular wake-up program heard in many U.S. cities. Joyner was heard in the St. Louis radio market for many years across multiple stations.

Classic Rock (1998–2000)[edit]

In 1998, Frischling sold KXOK-FM to the Sinclair Broadcast Group, which also owned ABC network affiliate KDNL-TV, along with radio stations KPNT, WVRV, WIL-FM, and KIHT. In September of that year, the Urban AC format was dropped, and the station began simulcasting KPNT for a short time.

On September 25, KXOK-FM began stunting with a 48-hour loop of "Welcome to the Jungle" by Guns N' Roses. A clip from the movie "Field of Dreams" was also heard: "If you build it, they will come." Two days later, KXOK-FM switched formats to classic rock. It started using the monkier "97 FM The Rock" while retaining the KXOK-FM call letters. To celebrate baseball star Mark McGwire hitting 70 home runs, the station launched by playing 7,000 songs in a row without commercials or DJ interruption. The first song on "The Rock" was "There's Only One Way to Rock" by Sammy Hagar. [8]

Despite signal issues, the station enjoyed the most success seen on the frequency to that date. "97 FM The Rock" was a competitor to long-time rock leader 94.7 KSHE, owned by the Emmis Corporation. Occasionally, 97 FM beat KSHE in the overall ratings. KSHE aired the syndicated Bob and Tom Show from Indianapolis in morning drive time, while KXOK-FM countered with local hosts (and KSHE alumni) Randy Raley and Mike Doran. Other DJs included Tom O'Keefe (middays), Jason Mack (afternoons), and Michelle Matthews (evenings). Overnights were automated. The station began with a standard 1960s-70s classic rock playlist, but evolved to playing some 1980s rock hits and hair bands. The station played occasional 1990s music from artists like Pearl Jam, The Black Crowes, and Cracker.

Talk (2000–present)[edit]

In the fall of 2000, Emmis added to its St. Louis radio portfolio by purchasing properties from Sinclair Broadcasting. Sinclair wanted to focus on its television properties. The sale to Emmis led KXOK and KSHE to become sister stations. Upon purchasing KXOK, and to avoid overlap with KSHE, KXOK changed formats. It flipped to talk radio on October 16, 2000.[9] The call letters changed to KFTK two days later.[10]

Initially, the station focused on a female audience, which included such syndicated personalities as Bob and Sheri, Dr. Joy Browne, Clark Howard, Dr. Laura, Phil Hendrie, Rhona at Night, Loveline, and John and Jeff, as well as local host Dave Glover. The station used the name "97.1 FM Talk". Failing to reach much of an audience, the station shifted toward political talk in 2002, adding such syndicated hosts as Don Imus, Bill O'Reilly, and Sean Hannity. The station briefly changed its name to "97-1 the Link...Real Life Radio", but soon returned to the "FM Talk" moniker.

The call sign was modified from KFTK to KFTK-FM on September 8, 2016.[10] On September 15, 2016, KFTK-FM began simulcasting on WQQX (1490 AM), renamed KFTK, and FM translator station 98.7 K254CR was used to improve the station's coverage in downtown St. Louis and the Illinois side of the market.[11]

Emmis exited the St. Louis market in 2018, with KFTK-FM and KNOU being sold to Entercom (now Audacy).[12] The simulcast over KFTK ended on March 20, 2020 when that station's license was cancelled by the FCC.[13] It was revealed that the AM station's license was held by a shell corporation that allowed a convicted felon to own it.[14] K254CR was not affected and it continued to simulcast KFTK-FM until March 22, 2021. That's when K254CR was reassigned to broadcast AM sister station KMOX 1120 AM.[15]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Facility Technical Data for KFTK-FM". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ^ Radio-Locator.com/KFTK
  3. ^ Broadcasting and Cable Yearbook 1984 page B-149. Retrieved June 5, 2024.
  4. ^ http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1980s/1989/RR-1989-07-28.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  5. ^ https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1980s/1989/RR-1989-08-04.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  6. ^ http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1992/RR-1992-11-13.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  7. ^ http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1992/RR-1992-11-20.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  8. ^ http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1998/RR-1998-10-02.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  9. ^ http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/2000s/2000/RR-2000-10-13.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  10. ^ a b "Call Sign History (KFTK-FM)". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  11. ^ Venta, Lance (September 15, 2016). "FM NewsTalk 97.1 St. Louis Adds Two Additional Signals". RadioInsight. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  12. ^ "Emmis Selling St. Louis Stations". Radio Ink. January 30, 2018. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  13. ^ "CDBS Search Page". Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  14. ^ Venta, Lance (2019-06-05). "FCC Sends Four St. Louis Area AMs To License Revocation Hearing". Radio Insight. Retrieved 2019-06-05.
  15. ^ FCC Internet Services Staff. "Station Search Details: K254CR". licensing.fcc.gov. Retrieved March 21, 2020.

External links[edit]

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