KBKR
Encyclopedia
KBKR is a radio station
licensed
to serve Baker City, Oregon
, USA. The station is owned by the Pacific Empire Radio Corporation.
All five stations owned and operated by Pacific Empire Radio Corporation share a radio studio building in La Grande, Oregon
, located at 2510 Cove Ave.
/talk radio
format in simulcast with sister station
KLBM
in La Grande, Oregon
. Local programing includes a "swap and shop" show called Tradio
every weekday morning, a weekday interview show called Your Voice, plus a weekend cooking show called Cooking Outdoors With Mr. BBQ.
, Lars Larson
, Laura Schlessinger
, Dave Ramsey
, and Jerry Doyle, plus Coast To Coast AM
hosted by George Noory
. Notable weekend syndicated programs include The Kim Komando Show
, The Financial Safari hosted by Peter D'Arruda, The Weekend hosted by Mike McConnell, Gun Talk with Tom Gresham, and blocks of sports talk from Fox Sports Radio
.
games, home and away, of the Eastern Oregon University
Mountaineers. Beginning with the 2009 season, the stations will broadcast the school's college football
games as well.
The station was assigned the KBKR call sign
by the Federal Communications Commission
. By the early 1943, KBKR was broadcasting with 250 watt
s of power on a frequency of 1490 kHz under the ownership of the Baker Broadcasting Company which was in turn owned and operated by Glenn McCormick. McCormick also served as the station's general manager
while Kenneth B. Lockwood was the commercial manager.
In 1949 KBKR was sold to Inland Radio, Inc., which was in turn owned by broadcasting pioneer Gordon Capps. Lee W. Jacobs was the company president while Kenneth B. Lockwood served as general manager
.
On June 1, 1955, KBKR was acquired by Kenneth B. Lockwood and his wife Barbara L. Lockwood operating as the Oregon Trail Broadcasting Company. Kenneth Lockwood continued to serve as the station's general manager, a role he would hold until he sold the station in 1988.
The station received authorization from the FCC in 1962 to increase its daytime signal power from 250 watt
s to 1,000 watts. The nighttime signal stayed at the previous 250 watt output. KBKR maintained its middle of the road music format through the 1970s.
A full decade later, in May 1998, Grande Radio, Inc., reached an agreement to sell this station to Vista Grande, LLC. The deal was approved by the FCC on July 6, 1998, but the transaction was not consummated and control of KBKR remained with Grande Radio. In March 2000, Grande Radio, Inc., reached a new agreement to sell KBKR, this time to Horizon Broadcasting Group, LLC (William Ackerley, CEO) as part of a four-station deal valued at $1.7 million. The deal was approved by the FCC on April 25, 2000, but once again the transaction was not consummated and Grande Radio retained the KBKR broadcast license. At the time of the aborted sale, KBKR aired a news/talk format.
format.
's famous version of "Louie Louie
", worked as a weekend disc jockey
for KBKR for a short time in 1941. Lindahl says he was let go, not for anything he did on the air, but because he refused to empty the tank on the station's chemical toilet
.
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
licensed
City of license
A city of license or community of license, in American and Canadian broadcasting, is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator....
to serve Baker City, Oregon
Baker City, Oregon
Baker City is a city in and the county seat of Baker County, Oregon, United States. It was named after Edward D. Baker. The population was 9,828 at the 2010 census.-History:...
, USA. The station is owned by the Pacific Empire Radio Corporation.
All five stations owned and operated by Pacific Empire Radio Corporation share a radio studio building in La Grande, Oregon
La Grande, Oregon
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 12,327 people, 5,124 households, and 2,982 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,833.5 people per square mile . There were 5,483 housing units at an average density of 1,260.3 per square mile...
, located at 2510 Cove Ave.
Programming
KBKR broadcasts a newsNews Radio
News Radio can refer to:* NewsRadio, the NBC sitcom which aired from 1995–1999.* News radio, the all-news or news/talk radio format....
/talk radio
Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
format in simulcast with sister station
Sister station
In broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio and/or television stations operated by the same ownership....
KLBM
KLBM
KLBM is a radio station in La Grande, Oregon broadcasting on a frequency of 1450 kHz. KLBM is simulcast with KBKR in Baker City, Oregon...
in La Grande, Oregon
La Grande, Oregon
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 12,327 people, 5,124 households, and 2,982 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,833.5 people per square mile . There were 5,483 housing units at an average density of 1,260.3 per square mile...
. Local programing includes a "swap and shop" show called Tradio
Tradio
Tradio is the name given to a type of talk radio show format where listeners call in to buy or sell items. The concept of is analogous to classified ads in local newspapers....
every weekday morning, a weekday interview show called Your Voice, plus a weekend cooking show called Cooking Outdoors With Mr. BBQ.
Syndicated programs
Syndicated weekday programs include Daybreak USA hosted by Scott West, talk shows hosted by Rush LimbaughRush Limbaugh
Rush Hudson Limbaugh III is an American radio talk show host, conservative political commentator, and an opinion leader in American conservatism. He hosts The Rush Limbaugh Show which is aired throughout the U.S. on Premiere Radio Networks and is the highest-rated talk-radio program in the United...
, Lars Larson
Lars Larson
Lars Larson is a conservative U.S. talk radio show host based in Oregon. Larson hosts a national talk radio show, which as of 2009 is syndicated by Compass Media Networks...
, Laura Schlessinger
Laura Schlessinger
Laura Catherine Schlessinger is an American talk radio host, socially conservative commentator and author. Her radio program consists mainly of her responses to callers' requests for personal advice and has occasionally featured her short monologues on social and political topics...
, Dave Ramsey
Dave Ramsey
David L. Ramsey III is an American financial author, radio host, television personality, and motivational speaker.Ramsey's syndicated radio program The Dave Ramsey Show is promoted with a tagline that "It's about your life and your money," and it is heard on over 450 radio stations throughout the...
, and Jerry Doyle, plus Coast To Coast AM
Coast to Coast AM
Coast to Coast AM is a North American late-night syndicated radio talk show that deals with a variety of topics, but most frequently ones that relate to either the paranormal or conspiracy theories. It was created by Art Bell and is distributed by Premiere Radio Networks. The program currently...
hosted by George Noory
George Noory
George Ralph Noory is a Lebanese-American radio talk show host.As of 2010, he is the weekday host of the late-night radio talk show Coast to Coast AM. He is heard across the United States and Canada on many AM and FM stations as well as on XM Satellite Radio. His show is one of the most listened...
. Notable weekend syndicated programs include The Kim Komando Show
The Kim Komando Show
The Kim Komando Show is a commercial talk radio program focusing on personal computers, the use of the Internet, and the complexities of consumer electronics....
, The Financial Safari hosted by Peter D'Arruda, The Weekend hosted by Mike McConnell, Gun Talk with Tom Gresham, and blocks of sports talk from Fox Sports Radio
Fox Sports Radio
Fox Sports Radio, abbreviated FSR, is an international radio network consisting of sports talk programming. The network is a service of Premiere Networks...
.
Sports programs
KBKR and KLBM broadcast the men's basketball and women's basketballWomen's basketball
Women's basketball is one of the few women's sports that developed in tandem with its men's counterpart. It became popular, spreading from the east coast of the United States to the west coast , in large part via women's colleges...
games, home and away, of the Eastern Oregon University
Eastern Oregon University
Eastern Oregon University is one of seven state-funded, four-year universities of higher education in the State of Oregon and belongs to the Oregon University System...
Mountaineers. Beginning with the 2009 season, the stations will broadcast the school's college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
games as well.
The beginning
This station began broadcasting in 1939.The station was assigned the KBKR call sign
Call sign
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign is a unique designation for a transmitting station. In North America they are used as names for broadcasting stations...
by the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
. By the early 1943, KBKR was broadcasting with 250 watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s of power on a frequency of 1490 kHz under the ownership of the Baker Broadcasting Company which was in turn owned and operated by Glenn McCormick. McCormick also served as the station's general manager
General manager
General manager is a descriptive term for certain executives in a business operation. It is also a formal title held by some business executives, most commonly in the hospitality industry.-Generic usage:...
while Kenneth B. Lockwood was the commercial manager.
In 1949 KBKR was sold to Inland Radio, Inc., which was in turn owned by broadcasting pioneer Gordon Capps. Lee W. Jacobs was the company president while Kenneth B. Lockwood served as general manager
General manager
General manager is a descriptive term for certain executives in a business operation. It is also a formal title held by some business executives, most commonly in the hospitality industry.-Generic usage:...
.
On June 1, 1955, KBKR was acquired by Kenneth B. Lockwood and his wife Barbara L. Lockwood operating as the Oregon Trail Broadcasting Company. Kenneth Lockwood continued to serve as the station's general manager, a role he would hold until he sold the station in 1988.
The station received authorization from the FCC in 1962 to increase its daytime signal power from 250 watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s to 1,000 watts. The nighttime signal stayed at the previous 250 watt output. KBKR maintained its middle of the road music format through the 1970s.
Grande Radio
In March 1988, the Oregon Trail Broadcasting Company reached an agreement to sell this station to Grande Radio, Inc. The deal was approved by the FCC on April 26, 1988, and the transaction was consummated on May 16, 1988.A full decade later, in May 1998, Grande Radio, Inc., reached an agreement to sell this station to Vista Grande, LLC. The deal was approved by the FCC on July 6, 1998, but the transaction was not consummated and control of KBKR remained with Grande Radio. In March 2000, Grande Radio, Inc., reached a new agreement to sell KBKR, this time to Horizon Broadcasting Group, LLC (William Ackerley, CEO) as part of a four-station deal valued at $1.7 million. The deal was approved by the FCC on April 25, 2000, but once again the transaction was not consummated and Grande Radio retained the KBKR broadcast license. At the time of the aborted sale, KBKR aired a news/talk format.
KBKR today
In June 2004, Grande Radio, Inc., contracted to sell this station to the Pacific Empire Radio Corporation (Mark Bolland, president/CEO) as part of a four-station deal valued at $1.9 million. The deal was approved by the FCC on July 19, 2004, and the transaction was consummated on September 3, 2004. At the time of the sale, KBKR broadcast a talk radioTalk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
format.
Station alumni
Robert Lindahl, the recording engineer on The KingsmenThe Kingsmen
The Kingsmen is a 1960s garage rock band from Portland, Oregon, United States. They are best known for their 1963 recording of Richard Berry's "Louie Louie", which held the #2 spot on the Billboard charts for six weeks...
's famous version of "Louie Louie
Louie Louie
"Louie Louie" is an American rock 'n' roll song written by Richard Berry in 1955. It has become a standard in pop and rock, with hundreds of versions recorded by different artists...
", worked as a weekend disc jockey
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
for KBKR for a short time in 1941. Lindahl says he was let go, not for anything he did on the air, but because he refused to empty the tank on the station's chemical toilet
Chemical toilet
A chemical toilet is a toilet which uses chemicals to deodorize the waste instead of simply storing it in a hole, or piping it away to a sewage treatment plant. Common types include aircraft lavatory, some passenger train toilets and the portable toilets used on construction sites and at large...
.