KTIX
Encyclopedia
KTIX is a radio station
licensed
to serve Pendleton, Oregon
, USA. The station, which began broadcasting as KWRC in May 1941, is currently owned by Capps Broadcast Group and the broadcast license
is held by KSRV, Inc.
format as an affiliate of ESPN Radio
since October 2002. In addition to its usual sports talk programming, KTIX broadcasts Major League Baseball
games as an affiliate of the Seattle Mariners Radio Network, National Basketball Association
games as a member of the Portland Trail Blazers
radio network, National Football League
games as a member of the Seattle Seahawks
radio network, and Oregon Ducks football
as a member of the Oregon Sports Network
. KTIX also airs high school football
games and other select sporting events featuring the Pendleton High School Buckaroos.
(1290 AM), KUMA-FM
(107.7 FM), and KWHT
(103.5 FM). This multi-station facility, located at the west end of Eastern Oregon Regional Airport
, is also close to KTIX's new tower site. The original tower, located on South Hill, served KTIX from 1941 to 2002. That original tower was later re-erected east of Pendleton on Cabbage Hill for use by co-owned KUMA-FM.
s of power on 1240 kHz as KWRC under the ownership of the Western Radio Corporation. KWRC was run by general manager V.P. Kenworthy who owned the Western Radio Corporation as part of the Kenworthy Stations Group. V.P. Kenworthy would continue to own and operate KWRC until December 23, 1958, when the station was sold to WSC Broadcasting Company of Oregon, Inc.
(FCC) to increase its daytime signal strength to 1,000 watts while nighttime power remained at 250 watts. On July 15, 1961, ownership of KKID passed from WSC Broadcasting Company of Oregon, Inc., to Roderick Sound, Inc.
Just after switching back to a country music
format in January 1980, Capps Broadcasting Group, Inc., reached an agreement to sell this station to AgPal Broadcasting, Inc. AgPal Broadcasting was owned by Pendleton residents Cheryl and Jim McAnally plus Andy and JoAnn Harle. The deal was approved by the FCC on May 15, 1981.
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 Pendleton, Oregon
Pendleton, Oregon
Pendleton is a city in Umatilla County, Oregon, United States. Pendleton was named in 1868 by the county commissioners for George H. Pendleton, Democratic candidate for Vice-President in the 1864 presidential campaign. The population was 16,612 at the 2010 census...
, USA. The station, which began broadcasting as KWRC in May 1941, is currently owned by Capps Broadcast Group and the broadcast license
Broadcast license
A broadcast license or broadcast license is a specific type of spectrum license that grants the licensee the privilege to use a portion of the radio frequency spectrum in a given geographical area for broadcasting purposes. The licenses are generally straddled with additional restrictions that...
is held by KSRV, Inc.
Programming
KTIX has broadcast a 24-hour sports radioSports radio
Sports radio is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A popular format with an almost exclusively male demographic in most areas, sports radio is characterized by an often-boisterous on-air style and extensive debate and analysis by both hosts and...
format as an affiliate of ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio is an American sports radio network. It was launched on January 1, 1992 under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN." ESPN Radio is located at ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut...
since October 2002. In addition to its usual sports talk programming, KTIX broadcasts Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
games as an affiliate of the Seattle Mariners Radio Network, National Basketball Association
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
games as a member of the Portland Trail Blazers
Portland Trail Blazers
The Portland Trail Blazers, commonly known as the Blazers, are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The Trail Blazers originally played their home games in the...
radio network, National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
games as a member of the Seattle Seahawks
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...
radio network, and Oregon Ducks football
Oregon Ducks football
The Oregon Ducks football program is the intercollegiate American football team for the University of Oregon located in the U.S. state of Oregon. The team competes at the NCAA Division I level in the Football Bowl Subdivision and is a member of the Pacific-12 Conference. Known as the Ducks, the...
as a member of the Oregon Sports Network
Oregon Sports Network
The Oregon Sports Network is a local sports network made up of radio stations and TV network CSN Northwest. The channel is the official flagship for the University of Oregon's athletic program. The network began in 1987 including radio...
. KTIX also airs high school football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
games and other select sporting events featuring the Pendleton High School Buckaroos.
Facilities
KTIX shares a studio building with sister stations KUMAKUMA (AM)
KUMA is a radio station licensed to serve Pendleton, Oregon, USA. The station is owned by Capps Broadcast Group and the broadcast license is held by Round-Up Radio, Inc. David N. Capps and Clare M...
(1290 AM), KUMA-FM
KUMA-FM
The KUMA-FM translators made headlines in March 1994 when the FCC shut down a quarter-watt pirate radio station in Condon, Oregon, operated by Bill Roberts on the same frequency as one of the translator stations, causing interference...
(107.7 FM), and KWHT
KWHT
KWHT is a radio station licensed to serve Pendleton, Oregon, USA. The station, which began broadcasting in 1984, is currently owned by Capps Broadcast Group and the broadcast license is held by KSRV, Inc.-Programming:...
(103.5 FM). This multi-station facility, located at the west end of Eastern Oregon Regional Airport
Eastern Oregon Regional Airport
Eastern Oregon Regional Airport , also known as Eastern Oregon Regional Airport at Pendleton, is a public airport located three miles northwest of the central business district of Pendleton, a city in Umatilla County, Oregon, USA. The airport covers and has three runways. It is used primarily...
, is also close to KTIX's new tower site. The original tower, located on South Hill, served KTIX from 1941 to 2002. That original tower was later re-erected east of Pendleton on Cabbage Hill for use by co-owned KUMA-FM.
The beginning
This station began regular broadcast operations in May 1941 with 250 wattWatt
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 1240 kHz as KWRC under the ownership of the Western Radio Corporation. KWRC was run by general manager V.P. Kenworthy who owned the Western Radio Corporation as part of the Kenworthy Stations Group. V.P. Kenworthy would continue to own and operate KWRC until December 23, 1958, when the station was sold to WSC Broadcasting Company of Oregon, Inc.
The KKID years
The new owners had the station's call letters changed to KKID in 1959 and by early 1961 had been authorized by the Federal Communications CommissionFederal 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...
(FCC) to increase its daytime signal strength to 1,000 watts while nighttime power remained at 250 watts. On July 15, 1961, ownership of KKID passed from WSC Broadcasting Company of Oregon, Inc., to Roderick Sound, Inc.
The KTIX era
The callsign was changed again in 1964, this time to the current KTIX. Eastern Oregon Broadcasters, Inc., acquired KTIX on August 1, 1967, and flipped the station to a contemporary music format. As a part of the Capps Broadcasting Group, this music format would endure on KTIX through the entire 1970s. The station applied to the FCC to change the name of its licensee to Capps Broadcasting Group, Inc., to reflect the station's true ownership and this change was approved by the FCC on March 28, 1979.Just after switching back to a country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
format in January 1980, Capps Broadcasting Group, Inc., reached an agreement to sell this station to AgPal Broadcasting, Inc. AgPal Broadcasting was owned by Pendleton residents Cheryl and Jim McAnally plus Andy and JoAnn Harle. The deal was approved by the FCC on May 15, 1981.
The present
In September 1997, AgPal Broadcasting, Inc., reached an agreement to sell this station back to Capps Broadcast Group through its KSRV, Inc., subsidiary. The deal was approved by the FCC on May 14, 1998, and the transaction was consummated on August 27, 1998.Former on-air staff
- Dave Donahue, a 2000 inductee into the Country Music DJ and Radio Hall of Fame, got his first experience as a disc jockeyDisc jockeyA 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...
in a country musicCountry musicCountry music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
format when he joined the KTIX airstaff in 1960.
- Terry Herd, host of the nationally-syndicated Into the Blue and a four-time (1998, 2002, 2003, & 2004) winner of Broadcaster of the Year Award from the International Bluegrass Music AssociationInternational Bluegrass Music AssociationThe International Bluegrass Music Association, or IBMA, is a trade association to promote bluegrass music.Formed in 1985, IBMA established its first headquarters in Owensboro, Kentucky. In 1988 they announced plans to create the International Bluegrass Music Museum as a joint venture with...
, started his bluegrassBluegrass musicBluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
radio program in May 1992 on KUMAKUMA (AM)KUMA is a radio station licensed to serve Pendleton, Oregon, USA. The station is owned by Capps Broadcast Group and the broadcast license is held by Round-Up Radio, Inc. David N. Capps and Clare M...
then KTIX before going national.