KFFN (1490
AM) is a
commercial
Commercial may refer to:
* a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television)
** Radio advertisement
** Television advertisement
* (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...
radio station
Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radi ...
in
Tucson, Arizona
, "(at the) base of the black ill
, nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town"
, image_map =
, mapsize = 260px
, map_caption = Interactive map ...
. It is owned by
Lotus Communications
Lotus Communications Corporation is a media company that owns numerous radio stations and a few TV stations, and is one of the largest privately owned radio station groups in the United States. Headquarters are located in Los Angeles, and the com ...
and it broadcasts a
sports radio
Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A widespread programming genre that has a narrow audience appeal, sports radio is characterized by an often- boisterous on ...
format. KFFN airs
syndicated programming from
ESPN Radio.
KFFN is powered at 1,000
watt
The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James ...
s
non-directional. Its
transmitter
In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which is applied to the ...
is on East Bray Road in Tucson. Programming is also heard on 250-watt
FM translator
A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater (two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or tra ...
K284DL at 104.9
MHz
The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one he ...
.
History
Starting in 1949, the 1490 frequency in Tucson was the home of
KTKT
KTKT (990 AM) – branded ''La Buena 94.3'' – is a commercial Spanish language adult hits radio station licensed to serve Tucson, Arizona. Owned by Lotus Communications, the covers the Tucson metropolitan area and Southern Arizona. The ...
. To increase its listening area, KTKT received permission in 1956 from the
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdicti ...
(FCC) to move to 990 kHz. When that was granted, it left 1490 open for a new station. .
In March 1956, under the ownership of William John Hyland III and Dawkins Espy, doing business as the Pima Broadcasting Company, KAIR received its
construction permit but could not begin testing until KTKT moved to 990. The station signed on within minutes of KTKT's move to 990 and continued playing the music/news programming which the audience was used to hearing.
The station was characterized by a revolving door of owners at the start. James H. Duncan joined the Pima Broadcasting Co. in November 1956. Josh Higgins Radio Enterprises, soon renamed to Joe DuMond Radio Enterprises, bought the station a year later, and in the spring of 1959, the station was sold yet again, to Andrew J. Griffith, Jr., and Jerome K. McCauley, who formed KAIR Broadcasting; the station was operated by Freddie and Josephine Mays and struggled with a contemporary format and many business issues.
With the air time sales staff spending the majority of their time in a local bar, it was difficult at best to pay the bills and keep the station on the air. Midway through 1961, the crew and management walked out in what they perceived as a labor dispute. Thomas J. Wallace Jr., whose father Tom Sr. had helped start KTKT, returned to Tucson to manage KAIR, serving as a station manager, salesman, engineer and on-air talent. Wallace's management saved the station, which implemented a Christian format and used the slogan "I pledge prayer for KAIR, daily"; it broadcast from studios located on the second floor above the business offices at the Ramada Inn.
By the end of 1965, with no lasting appreciable growth in listenership or programming development over the four years the new format had been in effect, the station began to struggle. The owners, Freddie and Josephine Mays, were forced to cut their losses and sell the station.
By August 1966, KAIR was sold to Frankie Kalil at Kalil & Co., doing business as Number One Radio. Kalil, who had turned KTKT around and made it Tucson's ratings leader, worked his radio magic again and rolled out an easy listening winner, with a new slogan, "Drive with KAIR, Everywhere". The station remained competitive in the Tucson market until FM listening became more common. It raised its power from 250 to 1,000 watts in 1975.
In early 1978, the Surrey Broadcasting Company acquired KAIR, which also owned
KJYK at 94.9 FM. In 1985, KAIR also adopted the KJYK calls and flipped to a
Top 40
In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "cont ...
/
CHR format under the name ''Joy 1490''.
In 1991, KJYK flipped to a
Rhythmic contemporary format—a first for the Tucson market—under the name ''Power 1490''. Despite being on AM, the station was highly ranked amongst both kids and teens; despite this, the station had poor advertising revenue.
On June 12, 1995, at 5 p.m., after playing "
It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday
"It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday" is an R&B song written by Motown husband-and-wife songwriting team Freddie Perren and Christine Yarian for the 1975 film '' Cooley High''. In the film, the song is performed by Motown artist G.C. Camer ...
" by
Boyz II Men, the station began
stunting with a loop of "
Push th' Little Daisies" by
Ween
Ween is an American rock band from New Hope, Pennsylvania, formed in 1984 by Aaron Freeman and Mickey Melchiondo, better known by their respective stage names, Gene and Dean Ween. Generally categorized as an alternative rock band, the band a ...
. 24 hours later, the station flipped to an
alternative rock
Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commerci ...
format using the calls KNND and the new name ''1490 The End''. One year later, the station flipped to the current format, adopted the KFFN call letters, the "Fan" moniker, and became an
ESPN Radio affiliate.
On March 17, 2011, KFFN began simulcasting on FM translator K285DL (104.9 FM).
KFFN is also an affiliate of the
Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The ...
.
Journal Communications
Journal Media Group (formerly Journal Communications) was a Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based newspaper publishing company. The company's roots were first established in 1882 as the owner of its namesake, the ''Milwaukee Journal'', and expanded into br ...
and the
E. W. Scripps Company
The E. W. Scripps Company is an American broadcasting company founded in 1878 as a chain of daily newspapers by Edward Willis "E. W." Scripps and his sister, Ellen Browning Scripps. It was also formerly a media conglomerate. The company is he ...
announced on July 30, 2014 that the two companies would merge to create a new broadcast company under the E.W. Scripps Company name that will own the two companies' broadcast properties, including KFFN. The transaction was completed in 2015.
In January 2018, Scripps announced that it would sell all of its radio stations. In August 2018,
Lotus Communications
Lotus Communications Corporation is a media company that owns numerous radio stations and a few TV stations, and is one of the largest privately owned radio station groups in the United States. Headquarters are located in Los Angeles, and the com ...
announced that it would acquire Scripps' Tucson and Boise clusters for $8 million. The deal closed on December 12 of that year.
Translators
References
External links
FCC History Cards for KFFNStation website''A.M. Mayhem'' - Website for a documentary about the years when the station operated as "Power 1490"
*
*
{{coord, 32, 14, 56, N, 110, 55, 29, W, type:landmark_region:US, display=title
FFN
ESPN Radio stations
Radio stations established in 1957
Sports radio stations in the United States
Lotus Communications stations