KGBN (1190
kHz
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 on ...
) is a
Korean
Korean may refer to:
People and culture
* Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula
* Korean cuisine
* Korean culture
* Korean language
**Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl
**Korean dialects and the Jeju language
** ...
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
brokered time
Brokered programming (also known as time-buy and blocktime) is a form of broadcast content in which the show's producer pays a radio or television station for air time, rather than exchanging programming for pay or the opportunity to play spot comm ...
AM 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 radio ...
licensed
A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit).
A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...
to
Anaheim, California
Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the 10th-most p ...
. It serves
Orange County
Orange County most commonly refers to:
*Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Orange County may also refer to:
U.S. counties
*Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando
*Orange County, Indiana
*Orange County, New ...
and
Greater Los Angeles
Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million in 2021, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino Coun ...
. Rev. Young Sun Lee serves as the president of the Korean Gospel Broadcasting Network, which owns the station. KGBN is one of four radio stations in the Los Angeles area that broadcast entirely in Korean. The others are 1230
KYPA
KYPA (1230 AM ''AM 1230 JBC'') is a Korean-language radio station in Los Angeles, California. It is owned by Woori Media Group, LLC.
KYPA is one of four radio stations in the greater Los Angeles area that broadcast entirely in Korean; the other ...
, 1540
KMPC
KMPC (1540 AM, "Radio Korea", 라디오코리아) is a commercial radio station in Los Angeles, California. It is owned by P&Y Broadcasting Corporation. Radio Korea is a division of the Radio Korea Media Group. The station airs Korean– ...
and 1650
KFOX in
Torrance, although they have mostly secular formats.
KGBN broadcasts with 20,000
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 Wa ...
s by day. But to protect other stations from interference on
AM 1190
The following radio stations broadcast on AM frequency 1190 kHz: 1190 AM is a United States and Mexican clear-channel frequency. KEX in Portland, Oregon, and XEWK in Guadalajara, Mexico, share Class A status of 1190 kHz. WOWO, in ...
, power is reduced at night to 1,300 watts. It uses a
directional antenna
A directional antenna or beam antenna is an antenna which radiates or receives greater power in specific directions allowing increased performance and reduced interference from unwanted sources. Directional antennas provide increased performance ...
at all times. The
transmitter
In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna (radio), antenna. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which i ...
is near the Orange Freeway (
California State Route 57
State Route 57 (SR 57), also known as the Orange Freeway for most of its length, is a north–south state highway in the Greater Los Angeles Area of the U.S. state of California. It connects the interchange of Interstate 5 (I-5) and SR 22 ...
) in
Brea, California
Brea (; Spanish for "tar") is a city in northern Orange County, California. The population as of the 2010 census was 39,282. It is southeast of Los Angeles. Brea is part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area.
The city began as a center of cru ...
.
Radio-Locator.com/KGBN
/ref>
History
KEZY
The station signed on May 18, 1959 as KEZY, an easy listening
Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to 1970s. It is related to middle-of-the-road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit songs, n ...
station known as "K-Easy". However, during construction and prior to its on-air debut, it was legally known by the call letters KDOG. The first voice heard over the 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 Wa ...
signal was that of K-9 TV star Lassie
Lassie is a fictional female Rough Collie dog and is featured in a short story by Eric Knight that was later expanded to a full-length novel called ''Lassie Come-Home''. Knight's portrayal of Lassie bears some features in common with another fic ...
. Lassie's owner, Rudd Weatherwax, was an investor in both the station and the Disneyland Hotel where its studios were located. In the late 1960s, KEZY became an Orange County Top 40 powerhouse featuring such disc jockeys as Mark Denis and Mike Wagner. Accompanying the format flip was a move off the Disneyland campus to a larger facility at 1190 East Ball Road in Anaheim, an address corresponding to the station's frequency.
In the late 1970s, programmer Dave Foreman dropped top-40 in favor of an album-oriented rock
Album-oriented rock (AOR, originally called album-oriented radio) is an FM radio format created in the United States in the 1970s that focuses on the full repertoire of rock albums and is currently associated with classic rock.
Album-oriente ...
format. The slogan was ''"The New 1190 KEZY, Anaheim's Kickass Rock 'N' Roll!"'', which contrasted with KEZY 96 FM's AC format and a then now legendary and infamous slogan, ''"While 96 KEZY-FM kicks back, 1190 KEZY-AM KICKS ASS!"'' The oft repeated bumper played during the non top of the hour breaks was a group of KEZY-AM's listeners shouting out the mighty battlecry that is, ''"K-E-Z-Y-AM 1190 ROCK! WHERE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA KICKS ASS!!!"'' After a few years the station once again changed formats, first to news (as KNWZ), then to an adult rock format known simply as "12" ("KEZY Anaheim is 12.") This format was abandoned in the early 1980s and it become a highly successful 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 " con ...
/ CHR format from 1980 to 1988.
1980s
Around 1984, KEZY changed its call sign to KPZE (K-Praise). It featured a blend of Christian teaching–preaching programs, contemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music, also known as CCM, Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect of Christian media, which is lyrically focused on matters related to the Christian faith and s ...
, and live broadcasts of the games of the Long Beach State
California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) is a public research university in Long Beach, California. The 322-acre campus is the second largest of the 23-school California State University system (CSU) and one of the largest universities i ...
and Notre Dame football
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team is the intercollegiate football team representing the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana, north of the city of South Bend, Indiana. The team plays its home games at the campus' Notre Dame S ...
programs. The Program Director was Bill Gutelman, and the Operations Director was Gil Perez. Other staff–air personality included Pam Sanchez (mornings-air name Stephanie Rose), Paul Walkewicz (weekends), Bill Smith (weekends), Liz Altamirano, and former KYMS
KYMS (89.9 FM) is a non-commercial educational radio station licensed to Rathdrum, Idaho, United States. The station is currently owned by Legacy Broadcasting. KYMS broadcasts Christian country music and Christian talk and teaching programming ...
personality Bob Turnbull. Turnbull hosted an evening program called "Ministry And More," similar to his "Music and More" program on KYMS. In addition to playing music, he would have "Thoughts To End A Busy Day," and book reviews.
From 1986 to late 1988 Operations Manager and air personality Robin Keith hosted an afternoon drive talk show called "Drivetime 1190" along with co-host Steve DeSaeger. The show featured talk and call-ins, comedy, frequent traffic, news and weather reports as well as interviews with celebrities and experts. Ollie Collins, Jr., of KTYM
KTYM (1460 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a Spanish language Catholic radio format from ESNE Radio. Licensed to Inglewood, California, United States, the station serves the Los Angeles area. KTYM is owned by El Sembrador Ministries of Chats ...
Inglewood, brokered most of the Sunday hours on KPZE. The morning consisted of a Gospel music show hosted by Collins. Most of the afternoon programs were recorded church services. A good majority of the commercials used his voice. Al Gross (formerly of KBRT
KBRT (740 AM, known on-air as KBRITE) is a Southern Californian Christian radio station. It airs Christian talk radio programming from Costa Mesa, California to Los Angeles, Orange County, the Inland Empire, San Diego, and Santa Barbara. The ...
AM 740), eventually hosted the morning show. His was mostly talk. He even joked one morning at 6:00 AM sign-on, as the previous program was ending with its closing theme, "The Air That I Breathe" by The Hollies, "KPZE, Anaheim, playing more music than any other talk station."
Around 1988, the call letters were changed to KORG (K-Orange). It broadcast a few games of the Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...
hockey team during conflicts with KLAC
KLAC (570 AM) is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, serving Greater Los Angeles and much of surrounding Southern California. Owned by a joint venture between iHeartMedia, Inc. and the Los Angeles Dodgers bas ...
, the Kings' flagship station at the time. In fact, in one of those games (October 15, 1989), Wayne Gretzky
Wayne Douglas Gretzky ( ; born January 26, 1961) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and former head coach. He played 20 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for four teams from 1979 to 1999. Nicknamed "the Great One ...
established the National Hockey League
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
's all-time point-scoring record. In 1987 and '88, KORG was an affiliate of RTV Sports, one of the first all-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-ai ...
networks in America. Steve DeSaeger provided local sports updates during RTV programs, which aired seven nights a week.
1990s
In the mid-1990s, Anaheim Broadcasting, a local company that had been the owner, sold the station to Jacor
Jacor Communications was a media corporation, existing between 1987 and 1999, which owned many radio stations in the United States. In 1998, Jacor was purchased by Clear Channel Communications, now iHeartMedia, for $2.8 billion.
Jacor Communicat ...
, which later merged with Clear Channel Communications
iHeartMedia, Inc., formerly CC Media Holdings, Inc., is an American mass media corporation headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It is the holding company of iHeartCommunications, Inc. (formerly Clear Channel Communications, Inc.), a company fou ...
. In 1997, Clear Channel sold KXMX to the Salem Media Group
Salem Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: SALM; formerly Salem Communications Corporation) is an American radio broadcaster, Internet content provider, and magazine and book publisher formerly based in Camarillo, California (moved most operations to Ir ...
because it had exceeded 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 jurisdiction ...
limit as to how many stations it could own in the greater Los Angeles market. (Anaheim is still in business as the owners of FM stations KOLA
KOLA (99.9 FM) is a commercial radio station licensed to Redlands, California, and broadcasting to the Riverside-San Bernardino-Inland Empire radio market. It is owned by the Anaheim Broadcasting Corporation and it airs a classic hits radio form ...
and KCAL
The calorie is a unit of energy. For historical reasons, two main definitions of "calorie" are in wide use. The large calorie, food calorie, or kilogram calorie was originally defined as the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of on ...
in the Inland Empire
The Inland Empire (IE) is a metropolitan area and region inland of and adjacent to coastal Southern California, centering around the cities of San Bernardino and Riverside, and bordering Los Angeles County to the west. It includes the cities o ...
.)
Salem is the nation's largest owner of commercial religious stations. It owned 1190 AM until 2010, as a sister station
In broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio or television stations operated by the same company, either by direct ownership or through a management agreement.
Radio sister stations will often have different formats, and somet ...
to 870 KRLA
KRLA (870 kHz) "AM 870 The Answer" is a commercial AM radio station broadcasting a talk radio format. Licensed to Glendale, California, it serves Greater Los Angeles and Southern California. The station is owned by Salem Media Group, which also ...
, 99.5 KKLA-FM
KKLA-FM (99.5 Hertz, MHz, "99.5 KKLA") is a Commercial radio, commercial radio station City of license, licensed to Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California and serving the Greater Los Angeles area. The station is owned by the Salem Media Group and b ...
and 95.9 KFSH-FM
KFSH-FM (95.9 Hertz, MHz, "95.9 The Fish") is a commercial radio, commercial radio station that is City of license, licensed to La Mirada, California and serves Orange County, California, Orange County and southern Los Angeles County, California, ...
.
2000s
The KXMX call sign
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assigne ...
was derived from KXMX-FM, originally 95.9 KEZY-FM. When that outlet became Contemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music, also known as CCM, Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect of Christian media, which is lyrically focused on matters related to the Christian faith and s ...
station KFSH The Fish in 2001, the call letters were reassigned to 1190 AM. Today, the KEZY call sign can be found on 1240 AM in San Bernardino, California
San Bernardino (; Spanish for "Saint Bernardino") is a city and county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a population of 222,101 in the 2020 cen ...
under separate ownership. As KXMX, it aired shows in a variety of languages, including Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
, Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
, Korean
Korean may refer to:
People and culture
* Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula
* Korean cuisine
* Korean culture
* Korean language
**Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl
**Korean dialects and the Jeju language
** ...
, Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
, Thai
Thai or THAI may refer to:
* Of or from Thailand, a country in Southeast Asia
** Thai people, the dominant ethnic group of Thailand
** Thai language, a Tai-Kadai language spoken mainly in and around Thailand
*** Thai script
*** Thai (Unicode block ...
, Vietnamese
Vietnamese may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia
** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam.
* Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam
** Overse ...
, and Tagalog.
2010s
In August 2010 the station was sold to the Korean Gospel Broadcasting Network, which switched the format to Korean-language Christian radio
Christian radio is a Christian media radio format that focus on programming with a Christian message. Many such broadcasters play contemporary Christian music, though many programs include sermons, radio dramas, as well as news and talk progra ...
programming. On March 29, 2011, KXMX changed its call letters to KGBN.
On April 16, 2017, Rev. Young Sun Lee became president of KGBN AM 1190.
Previous logo
References
External links
FCC History Cards for KGBN
*
{{Los Angeles Radio
GBN
Korean-American culture in California
Radio stations established in 1959
1959 establishments in California