KGFW (1340 AM) is an American

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 ...

broadcasting a

News Talk Information Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featur ...

format. Licensed to

Kearney, Nebraska Kearney is the county seat of Buffalo County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 30,787 in the 2010 census. It is home to the University of Nebraska at Kearney. The westward push of the railroad as the Civil War ended gave new birt ...

, United States, the station serves the Grand Island-Kearney area. The station is owned by

NRG Media NRG Media is a media company headquartered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and was founded in 2005. History NRG Media was founded on March 1, 2005, as a result of a merger of NewRadio Group and the radio assets of Waitt Media. At its inception it was th ...

and features programming from

Fox News Radio Fox News Radio is an American radio network owned by Fox News. It is syndicated to over 500 AM and FM radio stations across the United States. It also supplies programming for three channels on Sirius XM Satellite Radio. History In 2003, ...

Compass Media Networks Compass Media Networks is an American radio network. The company launched in January 2009. It is owned by former Westwood One CEO and former COO of Connoisseur Media, Peter Kosann. The company focuses on radio and offers representation and ma ...

Premiere Networks Premiere Networks (formerly Premiere Radio Networks, shortened as PRN) is an American media company, a wholly owned subsidiary of iHeartMedia, for which it currently serves as its main original radio content distribution and production arm. It ...

and

Westwood One Westwood One is an American radio network There are two types of radio network currently in use around the world: the one-to-many (simplex communication) broadcast network commonly used for public information and mass-media entertainment, and ...

. KGFW is a sister station to

KQKY KQKY (105.9 FM broadcasting, FM) is a radio station broadcasting a Contemporary hit radio, Top 40 (CHR) format. Licensed to Kearney, Nebraska, United States, the station serves the Grand Island-Kearney area. The station is currently owned by NRG ...

and

KRNY KRNY (102.3 FM) is a country music station in Kearney, Nebraska. The NRG Media NRG Media is a media company headquartered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and was founded in 2005. History NRG Media was founded on March 1, 2005, as a result of a mer ...

History

The station was founded in

Ravenna, Nebraska Ravenna is a city in Buffalo County, Nebraska, United States. It is part of the Kearney, Nebraska Micropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,441 at the 2020 census. History Ravenna was founded in 1886 when the Burlington Railroad was ...

, in June 1927 by Roy McConnell, a former radio technician in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

. The station moved to Kearney in 1931. In 1939, the station was purchased by Lloyd "Skipper" Thomas, a Nebraska native who had managed major radio stations including Pittsburgh's KDKA and Boston's WBZ. After Thomas' death in 1952, the station was purchased by John Mitchell, a lawyer who had worked as a part-time announcer at the station. Mitchell's stations were purchased by Waitt Radio in 2000. Waitt Radio merged with NewRadio Group in 2005 to form NRG Media.

Notable alumni

Floyd Kalber Floyd Kalber (December 23, 1924 – May 13, 2004) was an American television journalist and anchorman, nicknamed "The Big Tuna." Life and career Born in Omaha, Nebraska, he spent two years in the army during World War II and began his television ...

, broadcaster for NBC *

Charlie Tuna Arthur W. Ferguson (April 18, 1944 – February 19, 2016), known professionally as Charlie Tuna, was a radio personality and television host based in Los Angeles, California. Career Radio At age 16, Tuna began working at his hometown's radio s ...

, prominent Los Angeles-based DJ

References

External links

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Early history of KGFW
GFW NRG Media radio stations {{Nebraska-radio-station-stub