KLAQ (95.5

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 ...

) 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 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 ...

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the county seat, seat of El Paso County, Texas, El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau w ...

and airing a

mainstream rock Mainstream rock (also known as heritage rock) is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada. Format background Mainstream rock stations represent the middle ground between classic rock and active rock ...

radio format A radio format or programming format (not to be confused with broadcast programming) describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. The radio format emerged mainly in the United States in the 1950s, at a time when Radio broadcasting, ...

. The station is owned by

Townsquare Media Townsquare Media, Inc. (formerly Regent Communications until 2010) is an American radio network and media company based in Purchase, New York. The company started in radio and expanded into digital media toward the end of the 2000s, starting wi ...

and has studios and offices on North Mesa Street (Texas Route 20) in northwest El Paso. KLAQ's

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 located in the Franklin Mountains, off Scenic Drive in El Paso. The station has an

effective radiated power Effective radiated power (ERP), synonymous with equivalent radiated power, is an IEEE standardized definition of directional radio frequency (RF) power, such as that emitted by a radio transmitter. It is the total power in watts that would hav ...

(ERP) of 88,000

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 (100,000 with

beam tilt Beam tilt is used in radio to aim the main lobe of the vertical plane radiation pattern of an antenna below (or above) the horizontal plane. The simplest way is mechanical beam tilt, where the antenna is physically mounted in such a manner a ...

). The signal extends north to

Las Cruces, New Mexico Las Cruces (; "the crosses") is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New Mexico and the seat of Doña Ana County. As of the 2020 census the population was 111,385. Las Cruces is the largest city in both Doña Ana County and southern New ...

and south through

Ciudad Juárez Ciudad Juárez ( ; ''Juarez City''. ) is the most populous city in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. It is commonly referred to as Juárez and was known as El Paso del Norte (''The Pass of the North'') until 1888. Juárez is the seat of the Ju� ...

and the Mexican state of Chihuahua.

Programming

KLAQ calls itself "El Paso's Best Rock," and frequently hosts largest events and concerts in El Paso. The station is home to the Buzz Adams Morning Show, which is syndicated to other Texas rock stations. The show is heard weekdays, with a "Best of" show on Saturday mornings. Sunday evenings feature "Q Connected - The New Music Show." KLAQ also carries

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

History

On September 15, 1978, the station first

signed on Signing may refer to: * Using sign language * Signature A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a handwritten (and often stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on do ...

. It was owned by Rex Broadcasting, along with

KROD KROD (600 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station in El Paso, Texas, United States. It airs a sports format and is owned and operated by Townsquare Media. The offices and studios are located on North Mesa Street (Texas State Highway 20) in N ...

(600 AM). When it was still a

construction permit Planning permission or developmental approval refers to the approval needed for construction or expansion (including significant renovation), and sometimes for demolition, in some jurisdictions. It is usually given in the form of a building perm ...

issued by 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 ...

, the unbuilt station used the

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 ...

KUOE. Throughout its on-air history, the station's call letters have always been KLAQ and it has always carried a rock format, originally

album 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-orient ...

. KPAS (93.9 FM, now KINT), owned by the El Paso Broadcasting Corporation, was El Paso's original FM rock station. KLAQ's sign-on put it in competition with KPAS. But with the shift in contemporary music listening from AM radio to the FM band, KPAS switched 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 " con ...

format in 1981, making KLAQ the sole rock outlet in El Paso. For a few years in the early 2000s, Mexican radio station

XHEPR-FM XHEPR-FM (99.1 Hertz, MHz) is a Mexican radio station in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua (state), Chihuahua, Mexico. It is owned by Grupo Radiorama. XHEPR-FM's transmitter is located south of Ciudad Juárez in the Sierra Presidio mountain range. Histo ...

(99.1 MHz), licensed to Ciudad Juárez, aired an English-language

classic rock Classic rock is a US radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the mid 1990s, primar ...

format that targeted the El Paso

radio market A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television station, television and radio broadcasting, ra ...

. In 1989, KLAQ and KROD were acquired by D & F Broadcasting. KLAQ joined the ABC Rock Radio Network. The stations changed hands again in 1997, going to New Wave Broadcasting L.P. In the 2010s, KLAQ was acquired by

, along with KROD."Chichuahuas and Townsquare Extend Partnership" El Paso Herald Post, Feb. 17, 2017
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References

External links

KLAQ official websiteKLAQ Social Networking Portal
{{DEFAULTSORT:Klaq LAQ Mainstream rock radio stations in the United States Townsquare Media radio stations Radio stations established in 1978 1978 establishments in Texas