KQCH (94.1
FM) is a
Top 40 (CHR) 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 ...
serving the
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...
metropolitan area. It is owned by
SummitMedia. KQCH's studios are located on Mercy Road in Omaha's
Aksarben Village, while its transmitter is located off North 72nd Avenue and Crown Point at the Omaha master antenna farm.
History
Early years (1941-1959)
The 94.1 frequency was originally KOAD, owned by the
Omaha World-Herald
The ''Omaha World-Herald'' is a daily newspaper in the midwestern United States, the primary newspaper of the Omaha-Council Bluffs metropolitan area. It was locally owned from its founding in 1885 until 2020, when it was sold to the newspaper ch ...
, and launched on 94.3 FM in 1941. This lasted until 1949, when it moved to 94.1 and went silent.
MOR (1959-1968)
In 1959, it returned to the air as KMEO, where it had an MOR format.
Rock (1968-1979)
In 1968, it changed to an album rock format under the call letters KOWH-FM.
R&B (1979-1982)
By 1979, KOWH-FM switched formats to R&B as KYNN-FM under then-new owner Great Empire Broadcasting.
Country (1982-2002)
In 1982, it flipped to
country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while ...
. In September 1983, it became WOW-FM and retained the country format, where it enjoyed a successful 17-year run.
Journal Broadcasting would buy out Great Empire in 1999. On October 10, 2000, WOW-FM changed its call letters and re-branded to KSSO, "Kiss Country", which prompted a cease and desist letter from
Clear Channel Communications – who had previously trademarked and service-marked the "Kiss" name and had recently launched a "Kiss" station in nearby
Lincoln, Nebraska
Lincoln is the capital city of the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Lancaster County. The city covers with a population of 292,657 in 2021. It is the second-most populous city in Nebraska and the 73rd-largest in the United Sta ...
. A couple of months later, they modified the call letters and became KMXM "Max Country" on January 2, 2001.
Rhythmic hits (2002-2004)
KQCH's origins began on May 21, 1999 at 97.7 FM, when it flipped from
Adult Contemporary
Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...
to
Rhythmic Contemporary as "Channel 9-7-7". The station became a serious challenger to
Top 40 Mainstream
Pop Airplay (also called Mainstream Top 40, Pop Songs, and Top 40/ CHR) is a 40-song music chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' Magazine that ranks the most popular songs of pop music being played on a panel of Top 40 radio stations in the Un ...
KQKQ-FM
KQKQ-FM (98.5 FM, ''Sweet 98-5'') is a radio station broadcasting a hot adult contemporary format. Licensed to Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States, the station serves the Omaha metropolitan area. The station is currently owned by NRG Media. ...
during its three years on the weak 97.7 frequency.
On May 3, 2002, at Noon, Journal Broadcasting moved KQCH and its rhythmic-leaning
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 ...
format from 97.7 to 94.1 and was relaunched as "Channel 94-1".
KQCH Moves From 97.7 to 94.1
/ref>
Top 40 (2004-present)
The station continued in a Rhythmic direction until 2004, when it shifted to a more mainstream (and slightly adult-leaning) direction after KQKQ flipped to Adult Top 40
The Adult Pop Airplay (formerly known as Adult Pop Songs and Adult Top 40) chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and ranks "the most popular adult top 40 as based on radio airplay detections measured by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems ...
. In early September 2012, KQCH received direct competition when iHeartMedia (then Clear Channel)'s KQBW flipped to Top 40.
Journal Communications 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 owned the two companies' broadcast properties, including KQCH. The transaction was completed in 2015.
References
External links
Channel 94.1's website
{{Contemporary Hit Radio Stations in Nebraska
QCH
Contemporary hit radio stations in the United States
Radio stations established in 1960
1960 establishments in the United States