KSEZ (97.9 FM, "Z98") is a

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 an

active rock Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock stations play a balance of new hard rock songs with valued classic rock favorites, normally with an emphasis on the harder edge o ...

format. The station serves

Sioux City, Iowa Sioux City () is a city in Woodbury and Plymouth counties in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 85,797 in the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest city in Iowa. The bulk of the city is in Woodbury County, ...

and is owned by

iHeartMedia 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 ...

. KSEZ primarily competes with Powell Broadcasting's

KKMA KKMA 99.5 FM, "Classic Rock 99.5") is a radio station broadcasting a classic rock format. The station is licensed to Le Mars, Iowa, and serves Sioux City, Iowa. KKMA is owned by Powell Broadcasting. History KKMA signed on in 1989 with an oldies ...

"Classic Rock 99.5".

History

Edwin C. Wolff of Sioux City filed on August 13, 1960, for a construction permit to build a new FM radio station in Sioux City. Wolff announced that his sons, John and Daniel, would be heavily involved in the new station's operation; John ran a hi-fi radio store and was a symphony

concertmaster The concertmaster (from the German ''Konzertmeister''), first chair (U.S.) or leader (U.K.) is the principal first violin player in an orchestra (or clarinet in a concert band). After the conductor, the concertmaster is the second-most signifi ...

in town. 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 ...

(FCC) granted the application on October 5, less than two months later, and KDVR began broadcasting on February 6, 1961. Originally operating with 3,000 watts, the station upgraded to 38,000 watts in 1964. In 1973, Stuart Enterprises, owner of

KMNS KMNS (620 AM) is a radio station in Sioux City, Iowa, United States, broadcasting a sports format. The station is owned by iHeartMedia and affiliated with its Fox Sports Radio network. iHeart's studios in Sioux City are located on Nebraska Ave ...

(620 AM), purchased KDVR from Wolff. KDVR relaunched as

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 KSEZ "Stereo 98" that July. An increase in effective radiated power from 38,000 to 62,000 watts went into effect in November 1975, increasing KSEZ's coverage area. However, the easy listening format turned out to be unable to attract significant advertiser support in the market; as a result, on February 23, 1976, the station flipped to rock. Stuart sold its two Sioux City stations to Sentry Broadcasting, a division of Wisconsin-based

Sentry Insurance Sentry Insurance is a mutual insurance company specializing in business insurance. The company’s home office is in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, where about half the company’s approximately 4,500 employees are located. Sentry offers property and ...

, for $1.8 million in 1979. In 1986, a carousel of changing ownership began for KMNS and KSEZ as Sentry sold the pair to Sage Broadcasting of

Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut, outside of Manhattan. It is Connecticut's second-most populous city, behind Bridgeport. With a population of 135,470, Stamford passed Hartford and New Haven in population as of the 2020 ...

; at the same time, it sold off three of its six other broadcasting operations. Sage retained the pair for three years, selling to Legend Communications in 1989; the stations were then sold to Chesterman Communications in 1992 after a previous attempt by the same buyer to purchase them the year before fell through. After the enactment of the

Telecommunications Act of 1996 The Telecommunications Act of 1996 is a United States federal law enacted by the 104th United States Congress on January 3, 1996, and signed into law on February 8, 1996, by President Bill Clinton. It primarily amended Chapter 5 of Title 47 of t ...

, which relaxed limits on radio station ownership, Chesterman and the Cardinal Communications cluster of

KGLI KGLI (95.5 FM; "KG95") is a radio station broadcasting an adult contemporary format. The station serves Sioux City, Iowa, United States, and is owned by iHeartMedia (formerly Clear Channel Communications). History The station signed on the air ...

and

KWSL KWSL (1470 AM) is an American radio station licensed to serve the community of Sioux City, Iowa. The station is owned by iHeartMedia and the broadcast license is held by iHM Licenses, LLC. It formerly aired the 24/7 syndicated Comedy format. Pre ...

combined operations. Chesterman later purchased the other stations and changed its name to Radioworks. Clear Channel, predecessor to iHeartMedia, acquired the Sioux City cluster from Radioworks for $12 million in 2000.

References

External links

Z98 Website
* {{coord, 42.482, N, 96.259, W, type:landmark_region:US_source:FCC, display=title

SEZ A special economic zone (SEZ) is an area in which the business and trade laws are different from the rest of the country. SEZs are located within a country's national borders, and their aims include increasing trade balance, employment, increas ...

Active rock radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1961 IHeartMedia radio stations 1961 establishments in Iowa