KTNO (620

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

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 ...

Plano, Texas Plano ( ) is a city in Collin County, Texas, Collin County and Denton County, Texas, United States. It had a population of 285,494 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is a principal city of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Hist ...

, and serving the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex. The station airs a

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 ...

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 ...

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, ...

known as "Radio Luz" and is owned by 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 ...

Studios A studio is an artist or worker's workroom. This can be for the purpose of acting, architecture, painting, pottery (ceramics), sculpture, origami, woodworking, scrapbooking, photography, graphic design, filmmaking, animation, industrial d ...

and offices are on North Belt Line Road in Irving. 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 located on County Road 409 in

McKinney McKinney is a city in and the county seat of Collin County, Texas. It is Collin County's third-largest city, after Plano, Texas, Plano and Frisco, Texas, Frisco. A suburb of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, McKinney is about north of Dallas. ...

History

KWFT in Wichita Falls (1939-1994)

The station originally had its start in

Wichita Falls, Texas Wichita Falls ( ) is a city in and the seat of government of Wichita County, Texas, United States. It is the principal city of the Wichita Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Archer, Clay, and Wichita counties. Accordin ...

, as KWFT. It

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 ...

in 1939 on 620

kilocycle The cycle per second is a once-common English name for the unit of frequency now known as the hertz (Hz). The plural form was typically used, often written cycles per second, cycles/second, c.p.s., c/s, or, ambiguously, just cycles (Cy./Cyc.). The ...

s and broadcast in Wichita Falls until 1994. KWFT was the first radio station to continuously operate in the city and was a regional channel that could be heard across a large geographical area of

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

and

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

during the daytime. The station was a

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

Network affiliate In the broadcasting industry (particularly in North America, and even more in the United States), a network affiliate or affiliated station is a local broadcaster, owned by a company other than the owner of the network, which carries some or a ...

. On December 19, 1947, 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 ...

approved the sale of KWFT from Mr. and Mrs. Joe P. Carrigan, Laura Lou Carrigan and Mrs. Elizabeth Carrigan Simpson to Edward H. Rowley, H.J. Griffith and Kenyon Brown, operating as KWFT, Incorporated. In 1953, KWFT joined other radio stations in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

by plunging into the new medium of

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

. KWFT-TV signed on the air on March 1 and was the first television station in the Wichita Falls. Just as its AM counterpart was a CBS radio affiliate, KWFT-TV was an affiliate of the CBS television network. KWFT sold the TV station in 1956 at which time it became KSYD-TV and later

KAUZ-TV KAUZ-TV (channel 6) is a television station licensed to Wichita Falls, Texas, United States, serving the western Texoma area as an affiliate of CBS and The CW Plus. It is owned by American Spirit Media, which maintains a shared services agree ...

in 1963, continuing as the CBS affiliate for the Wichita Falls- Lawton market. KWFT Radio focused on local and national news, weather, farm reports and

middle of the road music Middle of the road (also known by its acronym MOR) is a commercial radio format and popular music genre. Music associated with this term is strongly melodic and uses techniques of vocal harmony and light orchestral arrangements. The format was even ...

. However, as FM radio became more popular for music listening in the 1980s, it cut into KWFT's audience and advertising dollars, leading to the sale of the station in the mid-1990s to a new owner who had other plans for the station. KWFT signed off at 11:59 p.m. on December 24, 1994.

KAAM and KMKI in Dallas

About two years later, the 620 frequency formerly

to Wichita Falls returned to the airwaves licensed to Plano, a suburb in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. The new

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

KAAM Kaam (Gurmukhi: ਕਾਮ ''Kāma'') in common usage, the term stands for 'excessive passion for sexual pleasure' and it is in this sense that it is considered to be an evil in Sikhism. In Sikhism it is believed that Kaam can be overcome ...

. It was owned by Collin County Radio L.C. and it aired an adult standards format. KAAM was sold to

The Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

for $12 million and switched to the

Radio Disney Radio Disney was an American radio network operated by the Disney Radio Networks unit of Disney Branded Television within the Disney General Entertainment Content, headquartered in Burbank, California. The network broadcast music programming ...

children's radio Children's radio is a radio format aimed primarily at preteen children. Examples include the now defunct Radio Disney network of radio stations, Kids Place Live satellite radio channel and in the UK Fun Kids. Stations See also *List of children ...

format on August 1, 1998. KAAM was renamed KMKI (from Disney Character MicKey Mouse). Until Radio Disney's move from

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

Burbank, California Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank has a population of 107,337. The city was named after David Burbank, w ...

, KMKI was the network's

flagship station In broadcasting, a flagship (also known as a flagship station or key station) is the broadcast station which originates a television network, or a particular radio or television program that plays a key role in the branding of and consumer loyalt ...

. In May 2014,

Mediabase Mediabase is a music industry service that monitors radio station airplay in 180 US and Canadian markets. Mediabase publishes music charts and data based on the most played songs on terrestrial and satellite radio, and provides in-depth analytic ...

moved KMKI, along with other Radio Disney stations, to the Top 40/CHR panel, even though Radio Disney was considered a children's station. On August 13, 2014, Disney put KMKI and 22 other

stations up for sale, in order to focus on digital distribution of the Radio Disney network. KMKI's affiliation was scheduled to be discontinued on or after September 26, 2014. But the Disney Corp. decided to keep the programming on KMKI until it found a buyer. KMKI has a license to broadcast a digital signal using iBiquity's "

HD Radio HD Radio (HDR) is a trademark for an in-band on-channel (IBOC) digital radio broadcast technology. It generally simulcasts an existing analog radio station in digital format with less noise and with additional text information. HD Radio is used ...

" but suspended transmission in the months before the sale announcement. Because the license to broadcast digital "HD Radio" is perpetual, the station could resume digital broadcasts at any time.

Sale to Salem

On June 5, 2015, the

announced it would acquire KMKI for $3 million. The station was sold to Salem on September 15, 2015. As a result, the station discontinued its Radio Disney programming and went

dark Darkness, the direct opposite of lightness, is defined as a lack of illumination, an absence of visible light, or a surface that absorbs light, such as black or brown. Human vision is unable to distinguish colors in conditions of very low lum ...

. 620 AM returned to the air on September 18, 2015,

simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of simultaneous broadcast) is the broadcasting of programmes/programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simultane ...

ing the

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 of

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 ...

KWRD-FM KWRD-FM (100.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Highland Village, Texas, and serving the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. It is owned by the Salem Media Group and broadcasts a Christian talk and teaching radio format. The call sign re ...

. On September 25, 2015, KMKI began simulcasting co-owned KVCE, broadcasting a business and financial news/talk format. On October 1, 2015, KMKI changed its call letters to KEXB (standing for “Experts in Business), and took over the business news/talk format from KVCE. Radio Disney programming for the region later moved to KLUV's HD3 digital subchannel after the network's seven-month absence from the DFW

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 ...

. KEXB carried syndicated radio shows such as

Bloomberg Radio Bloomberg Radio is a radio service of Bloomberg L.P. that provides global business news programming 24 hours a day. The format is general and financial news, offering local, national and international news reports along with financial market up ...

and

Ray Lucia Raymond Joseph Lucia, Sr. is an American former Certified Financial Planner, former Registered Investment Advisor, author, radio personality and television host. He is host of ''The Ray Lucia Show'', a nationally syndicated radio and television fi ...

. It also aired

brokered programming 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 ...

from financial planners who paid for time on the station and advertised their services. SRN News began most hours.

Flip to Spanish Christian

In 2019, Salem announced it would sell co-owned KTNO to Catholic broadcaster Immaculate Heart Media, Inc. On October 21, 2019, Salem discontinued its Financial News/Talk format on AM 620 and moved its Spanish Christian format known as "Radio Luz" from KTNO to KEXB.620AM KEXB - Experts in Business
official website (accessed October 21, 2019) In addition, KEXB's call sign was switched to KTNO, while the KEXB call letters were warehoused on the former KTNO.

Signal

Unlike most of the area's FM stations, which transmit their signals from

Cedar Hill Cedar may refer to: Trees and plants *''Cedrus'', common English name cedar, an Old-World genus of coniferous trees in the plant family Pinaceae *Cedar (plant), a list of trees and plants known as cedar Places United States * Cedar, Arizona * ...

, KTNO transmits its signal along County Road 409 in McKinney. Therefore, KTNO's AM signal is much stronger in much of the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex as well as the cities of

Wichita Falls Wichita Falls ( ) is a city in and the seat of government of Wichita County, Texas, United States. It is the principal city of the Wichita Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Archer, Clay, and Wichita counties. Accordin ...

, and Greenville, to as far north as

Ada, Oklahoma Ada is a city in and the county seat of Pontotoc County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 16,481 at the 2020 United States Census. The city was named for Ada Reed, the daughter of an early settler, and was incorporated in 1901. Ada is ...

, but is considerably weaker south of the Metroplex.

References

External links

Radio Luz Dallas - Official website DFW Radio/TV History
{{coord, 33, 14, 34, N, 96, 32, 29, W, type:landmark_region:US, display=title Radio stations established in 1939 TNO 1939 establishments in Texas Salem Media Group properties TNO (AM) TNO Former subsidiaries of The Walt Disney Company