KMGV is in the

Fresno, California Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, makin ...

area and broadcasts at 97.9 FM. It is owned by

Cumulus Media Cumulus Media, Inc. is an American broadcasting company and is the third largest owner and operator of AM and FM radio stations in the United States behind Audacy and iHeartMedia. As of June 2019, Cumulus lists ownership of 428 stations in 87 ...

. Its studios are located at the Radio City building on Shaw Avenue in North Fresno and its transmitter is at Meadow Lakes in

Sierra National Forest Sierra National Forest is a U.S. national forest located on the western slope of central Sierra Nevada in Central California and bounded on the northwest by Yosemite National Park and the south by Kings Canyon National Park. The forest is kno ...

History

97.9 FM was originally owned by the McClatchy family and was originally the FM sister station to KMJ, with the callsign KMJ-FM. Known as "Music 98", the station broadcast classical music, then pop standards. In 1981 the callsign was changed to KNAX and the format was changed 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 the ...

. KNAX's competition at that time was

KMAK KMAK (100.3 FM, "La Unika Mexicana") is an American radio station licensed to serve the community of Orange Cove, California, United States. The station, established in 1990, is owned by founder Richard B. Smith and the broadcast license is he ...

, an AM station that had adopted the Country format around 1966. By 1985, KMAK had changed format to

News/Talk 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 ...

, and KNAX was the sole Country outlet for the Fresno area. This lasted until 1992 when 93.7 changed format to Country as "Kiss Country". Both stations co-existed until KNAX was sold to Henry Broadcasting, which also owned KSKS. The format of KNAX was altered to a mix of classic Country with a few currents at this time. The station adopted the nickname of "Kickin' Country 98", and the original KNAX logo was replaced. In July 1996, KNAX and

KRBT KRBT (1340 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a sports format. Licensed to Eveleth, Minnesota, United States, the station serves the Iron Range area. The station is owned by Range Broadcasting, Inc., and features programming from the KFAN Radio ...

were sold from Osborn Communications to

American Radio Systems American Radio Systems Corporation was a radio company that existed from 1993 until 1998. Its predecessor, Atlantic Ventures, was founded by Steven B. Dodge, Eric Schultz, Joseph Winn, and Michael Milsom. American Radio Systems was formed from ...

, which would then sell to

Infinity Broadcasting Infinity Broadcasting Corporation was a radio company that existed from 1972 until 2005. It was founded by Michael A. Wiener and Gerald Carrus. It became associated with popular radio personalities like Howard Stern, Opie and Anthony, Don Imus ...

(now

CBS Radio CBS Radio was a radio broadcasting company and radio network operator owned by CBS Corporation and founded in 1928, with consolidated radio station groups owned by CBS and Westinghouse Broadcasting/Group W since the 1920s, and Infinity Broadc ...

) in 1998. On July 3, 1998, with the emergence of a new format called "

Jammin' Oldies Rhythmic oldies is a radio format that concentrates on the rhythmic, R&B, disco, or dance genres of music. Playlists can span from the 1960s through the 2000s and, depending on market conditions, may be designed for African-American or Hispanic ...

" consisting of Classic R&B/Soul and Disco, the owners decided to take KNAX in a different direction and dropped country in favor of this current format and call letters KMGV, "Mega 97.9".http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1998/RR-1998-07-10.pdf Peak Broadcasting acquired KMGV, and several other Fresno market stations, in November 2006 from CBS Radio. On August 30, 2013, a deal was announced in which

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 ...

would purchase Peak Broadcasting, and then immediately swap Peak's Fresno stations, including KMGV, to

in exchange for Cumulus' stations in

Dubuque, Iowa Dubuque (, ) is the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. At the time of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population of Dubuque was 59,667. The city lies at the junction of Iowa, Il ...

and

Poughkeepsie, New York Poughkeepsie ( ), officially the City of Poughkeepsie, separate from the Town of Poughkeepsie around it) is a city in the U.S. state of New York. It is the county seat of Dutchess County, with a 2020 census population of 31,577. Poughkeepsi ...

. The deal is part of Cumulus' acquisition of

Dial Global Westwood One is an American radio network owned by Cumulus Media. The company syndicates talk, music, and sports programming. The company takes its name from an earlier network also named Westwood One, a company founded in 1978. The company w ...

; Peak, Townsquare, and Dial Global are all controlled by

Oaktree Capital Management Oaktree Capital Management is an American global asset management firm specializing in alternative investment strategies. As of March 31, 2022, the company managed $164 billion for its clientele. The firm was co-founded in 1995 by a group that ...

. The sale to Cumulus was completed on November 14, 2013.

References

External links

KMGV Website
* {{coord, 37.075, N, 119.432, W, type:landmark_region:US_source:FCC, display=title MGV Rhythmic oldies radio stations in the United States Cumulus Media radio stations