KYWD
KYWD (97.1 FM) is a country music radio station that serves Tucson, Arizona. KYWD is licensed to broadcast from Green Valley, Arizona (a southern suburb of Tucson). It is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc..
 | |
| City | Green Valley, Arizona |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Tucson, Arizona |
| Frequency | 97.1 MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | 97.1 The Bull |
| Slogan | Tucson's #1 For New Country All You Need Is Love (HD2) |
| Programming | |
| Format | Country Love Songs ("Love Songs Radio") (HD2) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | iHeartMedia, Inc. (Capstar TX LLC) |
| Sister stations | KMIY, KNST, KOHT, KRQQ, KTZR, KXEW |
| History | |
| First air date | 1990 (as KGMS) |
| Former call signs | KGMS (1990-2001) KCEE (2001) KWFM-FM (2001-2003) KTZR-FM (2003-2011) KNST-FM (2011-2013) |
| Technical information | |
| Facility ID | 24583 |
| Class | A C3 (CP) |
| ERP | 1,750 watts 25,000 watts (CP) |
| HAAT | 187 meters (614 ft) 100 meters (330 ft) (CP) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 31°58′37″N 111°6′4″W 32°00′11.8″N 110°47′51.1″W (CP) |
| Links | |
| Webcast | Listen Live Listen Live (HD2) |
| Website | 971thebull.iheart.com |
KYWD broadcasts from the iHeartMedia, Inc. studios in midtown Tucson, but their transmitter is located slightly northwest of Green Valley. Because of the low ERP, and the transmitter location, the station is extremely hard to pick up in most northern suburbs such as Flowing Wells, Avra Valley, Oro Valley, and Marana, but is easy to pick up in central and southern Tucson. Coincidentally, the central and southern portions of Tucson contain higher concentrations of Hispanic demographics, while Northern Tucson and Oro Valley have nearly all Caucasian demographics.
History
Starting in the early 1990s, KGMS was a Christian CHR station that played new Christian pop, rock, and even dance songs in the mix. This format seemed to last the longest.
In 2001, it became Cool FM - KWFM-FM, an oldies station. KWFM originally was on 92.9, but was moved to 97.1 to make way for Clear Channel's Coyote Country. Problems with signal reception across the city were evident. Plans to move the station's license to Tucson and increase ERP never went through, leaving poor ratings for Cool FM.
In 2003, KWFM was moved to AM, which opened the door for KTZR-FM, a Spanish-language station. This has so far proven to have little success, with ratings for the station being anywhere from 15th to 20th place in the Arbitron ratings.
On November 28, 2011, KTZR-FM changed their format to a simulcast of news/talk KNST 790 AM under new calls, KNST-FM.[1][2]
On February 14, 2013, KNST-FM changed their format to country as "Wild Country 97.1".[3]
On February 21, 2013, the station-ID at midnight debuted the new call letters of the station, KYWD
On December 18, 2015 KYWD rebranded as "97.1 The Bull".
See also
References
- http://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/99345/clear-channel-flips-tucson-knst-a-gets-fm-simulcas
- http://radioinsight.com/blog/headlines/54450/clear-channel-shuffles-more-tucson-formats/#.TtQVdmCqCPo
- http://azstarnet.com/entertainment/blogs/caliente-tuned-in/tucson-gets-new-country-radio-station/article_51053e66-76d2-11e2-a462-001a4bcf887a.html
External links
- Official KYWD-FM Website
- KYWD in the FCC's FM station database
- KYWD on Radio-Locator
- KYWD in Nielsen Audio's FM station database