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KKST
Broadcast areaGreater Alexandria
Frequency98.7 MHz (HD Radio)
Branding98.7 Kiss FM
Programming
Language(s)English
FormatUrban contemporary
SubchannelsHD2: (Urban adult contemporary)
HD3: "Rejoice" Gospel Format"
Ownership
Owner
  • Cenla Broadcasting
  • (Cenla Broadcasting Licensing Company, LLC)
K265FB, KDBS, KQID-FM, KRRV-FM, KSYL, KZMZ
History
First air date
1972 (1972)
Former call signs
KCWR (1972–1982)
KGBM-FM (1982–1984)
KICR-FM (1984–1997)
Call sign meaning
Station branded as "Star 98.7" from 1987 to 2006
Technical information
Facility ID3423
ClassC1
ERP48,000 watts
HAAT321.0 meters (1,053.1 ft)
Transmitter coordinates
31°1′59.00″N 92°30′8.00″W / 31.0330556°N 92.5022222°W / 31.0330556; -92.5022222
Links
WebcastKKST Listen Live page
WebsiteKiss 98.7

KKST (98.7 FM, "98.7 Kiss-FM") is a radio station broadcasting an Urban contemporary format. Licensed to Oakdale, Louisiana, United States, the station serves the Alexandria area. The station is currently owned by Cenla Broadcasting Licensing Company, LLC.[1] and the signal covers Alexandria, Natchitoches and surrounding communities. Its studios are located on Texas Avenue in Alexandria, and its transmitter is located near Forest Hill, Louisiana.

History

On June 30, 1971, Cyril W. and C. Winsett Reddoch, owners of radio station KREH (900 AM), received a construction permit to build a new 1,500-watt radio station at 104.9 MHz in Oakdale.[2] The station signed on with an adult contemporary format the next year.[3] The Reddochs continued to own KCWR and KREH until both were sold to George Mowad, a physician and the mayor of Oakdale, for $400,000 in 1981.[4] On October 16, 1982, Mowad carried out a format overhaul; at that time, KCWR flipped to country as KGBM-FM.[5] Two years later, both stations were sold to Strother Broadcasting Company of Louisiana for $350,000.[6] KREH and KGBM-FM became KICR-AM-FM after the sale.[7]

In 1988, the FCC approved a frequency change to 98.7 MHz and class increase for KICR-FM.[8] The upgrade would allow the FM station to enter the Alexandria radio market.[9] At the same time, both stations were sold to Bob Holladay and his B & D Communications for nearly $500,000.[10] When the FM frequency change took place on May 14, 1990, the country format that had been on FM moved to the AM frequency,[11] while KICR-FM relaunched as adult contemporary "Magic 98".[12] The move-in of KICR-FM to the Alexandria market also meant that all station operations relocated there, with studios established on Bayou Rapides Road.[12] The Magic format moved to the 93.9 frequency (then KFAD, now KMXH) in 1993, with KICR-FM switching to country music as "Hot Country 98".[13]

Champion Broadcasting Corporation acquired KICR-FM in 1995 for $1.8 million,[14] marking the start of a cluster in the market. One of the stations Champion acquired a lease on in 1996 was KRRV-FM 100.3, also in the country music format. Its ratings were so high that Champion opted to drop the country format on its KICR-FM and flip it to adult contemporary as KKST "Star 98.7" on January 1, 1997.[15]

Rapid consolidation in the radio industry saw KKST and the other Champion Alexandria stations change hands multiple times in two years in the late 1990s. The entire company, with clusters in Alexandria, Midland, Texas and Amarillo, Texas, was acquired by Capstar Broadcasting Partners for $11.3 million in 1998.[16] Capstar was then absorbed into Clear Channel Communications at the end of the decade. The station's effective radiated power was increased again in 2006 to its present 48,000 watts at 321 meters, on a shared tower with sister stations KRRV-FM and KZMZ.[17][18]

In 2006, Clear Channel sold its entire Alexandria cluster to Cenla Broadcasting for more than $4 million, with Cenla immediately taking programming control via a local marketing agreement.[19] Cenla had been programming KEDG (106.9 FM), owned by Flinn Broadcasting, as hip-hop "Kiss 106.9" and moved the Kiss format to KKST as a result of the sale.[20] (The Star moniker and format were later revived by KEDG.)

In 2022 Kiss 98.7 Converted to HD Radio

References

  1. ^ "KKST Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
  2. ^ FCC History Cards for KKST
  3. ^ "KREH" (PDF). Broadcasting Yearbook. 1974. p. B-92 (288). Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  4. ^ "Oakdale Radio Stations Bought by Mayor Mowad". Town Talk. June 19, 1981. p. D-2. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  5. ^ "Oakdale Broadcasting Announces New Format". The Oakdale Journal. September 29, 1982. p. 1. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  6. ^ "Changing Hands" (PDF). Broadcasting. February 6, 1984. p. 163. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  7. ^ "Radio station changes hands". The Town Talk. April 8, 1984. p. D-2. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  8. ^ "For the Record" (PDF). Broadcasting. October 17, 1988. p. 81. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  9. ^ "KICR to upgrade power output". The Oakdale Journal. April 27, 1989. p. 1. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  10. ^ "Transactions" (PDF). Radio & Records. November 3, 1989. p. 12. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  11. ^ "To All KICR Listeners". The Oakdale Journal. May 24, 1990. p. 10. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  12. ^ a b "New radio station plays adult contemporary". The Town Talk. May 15, 1990. p. B-5. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  13. ^ Williams, Sidney (February 12, 1993). "'Magic 98' now 'Hot Country 98'". The Town Talk. p. C-5. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  14. ^ "Changing Hands" (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable. December 18, 1985. p. 70. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  15. ^ Pinnell, Gary R. (January 1, 1997). "KICR switching to adult contemporary". The Town Talk. p. B-7. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  16. ^ "Transactions" (PDF). Radio & Records. March 27, 1998. p. 8. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  17. ^ "KKST Call Sign History". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
  18. ^ "KKST power increase history".
  19. ^ "Clear Channel Sells Alexandria, LA Cluster". All Access. July 21, 2006. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  20. ^ Bonnette, Tom (August 10, 2006). "Area radio station changes format". The Town Talk. p. B6. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
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