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Coordinates: 40°45′28″N 111°52′13″W / 40.75778°N 111.87028°W / 40.75778; -111.87028
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KXRK
X96 logo
Broadcast areaProvo-Ogden-Salt Lake City
Frequency96.3 MHz
BrandingX96
Programming
FormatModern Rock
Ownership
OwnerSimmons Media Group
Technical information
Facility ID406
ClassC
ERP25,000 watts
HAAT1140 meters
Transmitter coordinates
40°39′34″N 112°12′05″W / 40.65944°N 112.20139°W / 40.65944; -112.20139
Links
WebcastListen Live
Websitehttp://www.x96.com/

KXRK (96.3 FM, "X96") is commercial radio station located in Salt Lake City, Utah, broadcasting to the Provo-Ogden-Salt Lake City area. KXRK airs a modern rock music format.

History

The station we now know as KXRK had a long history in the Utah market, first concentrating on Provo, as a top-40 station in the 70s and 80s as KAYK and later KFMY-FM.

In 1981, Kidd Kraddick was hired to do the evening 6-10pm shift. W. Eugene Manning was the GM at the time and he also hired Jim Sumpter to work at the station. The station was always in the top-5 in the ratings, and in Provo it was said that the station had 25 percent of all listeners. This fact remains largely unverified because Arbitron did not collect ratings data for Provo until the mid-80s.

Soon though the format began to drift and some say it was never the same again. In 1988 Marriott Corp sold the station to a group from an indian tribe and the station flipped to a satellite oldies format as KZOL on September 1, 1988.

That only lasted until 1990 when the station began to add more current songs and it seemed like the format had gotten back to top-40, the station in February 1992 abruptly flipped to alternative, and took the present calls KXRK.

KXRK as we know it now was founded and began broadcasting in February 1992.[1] The new station was owned by "Acme Broadcasting", which had been organized by a group of DJs and managers who walked off of KJQ in a programming dispute.[2]

X96 used to be at frequency 96.1, but changed to 96.3 when they increased broadcast wattage in 1996.[3] The frequency shift also allowed them to move to a more favorable transmitter location on Farnsworth Peak, which eventually would also allow KMGR 95.7 in Delta to move to 95.9 and move its transmitter to a location that would reach Utah County. KMGR has an application pending at the FCC to move to Humphreys Peak and hit the rest of the Salt Lake market from there, thus also benefiting from the move of KXRK from 96.1 to 96.3.

Simmons Media Group acquired the station in the late 1990s (April 1998) from Acme Broadcasting. Their current studios are located east of Trolley Square at 5th South and 7th East in Salt Lake City in a block known as Trolley Corners. Prior to this they were located across the street from the Salt Palace in a little building known as Arrow Press Square, adjacent to the now demolished club DV8. X96 was the first station in Utah to broadcast with a digital connection to their tower, which is located on Farnsworth Peak.

In its 2006 summer double issue, Rolling Stone named KXRK as one of five "awesome rock outlets" that are thriving in their market despite a recent contraction in rock radio stations across the United States.[4]

Since the Fall of 1995, X96 has hosted an all-day concert called the Big Ass Show (BASh) featuring nationally-touring alternative and punk bands, as well as providing a stage for local bands. In 2009, the BASh was May 29 and featured The Airborne Toxic Event, Alkaline Trio, Escape the Fate, The Offspring, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, and Unwritten Law, among others.

Current personalities/schedule

See also

References

  1. ^ Ross, Sean (1992-05-09). "Docket '92: Everything Else Is Just A Light? More Fights From Philly, Salt Lake City". Billboard. p. 85.
  2. ^ Gilreath, Scott (1992-02-14). "Airwaves". Salt Lake Tribune. p. D7.; ex-KJQ DJs included Bill Allred (mornings), Dom Casual (mornings), Andrea Gappmayer (mid-day), Mike Summers (afternoon), Todd Nuke'em (evening), and Chet Tapp (overnight).
  3. ^ Arave, Lynn (1996-09-20). "Change is the Name of the Game on Radio". Deseret News.
  4. ^ Serpick, Evan (2006). "Rock Radio's Last Stand". Rolling Stone. Vol. 1, no. 1004 and 1005. p. 20.

External links

40°45′28″N 111°52′13″W / 40.75778°N 111.87028°W / 40.75778; -111.87028

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