By now the format is the only thing left of the last few hours of AM 1090's best of progressive programming over the holidays, as the former KPTK, since Oct 2004, becomes another sports talker, CBS Sports Radio, The Fan KFNQ.
The cat was out of the bag in November when the call sign changed. Lot's of 'we don't know why's' from the front desk until recently, which is understandable as the front end is usually the last to know. It was also a easy guess as CBS wanted a large player to launch what was known for some time as a competitor to go head to head locally with ESPN/FOX and possibly later NBC.
We don't know how the Seattle area can support up to as many as 6 or more sports talkers counting FM simulcasting and ESPN formats of sports stations doing what seems to be a hail mary pass to go from a .8 share to hopefully 1.0 or better to claim higher ad revenue. Unless they get into a bidding war for one of the current local teams broadcast rights, or the new NBA franchise, it stands a good chance of being a wasted signal. On the other hand, to have a 50k watt heritage station like am 1090 to be treated like a red headed step child was unnecessary.
Clear Channel's KPOJ in Portland had a live, local morning show up until the week after the presidential election, when they pulled the plug in favor of yet again, sports radio.
To be fair, those of us in the NW make up a huge market of the over 85 million nationally who own smart phones and Seattle being one the most tech savy areas of the US, the share of terrestrial listeners is declining daily. But data plans for streaming have limits on how much can be downloaded before additional charges are applied.
We'll follow up on this later with a discussion we had recently from someone who owns a few stations and how this all plays out in the future.
This is a further sign of the slow and agonizing death of AM radio. It also does not help that the suits changed KPTK into a sports talk station. Apparently they did not look into market good enough. Seattle already has a saturation of sports talkers. Bad move, CBS!
Posted by: JustJ | January 01, 2013 at 07:20 PM
We hear the flip is at 12a eastern which means the flip will probably happen at 9p tonight local.
Posted by: Chris Chronic | January 01, 2013 at 08:21 PM
Not yet, but soon
Posted by: Chris Chronic | January 01, 2013 at 10:17 PM
Sports talk is now more alive than political talk in Seattle and Portland. The trend is clear for now as Seattle has the same number of sports talk and political talk stations for the first time in a long while.
Posted by: Nevet's ghost | January 01, 2013 at 10:46 PM
It happened at local midnight, after the end of Mike Malloy. Airchecks have been taped, and radio presets are being deleted. KBCS 91.3 will carry Thom Hartmann in the noon-3 slot. KLAY is inaudible on the Eastside. Many workplaces frown on streaming. So few options remain.
Posted by: Wombat | January 02, 2013 at 12:20 AM
The CBS Sports Network site claims 232 affiliates (some of course part time, maybe overnight/some shows weekends). CBS could have done something like this with prog. or cons. talk but sports is where the money is.
Where I am in Boston MA we have 4 stations and 4 out of the 5 sports networks have affiliates (unless Fox finds another home somewhere)
WEEI AM ESPN, WEEI FM ESPN part time, WBZ-FM CBS, WUFC NBC & Yahoo
Posted by: Bob Nelson | January 02, 2013 at 01:23 AM
...that station list on the right might as well delete WPTK (now KFNQ or
K-Effin'-Q if you prefer), now a gone-er.
Posted by: Bob Nelson | January 02, 2013 at 01:25 AM
oops KPTK I mean!
Posted by: Bob Nelson | January 02, 2013 at 01:28 AM
It's like losing an old friend. Well, I guess I'll write my check to KBCS now. I donate every year and never listen. Now I will.
Posted by: TS | January 02, 2013 at 11:01 AM
K-effin-Q, FTW!
Posted by: slingshot | January 02, 2013 at 12:12 PM
I listened to the switch...it was pretty lame. From 11:55 until 12:00 they ran the ubiquitous Zip Line ad and then did promos for Stephanie Miller, encouraging listeners to tune in in the morning on the way to work.
Jr High radio at its worst. Then at the stroke of midnight, a deep male voice said "THE GAME IS ONNNNNNNN!" and they went to a sports headline report. I turned it off. It doesn't matter, though, if a single person in Seattle listens or not. It is radio on the cheap and Seattle will share in the nationwide revenue.
Posted by: sparky | January 02, 2013 at 06:21 PM
Umm, make that 2013.
Posted by: TS | January 02, 2013 at 10:37 PM
Tonight George is talking about Egypt and Egyptology. Not bad actually. Maybe I'll reserve judgment for a while.
Posted by: TS | January 02, 2013 at 10:57 PM
I can listen to KIRO FM for at least Dave Ross, Ron and Don, and Andrew Walsh, but I just found out on my portable radio that the FM signal does have static within parts of SE Seattle, where I live. At least on the AM signal, it came in better. As for tun-in, it works pretty good, even found a few scanner sites for one of my hobbies(it's in my screename). WHMP in Northampton streams, which is interesting, I think it is owned by the same people as KBAI in Bellingham. (On WHMP, very familiar voice doing the station/show ID voiceovers)
Posted by: EvergreenRailfan | January 02, 2013 at 11:37 PM
Well heck, we can just tune in to the new Al Jazerra network thanks to Al Gore and his partner. Radio with pictures. Who'd a thought it? MSNBC Jr. it will be.
Posted by: Twofer | January 03, 2013 at 12:08 AM
I think you mean Al Gorezeera
Posted by: cliff kingle | January 03, 2013 at 05:39 AM