KZZR
Encyclopedia
KBNH is a radio station
licensed
to serve Burns, Oregon
, USA. The station, established in 1957, is owned by Harney County Radio, LLC. KBNH and sister station
KORC are the two of only four radio stations with Burns as their community of license.
music format to Burns and much of Harney County, Oregon
. In addition to its usual music programming, KBNH airs a variety of local sporting events, including high school football
.
s of power on 1230 kHz under the ownership of Howard McDonald and James Ward, doing business as Radio Burns. KRNS upgraded its daytime signal to 1,000 watts in 1966 while its nighttime signal remained at 250 watts.
The station was sold to KRNS Radio, Inc., in 1974. KRNS Radio, Inc. was owned & operated by Bill Hampton. KRNS was sold to Warren D. Evans in 1978. KRNS was authorized to broadcast with 1,000 watts of power both day and night, its current authorization level, in August 1981. The station was assigned new call letters "KZZR" by the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) on April 10, 1984
.
In December 1993, Warren D. Evans reached an agreement to sell KZZR to Stanley M. Swol. The deal was approved by the FCC on January 21, 1994, and, after a delay, the transaction was completed on November 3, 1994. In October 2003, Stanley M. Swol applied to the FCC to transfer the broadcast license
for KZZR to SS Radio, LLC, a limited liability company
wholly owned by Stanley M. Swol. The transfer was approved by the FCC on November 10, 2003, and the transaction was completed on same day.
In November 2004, SS Radio, LLC, reached an agreement to sell this station and FM sister station KQHC to Action Radio, LLC, for a reported $72,500. The deal was approved by the FCC on March 11, 2005, and the transaction was completed on April 18, 2005. At the time of the sale, KZZR broadcast a country music format.
In August 2007, Action Radio, LLC, agreed to sell both KZZR and KQHC to B&H Radio, Inc., for $67,000 in cash plus the assumption of certain debts for a total reported sale price of $209,700.98. The deal was approved by the FCC on October 1, 2007, and the transaction was completed on the same day.
In May 2010, B&H Radio, Inc., agreed to sell KZZR and KQHC to Harney County Radio, LLC for a reported $245,000. Harney County Radio, LLC is wholly owned by Joan M. & Leighton M. Reed-Nickerson who also own KORC (820 AM in Waldport, Oregon) through KORC Radio, Inc. On June 30, 2010 the FCC approved the transfer of KZZR and KQHC to Harney County Radio, LLC. On July 16, 2010, the new owners had the FCC change the station's call sign to KBNH, for "Burns N' Hines". Later that month, KBNH changed its format from contemporary country to classic country
.
On February 23, 2011, Harney County Radio, LLC, filed an application with the FCC to change frequency from 1230 kHz to 1210 kHz, increase daytime power to 12,000 watt
s, and decrease night power to 600 watts. Both day and night will use the same 2 tower directional antenna system (DA-1). Even though nighttime power will decrease, moving from a local channel to clear channel will provide much better interference-free coverage.
equipment. Indeed, at the time of the inspection, neither station had run a required EAS test in more than a year. However, in March 2008, noting that Action Radio's record was otherwise clean and that having sold the radio stations in October 2007 it no longer controlled any licensed broadcast stations and had no assets, the FCC cancelled the fine and instead simply admonished Action Radio for its "willful and repeated violations" of FCC rules.
Broadcast Music Incorporated
, a performing rights organization, filed suit against KZZR licensee B&H Radio, Inc., alleging "breach of contract". Filed on November 19, 2008, the suit seeks damages in the amount of $5,498.
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
licensed
City of license
A city of license or community of license, in American and Canadian broadcasting, is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator....
to serve Burns, Oregon
Burns, Oregon
Burns is a city in and the county seat of Harney County, Oregon, United States. As of the 2010 census the population was 2,806.-History:Burns was established in the early 1880s and incorporated upon Harney county's creation in 1889...
, USA. The station, established in 1957, is owned by Harney County Radio, LLC. KBNH and sister station
Sister station
In broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio and/or television stations operated by the same ownership....
KORC are the two of only four radio stations with Burns as their community of license.
Programming
KBNH broadcasts a classic countryClassic country
Classic country is a music radio format that specializes in playing mainstream country hits from past decades.This genre generally follows one of two formats: those specializing in hits from the 1920s through the early 1970s, and focus primarily on innovators and artists from country music's Golden...
music format to Burns and much of Harney County, Oregon
Harney County, Oregon
-National protected areas:*Malheur National Forest *Malheur National Wildlife Refuge*Ochoco National Forest -Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 7,609 people, 3,036 households, and 2,094 families residing in the county. The population density was 1 people per square mile...
. In addition to its usual music programming, KBNH airs a variety of local sporting events, including high school football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
.
History
This station began broadcast operations on September 28, 1957, as KRNS with 250 wattWatt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s of power on 1230 kHz under the ownership of Howard McDonald and James Ward, doing business as Radio Burns. KRNS upgraded its daytime signal to 1,000 watts in 1966 while its nighttime signal remained at 250 watts.
The station was sold to KRNS Radio, Inc., in 1974. KRNS Radio, Inc. was owned & operated by Bill Hampton. KRNS was sold to Warren D. Evans in 1978. KRNS was authorized to broadcast with 1,000 watts of power both day and night, its current authorization level, in August 1981. The station was assigned new call letters "KZZR" by the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
(FCC) on April 10, 1984
1984 in radio
The year 1984 in radio involved some significant events.-Events:* June 18 - Controversial KOA/Denver radio talk show host Alan Berg gunned down in driveway of his home.* Sports writer Ralph Barbieri joined KNBR to host his own sports talk show....
.
In December 1993, Warren D. Evans reached an agreement to sell KZZR to Stanley M. Swol. The deal was approved by the FCC on January 21, 1994, and, after a delay, the transaction was completed on November 3, 1994. In October 2003, Stanley M. Swol applied to the FCC to transfer the broadcast license
Broadcast license
A broadcast license or broadcast license is a specific type of spectrum license that grants the licensee the privilege to use a portion of the radio frequency spectrum in a given geographical area for broadcasting purposes. The licenses are generally straddled with additional restrictions that...
for KZZR to SS Radio, LLC, a limited liability company
Limited liability company
A limited liability company is a flexible form of enterprise that blends elements of partnership and corporate structures. It is a legal form of company that provides limited liability to its owners in the vast majority of United States jurisdictions...
wholly owned by Stanley M. Swol. The transfer was approved by the FCC on November 10, 2003, and the transaction was completed on same day.
In November 2004, SS Radio, LLC, reached an agreement to sell this station and FM sister station KQHC to Action Radio, LLC, for a reported $72,500. The deal was approved by the FCC on March 11, 2005, and the transaction was completed on April 18, 2005. At the time of the sale, KZZR broadcast a country music format.
In August 2007, Action Radio, LLC, agreed to sell both KZZR and KQHC to B&H Radio, Inc., for $67,000 in cash plus the assumption of certain debts for a total reported sale price of $209,700.98. The deal was approved by the FCC on October 1, 2007, and the transaction was completed on the same day.
In May 2010, B&H Radio, Inc., agreed to sell KZZR and KQHC to Harney County Radio, LLC for a reported $245,000. Harney County Radio, LLC is wholly owned by Joan M. & Leighton M. Reed-Nickerson who also own KORC (820 AM in Waldport, Oregon) through KORC Radio, Inc. On June 30, 2010 the FCC approved the transfer of KZZR and KQHC to Harney County Radio, LLC. On July 16, 2010, the new owners had the FCC change the station's call sign to KBNH, for "Burns N' Hines". Later that month, KBNH changed its format from contemporary country to classic country
Classic country
Classic country is a music radio format that specializes in playing mainstream country hits from past decades.This genre generally follows one of two formats: those specializing in hits from the 1920s through the early 1970s, and focus primarily on innovators and artists from country music's Golden...
.
On February 23, 2011, Harney County Radio, LLC, filed an application with the FCC to change frequency from 1230 kHz to 1210 kHz, increase daytime power to 12,000 watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s, and decrease night power to 600 watts. Both day and night will use the same 2 tower directional antenna system (DA-1). Even though nighttime power will decrease, moving from a local channel to clear channel will provide much better interference-free coverage.
Former on-air staff
There have been many professional and first time announcers employed at KRNS/KZZR. Howard McDonald & James Ward were not only the station's first owners, but announcers too, doing airshifts and commercial production. McDonald's "catch phrase" was "Burnzoreygon". Bill Hampton was also an owner and announcer, working morning drive. His children, Craig & Corrine did announcing duties, mostly summers and breaks from school, or after school. Craig Hampton did an afternoon show called "The Craig Connection" playing popular rock & roll music. Craig was also the voice of Burns High Highlander sports for a few seasons. In 1978, Bill turned to the KIIS broadcasting Workshop for announcers with training. John C. Frost was the first KBW graduate to work at KRNS. After being hired as an announcer, he found himself as General Manager, as the station was in the sale transition between Hampton & Evans. GM Frost called upon KBW, and found Johnny Randolph & Paul Kaye. The trio worked to improve the general sound of the station, which was outdated, to modern country & AC music. Almost a year later, Bob Murphy, with his "Bob Murphy get-together" arrived from Hollywood. News was the reason he was hired, but he also pulled a two-hour music airshift from 9-11 am. Gary Pedro came on board after Paul Kaye left KRNS. When Bob decided to head back home to Pennsylvania, Maia Carroll arrived from SoCal. Other announcers came and went in the three-and-a-half year span of KBW grads. Dean Carl was a local high school kid, always wanting to be on the air. Mike Crafford did weekend work during that time, as did Mike Corson.Legal actions
In August 2007, the FCC issued a notice of apparent liability to Action Radio, the licensee of KZZR and KQHC at that time, that it would be assessed an $8,000 fine for "failing to ensure the operational readiness" of both stations' Emergency Alert SystemEmergency Alert System
The Emergency Alert System is a national warning system in the United States put into place on January 1, 1997, when it superseded the Emergency Broadcast System , which itself had superseded the CONELRAD System...
equipment. Indeed, at the time of the inspection, neither station had run a required EAS test in more than a year. However, in March 2008, noting that Action Radio's record was otherwise clean and that having sold the radio stations in October 2007 it no longer controlled any licensed broadcast stations and had no assets, the FCC cancelled the fine and instead simply admonished Action Radio for its "willful and repeated violations" of FCC rules.
Broadcast Music Incorporated
Broadcast Music Incorporated
Broadcast Music, Inc. is one of three United States performing rights organizations, along with ASCAP and SESAC. It collects license fees on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers and distributes them as royalties to those members whose works have been performed...
, a performing rights organization, filed suit against KZZR licensee B&H Radio, Inc., alleging "breach of contract". Filed on November 19, 2008, the suit seeks damages in the amount of $5,498.