January 12, 1986 – Victor Stredicke
Debbie Deutsch moved over to KLSY-AM-FM, 1540 kHz. and 92.5 mHz., last week as morning traffic reporter. She is Seattle’s quintessential traffic voice, weaving reports of vexing commuter problems and light and light banter with other radio personalities
She began as traffic-center reporter for the AAA Autombile Club of Washington, then moved to KJR under contract the past four years.
She’s the kind of person who is on a first-name basis with everyone.
“The first obligation is to give credible, useful traffic information,” Debbie said.
“Even in tunnels,” she added with a smile, playing on a seldom-delineated fear of the AM-radio commuter-listener.
To meet the obligation, she scans a bewildering cacophony of street-department, police, taxi and tow-truck radio transmissions, dilligently checking them against reports from radio stations with aerial traffic reporters.
She previously established a network of “spotters” _ folks she can call to get a direct confirmation. Maybe a businessman in a mobile-phone-equipped auto; maybe a home that overlooks a freeway.
Despite the nine-year reign on KJR traffic, there’s some mystery about why she’s now at KLSY. After getting married and moving to Snohomish County, she negotiated an end to the awful split shift that commute time demanded. Then, in October, she disappeared from KJR. Debbie says station management neglected to renew her contract.
But when she turned in a termination notice, the station felt it had a hold on her, anyhow. (It became a particularly touchy issue because KLSY and KJR previously battled over a morning disc jockey who was still under contract. Again, KJR threatened suit against KLSY for tampering with a KJR employee. KLSY says KJR eventually withdrew any interest in Debbie.)
“The first month off was a genuine vacation,” Debbie said.
The posturing, however, delayed her return to the air by at least a month. (KJR’s station manager, incidentally, ignored repeated calls from The Times to square this information.)
As great a foil as Debbie was for KJR’s Gary Lockwood, she’ll be even more evident as sidekick to KLSY’s morning personality, Bruce Murdock. She’ll participate in several of Murdock’s bits, including the Cafeteria Lady and Trivia Quiz.
“PM Tacoma,” an energetic but low-budget talk feature, returns to the air 7 p.m. Monday, on KTAC, 850 kHz. Art Popham has been host of the program for the past 2 1/2 years on KAMT. The move brings along a new air time and an extra hour.
The move also portends a format adjustment for KTAC.
“We want to be known as a full-service radio station,” Harold Greenberg, general manager, said.
Stations go off again, on again
KPMA, Tacoma, is back on the air _ with a new name and a shaky future.
The station, at 1400 kHz., is now called KITZ, and it’s running just music and public-affairs announcements.
Operating under bankruptcy-court supervision, the station went dark a year ago. With new investors in mind, Don Atkinson, owner, moved offices to Silverdale, Kitsap County. Thus the new letters.
Atkinson returned the station to the air, from Tacoma, on the last day of 1985, “to protect our interests,” he said.
And KARR, 1460 kHz. in Kirkland, signed off at noon the last day of 1985. Apparently the owner these past 14 months, Dave Newman, reached the bottom line in his checkbook.
“Frankly, the radio station has lost money every year it has been on the air, through many owners and formats,” said Bob Rigler, station manager. Past names include KGAA and KILO.
March 9, 1986 – Victor Stredicke
Judith Larsen, former KBAE reporter, has been named news director of KWYZ, 1230 kHz., Everett. . . . Staff changes at KFRE include the new morning personality Terry Williams, who has had brief stints at KSEA, KIRO and KIXI-FM. Dale Good, newsman, and Jerry Kay, morning personality, have left KFRE. . . . Diane McKenzie is gone from KQIN after only a month on the air middays. She had been scheduled for the morning slot but took maternity leave as the station expanded its hours and modified its format in January. . . . A syndicated interview program, “Fresh Air,” airs at 6:30 a.m. Sundays on KPLU, 88.5 mHz., and at 8:30 p.m. Tuesdays on KTOY, 91.7 mHz. Guests have ranged from national cartoonists to political activists to jazz artists. . . . A new ethnic-music program, “Fiesta Latino,” featuring Spanish and Latin music, has been added at 4:30 p.m. Saturdays on KAMT, 1360 kHz. . . The “British Hour” is now on three area stations: at 10 a.m.
Saturdays on KITZ, 1400 kHz.; 10 a.m. Sunday on KBRO, 1490 kHz.; and 2 p.m. Sunday on KAMT, 1360 kHz.
May 3, 1987 | Seattle Post-Intelligencer /Byline: BILL VIRGIN, P-I Reporter
Tacoma’s oldest radio station changed its name again. For 50 years it was KMO, then changed to KAMT three years ago. And this month it is KKMO.
The original reason for a name change was more personal than practical. Jim Baine, owner and general manager, got tired of explaining, “KMO, not KOMO.” That perennial confusion (both sets of letters date back to before 1926) became more severe as freeways linked Seattle and Tacoma, KOMO grew and KMO shrank, and FM stations stole listeners from both.
Baine assumed that a new name would bring focus to a format change _ from country music to contemporary music _ so he brazenly picked new letters to match the format _ “AM (radio) Tacoma.”
KAMT never made it into the rating book. Clearly, there was no more confusion.
But Baine now reports that the four-letter name he had really wanted was KKMO, but it was already assigned as a ship’s radio station.
After recent negotiations with the shipping company, Baine said, he managed to free KKMO. And just in time for another format modification.
Baine said the new KKMO, 1360 kHz, sounds pretty much the same, but many of the up-tempo contemporary tunes soon will be replaced by golden oldies from the ’60s and ’70s.
April 1998 | Seattle Post-Intelligencer /Byline: BILL VIRGIN, P-I Reporter
Douglas Broadcasting Inc. of Palo Alto, Calif., is planning to sell one of its two Seattle AM stations, KXPA (1540), to Multicultural Radio of New York. The deal is expected to close shortly.
KXPA currently runs a split schedule. During the day it’s “personal achievement” radio, featuring a series of motivational and self-help programs. At 4 p.m., KXPA switches to Asian language programming, or formats for particular segments of the Asian community: Cantonese, Korean, Mandarin, Vietnamese, Filipino, Cambodian, Laotian and Polynesian. Just to fill out the international flavoring, there are also German and Italian programs on the weekend schedule.
When Multicultural takes over, it’s likely to increase the Asian programming. Craig McDonald, general manager for the Douglas stations in Seattle, said Multicultural operates two 24-hour networks, one in Cantonese, the other Mandarin.
The station Douglas is keeping is KZTS-AM (1360). Once known as KKMO, it is now 24-hour Spanish-language broadcasting. Multicultural Radio is also buying seven other Douglas stations, all in California.
July 16, 1998 | Seattle Post-Intelligencer /Byline: BILL VIRGIN, P-I Reporter
CBS Corp. has completed its $2.6 billion acquisition of American Radio Systems’ 90 stations, including five in Seattle.
CBS’s new properties here include country stations KMPS-FM (94.1) and KYCW-FM (96.5), classic rock hits station KZOK-FM (102.5), adult contemporary format KBKS-FM (106.1) and KRPM-AM (1090), which is simulcasting KBKS.
A spokeswoman for CBS said the company at present has no plans for changing the formats of the stations.
CBS is a new entrant to the Seattle market in terms of ownership; interestingly, its local affiliate for news, KIRO-AM, is owned by a competitor, Entercom.
Meanwhile, Salem Communications is acquiring KZTS-AM (1360). It has dropped that station’s Spanish-language format and is simulcasting religious programming from two other stations it owns in this market: KGNW-AM (820) from 4 p.m. to 7 a.m. and KLFE-AM (1590) for the balance of its schedule.
Kevin Manna, operations manager for Salem’s stations, which also include talk radio KKOL-AM (1300), said Salem has applied to change the call letters of KZTS to KKMO. Manna said Salem hopes to add Tacoma programming to KKMO such as local churches and high school and college sports.
KZTS was one of two stations in this market owned by Douglas Broadcasting. Douglas also sold KXPA-AM (1540) to Multicultural Radio. KXPA has picked up some of the Spanish language programming to mix in with its Asian language shows. It has dumped the “personal achievement” programs it was airing.
