KEJO (1240 AM, "1240 Joe Radio") is a commercial radio station licensed to Corvallis, Oregon, airing a sports radio format. It is owned by Bicoastal Media with the broadcast license held by Bicoastal Media Licenses V, LLC.[4][5] The studios are on Marion Street SE in Albany.

KEJO
Frequency1240 kHz
Branding1240 Joe Radio
Programming
FormatSports
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
  • Bicoastal Media
  • (Bicoastal Media Licenses V, LLC)
KDUK-FM, KFLY, KLOO, KLOO-FM, KODZ, KPNW, KRKT-FM, KTHH
History
First air date
August 1955; 69 years ago (1955-08) (as KCOV)
Former call signs
  • KCOV (1955–1958)
  • KFLY (1958–1994)[1]
Call sign meaning
named for Emily Jo, the late daughter of a now-former owner[2]
Technical information[3]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID39573
ClassC
Power1,000 watts
Transmitter coordinates
44°35′38″N 123°13′30″W / 44.59389°N 123.22500°W / 44.59389; -123.22500
Translator(s)93.7 K229DI (Corvallis)
Links
Public license information
WebcastListen Live
Websitekejoam.com

KEJO is powered at 1,000 watts, using a non-directional antenna. Programming is also heard on 14-watt FM translator K229DI at 93.7 MHz.

Programming

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Sports talk

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KEJO carries national sports shows from Fox Sports Radio and the Infinity Sports Network. Local and regional weekday programs on KEJO include Joe Beaver Show with the Oregon State Beavers radio voices, Mike Parker & Jon Warren.[6] Popular national sports shows on weekdays include The Dan Patrick Show hosted by Dan Patrick and The Jim Rome Show hosted by Jim Rome.

Live sports events

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KEJO airs local high school football games plus Oregon State Beavers football, men's basketball, and baseball as part of the Beaver Sports Radio Network.[7][8][9] Beginning with the 2009 season, KEJO is the broadcast home of the Corvallis Knights, a West Coast League minor league baseball team.[10] During the baseball season, KEJO is also an affiliate of the Seattle Mariners Radio Network.[10]

History

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KCOV

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The Midland Broadcasting Company was granted a construction permit in 1953 to build a new AM radio station broadcasting with 250 watts of power on a frequency of 1240 kHz.[11] The stations signed on the air in August 1955; 69 years ago (August 1955). The original call sign was KCOV.

Donald McCormick served as president of Midland Broadcasting and Frank Flynn as the general manager of the station.[12]

KFLY

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Dave Hoss acquired control of Midland Broadcasting in late February 1958.[13] He applied to the FCC for new call letters for the station and was granted KFLY.[13]

Radio Broadcasters, Inc., acquired KFLY in January 1963.[14] The Federal Communications Commission granted KFLY authorization a few months later to increase its daytime signal strength to 1,000 watts while maintaining the nighttime signal power of 250 watts.[15] In October 1966, KFLY-FM (101.5 FM) was launched as an FM sister station, simulcasting duplicating a portion of the AM station's programming and extending its effective coverage area.[14] KFLY-FM later switched to a separate format of easy listening and classical music.

Ted Jackson's Radio Corvallis, Inc., bought KFLY in March 1971.[16] The station aired a Top 40 music format throughout the 1970s.[16][17] It carried news from the ABC Contempoary Radio Network. KFLY was acquired by the Madgekal Broadcasting Company in August 1977 and the Top 40 format was maintained.[17] Mario Pastega, the owner of Madgekal Broadcasting, also owned the local Pepsi-Cola bottling plant.[2]

KEJO

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After more than 35 years of broadcasting as KFLY, the station was assigned the current KEJO call letters by the FCC on January 31, 1994.[1] Pastega chose the new call sign as a tribute to his daughter, Emily Jo, who died as a young adult.[2]

In June 1999, Madgekal Broadcasting, Inc., reached an agreement to sell this station to Jacor Communications. The deal was approved by the FCC on August 24, 1999, and the transaction was consummated on September 1, 1999.[18] After Jacor's merger with Clear Channel Communications was completed, the company made application with the FCC in December 2000 to transfer the broadcast license for KEJO to Clear Channel subsidiary Citicasters Licenses, Inc. The transfer was approved by the FCC on January 4, 2001, and the transaction was consummated on June 5, 2001.[19]

KEJO was granted a construction permit to upgrade to 1,000 watt operation both day and night in November 2001.[20] The station received its license to cover this change on September 25, 2003.[21]

Sale to Bicoastal Media

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In May 2007, Clear Channel Communications, through its Citicasters Licenses, LP, subsidiary, announced an agreement to sell this station to Bicoastal Media subsidiary Bicoastal Willamette Valley, LLC. It was part of a 14-station deal valued at $37 million.[22][23]

The sale was approved by the FCC on July 2, 2007, and the transaction was consummated on October 1, 2007.[24] As part of an internal corporate reorganization in October 2007, Bicoastal Willamette Valley, LLC, applied to transfer the broadcast license for KEJO to Bicoastal Media Licenses V, LLC. The transfer was approved by the FCC on October 29, 2007.[25]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Call Sign History". FCC Media Bureau CDBS Public Access Database.
  2. ^ a b c Raskauskas, Nancy (December 25, 2007). "Pastega's Christmas gift: Pepsi-Cola Bottling Co. display a bright spot during holidays". Corvallis Gazette Times. The station was named in honor of Pastega's daughter Emily Jo, who died as a young woman.
  3. ^ "Facility Technical Data for KEJO". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  4. ^ "Station Information Profile". Arbitron.
  5. ^ Fybush, Scott (February 23, 2007). "The Big Trip 2006, Part III: Corvallis and Salem, OR". Tower Site of the Week.
  6. ^ Personius, Jill (July 3, 2002). "'Voice of the Beavers' expands territory". The Daily Barometer.[permanent dead link]
  7. ^ "Multimedia: Audio/Video". Oregon State Official Athletic Site. Retrieved April 4, 2009.
  8. ^ "2008 Oregon State Football Radio Network". BeaverFootball.com. Archived from the original on January 16, 2009. Retrieved April 28, 2009.
  9. ^ "KPAM is new Portland flagship station for Beavers athletics". KGW.com. April 13, 2007. Archived from the original on June 23, 2007. Retrieved April 5, 2009. KPAM joins KBZY in Salem and KEJO in Albany and Corvallis as part of the Beaver Sports Radio Network, which consists of 26 stations statewide.
  10. ^ a b "Knights to Air on 1240 Joe Radio". Official Website of the Corvallis Knights. December 18, 2008.
  11. ^ "Directory of AM and FM stations and Market Data for the United States". 1954 Broadcasting Yearbook-Marketbook Issue. Washington, DC: Broadcasting Publications, Inc. 1954. p. 266.
  12. ^ "Directory of AM and FM stations and Market Data of the United States". Broadcasting-Telecasting 1955 Yearbook-Marketbook Issue. Washington, DC: Broadcasting Publications, Inc. 1955. p. 256.
  13. ^ a b "Directory of AM and FM Radio Stations in the U.S.". 1958 Broadcasting Yearbook. Washington, DC: Broadcasting Publications, Inc. 1958. p. A-350.
  14. ^ a b "Directory of AM and FM Radio stations in the U.S.". 1967 Broadcasting Yearbook. Washington, DC: Broadcasting Publications, Inc. 1967. p. B-131.
  15. ^ "Directory of AM and FM Radio stations in the U.S.". 1963 Broadcasting Yearbook. Washington, DC: Broadcasting Publications, Inc. 1963. p. B-7.
  16. ^ a b "Directory of AM and FM Radio Stations in the United States and Canada". Broadcasting Yearbook 1975. Washington, DC: Broadcasting Publications, Inc. 1975. p. C-155.
  17. ^ a b "Directory of Radio Stations in the United States and Canada". Broadcasting Yearbook 1979. Washington, DC: Broadcasting Publications, Inc. 1979. p. C-180.
  18. ^ "Application Search Details (BAL-19990622GH)". FCC Media Bureau. September 1, 1999.
  19. ^ "Application Search Details (BAL-20001213ADP)". FCC Media Bureau. June 5, 2001.
  20. ^ "Application Search Details (BP-20010809AAG)". FCC Media Bureau. November 20, 2001.
  21. ^ "Application Search Details (BL-20030610AEK)". FCC Media Bureau. September 25, 2003.
  22. ^ Mosley, Joe (May 8, 2007). "Clear Channel to sell Eugene, Ore., radio stations". Eugene Register Guard.
  23. ^ "Deals - 2007-05-12". Broadcasting & Cable. May 13, 2007.
  24. ^ "Application Search Details (BALH-20070508ACW)". FCC Media Bureau. October 1, 2007.
  25. ^ "Application Search Details (BALH-20071016ACK)". FCC Media Bureau. October 29, 2007.
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