I guess we now know part of iHeart's plans

[bobdavcav]

We now know why iHeart is warehousing the KFOO calls on an am station. I would expect that station to change calls soon, as the KFOO-FM calls are headed to 96.1 in Spokane which is going alternative as Alt 96.1. That should do well in that market.

 

[CTListener]

We now know why iHeart is warehousing the KFOO calls on an am station. I would expect that station to change calls soon, as the KFOO-FM calls are headed to 96.1 in Spokane which is going alternative as Alt 96.1. That should do well in that market.

If they have a promotional budget, maybe they could get the Foo Fighters to come to town for a concert to introduce the station! But who am I kidding? The calls probably will never be mentioned except during the legal ID, so no one would get the connection in the highly unlikely event that such a show were to be planned.

Is Spokane considered a good market for alt and modern rock, the way Seattle is?

 

[Bongwater]

If they have a promotional budget, maybe they could get the Foo Fighters to come to town for a concert to introduce the station! But who am I kidding? The calls probably will never be mentioned except during the legal ID, so no one would get the connection in the highly unlikely event that such a show were to be planned.

Is Spokane considered a good market for alt and modern rock, the way Seattle is?

It's a college town and the audience is there. But outside of college and low power radio shows, Spokane has NEVER had a true alternative station. There was KAEP "105.7 The Peak" in the '90s , but that was an adult-type modern, more of a lean towards Dave Matthews, Fiona Apple, Tears For Fears, Bodeans and Jewel. Not edgy at all - new music broke on KAEP 3-6 months after KNDD in Seattle debuted it. But that was all Spokane really had up until now.

WHY they were so milquetoast might be because of it's deeply conservative local culture. Classic rock, country, religion and conservative talk are the four basic Spokane radio formats. You get a handful of sub-alternates like AC KISC, Classic Hits KEYF or Variety Hits KBBD "Bob 103.9" etc., a local former LPFM now full power called KYRS on 88.1/92.3 Downtown Spokane, the KPBX public stations and KEWU 89.5 for jazz. That's it.

They say the Spokane psyche is 10 years behind everywhere else and it doesn't react well to that uppity trendy stuff they do in Seattle. And having lived there once, I believe it. I've always called it The Spokane Buffer Zone because social and culture change is so gradual in coming in The Lilac City compared to everywhere else. But that's just Spokane.

 

[bobdavcav]

Said much better than I could have, Bongwater. With four major universities in listening range though WSU and U of I might be a bit of a stretch for some, it seems like there should be a market for the format.

 

[crainbebo]

Up! 99.3 was taken 'up' to the landfill, it has flipped to 96.1's old 'Kix' format. KFOO is the new calls for 96.1 with Alternative.
And you're right on Spokane being a deeply Republican area. Spokane County hasn't voted blue since Bill Clinton's 2nd term in 1996. But even KCWU in Ellensburg plays a lot of rock and alternative stuff, and Kittitas is another conservative county.

 

[Y2kTheNewOldies]

https://news.****************/cgi-bin/rol.exe/headline_id=n35244

Update for Iheart spokane and the Alt Format.

iHeartMedia/Spokane has announced the debut of the new ALT 96.1, The New Alternative, effective immediately. The station will broadcast a variety of Alternative music, including songs from artists such as The Foo Fighters, Imagine Dragons, Twenty One Pilots, Cage The Elephant and Muse. Also featured will be syndicated "The Woody Show" on weekday mornings and with broadcasts of commercial-free music from 10am-noon. Previously on the frequency, was Country KIIX-FM (Kix 96.1), which now moves to become Kix 99.3 on former Christian K257FX-FM.

"We're thrilled to bring the new ALT 96.1 to Alternative music fans throughout the Inland Northwest," said Brad Miller, Senior Vice President of Programming for iHeartMedia Spokane. "We know our listeners will love ‘The Woody Show' and quickly discover why it's been called happy hour on the radio."

 

[upstate29651]

And you're right on Spokane being a deeply Republican area. Spokane County hasn't voted blue since Bill Clinton's 2nd term in 1996.

Which equals white males.

We also forget Spokane is a military town, not just a college town. This might explain why active rock does far better there than alternative.