KWOD
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| Broadcast area | Sacramento, California |
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| Slogan | "Everything Alternative" |
| Frequency | 106.5 FM kHz |
| Format | Modern Rock |
| ERP | 50,000 watts |
| Class | B |
| Owner | Entercom |
| Website | www.kwod.net |
KWOD 106.5 is a radio station in Sacramento, California. They are owned by Entercom and currently carry a modern rock format.
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[edit] History
From 1977 to 2003, KWOD was independently-owned by Royce International Broadcasting headed by Edward R. Stolz II, and the result was a fresh and original radio experience. It started out as a Beautiful Music station, then a Adult Contemporary/Jazz hybrid but evolved into a Contemporary Hit Station by the beginning of the '80s. Its call letters referred to quadrophonic sound, as the station was one of the first to experiment with the technology, which never caught on.
At times, KWOD was among the top five rated stations in Sacramento during the '80s under the programming of Tom Chase and "Mr. Ed" Lambert. It was as a top 40 station that KWOD enjoyed its highest ratings ever in 1985, when it hit the No. 2 spot in the market, behind KSFM. In 1991, the station remained a top 40 reporter to radio industry trade magazines, but began to mix in alternative music under the programming of Operations Manager Gerry Cagle and Program Director Alex Cosper. Cagle had also programmed notable stations around the country, such as KHJ in Los Angeles, and KFRC in San Francisco. Cosper had worked as Mr. Ed's assistant in the '80s, and at rival Top 40 station, KROY.
After Cagle's departure in 1993, programming decisions went to Cosper, who convinced Stolz to shift the format entirely to alternative music. He also hired the morning team of Shawn Cash and Jeff Jensen. The result was that the station rebounded from the bottom of the ratings to the top five again. In 1995, KWOD reached its ratings peak with the alternative rock format. Cosper remained with the station until 1996, and later wrote an in depth book about his experience called, "The Rise of Alternative Radio." Cosper returned to work for parent company Royce International at KRCK in Palm Springs in 2006.
Ron Bunce assumed control of KWOD's programming in 1997, and took the station to an edgier harder rock direction.
In 2003, Entercom acquired KWOD after a seven-year court battle, stemming from an apparent deal to sell the station, back in 1996.
Over time, there was a lot of staff turnover. Though morning personalities Shawn & Jeff left for KZZO, the successors, Boomer and the Dave, held on to the morning audience. Comedian Kelly Pryce eventually replaced Dave and the show later featured DJ Mervin and Ian Gary.
In Spring, 2005, KWOD was fully overhauled, and became "KWOD v2.0", with a more Modern AC approach. Artists such as John Mayer and Tracy Chapman were added as harder rock bands like KoЯn and Deftones were dropped. The entire air staff was also replaced. The station has since shifted back toward its original approach. Unfortunately, the heritage KWOD airstaff (Boomer & The Dave, Andy Sims, Nick Monroe, and Capone) did not shift back with it setting KWOD back to square one. The 18-34 ratings for KWOD, which were consistently ranked in the top 5 in the market before the sale, have not recovered.
In early 2006, KWOD picked up the syndicated Adam Carolla show for morning drive, and since has grown into a more focused project lead by its disc jockeys and a strong program of music complemented by a successful "Never More Than 2 Minutes of Commercials" campaign that has only added fuel to KWOD's credibility fire. The station continues to evolve its sound and image, now fitting into a more traditional Adult Alternative Rock station's mold, with all the Emo anyone could want.
KWOD's voiceovers are currently done by Mason Pettit of New York's Abram's Artist Agency, produced by Chadd Pierce-- Creative Services Director of KWOD and sister station, KRXQ!!
[edit] Trivia
- The last song ever played on the original KWOD 106.5 was the Incubus song Nice To Know You.
- After all the original DJ's where let go after it changed to KWOD 2.0, jock Nick Monroe opened up a Beach Hut Deli in downtown Sacramento.
- Capone and Andy Sims are the only jock that have worked at both the Original KWOD and now on the newer KWOD. Even though Andy Sims during the week he works at KCTC there sister station on the second most listened to morning show. The Morning retort with Scott and Sims.
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- "The Rise of Alternative Radio", by Alex Cosper
- Arbitron, Radio & Records, Billboard, Sacramento Bee, All Access
| Sacramento FM radio stations (Arbitron #27)
By frequency: 87.7¹ | 88.1 | 88.9 | 89.3 | 90.5 | 90.9 | 91.5 | 92.1 | 92.5 | 93.7 | 94.3 | 94.7 | 96.1 | 96.9 | 97.7 | 97.9 | 98.5 | 99.9 | 100.5 | 101.1 | 101.5 | 101.9 | 102.5 | 103.3 | 103.5 | 103.9 | 104.3 | 105.1 | 105.5 | 105.5 | 105.9 | 106.5 | 107.9 By callsign: K290AI | KBAA | KBMB | KCCL | KDEE | KDND | KEAR | KGBY | KHYL | KKFS | KKTO | KLMG | KMJE | KNCI | KQEI | KQJK | KRCX | KRXQ | KSEG | KSFM | KSSJ | KTKZ | KTTA | KVIE | KWOD | KXCL | KXJZ | KXSE | KXPR | KYDS | KYMX | KZZO ¹ Audio for TV channel 6 (PBS) |
