KJACK
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| KJACK | |
 |
|
| City of license | Flagstaff, Arizona |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Coconino County, Arizona |
| Branding | KJACK 1680 AM |
| First air date | 1998 |
| Frequency | 1680 (kHz) |
| Format | Open |
| Callsign meaning | Reference to School Mascot - The Lumberjacks |
| Owner | Northern Arizona University |
| Website | KJACK.org |
KJACK ("Your new Music AXcess") (1680 AM) is a student-run, non-commercial, located at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona, USA. It is part of Student Media Connection and broadcasts to West Flagstaff at 1680 AM and worldwide on Internet radio.
[edit] Fall 1998 - Spring 1999
The station was started in the Spring Semester of 1999 by likeminded students at the School of Communication with the faculty advisement of Dr. Norman J. Medoff. Located in a utility closet on the third floor of the since demolished NAU School Of Communication, rumor has it that a janitor had been bribed in order to secure the use of said utility closet to build a studio.
In its first year, KJACK (then 1450 AM) had only an AM transmitter, a Pentium 1 PC running Real Broadcaster software and Winamp for automation in addition to the limited audio equipment which included an off-brand 4-channel audio mixer running two unidirectional microphones and two generic discmans. Most of this equipment was borrowed and/or donated. Shortly after its inception, a generous donation of equipment was made from local NPR station KNAU (noted as beginning its life as a pirate radio station in the 1960s. KJACK changed frequencies to 1430 AM on August 25, 1999, and went online on November 11, 1999 and has stayed broadcasting both online and locally in Flagstaff ever since.
This first year saw mostly automation as far as broadcasted content goes, with only a handful of DJs manning the Mics. "Specialty Shows" featuring DJs programming, producing and hosting their own shows aired from 4pm to 12am MST, Sunday through Thursday and 8pm onward on weekends.
Staff
- Dr. Norman J. Medoff - General Manager
- Ryan Kloberdanz - Station Manager
- Jennifer Halpin - Administrative Assistant
- Jason Moore - Promotions Director
- Eric Sidio - Sales Director
- Nina Marino - Program Director
- Brent Rosen - Assistant Program Director/Music Director
- Dan Toth - Chief Announcer
- Tameesha Hudson - Assistant Chief Announcer
- John "Giovanni" Arrico - Operations Director
- Kristin Luck - News Director
- Jason Robinson - Webmaster/Network Administrator
- Joshuah "Junior" Hounshell - Assistant Webmaster/Network Administrator & Assistant Music Director
Shows
- Merlin In The Morning - 7:00AM-10:00AM (Weekdays) - Hosted by the "infamous" Merlin whose real name is unknown. He is the half-brother of Coal Chamber vocalist Dez Fafara. It featured the unique humor and wit of the aforementioned host, coupled with numerous guest co-hosts and a blazing wake-up-call of the latest in the world of Heavy Metal. His whereabouts are currently unknown.
- Dot! - 10:00AM-1:00PM (Monday & Friday)
- Bear & E-Train - 10:00AM-1:00PM (Tuesday & Thursday)
- Carolyn Ramsdell - 10:00AM-1:00PM (Wednesdays) - Carolyn could not get enough of radio. She filled in this slot on Wednesdays in addition to co-hosting "Planet E" on Friday nights.
- Kelly - 1:00PM-4:00PM (Monday, Wednesday & Friday)
- Jarrod "Pantless Spoongod" Lyman - 1:00PM-4:00PM (Tuesday & Thursday)
- Matt Short & Nate Yocum - 4:00PM-7:00Pm (Monday & Thursday)
- Birdie - 4:00PM-7:00PM (Tuesday) & 7:0oPM-10:00PM (Wednesday)
- Kendall - 7:00PM-10:00PM (Tuesday) & 4:00PM-7:00PM (Wednesday) - Kendall was the resident uber DJ as he had access to whatever he wanted working for Gopher Sounds, a local Independent Record Store.
- The Good Doctors - 7:00PM-10:00PM (Monday) & 4:00PM-7:00PM (Friday) - Hosted by James Pike and Matt Kalcevich who may or may not have been Pre-med!
- Natty Dread - 7:00PM - 10:00PM (Thursday) - Hosted by Ras Andy Strickland. This was KJACK's first Reggae show, a popular format for the Flagstaff area. Ras Andy was a legend amongst his peers in the Flagstaff Reggae Scene.
- Planet E - 7:00PM-10:00PM (Friday) - Hosted by Frank Rodriguez & Carolyn Ramsdell. This was KJACK & Flagstaff's first EVER Electronic Music show. Featuring an eclectic mix of Techno, Trance, Drum and Bass, Jungle, Hardcore and more!
- Elemental Collective - 10:00PM-1:00AM (Friday) - Hosted by Kevin & Louis. This was KJACK & Flagstaff's first all Rap & Hip-Hop show. With a definitive style and impeccable taste, this duo brought the game every Friday. For more info, see the "Controversy" section
- NAU Talkback Live - 11:00PM-2:00AM (Monday thru Thursday) - Hosted by Cori "The Guinnea" Cassoni, Shana Targosz & Steve Robertson. A nightly outlet for all things Talk! This was by far, the most popular program at the station for its mere 6-week run. The show was cancelled by University Administration. For more info see the "Controversy" section.
- The Rock Show - 10:00PM-1:00AM (Thursday) - Hosted by Joshuah "Junior" Hounshell and Richard "Citizen Dick" Burt, this show was host to all things Rock! Running for a consecutive four semesters, including summers, the show delved into the depths of Rock And Roll coming up for air only for occasional co-host David Ambrose's 30 minute segment entitled "Monkey Spanking Butt-Rock Weekly", which was a showcase of the cheesiest, most-rocking 80's Hair Metal. The show built a steady following of listeners both locally and online, even boasting once as having a listener connecting from Siberia! "The Rock Show" morphed over the summer of 2000 into Wasted Days, a radio show which can be referenced later in this entry. For more info see the "Controversy" section.
[edit] Summer 1999
The summer saw what would become the usual paradigm for KJACK Summer Broadcasting. Very few students manning the microphones, mostly to entertain and occupy themselves. With few students actually enrolled in a class, the airwaves were predominately managed by the automation system that was in use at the time: Winamp. Though a few shows and DJ's stayed on the air.
[edit] Fall 1999 - Spring 2000
The year started off with a surprise to most students at the NAU School Of Communication, a freshly painted building! Along with that, KJACK managed to score themselves a larger room with which to house their studio. An even bigger bonus was the acquiring of two side by side offices for the administrative side of the station. Then came the third and final frequency change, to 1680AM, where the station resides to this day. Armed with a new resolve, the DJ's returned and began recruiting newbies to fill in the gaps. In the Spring of 2000, Dr. Norman Medoff left on a sabbatical and was temporarily replaced for the remainder of this and the next year by Professor Andrew Utterback, an old-school punk rock fanatic with an EXTREME flair for the radio industry.
Staff
- Dr. Norman J. Medoff - General Manager
- Prof. Andrew Utterback - General Manager
- Jason Moore - Station Manager
- Holly - Sales Director
- Brent Rosen - Program Director/Music Director
- Scott Horowitz - Chief Announcer
- Steve Campagna - Operations Manager
- Howard - Webmaster/Network Administrator
- Joshuah "Junior" Hounshell - Assistant Webmaster/Network Administrator & Assistant Music Director
Shows
- Bear & E-Train - 10:00AM-1:00PM (Tuesday & Thursday)
- Carolyn Ramsdell - 10:00AM-1:00PM (Wednesdays) - Carolyn could not get enough of radio. She filled in this slot on Wednesdays in addition to co-hosting "Planet E" on Friday nights.
- Kendall - 7:00PM-10:00PM (Tuesday) & 4:00PM-7:00PM (Wednesday) - Kendall was the resident uber DJ as he had access to whatever he wanted working for Gopher Sounds, a local Independent Record Store.
- The Good Doctors - 7:00PM-10:00PM (Monday) & 4:00PM-7:00PM (Friday) - Hosted by James Pike and Matt Kalcevich who may or may not have been Pre-med!
- Planet E - 7:00PM-10:00PM (Friday) - Hosted by Frank Rodriguez & Carolyn Ramsdell. This was KJACK & Flagstaff's first EVER Electronic Music show. Featuring an eclectic mix of Techno, Trance, Drum and Bass, Jungle, Hardcore and more!
- Elemental Collective - 10:00PM-1:00AM (Friday) - Hosted by Kevin & Louis. This was KJACK & Flagstaff's first all Rap & Hip-Hop show. With a definitive style and impeccable taste, this duo brought the game every Friday. For more info, see the "Controversy" section
- The Rock Show - 10:00PM-1:00AM (Thursday) - Hosted by Joshuah "Junior" Hounshell and Richard "Citizen Dick" Burt, this show was host to all things Rock! Running for a consecutive four semesters, including summers, the show delved into the depths of Rock And Roll coming up for air only for occasional co-host David Ambrose's 30 minute segment entitled "Monkey Spanking Butt-Rock Weekly", which was a showcase of the cheesiest, most-rocking 80's Hair Metal. The show built a steady following of listeners both locally and online, even boasting once as having a listener connecting from Siberia! "The Rock Show" morphed over the summer of 2000 into Wasted Days, a radio show which can be referenced later in this entry. For more info see the "Controversy" section.
[edit] Summer 2000
[edit] Fall 2000 - Spring 2001
[edit] Summer 2001
[edit] Fall 2001 - Spring 2002
[edit] Summer 2002
[edit] Fall 2002 - Spring 2003
[edit] Summer 2003
[edit] Fall 2003 - Spring 2004
[edit] Summer 2004
[edit] Fall 2004 - Spring 2005
[edit] Summer 2005
[edit] Fall 2005 - Spring 2006
[edit] Summer 2006
[edit] Fall 2006 - Spring 2007
Music Director - Jordan Thomas (currently the Program Director for S-Live Radio in Breda, NL)
[edit] Summer 2007
[edit] Controversy
- Elemental Collective lasted a number of years on the air at KJACK. The initial rumor regarding their cancellation dealt with an apparent arrest made at the station by Campus Police regarding Marijuana Use and Possession. This has not been corroborated.
- NAU Talkback Live was cancelled rather unexpectedly by University Administration. The charge being that they had crank-called a professor and that their show contained mention and advocation of illicit drug use. Upon the show's cancellation, its hosts demanded proof of the Universities accusations, which were said to exist in digital recordings of the show. KJACK DJs were notorious for taping their own shows for educational purposes and no proof ever materialized from the University Administration. The DJs were banned from the air and The Rock Show took its place.
- The Rock Show was initially a 1-hour show from 10:00PM-11:00PM on Thursday nights prior to the cancellation of NAU Talkback Live. This often resulted in the hosts and several guest co-hosts accessing the studio after hours for "guerrilla" broadcasts. Oftentimes these broadcasts included tirades against the administration and music not suitable for regular airplay. No recordings of these shows exist, nor was anyone ever "busted". The most notable bit of controversy arising from this show, came in the form of a sticker placed in a urinal inside the 3rd Floor Men's Restroom of the School of Communication, bearing the words "KZGL Sucks!"...a reference to the modern rock radio station KZGL in Flagstaff, Arizona. The members of "The Rock Show" openly claimed responsibility. No punishment was ever issued and the sticker remained on the toilet until the building's demolition in 2005.
[edit] External links
[edit] Citations
KJACK.ORG. Retrieved on December 14, 2006.
KJACK Archive Site. Retrieved on December 14, 2006.
