KMVP

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KMVP
City of license Phoenix, Arizona
Broadcast area Phoenix area
Frequency 860 kHz (Also on HD Radio)
First air date 1953
Format Spanish Religious
Power 1,000 watts
Class B
Facility ID 1326
Transmitter Coordinates 33°24′11.00″N 112°7′23.00″W / 33.4030556, -112.1230556
Callsign meaning K Most Valuable Player (nod to former sports format)
Former callsigns KVVA (1982-1996)
Affiliations Radio Vida Abundante
Owner Bonneville International
(Bonneville Holding Company)
Sister stations KMVP, KPKX, KTAR, KTAR-FM
Webcast Web Stream
Website Radio Vida Abundante

KMVP (860 AM) is the callsign for a radio station in Phoenix, Arizona. It airs programming from Radio Vida Abundante. KMVP is owned by Bonneville International Corporation.[1]

[edit] History

The 860 kHz frequency was occupied by several radio stations in Phoenix. The first station signed on the air as early as 1953 with the call letters KIFN. KIFN was Phoenix's first full-time Spanish-language radio station. [1] From the time it signed on until the early 1980s, KIFN operated as a daytime-only station. For many years, KIFN was owned by the Tichenor family, which owned a group of Spanish-language stations that ultimately became the Hispanic Broadcasting Corporation. After being sold in 1982, the call letters became KVVA ("Viva"), and the new owners retained its Spanish-language format.

In 1996, Pulitzer Broadcasting Company purchased the station out of bankruptcy with intentions on moving play-by-play sports contracts from KTAR (then a news and talk outlet) as KMVP. Eventually, station and team owners found the KMVP nighttime signal too weak to cover the entire Phoenix metropolitan area for play-by-play coverage, and the Suns and Diamondbacks moved back to KTAR with KMVP retaining broadcasts of the Mercury and Rattlers games. Over time, KMVP added more national sports talk (including ESPN Radio) and less local programs.

Since then, ownership has passed from Pulitzer to Hearst-Argyle, Emmis Communications, and now Bonneville.[2]

KMVP used to simulcast with KTAR at 620 kHz, also owned by Bonneville. The simulcast of KTAR and KMVP ended on April 14, 2007. On August 27, KMVP converted to Spanish language religious programming from Radio Vida Abundante.

[edit] References

  1. ^ KMVP Facility Record. United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
  2. ^ Federal Communications Commission. Application Search Results for KMVP. Retrieved on 2007-01-01.

[edit] External links