KSMA (1240 AM) is a commercial

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radi ...

that is licensed to

Santa Maria, California Santa Maria ( Spanish for " St. Mary") is a city near the Central Coast of California in northern Santa Barbara County. It is approximately northwest of Santa Barbara and northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Its population was 109,707 at the ...

, United States and serves the Santa Maria-

Lompoc Lompoc ( ; Chumash: ''Lum Poc'') is a city in Santa Barbara County, California. Located on the Central Coast, Lompoc has a population of 43,834 as of July 2021. Lompoc has been inhabited for thousands of years by the Chumash people, who calle ...

area. The station is owned by

American General Media American General Media is a media company specializing in radio. It was founded by Lawrence Brandon and is operated by sons Anthony and Rogers. American General Media is headquartered in Bakersfield, California. Lawrence Brandon owned and o ...

and broadcasts a

news/talk Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featur ...

format Format may refer to: Printing and visual media * Text formatting, the typesetting of text elements * Paper formats, or paper size standards * Newspaper format, the size of the paper page Computing * File format, particular way that informati ...

. KSMA is rebroadcast on

FM translator A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater (two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or tra ...

K258CY at 99.5 FM in Santa Maria. KSMA is an affiliate of the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC Wes ...

radio network.

History

KSMA was the first radio station in Santa Maria, signing on in 1946 at 1450 AM. Its original owners were Hugh G., Charles A., and Mareby Cardella Shurtliff, and Cleo Agnes Center. In 1947, the station was sold to Santa Maria Broadcasting Company, owned by R.H. Hardenbergh and W.J. Davison, for $32,500. On July 13, 1948, Santa Maria Broadcasting sold KSMA to John M. Poole for $20,750; the deal was approved by the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisd ...

(FCC) December 9. On October 17, 1949, the FCC approved KSMA's request to move to 1240 AM. After only two years of ownership, in December 1950, Poole sold the station to James Hagerman and John I. Groom for $27,500. From its inception through the 1960s, KSMA aired a

full service Full service or Full Service may refer to: * Full-service radio, a wide range of programming * Full Service Network, a communications company Entertainment * "Full Service", a song by the New Kids on the Block from their album ''The Block'' * Fu ...

format, airing a mix of news, sports, and

middle of the road music Middle of the road (also known by its acronym MOR) is a commercial radio format and popular music genre. Music associated with this term is strongly melodic and uses techniques of vocal harmony and light orchestral arrangements. The format was even ...

. It was one of the original stations of the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

radio network that began airing games during the inaugural 1949

All-America Football Conference The All-America Football Conference (AAFC) was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League (NFL) from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the ...

season. The studios were originally located in downtown Santa Maria next to the old post office before the downtown area underwent renovation in the 1980s. Following Groom's death in 1976, in accordance with his will, the FCC granted Hagerman complete control of the licenses of KSMA and its FM sister station KSMA-FM. Groom's share of the stations, however, was transferred to his wife, Nona M. Groom. In January 1980, Hagerman and Nona Groom sold KSMA-AM-FM to Bayliss Broadcasting Company for $1.4 million. The company was owned by John Bayliss, who resigned from his position as president of

Gannett Company Gannett Co., Inc. () is an American mass media holding company headquartered in McLean, Virginia, in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.oldies Oldies is a term for musical genres such as pop music, rock and roll, doo-wop, surf music (broadly characterized as classic rock and pop rock) from the second half of the 20th century, specifically from around the mid-1950s to the 1980s, as wel ...

format. In August 1999, Bayliss Broadcasting sold KSMA and its FM sister station, then known as KSNI-FM, to

Fresno Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...

-based Mondosphere Broadcasting for $3.75 million. The new owner took possession of the combo on September 30. KSMA changed hands twice during the 2000s. In September 2000, Mondosphere Broadcasting Inc. sold 11 stations throughout

Central California Central California is generally thought of as the middle third of the state, north of Southern California, which includes Los Angeles, and south of Northern California, which includes San Francisco. It includes the northern portion of the San Jo ...

, including KSMA, plus a

construction permit Planning permission or developmental approval refers to the approval needed for construction or expansion (including significant renovation), and sometimes for demolition, in some jurisdictions. It is usually given in the form of a building per ...

for a twelfth station, to

Clear Channel Communications iHeartMedia, Inc., formerly CC Media Holdings, Inc., is an American mass media corporation headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It is the holding company of iHeartCommunications, Inc. (formerly Clear Channel Communications, Inc.), a company fou ...

for $45 million. In July 2007, KSMA and KSNI-FM were among 16 Clear Channel stations in California and Arizona purchased by El Dorado Broadcasters for $40 million. On November 30, 2007, the station changed call letters to KSMX. In early 2016, El Dorado began selling off its stations on the Central Coast. The first of these divestitures was KSMX and KSNI-FM, sold together on February 26 to

(AGM) for $1.5 million. KSMX changed its call sign back to KSMA on May 16.

References

External links

FCC History Cards for KSMA
* * * {{News/Talk Radio Stations in California SMA (AM) News and talk radio stations in the United States Santa Maria, California 1946 establishments in California Radio stations established in 1946