KTHI (107.1 FM, "107.1 Hank FM") is a commercial

radio station Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting 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 rad ...

located in

Caldwell, Idaho Caldwell (locally CALL-dwel) is a city in and the county seat of Canyon County, Idaho, United States. The population was 68,336 at the time of th2023 United States census making it the List of cities in Idaho, 5th most populous city in Idaho. C ...

, broadcasting to the

Boise, Idaho Boise ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Idaho, most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, there were 235,685 people residing in the city. Loca ...

, area. KTHI airs a classic country music format.

History

The station launched in 1983 as a

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

station branded as "C-107" with the KCID-FM call sign. In 1997, the station flipped to a Modern AC format and was rebranded as "107.1 CID". On May 4, 1999, the station flipped to Adult Contemporary and was rebranded as "Star 107.1". In 2002, KCID-FM changed its call sign to KTHI and flipped to a classic hits format and rebranded as "107.1 K-Hits". On May 2, 2024, as part of a series of layoffs at Lotus' Boise stations, midday host Barry Lewis and afternoon host Bridget Bonde left the station. On May 6 at 9 a.m. after playing "

It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine) "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)" is a song by American Rock music, rock band R.E.M., which first appeared on their 1987 album, ''Document (album), Document''. It was released as the album's second music single, single ...

" by

R.E.M. R.E.M. was an American alternative rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the fir ...

, KTHI dropped the classic hits format after 22 years and began stunting, looping a playlist of songs themed around change in some fashion and declaring it was "time for a change" for the station. At 10 a.m., KTHI flipped to classic country as "107.1 Hank FM", joining a series of stations nationwide launching the format that year; the first song on "Hank" was "

It's Five O'Clock Somewhere "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere" is a song performed by Alan Jackson and Jimmy Buffett, and written by Jim "Moose" Brown and Don Rollins. It was released in June 2003 as the lead single from Jackson's 2003 compilation album '' Greatest Hits Volume ...

" by

Alan Jackson Alan Eugene Jackson (born October 17, 1958) is an American country music singer-songwriter. He is known for performing a style widely regarded as "neotraditional country", as well as writing many of his own songs. Jackson has recorded 21 studi ...

and

Jimmy Buffett James William Buffett (December 25, 1946 – September 1, 2023) was an American singer-songwriter, author, and businessman. He was known for his tropical rock sound and persona, which often portrayed a lifestyle described as "island escapis ...

. It joins a crowded country field in the market with three other stations -

KIZN KIZN (92.3 FM) is a commercial radio station located in Boise, Idaho. KIZN airs a country music format branded as ''Kissin 92.3''. History Early years (1967–1978) The station was launched in December 1967 as KATN-FM. On August 1, 1968, ...

, KQBL, and KAWO.

Ownership Changes

Journal Communications Journal Media Group (formerly Journal Communications) was a Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based newspaper publishing company. The company's roots were first established in 1882 as the owner of its namesake, the ''Milwaukee Journal'', and expanded into br ...

(KTHI's former owner) and the

E. W. Scripps Company The E. W. Scripps Company, also known as Scripps, is an American broadcasting company founded in 1878 as a chain of daily newspapers by Edward Willis "E. W." Scripps and his sister, Ellen Browning Scripps. It was also formerly a media conglom ...

announced on July 30, 2014, that the two companies would merge to create a new broadcast company under the E.W. Scripps Company name that will own the two companies' broadcast properties, including KTHI. The transaction is slated to be completed in 2015, pending shareholder and regulatory approvals. In January 2018, Scripps announced that it would sell all of its radio stations. In August 2018,

Lotus Communications Lotus Communications Corporation is a media company that owns numerous radio stations and a few TV stations, and is one of the largest privately owned radio station groups in the United States. Headquarters are located in Los Angeles, and the co ...

announced that it would acquire Scripps' Boise & Tucson clusters for $8 million. The sale was completed on December 12.

References

External links

* Classic country radio stations in the United States Caldwell, Idaho Radio stations established in 1983 1983 establishments in Idaho Lotus Communications stations THI {{Idaho-radio-station-stub