KXTG

KXTG (750 AM, "The Game") is a commercial radio station in Portland, Oregon. It airs a sports radio format and is owned by Alpha Media, a company headed by veteran radio executive Larry Wilson. The studios are on SW 5th Avenue in downtown Portland.

By day, KXTG is powered at 50,000 watts, the maximum for AM radio stations. As 750 AM is a clear channel frequency reserved for Class A station WSB in Atlanta, KXTG reduces power at night to 20,000 watts using a directional antenna with a four-tower array. The transmitter is on SE Curtis Road in Damascus.

Programming

KXTG is Portland's flagship home to the Portland Timbers of Major League Soccer. It also carries Seattle Mariners baseball and games in the NCAA March Madness. It had served as home of the Portland Steel in the Arena Football League in 2016.

John Canzano hosts ''The Bald Faced Truth'' weekday afternoons on KXTG. Canzano's show was the inaugural sports program when the station was launched on May 12, 2008. Among the guests that first day were golfer Peter Jacobsen and former U.S. President Barack Obama. Canzano's program is the only local show on the weekday schedule. In middays, two popular nationally syndicated programs are heard, ''The Dan Patrick Show'' and ''The Jim Rome Show''. The rest of the day and on weekends, the station runs the Infinity Sports Network, with some programs from the BetMGM Network.

History

Early years

The station signed on the air on December 13, 1926. The original call sign was KXL. In its earliest days, KXL would broadcast on different frequencies. By the 1930s, the station was heard on 1420 kHz, sharing time with KBPS, now on 1450 AM.

In that era, KXL's power was limited to 250 watts by day, 100 watts at night. The studios were in the Multnomah Hotel on Pine Street in Portland. With the enactment of the North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement (NARBA) in 1941, KXL moved to 750 AM and got a boost in power to 10,000 watts. On 750, KXL was a daytimer, required to go off the air at night to protect Class I-A station WSB Atlanta from interference. KXL also relocated its studios to Washington Street.

Good Music

By the 1960s, the daytime power was increased to 50,000 watts. By day, KXL played an easy listening format it called "Good Music". Artists included Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee, Perry Como, Nat King Cole, and Henry Mancini. But KXL was still silent after sunset due to restrictions on 750 AM.

On May 13, 1965, the FCC approved the $125,000 sale of KGMG, a station at 95.5 FM. It was bought by KXL's parent company, Seattle, Portland & Spokane Radio. Two months later, on July 5, 1965, KGMG became KXL-FM and began duplicating KXL's "Good Music" format as ''KXL & KXL-FM Stereo''.

In 1970, KXL-AM-FM switched to a middle of the road (MOR) format as "KXL-FM Stereo 95". Most large city FM stations by the 1970s could not fully simulcast their AM stations, but this rule did not apply to AM stations that were daytimers. KXL and KXL-FM continued this practice through 1974 when KXL-FM began airing a separate format.

On March 26, 1999, 95.5 FM became KXJM, with a successful rhythmic contemporary format that lasted until May 12, 2008, when it switched formats to sports. The KXJM call letters, hip-hop format and all other intellectual property were acquired by CBS Radio and moved to 107.5 FM.

The FCC had relaxed restrictions on its clear channel frequencies. With Portland from Atlanta, KXL was allowed to broadcast around the clock, using a directional antenna powered at 20,000 watts at night.

Move KXL to FM 101.1

In the early 2000s, KXL's news/talk format was becoming more popular. Management saw that some listeners wanted to hear its programming in clearer FM sound, so plans were made to switch KXL to the FM band.

KXL was bought by Alpha Broadcasting in 2009, along with sister station KXTG 95.5 FM. At 8:47 a.m. on March 15, 2011, KXL started simulcasting on 101.1 FM, replacing the active rock format of KUFO. For two months, KXL's news/talk format was heard on both stations. Then at 4 p.m. on May 25, 2011, the 750 frequency switched from news/talk to sports, changing its branding to "750 The Game"; the format was moved from 95.5 FM, which became KBFF. On June 1, 2011, after 85 years as KXL, the station took on 95.5's former KXTG call sign to match "The Game" branding.

In 2013, KXTG switched affiliations from Fox Sports Radio to NBC Sports Radio. Fox Sports Radio is now on KPOJ, owned by iHeartMedia. In October 2015, KXTG switched affiliations from NBC Sports Radio to CBS Sports Radio. In 2024, CBS Sports Radio changed its name to the Infinity Sports Network.

FM translator

In July 2014, KXTG began simulcasting on FM translator K274AR 102.7 FM. On December 19, 2014, K274AR upgraded from 10 watts at 102.7 FM to 99 watts at 102.9 FM. On February 3, 2015, K274AR changed call letters to K275CH.

In August 2019, KXTG dropped its simulcast on the 102.9 FM translator frequency, due to a format change to hip hop music.KXTG to Drop FM Simulcast
Radioinsight -August 23, 2019 KXTG's sports programming is now available on 750 AM, on the iHeartRadio platform and on the Alpha Media Player.

Ownership history

From 1955 to 1998, KXL was owned by Les Smith. Rose City Radio, a company controlled by Portland Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen, bought it and KXTG from Smith in 1998 for a reported $42 million. In May 2009, it was announced that Larry Wilson, the founder and former owner of Citadel Broadcasting, bought KXL and KXTG from Rose City for $11 million.

References

External links

KXTG official website
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FCC History Cards for KXTG

{{Alpha Media

XTG
Sports radio stations in the United States
Radio stations established in 1926
1926 establishments in Oregon
Infinity Sports Network stations
Alpha Media radio stations