KDIA is a radio station of Baybridge Communications in Vallejo, California. It is a separate entity from the station at 1310 AM that held the KDIA call letters for many years. The 1640 AM frequency was licensed as part of an extension of the AM band in 1998, and adopted the abandoned KDIA call letters then. During the day it uses one of KKSF/910's towers. It has a separate night transmitter site.
KDIA 1310 history
The 1310 AM frequency began as KLS in 1921. In 1945, it changed its call letters to KWBR and changed its format to focus on an African-American audience. In 1959, it was bought by the owners of Memphis radio station WDIA, and the call letters were changed to KDIA. During the 1960s through the 1980s, the station was the premier soul and funk station in the San Francisco Bay Area. The station helped launch the careers of such musicians as Sly and the Family Stone. Its tagline at that time was "KDIA, Lucky 13." For four months in 1984-85 the station was owned by Adam Clayton Powell III, during which time it carried the call letters KFYI and broadcast an all-news format. In the early 1990s KDIA was co-owned by then mayor of Oakland, California, Elihu Harris with then California State Assembly Speaker Willie Brown. In 1992, Oakland journalist Chauncey Bailey returned to the Bay Area to work as public affairs director and newscaster on KDIA. Bailey later became the editor of the Oakland Post and was murdered on the streets of downtown Oakland.
KDIA 1640
KDIA 1640 was put on the air in 1996 by Baybridge Communications and has been a Christian talk station since 2002. Its tag line is "The Light for San Francisco". It has since gone through two upgrades and now covers the San Francisco Bay Area, day and night. In 2009, it became the flagship station for Spanish languagenight time broadcasts of Oakland Athletics baseball until the middle of the 2010 season, while sibling station KDYA broadcast daytime games. The original 1640 expanded band station call sign was KXBT, put on the air by then KUIC Chief Engineer Alan McCarthy. The original transmitter was a used Continental 316 Doherty layout converted by Contract Engineer Skipp May. The original antenna system was a diplex layout with sister station 1190, which was formerly KNBA Vallejo. The antenna system was designed by Rich Green and installed by Ralph Jones. The problematic 316 transmitter was upgraded to a BE sometime circa 1996. Alan McCarty left "Quick Broadcasting" for a position at 1530 KFBK Sacramento. McCarthy died from a heart attack. KXBT moved from 1640 to 1630 for short time, then returned to the current 1640 location before being sold, moved and assigned the KDIA call sign. Now the KXBT call letters go to a talk station in Austin, Texas.
