KION (AM)


KION is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Licensed to Salinas, California, United States, the station serves the Monterey-Salinas-Santa Cruz area. The station is currently owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. and features programming from Fox News Radio, ABC Radio and Premiere Radio Networks.
Its studios are shared with KION-TV in Salinas, and the transmitter is just northeast of the city.

History

The station was assigned the call letters KHTX on December 28, 1991. On January 10, 1992, the station changed its call sign to KRQC. In January 1995, the station reverted to KHTX. On May 1, 1997, the station became KDON, and on October 12, 1998, KTXX. In August 2002, the calls became the current KION; however, on October 19, 2004, the station changed to KABL adopting an MOR Standards format. On December 31, 2006, the station dropped the Standards format reverting to the News/Talk format and changing its call sign back to KION. In 2011, KION added an FM translator at 101.1 mHz. In 2016 the translator was relicensed to transmit the HD2 channel of KOCN-FM Pacific Grove at 105.1 mHz. The HD2 signal is a simulcast of KION's AM signal, but it separates programming at various times to originate play-by-play sports and other originating local programming when the AM station is airing a brokered program or a live sports event.

Programming

KION is the home of Armstrong & Getty, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, America Now and Coast to Coast AM. Weekend programming has various programming and time brokered paid programs including Bill Cunningham, Kim Komando and simulcasts NBC's Meet The Press. KION is the local over-the-air home of the San Francisco 49ers, San Jose State Spartans, Cal State Monterey Bay Otters, San Jose Sharks, Golden State Warriors and local high school football and basketball featuring Palma School and Salinas High School.