The station's roots can be traced back to KSO, which began broadcasting from Clarinda, Iowa, on November 2, 1925. On June 26, 1931, the Cowles family, publishers of the Des Moines Register and Tribune, bought KSO. They moved the station to Des Moines on November 5, 1932. KSO became an NBC Blue Networkaffiliate, carrying its schedule of dramas, comedies, news, sports, soap operas, game shows and big band broadcasts during the "Golden Age of Radio. At that time, the station broadcast on 1370 kHz with 250 watts daytime and 100 watts at night and had its studios in the newspaper's building. After several frequency changes during the station's early years, KSO moved from 1320 to 1430 AM on March 17, 1935. KRNT radio took over KSO's old frequency, while KSO replaced the Cowles-owned KWCR in Cedar Rapids. KSO changed frequencies one last time as part of the North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement of 1941, moving from 1430 to 1460 AM. KSO and KRNT were both owned by the Cowles family until 1944, when they sold KSO after the FCC ruled that one company could not own two radio stations in the same market. KSO had a successful country music format from 1974 until 1989. On September 1, KSO began simulcasting KGGO-FM's album rock format, taking on the KGGOcall sign in the process. In 1994, the station became KDMI, broadcasting religious and Spanish language programming. Clear Channel Communications acquired KDMI in 2000. On January 1, 2001, KDMI became KXNO and adopted its current sports radio format. KXNO had two direct competitors: AM 940 KXTK and FM 107.1 KJJC. Both stations changed formats by mid-2003. KXNO now competes with 1700 KBGG "The Champ," a CBS Sports Radio affiliate, and AM 1350 KRNT, known as ESPN Radio 1350 Des Moines. In 2008, KXNO was nominated for a Marconi Award as the "Sports Station of the Year," given annually by the National Association of Broadcasters. On January 14, 2020, KXNO laid off its programming director, a producer, and four on-air personalities as part of a larger wave of layoffs by iHeartMedia due to a corporate restructuring. The layoffs included its morning hosts Travis Justice and Heather Burnside, and afternoon drive hosts Chris Williams and Ross Peterson. The layoffs were met with a negative response: in solidarity with their colleagues, fellow KXNO hosts Andy Fales and Keith Murphy protested the layoffs by cancelling their show for the day, and encouraged local sponsors to threaten boycotts of the station. Fales told Rolling Stone that the threat of the station's programming of local interest being replaced by nationally-syndicated personalities, with no adequate alternative available, was a disservice to the region's "passionate sports fans". The layoffs also generated criticism from listeners via social media. On January 16, 2020, the station's general manager Joel McCrea announced that iHeartMedia had given him permission to reinstate the employees. In addition, it was announced that KDXA would drop its alternative rock format and become an FM simulcast of KXNO.
Larry Cotlar and Marty Tirrell Feud
During 2008 and 2009, a feud brewed between morning show host Larry Cotlar and afternoon drive host Marty Tirrell. Tirrell and his radio partner, Ken Miller, had been critical of Cotlar's perceived bias towards the Drake UniversityBulldogs. They were also critical of Cotlar's interview style of "lobbing softball questions" to his guests. On March 20, 2009, things boiled over in the KXNO studios as Tirrell initiated a verbal tirade, using harsh words that was heard briefly on the air. They included the "F" word a dozen times, mostly by Tirrell, who at times seemed to be on the verge of a breakdown. The two were suspended for a week as a result, with The Dan Patrick Show temporarily taking its time slot. On March 25, both hosts, as well as the board operator, Geoff Conn, were fired from their positions. FCC complaint reports were filed March 25 from an anonymous source. Tirell's weekly sports commentary for CBS affiliate Channel 8 KCCI, Mouth of the Midwest, was also cancelled. Cotlar later apologized to Clear Channel to and the station's listeners for the incident. Cotlar's morning slot was filled by Jon Miller, the sports director of sister station WHO, and Steve Deace, who hosted an afternoon talk show on WHO and previously hosted an afternoon show on KXNO. On April 20, a new show hosted by WHO-TV personalities Keith Murphy and Andy Fales debuted in the 2-4 p.m. time slot. Tirrell and Cotlar later joined rival station KBGG.
