KBRT

KBRT

Simulcast withKNSNSan Diego
Costa Mesa, California
Broadcast area	Los Angeles metropolitan area
Frequency	740kHz(HD Radio)
Branding	K-BRITE
Programming
Format	Christian talk and teaching
Ownership
Owner	Crawford Broadcasting (Kiertron, Inc.)
Sister stations	KNSN
History
First air date	June 1, 1952(1952-06-01)
Former call signs	KBIG (1952–1979)
Technical information
Licensing authority	FCC
Facility ID	34588
Class	D
Power	50,000wattsday 190 watts night
Transmitter coordinates	33°49′44″N117°38′18″W
Translator(s)	100.7K274CI (Corona)
Links
Public license information	Public file LMS
Webcast	Listen Live
Website	kbriteradio

KBRT(740AM,known on-air as K-BRITE) is aSouthern Californianradio station.It airs aChristian talk and teachingradio formatand is owned byCrawford Broadcasting.It islicensedtoCosta Mesa, California,and servesLos AngelesandOrange countiesand can be heard inThe Inland EmpireandSan Diego County.National religious leaders heard on K-Brite includeDavid Jeremiah,Alistair Begg,Joyce Meyer,Charles StanleyandRick Warren.Theradio studiosand business offices are on Airway Avenue in Costa Mesa.

By day, KBRT transmits 50,000watts,the maximum for American AM stations. It is aClass Dstation broadcasting on the Canadianclear-channelfrequency of740 AM,so to avoid interference with Class A stationCFZMTorontoand Class B stationKCBSSan Francisco,at night KBRT greatly reduces power to 190 watts. It uses adirectional antennawith a four-tower array.Thetransmitteris on Black Star Canyon Road inSanta Ana.KBRT is licensed by theU.S. Federal Communications Commissionto broadcast in theHD Radiohybrid format.Programming is also heard on 13-wattFM translatorK274CIat 100.7MHzinCorona.

History

Early years

The stationsigned onthe air on June 1, 1952(1952-06-01).It was adaytimerstation, powered at 10,000 watts during the day but required to go off the air at night. The station was founded by entrepreneur John H. Poole as KBIG. Poole had worked atKEZYinAnaheim,and was founder of KBIC-TV (nowKWHY-TV) in Los Angeles. Later, he would ownKBIG-FM.Studios were located at the transmitter site inAvalononSanta Catalina Island.But because it required a boat ride to get to and from the site, the studios were later relocated to the mainland coast.

From the beginning, there were contentious disagreements with co-channelKCBS740 inSan Franciscoover interference between the stations. Much of the path between stations' transmitters was over highly conductive seawater.

According to the July 28, 1979 issue ofBillboard Magazine,Bonneville Communicationsowned KBRT prior to the sale to Crawford Broadcasting. Bonneville, owned by theChurch of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints(LDS), has dabbled on and off in the Los Angeles radio market. Bonneville also once ownedKSWD,"The Sound" at 100.3 FM. After changing call signs from KBIG, KBRT was a mixture of secular and Christian music, with all programming taped, and all song "intros and outros" recorded by professional announcers. There was no live, "on-air" talent until after changing over to a completely Christian radio format.

1980s

In 1980, the station switched to a Christian talk and teaching format after being purchased by Donald Crawford ofCrawford Broadcasting.Upon the death ofPercy Crawford,the company's founder, the assets of the original Crawford Broadcasting were split up among his heirs. Just prior to the switch, KBRT playedContemporary Christian Musicfrom sunrise to sunset. The daily sign-on began with a recording of a man's voice: "Good morning. This is K-B-R-T Avalon, and we now begin another day of broadcasting over Southern California. K-B-R-T radio broadcasts on an assigned frequency of 740 kilohertz with a power output of 10,000 watts by authority of theFederal Communications Commission.K-B-R-T's transmitter is located on Santa Catalina Island, and is operated by Kiertron, Incorporated. "(Note: Disc jockeys made multiple mentions of" Transmitter Tom, "who lived on Catalina Island, and oversaw the station's transmitter.)

Air personalities have included Clark Race, Johnny Magnus,Paul McGuire,Rich Buhler,Dave Sebastian Williams and Program Director, Mike Trout. Magnus featured his trademark "Weather With a Beat," where he would list U.S. and world city temperatures to an upbeat instrumental background. A typical background music track for "Weather With a Beat" wasCount Basie's version ofNeal Hefti's tune, "Cute", featuringFrank Wesson flute. Previously, KBRT was known asKBIG,airingEasy Listeningmusic.

2000s

Former logo

Contractors cutting a steel antenna cable with a gas-powered circular saw caused thewildfirethat began on May 10, 2007. KBRT had to shut down the transmitter, which was not damaged. Until the transmitter was repaired, the station aired only on KBRT740.

Starting on September 19, 2011, KBRT featured David Housholder, Orange County author and pastor, and Roger Marsh in the 3pm-5pm drive-home slot, with "The Bottom Line", a current events show with features in legal, educational, health, and finance segments, replacing "Talk from the Heart" with Rich Buhler, previously hosted by Paul McGuire. Housholder exited "The Bottom Line" in April 2013."The Bottom Line" reaches most AM radios in California, since it is syndicated onKCBC770 AM in the Sacramento/Bay Area region.

For many years, KBRT broadcast at 10,000 watts sunrise to sunset as a daytimer station. On February 28, 2013, KBRT moved to a new transmitter site nearCorona, California.It began broadcasting at 50,000 watts sunrise to sunset, added nighttime authorization at 190 watts and had itscity of licensechanged to Costa Mesa.

External links

• KBRT official website
• Facility details for Facility ID 34588 (KBRT)in theFCCLicensing and Management System
• KBRTinNielsen Audio's AM station database
• CBS story citing KBRT as the cause of the MAY '07 fire
• FCC History Cards for KBRT