KOZN

KOZN (1620 AM) is a sports station licensed to Bellevue, Nebraska, and serving the Omaha metropolitan area. It is owned by NRG Media, with studios at Dodge Street and 50th Avenue in Midtown Omaha. It airs a sports radio format.

KOZN
Broadcast areaOmaha metropolitan area
Frequency1620 kHz
Branding1620 The Zone
Programming
FormatSports
AffiliationsFox Sports Radio
Kansas City Royals
NFL on Westwood One Sports
Ownership
Owner
KMMQ, KOIL, KZOT, KQKQ-FM, KOOO, KOPW
History
First air date
September 1999 (September 1999) (as KAZP)
Former call signs
KAZP (1998-2001)
Call sign meaning
K Omaha ZoNe
Technical information
Facility ID87182
ClassB
Power10,000 watts day
1,000 watts night
Links
WebcastListen Live
Website1620thezone.com

By day, KOZN is powered at 10,000 watts non-directional. But at night, to avoid interfering with other stations on 1620 AM, it reduces power to 1,000 watts. The transmitter site is on Harrison Street at South 60th Street in Bellevue, Nebraska.[1]

Programming

KOZN has local sports programming Monday through Friday from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Weekdays begin with Mornings with Sharp and Handley followed by The Connor Happer Show in middays, Unsportsmanlike Conduct, hosted by John Bishop and Josh Peterson, in afternoon drive time, and After Hours with Jimmy Allen in early evenings. Other local shows includeThe Creighton Athletics Hour hosted by Ravi Lulla, Severe Reaction with Mike'l Severe, and pre and postgame shows for University of Nebraska Cornhuskers football and Creighton University basketball and baseball.

NRG Media owns two sports stations in the Omaha radio market: KOZN 1620 and KZOT 1180. KOZN features mostly local sports talk shows with Fox Sports Radio heard late nights and weekends. KZOT airs mostly CBS Sports Radio programming. KOZN carries Westwood One NFL Football and NCAA Basketball, as well as some Kansas City Royals baseball games. KOZN originates and produces all game broadcasts of the NCAA Men's College World Series, held each June in Omaha, and distributed nationally by Westwood One. Play by play is provided by eight-time Nebraska Sportscaster of the Year Kevin Kugler.

History

KOZN originated as the AM expanded band "twin" of an existing station on the standard AM dial. On March 17, 1997 the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that 88 stations had been given permission to move to newly available "Expanded Band" transmitting frequencies, ranging from 1610 to 1700 kHz. KOIL (now KZOT) in Bellevue was authorized to move from 1180 to 1620 kHz.[2] An application to construct the expanded band station, also located in Bellevue, was filed by Mitchell Broadcasting on June 16, 1997, which was assigned the call letters KAZP on January 9, 1998.[3] This station on 1620 AM began broadcasting in September 1999 (September 1999). The call letters were changed to KOZN on October 3, 2001.[3]

The FCC's initial policy was that both the original station and its expanded band counterpart could operate simultaneously for up to five years, after which owners would have to turn in one of the two licenses, depending on whether they preferred the new assignment or elected to remain on the original frequency.[2] However, this deadline has been extended multiple times, and broadcasting on both 1180 and 1620 kHz has remained authorized. One restriction is that the FCC has generally required paired original and expanded band stations to remain under common ownership.[4][5]

The original morning team of John Desjardins and Mike Steele, aka "Louie & The Animal" was called The Cage. It was replaced by the Bruno-Golic Morning Show when the station debuted the ESPN Radio full-time lineup. Unsportsmanlike Conduct began with Kevin Kugler and Bob Bruce in 2000, and has been on the air continually since. As of February 1, 2011, 1620 The Zone discontinued its affiliation with ESPN Radio, switching to Fox Sports Radio. ESPN programming is now heard nights and weekends on KXSP 590 AM in Omaha.

References
  1. Radio-Locator.com/KOZN
  2. "FCC Public Notice: Mass Media Bureau Announces Revised AM Expanded Band Allotment Plan and Filing Window for Eligible Stations" (FCC DA 97-537), March 17, 1997. This notice lists KOIL under its earlier call sign of KKAR.
  3. "Call Sign History" (FCC.gov)
  4. "In re: WHLY(AM), South Bend, Indiana" (FCC DA 13-600, released April 3, 2013)
  5. "Re: WDDD (AM) Application for Consent to Assignment of AM Broadcast Station License" (August 23, 2010 correspondence from Peter H. Doyle, Chief, FCC Audio Division, Media Bureau. Reference Number 1800B3-TSN)

41°11′21″N 96°00′19″W

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