KIHT
Encyclopedia
KIHT is an FM
radio station often referred to by St. Louis
area listeners as "Classic Hits KHITS 96".
Music that is played on this station is classic hits from the 1970s and 1980s, with an occasional trip to the 1990s.
KHITS 96 is home to some of St. Louis' most legendary radio announcers, including Rick Sanborn, John Ulett, "Radio Rich" Dalton and Drew Johnson. It splits Ulett and Dalton with sister station KSHE. Both KIHT and KSHE are owned by Emmis Communications
.
KHITS 96 has two HD channels. Their HD2 channel is a broadcast of their sister FM Talk station "FM News Talk 97.1". Their HD3 channel is Smooth 96.3 HD-3.
In 1987, the station's call letters were changed to KRJY, and the station switched to a Soft Adult Contemporary format as K-Joy 96 (later J96), and in 1991 the station switched to 50s/60s Oldies as "Jukebox 96."
In 1993, the station was sold by RJ Miller to Heritage Broadcasting, who then owned WIL FM/WRTH-AM, and the station first took on its current call letters and "KHITS 96" identity, first with a format of "The Greatest Hits of the 70s." Heritage's St. Louis properties were sold to Sinclair Broadcasting in the mid 90s, and Sinclair sold the station to current owner Emmis Communications in 2000.
FM broadcasting
FM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...
radio station often referred to by St. Louis
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
area listeners as "Classic Hits KHITS 96".
Music that is played on this station is classic hits from the 1970s and 1980s, with an occasional trip to the 1990s.
KHITS 96 is home to some of St. Louis' most legendary radio announcers, including Rick Sanborn, John Ulett, "Radio Rich" Dalton and Drew Johnson. It splits Ulett and Dalton with sister station KSHE. Both KIHT and KSHE are owned by Emmis Communications
Emmis Communications
Emmis Communications is a media conglomerate based in Indianapolis, Indiana. The company owns radio stations and magazines in the United States, Hungary, Slovakia and Bulgaria.-History:...
.
KHITS 96 has two HD channels. Their HD2 channel is a broadcast of their sister FM Talk station "FM News Talk 97.1". Their HD3 channel is Smooth 96.3 HD-3.
History
The 96.5 Frequency originally went on the air December 11, 1959 as KADI under the ownership of William Cady, making it one of the first commercial FM radio stations in the St. Louis area. KADI spent most of the 1960s on and off the air in the early turbulent days of FM radio. By the early 70s, the station was sold to Richard J Miller, who would put a Progressive Rock station on the air. In the Mid-70s, KADI moved down one notch on the dial to 96.3 MHz to allow new station KSCF (now known as KFTK) in Florissant, MO to go on the air at 97.1 MHz.In 1987, the station's call letters were changed to KRJY, and the station switched to a Soft Adult Contemporary format as K-Joy 96 (later J96), and in 1991 the station switched to 50s/60s Oldies as "Jukebox 96."
In 1993, the station was sold by RJ Miller to Heritage Broadcasting, who then owned WIL FM/WRTH-AM, and the station first took on its current call letters and "KHITS 96" identity, first with a format of "The Greatest Hits of the 70s." Heritage's St. Louis properties were sold to Sinclair Broadcasting in the mid 90s, and Sinclair sold the station to current owner Emmis Communications in 2000.