KKSU (AM)
Encyclopedia
KKSU was a radio station in Manhattan, Kansas
from 1924 to 2002. It broadcast on the AM dial
at 580 kHz. The station owned by Kansas State University
and operated by K-State Research and Extension, with studios and transmitter on KSU's campus in Manhattan.
At the time it signed off for good, it was part of one of the last shared-time frequencies in the United States.
's WOI
, Iowa
's WSUI
, Michigan State
's WKAR
and North Dakota
's KUND
. The school's extension agents saw radio as a natural extension of the school's agricultural services. In 1928, it moved to 580 kHz.
A year later, Senator
Arthur Capper
, publisher of Topeka's daily newspaper, the Topeka Daily Capital, asked Kansas State to share the 580 frequency with his new station, WIBW
. Kansas State agreed, realizing that it could not afford to stay on the air for 24 hours a day. In 1948, KSAC boosted its broadcasting power to 5,000 watts, matching its commercial partner. Due to its location on the lower end of the AM dial, this gave it coverage of most of the state.
KSAC wanted to change its calls to KKSU in 1984--almost 30 years after gaining university status. However, a mothball
ed Merchant Marine
ship owned those calls and wasn't willing to give them up. As a stopgap, the station changed its calls to KEXT (Kansas EXTension) on July 26, but continued efforts to get its preferred calls. Finally, it was able to get the KKSU calls on July 30.
By the mid-1990s, KKSU was on the air from 12:30 pm to 5:30 pm Central Time
every weekday, airing livestock reports, agricultural updates, and news programming.
In December 2001, Kansas State decided to move its sports broadcasts to the Mid-America Ag Network (MAAN) after airing them on WIBW continuously since 1969 and off-and-on since the 1950s. WIBW countered by citing a 1969 amendment to the timeshare agreement. That amendment granted WIBW the right to broadcast Wildcat football in exchange for allowing KKSU (then still known as KSAC) to extend its operating hours an additional 15 minutes each weekday.
After heated negotiations, WIBW's owner, Morris Communications
(which bought WIBW in 1994) agreed to ignore the agreement if KKSU would give it full control of the 580 frequency. On August 29, Morris agreed to buy KKSU's timeslot for $1.5 million. In return, it agreed to give exclusive rights to all Wildcat sporting events to MAAN.
KKSU-AM 580 went off the air for the last time on November 27, 2002.
For decades KKSU had mailed radio programs and features to stations across the nation. That service was called the "K-State Radio Network." After KKSU ceased broadcasting, the former KKSU staff continued to operate the network service while at the same time starting to build a satellite uplink by which to distribute its offerings to member stations. The site was licensed in July, 2003, and a couple of months later the daily program "Agriculture Today" began delivery to stations wishing to air it. The K-State Radio Network continues to produce and distribute agricultural news, family and public affairs programming to radio stations and networks across the Midwest.
Manhattan, Kansas
Manhattan is a city located in the northeastern part of the state of Kansas in the United States, at the junction of the Kansas River and Big Blue River. It is the county seat of Riley County and the city extends into Pottawatomie County. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 52,281...
from 1924 to 2002. It broadcast on the AM dial
AM broadcasting
AM broadcasting is the process of radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation. AM was the first method of impressing sound on a radio signal and is still widely used today. Commercial and public AM broadcasting is carried out in the medium wave band world wide, and on long wave and short wave...
at 580 kHz. The station owned by Kansas State University
Kansas State University
Kansas State University, commonly shortened to K-State, is an institution of higher learning located in Manhattan, Kansas, in the United States...
and operated by K-State Research and Extension, with studios and transmitter on KSU's campus in Manhattan.
At the time it signed off for good, it was part of one of the last shared-time frequencies in the United States.
History
KKSU signed on for the first time on December 1, 1924 as KSAC. The call letters came from Kansas State's name at the time, Kansas State Agricultural College. It originally broadcast at 500 watts at 880 kHz. The station was one of the first of several AM stations signed on by Midwestern land-grant colleges in the early days of broadcasting, among them Iowa StateIowa State University
Iowa State University of Science and Technology, more commonly known as Iowa State University , is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of...
's WOI
WOI (AM)
WOI is a News/Talk radio station affiliated with National Public Radio serving the Des Moines, Iowa area. It is located at 640 on the AM dial.Due to its dial position, power and Iowa's flat landscape, it can be heard throughout most of the state of Iowa . Its signal also reaches parts of...
, Iowa
University of Iowa
The University of Iowa is a public state-supported research university located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the oldest public university in the state. The university is organized into eleven colleges granting undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees...
's WSUI
WSUI
WSUI is a public radio station in Iowa City, Iowa, in the United States. It is operated by the University of Iowa and a member of Iowa Public Radio. Its signal serves most of eastern Iowa. WSUI is one of two National Public Radio member stations serving eastern Iowa, the other being KUNI in...
, Michigan State
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
's WKAR
WKAR (AM)
WKAR is a National Public Radio member station in East Lansing, Michigan; broadcasting at 870 kHz. It is owned by Michigan State University, and carries news and talk shows from NPR. It is part of MSU's Broadcasting Services Division, and is a sister station to the FM radio and television...
and North Dakota
University of North Dakota
The University of North Dakota is a public university in Grand Forks, North Dakota, USA. Established by the Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishment of the state of North Dakota, UND is the oldest and largest university in the state and enrolls over 14,000 students. ...
's KUND
KFJM
KFJM is a public radio station in Grand Forks, North Dakota airing an adult album alternative format with news in the mornings, jazz in the late evenings and blues and folk on the weekends....
. The school's extension agents saw radio as a natural extension of the school's agricultural services. In 1928, it moved to 580 kHz.
A year later, Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Arthur Capper
Arthur Capper
Arthur Capper was an American politician from Kansas. He was the 20th Governor of Kansas from 1915 to 1919 and a United States Senator from 1919 to 1949....
, publisher of Topeka's daily newspaper, the Topeka Daily Capital, asked Kansas State to share the 580 frequency with his new station, WIBW
WIBW (AM)
WIBW is a Topeka, Kansas, area news, talk, and sports radio station that airs such local programming such as On the Other Hand , Sports Sanity with Bruce Steinbrock, and SportsTalk with Mark Elliott. WIBW also carries national programs such as Glenn Beck, Mark Levin, and Kim Komando...
. Kansas State agreed, realizing that it could not afford to stay on the air for 24 hours a day. In 1948, KSAC boosted its broadcasting power to 5,000 watts, matching its commercial partner. Due to its location on the lower end of the AM dial, this gave it coverage of most of the state.
KSAC wanted to change its calls to KKSU in 1984--almost 30 years after gaining university status. However, a mothball
Mothball
Mothballs are small balls of chemical pesticide and deodorant used when storing clothing and other articles susceptible to damage from mold or moth larvae ....
ed Merchant Marine
United States Merchant Marine
The United States Merchant Marine refers to the fleet of U.S. civilian-owned merchant vessels, operated by either the government or the private sector, that engage in commerce or transportation of goods and services in and out of the navigable waters of the United States. The Merchant Marine is...
ship owned those calls and wasn't willing to give them up. As a stopgap, the station changed its calls to KEXT (Kansas EXTension) on July 26, but continued efforts to get its preferred calls. Finally, it was able to get the KKSU calls on July 30.
By the mid-1990s, KKSU was on the air from 12:30 pm to 5:30 pm Central Time
Central Time zone
In North America, the Central Time Zone refers to national time zones which observe standard time by subtracting six hours from UTC , and daylight saving, or summer time by subtracting five hours...
every weekday, airing livestock reports, agricultural updates, and news programming.
Demise
WIBW tried several times over the years to buy full control of the 580 frequency, especially after 1957, when Oscar Stauffer bought the Daily Capital (and later merged it into the Topeka Capital-Journal) Despite tremendous political pressure, KSAC/KKSU stayed on the air.In December 2001, Kansas State decided to move its sports broadcasts to the Mid-America Ag Network (MAAN) after airing them on WIBW continuously since 1969 and off-and-on since the 1950s. WIBW countered by citing a 1969 amendment to the timeshare agreement. That amendment granted WIBW the right to broadcast Wildcat football in exchange for allowing KKSU (then still known as KSAC) to extend its operating hours an additional 15 minutes each weekday.
After heated negotiations, WIBW's owner, Morris Communications
Morris Communications
Morris Communications of Augusta, Georgia is a privately held media company with diversified holdings that include newspaper and magazine publishing, outdoor advertising, radio broadcasting, book publishing and distribution, visitor publications and online services. Newspapers are the foundation...
(which bought WIBW in 1994) agreed to ignore the agreement if KKSU would give it full control of the 580 frequency. On August 29, Morris agreed to buy KKSU's timeslot for $1.5 million. In return, it agreed to give exclusive rights to all Wildcat sporting events to MAAN.
KKSU-AM 580 went off the air for the last time on November 27, 2002.
For decades KKSU had mailed radio programs and features to stations across the nation. That service was called the "K-State Radio Network." After KKSU ceased broadcasting, the former KKSU staff continued to operate the network service while at the same time starting to build a satellite uplink by which to distribute its offerings to member stations. The site was licensed in July, 2003, and a couple of months later the daily program "Agriculture Today" began delivery to stations wishing to air it. The K-State Radio Network continues to produce and distribute agricultural news, family and public affairs programming to radio stations and networks across the Midwest.
External links/references
- K-State Radio Network Program Archive
- Farewell to Kansas State station (from CurrentCurrent (newspaper)Current is an American trade journal that covers public broadcasting in the United States. It is described by the Public Broadcasting Service as "The most widely read periodical in the field"...
) - Expanded broadcasting (2002, from the Capital-Journal)