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New radio station takes rock to the EdgeBy PATRICIA JONESBusiness EditorClint Michaels helped create the type of radio station he’s always wanted to listen to—one that plays music to crank up while working on his motorcycle or cruising in his four-wheeldrive truck.“I’ve lived here for 22 years, and this is the station that the town has been missing,” he said about the new sound on 104.7 KUAB FM, formerly the frequency for KUAC public radio.“Our concept was that we wanted a station that your typical Alaskan man would listento.”Michaels, a radio disc jockey, also works as program director and operations manager for Pacific Star Communications, thenew owner of 104.7 KUAB FMand three other Fairbanks radio stations.Dubbed “The Edge,” the new FM station that went on the air in late June airs “active” rock, frequently called hard rock. Step-penwolf, AC/DC, Aerosmith and Black Sabbath provide vintage tunes, while more current musical artists featured include Creed, Pearl Jam and BrotherCane.The mix includes some alternative and classic rock tunes, formats already represented in the Fairbanks radio market by 103.9 KUWL and 95.9 KXLR, respectively.“You’ll hear Smashing Pumpkins and Led Zeppelin on the Edge—it’s like we picked the best of both radio stations and combined them into one,” said Pete Hutton, Fairbanks general manager of Pacific Star, a San Diego-THE EDGE—The Edge DJ Dave Perry checks his music log and mix-in cuts on the 104.7 frequency.Matt Hage photoduring his air time Tuesday afternoon. The new station broadcastsbased corporation that owns several dozen West Coast stations.“We’re not competing with them—they still have 80 percent of the alternative music that will not be played on our station andDo touch that dial- -changes in Fairbanks FM radioKUACKXLRKJNP KIAKKUAB89.995.9— - . -— — — . ____^ ... .-.--- - ........ — .- . . _100.3 102.5104.7L ••• ••88 (90 #I96!J^1Q°ei I^105KSUAKWLF KAKQKUWL91.598.1 101.1103.9KUAC • public radio (was also broadcast on 104.7)KSUA • diverse music (was 103.9), UAF stationclassic rock, Northern Television■ adult hit, Borealis Broadcasting conservative Christian music KAKQ • adult contemporary. Pacific Star KIAK • country, Pacific StarKUWL • alternative, (formerly country) Borealis Broadcasting KUAB • active or hard rock (was public radio), Pacific StarKXLRKWLFKJNPJim Woolace/News Miner80 percent of the classic rock that will not be on our station,” he added. “The Edge will cross over the borders.”Pacific Star’s parent company, Austin, Texas-based Capstar,purchased the 104.7 FM frequency and transmitter from Fairbanks’ oldest FM station, KUAC FM, which went on the air in 1962.June 22 was the last day for KUAC’s broadcast on 104.7, andthe public radio station closed its 36-year run with the same music that played during the first minutes of broadcasting—Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto.Changing from classical music, news and talk shows to hard rock took a few listeners by surprise,said Scott Diseth, KUAC’s program director and FM station manager.“We got a couple commentsfrom people who just happen to tune in and they wonder what the hell is going on,” he said.See THE EDGE, Page D-2Small, locally owned stations near extinctionBy PATRICIA JONESBusiness EditorBig corporate ownership of small Fairbanks radio stations means more capital investment and research opportunities, according to local managers of Pacific Star Communications.But it also means a likely death for small, locally owned radio stations, a consolidation trend visible throughout the nation.“The days of the mom and pop radio stations are pretty much gone, unless you’re in a small community like Valdez or Cordova,’’ said Pete Hutton, general manager of Pacific Star in Fairbanks. “Radio stations in small- tomarkets are good invest-medium-sized considered ament.”Pacific Star, a San Diego-based corporation that ownsabout 40 radio stations on the West Coast, purchased in November 1997 local broadcasting company Comco, Inc. Pacific Star, in turn, is ownedby Capstar Broadcasting, headquartered in Austin, Texas, which owns at least 400 radio stations nationwide.“It could be more. Where they are today, I don’t know,” Hutton said. “That’s how quickly things are moving in this industry.”Pacific Star now owns four radio stations in Fairbanks—See EXTINCT Page D-2
Newspaper Details
Fairbanks Daily News Miner
Fairbanks, Alaska, US
Sun, Jul 12, 1998
Page 28
Full Page
Clipped by
Sammi B.
NA 31 May 2020
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