In a way 97.1 Los Angeles is going back to its roots.
When CBS Radio failed with its post-Howard Stern “Free-FM” experiment, many of its former Hot Talk stations would evolve to FM Sports Talk, while KLSX which was the blueprint for those other stations moved to Top 40. That would then give way to the simulcast of KNX in 2021. Now Los Angeles will become the final major market to have an FM Sports talker as it returns to Southern California for the first time since the suburban trimulcast on 107.1 from 1994 to 1996.
But why now? At first glance all but one of the big professional franchises are taken for. The Dodgers own 49% of KLAC. The Lakers extended their deal with KSPN last year. Audacy’s “93.1 Jack-FM” KCBS-FM has shared the Rams broadcasts with KSPN. KLAC also has the Chargers, Clippers and LA Galaxy. KSPN has the Angels, LAFC and USC. KABC has UCLA. The NHL’s LA Kings have a streaming deal with Audacy, but hockey is not going to be a ratings mover for this station.
The Audacy press release emphasized events like this year’s World Cup and the 2028 Summer Olympics as part of the reason for why they are debuting, and while soccer may make in-roads more in Los Angeles than other markets, only the Dodgers, Lakers, and NFL as a whole will drive listeners. And unless another massive shoe is about to drop between now and May 11, the first two are locked up.
Was there another player about to make the move? iHeart does not have an obvious FM signal to sacrifice for KLAC (and News/Talk 640 KFI likely would be ahead of it in the pecking order for a move to FM). I know of one professional sports franchise owner that has made attempts at acquiring an FM or cluster in Los Angeles but up to this point has been unsuccessful. But there are zero indications either of those were about to happen
Was it simply about the News station’s performance?Sources indicate that KNX and KNX-FM combined are currently 18th in the 25-54 demographic, underperforming compared to Audacy’s other AM/FM News simulcasts where WINS New York is currently 9th and WBBM Chicago and KCBS San Francisco are both 13th. While the FM signal helped KNX over the past four years, it had 1070 and a growing streaming audience to retreat to, making 97.1 available for repurposing in a changing audio realm.
Who will be on the station? Usually when a new major market Sports talker launches, the rumor mill has something about them ahead of time thanks to future hosts leaking information. The fact Audacy was able to announce this with nearly nobody knowing about it ahead of time is a credit to them, but also makes one wonder who exactly will be heard on the station with less than two weeks before it launches?
Audacy Chief Business Officer Chris Oliviero told the Los Angeles Times that KNX-FM will counter KLAC by providing local programming in the 6am to 12pm timeslots when KLAC carries Fox Sports Radio’s national Dan Patrick Show and The Herd with Colin Cowherd. Westwood One Sports’ Jim Rome Show may be a national exception in the 12-3pm timeslot as Rome made his mark in Southern California before going national.
Will it succeed? KLAC currently is at a 1.0 share, while KSPN does not subscribe to Nielsen. Recent history has shown that moving the format to FM has grown the audience for existing Sports stations, but it has been awhile since a new startup has debuted in a PPM market. It will take time to build, but now ratings will not tell the entire story. Podcast audience, video streaming, potential television simulcasts and other ancillary products as part of Audacy’s national Sports format reach that will include each of the top eleven markets and fifteen of the top 30.
