KFSD

KFSD
Escondido, California; United States;
Broadcast area	San Diego County
Frequency	1450 kHz
Branding	Guadalupe Radio
Programming
Language(s)	Spanish
Format	Spanish Catholic
Ownership
Owner	Raul Caro and Stephen Beuerle; (IHS Media);
History
First air date	1957 (as KOWN)
Former call signs	KOWN (1957–1987); KOWA (1987–1990); KSPA (1990–2001); KFSD (2001–2002); KSPA (4/2002-8/2002)
Call sign meaning	K "First in San Diego" (from 1926 when the calls were on AM 600 KOGO)
Technical information
Licensing authority	FCC
Facility ID	49205
Class	C
Power	1,000 watts
Links
Public license information	Public file; LMS;
Website	guadaluperadio.com

KFSD (1450 AM) is a radio station based in North County, San Diego, California. It is owned by Raul Caro and Stephen Beuerle, through licensee IHS Media, and is currently off the air. The station's studios are located in Carlsbad, while the transmitter is located in an industrial park in Escondido.^[2]

From 2004 until February 1, 2007, KFSD was a classical music radio station.

KFSD stands for "First in San Diego," dating back to the first commercial broadcast license in San Diego. The KFSD call letters were originally assigned in 1926 to AM 620 (later 600). The KFSD call sign was on 600 from 1926–1963. KFSD was also on FM 94.1 from 1948 to 1963, then re-appeared on 94.1 in 1973 until 1997. The KFSD-TV call sign was on Channel 10 from 1953–1963. The three KFSD stations switched to the KOGO call sign in 1963, as information about San Diego and its people were fed into a new IBM computer and asked for the perfect call letters for these stations, and it chose KOGO.

The last iteration of KFSD-FM 94.1 was as a classical station. KFSD had a good solid audience, but the station was bought by Nationwide Communications (division of Nationwide Insurance). Nationwide felt a change to more aggressive music was a better choice for the only 100 kW station in San Diego. KFSD was changed to KXGL, and became the Eagle 94.1. The Eagle's format proved to be a failure, and in 1998 became KJQY/KJOY 94.1.

History

The station began life in 1957 as KOWN, broadcasting from studios on Hale Avenue on the eastern side of Escondido. In 1964, the station moved into studios in the then-new Escondido Village Mall, and added an FM station July 11, 1966, KOWN-FM, on 92.1 MHz. Shoppers could look through double-pane windows to see disc jockeys spinning records and the state-of-the-art (for 1964) Schafer automation system which played easy listening music on the FM station.

AM and FM transmitters stayed on Hale Avenue until 1972, when they were moved to a new location south of the city.

Both stations moved again in 1974, to studios in the Vineyard Shopping Center on Valley Parkway, just east of the Escondido Village Mall.

KFSD's call sign re-emerged on 92.1 in Escondido, now 92.1 Escondido, California, which now simulcasts KSON. The KFSD call letters were then transferred to AM 1450 where KFSD lives today.

From February 1, 2007 until March 15, 2010, KFSD was a simulcast of sister station KSPA featuring a nostalgia format, with music from the 1930s through the 1960s. The current format quoting from their website is: "Our philosophy is to blend the enduring standards of timeless artists with bold new interpretations from the younger vanguard".^[3] The simulcast began again on November 26, 2010, when the Astor Broadcast Group decided to drop KSPA's talk format to bring back the previous adult standards format. The format then continued until March 1, 2012, when it, along with KSPA, picked up the business talk format that had aired on KCEO.

As of June 6, 2011, KFSD has begun to broker time to San Diego Radio Seoul, who airs Korean programming weekdays from 6:00 am until 12 noon. Japanese programming also airs weekdays from 3:00 pm until 4 pm.^[4] This programming arrangement ended on February 8, 2012, as KFSD will switch to a business talk format that it is inheriting from sister station KCEO on March 7, 2012, when KCEO flips to Immaculate Heart Radio programming.

In February 2015, KFSD changed their format to country, branded as "KOW Country 1450".^[5]

On May 18, 2015, KFSD changed their format to Spanish Catholic religious, branded as "Guadalupe Radio".^[6] As of January 2017, both KFSD and KSPA ended their LMA with Guadalupe Radio and returned both stations to the previous adult standards format.

KFSD went off the air on June 1, 2019.^[7] In July 2020, North Shore Broadcasting sold KFSD to Raul Caro and Stephen Beuerle’s IHS Media for $125,000. IHS operates low-power FM "St. John Paul Catholic Radio” KCJP-LP in El Centro, California. (The station is on the air, May 2021.) ^[8] The sale was consummated on November 13, 2020.

References

^ "Facility Technical Data for KFSD". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
^ "Query the REC California AM database for KFSD". REC Networks. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
^ About page KFSD website
^ And the big band (doesn't) play on Archived 2011-06-25 at the Wayback Machine Randy Dotinga, North County Times
^ Country Comes to AM in Orange and San Diego Counties
^ Radio Expands in Southern California
^ "KFSD 1450 Escondido Goes Silent | SBE Chapter 36".
^ "Station Sales Week of 7/31".

External links

Facility details for Facility ID 49205 (KFSD) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
KFSD in Nielsen Audio's AM station database
FCC History Cards for KFSD
Article talking about FM 94.1's antenna atop Mt. Soledad, features picture with caption "KGTV 10 and FMs"

33°07′2.1″N 117°07′12.1″W / 33.117250°N 117.120028°W / 33.117250; -117.120028

[1] "Facility Technical Data for KFSD". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.

[2] "Query the REC California AM database for KFSD". REC Networks. Retrieved April 22, 2019.

[3] About page KFSD website

[4] And the big band (doesn't) play on Archived 2011-06-25 at the Wayback Machine Randy Dotinga, North County Times

[5] Country Comes to AM in Orange and San Diego Counties

[6] Radio Expands in Southern California

[7] "KFSD 1450 Escondido Goes Silent | SBE Chapter 36".

[8] "Station Sales Week of 7/31".

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v t e Spanish-language radio stations in the state of California
Stations	KAEH – Beaumont KAFY – Bakersfield KATD – Pittsburg KBAA – Grass Valley KBBF – Santa Rosa KBBU – Modesto KBHH – Kerman KBKY – Merced KBLO – Corcoran KBRG – San Jose KBTW – Lenwood KBUA – San Fernando KBUE – Long Beach KBYN – Arnold KCAL – Redlands KCCL – Woodland KCFA – Arnold KCHJ – Delano KCVR – Columbia KEBN – Garden Grove KEBT – Lost Hills KEPD – Ridgecrest KERU-FM – Blythe KEXA – King City KEYQ – Fresno KEZY – San Bernardino KFSD – Escondido KFSG – Roseville KFSO-FM – Visalia KGED - Fresno KGEN – Tulare KGEN-FM – Hanford KGRB – Jackson KGST – Fresno KGZO – Shafter KHCV – Mecca KHDC – Chualar KHHM – Shingle Springs KHMU – Buttonwillow KHPY – Moreno Valley KHSQ – Trinidad KIDI-FM – Lompoc KIQI – San Francisco KIQQ-FM – Newberry Springs KIQS – Willows KIST-FM – Carpinteria KIWI – Mcfarland KJDJ – San Luis Obispo KJOR – Windsor KLAX-FM – East Los Angeles KLBN – Fresno KLOC – Turlock KLJR-FM – Santa Paula KLLE – North Fork KLLI – Los Angeles KLMG – Esparto KLMM – Morro Bay KLNV – San Diego KLOB – Thousand Palms KLOK-FM – Greenfield KLOQ-FM – Winton KLQV – San Diego KLTX – Long Beach KLUN – Paso Robles KLVE – Los Angeles KLYY – Riverside KMAK – Orange Cove KMBX – Soledad KMEN – Mendota KMIX – Tracy KMJV – Soledad KMLA – El Rio KMLM-FM – Grover Beach KMPG – Hollister KMPO – Modesto KMQA – East Porterville KMRO – Camarillo KMYX-FM – Arvin KMZR – Atwater KNTO – Chowchilla KODV – Barstow KOKO-FM – Kerman KOND – Hanford KOXR – Oxnard KPRC-FM – Salinas KPSL-FM – Bakersfield KPST-FM – Coachella KQLB – Los Banos KRAY-FM – Salinas KRCD – Inglewood KRCV – West Covina KRCX-FM – Marysville KRDA – Clovis KRHM-LP – Bakersfield KRQK – Lompoc KRRS – Santa Rosa KSAC-FM – Dunnigan KSCA – Glendale KSDO – San Diego KSEA – Greenfield KSGZ – Greenfield KSEH – Brawley KSES-FM – Seaside KSFN – Piedmont KSJV – Fresno KSMY – Lompoc KSOL – San Francisco KSPA – Ontario KSPE – Santa Barbara KSQL – Santa Cruz KSRT – Cloverdale KSSC – Ventura KSSD – Fallbrook KSSE – Arcadia KSXY – Forestville KTAP – Santa Maria KTGE – Salinas KTMZ – Pomona KTNQ – Los Angeles KTOR – Gerber KTQX – Bakersfield KTSE-FM – Patterson KUBO – Calexico KUFW – Kingsburg KUNA-FM – La Quinta KVMX-FM – Placerville KVON – Napa KVTR – Victorville KVUH – Laytonville KVVF – Santa Clara KVVZ – San Rafael KWAC – Bakersfield KWIZ – Santa Ana KWKW – Los Angeles KWQQ – Hemet KWRN – Apple Valley KWST – El Centro KXLM – Oxnard KXOL-FM – Los Angeles KXRS – Hemet KXSB – Big Bear Lake KXSE – Davis KXSM – Chualar KXTS – Geyserville KXVV – Victorville KXXZ – Barstow KXZM – Felton KZER – Santa Barbara KZNB – Petaluma KZSF – San Jose KZSZ – Colusa
Defunct	KDBV – Salinas KDDF – Mecca KESQ – Indio KFVR – Crescent City KNCR – Fortuna KSKD – Livingston
See also adult contemporary classic hits college country news/talk NPR oldies religious rock sports top 40 urban other radio stations in California See also Classical Jazz Religious Spanish Smooth Jazz Other