Idaho Radio News Etc.

The Children’s Miracle Network’s annual radiothon raised a pile of cash for hospitals around the country last summer — including Boise’s St. Luke’s Children’s Hospital.

Bustos Media and its radio networks are being awarded for “Best Spanish Radio Imaging” in relation to the radiothon.

Last August, Bustos Media raised $264,202.00 during a three-day Radiothon in benefit of the Children’s Miracle Network (CMN); a national alliance of hospitals helping needy children with critical medical services.

Imapct Radio Group OM/PD Mikey Fuentes has decided his new station – KPDA/La Poderosa 100.7 is one of a kind. Check out this fancy footwork, as told to R&R:

“There’s only one other local station in town and they do more of a variety format, so as far as being regional and local, we’re the only one that fills those shoes.”

The Boise market has five Spanish stations of course.  His line to R&R slices out KQTA, KDBI and KWEI-AM – trying to refer to just KWEI-FM.

There are two other “local” Spanish-language stations – KWEI-AM and KWEI-FM.  Bustos Media fields two stations – KDBQI runs a Spanish AC format and KQTA runs Regional Mexican.  Sure, KPDA is local (except in the mornings), and yes it’s a Regional Mexican format – but it’s about as misleading as a presidential campaign ad to characterize it the way Fuentes did to R&R.

We polled the IRN audience just after the start of the book – and again toward the end, and in both cases, voters picked KSAS/103.3 Kiss FM to make the biggest gains.

The biggest winner depends on if you are looking at year over year gains or book-to-book improvement.

KDBI takes the book to book crown, up 77%, but the station actually LOST ground y2y – down 58%.

Citadel classic rocker KKGL/96.9 The Eagle didn’t need a photo finish to determine its first place victory. KKGL not only topped the 12+ numbers with a 7.4, but jumped 64% from last fall and 54% from spring 2007.

KSRV/96.9 Bob FM saw strong improvement in the year-to-year category – up 140% to land at a 3.6. The station was up 20% from fall.

KSAS saw strong improvement in both categories – but didn’t win the race.

We’ve been closely watching the Spanish-language stations in the Treasure Valley – which collectively had a strong spring book. With the fall numbers, the stations fell back to earth:

- KWEI-FM fell from 1.1 to 0.7.
- KDBI-FM fell from a 3.8 to 0.9
- KQTA charted for the first time at 0.7.

The radio dial is sounding quite festive this Christmas eve. As I headed to services this evening – I was pleasantly surprised at the number of stations that dropped their normal formats to get in the spirit – with 100% Christmas music:

KTSY/89.5 FM
KIZN/Kissin’ 92.3
KZMG/Magic 93.1
KRVB/Idaho’s 94.9 The River
KAYN/Boomer 100.7
KAWO/WOW Country 104.3
KBOI/News-Talk 670
KTHI/107.1 K-Hits

These stations join KXLT/107.9 Lite FM which went all-Holiday on Thanksgiving, and KDJQ-AM which went all Christmas last week.

KKGL, KCIX, KJOT, KQFC, KWEI, KDBI, KSAS are all playing some Christmas cuts along with their normal format. That’s 17 total stations from ‘AWO to ‘ZMG. They should all conspire to play Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer at the same time. Now THAT would be funny.

About the only stations I could find that hadn’t adjusted formats were KSRV/96.1 Bob FM and The X.

Several folks wrote to let me know of some of the other great things going on in honor of the Christmas season.

- KQTA & KDBI have been collecting toys for an in-house toy drive for families around the area.
- The Locally Owned stations in the Magic Valley held a Stuff the Bus event earlier this season, collecting toys, food and clothing for beneficaries of the Magic Valley Salvation Army. KIKX, KIRQ, KYUN and KTPZ participated.

It is of note that the Locally Owned staffer that let me know of his group’s activities also wrote to say that the competing Lee Family Group of stations had a “very successful toy/food/clothing drive.”