View source for KOST

{{short description|Adult contemporary radio station in Los Angeles}}
{{for|the Danish trade union|Diet and Nutrition Association}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}

{{Infobox radio station
| name = KOST
| city = [[Los Angeles, California]]
| logo = KOST Logo2.webp
| logo_upright = .8
| country = US
| area = [[Greater Los Angeles]]
| frequency = {{Frequency|103.5|[[MHz]]}} {{HD Radio}}
| branding = KOST 103.5
| rds = KOST1035
| format = [[Adult contemporary]]
| language = [[American English|English]]
| subchannels = HD2: [[Talk radio]] ([[KFI]])
| owner = [[iHeartMedia]]
| licensee = iHM Licenses, LLC
| sister_stations = {{hlist|[[KBIG]]|KEIB|[[KFI]]|[[KIIS-FM]]|[[KLAC]]|[[KRRL]]|KSRY|KVVS|KYSR}}
| airdate = {{start date and age|1957|10|9|p=y|br=y}}
| former_callsigns = {{ubl|KFSG-FM (CP, 1956–1957)|KPUL (CP, 1957)|KGLA (1957–1966)|KADS (1966–1968)}}
| callsign_meaning = Sounds like "coast"
| licensing_authority = [[Federal Communications Commission|FCC]]
| facility_id = 34424
| class = B
| erp = 11,500 [[watt]]s
| haat = {{convert|949|m|ft|sp=us}}
| coordinates = {{coord|34|13|35.3|N|118|4|0.9|W}}
| translators = See {{section link||Translators and booster}}
| webcast = {{ubl|{{IHeartRadio|kost-1035-los-angeles-193}}|HD2: {{iHeartRadio|kfi-177}}}}
| website = {{URL|kost1035.iheart.com}}
}}

'''KOST''' (103.5 [[MHz]]) is a [[commercial radio|commercial]] radio station in [[Los Angeles]], [[California]], United States. Owned by [[iHeartMedia]], it broadcasts an [[adult contemporary]] [[radio format]], switching to [[Christmas music]] in early November and ending a few days after Christmas Day (or after Christmas Day, if the holiday either falls on a Sunday or on a Monday). Its [[radio studio|studio]]s are co-located with its [[sister station]]s on West Olive Avenue in [[Burbank, California|Burbank]]. KOST is the home of [[Ellen K]], segments of whose morning show are [[radio syndication|syndicated]] to other iHeart AC stations on Saturday mornings.

The [[transmitter]] is atop [[Mount Wilson (California)|Mount Wilson]] alongside most L.A. based television and FM radio stations. Those FM stations, along with KOST, are considered "superpower" [[grandfather clause|grandfathered]] stations, since their [[effective radiated power]] (ERP) greatly exceeds the level set by the [[Federal Communications Commission]] for [[List of North American broadcast station classes|Class B]] FM stations at their [[height above average terrain|height]] on Mount Wilson. KOST broadcasts using [[HD Radio]] technology.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hdradio.com/station_guides/widget.php?id=7 |title=HD Radio Guide for Los Angeles |access-date=July 7, 2018 |archive-date=June 25, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180625213800/https://hdradio.com/station_guides/widget.php?id=7 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The HD2 [[digital subchannel]] rebroadcasts co-owned [[talk radio]] station [[KFI]].

==History==
[[File:Kostfm.jpg|left|thumb|200px|KOST 103.5 logo used until 2013.]]

===Early years===
On October 9, 1957, the station first [[sign-on|signed on]] as KGLA.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Annuals/Archive-BC-YB-IDX/60s-OCR-YB/1968-YB/1968-BC-YB-OCR-Page-0165.pdf |title=Directory of AM and FM Radio Stations in the U.S. |magazine=Broadcasting Yearbook |publisher=Broadcasting Publications Inc. |page=B-17 |date=1968 |access-date=June 6, 2018 }}</ref>

Noted radio programmer [[Gordon McLendon]] bought KGLA in the 1960s, changing the [[call sign|call letters]] in November 1966 to KADS.<ref name="BC 1967">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/67-OCR/1967-08-14-BC-OCR-Page-0046.pdf |title=An FMer finds a niche with classified advertising |magazine=Broadcasting |publisher=Broadcasting Publications Inc. |page=46 |date=August 14, 1967 |access-date=June 6, 2018 }}</ref> McLendon, with permission from the [[Federal Communications Commission]], experimented with an all-advertisement format, hence the call sign choice. One of its features was that listeners could purchase their own commercials on KADS, not unlike [[classified advertising]] in a newspaper.<ref name="BC 1967" /> FM radios were still not widely owned in the 1960s and the experimental format was not successful.<ref name="Garay">{{cite book |last=Garay |first=Ronald |date=1992 |access-date=June 6, 2018 |title=Gordon McLendon: The Maverick of Radio |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8aZFvxDSxIQC&q=KADS+Los+Angeles&pg=PA140 |location=Westport, Connecticut |publisher=Greenwood Press |pages=138–144 |isbn=0-313-26676-X |issn=0732-4456 |lccn=91-35968 }}</ref>

===Beautiful music===
In March 1968, the station adopted the KOST-FM call sign, along with a substantially all-music format (i.e., no news bulletins), which was unusual, if not unique, given then-prevailing license obligations to broadcast at least some news.<ref name="Garay" /> The station aired a mostly-instrumental [[beautiful music]] format. In 1973, [[Cox Enterprises|Cox Communications]] purchased KOST to pair with its newly-bought [[KFI]] (640 AM). KOST, with its call sign pronounced "coast" in a stage whisper, continued its [[easy listening]] format through the 1970s. This popular format was also heard on rivals [[KYSR|KJOI]] (98.7 FM) and [[KBIG]] (104.3).

In the early 1980s, KOST gradually added more vocals, and on November 15, 1982, the station switched to an [[adult contemporary]] format, signing on with [[You Can Do Magic (song)|"You Can Do Magic"]] by [[America (band)|America]] as its first song.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Carney |first=Steve |date=November 14, 2007 |title=It's been a smooth ride for KOST radio |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-nov-14-et-kost14-story.html |access-date=February 1, 2025}}</ref> Former [[Sacramento, California|Sacramento]] radio personality Bryan Simmons was KOST's first host when the station signed on with its new format.

On February 3, 1986, Mark Wallengren and [[Kim Amidon]] made their debut as KOST's new morning hosts.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1980s/1986/RR-1986-02-07.pdf |title=Wallengren Takes KOST Mornings |magazine=Radio and Records |page=6 |date=February 7, 1986 |access-date=June 6, 2018 }}</ref> The ''Mark & Kim Morning Show'' was one of the longest-running shows on Los Angeles radio, airing for more than 20 years until ending in 2007.

===AMFM/Clear Channel/iHeartMedia era===
In September 1999, Cox Communications swapped KOST and sister station KFI with AMFM, Inc. for 14 stations in several [[East Coast of the United States|East Coast]] markets.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Archive-RandR-IDX/IDX/90s/99/RR-1999-09-10-OCR-Page-0008.pdf |title=AMFM Secures So. Cal. Seven With Cox Deal |magazine=Radio and Records |page=6 |date=September 10, 1999 |access-date=June 6, 2018 }}</ref> AMFM was then purchased by [[iHeartMedia|Clear Channel Communications]] in 2000. (In 2014, the company's name was changed to iHeartMedia, Inc.) Over the years, particularly in the late 2000s and into the 2010s, the station would shift to a more upbeat mainstream AC format. Despite the changes, KOST has continued to garner solid ratings. [[Christmas music]] has been aired from early November through Christmas Day since 2001.

KOST experienced little air staff turnover until the 2000s. On November 29, 2007, morning show co-host Kim Amidon departed the station.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Archive-RandR-IDX/IDX/00s/07/RR-2007-12-07-OCR-Page-0012.pdf |title=CC's Restructuring Sleigh Ride Off The Cliff |magazine=Radio and Records |page=12 |date=December 7, 2007 |access-date=June 6, 2018 }}</ref> This was followed by KOST's original midday host Mike Sakellarides (who moved on to [[KTWV]]) and longtime traffic reporter Mike Nolan (who was eventually rehired at KOST). In October 2008, former [[KYXY]] [[San Diego, California|San Diego]] radio personality Kristin Cruz joined Mark Wallengren as co-host of KOST's morning show. Cruz left the station in May 2014.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/129615/kristin-cruz-exits-kost |title=Kristin Cruz Exits KOST |website=AllAccess.com |publisher=All Access Music Group |date=May 13, 2014 |access-date=June 6, 2018 }}</ref> In 2009, the midday shift was [[Voice-tracking|voice-tracked]] by former [[WLTW]] [[New York City]] personality Karen Carson.

In February 2011, Carson resigned to join [[CBS Radio]]-owned [[WNEW-FM|WWFS]] in New York. Both Christine Martindale (2 days per week) and Ted Ziegenbusch (3 days per week) filled in on the midday show until August 2011, when former KBIG midday host Kari Steele took over.<ref name="AA 2011-08">{{cite news |url=https://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/95777/kari-steele-joins-kost-for-middays-bryan-simmons-e |title=Kari Steele Joins KOST For Middays, Bryan Simmons Exits. 
 |website=AllAccess.com |publisher=All Access Music Group |date=August 29, 2011 |access-date=June 6, 2018 }}</ref> Steele now hosts KOST's [[Public affairs (broadcasting)|public affairs]] program ''The Sunday Journal'' broadcasting every Sunday following ''[[Animal Radio]]'', providing interviews with community organizations. Also in August, longtime KOST afternoon personality Bryan Simmons left KOST. Simmons had been on the station since 1982,<ref name="AA 2011-08" /> except between 2002 and 2004, when he hosted the ''Boogie Nights'' show at KBIG. Ted Ziegenbusch filled in for several months after Simmons departed.

In December 2012, Christine Martindale was among the radio personalities [[Layoff|laid off]] from Clear Channel stations. On January 17, 2013, it was announced that Martindale would join [[KKGO]] (105.1);<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.adweek.com/digital/christine-martindale-kost-fm-go-country-105-saul-levine/ |title=Laid Off KOST-FM Personality Christine Martindale Goes Country |work=[[Adweek]] |last=Horgan |first=Richard |date=January 17, 2013 |access-date=June 11, 2017 }}</ref> her first day at Go Country 105 was February 4.

[[Ellen K]], a former co-host on the [[KIIS-FM]] morning show and ''[[On Air with Ryan Seacrest]]'', took over the KOST morning show on October 19, 2015. Mark Wallengren, who had been part of the KOST morning show since 1986, moved to afternoons, replacing Bruce Scott, who had been with station since 2012.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://radioinsight.com/headlines/94830/ellen-k-moves-from-kiis-to-kost/#more-94830 |title=Ellen K Moves From KIIS To KOST |work=RadioInsight |last=Venta |first=Lance |date=October 7, 2015 |access-date=June 11, 2017 }}</ref>

Longtime DJs Mark Wallengren and Ted Ziegenbusch departed the station on January 16, 2020, as a result of mass layoffs nationwide by parent company iHeartMedia; the two had been at KOST since the 1980s, Ziegenbusch being the last remaining original staff member hired in 1982.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.dailynews.com/kost-fm-lays-off-longtime-afternoon-dj-mark-wallengren-after-35-years-on-air|title=KOST-FM lays off longtime afternoon DJ Mark Wallengren after 35 years on air|publisher=Los Angeles Daily News|date=January 16, 2020|access-date=January 24, 2020}}</ref>

In conjunction with an announcement wherein iHeartRadio would add two streaming channels dedicated to [[Rick Dees' Weekly Top 40|his on-going radio program]], [[Rick Dees]] would make a guest deejaying spot on the station on March 21, 2025, marking a brief reunion between he and his former co-host Ellen K (the duo had previously worked at sister station [[KIIS-FM]] during their hosting shifts) during her morning show.<ref>[https://radioinsight.com/headlines/297033/rick-dees-partners-with-iheartmedia-for-two-streaming-channels/ Rick Dees Partners with IHeartMedia for Two Streaming Channels]</ref>

==HD programming==
KOST broadcasts three digital subchannels:
*KOST-HD1 is a digital version of KOST's analog signal. 
*KOST-HD2 is an HD [[simulcast]] of the [[talk radio]] format heard on co-owned [[KFI (AM)|KFI]] (640 AM).

From November 2013 until February 2015, KOST's HD3 signal relayed the [[radio syndication|syndicated]] [[Christian contemporary hit radio]] station [[Air1]].{{Citation needed|date=December 2022}} In early February, the station's HD3 signal went [[Dark (broadcasting)|dark]] and the Air1 feed moved to a subchannel on co-owned [[KRRL|KHHT]] (92.3 FM). The HD3 signal returned in November 2018, however, it is no longer operating.<ref>{{Cite web |title=KOST 103.5 adds hd3 |url=https://www.radiodiscussions.com/threads/kost-103-5-adds-hd3.713653/#post-6231810 |website=RadioDiscussions}}</ref>

==Translators and booster==
KOST is rebroadcast on the following [[broadcast relay station|translator]] and [[repeater]] stations:
{{RadioTranslators
| callsign = KOST

| call1    = K234CR
| freq1    = 94.7
| city1    = China Lake, Kern County, California{{!}}China Lake, California
| fid1     = 28582
| class1   = D
| watts1   = 9
| haat1    = 390
| notes1   = Provides service to nearby [[Ridgecrest, California|Ridgecrest]]
| call2    = KOST-FM1
| freq2    = 103.5
| city2    = Santa Clarita, California
| fid2     = 198146
| class2   = D
| watts2   = 500
| haat2    = 612
| notes2   = Booster

| call3    = K280DT
| freq3    = 103.9
| city3    = Thousand Oaks, California
| fid3     = 14241
| class3   = D
| watts3   = 5
| haat3    = 215
| notes3   = Provides service to [[Thousand Oaks, California|Thousand Oaks]]
}}

==Awards==
In 2007, the station was nominated for an "Adult Contemporary Station of The Year" award for the top 25 radio markets by ''[[Radio & Records]]'' magazine.<ref name='randrawards'>{{cite news |url=http://www.radioandrecords.com/Conventions/con2003/awards/indexFinal.asp |work=Radio and Records |title=2007 Industry Achievement Awards |date=September 28, 2008 }}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://cdbs.recnet.com/corres/?doc=76173 FCC History Cards for KOST]
*{{official website |https://kost1035.iheart.com/ }}
{{FM station data|34424|KOST}}
*{{FCC-LMS-Facility|28582|K234CR}}
*{{FMXL|K234CR}}
*{{FCC-LMS-Facility|14241|K280DT}}
*{{FMXL|K280DT}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20041010222025/http://www.w9wi.com/articles/grand_fm.htm List of "superpower" grandfathered FM stations]

{{Los Angeles Radio}}
{{Bishop Radio}}
{{Adult Contemporary Radio Stations in California}}
{{IHeartMedia}}

[[Category:Mainstream adult contemporary radio stations in the United States]]
[[Category:Radio stations in Los Angeles|OST]]
[[Category:Radio stations established in 1957]]
[[Category:IHeartMedia radio stations]]
[[Category:1957 establishments in California]]