KABC (AM)

Infobox Radio Station
name = KABC


city = Los Angeles, California
area = Greater Los Angeles Area
branding = "TalkRadio 790 KABC"
slogan = Talkradio with Passion
airdate = April 14, 1925 (as KFVF)
frequency = 790 kHz HD Radio
format = News/Talk
erp = 5,000 Watts
class = B
owner = Citadel Broadcasting
licensee = Radio License Holing VI, LLC
webcast = [http://www.kabc.com/article.asp?ID=295121 Listen Live]
website = [http://www.kabc.com/ www.kabc.com]
callsign_meaning = K American Broadcasting Company
(former owner)
sister_stations = KLOS
affiliations = ABC News

KABC 790 AM is a Los Angeles radio station, and a West Coast flagship station for the Citadel Broadcasting company. A pioneer of the talk radio format, the station went "all-talk" in 1960 and was one of the first stations to do so. KABC is one of many Disney/ABC Radio stations that has now merged with Citadel Broadcasting but remains an ABC affiliate.

KABC first went on the air on April 14, 1925 as KVFV. On November 15, 1929 the station was sold to Earle C. Anthony, a local car dealer who already owned KFI-AM 640. In the early 1940s, new FCC rules prohibited any entity from owning more than one radio station. While he owned the station, Anthony changed the call letters to reflect his initials, KECA. ABC bought the station in 1944, changing the call letters to KABC in 1954.

KABC has been the base of operation for many influential radio hosts, including early talk polemicists Joe Pyne and Louis Lomax, Ira Fistel, Michael Jackson, whose talk show attracted celebrities, politicians, and newsmakers of all types, pioneering radio psychologists Dr. Toni Grant and David Viscott, and more recent syndicated hosts including Dennis Prager (now with NewsTalk 870 KRLA and the Salem Radio Network), John and Ken (on KFI before their stint on KABC and now currently back on KFI) and Larry Elder. In the 1980s, Jackson, Grant and Viscott were also heard nationwide on ABC Radio's Talkradio network.

From 1974-97, it was also the station of the Los Angeles Dodgers and their hall-of-fame broadcaster Vin Scully. In 2008, the Dodgers Radio Network returned to KABC.

Though still a prominent Los Angeles station, KABC, during the past decade, has declined in the ratings. It now consistently ranks behind KFI, the other major talk station in Los Angeles.

In April 2007, administrators at Academia Semillas del Pueblo (ASDP) in the El Sereno community of North East Los Angeles filed a defamation lawsuit against KABC 790 AM and Doug McIntyre, claiming that the host of "McIntyre in the Morning" "targeted the school for destruction because the children were Latino, the teachers were Latino, the principal director was Latino," as stated in the lawsuit. [ "Academia Semillas del Pueblo and Marcos Aguilar v. Douglas McIntyre, ABC, Inc., et al.", Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, Case No.: BC 369626] The lawsuit alleges that school employees received death threats and that the school was the target of a bomb threat because of McIntyre's extensive on-air criticism of the school, in which he accused ASDP of espousing a racist and separatist Anti-American philosophy. ["Los Angeles Times", Apr. 19, 2007, page B4]

On November 6, 2007, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Ralph W. Dau took the case under submission, and it is currently pending in his courtroom. ["Los Angeles Daily News", November 6, 2007, http://www.dailynews.com/search/ci_7385574?IADID]

Current programming

Current personalities on KABC include Elder, Doug McIntyre, Bill O'Reilly, and Al Rantel. Imus in the Morning will air on KABC beginning on December 10. (A complete list of shows is in the next section below.)

KABC also has rights to Sunday night National Football League games from Westwood One. In 2008, the Dodgers returned to KABC. ["Los Angeles Times", Oct. 24, 2007, page D8]

Current Hosts

Don Imus (early mornings)

Doug McIntyre (mornings)—occasionally fills in for Bill O'Reilly

Rob Marinko (news/"McIntyre in the Morning")

Jorge Jarrin (traffic)—his father, Jaime Jarrin, broadcasts in Spanish for the Dodgers.

The Radio Factor with Bill O'Reilly

Richard Santiago (news)

Sandy Wells (news)

Richard Santiago (news)

Paul Harvey (news/comment twice daily)

Al Rantel (mid-mornings/early evenings)
Tommy in Glasgow (with talksport mendoza show/islamic bhoy)

Sean Hannity

Larry Elder (afternoons)

Mark Levin (evenings)

Moneytalk with Bob Brinker (weekends/financial)

Joe Aldeguer (weekends/financial)

Ric Edelman (weekends/financial)

Compound Stock Earnings (weekends/financial)

Leon Kaplan (weekends/automotive)

Dr. Gary Cohen (weekends/medical)

Leo Terrell (weekends)

Tammy Bruce (weekends)

Mark Isler (weekends)—occasionally fills in for Al Rantel

Nellkane Benton (community affairs)

Vin Scully—Dodgers baseball

Ross Porter—former Dodgers broadcaster, hosts "Real Heroes with Ross Porter"

Rick Monday—Dodgers baseball

Charley Steiner-Dodgers baseball

Ken Levine-Dodger Talk

Curtis Sliwa (fill-in, via ISDN from WABC)

Alumni

Ira Fistell—who never liked computers

David Viscott (afternoons/deceased 1996)

Michael Jackson (mid-mornings/joined KGIL in 2007)

Don Drysdale (Dodgers/deceased 1993)

Jerry Doggett (Dodgers/deceased 1997)

Ed "Superfan" Bieler

Bud Tucker

Roger Barkley (mornings/deceased 1997)

Robert Arthur (mornings/deceased, date unknown)

Ken Minyard (mornings/retired 2006)

Carol Hemingway

Mr. Blackwell

Geoff Witcher

Joe Pyne (overnights/deceased 1970)

Ray Briem (overnights)—last known to be on KRLA-AM

Dr. Toni Grant (afternoons/in Dallas)

Dennis Prager (mornings/now syndicated; currently at KRLA-AM)

John and Ken John Kolbylt and Ken Chiampou (returned to KFI-AM)

Louis Lomax

Bud "The Steamer" Furillo (sports/last reported to be in Northern California)

Tom Hawkins (sports)

Dr. Susan Forward

Kelly Lange (last seen on KNBC-TV)

Dan Avey (left the station 2007)

Gloria Allred (co-hosted "Allred and Taylor" with Mark Taylor)

Mark Taylor (co-hosted "Allred and Taylor" with Gloria Allred)

Peter Tilden (overnights/came from KZLA in 2006/fired February 2008 in a cost-cutting move)

Elmer Dills long-time restaurant critic(from the late 1970s to 2000?;deceased as of Tuesday, September 16, 2008);was succeeded by his son, Peter

Logos

Fred Wallin-Left station in 1990..Sportstalk and Dodger Talk

References

External links

* [http://www.kabc.com Talk Radio 790 KABC]
*AMQ|KABC
*AML|KABC