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KXSN

City	San Diego, California
Broadcast area	San Diego Metropolitan Area
Branding	Sunny 98.1
Slogan	San Diego's Greatest Hits
Frequency	98.1 MHz (also on HD Radio)
First air date	February 4, 1960 (as KJLM)
Format	FM/HD1: Classic hits HD2: Smooth jazz "Smooth Jazz KIFM" HD3: LGBTQ Talk/EDM "Channel Q"
Language(s)	English
ERP	26,500 watts
HAAT	209 meters (686 ft)
Class	B
Facility ID	34589
Transmitter coordinates	32°50′17″N 117°15′00″W / 32.838°N 117.250°W / 32.838; -117.250Coordinates: 32°50′17″N 117°15′00″W / 32.838°N 117.250°W / 32.838; -117.250
Callsign meaning	K X SunNy
Former callsigns	KJLM (1960–1967) KDIG (1967–1978) KIFM (1978–2016)
Owner	Entercom (Entercom License, LLC)
Sister stations	KBZT, KWFN, KSON, KYXY
Webcast	FM/HD1: Listen Live HD2: Listen Live HD3: Channel Q Listen Live
Website	FM/HD1: Sunny981sd.radio.com HD2: Smooth Jazz KIFM HD3: Channel Q

KXSN (98.1 MHz) is a commercial FM radio station in San Diego, California, branded as Sunny 98.1. Owned by Entercom, the station airs a classic hits radio format. The studios and offices are located in San Diego's Mission Valley neighborhood, on Granite Ridge Drive. The transmitter is off La Jolla Scenic Drive South in La Jolla, amid towers for several other San Diego FM and TV stations.^[1]

KXSN broadcasts in the HD Radio format. Its HD2 subchannel carries Smooth Jazz, using the call sign of former San Diego jazz outlet KIFM, which once was heard on 98.1. The HD3 subchannel carries "Channel Q," a Radio.com format of LGBTQ talk and EDM dance music.

History

KJLM and KDIG

The station first signed on the air on February 4, 1960, as KJLM.^[2] It was owned by E. Edward Jacobson and it operated at only 4,500 watts, a fraction of its current power. The station aired what it described as a "good music" format, a mix of middle of the road (MOR) and easy listening music.

In 1968, Jacobson changed the station's call sign to KDIG but remained as owner and president, and continued the MOR format.

KIFM

The station changed hands in 1971, getting sold to West Coast Media.^[3] In 1974, the call letters were switched to KIFM and the format moved to what West Coast described as "mellow music," a mix of soft rock and soft adult contemporary. In the 1980s, KIFM experimented with a contemporary jazz program at night, called "Lights Out San Diego."

In September 1987, as Lights Out San Diego gained in popularity, KIFM went with smooth jazz around the clock as "Smooth Jazz 98.1".^[4] During smooth jazz's popularity, KIFM was one of the top rated stations in San Diego and was the 2005 winner of the Marconi Award.

Smooth AC

As the smooth jazz format began to age, KIFM shifted its focus in the Summer of 2011. The format moved to smooth adult contemporary, airing mostly pop artists with R&B roots, such as Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Madonna and Anita Baker, with only an occasional Smooth Jazz instrumental. KIFM began calling itself "98.1 Smooth FM".

By the fall of that year, the station shifted to Rhythmic Adult Contemporary, by playing recent and older R&B hits and classic soul tracks. The original smooth jazz format moved to KIFM's HD2 subchannel.

In 1996, KIFM was bought by Jefferson-Pilot Broadcasting for $28.75 million.^[5] Jefferson-Pilot would later change its name to the Lincoln Financial Group.

Easy 98.1

On August 19, 2013, at 10 a.m., KIFM flipped to Soft AC as "Easy 98.1".^[6] The rebranding came after KIFM trailed San Diego's longtime AC leader KYXY in the Arbitron ratings reports. The final song on "Smooth" was "I Love You Always Forever" by Donna Lewis, while the first song on "Easy" was "Easy" by The Commodores. After the flip, the station's ratings improved dramatically, reaching #1 in several Arbitron ratings periods. At the same time, KYXY, like many stations that were originally Soft AC, has moved closer to a more Hot AC format to attract younger listeners.

Entercom Purchase

On December 8, 2014, Entercom announced that it was purchasing Lincoln Financial Group's entire 15-station lineup (including KIFM) in a $106.5 million deal, and would operate the outlets under a LMA deal until the sale is approved by the FCC.^[7] The merger was approved by the FCC on July 14, 2015, and the sale was completed on July 17.

On April 21, 2016, at 5 p.m., after playing "Sundown" by Gordon Lightfoot, KIFM rebranded as "Sunny 98.1," and relaunched its adult contemporary format, this time moving in a more contemporary direction. The first song on "Sunny" was "Walking on Sunshine" by Katrina & the Waves. Prior to the change, the station had led the San Diego market with a 6.2 share in the March 2016 Nielsen Audio PPM ratings, making for a rare situation where a radio station at the top of the market ratings changed formats (though it was speculated the station made the change due to low advertising revenues with the previous format).^[8] On April 28, 2016, KIFM changed call letters to KXSN to match the "Sunny" moniker. Concurrently, the KIFM call letters were moved to a co-owned sports radio station in Sacramento, AM 1320 KCTC. Despite the call letter switch, the KXSN HD2 subchannel is referred to as "Smooth Jazz KIFM" as a tribute to the classic Smooth Jazz station.

Classic Hits

On July 24, 2017, KXSN switched to classic hits, still branded as "Sunny 98.1." It was a second time that the 98.1 frequency got a format change despite leading the market, this time with a 6.2 share in the June 2017 Nielsen ratings. The change came because of the merger between station owner Entercom and CBS Radio, then-owner of former rival and now sister station KYXY.^[9]

References

External links

• Sunny 98.1 official website


• 
  Sunny 98.1 on Facebook
  


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• Query the FCC's FM station database for KXSN


• Radio-Locator information on KXSN


• Query Nielsen Audio's FM station database for KXSN


• FCC history cards for KXSN