Different boosts for two radio stations
POSTED: Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Honolulu radio station KPHW-FM 104.3 won a rare honor at the Radio & Records magazine annual convention in Austin, Texas.
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“;Power”; 104.3 was named Rhythmic Station of the Year on Thursday, among markets 51 to 100, in a tie with KDON-FM 102.5 in Monterey, Calif.
Honolulu is market No. 64.
Operations Manager Wayne Maria does not know who nominated the station.
“;We got a letter in the mail and it said basically, 'Congratulations on your nomination,'”; without naming the nominator.
Maria found out about the win via e-mails from colleagues at the convention.
KPHW is one of the six Honolulu radio stations owned by Atlanta-based Cox Radio Inc.
“;We have the best on-air personalities in town, from KC and Taka in the morning, to Island Boy, Micah Banks and all the support team,”; said Mike Kelly, vice president and general manager, in a statement.
The win is a rarity for Honolulu.
The online R&R award archives, dating back to 2001, show only one local award and three nominations.
KSSK-FM 92.3 was named best adult contemporary station of the year, markets 26 to 100, in 2005.
KDDB-FM 102.7 was nominated for best rhythmic station, markets 26 to 100 in 2006. In 2003, KAHA-FM 105.9 (now KPOI-FM) was nominated for best classic rock station of the year, a year the magazine did not divide stations by market size.
Power boost juices KIPO
Hawaii Public Radio's KIPO-FM 89.3 boosted its power from 3,000 watts to 29,000 on Saturday and calls came flooding into the station from ecstatic listeners in far-flung places.
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“;The furthest-flung place was the Big Island,”; said President and General Manager Michael Titterton. Maui listeners also called in, though he was quick to say the station doesn't come in clearly in all spots.
Titterton was on the air at noon to direct the transition from the old Palehua transmitter to the new transmitter at Tantalus.
“;Just for the sake of drama”; he planned on about five seconds of static, which lasted “;about 6.5 seconds, so for 1.5 seconds he experienced “;sheer white-knuckle terror,”; but the switch over “;went fine.”;
The signal is now stronger by almost “;ten-fold”; and now goes island-wide but it is coming from a different location, which means a handful of listeners may have lost some signal quality. Officials are considering installation of boosters in some of those areas.
KIPO listeners have waited 18 years for this, he said. “;You had faith in us and we've kept that faith. I can't tell you what a relief that is.”;
