A Brief History of South Plains Public Radio


2005  
2004  
2003 March 20th – KOHM carries live breaking coverage of the U.S. invasion of Iraq.
July 18th – Ribbon-cutting on KOHM’s new broadcast transmission facility. The new transmitter building houses KOHM’s new Nautel solid-state transmitter. With FCC approval, the new transmitter allows KOHM to increase its power from 50Kw to 70Kw.
October 18th – KOHM hosts PRI’s From The Top. The show is taped live from the Allen Theater on the Texas Tech University Campus. The visit is made possible by a grant from the CH Foundation.
2002 February – NPR Newscaster Cory Flintoff visits KOHM and Texas Tech University as the keynote speaker to Mass Communications Week sponsored by the School of Mass Communications. A live on-air interview with Mr. Flintoff marks the official opening of KOHM’s new production studio.
2001 July – After more than a year at its new studio location, KOHM finally is able to move all of its satellite downlink equipment to the new location. A special horizontal-boring machine allows a fiber-optic cable to be run under the parking lot, allowing for the relocation of KOHM’s satellite dish. [Pictures]
Sept 1 – Dr. Clive Kinghorn retires as KOHM's General Manager. Derrick Ginter is selected as new GM.
Sept 11 – Using hijacked airliners, terrorists attack the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon in Washington DC. KOHM carries the breaking news coverage from NPR live. Since the attacks occurred mid-morning on the east-coast, most Americans were already at or commuting to work. Radio news coverage carries the day since most people do not have access to the TV while at work.
By mid-afternoon, KOHM breaks from network coverage and begins live, on-air telephone interviews with TTU faculty regarding the day’s events. KOHM listeners learned why the WTC towers collapsed, what financial harm might result, how the U.S. might respond, what justice might be brought to bear on those responsible, and much more – all from live, local interviews. The same questions would be asked and answered days later on the NPR newsmagazines, with responses similar to those heard locally. This coverage, combined with voracious demand for more news following 9/11, led to the creation of a local news presence on KOHM.
2000 January - KOHM becomes an affiliate of the Public Radio International network. This allows KOHM to add several popular PRI programs to its broadcast schedule, including A Prarie Home Companion.
April – KOHM relocates to its new studio facility atop the bank building at 19th & University.
1999 April – KOHM suffers another catastrophic lightning strike to its broadcast antenna. The damage takes KOHM off the air for two months while repairs are made. While at first it seems the lightning strike deals a catastrophic blow to the station, ensuing events precipitated by it will bring about many positive changes in the months ahead. [Details.]
1998 May 19th – A failure of the Galaxy IV satellite causes public radio stations across the country to find innovative ways to acquire network programming. KOHM becomes the first station in the region to broadcast Internet-delivered audio content. The elegant solution to the problem consists of running a 30 foot mic cord from the studio to the ONE computer at KOHM that has Internet access. The microphone is placed in front of the computer speakers and an early version of RealPlayer is used to play the All Things Considered audio file from the NPR website. The staff in the room must keep quiet and answer the station telephone on the first ring since there is a live mic sitting in front of the computer. The “solution” is later modified and improved so that a live microphone in the office is no longer needed. It would be several weeks before the satellite system would be restored.
1991

Spring- KOHM resumes an 18-hour broadcast day, from 6am to Midnight, in order to meet the qualifications for CPB certification.
Summer – KOHM qualifies for full funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. CPB grants issued to KOHM would allow the station to afford membership in the National Public Radio network.
November – KOHM becomes an affiliated member of National Public Radio. NPR programs carried on KOHM were Morning Edition, Performance Today, and All Things Considered.

1990 March – With FCC approval, KOHM raises its power from 20Kw to 50Kw. This more than doubles KOHM’s coverage area. Listeners within a 60-mile radius of Lubbock can now enjoy KOHM programming.
1989 Fall – An application to increase KOHM’s power from 20,000 watts to 50,000 watts is filed with the FCC.
1988

April 28 – On-Air testing of KOHM’s broadcast equipment commences.
May 2nd – KOHM’s inaugural broadcast with Texas Tech as its new licensee. The program was held in the atrium at the Barcelona Court hotel and was broadcast live. Various dignitaries of the community and individuals involved with getting the station started were among the many in attendance. Click here for pictures and audio.

Lisa Akwitz was KOHM's first Music Director, and Casey Kline was its first Operations/Development Director. The station relied heavily on volunteers to accomplish what needed to get done. Because the station's classical music library consisted of "a handful of scratchy vinyl records", the bulk of the music programming came from Beethoven Satellite Network. The station broadcast 12 hours a day from 10am to 10pm.

Later in the month, Dr. Kinghorn would file the formal application requesting an FM broadcast license for KOHM. The station had heretofore been operating under Special Temporary Authority from the FCC.
September 16th- The FCC formally grants Texas Tech University a broadcast license to operate KOHM at 20,000 watts on 89.1 MHz.
1987 Fall- The FCC approves the relocation of KOHM's broadcast transmission facility to the west-side of the Texas Tech campus, and also grants an increase in the station's previous power to 20,000 watts.
1986

Summer- Back in the days when one could simply pick up the phone and call the FCC to get answers, Dr. Kinghorn learns that another entity has filed for the same frequency. He is then provided with information as to who the competitor is- some out of state religious group. The FCC requires that both parties filing an application either come to Washington DC for a hearing to settle the matter, or work it out themselves. Additionally, Dr. Kinghorn is told that there is also another entity in Lubbock that is surrendering their FM license and he might want to try getting theirs. That other entity? LISD! [More details here.]
Fall- The FCC approves the transfer of KOHM's license from LISD to Texas Tech University.

1984 September – Dr. Kinghorn submits the first application to the FCC seeking a broadcast license for a second FM station at Texas Tech University. The original frequency applied for is 90.7 MHz.
1983 Dr. Kinghorn, with the approval and support of Dr. Don Haragan, Vice-President of Academic Affairs at the time, asks the administration for permission to begin a second FM radio station at Texas Tech. Permission is granted with the understanding that operational funding for the station is not available, but other assistance, where possible, would be.
1980s Dr. Clive Kinghorn, General Manager and Faculty Director of Texas Tech’s student FM station KTXT, explores the acquisition of a second FM station for the University. The second station would be for Classical music and public radio programming. The only classical music and Opera programming on Lubbock’s radio dial is broadcast just 12 hours each week on KTXT-FM. A booth is setup at the Arts Festival and signatures in support of a Classical Music radio station are collected. Local interest convinces Dr. Kinghorn that a second station is worth pursuing.
Pre-
1980		 Lubbock Independent School District is issued a license from the FCC to operate an educational FM radio station. The station is part of the District’s electronics program. It is located at various schools in Lubbock, depending on where the electronics program is housed that particular year. According to popular lore, the station call letters were originally KLSD for Lubbock School District, but the school board has issues with those call letters so a change is made. The new call letters KOHM are chosen as that reflects the station’s tie to the electronics program. KOHM actually has a meaning to it- an Ohm is the basic unit measuring electrical resistance, and the “K” is the metric prefix denoting the quantity of 1,000 or “Kilo”. Thus 1,000 Ohms is a “kilo-ohm” or “KOHM”. Budget cuts, increased maintenance costs and the district’s emphasis on television force the station into disrepair. By the mid 1980s, LISD was in the process of surrendering KOHM’s broadcast license back to the FCC.