Probably the most extreme format change of all time has taken place on a radio station in Kingsburg, near Fresno, California. KFYE-FM was a Christian radio station, broadcasting Christian music, sermons and readings from the Bible. But last month the station was sold, and the new owner decided to change the format. Shocked listeners tuning into the station’s frequency, 93,7 FM, could be forgiven for thinking that someone had hijacked the station’s transmitter. Because what they heard was ‘’Porn Radio'’ - ‘’all sex radio, all the time,'’ warning people under 21 not to listen.
It isn’t clear if this is a permanent format change, or simply a publicity stunt. So far, KYFE has been playing the same one-hour compilation over and over again, without advertisements. The songs all have suggestive titles and/or lyrics, such as ‘’Why Don’t We Do It in the Road'’ by The Beatles, ‘’Sexual Healing'’ by Marvin Gaye and ‘’Nasty'’ by Janet Jackson. The station has added moans and groans to some tracks.
New station owner Jerry Clifton has refused to say what his plans are for the station, but the national publicity he has generated will certainly not have gone unnoticed at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which recently increased the levels of fines for indecency on radio and TV broadcasts. We think that Mr Clifton’s intention was to signal a clear break with the station’s previous audience, and shock them into tuning elsewhere, while at the same time attracting a lot of attention. Mr Clifton is quoted as saying that “the station tries not to cross the line.” Whether the FCC agrees remains to be seen.
(Source: R. Netherlands Media Network Weblog)
