Pappas turning off KMPH-AM Modesto

Pappas Radio’s Talker KMPH-AM “The Patriot” in Modesto, CA will go dark 8/31. VP/GM JIM Pappas said in an open letter to listeners (see the whole letter on the PDF attachment to the right of this story): "Due to the ongoing national, state and local economic downturn, combined with the insufficient growth in revenue at KMPH-AM 840, our company is no longer willing to fund the continued growth and development of this radio station and its present rate of operating loss. As with any private business, we must generate enough revenue to pay for this service.  With this in mind, taking our radio station off the air is a decision we were compelled to make only after investigating every possible alternative until, in the face of difficult economic circumstances, no other decision was possible.  When future circumstances permit, KMPH-AM will return to the airwaves.”

The 5-kW station only signed on, as a totally new facility, in 2006. It was Adult Standards and flipped to Talk in March 2008. Pappas built the station replace the 860 (KTRB) that it moved into the San Francisco market.

KMPH has a good signal.  During the day its 5-mv/m signal reaches 656,000 people in the Modesto (#111) and Merced (#181) markets.  This station is unusual in that its night pattern covers more people (1,082,000) than its day pattern.  In fact, at night the station's signal also reaches into the Stockton market (#82). The ground conductivity in California's Central Valley is 15-mmho, meaning low-band AM stations like KMPH (840) have terrific coverage, according to Dave Schutz, President of Hoffman-Schutz Media Capital. 
 
The station has a 5-tower array, each is 300 feet tall.

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