April 15, 1997.

KHNL Lands UH TV Rights

To the tune of $6.2 million paid out over the next five years, KHNL and its subsidiary station KFVE won the right to broadcast University of Hawaii sports events. The $1.25 million average payout per year is almost three times the amount KHNL is paying the university under the current contract. UH athletic director Hugh Yoshida said he was "very pleased" with the outcome since the money from the pact will play a major part in the athletic department's move toward financial self-sufficiency. KGMB was the only other party seeking UH television rights but station manager Dick Grimm submitted a no-bid letter because KGMB was having difficulties meeting specific requirements stipulated by UH.

-- From Dayle Turner's Hawaii Sports News, April 15, 1997

Legendary DJ Tom Moffatt Back on the Air

Tom Moffatt, once the longtime voice and DJ of the old KPOI radio station (at 1380 on the dial in the 50s - early 70s) began a new morning show on the Oldies Station at KGMZ 107.9 FM yesterday. Moffatt is back in familiar territory playing all of the rock n roll music that he helped make popular in Hawaii during his "Poi Boy" days. His new morning drive show airs from 6AM to 9AM weekdays at KGMZ.

April 3, 1997

Former Governor Waihee in Hui to Buy KUMU Radio

It was reported last week that former Governor John Waihee would be among a group of investors forming a hui to buy radio stations KUMU FM and AM. The sale of the station to the investment group is pending FCC approval. The current owners, John Hutton Corporation wants to get out of the radio business and has opted to sell to a local owner, despite a interest from a mainland firm. KUMU FM is a longtime broadcaster of a successful "Easy Listening" format, while its AM operation programs a mix of "popular standards" geared toward an older audience. The new company wants to possibly start a "hot country" music format on one of its stations.

New Hawaii Five-0 in Production

A new version of the old CBS TV show, Hawaii Five-0 started shooting a new pilot episode this week. After weeks of speculation, the cast members of the new series were recently named. Princpals for the new series will be Gary Busey, Russell Wong, Esmond Chung, Branscombe Richmond and Andy Bumatai. Several members of the original Hawaii Five-0 are slated to make cameo appearances in the new series pilot. Airing of the new pilot movie is pending a decision from CBS executives. More information about the show can be found here: http://web20.mindlink.net/a4369/fiveo.htm.

Hearst Publishing Group Buys Argyle Television

The Hearst Corporation will be buying Argyle Television, owners of local ABC TV affiliate KITV Channel 4. Argyle owns several TV stations on the mainland, and Hearst's acquisition of Argyle will give the new entity, Hearst-Argyle control of 12 ABC affiliates in key markets across the country. Terms of the sale include a $159.7 million in cash and 6.1 million of Hearst-Argyle shares. Hearst will own 86% of the new company. Local operations and programming at KITV Channel 4 are not slated for any major changes. For more information about Channel 4, visit their site at http://www.kitv.com.

March 16, 1997.

Channel 2 News Leads Ratings Race

The results of the February '97 Nielsen Ratings sweeps period were recently published. In the highly competitive local news race, KHON TV's Channel 2 News with Joe Moore has been a consistent ratings winner in the 6 and 10 p.m. weeknight time slots. KHON's 6 pm news is number one in its time slot with a huge 20 share while #2 KITV trails behind with a 9. KGMB and KHNL brought up the 3rd and 4th slots. KHON was also number 1 in the 10 o clock news slot with KITV, KGMB and KHNL bringing up the 2nd, 3rd and 4th positions.

In defiance of national trends, KHON TV, the local Fox Network affiliate has tied with KHNL, the NBC affiliate for first place during the nightly prime time viewing hours. Both stations report a 10 share during Hawaii's prime time hours of 7 to 10pm. KHON was also number 1 from sign on to sign off.

March 14, 1997.

U.H. Sports Broadcast Bid Heats Up

A group led by Channel 9 general manager Dick Grimm says it will butt heads with KHNL for the right to televise University of Hawaii Sports. The announcement comes a day after Oceanic Cablevision withdrew from the bidding war leaving KHNL with no competition. KHNL has a bid of $1 million per year on the table.

--From Dayle Turner's Hawaii Sports News, 3-13-97

Radio Free Hawaii Web Page Changes URL

The folks at Radio Free Hawaii are rallying their forces to get the format back on the air. News about the status of Radio Free Hawaii is being posted at the Radio Free Music Center record store. The URL for RFH information is http://www.lava.net/radio-free-music.

March 10, 1997.

Oceanic Cable Drops Out of Bid For U.H. Sports

It was reported today, that Oahu's Oceanic Cable has decided to drop out of the bidding contest to land the lucrative broadcast rights to University of Hawaii Sports. According to news reports, the reason cited was that Oceanic did not have time to prepare for broadcasting U.H. games within the short time window from when the bid could be secure and the start of the contract period. The current contract holder, KFVE-TV remains the only major player in the bidding and could secure the contract if no other major bidder comes forward.

Sale of KDEO 102.7FM Spells End for Radio Free Hawaii

Loew Broadcasting sold radio station KDEO FM 102.7 on Friday, March 7 ending the eclectic Radio Free Hawaii format again. The new owners, Caribou Broadcasting took the station off the air without notice shortly after the deal was closed. Loew's reasoning for selling the station was that a small operation could not compete with group owned radio conglomerates. Caribou also owns KQMQ FM and AM, and KPOI 97.5 FM.

KDEO 102.7 FM resumed broadcasting with a new format today (March 10) consisting of contemporary R & B hits. Station IDs indicate that the "New 102.7" is under construction.

Radio Free Hawaii started broadcasting in June 1991 and was on the air until November 1994 when it was first shut down. They resumed broadcasting in April 1995 until Friday's shutdown.

KCCN / KINE Revamp Morning Shows

KCCN FM 100 unveiled a new morning show team featuring Billy V., Greg Hammer and Charly Espina today. The FM 100 Morning show is now known as the "FM 100 Morning Jam." Meanwhile over at sister station KINE FM, Brickwood Galuteria has been teamed with Frank B. Shaner for his "Aloha Morning Show". KCCN AM 1420 has broken off their simulcast of the FM 100 show installing their own morning show called "Hawaiian Sunrise".

March 8, 1997.

"Pets & People In Paradise" To Debut on KITV 4

A new half-hour television show focusing on the Hawaii pet scene is set to air March 16, at 4:00 P.M. The new show hosted by KITV's Paula Akana will feature local celebrities, tips on veterinary care, pet tricks (not stupid ones we hope!) and interesting stories about Hawaii's animal friends and their owners. The show will be a weekly half hour feature and is an extension of the popular Pets 'n People in Paradise monthly magazine.

Hawaiian Historian to be Featured on Art Bell's "Dreamland" Show

Noted Hawaii historian and avid ghost-story teller Glen Grant is scheduled to be interviewed on the nationally syndicated Art Bell radio show.

Grant will be interviewed by popular talk show host Art Bell, on his weekly "Dreamland" program entitled, "Ghostly Encounters on Supernatural Hawaii". "Dreamland" airs Sunday nights at 5:PM on KHVH radio 830 on the AM dial. Grants appearance is scheduled for April 6.

Art Bell's nightly talk show "Coast to Coast" airs regularly on KHVH radio starting at 9:PM and also on KKON and KAOI AM in Kona and Maui at midnight. Information on Art Bell's "Coast to Coast" and "Dreamland" shows can be found at the Art Bell web site at http://www.artbell.com.

Re-written from usenet post by Mama Lani

KHNR Radio Website Now Online

Radio station KHNR 650 on the AM dial has recently launched their own website. It can be found at the following URL: http://www.khnr.com. Launch your frames compatible browser and surf into Hawaii's only full news station. KHNR broadcasts 24 hours a day utilizing network feeds from CNN Headline News as well as local reports.

Broadcast Executive Dies

Honolulu radio executive Ray Barnett passed away last Friday, February 28, in his Kailua-Kona home after a bout with cancer. Barnett72, was a vice president with Patterson Broadcasting in Honolulu, owners of radio stations KSSK, KUCD, KIKI, KHVH and KKLV.

Hawaii Five-0 May Return To CBS Television

The popular island based television series of the late 60s and 70s, Hawaii Five-0, may once again be airborune as CBS TV is planning to film a pilot in Hawaii. According to published reports, the proposed television pilot may become a series featuring a new cast possibly playing the same characters of the original series. If the show is filmed, the operation will run out of the State's Diamond Head TV studio facility and promises to employ several hundred local people.

For more information on this, consult the Hawaii Five-0 website at http://web20.mindlink.net/a4369/fiveo.htm.

February 26, 1997.

Wind Storm Topples KHLO Broadcast Tower

Unusually strong, gusty winds on the Big Island toppled a more than 40 year old broadcasting tower this past week. Hilo radio station KHLO 850 AM was knocked off the air after the more than 60mph winds snapped the tower in two. According to station owners, Brewer Broadcasting, the disaster will cost the station several thousand dollars to fix and will leave KHLO off the air for at least the next two weeks. The unusual wind storm wrecked havoc in downtown Hilo and recorded wind gusts of more than 100 mph on the summit of the Big Island's Mauna Kea Mountain.

February 7, 1997.

KOHO Radio Returns To The Air

What? Another radio station on the air? Yes. Radio station KOHO 1170 on the dial returned to the air this past week after being off for several years. The station has returned with a contemporary music format. It previously aired an all Japanese programming format.

February 7, 1997.

KISA Returns To The Air

After being off the air for one year, radio station KISA 1540 on the AM dial has returned to the air under new ownership and with a new format. The station resumed broadcasting, simulcasting the news and talk format of sister station KWAI 1080 AM. KISA previously aired an all Filipino language and music format.

February 5, 1997.

I-94 FM Simulcasts on 990 AM

Radio station KIKI AM signed back on the air at its former location of 990 khz on the AM dial. The AM station which went off the air in April of 1995, has returned with a simulcast of sister station's I-94's (KIKI-FM 93.9) popular mix of dance, rap and urban hits. The station had previously aired an oldies format. The new AM simulcast is the latest in a string of common FM & AM radio station simulcasts found on the Honolulu dial.

January 29, 1997.

Hawaii Public Television Website Online

KHET Channel 11 (10 on Maui, neighbor islands) recently put their website up. The new site features information about Hawaii Public Television, a program schedule, membership information and links to PBS and individual shows scheduled for airing. You can check out this new site at http://www.onhawaii.com/khet.

January 22, 1997.

Francis Sacked by KGMB

Former Kailua High and NFL player Russ Francis was fired on Monday as news director and sports anchor by KGMB-TV. Francis, 43, had been hired by the station a year ago to help boost sagging ratings. After completing his NFL career and prior to his KGMB stint, Francis worked for KUGN Radio in Eugene, Oregon, ESPN, and ABC-TV. He could not be reached for comment.

-- From Dayle Turner's Hawaii Sports News, 1/21/97

KGMZ 107.9 FM Changes Format

UPDATED: Honolulu radio station KGMZ 107.9 FM changed its format from the "Quality Rock" simulcast to an all oldies format. The surprise move came on Friday Jan. 10 as KAOI staff on Maui was told that their simulcast would end. 107.9 FM is playing a mix of late 50s and 60s oldies, along with a mix of "historic old news." The station is now billing itself as the "Hitbound Sound of Channel 107.9." Back on Maui the Quality Rock format of KAOI continues to be simulcast on 95.1 FM and 92.7 FM in Hilo, Hawaii.

January 13, 1997.

KHON TV Drops "Take Two" Newscast

Fox 2, Hawaii's KHON TV quietly dropped its "Take Two" late night newscast that follwed its highly rated Channel 2 News at 10 with Joe Moore. Taking the late night local newscast's place is the syndicated tabloid news show "Inside Edition" moved up from a later time slot.

January 7, 1997.

Program Ratings Hit Airwaves

The major television and cable networks have begun using the new TV ratings system agreed upon by the industry last month. The new rating bugs are beginning to appear in the top left hand corner at the beginning and sometimes in the middle of many network shows. The ratings, similar to that of movie ratings, are supposed to inform viewers about the content of each show.

The ratings are as follows:

TVY - Intended for all Children

TVY7 - Directed for Older Children

TVG - General Audience

TVPG - Parental Guidance Suggested

TV14 - Parents Strongly Cautioned

TVM - Mature Audience Only

The new system takes into account such content items as sex, language and violence when arriving at a show's rating.

For more information on TV Ratings visit this URL: http://www.nab.org/television/RATINGS.HTM

More Channel Changes At Oceanic

With the beginning of the new year, Oceanic Cable has made more adjustments to its channel line-up. Among these are the following:

E! and The Discovery Channels switch. E! is now on Channel 20, and TDC is on Channel 34. Both are broadcast in stereo.

KOBN has been moved from Channel 59 to Channel 58, a new channel on Oceanic's dial.

KHAI TV is currently occupying the spot at Channel 59. KHAI is also at Channel 9 on Oceanic's dial.

The i1 Games Network has yet to debut for all Oceanic customers. The interactive network was supposed to start airing last month, but has since been delayed. It is however being tested in some of Oceanic's service area.

Finally, the new rates have kicked in and so far the FM service has not been discontinued.

T.V. Stations Get To Air 2 Michael Jackson Songs

Local TV News outlets got to air 2 songs from the beginning of Michael Jackson's recent Honolulu concerts, which closed his "History" tour. The Michael Jackson appearances at Aloha Stadium on January 3 and 4 turned into a major media event for most of the local news outlets, overshadowing Mayor Jeremy Harris's inauguration Friday afternoon and even the rainy weather that was prevlant that weekend.

KHVH Radio Revamps Format

KHVH Radio, recently noted for providing the most comprehensive local election coverage, has tweaked their format to emphasize more of its nationally syndicated talk shows. In a shakeup that officially took effect on Monday, January 6. The major change includes the expansion of Rick Hamada's morning news show to 3 full hours starting at 6:AM and ending at 9. The new show is emphasizes local issues and news items. Meanwhile adjustments to the line-up included elimination Lee Kirk's local afternoon talk show in favor of mainland chatter. Among the weekday line-up at KHVH are the following syndicated shows: Rush Limbaugh, Dr. Laura Schlesinger, Ken Hamblin, Mike Reagan and Art Bell.