KNUS

KNUS
Denver, Colorado;
Broadcast area	Denver metropolitan area
Frequency	710 kHz
Branding	710 KNUS
Programming
Format	Talk Radio
Network	NBC News Radio
Affiliations	Salem Radio Network; Westwood One
Ownership
Owner	Salem Media Group; (Salem Media of Colorado, Inc.);
Sister stations	KBJD, KRKS, KRKS-FM
History
First air date	May 1941; 83 years ago
Former call signs	KMYR (1941–1959); KICN (1959–1961); KBTR (1961–1973); KERE (1973–1981); KNUS (1981–1988); KBPI (1988–1989); KBXG (1989–1990)
Call sign meaning	Kolorado's NUS (NUS sounds like NEWS)
Technical information
Licensing authority	FCC
Facility ID	42377
Class	B
Power	5,000 watts
Transmitter coordinates	39°57′19″N 104°51′1″W / 39.95528°N 104.85028°W
Links
Public license information	Public file; LMS;
Webcast	Listen Live
Website	710knus.com

KNUS (710 AM) is a commercial radio station in Denver, Colorado. It airs a talk radio format and is owned and operated by the Salem Media Group under licensee Salem Media of Colorado, Inc.^[2] The studios are on South Vaughn Way in Aurora.

KNUS is a Class B station. It is powered at 5,000 watts. Because 710 AM is a clear channel frequency, to protect other stations from interference, it uses a directional antenna with a four-tower array. The transmitter is off Brighton Road near the South Platte River in Brighton.^[3]

Programming

Weekdays on KNUS begin with a local talk and interview program, The Jeff & Bill Show, featuring Jeff Hunt and Bill Thorpe. The rest of the weekday schedule includes mostly syndicated conservative talk shows, many from the co-owned Salem Radio Network, hosted by Hugh Hewitt, Dennis Prager, Charlie Kirk, Sebastian Gorka, Larry Elder, as well as Mark Levin and America in the Morning from Westwood One. An old-time radio show airs overnight, When Radio Was.

KNUS local weekend hosts include Peter Boyles and John Caldara. Weekend syndicated hosts include travel expert Rudy Maxa, paranormal host John B. Wells and former Rush Limbaugh producer James Golden. 710 KNUS is an NBC News Radio Network affiliate and a member of the Associated Press.

History

Early years

The station signed on the air in May 1941; 83 years ago (1941-05). Its original call sign was KMYR and it broadcst on 1340 kHz. It was powered at 250 watts, a fraction of its current output. Its studios were on Stout Street and it was owned by F.W. Meyer.^[4] The call letters represented his last name.

The station moved to 710 kHz in April 1956. When it was KBTR, it had a news partnership with KBTV (now KUSA-TV). This ended in the mid-1980s. From the 1970s to the late 1980s, it was owned by Mullins Broadcasting. In the late 1980s, the station changed its call letters to KBXG when it was bought by a Boulder coal company. In the 1990s, the station was the home of Ken Hamblin, Gary Tessler, Alan Dumas, Carol McKinley, Nia Bender, Pierre Wolfe, Mason Lewis, Warren Byrne, Jim Turner, Gabby Gourmet and Ron Krieter. It broadcast from the 23rd floor studios of the Tabor Center.

In the late 1980s, music formats on AM stations were having ratings problems, as more people tuned to the FM dial. For about a year, 710 AM had no format of its own. Instead, it simulcast the active rock format of its sister station, 106.7 KBPI, from 1988 to 1989.^[5]

Rush Limbaugh appearance

In 1993, KNUS was Denver's first station to carry The Rush Limbaugh Show. When Limbaugh came to nearby Fort Collins for an appearance, thousands of people showed up. KNUS host Jann Scott also did a live show from Fort Collins where some negative comments were made about Rush. Limbaugh heard the show from his hotel room and came over. Limbaugh and Scott bantered back and forth and then ended up telling jokes and talking to the crowd for two hours.

Peter Boyles returned to 710 KNUS in the summer of 2013 after being fired by another local talk radio station that objected to the racial nature of his on-air comments. He had been dubbed "The Dean of Denver Radio Talk Show Hosts."^[6] He retired from five days a week in April 2022. But he after a few months, he decided to do a weekend show on KNUS in August of that year. He currently hosts a four-hour show on Saturdays.

In 2018, KNUS was the winner of the Colorado Broadcasters Association's "Best Regularly Scheduled Newscast" award.

Chuck and Julie Show controversy

On December 18, 2019, the Chuck & Julie show was cancelled. Co-host Chuck Bonniwell stated, when introducing a segment discussing the impeachment of Donald Trump, "You know, you wish for a nice school shooting to interrupt the nonstop impeachment coverage."^[7] This happened one week after another KNUS host, Kirk Widlund denied allegations that he had posted white-supremacist memes online.^[8]

In July 2024, host Randy Corporan left KNUS. He was notified in June that Salem Media would not be renewing his contract.^[9]

Former on-air personalities

Alan Berg, Ken Hamblin, Jann Scott, Marty Nalitz, Randy Corporan, Jimmy Lakey, Mike Rosen, Alan Dumas, Jim Turner, Gary Tessler, Carol McKinley, Nia Bender, Brandon Scott, Pierre Wolfe, Warren Byrne, Gabby Gourmet, Mason Lewis, Bill Jones, Connor Shreve, Steve Kelley, Krista Kafer, Dan Caplis, Chuck Bonniwell and Julie Hayden, Craig Silverman.