CACrown ArchivesThe cinema collection
Menu
Research dossier · Places & Architecture

KPWR

rhythmic contemporary hit radio station in Los Angeles

Architectural plans, a scale model, maps and brass measuring instruments
Places and architectureInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionSep 11, 2026
Entity authorityQ3191487
Source-derived summary

KPWR (105.9 FM) – branded as Power 106 – is a commercial radio station in Los Angeles, California, broadcasting to the Greater Los Angeles area. KPWR is owned and operated by Alex Meruelo's Meruelo Group, through licensee KPWR Radio Holdings LLC, and airs a rhythmic hot AC format. KPWR's studios are based in the Los Angeles suburb of Burbank, and the transmitter is on Mount Wilson. Meruelo acquired KPWR from Emmis Communications for $82.75 million in May 2017, officially bringing the station under common ownership with KDAY, KDEY-FM and KBEH on August 1, 2017.

History

Early years (1955–1986)

From 1946 until its deletion in 1951, 105.9 MHz in Los Angeles was occupied by KFI-FM. In 1955, Planned Music, Inc. applied for a construction permit for a new station on the vacated frequency, which was assigned the call letters KBMS (Better Music Station), before adopting the KWST call sign and "K-West 106" moniker in 1969. During its years as KBMS and KWST, its format had been beautiful music prior to its flip to a progressive rock format on January 1, 1975. K-West emulated the then-popular sound of KMET and KLOS. By 1981, though, the ratings had slipped and KWST had changed to a top 40 format, and fired all of their disc jockeys. KWST eventually evolved into KMGG, "Magic 106", playing upbeat adult contemporary music beginning in mid-1982.

In May 1984, Century Broadcasting sold KMGG and St.

Editorial summary

Begin with the source’s own compact description: “KPWR” is rhythmic contemporary hit radio station in Los Angeles. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through KPWR, rhythmic and contemporary, not as a finished interpretation.

Editorial reviewA valuable geographic starting point for tracing changing names, boundaries, uses and administrative responsibility. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—2017, 1955, 1986, 1946—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1946-01-01. For this dossier, KPWR, rhythmic and contemporary is the immediate research focus.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The phrase “rhythmic contemporary hit radio station in Los Angeles” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.

Evidence profile

The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 11, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q3191487. Authority coordinates are 34.227, -118.068. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2017, 1955, 1986 and 1946.

Critical limits

A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.

Best used for
  • Historic place names
  • Jurisdictional context
  • Routes into maps and plans
Verify next

Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “KPWR”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow KPWR primary sources, KPWR archive and KPWR research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “KPWR”?
  2. What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
  3. Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Subject index

Search terms from this dossier

Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from KPWR” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.