KOMY/Santa Cruz picks up AAR

As of Monday morning, liberals can tune into talk radio stars Al Franken and Randi Rhodes on KOMY-AM 1340.

Currently a conservative sister station to KSCO-AM 1080, the dial numbers once known for agriculture news and big-band music, will soon broadcast the liberal Air America talk radio network.

The deal was finalized Tuesday, said Michael Zwerling, who owns both stations.
"People have been asking for it for years, and we’re going to give it to them, big time," Zwerling said.

Since Air America launched in March 2004, Zwerling said he’s been trying to broadcast the programming throughout the Monterey Bay Area. But network representatives wanted Zwerling to carry more of their programming than he bargained for, meaning he would have to cut some local news shows.

Zwerling wasn’t willing to make that move, and KOMY continued broadcasting conservative talk radio.

Finally, "We were able to convince them that six hours of prime time is plenty in Santa Cruz," Zwerling said. "We didn’t want to commit our whole station because we wanted to leave some space for locals."

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