KVGK-LP

KVGK-LP

Las Vegas, Nevada
Broadcast area	Las Vegas metropolitan area
Frequency	97.9 MHz
Branding	Magic 97.9 FM
Programming
Format	Defunct (formerly Public radio)
Affiliations	Feature Story News (FSN), T-Mobile, Las Vegas Tribune, Syndication Networks and Public News Service
Ownership
Owner	Las Vegas Public Radio Inc.
History
First air date	2016
Former call signs	KIOF-LP (2014–2022)
Technical information
Licensing authority	FCC
Facility ID	190166
Class	L1
ERP	100 watts
HAAT	−49.0 meters (−160.8 ft)
Transmitter coordinates	36°13′1.8″N 115°07′3.8″W
Links
Public license information	LMS
Webcast	Listen Live
Website	lvpr.org

KVGK-LP (97.9 FM) was a radio station licensed to serve Las Vegas, Nevada. The station, founded by Gregory LaPorta, was established in 2010, was owned by Las Vegas Public Radio Inc. and affiliated with Feature Story News (FSN), T-Mobile, the Las Vegas Tribune (a division of Tribune Media Group), Syndication Networks and Public News Service (PNS). Portsonic Communications, LLC was a local community radio investor and management company for Las Vegas Public Radio Inc. KVGK-LP was governed under the Local Community Radio Act of 2010 as a public radio station to the Las Vegas, Nevada valley. The FCC licensed Portsonic Communications, LLC, a commercial company for KVGK-LP 97.9 FM from May 12, 2023 to November 12, 2023 to work on a split of the nation's Low Power FM service through a research and development pilot project running under a Temporary Application for Provisionial Commercial Use at FCC Facility ID: 190166 in North Las Vegas, Nevada where Las Vegas Public Radio had been broadcasting from with the original KIOF-LP 97.9 FM. Because the FCC licensed a commercial company for Low Power FM operations during a short period of time, KVGK-LP 97.9 FM never came to air and was used to trace fatal flaws in the FCC's Licensing and Management System (LMS) during the final report issued by the FCC on May 14, 2024 in FCC DA 24-252. This single report heavily documents why the LPFM Commercial Service never came about over the past 25+ years due to regulatory/statutory blockage.

KVGK-LP generated programming locally in Las Vegas, Nevada. The station began broadcasting on January 9, 2016, with the call sign KIOF-LP. KVGK-LP could be heard on 97.9 FM throughout the Las Vegas and North Las Vegas metropolitan areas as well as the Las Vegas Strip, T-Mobile Arena and Las Vegas Chinatown.

Las Vegas Public Radio Inc. is an independent State of Nevada Public Broadcaster, and is part of the State of Nevada Public Broadcasting System.

On September 4, 2022, Las Vegas Public Radio Inc. returned the broadcast license of the then-KIOF-LP along with the call sign back to the FCC. Las Vegas Public Radio Inc. was in the process of building its new 48,000 Watt FM radio station on KQQY (90.1 FM) as authorized through a construction permit issued by the FCC on June 9, 2022.

History

This station received its original construction permit from the Federal Communications Commission on September 5, 2014. The new station was assigned the KIOF-LP call sign by the FCC on September 12, 2014. KIOF-LP began over-the-air program tests on January 9, 2016, and received its license to cover from the FCC on February 1, 2016.

In June 2018, KIOF-LP Las Vegas Public Radio Inc. officially became part of the State of Nevada Public Broadcasting System.

On June 9, 2022, the Federal Communications Commission issued a construction permit to Las Vegas Public Radio Inc. for a new station to operate on 90.1 FM and broadcast at 48,000 watts. The KIOF-LP license was deleted on September 6, 2022, in order to make way for KQQY to launch at 90.1 FM. The FCC reinstated KIOF-LP's license on November 3, 2022. The station changed its call sign to KVGK-LP on March 10, 2023.

By October 4, 2023, the FCC determined it made a fatal mistake by cancelling KVGK-LP's license for Las Vegas Public Radio Inc. after fatal flaws were determined with FCC's electronic systems during the final FCC CDBS to LMS conversions with FCC Modification of License processes when errors were made for Las Vegas Public Radio Inc. that the KVGK-LP license should have previously cancelled by May 12, 2023 when the FCC licensed and authorized Portsonic Communications, LLC, a commercial company for LPFM Commercial research and development for KVGK-LP on May 12, 2023 during a 6 month period due to the station having been silent since September 4, 2022. By October 30, 2023, both Las Vegas Public Radio and Portsonic Communications, LLC working under a joint Temporary Application for Provisionial Commercial Use project were told by the FCC not to place the station on the air. This fatal licensing set of errors in the FCC CDBS and LMS systems is presently sitting in the 118th Congress due to the impacts to both companies being small business concerns as governed by the Federal Trade Commission. The FCC covered up those licensing errors to the general public impacting vendors and others by late May 2023 to early 2024 by not updating its LMS system by manually carrying over previous CDBS records of the licensing change for FCC Facility ID 190166 back on May 12, 2023 which led to the Congressional Inquiries being made of actions taken by the FCC and confirmed by Congress but were being hidden to the general public for reasons unknown severely impacting both companies in the Las Vegas, Nevada marketplace.