Despite high hopes and a lot of industry media attention at her launch, 1030 KDUN(AM), the 50,000-watt station in Reedsport, Ore., owned by syndicated radio host Delilah, has ceased broadcasting and turned in its license.
She purchased the station in 2021 in the coastal Oregon town where her hall-of-fame career began.
Delilah submitted the request to cancel KDUN’s license to the FCC on May 6. “After more than three years of operation, I’m not able to continue operating the radio station and provide the financial means to do so,” she wrote.
In a post Monday on KDUN’s Facebook page, Delilah lauded the efforts of Bob Larson, who performed a variety of roles at the station, ranging from engineering to sales.
She also cited engineer Ryan Warrey, who made multiple trips from Seattle to maintain the station’s equipment.
The station ran 50 kW during the day and 630 watts at night. In Radio World’s 2021 profile, she mentioned that the amount of daytime power was unnecessary — “I don’t need the electricity bill,” she told us. The daytime coverage nearly reached border-to-border, from Washington to California.
KDUN filed for an special temporary authority in 2024 to operate temporarily at a reduced 25 kW.
But instead of filing for a silent STA this time, Delilah chose to cancel the license.
“Sadly, we can no longer continue to provide service and have returned the radio station license to the FCC for another broadcaster to provide service in the future,” Delilah wrote.
KDUN is officially cancelled in the commission’s database, which means that other than through a reconsideration filing by Big Shoes Productions — Delilah’s company — within 30 days of the cancellation, the station cannot come back on the air.
A revival of her Oregon roots
Delilah Rene — her full name — and her family moved from nearby Coos Bay to Reedsport when she was 9. As Radio World profiled, she won a high school speech contest, reciting the “Gettysburg Address.” KDUN’s then owners judged the contest and were impressed enough to offer her a job at age 13.
She ascended to KLSY(FM) in Seattle where she created the nighttime “Delilah” show. It began syndication in 1994 and skyrocketed to become a fixture of adult contemporary stations.
She was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 2016 and the NAB’s Broadcast Hall of Fame in 2017.
Just last month at the NAB Show, Delilah received the Insight Award from the Library of American Broadcasting Foundation for her “trailblazing history of excellence in broadcasting and her profound impact on audiences nationwide.”
In 2021, Delilah announced that she had bought KDUN. The station had been silent for nearly a year, according to FCC records.
She built new studios in the former Jewett Elementary School building — the space that was her homeroom as a child — and put 1030 AM back on the air on Labor Day morning in 2021. KDUN ran a classic hits format and carried a variety of syndicated programs, including Delilah’s own show. The station’s website said it aired local high school sports broadcasts.
Several notable radio personalities assisted her with the effort, including Smokey Rivers, Gary Nolan, Chris Mays and Jim Ryan. “The fact that the town and surrounding areas only boasts of a population of less than 10,000 doesn’t phase them,” KDUN’s website said.
But not every story has a happy ending, and operating a small-market station in today’s media climate leaves no one — not even radio royalty — immune to financial realities.
“Sadly, there is not enough business to sustain a commercial radio station,” Delilah wrote on Facebook.
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