Houston Radio: KCOH Again In Midst of Upheaval

KCOH 1230 AM, which bills itself as the oldest black-formatted radio station in Texas, is in the midst of upheaval less than two years after changing its frequency of six decades.

In the latest twist, according to The Houston Chronicle, Ben Hall - a former Houston mayoral candidate who has announced renewed ambitions to lead the city with self-financed ads already airing - may have control of the historic radio station during his 2015 campaign.

KCOH, which began broadcasting in 1953 at 1430 AM, has been a key outlet for news and talk for Houston's African American residents. Now, a partnership between Hall, a former city attorney, and his wife, Saundra, has exercised an option to buy the land and building from which KCOH now operates on 1230 AM "with all the contents," according to Hall.

The opportunity to acquire the property at 5011 Almeda, with its iconic "looking glass" studio, arose when general manager Jesse Dunn didn't repay a loan, then faced legal action from Hall.

Ben Hill

The KCOH transition involves "Mr. Dunn stepping aside and a new team coming in," said Hall.

The prospective mayoral candidate has been involved with KCOH on several levels, including serving as host of the "Ben Hall Legal Hour" on Thursday mornings.

Hall said he could not offer specifics about changes because "I don't have the liberty to discuss all of those details," but he would offer a projection for KCOH's future: "This transition is going to be good for the community and the station."

Court records reflect reasons for Dunn's recent resignation: Station assets were placed into receivership after multiple debtors took legal action and a judge determined that Dunn had an "admitted practice of immediately converting corporate assets to untraceable cash" as well as "a multi-year pattern of avoiding creditors, including evidence of large gambling expenses."

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