After nearly 90 years as a cornerstone of broadcasting in Yuma, Arizona, 560 KBLU has gone off the air and silent.
The news/talk station ceased operations at 6:30 PM on Saturday when owner El Dorado Broadcasters shut it down. This move follows the company's sale of its two leading FM stations—Country 95.1 KTTI and Classic Hits 100.9 The River (KQSR)—to K-LOVE Inc. (affiliated with the Educational Media Foundation) for $375,000, with the deal expected to close in mid-March. By pulling the plug on the AM outlet ahead of the FM transition, El Dorado appears to have streamlined its operations in the market.
The shutdown marks the end of a long legacy for the 560 AM frequency, which traces its roots to KYUM, first signing on March 3, 1940 (initially at 1210 AM before moving to 560 in 1951). In 1959, a separate station, KBLU, launched on 1320 AM as a 500-watt daytime-only outlet owned by Desert Broadcasting Company.
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The FCC approved the merger in 1969 on the condition of divesting one AM station. The stronger 560 facility was retained and relaunched under the KBLU calls and programming, while the 1320 license was donated to Arizona Western College.
Over the decades, the station passed through multiple owners—including Uno Broadcasting, Sun Country Broadcasting, Commonwealth Broadcasting, Clear Channel Communications, and finally El Dorado Broadcasters. It served as a key local voice for Yuma, featuring local programming (such as a morning show hosted by Russ Clark, who plans to continue online via Facebook) alongside syndicated news/talk content. Notably, it was an early platform for broadcaster Lou Dobbs.
The closure reflects broader industry trends, where AM stations—especially news/talk formats—face challenges from shifting listener habits, competition from FM and digital media, and ownership consolidations. With KBLU now silent, Yuma loses one of its oldest continuous radio voices, though its historical impact on the community endures.
The future of the 560 AM license remains unclear.