KGEZ AM 600

Broadcasting on 600 kHz, a regional AM frequency, this station holds the distinction of being Montana's second-oldest radio station and the oldest in the Flathead Valley, having first signed on in 1927. It serves the Flathead region of western Montana and is owned and operated by the Flathead Valley Wireless Association, LLC. The station airs a full-service format consisting almost entirely of locally originated programming—a rarity for a market of its size. This commitment to local content distinguishes it from the syndication-heavy approach common among small-market stations. From 2000 to 2009, under the ownership of conservative activist John Stokes, the station aired a news/talk format under the branding "Z-600, The Edge," with a flagship program hosted by Stokes himself. That era ended abruptly in September 2009 when federal marshals and Flathead County sheriff's deputies arrived to seize the station on behalf of the United States Bankruptcy Court for Montana. The seizure followed a protracted legal dispute in which Stokes had been ordered to pay $3.8 million in damages after losing a slander lawsuit brought by Todd and Davar Gardner. A subsequent bankruptcy filing was converted from Chapter 11 to Chapter 7 after Judge Ralph Kirscher ruled that Stokes had failed to disclose "literally millions of dollars" in assets and had not paid taxes in several years. Stokes was on air during his own show when the seizure occurred. Following new ownership, the station returned to broadcasting with its current locally focused format. Programming includes a morning show with in-depth local coverage, Washington D.C. correspondents reporting on politics and the White House, and regular local news updates covering community affairs throughout the Flathead Valley.