This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Where is the Christmas music on Salt Lake City radio?
It's been a tradition the last few years for some radio station to start broadcasting holiday music wall-to-wall on Nov. 1 — or even on Halloween night — the same time the Hallmark Channel starts its two-month marathon of Christmas movies.
But, scanning the FM dial Tuesday and this morning, it seems that no Salt Lake City stations has decked a hall.
It could be that the frequencies that blasted Christmas music last year — 103.1 and 105.1 — have established their formats this November. Early last month, 103.1 became "103.1 The Wave," with an array of former KJQ and X96 hosts playing an eclectic mix of '80s pop. And top-40 station Mix 107.9 moved down the dial to boost its signal, becoming Mix 105.1.
The 800-pound gorilla of Utah holiday music, FM100.3, has yet to start its annual tradition of playing the Christmas songs. In fact, the station has a "Flip the Switch to Christmas" contest, offering $500 to the person who correctly guesses the date and time the station throws itself into the holiday mood.