Parisi, Scott back on air Monday
Two longtime local broadcasters are returning to the radio Monday. Talk-show hosts Jim Parisi and John C. Scott are both taking to the air on PowerTalk Radio, AM 1210. Parisi organized the station's new lineup, which includes other local talk and a satellite sports feed at night.
Although the station is licensed to Sahaurita, where the radio tower is located, Parisi is moving the station's studios to East Broadway and North Country Club Road, to be more accessible to guests.
While satellite issues are sorted out, Parisi will repeat shows by local hosts throughout the day.
The planned lineup for the station:
Starting off the day, Steve Kass will broadcast 5-7 a.m. from Providence, R.I., with a show aimed at Tucsonans. Parisi will take over the mic 7-10 a.m., while nationally syndicated programming will run 10 a.m-3 p.m.; Parisi said Michael Smerconish may be one of the talkers during that period.
Scott will air in his usual time slot, 3-5 p.m., and again be posting archives of his show on TucsonSentinel.com.
Scott, whose show focuses on politics, announced Monday's interviews on his Facebook page: U.S. Sen. John McCain, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Fred DuVal, state House Speaker and GOP congressional candidateAndy Tobin, Democratic candidate for secretary of state Terry Goddard, Glenn Hamer of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Mark B. Evans of Inside Tucson Business.
After Scott's 3-5 p.m. show, Matthew Conde ("a Latino Marine ... he shoots from the hip," said Parisi) will host a show until 7 p.m. Overnight and on weekends, Fox Sports radio programming will be broadcast, with some local talk on Saturday and Sunday, Parisi said.
National news will be provided by Glenn Beck's The Blaze, he said.
"My idea is, I want people to say, 'I don't know if he's left or right," Parisi said of the station's political stance. "There are tremendously under-served audiences out there: females, well-rounded people. There's room for more choices on the dial."
Parisi broadcast his talk show online after leaving the KVOI lineup in 2011 after a two-year stint. Before that, his show aired on KNST.
"We're going to do what we do, unchained — within the boundaries of the FCC," Scott said of his return. The political talker's show was dropped by AM station KVOI in late December.
"I didn't expect to go back on the air at all," Scott said. The John C. Scott Show, on the air almost continuously since 1989, was in its second run at KVOI, one lasting 2 1/2 years, when the plug was pulled.
Parisi said he has a five-year deal to manage the station, which has broadcast a number of Spanish-language formats since being switched on in 1985. It will continue to be owned by Armando Zamorra.
Parisi said he considered a number of stations, including taking over an AM station and purchasing an FM station, before coming to terms for KEVT (the call letters will remain the same, he said).
The radio host played his cards closely when asked about his backers in the venture. "I've been asked not to say," he said, describing his investors as "a couple of listeners."
The operation "is not going to be worried about paying the rent," he said.
KEVT's signal, although broadcast from a tower in Sahaurita, is strong throughout the Tucson metro area, Parisi said. "It's 10,000 watts during the day, and hits the whole valley pretty well."
After the sun sets, the signal is reduced to 1,000 watts, although AM signals travel farther at night.