KELS-LP

KELS-LP (104.7 FM), also known as "The Pirate", is a low-power radio station licensed to Greeley, Colorado, United States. The station serves the Greeley - Ft. Collins area and is currently owned by Plymouth Gathering, Inc.^[2][3]

KELS-LP

Greeley, Colorado United States
Broadcast area	Ft. Collins, Colorado
Frequency	104.7 MHz
Programming
Format	Variety
Ownership
Owner	Plymouth Gathering Inc.
History
First air date	2005 (2005)
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority	FCC
Facility ID	131356
ERP	61 watts
HAAT	38.4 meters (126 ft)
Transmitter coordinates	40°23′5″N 104°44′11″W
Links
Public license information	LMS
Webcast	Listen Live Link 1 Listen Live Link 2
Website	pirate1047.com

History

KELS-LP received its license to cover on May 2, 2005, from a construction permit originating in 2003. The station became known as "Pirate Radio". The station airs programming from the 1940s through the 1980s, but has a Variety format.^[4]

Controversy

In early 2011, the station aired a commentary regarding Martin Luther King Jr. that caused national controversy. The commentary was based on information provided by a listener regarding moral concerns with the civil rights leader. Though the commentary was reported to be generally factual and has been aired in previous years, the controversy developed because the station owner, Brett Reese was, at the time, a Greeley School Board member.^[5] Early in his school board tenure, Reese repeatedly declined to speak to the local newspaper, the Greeley Tribune, and instead offered an interview only if the reporter signed a contract agreeing to publish his comments verbatim and pay a $5,000 penalty if the comments were edited. The newspaper publicly declined the offer.^[6] In May 2011 Reese was publicly censured by the school board for being intoxicated at a board meeting and for allegedly inappropriately touching a teacher. He began carrying a weapon, as he was receiving death threats. A judge issued a permanent restraining order against Reese and permanently revoked his concealed weapon permit after a rival radio station owner alleged Reese threatened a "shootout" over advertisers. Reese claimed his remarks were misinterpreted.^[7] Reese resigned from the school board in February 2012.^[8][9]

Reese has repeatedly denied any racial intent and has voiced his support of the civil rights movement. Reese says that his intent is that the truth should be known regarding those that are held up as role models.^[10]

Fine for running commercials

The station's operator, Plymouth Gathering, was fined $15,000 by the FCC in 2023 after losing an appeal regarding the unauthorized airing of over 1,600 commercial advertisements in 2018, which is prohibited for the station's noncommercial educational license.^{[11][12][13][14]}