Envision Broadcast Network prevails in suit against Rocking M Media and Miller family

Harvey County District Court has ruled in favor of Envision Broadcast Network in its lawsuit against Rocking M Media and the Miller family that owns the company.

Envision filed the suit last fall against Rocking M Media LLC, Rocking M Media Wichita, Christopher D. Miller, Kristin Miller, Merle M. Miller, Doris J. Miller and Belate LLC.

The suit said that in 2017, Envision agreed to sell KKGQ-FM, 92.3, and its assets to Rocking M but that Rocking M then failed to meet a payment schedule.

The court awarded Envision $1.2 million plus interest for what it said was Rocking M and the Miller family’s breach of contract.

If the amount is not paid within 14 days of the court filing, which was Friday, then there will be a sheriff’s sale of the property Rocking M acquired from Envision, which includes a 100,000-watt tower, its contents and the land it sits on in Harvey County.

Rocking M founder Monte Miller didn’t return a call for comment.

Nor has Miller responded to numerous requests for information throughout the year about what’s happening with Rocking M stations in Wichita.

It is confusing to keep up with whether the stations are on or off the air and who is even in control of them.

A year ago this month, six Wichita-area Rocking M Media stations went off the air, and a deal to sell the stations to the new Allied Media Partners fell apart.

A couple of lawsuits and a complaint to the Federal Communications Commission followed.

Then in February, Bob-FM — KIBB, 97.1-FM — returned to the airwaves. Danno Wolkoff of Cleveland-based distributor Envision Networks — which is no relation to Envision Broadcast Network — confirmed that it was running Bob and that the station would remain Bob.

Since then, Bob has repeatedly been on and off the air, and Sun Broadcast Group acquired Envision Networks.

Wolkoff is now with Sun, and on Tuesday he did not immediately return a call to comment about what’s going on.

Previously, Wolkoff said his company also would return KVWF, 100.5-FM, the short-lived but popular former Flight, to the air. That’s never happened.

KKGQ also has been on and off the air over the past year with a couple of different formats.

A second Envision Broadcast Network lawsuit, this one in Sedgwick County District Court, is still pending.

In November, Envision filed the suit, which contains several allegations related to leases Rocking M had at Envision’s headquarters at 610 N. Main St.

Envision alleged Rocking M failed to vacate the building at the end of its lease and that once locked out it left behind damaged property. The suit also alleges that some property is missing and that Rocking M failed to pay all of the rent it owed on parking spaces.

News should be coming soon on the second suit. Look for more information then.

This story was originally published September 1, 2020 at 1:33 PM.