Clear Channel Communications acquired KDMI in 2000. On January 1, 2001, KDMI became KXNO and adopted its current sports radio format. KXNO had two direct competitors: AM 940 KXTK (now KPSZ, 940 AM) and FM 107.1 KJJC (now KNWI). Both stations changed formats by mid-2003. KXNO now competes with 1700 KBGG "The Champ," a CBS Sports Radio affiliate, and AM 1350 KRNT, known as ESPN Radio 1350 Des Moines. In 2008, KXNO was nominated for a Marconi Award as the "Sports Station of the Year," given annually by the National Association of Broadcasters. On January 14, 2020, KXNO laid off its programming director, a producer, and four on-air personalities as part of a larger wave of layoffs by iHeartMedia due to a corporate restructuring. The layoffs included its morning hosts Travis Justice and Heather Burnside, and afternoon drive hosts Chris Williams and Ross Peterson. The layoffs were met with a negative response: in solidarity with their colleagues, fellow KXNO hosts Andy Fales and Keith Murphy protested the layoffs by cancelling their show for the day, and encouraged local sponsors to threaten boycotts of the station. Fales told "Rolling Stone" that the threat of the station's programming of local interest being replaced by nationally-syndicated personalities, with no adequate alternative available, was a disservice to the region's "passionate sports fans". The layoffs also generated criticism from listeners via social media. On January 16, 2020, the station's general manager Joel McCrea announced that iHeartMedia had given him permission to reinstate the employees. In addition, it was announced that KDXA would drop its alternative rock format and become an FM simulcast of KXNO. During 2008 and 2009, a feud brewed between morning show host Larry Cotlar and afternoon drive host Marty Tirrell. Tirrell and his radio partner, Ken Miller, had been critical of Cotlar's perceived bias towards the Drake University Bulldogs. They were also critical of Cotlar's interview style of "lobbing softball questions" to his guests. On March 20, 2009, things boiled over in the KXNO studios as Tirrell initiated a verbal tirade, using harsh words that was heard briefly on the air. They included the "F" word a dozen times, mostly by Tirrell, who at times seemed to be on the verge of a breakdown. The two were suspended for a week as a result, with "The Dan Patrick Show" temporarily taking its time slot.