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Northwest
Public Radio Station Histories & Facilities
Except
for the 1922 station that is now KWSU and the
University of
Idaho
station (KUID) that became KRFA in 1984, these new coverage projects (including
the 1994 KRFA power upgrade) have been funded through a combination of
community donations and federal assistance from the Public Telecommunications
Facilities Program. Community
leadership from individuals, foundations and commercial businesses has been
crucial to extending public radio services throughout the Northwest Public
Radio coverage area.
1922
KWSU-AM
(1250):
The original station in our network and among the first radio
stations in the country, KWSU signed on as KFAE
December 10,
1922, and later spent many decades as KWSC. For
the first half of its long life, most radio listening was at night and there
was little interference, so KFAE/KWSC served most of the Northwest.
Famed broadcast journalist Edward R. Murrow first used a microphone at
the station in the late 1920s as did sportscaster Keith Jackson in the 1950s
and ABC journalist Barry Serafin in the 1960s.
Today, KWSU serves the Palouse and Clearwater Valley area of
southeastern
Washington
and northern
Idaho
. Studios are in
Pullman
in the Murrow Communication Center of Washington State University.
1982
KFAE-FM
(89.1):
KFAE has served the Tri-Cities,
central
Washington
and northeastern
Oregon
since June, 1982.
Northwest Public Radio has staff and studios in
Richland
on the WSU Tri-Cities campus.
1983
Multiple
Translators:
Eight
translators were added in Ellensburg, Goldendale/The Dalles,
Yakima
, Lewiston/Clarkston, Ephrata/Soap Lake,
Wenatchee
, Cashmere/Dryden, and Chelan/Waterville.
1984
KRFA-FM
(91.7):
In June, 1984, KRFA joined
Northwest Public Radio in a cooperative arrangement between the
University of
Idaho
in
Moscow
and
Washington
State
University
. Northwest Public
Radio increased KRFA’s power tenfold in 1994.
1992
KNWR-FM
(90.7):
KNWR signed on in June, 1992,
serving Ellensburg,
Wenatchee
,
Moses
Lake
and surrounding areas.
New
Tri-Cities Studios:
A challenge grant from the
Battelle Memorial Institute generated support from other Tri-Cities businesses
and individuals to build a studio in
Richland
. The companies that
supported the studio construction through the Fund for Excellence were:
Battelle Memorial Institute, IT Analytical,
Kadlec
Medical
Center
, Robert Young and Associates, Siemens Power Corporation, United
Engineers and Constructors, Hanford Environmental Health Foundation.
1993
KNWY-FM
(90.3):
Building on the support of
translator listeners in the
Yakima
Valley,
Northwest Public put KNWY on the air on
February 20, 1993.
1994
KNWO-FM
(90.1):
KNWO went on the air in January,
1994, serving the Camas Prairie,
Cottonwood
and Grangeville.
Kamiah/Kooskia
Translator (102.7):
Northwest Public Radio built a
translator to serve the
Idaho
towns of Kooskia and Kamiah. This
translator went on the air in July, 1994.
Orofino
Translator (102.3):
Northwest Public Radio put a
translator on the air in
Orofino,
Idaho, in July, 1994.
KRFA
Transmitter Replacement and Power Increase:
Northwest Public Radio increased
the power of KRFA Moscow from 1,450 watts to 14,500 watts.
This project, completed in the fall of 1994, improved the
coverage area and the quality of the signal.
1995
KNWV-FM
(90.5).
Northwest Public Radio put KNWV on
the air in 1995 to serve the Lewiston/Clarkston
Valley. This station replaced the
low-power translator that served the
L/C
Valley
for about 12 years.
Pullman
Studio Upgrade.
Washington
State
University
provided funds to upgrade our main studios.
These funds enabled Northwest Public Radio to rewire its studios, replace 25
year old carpeting, curtains and consoles, and upgrade analog studio and
production equipment to digital.
1997
KZAZ-FM
(91.7).
On
January 6, 1997,
Bellingham
’s independent public
radio station, KZAZ, merged with Northwest Public Radio to become Northwest
Public Radio’s first station west of the
Cascade
Mountains. KZAZ went on the air in 1992 through
the efforts of people in Whatcom,
Skagit,
Island
and
San Juan
Counties
.
KWWS-FM
(89.7):
KWWS signed on
March 6, 1997,
providing a second NWPR service to the Walla
Walla and Tri-Cities area.
KLWS-FM
(91.5):
Serving
Moses
Lake,
Ephrata and
Grant
County
, KLWS signed on
April 10, 1997.
The "L" in KWLS stands for Paul Lauzier, an Ephrata rancher
who died in 1995. The Paul Lauzier
Charitable Foundation made a $50,000 contribution to Northwest Public Radio to
put KLWS on the air.
1998
KNWP-FM
(90.1):
This station
went on the air in April of 1998 and serves
Port Angeles
, Sequim and other
communities along the Highway 112 corridor.
In addition, KNWP reaches
Victoria,
British Columbia, and much of lower
Vancouver
Island.
1999
KQWS-FM
(90.1):
KQWS in Omak went on the air
in January, 1999, and serves the
Okanogan
region of
Washington
and
British
Columbia
.
2000
New
Pullman/Moscow Translator:
This translator serves the Pullman/Moscow area at 89.9 FM.
It's the same service heard on KWSU-AM (1250).
However, while KWSU is required to sign off from
midnight
to
6:00 AM, the translator
broadcasts 24 hours a day.
2002
Ellensburg Translator (89.9):
This translator began broadcasting on
August 28,
2002.
KMWS-FM (90.1):
Northwest Public Radio acquired KMWS from
Skagit
Valley
College
in
Mount Vernon
in November of 2002. The “M” in
KMWS honors Edward R. Murrow, who grew up in
Skagit
County
and is an alumnus of
Washington
State
University
.
Digital
Studio Upgrade:
We completed a major digital upgrade to our
Pullman
studios, including the replacement of 20-year-old analog audio consoles.
2005
Several
projects are planned for 2005. New
translators are expected to be on the air in
Forks and
Wenatchee
. We also anticipate a
major upgrade to KMWS in
Mount Vernon
. This upgrade will
involve a power increase, moving to a better transmitter site and changing the
frequency from 90.1 to 89.7. We
anticipate this upgrade will be completed in late 2005 or early 2006.
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