Prairie Public Radio

Last updated
Prairie Public
Type Public radio network
Country
United States
Headquarters Fargo, North Dakota
Programming
Affiliations National Public Radio, American Public Media, Public Radio International, Public Radio Exchange
Ownership
Owner Prairie Public Broadcasting, North Dakota State University (KDSU)
Prairie Public Television (PBS)
Key people
Bill Thomas, Director of Radio [1]
History
Launch dateFebruary 1, 1999 (February 1, 1999)
Former names
Prairie Public Radio, North Dakota Public Radio
Coverage
Availability North Dakota, northwestern Minnesota, eastern Montana
Links
Webcast Listen
Website PrairiePublic.org/radio

Prairie Public's radio service is a network of ten radio frequencies in North Dakota. It is a service of Prairie Public Broadcasting based in Fargo.

Contents

Prairie Public maintains active studios in Fargo and Bismarck. It is a member station of National Public Radio (NPR) and provides NPR news and programming, local and regional news, and two distinct music formats: the News and Classical network, and the adult album alternative formatted Roots, Rock, and Jazz network.

Programming

Prairie Public produces and broadcasts Main Street, a weekday interview show hosted by Ashley Thornberg and Craig Blumenshine, [2] [3] Dakota Datebook, Into the Music with Mike Olson, Prebys on Classics, and Why?, hosted by UND philosophy professor Dr. Jack Weinstein. [4] Prairie Public is also the distributor for Listening to America with Clay Jenkinson.

Prairie Public offers news programming on weekday mornings and afternoons from its newsrooms in Bismarck and Fargo. It also airs news from NPR.

Prairie Public is a member station of National Public Radio, airing programs such as All Things Considered , and also carries programming from Public Radio International (such as The World ) and American Public Media, as well as from Public Radio Exchange (such as This American Life).

Prairie Public's radio network offers two programming services. The primary News and Classical network originating from KCND in Bismarck is carried on most stations, and split into eastern and western schedules. The adult album alternative formatted Roots, Rock, and Jazz network originating from KFJM in Grand Forks has gradually expanded its programming to additional stations since its launch in 2002. KDSU in Fargo carries a combination of both networks, airing Roots, Rock and Jazz programming when the rest of the main network airs classical music.

News and Classical network

Most news and classical programming is produced at the Bismarck studio. Prairie Public Bismarck.jpg
Most news and classical programming is produced at the Bismarck studio.

The primary network of Prairie Public airs classical music, news, talk, and weekend specialty shows, including jazz.

Roots, Rock, and Jazz network

KFJM originates Prairie Public's second music format, a mixture of adult album alternative, blues, folk, and jazz. The network is rebroadcast full-time on KPPR Williston and the HD-2 channel of Prairie Public's other full-power News and Classical stations. KDSU of Fargo broadcasts the network midday weekdays and overnights. [5]

Stations

Prairie Public has 10 full power stations and 5 low-power translators broadcasting across North Dakota, northwest Minnesota, and eastern Montana.

LocationFrequency Call sign ERP HAAT NetworkCall sign meaningFCC info
Beach 91.9K220FI (KDPR)8 watts29 meters (95 ft)News and Classical FCC
Bismarck 90.5 KCND 50,000 watts371 meters (1,217 ft)News and ClassicalCapital of North Dakota FCC (KCND)
Bowman 91.9K220FJ (KDPR)8 watts24 meters (79 ft)News and Classical FCC
Devils Lake 91.7KPPD24,000 watts214.3 meters (703 ft)News and ClassicalPrairie Public Radio Devils Lake FCC (KPPD)
Dickinson 89.9KDPR12,500 watts150 meters (490 ft)News and ClassicalDickinson Public Radio FCC (KDPR)
Fargo 91.9 KDSU 100,000 watts302 meters (991 ft)News and Classical /
Roots, Rock, and Jazz
North Dakota State University FCC (KDSU)
Grand Forks 89.3 KUND-FM 50,000 watts89 meters (292 ft)News and ClassicalUniversity of North Dakota
90.7 KFJM 4,000 watts34 meters (112 ft)Roots, Rock, and JazzFolk and Jazz Music FCC (KFJM)
Jamestown 91.5KPRJ18,500 watts108 meters (354 ft)News and ClassicalPublic Radio Jamestown FCC (KPRJ)
Hettinger 91.9K220FG (KDPR)9 watts36 meters (118 ft)News and Classical FCC
Minot 88.9KMPR50,000 watts283 meters (928 ft)News and ClassicalMinotPublic Radio FCC (KMPR)
Plentywood,
Montana
91.9K220FE (KPPW)8 watts−27 meters (−89 ft)News and Classical FCC
Williston 89.5KPPR10,500 watts150 meters (490 ft)Roots, Rock, and JazzPrairie Public Radio FCC (KPPR)
88.7KPPW50,000 watts237.4 meters (779 ft)News and ClassicalPrairie Public Williston FCC (KPPW)

HD Radio

Prairie Public's full power stations broadcast HD Radio signals, adding full-digital simulcasts of their analog channel, plus the Roots, Rock, and Jazz network on subchannel "HD-2" of the News and Classical stations.

Cable systems

Shaw Cable's Winnipeg system carried Prairie Public's News and Classical service at 107.9 FM (via KUND-FM), until Shaw discontinued FM distribution in 2012. [6]

Prairie Public's News and Classical network is carried on MTS Ultimate TV across Manitoba, on channel 733. [7]

History

Prairie Public was established on February 1, 1999 as the North Dakota Public Radio network. It consisted of three partners — Prairie Public Broadcasting, the North Dakota State University, and the University of North Dakota [8] — with the goal of providing a full public radio service to all of North Dakota.

At the time of North Dakota Public Radio's formation, the University of North Dakota operated three stations in Grand Forks: KUND (AM), KUND-FM (89.3 FM) which dated to 1976, and KFJM (90.7 FM) which started in 1995. KUND (AM) had been established, as KFJM, in 1923 as one of the first college radio stations in the United States. It left the network after it was sold in 2004. North Dakota State University's station, KDSU (91.9 FM) in Fargo dated to 1966. These stations were early members of NPR, but this left western North Dakota without public radio. Prairie Public Television had broadened its mission to include radio in the late 1970s, and in 1981 KCND in Bismarck signed on as the first public radio station in the western part of the state, under the on-air name of Prairie Public Radio. Between 1981 and 1993, four more stations signed on.

On September 26, 2006, North Dakota Public Radio was renamed Prairie Public, chosen to achieve brand consistency with Prairie Public Broadcasting's television and other operations. [9]

In 2009, KPPD signed on as a full-power station for the Devils Lake region, and HD Radio was rolled out to all Prairie Public full-power stations. In 2012, KPPW signed on as the new full-power News and Classical network station for Williston, with KPPR moving to the Roots, Rock, and Jazz network. [10]

In September 2018, KFJM and KUND-FM were sold by the University of North Dakota to Prairie Public Broadcasting. [11]

See also

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References

  1. "About Prairie Radio: Executive Staff and Board". www.prairiepublic.org.
  2. "Prairie Public Pressroom". www.prairiepublic.org. Retrieved 9 June 2022.
  3. "Main Street". news.prairiepublic.org. Retrieved 9 June 2022.
  4. "Why? Philosophical Discussions About Everyday life". news.prairiepublic.org. Retrieved 9 June 2022.
  5. "Non-Commercial Radio Stations". www.gumbopages.com. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  6. "FM Discontinuation". Shaw.ca. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
  7. MTS Ultimate TV Quick Guide (November 2016)
  8. "Community Advisory Board Profile: North Dakota Public Radio (srg.org)
  9. "Prairie Public Broadcasting » 2000s". www.prairiepublic.org. Retrieved 21 August 2018.
  10. Kinney, Jim (2023-08-30). "New England Public Media will move classical music off main stations, focusing on news and talk". masslive. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  11. "Station Sales Week Of 9/14: UND Exits Radio" by Lance Venta, September 14, 2018 (radioinsight.com)