KFAI
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| KFAI | |
 |
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| Broadcast area | Minneapolis-St. Paul |
|---|---|
| Branding | Fresh Air Radio |
| First air date | May 1, 1978 |
| Frequency | 90.3 FM, 106.7 FM |
| Format | Public; talk/music |
| ERP | 125 watts |
| Class | A |
| Callsign meaning | Fresh Air, Inc. |
| Owner | Fresh Air, Inc. |
| Website | www.kfai.org |
KFAI (90.3 FM Minneapolis and K294AM 106.7 FM West St. Paul) is a community radio station in Minnesota. The station broadcasts a wide variety of music, and airs programming catering to many of the diverse ethnic groups of the region. KFAI has frequently been honored by local media critics for its shows and musical diversity (for instance, the local alternative weekly City Pages has frequently included it in the annual "Best of the Twin Cities" awards). It is somewhat unusual for a broadcast station in that it offers public access services, so anyone in the community can make their own show and have it broadcast over the air. The station is part of Minnesota's Independent Public Radio network and, despite relatively weak transmitters, is considered by many to be the group's flagship station. The call sign stands for Fresh Air, Inc., the non-profit organization that owns KFAI.
The station first went on the air on May 1, 1978 after drawn-out deliberations with the Federal Communications Commission, which was licensing a few low-power FM stations at the time. The first home was in the belfry of the Walker Community Church in South Minneapolis. In 1984, the primary transmitter was moved from the roof of the Seward Co-op to the top of the Foshay Tower in downtown Minneapolis and upgraded from ten to 125 watts. The studios didn't move out of the church until two years later, when it moved to the second floor of a Butler Drug. A few years later, studios were built especially for Fresh Air Radio near the University of Minnesota at the intersection Ceder-Riverside, where it remains today. The 170-watt West St. Paul transmitter went up in 1994.
In March 2007, KFAI's main transmitter will move to IDS Center, after the new owner of Foshay Tower evicted all current tenants of the building for a redevelopment plan into a hotel [1]. The station will appeal to the FCC for a stronger signal from IDS Center, in order to extend their coverage deeper into St. Paul and the southeast suburbs.
The station's programming is highly eclectic and uses block programming, so that, for example, one might find a country music program followed by an hour of news about LGBT issues, or a reggae program followed by an hour of spoken word readings or an hour of Hmong programming. Although programs almost always occupy the same blocks from week to week, programs often have little or nothing to do with what precedes or follows them, and the station prides itself on being a "different radio station every hour". Some listeners deride the station for the same reason, however.
One of the strengths of the station is the News Department, with emphasis on coverage of local news as well as carrying the syndication of Democracy Now. The station's volunteers are very active in supporting local non-profit events.
Some of the station's programming is carried on other radio stations. The show Crap from the Past airs on several stations in Arizona, plus one in New Zealand (in addition to a few Internet radio streams). One of the longest running programs on the station with the same host, Baron Dave, is Shockwave Radio Theater which is also aired on [Cosmic Landscapes net radio] and select shows are available as [Shockwave Radio Theater Podcasts]. Shows available on archive.org: [Crap From the Past], [Shockwave Radio Theater].
KFAI's limited power means that it really targets the core communities of the Twin Cities region. However, a web radio stream is also available [click here for stream] and all locally produced shows are archived for two weeks [click here for archives]. Three other IPR stations exist in Minneapolis-St. Paul: KBEM (jazz), KMOJ (urban), and KUOM (college/eclectic). KVSC, another college station in St. Cloud, Minnesota, can also be received by some area residents. The station has major plans for expansion into HD radio in 2007.
[edit] External links
By Frequency: 88.5 | 89.3 | 89.9 | 90.3 | 90.7 | 91.1 | 91.5 | 91.7 | 92.5 | 93.3 | 93.7 | 94.5 | 95.3 | 95.9 | 96.3 | 97.1 | 98.5 | 99.5 | 99.9 | 100.3 | 100.7 | 101.3 | 102.1 | 102.9 | 103.7 | 104.1 | 105.1 | 105.3 | 105.7 | 106.1 | 106.5 (day/night) | 106.7 | 107.1 | 107.9
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Satellite Radio Local Traffic/Weather: XM Channel 219
- See also: List of United States radio markets
