City | San Francisco, California |
---|---|
Broadcast area |
San Francisco Bay Area (KQED 88.5) Sacramento (KQEI 89.3) |
Branding | KQED |
Slogan | "NPR News & Information" |
Frequency | 88.5 MHz (also on HD Radio) |
Repeater(s) | See below |
First air date | June 25, 1969 |
Format | News/Talk (Public) |
ERP |
KQED-FM: 110,000 watts KQEI: 3,300 watts |
HAAT |
KQED-FM: 387 m (1,270 ft) KQEI: 108 m (354 ft) |
Class |
KQED-FM: B KQEI: A |
Facility ID |
KQED-FM: 35501 KQEI: 20791 |
Transmitter coordinates |
KQED-FM:37°41′23″N 122°26′13″W / 37.68972°N 122.43694°W KQEI:38°42′38″N 121°28′54″W / 38.71056°N 121.48167°W |
Callsign meaning | Quod Erat Demonstrandum |
Former callsigns | KXKX-FM |
Affiliations | |
Owner | Northern California Public Broadcasting |
Webcast | Listen Live |
Website | KQED.org |
KQED-FM (88.5 FM) is an NPR-member radio station owned by Northern California Public Broadcasting in San Francisco, California. Its parent organization is KQED, Inc..
KQED-FM was founded by James Day in 1969 as the radio arm of KQED Television. The founding manager was Bernard Mayes who later went on to be Executive Vice-President of KQED TV and also co-founder and chairman of NPR (National Public Radio). KQED-FM was first located in a former church building where the Presbyterian church ran station KXKX-FM the licence of which was sold to KQED. The first programming of KQED-FM included news feeds from NPR, 'street radio' broadcast live from local street corners, drama and music. In its third year on the air, KQED-FM became one of the first 80 NPR affiliates—five of which were in California—to air the first edition of All Things Considered. Later, due to reduced funding, Mayes opened the air to 'Tribal Radio' - productions by local non-profit groups, some in their own languages. Today, KQED-FM is the most-listened to public radio station in the United States, and as of the fall 2005 Arbitron ratings, the station ranks third in the San Francisco market. In addition to local programming, KQED-FM carries content from major public radio distributors such as National Public Radio, Public Radio International, BBC World Service and American Public Media. Among the locally produced shows are Forum with Michael Krasny, The California Report, Perspectives and Pacific Time.