KZSU

KZSU
City Stanford, California
Broadcast area San Francisco Bay Area
Branding Stanford Radio
Frequency 90.1 MHz
Format Variety
ERP 500 watts
HAAT -3 meters
Class A
Facility ID 65452
Transmitter coordinates 37°24′42.00″N 122°10′41.00″W / 37.4116667°N 122.1780556°W / 37.4116667; -122.1780556
Callsign meaning The SU in KZSU=Stanford University
Owner Stanford University
Webcast Listen Live
Website kzsu.stanford.edu

KZSU is a freeform FM radio station broadcasting from the campus of Stanford University in Stanford, California, USA.

KZSU broadcasts in stereo at 90.1 MHz FM with an effective radiated power of 500 watts. The station is owned by the Trustees of Stanford University and is governed by a Board of Directors appointed by the University's President. Operations are managed by a General Manager selected each year from the student body.

Broadcasting history

KZSU began broadcasting on January 6, 1947, using the informal call letters KSU. Originally an AM carrier-current station, it relied on cables strung throughout Stanford's network of steam tunnels to carry its 590 kHz (later 880 kHz) signal. The first broadcast was a musical comedy revue starring Doodles Weaver. At first, the station broadcast only in the evenings. In the 1940s and 1950s, KZSU was a commercial station broadcasting popular and classical music, local cultural events, talk shows, and radio plays.

The station was shut down for two years following a raid by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in August 1958, which resulted from rising interference with the signal of radio station KGO-AM at 810 kHz. Broadcasting resumed in the fall of 1960. Renamed KZSU at the behest of the FCC, the station received a noncommercial FM license in 1964, moved its transmitter from the center of campus to the nearby foothills in 1970, and upgraded its transmitter power from 10 to 500 watts in 1978. The AM carrier gradually died in the early 1980s.

KZSU's all-volunteer staff is currently made up of locals as well as Stanford students and staff. KZSU's 500-watt signal covers much of the San Francisco Bay Area, reaching from Oakland and parts of San Francisco in the north, to Fremont and points beyond in the east, and down to around Gilroy in the south. KZSU has also broadcast live on the internet since 1995.

Programming

KZSU's programming includes the following:

Current programming at KZSU consists primarily of music, with an emphasis on independent new releases. KZSU's music library contained nearly 80,000 CDs and a similar number of vinyl discs as of December 2005.

The station is also notable for its commitment to Stanford athletics. In recent years KZSU has carried live coverage of eight Stanford team sports throughout the year (football, men's and women's basketball and soccer, baseball, women's volleyball and softball). KZSU also produces news and talk shows, and simulcasts meetings of the Palo Alto City Council, and services from Stanford Memorial Church.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Sunday, March 27, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.