KMUN (91.9 MHz) is a community and public radio station in Astoria, Oregon, serving the Northern Oregon Coast Range. The station is owned by the Tillicum Foundation, alongside classical music and news station KCPB-FM 90.9, and maintains studios in Tillicum House on Exchange Street in Astoria. Three low-power translators and KTCB (89.5 FM) in Tillamook extend the signal south. KMUN features a block radio format with news, public affairs, and music programming.
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| Broadcast area | Northern Oregon Coast Range |
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| Branding | Coast Community Radio |
| Programming | |
| Format | Public radio |
| Affiliations | National Public Radio, Pacifica Radio Network |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Tillicum Foundation |
| KCPB-FM | |
| History | |
First air date |
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Call sign meaning |
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| Technical information[2][3] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
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Transmitter coordinates | |
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Public license information |
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| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | kmun |
| Currently silent | |
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Broadcast area | North Oregon Coast |
| Frequency | 90.9 MHz |
| Branding | Coast Community Radio |
| Programming | |
| Format | Public radio |
| Affiliations | National Public Radio, Pacifica Radio Network |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Tillicum Foundation |
| KMUN | |
| History | |
First air date | April 17, 2006 |
| Technical information[4] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| 93685 | |
| Class | A |
| ERP | 240 watts |
| HAAT | 341 meters (1,119 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 46°15′45.3″N 123°53′13.5″W / 46.262583°N 123.887083°W |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | kmun |
History
editThe Tillicum Foundation was incorporated in 1977 with the goal of bringing a local radio station to Astoria.[5] In the early 1980s, a plan gestated to bring a community radio station to Astoria. On November 10, 1981, the station received its construction permit. Because Astoria was not in range of public radio at the time, the station was a high priority for grants from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. After getting the permit, volunteers of the nascent KMUN reached out to Portland community radio station KBOO for assistance; at one point, it was thought that KMUN might rebroadcast part of KBOO's broadcast day because of a potential lack of local interest,[6] but it was not feasible to relay KBOO's signal from Portland over remote terrain to Astoria.[7]
KMUN began broadcasting on April 17, 1983.[7] The original transmitter facility was on Megler Mountain,[7] where KMUN erected a donated 60-foot (18 m) timber telephone pole.[6] Originally reaching only the Astoria area, the station expanded down the Oregon Coast in 1986 with the addition of translators relaying its signal.[7] KMUN's studios were originally in the Gunderson Building until a supporter bought a house on Exchange Street in 1987 and donated it to the Tillicum Foundation; the station needed to relocate so it could install a satellite dish to receive NPR programming.[5][7] Its programming was nearly entirely volunteer-produced; there were 30 volunteers when the station launched, about 70 by 1988,[5] and 250 in 2003.[8] In 2003, the station launched a local news department, building a newsroom in place of a decaying porch at Tillicum House.[7] The Tillamook translator was replaced in 2004 by the higher-power KTCB,[9] in part to prevent the translator from being displaced by any future stations.[10]
KCPB-FM began operating April 17, 2006, the 23rd anniversary of KMUN's sign-on.[11] It featured a format of mostly national programming, primarily classical music, with music scheduled at times when KMUN had talk programming and vice versa. The creation of KCPB-FM resolved tensions among KMUN listeners over whether to air more national programming from NPR. It provided much of the service previously offered by a fringe signal from KPLU-FM in Tacoma, Washington, which was about to go away, and cable radio's offering of Oregon Public Broadcasting, which had recently been discontinued.[12] Much of the equipment was previously used by KMUN prior to a technical upgrade.[13]
KMUN stayed on the air during the Great Coastal Gale of 2007 despite having a large elm tree crash into the studio building.[14]
On October 1, 2025, Tillicum suspended the operations of KCPB-FM, citing "ongoing funding challenges" (including the U.S. government pulling funding from public media), as well as a desire to "reset" the station and relaunch it at a later date with "alternate programming sources". The suspension is projected to last twelve months.[15]
See also
editReferences
edit- ↑ Wills, Kendall J. (July 27, 1988). "Astoria Journal; A Radio Station Returns to Its Roots". The New York Times.
- ↑ "Facility Technical Data for KMUN". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ↑ "Facility Technical Data for KTCB". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ↑ "Facility Technical Data for KCPB-FM". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- 1 2 3 McClelland, John (June 30, 1988). "Volunteers add variety to KMUNity radio". Longview Daily News. Longview, Washington. p. C1. Retrieved December 31, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 Wood, Sharon M. (December 10, 1985). "Coast radio station gets power from community volunteers". The Oregonian. Portland, Oregon. p. B6. Retrieved December 31, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Romano, Benjamin (April 17, 2003). "On air 20 years, KMUN celebrates". The Daily Astorian.
- ↑ "Coast Index: Two decades of community radio". The Daily Astorian. April 18, 2003.
- ↑ "KMUN works to serve listeners in Tillamook". The Daily Astorian. August 25, 2004.
- ↑ "KMUN fund-raiser will boost Tillamook presence". The Daily Astorian. August 13, 2003.
- ↑ "New radio station airs on North Coast today". The Daily Astorian. April 17, 2006.
- ↑ "New radio station to hit airwaves". The Daily Astorian. December 28, 2005.
- ↑ Swain, Sandra (March 25, 2005). "KMUN, OPB work to enrich coastal airwaves". The Daily Astorian.
- ↑ Henley, Gary (December 7, 2007). "'It's a bloody miracle we're still on the air' - KMUN staff, volunteers glue the community together in a crisis". The Daily Astorian.
- ↑ Venta, Lance (September 30, 2025). "KCPB-FM Signs Off With Federal Funding Loss". RadioInsight. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
External links
edit- KMUN official website
- Facility details for Facility ID 67107 (KMUN) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- KMUN in Nielsen Audio's FM station database
- Facility details for Facility ID 93286 (KTCB) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- KTCB in Nielsen Audio's FM station database
- Facility details for Facility ID 67110 (K207FG) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- K207FG at FCCdata.org
- Facility details for Facility ID 67111 (K217FG) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- K217FG at FCCdata.org
- Facility details for Facility ID 67109 (K282BV) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- K282BV at FCCdata.org
- Facility details for Facility ID 93685 (KCPB-FM) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
- KCPB-FM in Nielsen Audio's FM station database