KNWB

KNWB
Broadcast areaHilo
Frequency97.1 MHz
BrandingB97
Programming
FormatClassic hits
Ownership
OwnerNew West Broadcasting Corporation
KAOY, KMWB, KPUA, KWXX-FM
History
First air date
August 3, 1985
Former call signs
KFSH (1985–1995)
Call sign meaning
New West Broadcasting
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID69054
ClassC2
ERP38,000 watts
HAAT-251 meters
Transmitter coordinates
19°46′49.3″N 155°05′15.8″W / 19.780361°N 155.087722°W / 19.780361; -155.087722
Repeater(s)KMWB
Links
Public license information
WebcastListen Live
Websitewww.b97hawaii.com

KNWB (97.1 FM) is a radio station in Hilo, Hawaii broadcasting a classic hits format. The station is currently owned by New West Broadcasting Corporation.[2] KNWB and sister station KMWB form a simulcast to reach all of the Big Island.

History

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KFSH

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On May 3, 1976, the Christian Broadcasting Association, a branch of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and owner of KAIM-AM-FM in Honolulu, filed for a construction permit for a new radio station at 97.1 MHz to serve Hilo. The Federal Communications Commission granted the permit on April 28, 1977.[3] The station took the call letters KFSH and was mentioned as a development project for the ministry in KAIM's fundraising appeals.[4] However, KFSH's sign-on was continually delayed, in part because the station needed the Hawaii Land Use Commission to approve its request to build its tower.[5]

Even though a studio location had been secured and fitted out upstairs from a Christian book store,[6] tower site issues continued to hold up completion. The tower site north of Kaiwiki Church was dedicated on December 15, 1984,[7] and test transmissions commenced on July 25, 1985 ahead of an August 3 launch,[8] more than eight years after the permit was issued and after 17 extensions and modifications to the construction permit.[3][2]

Two years after putting KFSH on the air, the Christian Broadcasting Association spun the station off to the Pacific & Asia Christian University,[9] later known as the University of the Nations.

KNWB

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In July 1995, New West Broadcasting Corporation, owned by John Leonard, announced it would buy KFSH from the university and take over operations via a time brokerage agreement on August 1.[10] Leonard paid $270,000 for the station, which was University of the Nations' lone broadcast outlet.[11] New West, which already owned KWXX and KPUA, did not buy $60,000 in KFSH studio equipment, which allowed the university to donate it to Hilo Christian Broadcasting; that group then started up KCIF.[12]

When New West took over, 97.1 FM changed to a secular operation as "The Wave";[13] after the closing of the sale, new KNWB call letters were chosen. The Wave aired a smooth jazz format.[14] Two years later, the station adopted its present classic hits format as "B97".[15]

KNWB lured D.C. Carlson from KKBG to do B97's first live morning show in December 2001; previously, the station had been entirely voice tracked.[16] B97 became an island-wide radio station in 2007 when Captain Cook Broadcasting, the winner of an auction for an FM station at 93.1 in West Hawaii, entered into a marketing agreement to simulcast KNWB as KMWB.[17] KMWB was sold to New West in 2010.[18]

References

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  1. ^ "Facility Technical Data for KNWB". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ^ a b "KNWB Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
  3. ^ a b FCC History Cards for KNWB
  4. ^ "KAIM SHARE-A-THON '78". Honolulu Star-Bulletin. June 14, 1978. p. B-8. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  5. ^ Stapleton, Frankie (October 31, 1979). "Two groups plan FM stations to serve the Big Island in 1980". Hawaii Tribune-Herald. p. 14. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  6. ^ "Hilo to get Christian radio station in 1984". Hawaii Tribune-Herald. December 9, 1983. p. 18. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  7. ^ "Ground is broken for tower for gospel station in Hilo". Hawaii Tribune-Herald. December 21, 1984. p. 15. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  8. ^ "Isle gets first gospel FM station". Hawaii Tribune-Herald. July 24, 1985. p. 8. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  9. ^ "Public Notice". Hawaii Tribune-Herald. September 29, 1987. p. 17. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  10. ^ "Leonard buys third radio station". Hawaii Tribune-Herald. July 25, 1995. p. 10. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  11. ^ "Changing Hands" (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable. August 21, 1995. p. 43. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  12. ^ "Christian station to hit the airwaves this fall". Hawaii Tribune-Herald. July 4, 1997. p. 7. Retrieved November 3, 2019.
  13. ^ "Radio exec Leonard dies; staged rock shows in '70s". Honolulu Star-Bulletin. December 3, 1996. p. A-11. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  14. ^ "Format Changes & Updates" (PDF). M Street Journal. March 27, 1996. p. 1 (31). Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  15. ^ "Format Changes & Updates" (PDF). M Street Journal. August 5, 1998. p. 1. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  16. ^ Burnett, John (December 14, 2001). "D.C. changes his tune". Hawaii Tribune-Herald. pp. 21, 22. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  17. ^ Engle, Erika (November 18, 2007). "Broadcasting broadens on the Big Island". Honolulu Star-Bulletin. p. D1. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
  18. ^ Engle, Erika (November 17, 2010). "Hawaii largely left out of free shipping incentive". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. p. B6. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
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