KDFC
Encyclopedia
KDFC-FM is a non-commercial radio station
in the San Francisco Bay Area
that broadcasts a classical music format on 90.3 MHz
FM
. The station is the radio home of the San Francisco Symphony
and the San Francisco Opera
.
The KDFC-FM call sign
and programming were previously on 102.1 FM
from its inception in 1946 until January 2011, when it moved to the current 90.3 FM, formerly KUSF
. KDFC programming also airs on KNDL
in Angwin, California
and on two translator signals in Eureka
and Lakeport
.
. Following the frequency's sale, KUSF announced plans to become an online-only station.
The station is located in the basement of Phelan Hall on the University of San Francisco campus, and is funded by the University of San Francisco, local and merchant underwriting, individual donations, and foundation grants.
KUSF began in 1963 as a campus-only AM station managed by the Associated Students of the University of San Francisco (ASUSF). In 1973, USF was offered an FM radio station by a small local Bible college that wished to discontinue its radio operations. USF accepted the offer and on April 25, 1977, KUSF became an FM station broadcasting on the 90.3 frequency. The old AM station later became the student-managed KDNZ.
Originally broadcasting six hours a day, KUSF began broadcasting 24 hours a day in 1981. In its early days KUSF was a conventional college station, broadcasting programs of interest to the university and greater San Francisco
community. However, KUSF soon garnered attention by playing new underground music: it was one of the first radio stations to play punk rock
. Many now-famous acts also first gained exposure on KUSF, most notably The B-52's
and Metallica
.
format.
For many years the programming, which was largely automated after 1976, was simulcast on KIBE 1220 AM (now KDOW
), a daytime-only 5 kW
AM station in Palo Alto, California
that began broadcasting in 1949 from a transmitter near the western approach to the Dumbarton Bridge
.
Ed Davis' company Sundial Broadcasting sold the AM and FM to Brown Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in 1993 for US$15.5 million. In 1996 BBC sold the FM station and AM simulcast sister station (KDFC 1220 AM) to Evergreen Media, who in turn sold the FM to Bonneville Broadcasting and the AM to Douglas Broadcasting in 1997. New station management transitioned KDFC's programming to a more mass-appeal approach, which boosted ratings significantly, though was occasionally criticized for their new "top 40 of classical music" approach.
Bill Leuth, who had done mornings on rival classical station KKHI, moved to mornings at KDFC in 1997 and also contributed to the station's rise and shift from automation to live hosts. In 2003 KDFC became the first station in the Bay Area to broadcast using HD Radio
.
to trade three San Francisco stations — KOIT, KMAX
, and KDFC — for three Entercom stations in Seattle, Washington
and four in Cincinnati, Ohio
. Entercom officially took ownership of KDFC in March 2008.
announced, on January 18, 2011, the purchase of KUSF
(90.3 MHz) from the University of San Francisco
. That same day, a deal, in the works for months prior, was announced to acquire the intellectual property and call letters of KDFC from Entercom, thus making KDFC a listener-supported non-commercial outlet. Entercom, in turn, flipped the 102.1 MHz frequency to a simulcast of San Jose
station KUFX
, which Entercom had acquired earlier in the month, on January 24.
The new KDFC is operated by a San Francisco-based non-profit organization, and also simulcasts on newly-acquired KNDL
(89.9 MHz) in Santa Rosa.
On Tuesday, April 5, 2011, the deal for ownership of KNDL-FM officially closed. That station, on 89.9 MHz, will be assigned the call letters KDFC, according to an E-mail from KDFC president Bill Lueth, who added, "We now actually own a signal."
KDFC's self-described approach to the classical format includes special programming and promotions such as the "KDFC World Tour" (the music of a different country, every hour); "History on Shuffle"; (fantasy iPod
sets of famous people through history); and the "KDFC Classical Star Search" talent contest.
In addition to FM and SHOUTcast
MP3 streaming, KDFC was the first radio station in the country to broadcast in digital HD Radio
, offering a secondary HD Radio channel, KDFC-2, featuring longer classical pieces and vocal works, without commercials on their former 102.1 FM frequency.
A multiple winner of the award for public service, KDFC is an active partner to arts groups and an active advocate for music education. Proceeds from the station's annual CD sampler, and the annual 'Music Educator of the Year' support and celebrate public school music programs.
dating service "8 Guys Out," while taking advertisements for the heterosexual
dating service "Table for Six". Speculation was that since KDFC's then-owner, Bonneville International Corporation, was a Mormon
-controlled company, the church connection led to the advertising ban. In this light, the policy of then-owner Bonneville did not allow advertising for liquor, lotteries
, or casino
s.
In March 2007, KDFC pulled a commercial for Chris Hedges
' book American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America
. The ad was tailored to play only in the Bay Area, to promote local appearances by the author. Bill Lueth, KDFC’s operations and program director insisted that pulling the ad was not a free-speech issue. “We don’t have any issue with their right to advertise this book. It simply doesn’t fit the expectation of our listeners on this particular radio station,” Lueth said.
In 2008, like many Bay Area radio and TV stations, KDFC ran paid advertisements in support of Proposition 8
, the California ballot measure which aimed to eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry, which resulted in a call to boycott KDFC and its advertisers.
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
in the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
that broadcasts a classical music format on 90.3 MHz
Hertz
The hertz is the SI unit of frequency defined as the number of cycles per second of a periodic phenomenon. One of its most common uses is the description of the sine wave, particularly those used in radio and audio applications....
FM
Frequency modulation
In telecommunications and signal processing, frequency modulation conveys information over a carrier wave by varying its instantaneous frequency. This contrasts with amplitude modulation, in which the amplitude of the carrier is varied while its frequency remains constant...
. The station is the radio home of the San Francisco Symphony
San Francisco Symphony
The San Francisco Symphony is an orchestra based in San Francisco, California. Since 1980, the orchestra has performed at the Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall. The San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra and the San Francisco Symphony Chorus are part of the organization...
and the San Francisco Opera
San Francisco Opera
San Francisco Opera is an American opera company, based in San Francisco, California.It was founded in 1923 by Gaetano Merola and is the second largest opera company in North America...
.
The KDFC-FM call sign
Call sign
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign is a unique designation for a transmitting station. In North America they are used as names for broadcasting stations...
and programming were previously on 102.1 FM
KUZX
KUZX is a classic rock-formatted radio station in San Francisco, California. It is owned by Entercom Communications. As of noon January 24, 2011, the station is simulcasting the programming of sister station KUFX in San Jose...
from its inception in 1946 until January 2011, when it moved to the current 90.3 FM, formerly KUSF
KUSF
KUSF was a non-commercial radio station licensed to San Francisco, California and owned by the University of San Francisco. From 1963 until 2011, the station broadcast at 90.3 FM MHz....
. KDFC programming also airs on KNDL
KNDL
KNDL is a radio station licensed to Angwin, California, USA, and serving the Santa Rosa area.-History:KNDL is currently owned by the Howell Mountain Broadcasting Company, pending a sale to the University of Southern California, through its Classical Public Radio Network.Howell Mountain operated...
in Angwin, California
Angwin, California
Angwin is a census-designated place in Napa County, United States. California. It is part of the northern San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 3,051 at the 2010 census. Its area code is 707. Its two zip codes are 94508 and 94576. It is in the Pacific time zone.The town was named in 1874 for...
and on two translator signals in Eureka
Eureka, California
Eureka is the principal city and the county seat of Humboldt County, California, United States. Its population was 27,191 at the 2010 census, up from 26,128 at the 2000 census....
and Lakeport
Lakeport, California
Lakeport is an incorporated city and county seat of Lake County, California. Lakeport is located on the west shore of Clear Lake, at an elevation of 1355 feet...
.
KUSF History
From 1963 until 2011, KUSF was a student-run broadcast station owned by the University of San FranciscoUniversity of San Francisco
The University of San Francisco , is a private, Jesuit/Catholic university located in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1855, USF was established as the first university in San Francisco. It is the second oldest institution for higher learning in California and the tenth-oldest university of...
. Following the frequency's sale, KUSF announced plans to become an online-only station.
The station is located in the basement of Phelan Hall on the University of San Francisco campus, and is funded by the University of San Francisco, local and merchant underwriting, individual donations, and foundation grants.
KUSF began in 1963 as a campus-only AM station managed by the Associated Students of the University of San Francisco (ASUSF). In 1973, USF was offered an FM radio station by a small local Bible college that wished to discontinue its radio operations. USF accepted the offer and on April 25, 1977, KUSF became an FM station broadcasting on the 90.3 frequency. The old AM station later became the student-managed KDNZ.
Originally broadcasting six hours a day, KUSF began broadcasting 24 hours a day in 1981. In its early days KUSF was a conventional college station, broadcasting programs of interest to the university and greater San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
community. However, KUSF soon garnered attention by playing new underground music: it was one of the first radio stations to play punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
. Many now-famous acts also first gained exposure on KUSF, most notably The B-52's
The B-52's
The B-52's are an American rock band, formed in Athens, Georgia in 1976. The original line-up consisted of Fred Schneider , Kate Pierson , Cindy Wilson , Ricky Wilson , and Keith Strickland . Following Ricky Wilson's death in 1985 Strickland switched to guitar...
and Metallica
Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1981 when James Hetfield responded to an advertisement that drummer Lars Ulrich had posted in a local newspaper. The current line-up features long-time lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo ...
.
KDFC History
KDFC was founded in 1946 by Ed Davis, and has programmed classical music for most of its history, though at one point during the 1950s, it featured a beautiful musicBeautiful music
Beautiful music is a mostly instrumental music format that was prominent in American radio from the 1960s through the 1980s...
format.
For many years the programming, which was largely automated after 1976, was simulcast on KIBE 1220 AM (now KDOW
KDOW
KNTS is a radio station broadcasting a Spanish language Christian talk format. Licensed to Seattle, Washington, USA, it serves the Seattle metropolitan area. The station is currently owned by Salem Communications....
), a daytime-only 5 kW
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
AM station in Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto is a California charter city located in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, United States. The city shares its borders with East Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Stanford, Portola Valley, and Menlo Park. It is...
that began broadcasting in 1949 from a transmitter near the western approach to the Dumbarton Bridge
Dumbarton Bridge (California)
The Dumbarton Bridge is the southernmost of the highway bridges that span the San Francisco Bay in California. Carrying over 81,000 vehicles daily, it is also the shortest bridge across San Francisco Bay at 1.63 miles...
.
Ed Davis' company Sundial Broadcasting sold the AM and FM to Brown Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in 1993 for US$15.5 million. In 1996 BBC sold the FM station and AM simulcast sister station (KDFC 1220 AM) to Evergreen Media, who in turn sold the FM to Bonneville Broadcasting and the AM to Douglas Broadcasting in 1997. New station management transitioned KDFC's programming to a more mass-appeal approach, which boosted ratings significantly, though was occasionally criticized for their new "top 40 of classical music" approach.
Bill Leuth, who had done mornings on rival classical station KKHI, moved to mornings at KDFC in 1997 and also contributed to the station's rise and shift from automation to live hosts. In 2003 KDFC became the first station in the Bay Area to broadcast using HD Radio
HD Radio
HD Radio, which originally stood for "Hybrid Digital", is the trademark for iBiquity's in-band on-channel digital radio technology used by AM and FM radio stations to transmit audio and data via a digital signal in conjunction with their analog signals...
.
Sale to Entercom
On January 18, 2007, Bonneville signed an agreement with Entercom Communications CorporationEntercom Communications
Entercom Communications Corporation is the fourth-largest broadcasting company in the United States. As of November 2009, Entercom operates 110 radio stations in 23 markets across the United States....
to trade three San Francisco stations — KOIT, KMAX
KGMZ
KKOL-FM is an oldies music formatted radio station serving Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. The Salem Communications outlet broadcasts at 107.9 MHz with an ERP of 100 kW and is licensed to Aiea, Hawaii.-History:...
, and KDFC — for three Entercom stations in Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
and four in Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
. Entercom officially took ownership of KDFC in March 2008.
Move to new frequencies as listener-supported station
The University of Southern CaliforniaUniversity of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
announced, on January 18, 2011, the purchase of KUSF
KUSF
KUSF was a non-commercial radio station licensed to San Francisco, California and owned by the University of San Francisco. From 1963 until 2011, the station broadcast at 90.3 FM MHz....
(90.3 MHz) from the University of San Francisco
University of San Francisco
The University of San Francisco , is a private, Jesuit/Catholic university located in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1855, USF was established as the first university in San Francisco. It is the second oldest institution for higher learning in California and the tenth-oldest university of...
. That same day, a deal, in the works for months prior, was announced to acquire the intellectual property and call letters of KDFC from Entercom, thus making KDFC a listener-supported non-commercial outlet. Entercom, in turn, flipped the 102.1 MHz frequency to a simulcast of San Jose
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
station KUFX
KUFX
KUFX is a classic rock-formatted radio station in San Jose, California. It is owned by Entercom Communications. The station is referred to on-air as K-FOX.On January 24, 2011, KUFX began simulcasting on KUZX 102.1 MHz in San Francisco....
, which Entercom had acquired earlier in the month, on January 24.
The new KDFC is operated by a San Francisco-based non-profit organization, and also simulcasts on newly-acquired KNDL
KNDL
KNDL is a radio station licensed to Angwin, California, USA, and serving the Santa Rosa area.-History:KNDL is currently owned by the Howell Mountain Broadcasting Company, pending a sale to the University of Southern California, through its Classical Public Radio Network.Howell Mountain operated...
(89.9 MHz) in Santa Rosa.
On Tuesday, April 5, 2011, the deal for ownership of KNDL-FM officially closed. That station, on 89.9 MHz, will be assigned the call letters KDFC, according to an E-mail from KDFC president Bill Lueth, who added, "We now actually own a signal."
Programming
KDFC broadcasts classical music 24 hours a day, and morning drive hours also feature short news and traffic updates by Hoyt Smith. Programming features include: the Big One @ 1 at 1 p.m., the Island of Sanity at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., and the Classical Giant at 10 at 10pm. The San Francisco Symphony airs Tuesday nights at 8 p.m.KDFC's self-described approach to the classical format includes special programming and promotions such as the "KDFC World Tour" (the music of a different country, every hour); "History on Shuffle"; (fantasy iPod
IPod
iPod is a line of portable media players created and marketed by Apple Inc. The product line-up currently consists of the hard drive-based iPod Classic, the touchscreen iPod Touch, the compact iPod Nano, and the ultra-compact iPod Shuffle...
sets of famous people through history); and the "KDFC Classical Star Search" talent contest.
In addition to FM and SHOUTcast
SHOUTcast
SHOUTcast is cross-platform proprietary software for streaming media over the Internet. The software, developed by Nullsoft , allows digital audio content, primarily in MP3 or HE-AAC format, to be broadcast to and from media player software, enabling the creation of Internet radio "stations"...
MP3 streaming, KDFC was the first radio station in the country to broadcast in digital HD Radio
HD Radio
HD Radio, which originally stood for "Hybrid Digital", is the trademark for iBiquity's in-band on-channel digital radio technology used by AM and FM radio stations to transmit audio and data via a digital signal in conjunction with their analog signals...
, offering a secondary HD Radio channel, KDFC-2, featuring longer classical pieces and vocal works, without commercials on their former 102.1 FM frequency.
A multiple winner of the award for public service, KDFC is an active partner to arts groups and an active advocate for music education. Proceeds from the station's annual CD sampler, and the annual 'Music Educator of the Year' support and celebrate public school music programs.
Additional Frequencies
In addition to the main station, KDFC is currently relayed by these stations and translators to widen its broadcast area:Controversy
In January 2005, a national controversy erupted when KDFC refused to sell advertising to the gayHomosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
dating service "8 Guys Out," while taking advertisements for the heterosexual
Heterosexuality
Heterosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the opposite sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, heterosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, physical or romantic attractions to persons of the opposite sex";...
dating service "Table for Six". Speculation was that since KDFC's then-owner, Bonneville International Corporation, was a Mormon
Mormon
The term Mormon most commonly denotes an adherent, practitioner, follower, or constituent of Mormonism, which is the largest branch of the Latter Day Saint movement in restorationist Christianity...
-controlled company, the church connection led to the advertising ban. In this light, the policy of then-owner Bonneville did not allow advertising for liquor, lotteries
Lottery
A lottery is a form of gambling which involves the drawing of lots for a prize.Lottery is outlawed by some governments, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find some degree of regulation of lottery by governments...
, or casino
Casino
In modern English, a casino is a facility which houses and accommodates certain types of gambling activities. Casinos are most commonly built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships or other tourist attractions...
s.
In March 2007, KDFC pulled a commercial for Chris Hedges
Chris Hedges
Christopher Lynn Hedges is an American journalist, author, and war correspondent, specializing in American and Middle Eastern politics and societies...
' book American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America
American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America
American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America is a non-fiction book by American author Chris Hedges, published in January 2007. Hedges is a former seminary student with a master's degree in divinity from Harvard and was a long-time foreign correspondent for The New York Times...
. The ad was tailored to play only in the Bay Area, to promote local appearances by the author. Bill Lueth, KDFC’s operations and program director insisted that pulling the ad was not a free-speech issue. “We don’t have any issue with their right to advertise this book. It simply doesn’t fit the expectation of our listeners on this particular radio station,” Lueth said.
In 2008, like many Bay Area radio and TV stations, KDFC ran paid advertisements in support of Proposition 8
California Proposition 8 (2008)
Proposition 8 was a ballot proposition and constitutional amendment passed in the November 2008 state elections...
, the California ballot measure which aimed to eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry, which resulted in a call to boycott KDFC and its advertisers.