KNWN-FM (97.7

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one he ...

) is a

commercial Commercial may refer to: * a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television) ** Radio advertisement ** Television advertisement * (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio st ...

licensed A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...

Oakville, Washington Oakville is a city in Grays Harbor County, Washington, United States. It was incorporated in 1905, with booming lumber, railway, and farming industries creating the early foundation of the community. The population was 715 at the 2020 census. ...

, and serving the

Seattle metropolitan area The Seattle metropolitan area is an urban conglomeration in the U.S. state of Washington that comprises Seattle, its surrounding satellites and suburbs. It contains the three most populous counties in the state—King, Snohomish, and Pierce ...

and the

Olympic Peninsula The Olympic Peninsula is a large arm of land in western Washington that lies across Puget Sound from Seattle, and contains Olympic National Park. It is bounded on the west by the Pacific Ocean, the north by the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and th ...

. It is owned by

Lotus Communications Lotus Communications Corporation is a media company that owns numerous radio stations and a few TV stations, and is one of the largest privately owned radio station groups in the United States. Headquarters are located in Los Angeles, and the comp ...

. KNWN-FM broadcasts an

all-news All-news radio is a radio format devoted entirely to the discussion and broadcast of news. All-news radio is available in both local and syndicated forms, and is carried on both major US satellite radio networks. All-news stations can run the ...

radio format A radio format or programming format (not to be confused with broadcast programming) describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. The radio format emerged mainly in the United States in the 1950s, at a time when radio was compelled ...

simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of simultaneous broadcast) is the broadcasting of programmes/programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simultane ...

with

sister station In broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio or television stations operated by the same company, either by direct ownership or through a management agreement. Radio sister stations will often have different formats, and somet ...

KNWN

1000 AM The following radio stations broadcast on AM frequency 1000 kHz: 1000 AM is a United States and Mexican clear-channel frequency. KNWN Seattle, WMVP Chicago and XEOY Mexico City share Class A status on 1000 kHz. Argentina * LT42 Del ...

. It is a

network affiliate In the broadcasting industry (particularly in North America, and even more in the United States), a network affiliate or affiliated station is a local broadcaster, owned by a company other than the owner of the network, which carries some or al ...

ABC News Radio ABC News Radio is the news radio All-news radio is a radio format devoted entirely to the discussion and broadcast of news. All-news radio is available in both local and syndicated forms, and is carried on both major US satellite radio ...

. The

studio A studio is an artist or worker's workroom. This can be for the purpose of acting, architecture, painting, pottery ( ceramics), sculpture, origami, woodworking, scrapbooking, photography, graphic design, filmmaking, animation, industrial desig ...

s and offices are co-located with former sister station

KOMO-TV KOMO-TV (channel 4) is a television station in Seattle, Washington, United States, affiliated with ABC. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group alongside Bellevue-licensed Univision affiliate KUNS-TV (channel 51). Both stations share studios w ...

within KOMO Plaza (formerly Fisher Plaza) in the Lower Queen Anne section of Seattle, directly across the street from the

Space Needle The Space Needle is an observation tower in Seattle, Washington, United States. Considered to be an icon of the city, it has been designated a Seattle landmark. Located in the Lower Queen Anne neighborhood, it was built in the Seattle Center ...

. KNWN-FM has an

effective radiated power Effective radiated power (ERP), synonymous with equivalent radiated power, is an IEEE standardized definition of directional radio frequency (RF) power, such as that emitted by a radio transmitter. It is the total power in watts that would hav ...

(ERP) of 69,000

watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Watt ...

s. The

transmitter In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which is applied to th ...

is off West Skokomish Valley Road in

Skokomish, Washington Skokomish is a census-designated place (CDP) in Mason County, Washington, United States. The population was 617 at the 2010 census. The town is the headquarters of the Skokomish Indian Tribe. Geography According to the United States Census ...

, just south of the

Olympic National Forest Olympic National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in Washington, USA. With an area of , it nearly surrounds Olympic National Park and the Olympic Mountain range. Olympic National Forest contains parts of Clallam, Grays Harbor, Jeffer ...

. With its high power and tower at in

height above average terrain Height above average terrain (HAAT), or (less popularly) effective height above average terrain (EHAAT), is the vertical position of an antenna site is above the surrounding landscape. HAAT is used extensively in FM radio and television, as it i ...

(HAAT), KNWN-FM covers Seattle, Tacoma and much of the Olympic Peninsula with a 60 dBμ signal. KNWN-AM-FM are also heard on

FM translator A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater (two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or tran ...

or booster stations in the region.

History

On October 26, 1984, the station first signed on in

Raymond, Washington Raymond is a city in Pacific County, Washington, United States. The population was 2,882 at the 2010 census. The 2020 census showed the population of 3,081, an increase of 6.4%. The town's economy has traditionally been based on logging and fi ...

. The first

call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assign ...

was KSWW. It was originally a Class A FM station, powered at only 230 watts, a fraction of its current output. It was owned by Pacific Broadcasting Company and had an adult contemporary format. In 1997, it was bought by Jodesha Broadcasting, Inc., for $182,400. The call letters switched to KFMY, and it began airing a

classic rock Classic rock is a US radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the mid 1990s, prima ...

format as "Eagle 97.7." It later was granted a power boost and increase in its antenna height, allowing it to be heard in the more lucrative Seattle-Tacoma

radio market A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television and radio station offerings, and may also incl ...

. In May 2009, while still owned by South Sound Broadcasting, the station began simulcasting KOMO, with

Fisher Communications Fisher Communications was a media company in the United States. Based in Seattle, Washington, the company primarily owned a number of radio and television stations in the Western United States. It was the last company in the Seattle area to o ...

operating 97.7 FM under a

local marketing agreement In North American broadcasting, a local marketing agreement (LMA), or local management agreement, is a contract in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another party. In essence, it is a sort of lease or tim ...

. On May 18, 2009, the call letters changed to KOMO-FM. In June 2017, the outright sale of the station to the

Sinclair Broadcast Group Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (SBG) is a publicly traded American telecommunications conglomerate that is controlled by the descendants of company founder Julian Sinclair Smith. Headquartered in the Baltimore suburb of Cockeysville, Maryland, ...

(which had acquired Fisher several years earlier) for $6.75 million was announced. The sale received

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdicti ...

(FCC) approval several years later, and was consummated on June 9, 2020. On June 3, 2021, Sinclair announced they would sell KOMO-AM-FM, KVI, and

KPLZ-FM KPLZ-FM (101.5 MHz) is a commercial radio station in Seattle, Washington. KPLZ is owned and operated by Lotus Communications and airs a hot adult contemporary radio format, switching to Christmas music for much of November and December. KPLZ has ...

for $18 million. Of the $18 million, $5 million was in cash paid at closing; the remainder was Lotus' choice of either cash or advertising for Sinclair properties on Lotus' stations. Sinclair retained KOMO-TV, as well as rights to the KOMO call letters. Lotus and Sinclair also agreed to allow Lotus to use Sinclair equipment and IT systems, including sub-leasing the current KOMO studios, for 18 months following the sale. The sale was completed on September 28, 2021. As required by the terms of the sale, the KOMO radio stations changed their call signs to KNWN on February 2, 2022, in conjunction with a rebranding as "Northwest News Radio"; during the week preceding the relaunch, competitor

KIRO-FM KIRO-FM (97.3 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Tacoma, Washington, and serving the Seattle-Tacoma radio market. It airs a news/talk radio format and is owned by Salt Lake City–based Bonneville International, a broadcastin ...

preemptively began promoting itself as "Your Northwest News Station".

Translators

KNWN-FM is also carried on the following booster and

stations to improve reception of the station: *KNWN-FM1 (booster) 97.7 FM Tukwila *K259BG (KNWN) 99.7 FM

Chehalis Chehalis may refer to: People * Chehalis people, a Native American people of Washington state ** Lower Chehalis language ** Upper Chehalis language * Sts'Ailes people (Chehalis people), a First Nation in British Columbia * Chehalis First Nation, ...

References

External links

{{Lotus Communications NWN-FM Radio stations established in 1985 All-news radio stations in the United States Lotus Communications stations 1985 establishments in Washington (state)