KKWE (89.9
FM) is a
radio station
Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting 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 rad ...
licensed to serve
White Earth, Minnesota and surrounding area. The station is owned by the White Earth Land Recovery Project, a Native American-run nonprofit organization. It airs a variety of music and talk programming, much of which is native-oriented.
Though KKWE is licensed to serve White Earth, its signal reaches many other communities, including much of the White Earth native reservation as well as populous cities like Detroit Lakes and Park Rapids. Its studios are located in the town of Callaway, which is north of Detroit Lakes on Highway 59 (hence references to "59" in program names and other functions).
The station was assigned the KKWE call letters by the
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, internet, wi-fi, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains j ...
on May 19,
2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
, and was granted its License to Cover on November 16,
2011
The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...
. Program testing initially commenced in early October 2011 with an automated "soft oldies" type format. The station's current format, and the Niijii Radio brand, were launched at 11:11 AM on November 11, 2011 (11/11/11).
In addition to locally produced programs, KKWE carries programming from
Pacifica such as Democracy Now; as well as
Native Voice One programs, such as Native America Calling and
National Native News.
KKWE is presently on the air in violation of its conditions of FCC licensing SEE:47 CFR ยง 73.503a as their IRS 501(c).3 nonprofit status was revoked on May 15, 2021.
The link can be foun
HERE
Exit from, and return to, the airwaves
After reportedly suffering a variety of hardships
Detroit Lakes Online - Niijii Radio silenced by gear thefts
/ref> (transmitter failure & burglary/vandalism at the studio) KKWE went dark sometime in late summer 2012. WELRP made public their hopes to resolve the outstanding issues and put the station back on the air in the near future.
According to the station's website, KKWE was able to return to the air on the morning of November 11, 2012, with further details to be announced at a later date.
KKWE is a community radio station funded through memberships, grants, and underwriting support. A large amount of in kind support comes from numerous volunteers.
See also
*List of community radio stations in the United States
Following is a list of FCC-licensed community radio stations in the United States, including both full-power and low-power non-commercial educational services. The list is divided into two sections:
* Full-power community stations
* Low-pow ...
References
External links
KKWE official websiteArchive of airchecks from KKWE
including Niijii format launch
*
{{Fergus Falls-Detroit Lakes Radio
Native American radio
Radio stations in Minnesota
Radio stations established in 1979
1979 establishments in Minnesota
Community radio stations in the United States