KNWT (89.1 FM) is a U.S.

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 ...

broadcasting an

adult album alternative Adult album alternative (also triple-A, AAA, or adult alternative) is a radio format. See pages 9 and 10Mills, Joshua. "A New Radio Music Format: Rock for Prosperous Adults" New York Times, Feb 28 1994, p. 2. ProQuest. Web. Accessed September 4, ...

format from the Wyoming Sounds network of Wyoming Public Radio. It is licensed to

Cody, Wyoming Cody is a city in and the county seat of Park County, Wyoming, United States. It is named after Buffalo Bill Cody for his part in the founding of Cody in 1896. The population was 10,028 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census, making Cod ...

, United States, and serves the entire

Bighorn Basin The Bighorn Basin is a plateau region and intermontane basin, approximately 100 miles (160 km) wide, in north-central Wyoming in the United States. It is bounded by the Absaroka Range on the west, the Pryor Mountains on the north, the Bigho ...

area. The station is currently owned by the

University of Wyoming The University of Wyoming (UW) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming, United States. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, ...

. The call sign reflects its original owner and history, having been built and operated by Northwest College in Powell. After the closure of the college's broadcasting program and a tower lease dispute, the license was transferred to Wyoming Public Radio.

History

On July 6, 2009, 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 ...

(FCC) granted a construction permit to Northwest College for a new noncommercial educational radio station. Programming began on November 17, 2010, after obtaining FCC approval; studios were located in the Nelson Performing Arts Center on the campus, while the transmitter was on Cedar Mountain near the city of license, Cody. In conjunction with the opening of the station, renovations were made to the college's recording studios, including one located just off the auditorium that enabled KNWT to broadcast performances held there. Known as Trapper Radio, the station aired a

college radio Campus radio (also known as college radio, university radio or student radio) is a type of radio station that is run by the students of a college, university or other educational institution. Programming may be exclusively created or produced ...

format with programming and news produced by local students. In 2016, due to budget cuts, Northwest College ended its radio/TV broadcasting program. However, KNWT continued to operate. In 2017, a dispute erupted between Northwest College and Legend Towers, Inc., a sister company to the local Legend Communications radio stations which owned the Cedar Mountain tower on which KNWT's antenna was located. Legend alleged its lease required the college to pay annually, whereas the college desired to pay monthly. Legend wrote the college a letter, stating it was out of compliance with the terms of its lease, and demanded it pay the three remaining years of its lease up front. When administrators asked for more detail, Legend responded by disconnecting the power, taking KNWT off the air on July 17, 2017. As Northwest College no longer had a tower lease or an active program to run KNWT, it entered into negotiations to donate the facility to Wyoming Public Radio. In February 2018, the license donation was consummated, with most of the sound equipment installed in the college's studios transferred to the music program. WPR relocated the facility to its existing site in the McCullough Peaks and returned KNWT to operation in July 2018 with its Wyoming Sounds service.

References

External links

{{Big Horn Basin Radio Radio stations established in 2010 2010 establishments in Wyoming Adult album alternative radio stations in the United States NWT Cody, Wyoming University of Wyoming College radio stations in Wyoming Public radio stations in the United States