KNWB (97.1 FM) is a

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 ...

Hilo, Hawaii Hilo () is a census-designated place (CDP) and the largest settlement in Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States, which encompasses the Island of Hawaii. The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 census. It is the fourth-largest settlement i ...

broadcasting a

classic hits Classic hits is a radio format which generally includes songs from the top 40 music charts from the late 1960s to the early 2000s, with music from the 1980s serving as the core of the format. Music that was popularized by MTV in the early 1980s ...

format. The station is currently owned by New West Broadcasting Corporation. KNWB and sister station

KMWB KMWB (93.1 FM, "B93") is a radio station licensed to serve Captain Cook, Hawaii, United States. The station is owned by the New West Broadcasting Corporation. KMWB broadcasts a classic hits music format in conjunction with sister station KN ...

form a simulcast to reach all of the Big Island.

History

KFSH

On May 3, 1976, the Christian Broadcasting Association, a branch of the

Billy Graham Evangelistic Association The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) is a non-profit Christian outreach organization that promotes multimedia evangelism, conducts evangelistic crusades, and engages in disaster response. The BGEA operates the Billy Graham Traini ...

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 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 jurisdiction ...

granted the permit on April 28, 1977. The station took the call letters KFSH and was mentioned as a development project for the ministry in KAIM's fundraising appeals. 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. Even though a studio location had been secured and fitted out upstairs from a Christian book store, tower site issues continued to hold up completion. The tower site north of Kaiwiki Church was dedicated on December 15, 1984, and test transmissions commenced on July 25, 1985 ahead of an August 3 launch, more than eight years after the permit was issued and after 17 extensions and modifications to the construction permit. Two years after putting KFSH on the air, the Christian Broadcasting Association spun the station off to the Pacific & Asia Christian University, later known as the

University of the Nations The University of the Nations (U of N) is an unaccredited Christianity, Christian university. The University of the Nations operates under the umbrella organization of the Youth With A Mission (YWAM) network. History The institution was founded ...

KNWB

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. Leonard paid $270,000 for the station, which was University of the Nations' lone broadcast outlet. New West, which already owned

KWXX KWXX-FM (94.7 FM) is a radio station in Hilo, Hawaii broadcasting an adult contemporary format as well as local music. A satellite station, KAOY (101.5 FM), is licensed to Kealakekua, Hawaii and serves the Kailua-Kona Kailua-Kona is an uni ...

and

KPUA KPUA (670 AM) is an American radio station licensed to serve the community of Hilo, Hawaii. The station, established in 1936 as "KHBC", has been owned and operated by New West Broadcasting Corporation since 1992. KPUA broadcasts a variety of lo ...

, 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 KCIF (90.3 FM) is a radio station in Hilo, Hawaii. The station is owned by CSN International and airs a Christian rock format as an affiliate of Effect Radio. History KCIF is the spiritual successor to another Hilo Christian radio station, KFSH ...

. When New West took over, 97.1 FM changed to a secular operation as "The Wave"; after the closing of the sale, new KNWB call letters were chosen. The Wave aired a smooth jazz format. Two years later, the station adopted its present classic hits format as "B97". 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. 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 was sold to New West in 2010.

References

External links

{{Hilo Radio NWB Classic hits radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1985 1985 establishments in Hawaii