KUAR (89.1

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 ...

"FM 89") is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...

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 ...

Little Rock, Arkansas (The Little Rock, The "Little Rock") , government_type = council-manager government, Council-manager , leader_title = List of mayors of Little Rock, Arkansas, Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_ ...

. 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 a ...

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other n ...

(NPR) and is licensed to the

University of Arkansas at Little Rock The University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UA Little Rock) is a public research university in Little Rock, Arkansas. Established as Little Rock Junior College by the Little Rock School District in 1927, the institution became a private four-year ...

. During the day, KUAR airs NPR news, talk and information programming as well as Arkansas news and culture. At night, the station airs

jazz music Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major f ...

. Programming is

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 ...

on a

translator station 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 ...

, 94.5 K233AD in

Monticello Monticello ( ) was the primary plantation of Founding Father Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States, who began designing Monticello after inheriting land from his father at age 26. Located just outside Charlottesville, V ...

. KUAR's

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

shares the tower of Channel 7

KATV KATV (channel 7) is a television station in Little Rock, Arkansas, United States, affiliated with ABC and owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group. The station's studios are located at the former Worthen Bank Building on East 4th and Main Streets in d ...

, on Two Towers Road in Little Rock. KLRE-FM (90.5

"Classical 90.5") is also a public radio station in Little Rock, licensed to the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. KLRE is a full-time

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

station, airing syndicated classical programming from

Classical 24 Classical 24 is a syndicated, satellite-delivered public radio service providing classical music to its carrying stations. It generally airs overnights on many non-commercial and a handful of commercial classical music stations. However, the se ...

and

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

, along with some local hosts. KLRE's transmitter is on the campus of Metropolitan High School, off Scott Hamilton Drive. The two stations have studios and offices on Asher Avenue in Little Rock's University District. A full-time staff of nine people run the operation, including Interim General Manager/Program Director Nathan Vandiver, Operations Director William Wagner, News Director Michael Hibblen, and Development Director Vanessa McKuin. The stations also offers UALR students the chance to get broadcasting experience by working part-time. Like most

public broadcasting Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing ...

operations, KUAR and KLRE rely on listener contributions for a large part of their

operating budget The operating budget contains the revenue and expenditure generated from the daily business functions of the company; see . Edriaan Koening (N.D.What is Corporate Budgeting? chron.com It concentrates on the operating expenditures, i.e.: cost of go ...

s and several times each year hold on-air

fund raiser Fundraising or fund-raising is the process of seeking and gathering voluntary financial contributions by engaging individuals, businesses, charitable foundations, or governmental agencies. Although fundraising typically refers to efforts to gathe ...

History

In 1972, the

Little Rock School District The Little Rock School District is a school district in Little Rock, Arkansas, United States. It is one of four public school districts in Pulaski County and encompasses of land nearly coterminous with the state's capital and largest city. In ...

was planning a new vocational high school and wanted to include a small FM radio station to train students in the field of broadcasting. In February 1973, 90.5 KLRE-FM first

signed on Signing may refer to: * Using sign language * Signature A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a handwritten (and often stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on do ...

. At first, KLRE was powered at only 3,600

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 Wa ...

s on a 265 foot tower, so its coverage was limited to the city of Little Rock and adjacent communities. It was on the air during school hours, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., airing educational and classroom programming, largely staffed by students and teachers. In 1977, the "Friends of KLRE" was formed to support the station, which expanded its hours, on the air from 6:30 a.m. till 10 p.m., playing classical music in the evening and, beginning in 1978, on weekends as well. Also in 1978, the Arkansas Broadcasting Foundation was formed to take over 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 ...

(FCC) license. In 1982, UALR received an FCC

construction permit Planning permission or developmental approval refers to the approval needed for construction or expansion (including significant renovation), and sometimes for demolition, in some jurisdictions. It is usually given in the form of a building perm ...

to build an additional non-commercial FM station at 89.1. In 1983 KLRE's power was increased to its current 40,000 watts, covering Little Rock and its suburbs, adding NPR programs such as

All Things Considered ''All Things Considered'' (''ATC'') is the flagship news program on the American network National Public Radio (NPR). It was the first news program on NPR, premiering on May 3, 1971. It is broadcast live on NPR affiliated stations in the United ...

and

A Prairie Home Companion ''A Prairie Home Companion'' is a weekly radio variety show created and hosted by Garrison Keillor that aired live from 1974 to 2016. In 2016, musician Chris Thile took over as host, and the successor show was eventually renamed ''Live from He ...

the following year. On September 16, 1986, KUAR began broadcasting.Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 2000 page D-32
/ref> It is powered at 100,000 watts, the maximum permitted by the FCC for non-

grandfathered A grandfather clause, also known as grandfather policy, grandfathering, or grandfathered in, is a provision in which an old rule continues to apply to some existing situations while a new rule will apply to all future cases. Those exempt from t ...

FM stations, covering most of

Central Arkansas Central Arkansas, also known as the Little Rock metro, designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget as the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway Metropolitan Statistical Area, is the most populous metro area in the U.S. state of ...

. At first, KUAR and KLRE

their programming. But in 1988, the two stations began carrying separate shows during the day, with classical music continuing on KLRE while KUAR began airing all news and information during the daytime. UALR and the Little Rock School District jointly owned the two stations until 1995, when UALR became the sole owner. Both stations continued to simulcast classical programming at night until 2000, when KUAR began broadcasting jazz music from 10 p.m. until 5 a.m.

References

External links

KUAR Official Site
* * * * {{coord, 34.7970, N, 92.4890, W, type:landmark_region:US_source:FCC, display=title

UAR The United Arab Republic (UAR; ar, الجمهورية العربية المتحدة, al-Jumhūrīyah al-'Arabīyah al-Muttaḥidah) was a sovereign state in the Middle East from 1958 until 1971. It was initially a political union between Eg ...

NPR member stations News and talk radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1986 1986 establishments in Arkansas