Educational Media Foundation
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Educational Media Foundation (formerly EMF Broadcasting, abbreviated EMF) is an American
nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
Christian media ministry based in
Franklin Franklin may refer to: People * Franklin (given name) * Franklin (surname) * Franklin (class), a member of a historical English social class Places Australia * Franklin, Tasmania, a township * Division of Franklin, federal electoral d ...
,
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
, a suburb of
Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...
. EMF is the parent company of K-LOVE and Air1—the world's largest
contemporary Christian music Contemporary Christian music, also known as CCM, Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect of Christian media, which is lyrically focused on matters related to the Christian faith and s ...
radio network There are two types of radio network currently in use around the world: the one-to-many (simplex communication) broadcast network commonly used for public information and mass-media entertainment, and the two-way radio ( duplex communication) type ...
s. As of 2022, EMF directly owns and operates more than 1,000 signals in all 50 U.S. states,
American Samoa American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International ...
,
Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
, and the
District of Columbia ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
.The organization is also among the top 10 U.S.-based
audio streaming Streaming media is multimedia that is delivered and consumed in a continuous manner from a source, with little or no intermediate storage in network elements. ''Streaming'' refers to the delivery method of content, rather than the content it ...
companies. In 2020, EMF launche
AccessMore
a Christian podcast network, an
K-LOVE On Demand
a free streaming platform offering live concerts, original programming, and other exclusive content. It also oversee
WTA Media
a leader in faith-based films and publishing. The programming for Air1 and K-LOVE is distributed by satellite and carried on its own stations, including many low-power FM
translator Translation is the communication of the Meaning (linguistic), meaning of a #Source and target languages, source-language text by means of an Dynamic and formal equivalence, equivalent #Source and target languages, target-language text. The ...
s and some stations which EMF operates on behalf of other owners. The president and CEO of EMF is Bill Reeves, named to the position on July 15, 2019. Reeves replaced interim president and CEO Alan Mason, who himself succeeded longtime head Mike Novak.


Structure

Educational Media Foundation (EMF) is governed by a board of directors. The current chairman of the board is Dean Stordahl. The current CEO of EMF is Bill Reeves. The current president is Mike Lewis, who assumed the position in 2022. The vision for a professional Christian music radio ministry with major-market air talent was an idea KRFC DJ Bob Anthony Fogal had in 1978 that came to fruition on Oct. 15, 1982, when the organization's first signal went on air. In 1986, Dick Jenkins was named president and CEO of EMF. Mike Novak was next, heading the group from 2008 to 2018. On June 1, 2018, Novak announced that he would retire from EMF within the next several months after 20 years of service to the organization. In its first 40 years, EMF has had only four CEOs - Fogal, Jenkins, Novak and Reeves (plus Alan Mason's interim role for the first half of 2019). EMF's stations are licensed as non-commercial educational (NCE) radio stations. Funding for Air1 and K-LOVE comes from listener donations in a manner similar to
public radio 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 ...
stations. The majority of donations are made during seasonal pledge drives, usually in the spring and in the fall. The organization is a member of the
Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability The Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) is an American financial standards association representing Evangelical Christian organizations and churches, which qualify for tax-exempt, nonprofit status and receive tax-deductible c ...
(ECFA). On May 27, 2022, EMF broke ground for its new global headquarters in Franklin, Tennessee, south of Nashville.


Current brands


Air1

Air1 is a Christian worship music format featuring songs that are popular in many contemporary Christian worship services. In 1986,
KLRD KLRD (90.1 FM) is an FM radio station broadcasting out of San Bernardino, California and airing the Christian Worship formatted Air 1 network. KLRD also broadcasts its programming over the following translators: W202CF (88.3 FM) Champaign, Ill ...
began broadcasting
Christian CHR Christian contemporary hit radio (sometimes abbreviated as Christian CHR) is a radio format that is common in the United States and Australia focusing on playing current and recent music as determined by the contemporary Christian music Top 40 I ...
/rock music format from
Yucaipa, California Yucaipa ( Serrano: ''Yukaipa't'') is a city located east of San Bernardino, in San Bernardino County, California, United States. The population was 51,367 at the 2010 census, up from 41,207 at the 2000 census. According to San Bernardino Coun ...
, going by the on-air moniker "K-Lord". In 1994,
KXRD KXRD (96.7 FM) is a radio station 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 anoth ...
signed on as a sister station to KLRD. In 1995, K-Lord changed its name to "Air1" and began broadcasting via satellite from
St. Helens, Oregon St. Helens is the county seat of Columbia County, Oregon. It was founded by Captain Henry Montgomery Knighton, a native of New England, in 1845, as "Plymouth". The name was changed to St. Helens in the latter part of 1850 for its view of Moun ...
. In 1999, Air1 joined Educational Media Foundation, and in 2002, it moved its headquarters to
Rocklin, California Rocklin is a city in Placer County, California, about from Sacramento, and about northeast of Roseville in the Sacramento metropolitan area. Besides Roseville, it shares borders with Granite Bay, Loomis and Lincoln. As of the 2010 census, R ...
. Air1 makes use of FM broadcast translators to spread its reach across much of the country. As of November 2011, the network lists 90 full-power radio stations and 125 translators collectively serving 40 states. On January 1, 2019, Air1 flipped from its longtime Christian CHR format to Christian worship.


AccessMore

In 2020, EMF launche
AccessMore
a Christian podcast network with the goal to create compelling media that inspires and encourages people to have a meaningful relationship with Christ in the ever-growing space of podcasting.


K-LOVE

K-LOVE is a
Christian adult contemporary Christian adult contemporary, also known as Christian AC or CAC, is a radio format. In the United States, Christian adult contemporary radio stations cater to a mostly adult audience and are similar to mainstream adult contemporary stations in that ...
radio programming service in the United States owned and operated by EMF as their flagship service. As of October 2022 K-LOVE's 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 over 600 FM
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 ...
s and
translators Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transl ...
in 50 states and three US territories. K-LOVE reaches about 12 million listeners each week in cities including
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
,
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
,
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
,
Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
,
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
,
Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...
,
San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...
, and
Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
. It is also the sixth-most streamed online station in the world. The K-LOVE studios and offices are located in
Franklin Franklin may refer to: People * Franklin (given name) * Franklin (surname) * Franklin (class), a member of a historical English social class Places Australia * Franklin, Tasmania, a township * Division of Franklin, federal electoral d ...
,
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
, a suburb of
Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...
.


K-LOVE Classics

K-LOVE Classics was a Christian music radio programming service in the United States operated by EMF and was heard on full-powered FM stations and translators, including WAIW in
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
. Airing Christian music from the 1980s, 1990s, and early 2000s, the format debuted in June 2018 as an Internet-only station but quickly moved to terrestrial radio after a massive response. The format aired music by artists such as
Bryan Duncan Bryan Edward Duncan (born March 16, 1953) is an American contemporary Christian music artist. He is known for being lead singer of the group Sweet Comfort Band, solo career, and involvement with the Nehosoul Band. He is currently involved with ...
,
Amy Grant Amy Lee Grant (born November 25, 1960) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. She began in contemporary Christian music (CCM) before crossing over to pop music in the 1980s and 1990s. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christia ...
,
Keith Green Keith Gordon Green (October 21, 1953 – July 28, 1982) was an American pianist, singer, and songwriter in the contemporary Christian music genre, who was originally from Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. His most notable songs are " There ...
, Petra,
Michael W. Smith Michael Whitaker Smith (born October 7, 1957) is an American musician who has charted in both contemporary Christian and mainstream charts. His biggest success in mainstream music was in 1991 when " Place in This World" hit No. 6 on the '' ...
,
Point of Grace Point of Grace is an all-female contemporary Christian music vocal group. The current trio consists of Shelley Breen, Denise Jones, and Leigh Cappillino. The group started out as a quartet in 1991, with original members Breen and Jones, as wel ...
, and 4 Him. On November 2, 2020, K-LOVE Classics ceased its broadcast online, and the terrestrial stations that had formerly aired K-LOVE Classics began airing the seasonal brand ''K-LOVE Christmas''. On January 1, 2021, K-LOVE Classics came back with two separate streams online and the terrestrial stations: K-LOVE 90s and K-LOVE 2000s. In honor of its 40th birthday, in 2022, K-LOVE launched a series of decade-specific streams celebrating music from the '70s, '80s, '90s, 2000s, 2010s and a special Birthday Blend spanning four decades of K-LOVE music.


K-LOVE On Demand

In 2020, EMF launche
K-LOVE On Demand
is a free streaming platform offering live concerts, original programming, and other exclusive content.


Former brands


''Christian Music Planet'' magazine

''Christian Music Planet'' was a magazine owned and operated by Educational Media Foundation from 2002 until 2007, when it was sold to Salem Communications Corporation.


God's Country Radio

God's Country Radio was a
Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
radio network There are two types of radio network currently in use around the world: the one-to-many (simplex communication) broadcast network commonly used for public information and mass-media entertainment, and the two-way radio ( duplex communication) type ...
in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
which launched in 2008. The network aired on a majority of stations owned by Educational Media Foundation and some independent stations. God's Country Radio Network played a blend of
Southern gospel Southern gospel music is a genre of Christian music. Its name comes from its origins in the southeastern United States. Its lyrics are written to express either personal or a communal faith regarding biblical teachings and Christian life, as ...
and
Christian country music Christian country music (sometimes marketed as country gospel, gospel country, positive country or inspirational country) is music that is written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as (in terms of t ...
. In November 2010, God's Country Radio Network ceased operations due to lack of financial support from its listeners sufficient to meet its expenses. It relaunched in January 2011 as an Internet-only broadcaster. After EMF discontinued its affiliation with God's Country Radio Network at that point, most of the affiliate stations flipped to
Radio Nueva Vida Radio Nueva Vida (''New Life'') is a Spanish-language Christian radio network based in Camarillo, California, United States. It is owned and operated by The Association for Community Education, Inc., a California non-profit 501(c)(3) organization ...
, a
Spanish-language Spanish ( or , Castilian) is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from colloquial Latin spoken on the Iberian peninsula. Today, it is a world language, global language with more than 500 millio ...
Christian radio network owned and operated by California-based nonprofit organization The Association for Community Education, Inc.


World Wide Worship

World Wide Worship was a radio format that played
contemporary worship music Contemporary worship music (CWM), also known as praise and worship music, is a defined genre of Christian music used in contemporary worship. It has developed over the past 60 years and is stylistically similar to pop music. The songs are fr ...
. It began in 1999 as an Internet-only station. In 2002, KWRC in
Corpus Christi, Texas Corpus Christi (; Ecclesiastical Latin: "'' Body of Christ"'') is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat and largest city of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patrici ...
became the first terrestrial EMF station to broadcast World Wide Worship. However, the format proved unsuccessful and, within a year, it was no longer broadcast on any terrestrial station or online.


References


External links

*
Educational Media Foundation on Charity Navigator
{{Air 1 Radio broadcasting companies of the United States Religious mass media in the United States Companies based in Placer County, California