KBOO (90.7
MHz
The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base u ...
) is a
non-commercial
A non-commercial (also spelled noncommercial) activity is an activity that is not carried out in the interest of Profit (economics), profit. The opposite is Commerce, commercial, something that primarily serves profit interests and is focused on bu ...
, listener-supported,
community radio
Community radio is a radio service offering a third model of radio broadcasting in addition to commercial broadcasting, commercial and public broadcasting.
Community broadcasting, Community stations serve geographic communities and communities o ...
station in
Portland, Oregon
Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...
. It airs an
eclectic radio format
A radio format or programming format (not to be confused with broadcast programming) describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. The radio format emerged mainly in the United States in the 1950s, at a time when Radio broadcasting, ...
, with a small paid staff and scores of volunteers. The studios are on SE 8th Avenue, in a converted warehouse in inner Southeast Portland, purchased in 1982. The mission is to serve groups that are underrepresented on other local radio stations and to provide access to the airwaves for people who have unconventional or controversial tastes and points of view.
KBOO is a
Class C1 FM station, heard around much of Northwest
Oregon
Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...
and Southwest
Washington. It has an
effective radiated power
Effective radiated power (ERP), synonymous with equivalent radiated power, is an IEEE standardized definition of directional radio frequency (RF) power, such as that emitted by a radio transmitter. It is the total power in watts that would ha ...
(ERP) of 26,500
watt
The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of Power (physics), 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 quantification (science), quantify the rate of Work ...
s, with its
transmitter
In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter (often abbreviated as XMTR or TX in technical documents) is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna (radio), antenna with the purpose of sig ...
on SW Fairmont Court on
Portland's West Hills. KBOO is also heard on two
FM translator
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 tr ...
s: in
Philomath, Oregon at 104.3 FM and in
Hood River, along the
Columbia River Gorge, at 91.9 FM.
History
Building the station (1964–1968)
A group of
Portlanders, unsatisfied with the choices offered by local radio stations, organized themselves as "Portland Listener Supported Radio" in 1964. They approached
Lorenzo Milam, a former volunteer at
Pacifica Radio
Pacifica may refer to:
Art
* ''Pacifica'' (statue), a 1938 statue by Ralph Stackpole for the Golden Gate International Exposition
Places
* Pacifica, California, a city in the United States
** Pacifica Pier, a fishing pier
* Pacifica, a conce ...
's
KPFA
KPFA (94.1 FM) is a public, listener-funded talk radio and music radio station located in Berkeley, California, broadcasting to the San Francisco Bay Area. KPFA airs public news, public affairs, talk, and music programming. The station signed o ...
in
Berkeley, who helped start
KRAB, a now-defunct community station in Seattle.
Milam agreed to help them organize a station, and after a series of meetings, Portland Listener Supported Radio applied for a license for a Portland radio station. In time, Milam helped several other communities start their stations, including
KCHU,
WAIF,
WORT
Wort () is the liquid extracted from the mashing process during the brewing of beer or whisky. Wort contains the sugars, the most important being maltose and maltotriose, that will be Ethanol fermentation, fermented by the brewing yeast to prod ...
,
KDNA,
KTAO, and
KUSP.
Milam asked KRAB volunteer David Calhoun if he'd be willing to help organize the new station in Portland. Calhoun, an ex-monk and third-year medical student, packed his VW with a transmitter from Seattle and moved south.
Sleeping on couches and struggling to find meals, Calhoun and other volunteers including Fray Haertig (who continues to volunteer currently) put together the resources needed for a community radio station. A basement room was donated on Third Street and Salmon Street in downtown Portland. The space was barely big enough for two tape recorders, one turntable, and Calhoun. A diverse mix of about thirty volunteers came together to help out, including society women, movement radicals, professional broadcast engineers, and musicians.
On the air (1968-1971)
KBOO Community Radio
signed on the air on .
The cost was less than $4,000. The total monthly station budget was about $50. The total output initially was only ten watts, a fraction of the current output. The
call sign
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally as ...
makes reference to a strain of
marijuana
Cannabis (), commonly known as marijuana (), weed, pot, and ganja, List of slang names for cannabis, among other names, is a non-chemically uniform psychoactive drug from the ''Cannabis'' plant. Native to Central or South Asia, cannabis has ...
called "Berkeley Boo".
Initially, KBOO was on the air when volunteers were available to flip a switch and activate the repeater signal from KRAB. But almost immediately, the station began to grow. KBOO volunteers lugged big
Ampex tape recorders to concerts, political events, and neighborhood meetings; nationally recognized artists and activists were brought into the KBOO studio. Local poets discovered the electronic outlet.
By the summer of 1970, a used 1,000-watt transmitter was installed, enabling KBOO's audience and subscriptions to grow. KBOO could be heard in much of
Northwest Oregon.
After three years, KBOO outgrew its studio and moved to a storefront at 3129 SE Belmont Street. Walls of the makeshift studios were lined with egg cartons for
sound insulation, and all employees shared just two desks.
Incorporation and stability (1972–1982)
By 1972, the non-profit KBOO Foundation was born, with an interim five-member Board of Directors. The umbilical cord to KRAB was being cut. By 1973, the staff had grown to five, with about 50 active volunteers. About 600 subscribers donated an average of $20 a year. Station Manager John Ross got an $80,000 federal grant to help purchase equipment.
In 1975, the 800-strong KBOO Foundation elected its first board of Directors. The KBOO Foundation and its officers got the license and ownership of the station. KBOO became fully independent of KRAB and its parent, the Jack Straw Memorial Foundation. After 10 years, KBOO had come of age.
The station moved again, in 1977, to SW Yamhill Street, and soon expanded broadcasting to 24 hours a day on a regularly scheduled basis. KBOO was broadcasting at 12,500 watts. Rapid growth came to KBOO in its new downtown location. Subscribers soared from 1,200 in early 1978 to well above 2,000 by 1980. About 300 volunteers gave KBOO one of the strongest volunteer programs in the nation.
In 1981, urban renewal in downtown Portland forced a search for a new home. KBOO found its present location at 20 SE 8th Avenue (the little Robin's egg blue building half a block south of East Burnside Street behind the Jupiter Hotel and Doug Fir Lounge). Through a massive volunteer effort, a new station was built in 1982 in an empty warehouse. For the first time, KBOO would own its own home.
Expansion (1982–present)
In the early '80s, KBOO broadened its commitment to multicultural programming. New Spanish and Asian-language programs were added. A strip of African-American musical programming was added in 1981. A Hispanic strip followed in 1984. News and Public Affairs Director Ross Reynolds and volunteers teamed up to organize a nightly newscast, supplemented by a new wire service and national newscast from Pacifica Radio, which proudly continues to air to this day. A new station,
KMUN, was launched in Astoria through KBOO's help, much as KRAB had nurtured KBOO. Funds were raised to purchase the new building and KBOO was in the black for the first time in memory.
In 1986, the building was purchased. Power was boosted to 23 kW, and KBOO began broadcasting in stereo for the first time. A major federal grant in 1987 allowed purchase of new studio equipment. A satellite dish was added on the roof, and the station bought a remote transmitter, allowing live remote broadcasts of community events.
In the early 1990s, KBOO set up translators in Corvallis (broadcasting at 100.7 FM) and in
White Salmon, Washington (broadcasting at 91.9 FM), allowing KBOO's signal to be received from the very northern tip of
Eugene to
The Dalles, on a good day. In 2013, the Corvallis translator moved slightly, to Philomath, where it still reaches Corvallis and now parts of Eugene, at 104.3 FM.
In the summer of 1991, KBOO moved its transmitter to a new location on the
KGON
KGON (92.3 FM) is a commercial radio station in Portland, Oregon. The station airs a classic rock radio format and is owned by Audacy, Inc. KGON broadcasts in the HD Radio format. Its HD2 subchannel formerly carried a blues format, known as ...
tower (also known as Stonehenge) on
Portland's West Hills. This increase of gave KBOO much greater range. KBOO's effective radiated power was boosted to 26.5 kW. Reports from jubilant listeners came in from the
coast
A coast (coastline, shoreline, seashore) is the land next to the sea or the line that forms the boundary between the land and the ocean or a lake. Coasts are influenced by the topography of the surrounding landscape and by aquatic erosion, su ...
and outskirts of Eugene, saying they were hearing KBOO clearly for the first time.
As of February 2022, the station had about 9,200 members. The station runs pledge drives twice each year. The annual KBOO budget in 2022 was about $900,000, but compared to 2021’s audit, KBOO saw a drop-off of more than $150,000 in grants and donations. The station is operating at a deficit and had to lay off five staff members in October 2024.
"Stairway to Heaven"
As a listener-funded station, KBOO runs a variety of fundraising events. They once promised that, for a donation of $10,000, the station would never play
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...
's "
Stairway To Heaven
"Stairway to Heaven" is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on 8 November 1971 on the band's untitled fourth studio album (commonly known as ''Led Zeppelin IV''), by Atlantic Records. Composed by the band's guitarist Jimmy ...
" again. One listener accepted the offer. After performing at a concert at the
Aladdin Theater,
Robert Plant
Robert Anthony Plant (born 20 August 1948) is an English singer and songwriter. He was the lead singer and lyricist of the rock band Led Zeppelin from its founding in 1968 until their breakup in 1980. Since then, he has had a successful solo ca ...
, who is a singer for Led Zeppelin was driving to the Oregon Coast and station-surfing, and the offer was repeated while Plant was lingering on the station. He liked the idea and decided to accept. He pulled over to use a pay-phone to call and make a $10,000 pledge, which he says he did using the credit card of
Atco Records
ATCO Records is an American record label founded in 1955. It is owned by Warner Music Group and operates as an imprint of Atlantic Records. After several decades of dormancy and infrequent activity under alternating Warner Music labels, the com ...
president
Herb Abramson
Herbert Charles Abramson (November 16, 1916 – November 9, 1999) was an American record executive, record producer, and co-founder of Atlantic Records.
Life and career
Abramson was born in 1916 to a Jewish family in Brooklyn. He studied to be a ...
.
During an interview in which Plant confirmed the story, he also said that he liked the song well enough, and of course it has been very good to him... "but don’t you know, I’ve heard it."
Programming
KBOO offers a mix of music and entertainment programs along with public affairs shows which are informative and sometimes controversial. The focus is on independent content, voices and perspectives that are not typically heard on mainstream media. Public affairs programs include: ''Old Mole Variety Hour'', ''Voices For The Animals,'' ''Prison Pipeline'', ''Art Focus'', ''Film at 11, Locus Focus, The Dirtbag, The Bike Show'' and ''Rose City Native Radio''. Other programs include ''Roe On The Rocks'', tackling current
gender
Gender is the range of social, psychological, cultural, and behavioral aspects of being a man (or boy), woman (or girl), or third gender. Although gender often corresponds to sex, a transgender person may identify with a gender other tha ...
and political issues, and ''Let’s Talk About Race'', which is about
racial
Race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 16th century, when it was used to refer to groups of va ...
and
social issues
A social issue is a problem that affects many people within a society. It is a group of common problems in present-day society that many people strive to solve. It is often the consequence of factors extending beyond an individual's control. Soc ...
. Distinctive programming and public affairs content such as ''Squirrels Know'' is also offered on the platform''.''
KBOO delivers a volunteer-produced newscast every evening, and election coverage.
It has hosted the
Walt Curtis poetry show ''Talking Earth'' since 1971.
KBOO also broadcasts syndicated programs, such as ''
Democracy Now!
''Democracy Now!'' is an hour-long TV, radio, and Internet news program based in Manhattan and hosted by journalists Amy Goodman (who also acts as the show's executive producer), Juan González, and Nermeen Shaikh. The show, which airs live ...
'', ''For The Wild'', ''Ecojustice Radio'' and ''First Voices Radio''.
Music programs on the platform include genres such as
hip-hop
Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...
,
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, ...
rock (AAA),
electronica
Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that came to prominence in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mos ...
,
experimental
An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs whe ...
,
chill-out,
folk,
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
, and
Latin music
Latin music (Portuguese language, Portuguese and ) is a term used by the music industry as a catch-all category for various styles of music from Ibero-America, which encompasses Music of Latin America, Latin America, Music of Spain, Spain, Mu ...
. Music shows include: ''Roots of Rock and Roll'', ''Jazz in the Afternoon'', ''Rise When The Rooster Crows'', ''Dr. Zomb’s Stereo Obscura'', ''Spark Plug'', ''Parsing Sound'' an
Boogie Pachanguero
In addition, KBOO also offers radio theater programs, including ''The Ubu Hour'', ''Sudden Radio Project and'' ''Gremlin Time'', with each program alternating from week-to-week, producing one episode per month.
Special programming events have included live remote broadcasts of music festivals such as
PDX Pop Now!,
Pickathon
Pickathon is an annual, three-day music festival taking place the first weekend of August at Pendarvis Farm in Happy Valley, Oregon. Founded in 1999, the festival initially grew out of Portland, Oregon, Portland's Bluegrass music, bluegrass and ...
, and the annual
Waterfront Blues Festival
The Waterfront Blues Festival is an annual event in Portland, Oregon, United States, featuring four days of performances by blues musicians. The festival started in 1988 and takes place in Tom McCall Waterfront Park, along the west bank of the W ...
.
According to the KBOO Programming Charter, "KBOO shall fill the needs that other media outlets do not, providing programming to diverse communities and unserved or underserved groups" and "shall provide access and training to those communities."
KBOO hosted the
Grassroots Radio Coalition's 13th annual Grassroots Radio Conference. The conference was held July 24–27, 2008, at
Portland State University
Portland State University (PSU) is a public research university in Portland, Oregon, United States. It was founded in 1946 as a post-secondary educational institution for World War II veterans. It evolved into a four-year college over the next ...
's Native American Student and Community Center. It was co-sponsored by KBOO, KPSU, and KPCN-LP.
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
*
*
*
*
*
{{Authority control
Community radio stations in the United States
BOO
Radio stations established in 1968
1968 establishments in Oregon