KING-FM (98.1 MHz; "Classical KING") is a non-commercial classical music radio stationinSeattle, Washington. It is owned by Classic Radio, a nonprofit organization.[2] The studios and offices are on Mercer St in Seattle.[3] KING-FM holds periodic on-air fundraisers to help support the station through listener contributions.
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| Broadcast area |
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| Frequency | 98.1 MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | Classical KING |
| Programming | |
| Format | Classical music |
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| Ownership | |
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| History | |
First air date | December 1947 |
Call sign meaning | King County |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 11755 |
| Class | C |
| ERP |
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| HAAT | 707 meters (2,320 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 47°30′14″N 121°58′34″W / 47.504°N 121.976°W / 47.504; -121.976 |
| Links | |
Public license information |
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| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | classicalking.org |
KING-FM's transmitter is located in IssaquahonTiger Mountain.[4] Its effective radiated power (ERP) is 66,000 watts (68,000 with beam tilt). KING-FM broadcasts in the HD Radio format, using two subchannels for alternate classical programming.[5]
The station that today is KING-FM first signed on the air in December 1947, originally at 94.9 MHz.[6] It was owned by King Broadcasting, whose co-owner and president was Dorothy Bullitt. The year before, Bullitt had purchased KEVR (1090 AM) and changed it to KING (now KPTR).[7][8] (Seattle is located in King County, for which its call letters were chosen.)
In 1949, King Broadcasting bought 98.1 KRSC-FM, which had gone on the air in February 1947 under different ownership.[7] KING-FM moved from 94.9 to 98.1 MHz, replacing KRSC-FM. The 94.9 transmitter was donated to Edison Vocational School, which used it to broadcast educational programming on that frequency. In 1958, the 94.9 frequency was taken over by KUOW-FM, owned by the University of Washington, and now a public news-talk station affiliated with NPR.
Concurrent with the purchase of KRSC-FM, King Broadcasting also acquired KRSC-TV (channel 5), which had signed on the previous year. The call letters were changed to KING-TV.[9] The three stations, KING-AM-FM-TV, had their studios and offices at 320 Aurora Avenue North in Seattle.
At first, KING-FM simulcast its AM counterpart. Over time, it began airing classical programs separate from the AM station, and by the late 1960s, it was exclusively a classical outlet, a format that has continued to be broadcast on the station since.
During the late 1970s, KING-FM carried syndicated concert broadcasts by the Philadelphia Orchestra, usually under direction of Eugene Ormandy, the New York Philharmonic, and the Boston Symphony. Many of the syndicated concert programs featured well-known instrumentalists and conductors performing works which they never recorded commercially - e.g. Leonard Bernstein conducting the New York Philharmonic in a highly memorable 1976 reading of Bruckner's Sixth Symphony in A major.
In the mid-1970s, KING-FM's schedule also included specialized programs showcasing Quadraphonic LP recordings and historical recordings. In 1983, KING-FM was the first station in the Seattle area to utilize compact disc (CD) technology for its recordings.[citation needed]
In 1992, King Broadcasting was acquired by the parent company of The Providence Journal, a Rhode Island publishing and broadcasting company. While the new ownership wanted the TV station, the radio stations were sold to Classic Radio for $9.75 million.[10] The AM station was, in turn, sold to EZ Communications. KING-FM was run by a non-profit partnership, consisting of the Seattle Opera, Seattle Symphony, and the Arts Fund. Although KING-FM was owned by a non-profit entity, the station continued to operate for a time on a commercial basis, selling advertising as before. Even after the sale, the radio station was co-located with KING-TV for several more years.
Many radio transmitters in the Seattle-Tacoma radio market were moved to surrounding mountains for better reception in Seattle's hilly topography.[11]In1993, KING-FM relocated its transmitter from Seattle's Queen Anne HilltoTiger MountaininIssaquah. A backup transmitter was on nearby Cougar Mountain.[12] This higher-elevation transmitter location provided a significant improvement in KING-FM's reception quality in its listener area. KING-FM also began broadcasting its programming online, becoming one of the first internet radio stations, streamed by RealNetworks c. 1995.[13]
On March 23, 2010, KING-FM announced that it would transition to a non-commercial, listener-supported public radio station in July 2011, citing reduced advertising revenue.[14] Several other commercial classical radio stations have made similar transitions to public radio status, including WQXR-FMinNew York City, WCRBinBoston and KDFCinSan Francisco. Successful fundraising efforts led KING-FM to announce on April 7, 2011, that the transition would instead take place on May 2, two months ahead of schedule.[15]
In 2011, KING-FM made the successful transition from a commercial to a non-commercial public radio station. As a listener-supported station, KING-FM has added new programming and added two additional channels of classical music using HD Radio technology. KING-FM is one a handful of non-commercial FM radio stations to broadcast outside the standard band for FM stations of its type (88-92 MHz; it is also one of two such stations in the Seattle market alongside KUOW-FM).
The station relocated its recording studio and offices to the Seattle Opera's Seattle Center building in 2020.[16] In 2022, KING-FM renamed itself Classical KING and changed its logo as a means of reducing perceived elitism.[17] The following year, Classical KING redesigned its website to improve accessibility.[18]
KING-FM ... one of the first radio stations to broadcast live over the Internet...almost eight years ago when the station was chosen by Seattle-based RealNetworks