Broadcast area Greater Seattle HAAT 65 meters Facility ID 4627 City of license Bellevue Owner Bellevue College Slogan A World of Music & Ideas | ERP 8,000 watts Class C3 Frequency 91.3 MHz Format Variety Area Greater Seattle Call sign meaning Bellevue College Station | |
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Callsign meaning Bellevue College Station | ||
KBCS-FM (91.3 FM) is a public radio station serving the Puget Sound region of Seattle, Washington, United States, and broadcasts in HD Radio at 91.3 MHz with an effective radiated power of 8,000 watts. A public service of Bellevue College, the 91.3 KBCS studios are located on the campus in the city of Bellevue, Washington. The station can be heard as far north as Marysville, Washington in Snohomish County, but it is trickier to pick up because of co-channel interference from CJZN in Victoria, British Columbia.
A student sit-in protest led to the creation of the station. KBCS-FM went on the air on Monday, February 5, 1973 with 10 watts of power utilizing used equipment donated by Dorothy Stimson Bullitt of KING-FM. It remained student-run until 1988 when Bellevue College administrators hired a general manager for the station and adopted a community radio model. Over time, the station became self-sustaining, funded primarily by listener donations.
A very wide variety of music, including electronic dance music, Funk, Latin Music, Brazilian, Underground Hip Hop, Blues, Gospel Music, Music of Asia, African Music, Reggae, Classical Music, world, jazz and Americana, is heard on 91.3 KBCS, as well as local and national news and information. It is managed by a small staff, along with over 150 volunteer hosts, producers, journalists and administrators. The station offers training in broadcast production and journalism to the public. KBCS has launched the careers of a number of noted regional and national public radio professionals.