Broadcast area San Diego, California First air date 1960 as KEBS City of license San Diego | Slogan "Where News Matters." Language(s) English Area San Diego | |
Audience share 4.6 (Holiday 2016, Nielsen Audio[1]) ERP KPBS-FM: 26,000 watts
KQVO: 6,000 watts Frequency KPBS-FM: 89.5 MHz (also on HD Radio) Format Public broadcasting, All-news radio Owner San Diego State University Affiliations NPR, American Public Media, Public Radio International | ||
KPBS-FM, part of KPBS Public Media, is a non-commercial public radio station licensed to San Diego State University, broadcasting in San Diego on 89.5 MHz, 89.1 MHz K206AC in La Jolla, and on 97.7 MHz KQVO in Calexico, Imperial County. The station is affiliated with National Public Radio, with programming consisting of news and public affairs. Beginning May 23, 2011, the station discontinued its classical music programming in the evening hours and moved music programming to an online stream.
The station first went on the air in 1960, being owned by what was then San Diego State College. KPBS changed its call letters from KEBS to KPBS-FM in 1970. It, along with KCRW Santa Monica and KQED-FM San Francisco, is one of California's longest-serving NPR affiliates, having announced its affiliation in the fall of 1969. As such, it was one of the first NPR affiliates to air All Things Considered when it premiered in 1971.
KPBS has three HD Radio channels. KPBS-HD1 is the main channel that airs NPR news and talk, much like the analog KPBS-FM; KPBS-HD2 airs "Classical San Diego", featuring music from the syndicated Classical 24 service; and KPBS-HD3 offers SomaFM's syndicated "Groove Salad" format.
The station offers a radio-reading service on one of the FM sidebands. This requires a special FM receiver.
On October 1, 2012, KPBS boosted its effective radiated power from 2,700 watts to 26,000 watts.
San Diego wildfires
During the October 2007 wildfires in the San Diego area, power was lost to the KPBS-FM/TV transmitter on Mount San Miguel.
Within three hours, alternative rock station KBZT agreed to air KPBS' wildfire coverage until the station could return to a backup operation from its studios on the San Diego State University campus, which occurred the next day. KPBS later restored full coverage from Mount San Miguel using a backup generator.