- Minnesota Public Radio
-
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Minnesota Public Radio 
Type Public radio network Country 
United StatesFirst air date January 1967 Availability Global Founded American Public Media Group Key people Jon McTaggart, President Launch date 1967 Former names Saint John's University Broadcasting
Minnesota Educational RadioOfficial website www.mpr.org Minnesota Public Radio (MPR), is the flagship National Public Radio member network for the state of Minnesota. With its three services, News & Information, Classical Music and The Current, MPR operates a 42-station regional radio network in the upper Midwest serving over 8 million people. MPR has 127,150 members and more than 850,000 listeners each week, the largest audience of any regional public radio network.[1]
Minnesota Public Radio has won more than 875 journalism awards, including the Peabody Award, both the RTNDA Edward R. Murrow Award and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting award of the same name, and the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Gold Baton Award.
Minnesota Public Radio, operating as American Public Media, is the nation's second-largest producer and distributor of national public radio programs, reaching 14.6 million listeners nationwide each week. It is the largest producer and distributor of classical music programming in the country.
Minnesota Public Radio's 1,058-seat Fitzgerald Theater and 100-seat UBS Forum provide a venue for live remote broadcasts, discussion forums, political debates, cultural programming and more.
As of 1999 the company operates on $32 million dollar a year with 30 stations in 6 states, and it has a $110 million endowment.[2]
As of September 2011, MPR was equal with WNYC for most listener support for a public radio network, and had the highest level of recurring monthly donors of any public radio network in the United States.[3]
Contents
Services
Minnesota Public Radio originally offered a mix of classical music and NPR news/talk programming on a single service. Beginning in 1991, MPR's programming split in two, forming separate news and classical music services (although one station in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan still carries a combination of those two services). The 2005 acquisition of WCAL in Northfield, Minnesota, which covers the Minneapolis-St. Paul and Rochester areas, provided the opportunity to launch another music service, The Current. This third service has gradually expanded to most of southern Minnesota.
News and information
MPR's news and information service, based on KNOW in the Twin Cities, includes a mix of locally-produced programs and national/international shows.
The MPR newsroom has garnered international acclaim, most recently earning the inaugural Knight News Innovation EPpy Award in 2008.[4] MPR's newsroom is known for its Public Insight Network, a database of citizen sources who contribute their expertise on a wide array of topics. The Public Insight Network grew to 100,000 sources in 2011 and partners with other news media, journalism schools, foundations and community groups.
As of 2008, 27 transmitters carry MPR's News and Information service.
MPR News.org
MPR News.org is a non-profit news website created by the individuals at Minnesota Public Radio. This online news source covers issues that affect the state including politics, business, education, health, environment and the economy. MPR News offers headline news, video, blogs, audio and multiple ways for readers to become involved in the news-making process.
Classical music
Like its news and information service, MPR's classical music service is distributed via a statewide network of 37 stations anchored by KSJN in the Twin Cities. MPR's classical music library consists of over 50,000 compact discs.
MPR's classical music service features several online initiatives, such as the popular "Classical Love Notes," which allow listeners to send romantic classical music selected by MPR on-air hosts to their loved ones.
In the fall of 2006, MPR's classical music service reached an all-time listener high with over 375,000 weekly listeners.
There are 27 transmitters broadcasting the classical music service, including one station in Sun Valley, Idaho. The network's flagship station is KSJN 99.5 FM in the Twin Cities.
The Current
Main article: KCMPMPR's third service, 89.3 The Current, debuted on January 24, 2005, and airs a free-form eclectic music format.
While The Current's on-air hosts select much of the music that is played, listeners are invited to select 100% of the day's music playlist during a weekly program known as Radio Free Current.
Several people on The Current's initial staff are well known in the area for previous work at stations that highlight music from Minnesota and the Upper Midwest. Many of the staffers and on-air personalities came from other similar stations, such as the University of Minnesota's KUOM, community-oriented KFAI, and commercial alternative rock outlets REV 105 and Cincinnati, Ohio's WOXY.com.
Programming on The Current is mostly locally-produced, including Musicheads with Bill DeVille. The Current also airs nationally-produced shows such as Sound Opinions with Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot and American Routes with Nick Spitzer. In July 2007, The Current created a one-hour program of music hosted by Mark Wheat called "The Current Rotation." The program airs exclusively on WNYE 91.5 FM in New York.[5]
The Current is carried on four transmitters, serving a majority of the state's population. The main transmitter is KCMP 89.3 FM, licensed to Northfield on the southeastern periphery of the Twin Cities, though the signal covers most of the metro area. A lower-power station, KMSE on 88.7 FM, serves Rochester and southeastern Minnesota, and KCMP translators serve Hinckley on 97.5 FM, and Mankato on 95.3 FM.[6] In addition, the station is broadcast on a HD Radio sideband channel to listeners of KNSR in St. Cloud and KPCC in Los Angeles. The Current also streams online at http://minnesota.publicradio.org/radio/services/the_current/streams.shtml in a variety of formats.
Additional services
Subsidiary Communications Authority (SCA's) are used to transmit a Minnesota version of the Radio Talking Book Network to disabled listeners around the state, in cooperation with Minnesota State Services for the Blind. MPR also serves as the radio backbone for the radio portion of the state's Emergency Broadcasting System, and as the backbone for the state's AMBER Alert System.
Plans are in place to add the digital HD Radio system across all of MPR's transmitters. Special receivers are required to decode these broadcasts. They will enable the main channel on each frequency to be broadcast with digital quality and to reduce the multipath interference that sometimes affects FM analog broadcasting. This move will also make additional digital channels possible.
Programs
History
Minnesota Public Radio began on January 22, 1967, when KSJR signed on from the campus of Saint John's University in Collegeville, just outside St. Cloud. The Director of Broadcasting for the station was William H. Kling, a graduate of Saint John's.[2]
It soon became apparent that St. Cloud and surrounding Stearns County didn't have enough listeners for the station to be viable, so Kling more than tripled KSJR's power in hopes of reaching the Twin Cities. However, it only provided grade B coverage to Minneapolis and the western portion of the metro, and completely missed St. Paul and the east. Realizing that the station needed to cover the Twin Cities to have a realistic chance of survival, St. John's signed on KSJN, a low-powered repeater station for the Twin Cities, in 1968. However, the operation was still awash in debt. It soon became apparent that St. John's was in over its head operating a full-fledged noncommercial radio station, so it transferred KSJR/KSJN's assets to a community corporation, St. John's University Broadcasting. This corporation later changed its name to Minnesota Educational Radio, and finally Minnesota Public Radio.[7] Kling led MPR as president and CEO for 44 years, before retiring in 2011.[2][8]
In 1969 and 1970, MPR assisted in the formation of National Public Radio as a founding member of the organization. Gradually, the station moved its operations to St. Paul, and KSJN became the flagship station.
In 1974, MPR began live broadcasting of Garrison Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion, one of the best-known programs on public radio.
In 1980, MPR originated the Peabody Award-winning show, Saint Paul Sunday, which went national via syndication in 1981.
In 1983, MPR assisted in the formation of American Public Radio (now known as Public Radio International).
In 1991, MPR bought WLOL (99.5 FM) in the Twin Cities. This allowed MPR to split its services into two networks. The KSJN calls moved to 99.5, which began playing classical music full-time. News and talk remained on KSJN's original 91.1 frequency, which took new calls, KNOW.
In 2000, MPR acquired Marketplace Productions, which produces Marketplace, "Marketplace Morning Report" and "Marketplace Money" from studios in Los Angeles, in association with the University of Southern California. Also in 2000, MPR founded Southern California Public Radio, which entered into a public service operating agreement with Pasadena City College for the operation of KPCC in Pasadena, California.
In 2004, MPR announced it would buy WCAL (89.3 FM), the classical music station operated by St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. WCAL (and a repeater station, KMSE in Rochester), were sold in a deal valued at $10.5 million, which was approved by the Federal Communications Commission in 2004.
In 2005, WCAL was transformed into MPR's third service, 89.3 The Current.
In 2008, a WCAL advocate group took St. Olaf College to court for breach of trust for selling the radio station. (A June 2008 judge's opinion described the station as a charitable trust and not the college's property to freely dispose with. [2])) MPR's General Counsel and three attorneys took part in the proceedings.[3]) The case is ongoing.
Today, MPR serves a regional audience of 850,000 listeners through 37 stations presenting three broadcast network services.
Funding
Minnesota Public Radio is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization and relies on contributions from listeners, foundations, educational partners and corporations for its general operations. It also receives support through underwriting on the air and on the Web.
Listener contributions, corporations, foundations and educational partners account for approximately 60 percent of MPR’s total budget. Additional funding is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (8 percent). The State of Minnesota provides modest capital grants to upgrade infrastructure and equipment in greater Minnesota, but does not provide operating funding to the organization. MPR also receives operating funding through the sale of on-air and online underwriting.
Like other large nonprofit organizations with similar business models, additional funding for MPR comes from the for-profit Greenspring Media, a subsidiary of the parent nonprofit American Public Media Group (APMG), through sales of the magazine Minnesota Monthly and other ventures. APMG also owns and operates the Lake Wobegon USA store at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota. and the Pretty Good Goods catalog. The for-profit Rivertown Trading Company, once a subsidiary of MPR’s parent company, was sold in 1998 for $124 million. Profits went toward creating MPR’s endowment, a percentage of which contributes to MPR's overall annual budget.
Broadcast coverage
External images
THIS 2006 MAP, from a PTFP web page, illustrates the then 90% coverage of Minnesota.
Since the above page/article was published, it appears that MPR has added stations, as the network now has more stations than those mentioned on the PTFP page.Minnesota Public Radio broadcasts on 40 stations that serve Minnesota and its neighboring communities and 41 translators providing additional local coverage. (40 + 41 = 81 total.) Stations are located in Minnesota, Wisconsin (La Crosse), North Dakota (Fargo and Grand Forks), South Dakota (Sioux Falls), Michigan (Houghton), Iowa (Decorah), and Idaho (Sun Valley). It can also be argued that MPR is in control of Pacadena City, California's KPCC.
Most areas are served by both a classical music station and a news and information station. One location is covered by a single station that combines both services. Two locations are served by a classical music station, a news and information station, and The Current.
MPR's newest service, The Current, is available in Austin, Hinckley, Mankato, the Twin Cities, New Ulm, Rochester and St. Peter.
Minnesota Public Radio also broadcasts all three of its services—News, Classical and The Current—on HD Radio in several communities throughout the state of Minnesota. In the Twin Cities, MPR multicasts Classical 24, BBC News and More, a Spanish language service from Radio Netherlands called Ahora, and Wonderground Radio, a service specifically geared towards children.
Market Frequency/
Call signPower
(Class)[9]Service Map[10]
(External images)Albert Lea (See Austin's KNSE.) News 92.7 K224DM (KGAC)
(Verify needed.)250 (D) Classical RL - FCC 103.9 K280EB KGAC
(or KZSE? - Verify needed.)10W (D) Classical RL - FCC Alexandria 90.9 K215BL (KSJR) 18 (D) Classical RL - FCC Appleton, MN 88.5 KRSU 34,000 (C2) Classical RL - FCC 91.3 KNCM 82,000 (C0) News RL - FCC Austin 90.1 KNSE 6,000 (A) News RL - FCC 103.3 K277AD (KLSE) 100 (D) Classical RL - FCC 103.9 K280EF (KCMP) 9 (D) The Current RL - FCC Bemidji 91.3 KNBJ 65,000 (C1) News RL - FCC 88.5 KCRB 83,000 (C1) Classical RL - FCC Blue Earth 92.3 K222BA (KGAC) 99 (D) Classical RL - FCC 101.9 K270AQ (KNGA) 250 (D) News RL - FCC Brainerd 88.3 KBPN 5,000 (C3) News RL - FCC 90.7 KBPR 34,000 (C1) Classical RL - FCC Brookings, SD 95.5 K238AX (KRSU)
(Verify needed.)160 (D) Classical RL - FCC Brownton 105.1 K286AU (KNSR)
(Verify needed.)115 (D) News RL - FCC Decorah, IA 88.7 KLNI 100 (A) News RL - FCC 89.5 KLCD 100 (A) Classical RL - FCC 96.3 K242BW (KLNI) 115 (D) News RL - FCC Duluth-Superior (& Cloquet) 100.5 WSCN 97,000 (C1) News RL - FCC Duluth-Superior 92.9 WSCD 70,000 (C1) Classical RL - FCC Ely 101.7 W269AC (WSCN) 31 (D) News RL - FCC 89.5 K208CR (WIRR) 23 (D) Classical RL - FCC Fargo, ND - Moorhead, MN 90.3 KCCD 100,000 (C1) News RL - FCC 91.1 KCCM-FM 67,000 (C1) Classical RL - FCC Fergus Falls 91.5 KNWF 2,700 (A) News RL - FCC 89.7 KCMF 2,700 (A) Classical RL - FCC Grand Marais 89.7 WLSN 6,000 (C3) News RL - FCC 88.7 WMLS 6,000 (C3) Classical RL - FCC Grand Rapids 107.3 K297AD (WSCN) 250 (D) News RL - FCC 104.1 K281AB (KCRB) 250 (D) Classical RL - FCC Hinckley 88.5 WGRH 3800 (A) News RL: not avail.
FCC: not avail.93.1 W226AY (WSCN) 55 (D) News RL - FCC 97.5 W248AS (KCMP) 55 (D) The Current RL - FCC 104.5 K283AN (KSJN) 55 (D) Classical RL - FCC 106.5 W293AV (KNOW) 55 (D) News RL - FCC Houghton, MI 91.1 WGGL 100,000 (C1) Mixed news/classical RL - FCC 92.7 W224AO (WGGL) 20 (D) Mixed news/classical RL - FCC International Falls 88.1 K201CN (KNBJ) 7 (D) News RL - FCC 97.7 K249BK (KCRB) 8 (D) Classical RL - FCC La Crosse, WI - La Crescent, MN 91.1 KXLC 230 (A) News RL - FCC 88.1 K201BW (KLSE) 18 (D) Classical RL - FCC Mankato - St. Peter 90.5 KNGA 8,500 (C2) News RL - FCC 91.5 KGAC 75,000 (C1) Classical RL - FCC 95.3 K237ET (KCMP)
New Ulm250 (D) The Current RL: not avail.
FCC: not avail.93.5 K228XN (KCMP)
St. Peter60 (D) The Current RL - FCC 105.1 K286AW (KCMP)
Mankato10 (D) The Current RL - FCC Minneapolis - St. Paul
(Twin Cities)91.1 KNOW 100,000 (C) News RL - FCC 99.5 KSJN 100,000 (C) Classical RL - FCC 89.3 KCMP
(Northfield/Empire Township)100,000 (C1)
97,600 (C1)The Current RL - FCC Morton 91.1 K216FZ (KNSW)
(Need to verify station.)115 (D) News RL - FCC New Ulm See Mankato's KGAC & KNGA. 95.3 K237ET (KCMP) 250 (D) The Current RL: not avail.
FCC: not avail.Olivia 103.1 K276EW (KNSR) 170 (D) News RL - FCC 103.9 K280ET (KSJR) 170 (D) Classical RL - FCC Owatonna (See Twin Cities' KCMP) The Current 103.9 K280EC (KNGA) 205 (D) News RF - FCC 105.7 K289AE (KGAC) 170 (D) Classical RL - FCC Pine City 94.1 K231AT (KNOW) 55 (D) News RL - FCC Redwood Falls 96.9 K245AK (KNSW) 250 (D) News RL - FCC Rochester 90.7 KLSE 1,100 (C3) News RL - FCC 91.7 KLSE 94,000 (C1) Classical RL - FCC 88.7 KMSE 250 (A) (old data)
850 (A) (new data)The Current RL's old map
FCC: not avail.Roseau (See Warroad's KRXW) News 90.9 W215AI (KQMN) 37 (D) Classical RL - FCC St. Cloud - Collegeville 88.9 KNSR 100,000 (C1) News RL - FCC 90.1 KSJR 100,000 (C1) Classical RL - FCC St. James 106.9 K295BD (KNGA)
(Station not confirmed)85 (D) News RL - FCC St. Peter (See Mankato-St. Peter) Sioux Falls, SD 89.1 KAUR 680 (A) News RL - FCC 88.1 KRSD 2,000 (A) Classical RL - FCC Sleepy Eye 103.1 K276EV (KNGA)
Need to verify.8 (D) News RL - FCC Sun Valley, ID 91.9 KWRV 100 (A) Classical RL - FCC 101.1 K213EN (KWRV)
translator located in Hailey.5 (D) Classical RL - FCC Thief River Falls, MN - Grand Forks, ND 102.7 KNTN 100,000 (C1) News RL - FCC 91.5 KQMN 84,000 (C1) Classical RL - FCC Virginia - Hibbing 90.9 WIRR 21,000 (C2) Classical RL - FCC 92.5 WIRN 26,000 (C2) News RL - FCC Warroad - Roseau 103.5 KRXW 48,000 (C2) News RL - FCC 100.7 K264AR (KRXW) 200 (D) Classical RL - FCC Windom 97.1 K246BG (KNSW) 180 (D) News RL - FCC (See Worthington-Marshall) Winona 107.3 W297AW (KZSE) 235 (D) News RL - FCC 101.9 K270AB (KLSE) 8 (D) Classical RL - FCC Worthington - Marshall 91.7 KNSW 99,000 (C1) News RL - FCC 89.3 KRSW 100,000 (C1) Classical RL - FCC See also
- American Public Media
- Saint Paul Sunday
- Public Insight Journalism (a newsgathering and networking initiative founded by MPR)
- In the Loop (radio show)
- Independent Public Radio (another public radio network in Minnesota, also known as AMPERS)
- Inishowen Community Radio
External links
- Minnesota Public Radio Web site, including history and list of stations
- Minnewiki: The Minnesota Music Encyclopedia – Wiki operated by Minnesota Public Radio
- American Public Media website
- Terry Fiedler and Deborah Caulfield Rybak (October 24, 2004). MPR chief 'sings his own song' in creating a national powerhouse. Star Tribune. Accessed November 18, 2004.
- MPRNewsQ - Online news service launched in 2009
References
- ^ Minnesota Public Radio.com About Us
- ^ a b c Adelson, Andrea (April 5, 1999). "The Business of National Public Radio". New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9507E4D61039F936A35757C0A96F958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all. Retrieved 2009-01-24. "Begun in 1966 by William H. Kling at a small, troubled college station, the St. Paul-based organization is now a $32 million, six-state media empire of 30 stations with a $110 million endowment."
- ^ Arganbright, Valerie (September 2011). "Plugged In: You Create a Legacy Member Letter". Minnesota Monthly. http://minnesota.publicradio.org/support/pluggedin/latest.pdf. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
- ^ Minnesota Public Radio Receives First Knight Innovation EPpy Award. John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. 24 May 2007.
- ^ MPR: Programs: The Current Rotation with Mark Wheat
- ^ http://minnesota.publicradio.org/radio/services/the_current/about/
- ^ Founding Minnesota Public Radio — Saint John's of Collegeville
- ^ [1]
- ^ As of Oct./Nov. 2010 all the listed stations have had their signal strength verified at: radio-locator.com and/or the FCC's own web site (see note in References section).
- ^ Stations newer than May 27, 2010 will not have pre-made Signal/Contour maps available to them. Quote from U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC):
- "Service Area on a Tiger Census Map
NOTICE: On May 27, 2010, the U.S. Census Bureau permanently ceased operation of its Tiger mapping service. Maps for FM or TV applications filed after that date cannot be generated. We are exploring alternatives.
Tiger census maps generated before May 27, 2010 that were stored on the FCC's servers will remain available but cannot be regenerated."
- "Service Area on a Tiger Census Map
- Further information as to ALL the stations that Minnesota Public Radio owns can be found by going to this FCC web page, scrolling down to the "Applicant Name" field, entering "Minnesota Public Radio", press the "Submit Application Search" button, and continue past the "Application Search Warning".
- Further information as to a SPECIFIC station can be found by going to this FCC Database Query web page.
Template:American Broadcast Radio
NPR Member Stations in the state of Minnesota Stations Appleton KNCM · Appleton KRSU · Bemidji KCRB-FM · Bemidji KNBJ · Brainerd KBPN · Brainerd KBPR · Duluth WSCD-FM · Duluth WSCN · Fergus Falls KCMF · Fergus Falls KNWF · Grand Marais WLSN · Grand Marais WMLS · Grand Marais WTIP · Grand Rapids KAXE · La Crescent KXLC · Mankato KGAC · Mankato KNGA · Minneapolis-St. Paul KCMP · Minneapolis-St. Paul KNOW · Minneapolis-St. Paul KSJN · Moorhead KCCD · Moorhead KCCM-FM · Rochester KLSE · Rochester KMSE · Rochester KZSE · St. Cloud KNSR · St. Cloud KSJR-FM · Thief River Falls KQMN · Thief River Falls KNTN · Virginia-Hibbing WIRN · Virginia-Hibbing WIRR · Worthington KNSW · Worthington KRSWSee also List of NPR stationsSee also: adult contemporary, classic hits, college, country, news/talk, NPR, oldies, religious, rock, sports, top 40, urban, and other radio stations in MinnesotaNPR Member Stations in the state of Idaho Boise State Radio AM: Twin Falls KEZJ
FM: Boise KBSU-FM · Boise KBSX · Burley KBSY · McCall KBSK/KBSM/KBSQ · Twin Falls KBSWOther Stations See also List of NPR stationsSee also: adult contemporary, classic hits, college, country, news/talk, NPR, oldies, religious, rock, sports, top 40, urban, and other radio stations in IdahoCategories:- American Public Media Group
- Minnesota Public Radio
- American Public Media
- Radio in Minnesota
- Non-profit organizations based in Minnesota
- Radio stations in Minnesota
- American radio networks
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