Q: As you may know, this month KPR kicks-off a yearlong 60th anniversary celebration! It was on Sept. 15, 1952, that this radio station first began broadcasting as “KANU Radio.” Do you know who was president at the time? (And by that we mean “President of the United States!”)
From the KANU studios in 1965. (Photo via Kenneth Spencer Research Library) |
A: Harry S. Truman
Harry Truman was still president when KANU FM Radio first signed on the air. Based at the University of Kansas, KANU started broadcasting on Monday, Sept. 15, 1952, at 1:45 p.m.
During the past 60 years, the station has grown from a part-time music and educational station into a full-time, multi-station, award-winning network that covers northeast and east-central Kansas, the Kansas City metro and portions of southeast Kansas.
To reflect the station’s growing number of transmitters and translators (each with its own unique set of call letters), KANU changed its name to Kansas Public Radio. Of course, at the top of every hour, all individual call letters are recognized when the station’s legal identification is announced on the air.
Kansas Public Radio now has about 108,000 listeners every week. It also provides news content to other radio stations in Kansas and Missouri, including coverage of the Kansas Statehouse and various health issues. KPR thrives, in large part, due to the generosity of more than 6,000 listener-members – and area businesses – that help fund our operations. Happy 60th anniversary, KPR!
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