View source for KPBX-FM

{{Use American English|date=February 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox radio station
| name             = KPBX-FM
| logo             = Spokane Public Radio.png
| city             = [[Spokane, Washington]]
| area             = [[Inland Northwest (United States)|Inland Empire]]
| branding         = ''Spokane Public Radio''
| airdate          = {{Start date and age|January 20, 1980}}<BR>Originally experimental c. 1971-1977
| frequency        = {{Frequency|91.1|[[MHz]]}} {{HD Radio}}
| translator       = [[#Translators|See § Translators]]
| repeater         = [[#Repeaters|See § Repeaters]]
| format           = [[Public Radio]] - [[talk radio|News/Talk]] - [[Classical music]] - [[Jazz]]
| subchannels      = HD2: [[KSFC]] simulcast<br>HD3: [[KPBZ]] simulcast
| erp              = 56,000 [[watt]]s
| haat             = {{Convert|725|m|ft|sp=us}}
| class            = C
| facility_id      = 61942
| coordinates      = {{Coord|47|34|13|N|117|05|0|W|type:landmark_region:US-WA_source:FCC|name=KPBX-FM}}
| callsign_meaning = '''P'''u'''B'''lic Broadcasting
| former_callsigns =
| affiliations     = [[National Public Radio]]<BR>[[BBC World Service]]
| owner            = Spokane Public Radio, Inc.
| sister_stations  = [[KSFC]], [[KPBZ]]
| webcast          = [http://cp1.stationpanel.com/radio/player.php?station=kpbx&nc=972963112 Listen Live]
| website          = [http://www.spokanepublicradio.org spokanepublicradio.org] 
| licensing_authority= [[Federal Communications Commission|FCC]]
}}

'''KPBX-FM''' (91.1 [[Hertz|MHz]]) is a [[non-commercial educational station|non-commercial]], listener-supported, [[public radio]] [[radio station|station]] in [[Spokane, Washington]].  It airs news, talk and information programs on weekday morning and afternoon [[drive time]]s, with a mix of music shows featuring [[classical music|classical]], [[jazz]], [[blues]], [[folk music|folk]] and other genres the rest of the day, and the [[BBC World Service]] overnight.  KPBX-FM, along with [[sister station]]s 91.9 [[KSFC]] and 90.3 [[KPBZ]], are owned and operated by Spokane Public Radio.

KPBX-FM is a [[list of broadcast station classes|Class C]] station.  It broadcasts with an [[effective radiated power]] (ERP) of 56,000 [[watt]]s.  Its [[transmitter]] [[radio masts and towers|tower]] is off East Henry Road in [[Spokane Valley]].<ref>[https://radio-locator.com/cgi-bin/finder?call=kpbx&x=0&y=0&sr=Y&s=C Radio-Locator.com/KPBX]</ref>  Through seven full-power [[broadcast relay station|repeater]]s and six translators, it reaches listeners in eastern [[Washington (state)|Washington]], northeastern [[Oregon]], northern [[Idaho]], western [[Montana]] and southern [[British Columbia]].

==History==
===Early years===
The station traces its history to a ten-[[watt]] transmitter.  It was erected in the early 1970s at the home of George Cole in the South Hill neighborhood of Spokane. It broadcast various kinds of music eight hours a day from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m.  In 1974, David Schoengold, a record store owner and law school student, took over the station from Cole and expanded its broadcast schedule to 24 hours a day. It became very popular, with people waiting at all hours of the day to go on the air. It also gained the attention of [[National Public Radio]], since Spokane had no NPR [[network affiliate]].  NPR sent tapes of ''[[All Things Considered]]'' to the station, hoping the program might be carried.  The nearest NPR station in the area was [[KWSU (AM)|KWSU]] in [[Pullman, Washington|Pullman]], which was difficult for Spokane listeners to pick up.

Schoengold wanted a better station for the area, so he formed the Spokane Public Broadcasting Association to raise funding for a full-power public radio station. The 10-watt transmitter went off the air at the suggestion of one of Schoengold's friends in order to make it easier to raise the money. Getting the required funding took longer than expected, in part because the board was committed to keeping the proposed station as a community license. While linking up with a local nonprofit or an educational institution would have provided greater security, many board members believed that it would have also compromised the station's ability to program potentially controversial content.

===Fundraising===
It took several years of fundraising (with a final goal larger than that of a typical year's fundraising at area public television station [[KSPS-TV]]).  There were also several delays in the starting date.  KPBX finally [[sign-on|signed on]] the air on {{Start date and age|January 20, 1980}}.  The station was actually ready to debut in 1979, having hired a general manager/program director and 13 staffers.  However, FCC concerns forced a year's delay.

KPBX-FM had to postpone its first pledge drive due to an unforeseen event.  It was scheduled for May 18, 1980.  That was the date [[Mount St. Helens]] erupted, and [[Pacific Northwest Bell]] requested that phone lines be used for emergencies only.
It is one of seven local Spokane FM radio stations heard across [[Canada]] to subscribers of the [[Shaw Direct]] [[satellite television|satellite TV]] service.<ref>[http://www.starchoice.com/english/documents/channel_listing_09_22_08_e.pdf Channel listing] starchoice.com</ref>

===Specialty shows===
The station broadcasts a mix of NPR news and entertainment, [[classical music]], [[jazz]] and other musical genres.  KPBX also carries ''[[BirdNote|BirdNote Daily]]'', a two-minute show about birds and nature, produced in Washington State.

KPBX had broadcast the [[Washington Talking Book & Braille Library]]'s Evergreen [[Radio reading service|Radio Reading Service]] to blind and handicapped listeners on its [[Subsidiary Communications Authority|67kHz]] [[subcarrier]].  With other reading services available on the internet, the KPBX service was shut down on August 15, 2014.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.wtbbl.org/Evergreen-Radio-Reading-Service-Ending.aspx |title=Evergreen Radio Reading Service Ending |access-date=2014-09-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150107025420/http://www.wtbbl.org/Evergreen-Radio-Reading-Service-Ending.aspx |archive-date=2015-01-07 |url-status=dead }}</ref> KPBX was one of three major FM stations in Washington to do so; [[KUOW-FM]] in [[Seattle]] and [[KFAE-FM]] in [[Richland, Washington|Richland]] were the others.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wtbbl.org/ERRShow.aspx |title=How do I Receive the Evergreen Radio Reading Service? |website=www.wtbbl.org |access-date=12 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120220041456/http://www.wtbbl.org/ERRShow.aspx |archive-date=20 February 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> This service required a special FM radio capable of receiving such broadcasts.  It could not be received on a standard FM radio.

The station's studios are located at 1229 North Monroe Street.  KPBX-FM renovated a former fire station to relocate the offices in 2015.<ref>{{cite web| last = Spitzer| first = Judith| title = Spokane Public Radio's project on fast track for completion| newspaper = Spokane Journal of Business| date = January 15, 2015| url = https://www.spokanejournal.com/local-news/spokane-public-radios-project-on-fast-track-for-completion/print/| access-date = September 27, 2022}}</ref>

==Repeaters==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! [[Call signs in North America|Call sign]]
! data-sort-type="number" | [[Frequency]]
! [[City of license]]
! [[Facility ID]]
! data-sort-type="number" | [[Effective radiated power|ERP]]<br />[[watt|W]]
! data-sort-type="number" | [[Height above average terrain|Height]]<br />[[Metre|m]] ([[Foot (unit)|ft]])
! [[List of North American broadcast station classes|Class]]
! class="unsortable" | Transmitter coordinates
|-
| {{rh}} | KIBX || 92.1 FM ([[HD Radio|HD]]) || [[Bonners Ferry, Idaho]] || 77383 || 74 || {{Convert|838|m|ft|abbr=on}} || A || {{Coord|48|36|37|N|116|15|24|W|type:landmark_region:US-ID_source:FCC|name=KIBX}}
|-
| {{rh}} | KLGG || 89.3 FM || [[Kellogg, Idaho]] || 172927 || 100 || {{Convert|782|m|ft|abbr=on}} || C3 || {{Coord|47|29|32|N|116|08|33|W|type:landmark_region:US-ID_source:FCC|name=KLGG}}
|-
| {{rh}} | KOMQ || 88.5 FM || [[Omak, Washington]] || 173719 || 100 || {{Convert|777.1|m|ft|abbr=on}} || C3 || {{Coord|48|27|15|N|119|18|30|W|type:landmark_region:US-WA_source:FCC|name=KOMQ}}
|-
| {{rh}} | KPBG || 90.9 FM || [[Oroville, Washington]] || 173880 || 1,000 || {{Convert|4.7|m|ft|abbr=on}} || A || {{Coord|48|46|59.1|N|119|22|56.1|W|type:landmark_region:US-WA_source:FCC|name=KPBG}}
|-
| {{rh}} | KPBW || 91.9 FM || [[Brewster, Washington]] || 173803 || 1,000 || {{Convert|755.2|m|ft|abbr=on}} || C2 || {{Coord|48|02|14|N|119|59|7|W|type:landmark_region:US-WA_source:FCC|name=KPBW}}
|-
| {{rh}} | KTWP || 91.1 FM || [[Twisp, Washington]] || 173815 || 110 || {{Convert|511|m|ft|abbr=on}} || A || {{Coord|48|19|3|N|120|06|53|W|type:landmark_region:US-WA_source:FCC|name=KTWP}}
|}

==Translators==
{{RadioTranslators
| callsign = KPBX-FM

| call1    = K214AR
| freq1    = 90.7
| watts1   = 48
| haat1    = 28
| class1   = D
| city1    = Spokane, Washington

| call2    = K220CQ
| freq2    = 91.9
| watts2   = 46
| haat2    = 630
| class2   = D
| city2    = Brewster, Washington

| call3    = K220CR
| freq3    = 91.7
| watts3   = 11
| haat3    = 120
| class3   = D
| city3    = Oroville, Washington{{!}}Oroville, Washington, etc.

| call4    = K220DV
| freq4    = 91.9
| watts4   = 46
| haat4    = -2
| class4   = D
| city4    = Grand Coulee, Washington
| fid1    = 61936
| fid2    = 61941
| fid3    = 61937
| fid4    = 35458
}}
{{GeoGroup}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{Official website|www.kpbx.org|Spokane Public Radio's website}}
{{FM station data|61942|KPBX-FM}}

'''Other station data'''
{{Div col|colwidth=25em}}
{{FM station data|77383|KIBX}}
{{FM station data|172927|KLGG}}
{{FM station data|173719|KOMQ}}
{{FM station data|173880|KPBG}}
{{FM station data|173803|KPBW}}
{{FM station data|173815|KTWP}}
{{FM station data|164128|KXJO}}
{{Div col end}}

{{Spokane Radio}}
{{NPR Washington}}
{{NPR Idaho}}

[[Category:Radio stations in Spokane, Washington|PBX-FM]]
[[Category:Radio stations in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho|PBX-FM]]
[[Category:NPR member stations]]
[[Category:Radio stations established in 1971]]