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The history of K-LOVE Radio
and its path to the present
The Vision
In 1980, popular San Francisco Bay Area
radio personality Bob Anthony conceived
the idea of a full-time contemporary
Christian radio station that would appeal
to families and encourage people with its
music. He sensed that traditional Christian
radio was not reaching the average person.
His vision was to launch a new, all-music
station featuring popular Christian artists
at the time such as Amy Grant and Keith
Green.
Although a revolutionary concept in the
’80s, this new station’s announcers would
tell people of God’s love simply, using
straightforward language. This easy-to-
understand approach would feature positive
music that everyone could enjoy and short
messages free of Christian jargon.
The First Day Of Broadcasting
The first station in what would become
the K-LOVE Radio Network was a small,
noncommercial station in Santa Rosa, Calif.
On Oct. 15, 1982, KCLB FM, “The Positive
Alternative,” broadcast for the first time.
The Impact
Almost immediately, phone calls and
letters poured into the KCLB offices. The
station was impacting people’s lives and
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TIMELINE
California radio personality Bob
Anthony conceives the idea for
a full-time contemporary Christian
music station.
KCLB, the first station, begins
broadcasting on Oct. 15.
Dick Jenkins becomes general
manager of KCLB.
A fire destroys KCLB’s main
transmitter and forces a move to
Mount St. Helena, Calif.
KCLB changes its name to K-LOVE
Radio and the network begins to
evolve.
K-LOVE’s headquarters move from
Santa Rosa to Sacramento, Calif.
K-LOVE begins broadcasting on the
Internet at www.klove.com.
K-LOVE and Air 1 Radio join forces
to broadcast a wide variety of great
Christian music.
Christian radio personalities Jon and
Sherry Rivers join the K-LOVE on-air
team.
K-LOVE’s parent company, EMF
Broadcasting, introduces Christian
Music Planet magazine.
EMF moves headquarters to new
building in Rocklin, Calif.
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the staff was
filled with
excitement. The
station continued Dick Jenkins
to grow and more EMF President
people began tuning
in. Five years later, in
1986, the KCLB board asked Dick Jenkins
(K-LOVE’s current CEO and president) to
step in as general manager of KCLB.
From Ashes to Celebration
On Sept. 12, 1988, a 9,000-acre fire
destroyed KCLB’s main transmitter on
Geyser Peak in Santa Rosa, Calif. Although
the staff was stunned, another site on
Mount St. Helena was quickly found
for the transmitter. God was definitely
watching out for KCLB during that time.
The new transmitter turned out to be a
better location and the staff began receiving
reports from even more listeners who
previously couldn’t hear KCLB.
A Renewed Vision
KCLB changed its name to K-LOVE Radio
in 1988 and a network of stations began to
evolve. As God provided opportunities to
the staff through FM translators, satellite
technology and digital broadcasting,
K-LOVE grew into a network of radio
signals. Today, the K-LOVE Radio Network
spans from Alaska to Maine and from
California to Florida.
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Broadcasting Worldwide on the Internet
In 1998, K-LOVE began broadcasting live,
nonstop music all over the world at
www.klove.com. While many radio stations
are on the Web, few offer 24-hour music
without commercial advertising. Currently,
the network reaches about 200,000 people
each week via the Internet and more than
2.5 million listeners weekly on the radio.
In addition to offering Christian music,
the K-LOVE Web site gives listeners up-to-
date information on Christian concerts and
events, as well as links to artists’ Web sites.
K-LOVE and Air 1 Radio Networks Merge
The K-LOVE and Air 1 Radio networks
joined forces in 1999 under the
organizational banner of Educational Media
Foundation, known as EMF, to broadcast
great Christian music to people with a
wide variety of musical tastes. Air 1 plays
Christian hit music that appeals to younger
adults, a perfect complement to K-LOVE’s
adult contemporary format.
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