KALW Public Radio

KALW 91.7FM provides more than 150,000 people in the San Francisco Bay Area with national and international reporting from NPR and BBC, as well as locally produced news and cultural programming. Bay Area arts reporting has emerged as a central component of KALW’s activity, with increased airtime devoted to programs such as Crosscurrents, which features stories about, and music from, local musicians. As print coverage of the arts decreases as regional newspapers falter, our support for this organization becomes more important to maintaining the visibility of Bay Area artists, arts organizations, and cultural activities. This grant to KALW would help the station maintain its arts coverage, continue to grow its digital media presence, and pilot exciting new artistic projects.

Broadcasting since 1941, KALW 91.7 FM is the oldest non-commercial FM signal west of the Mississippi, and reaches up to 150,000 listeners weekly. The public station offers national and international news from NPR and the BBC, as well as a host of local programming that includes the arts program Crosscurrents, airing more than 180 features annually on the Bay Area arts and culture community. A grant to KALW will support the expansion of its arts and culture reporting and the development of a new show, "Sights and Sounds," a multi-platform project highlighting the perspectives and creations of Bay Area artists, with an emphasis on creative people with roots in underserved communities. Likewise, KALW seeks to build upon its strengths in arts reporting, expanding a series of live events in underserved communities that draws upon stories and segments from the respective neighborhoods.

Broadcasting since 1941, KALW is the oldest non-commercial FM signal west of the Mississippi, and reaches as many as 150,000 listeners weekly through radio broadcasting and online streaming. In addition to offering national and international news from NPR and the BBC, KALW produces an array of local arts programming. Each year it airs more than 180 features on the Bay Area’s arts and culture community through programs including the daily news program Crosscurrents, and the weekly Sights and Sounds, which is both a broadcast show and live event series that features the work and perspectives of Bay Area artists.