KHUM

KHUM

City of license	Garberville, California
Broadcast area	Humboldt County, California
Branding	104.7 KHUM
Slogan	Radio Without the Rules!
Frequency	104.7 MHz
Translator(s)	104.3 K282AD (Eureka)
First air date	January 7, 1996
Format	Freeform
ERP	50,000 watts
HAAT	808 meters
Class	C
Facility ID	33653
Owner	Lost Coast Communications
Webcast	Listen Live
Website	khum.com

KHUM is a commercial Freeform music radio station in Ferndale, California, broadcasting to Humboldt County, Mendocino County, as well as Eureka, California, Arcata, California, and Humboldt State University on 104.7 FM. KHUM also broadcasts on translator K282AD 104.3 FM. The studios are in Ferndale, California.

Background

Founded by Jacqueline Debets and Cliff Berkowitz, KHUM signed on January 7, 1996. Part of the station mandate is to "superserve" the local community in an entertaining way.

KHUM has won numerous national awards for production and programming, including an RTNDA Edward R. Murrow Award, an NAB Crystal Radio Award for public service, as well as several awards for commercial writing and production.

The station began webcasting in 1997, making it one of the early adopters of streaming radio. The webcast ceased in 2000 due to changes in stream law, but returned in 2005. The station began podcasting talk features and in-studio performances in 2007.

Patrick Cleary is the general manager. The program/music director is Mike Dronkers. The assistant program director is Larry Trask. Cliff Berkowitz is the operations manager.

Former airstaff include Kevin L. Hoover, Hank Sims, Lila Nelson, Michael Moore, Pam Long, Matt Brunner, and Gary Franklin. The airstaff also included "Digital" Dan Lawrence, who lost part of his throat to cancer and used a computer voice simulator during his two radio programs.

Programming

The regular weekday lineup includes Cliff In The Morning, Mike Dronkers, Larry Trask, and Amy Berkowitz. Other hosts include Chas Lewis, Darren Weiss, Beckie Menten, Ryan Lee, Mark Scatchard, and Emily McLongstreet.

The music played often includes rock, folk, lounge, funk, country/blugrass, blues, soul, motown, jazz, and chillout. While specialty shows focus on specific genres, the regular programming tends to mix genres during music blocks. Live in-studio performances are a common, as is local music.

The station's eclectic programming is chosen by the on-air hosts, making KHUM one of the only true commercial freeform stations in the United States. 100% of the content is generated locally. While the station plays mostly music, it is often secondary to public service, extended interviews, and breaking local news.

Station Features

Each year, KHUM undertakes a local Stop The Violence campaign, a program Cliff Berkowitz helped co-found. This usually includes three weeks of drive-time interviews with experts in and survivors of domestic abuse, street violence, and systemic violence. KHUM maintains a Stop The Violence Fund at a local foundation, and annual donations are made to local charities.

KHUM also broadcasts live coverage of the world championship Kinetic Sculpture Race, which was founded down the street the from studios.

Sources

http://www.northcoastjournal.com/010506/news0105.html#news
http://www.rapmag.com/Awards/03awards/2003awards_winners.aspx
http://radiomagonline.com/currents/weekly/radio_currents_050106/
http://www.rapmag.com/Awards/02awards/2002awards_winners.aspx
http://www.allbusiness.com/services/motion-pictures/4480476-1.html

External links

• Official Website
• The South Side (blues)
• Lila Nelson
• Query the FCC's FM station database for KHUM
• Radio-Locator information on KHUM
• Query Arbitron's FM station database for KHUM
• Query the FCC's FM station database for K282AD