KNRK

KNRK

City of license	Camas, Washington
Broadcast area	Portland Salem, Oregon Vancouver, Washington
Branding	94/7 Alternative Portland
Slogan	It's Different Here
Frequency	94.7 (MHz) (also on HD Radio)
First air date	November 1, 1992 (as KMUZ-FM)
Format	Modern AC-leaning Alternative rock HD2: Local/NW bands
ERP	6,300 watts
HAAT	403 meters
Class	C2
Facility ID	51213
Transmitter coordinates	45°29′20″N 122°41′40″W
Callsign meaning	New RocK
Former callsigns	KMUZ-FM (1992-1995)
Owner	Entercom Communications
Sister stations	KGON, KYCH, KWJJ, KRSK, KKSN, KFXX
Webcast	Listen Live or .PLS File
Website	947.fm

KNRK is a commercial Modern AC-leaning Alternative rock music radio station in Portland, OR, broadcasting to the Portland, Oregon area on 94.7 FM. KNRK's studios are located near downtown Portland and its transmitter is located in Portland's west hills.

History

Originally, 94.7 (MHz) was KMUZ-FM, broadcasting an easy listening music format.

In the mid 1990s and early 2000s KNRK branded itself as "94-7 NRK". In the years following its debut, the format consisted almost entirely of alternative rock music including The Smashing Pumpkins, Pearl Jam and Nirvana. Radio personalities Stephanie Steele and Mike Chase hosted a morning show dubbed "S & M." A DJ who goes only by his middle name, Gustav, hosted a show during the afternoon hours weekdays noon to 7pm. Gradually, however, the station's format began to shift towards harder rock music in the late '90s. Moderate on-air DJs like Gustav and Daria O'Neill were gradually replaced by "shock-jocks."

The station's harder edge came to an end on May 12, 2004. Two morning DJs played audio recordings of Nick Berg's violent death on the air, adding their own mocking commentary. Hundreds of angry phone-calls and e-mails flooded into the station. KNRK's General Manager fired both of them, along with their producer.

Following the incident, KNRK temporarily pulled all of its DJs off the air and played non-stop music and commercials, in addition to the talk-show Loveline in the evenings. Brief messages by station program director Mark Hamilton aired explaining the changes and the decision to reshape the station. Listeners were encouraged to submit an online survey or to call in with their own suggestions.

Soon thereafter, KNRK rebranded itself as "94/7 FM." Some of the station's established personalities who were let go prior to late '90s transition, such as Gustav, returned joining new hires like Tara Dublin and morning host Greg. Other on-air personalities like "Squid" and Jamie Coolely retained their positions with the station. KNRK placed a higher emphasis on music with less bantering and more musically-oriented conversations from their on-air staff.

The station now airs rock music recorded between the 1970s and 2010s ranging from David Bowie to Of Montreal. It also features specialty shows such as "Passport Approved," which focuses on international rock music and Greasy Kid Stuff, a Saturday morning program specializing in music for kids. The alternative rock band They Might Be Giants recorded a song in honor of the latter.

In 2007, KNRK introduced "94/7 Too," an online station focusing entirely on bands established in the Pacific Northwest. It was added to terrestrial radio on 910 AM in July 2010.

Tara Dublin was laid-off in May 2009 due to corporate cutbacks, sparking thousands of complaints and leading to the launch of a Facebook campaign to have her re-instated. As of October 2011, Dublin was still absent from KNRK's airwaves.^{[citation needed]}

The Alternative Declaration

As a result of surveys the station sent out shortly after the Marconi incident which lead to KNRK's rebranding, KNRK introduced "The Alternative Declaration" in 2004, presented as 11 guidelines.

1. Music: It's about the music.
2. We Listen to You: We will listen to our listeners and treat them with respect.
3. Artist and Title of Every Song: We will tell you the title and artist of every song we play.
4. Support Local Music: We will support local bands' music and shows.
5. Never Talk Over the Songs: We will respect the music and our listeners by never talking over the songs.
6. New Music: We will seek out and support new music.
7. Knowledgeable D.J.s: We are dedicated to constantly learning and living the music we choose for you. Our DJs are Greg Glover, Gustav, and Squid.
8. Musical Diversity: We believe in diversity and will be open-minded about the music we play.
9. More Than Just Hit Singles: We will play any good song on the album, not just the "hit" single.
10. Surprise You: We will surprise you with the songs you haven't heard in a while.
11. More Songs Less Often: We will play more songs and repeat them less often.

Eventually the changes instituted were adopted at sister radio stations KNDD in Seattle, WA and KWOD in Sacramento, CA. The latter station later changed formats.

External links

• Official website
• 94/7fm on Facebook
• 94/7fm on Twitter
• Query the FCC's FM station database for KNRK
• Radio-Locator information on KNRK
• Query Arbitron's FM station database for KNRK