KMSC 92.9
FMFM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...
is a
collegeCampus radio is a type of radio station that is run by the students of a college, university or other educational institution. Programming may be exclusively by students, or may include programmers from the wider community in which the radio station is based...
radio station broadcasting an
alternativeAlternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
format. It is licensed to
Morningside CollegeMorningside College is a private, liberal arts college affiliated with the United Methodist Church located in Sioux City, Iowa. Founded in 1894 by the Methodist Episcopal Church, Morningside College is a private, four-year, co-educational liberal arts institution. Morningside has 21 buildings on a ...
in
Sioux City, IowaSioux City is a city in Plymouth and Woodbury counties in the western part of the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 82,684 in the 2010 census, a decline from 85,013 in the 2000 census, which makes it currently the fourth largest city in the state....
, USA. Students are able to participate regardless of their field of study, with some classes requiring participation in KMSC's on-air presence. Students host their own shows ranging from shows about wrestling to political talk shows.
History
Broadcast radio at Morningside College first started with a "
MarconiGuglielmo Marconi was an Italian inventor, known as the father of long distance radio transmission and for his development of Marconi's law and a radio telegraph system. Marconi is often credited as the inventor of radio, and indeed he shared the 1909 Nobel Prize in Physics with Karl Ferdinand...
station" built in the 1910s by some physics students and only capable of sending
Morse codeMorse code is a method of transmitting textual information as a series of on-off tones, lights, or clicks that can be directly understood by a skilled listener or observer without special equipment...
signals. Voice broadcasting was inaugurated with radio station KFMR 1150
AMAM broadcasting is the process of radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation. AM was the first method of impressing sound on a radio signal and is still widely used today. Commercial and public AM broadcasting is carried out in the medium wave band world wide, and on long wave and short wave...
, which operated between 1923 and 1928 at a power of 100 watts. KFMR was among the earliest educational stations in the country (the very first educational stations at the Universities of
MinnesotaThe University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
and
WisconsinThe University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
went on the air in 1922). However, it wasn't until April 1978 that college radio returned to Morningside with the start of KMSC, thanks in part to the
FCCThe Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
's adoption of new (at the time) non-commercial/educational FM regulations.
Awards
In 2006, the station received the
Eric SevareidArnold Eric Sevareid was a CBS news journalist from 1939 to 1977. He was one of a group of elite war correspondents—dubbed "Murrow's Boys"—because they were hired by pioneering CBS newsman Edward R. Murrow....
Award for first place in the category of student radio play-by-play by the Northwest Broadcast News Association (NBNA). KMSC received the award for its football broadcast of Morningside’s 35-13 victory against
Hastings CollegeHastings College is a private, undergraduate, four-year, residential liberal arts college in Hastings, Nebraska, USA.- History :The college was founded in 1882 by a group of men and women seeking to establish a Presbyterian college dedicated to high academic and cultural standards...
on October 29, 2005. Casey Gibbs, a senior from
Garnavillo, IowaGarnavillo is a city in Clayton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 754 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Garnavillo is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....
, and Josh Creekmore, a former student from
Hartington, NebraskaHartington is a city in Cedar County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 1,554 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Cedar County.-Geography:Hartington is located at ....
, were the student broadcasters.
In 2004 and 2006, KMSC was voted a "
SiouxlandSiouxland is a vernacular region that encompasses the entire Big Sioux River drainage basin in the U.S. states of South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska and Iowa....
Choice" radio station by readers of
The Weekender newspaper.
Political Programming
The station broadcasts some local appearances by presidential candidates. Recent political broadcasts have featured
SenatorThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
s
Christopher DoddChristopher John "Chris" Dodd is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States Senator from Connecticut for a thirty-year period ending with the 111th United States Congress....
,
Barack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
and
John McCainJohn Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
. On election night, KMSC marshals some 60 mass communications,
political sciencePolitical Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
and other students for a marathon "count the vote" broadcast.
Movement from 88.3 FM to 92.9 FM
KMSC just moved to a new frequency, due to interference with newly-licensed
KFHCKFHC is a radio station broadcasting a Religious music format. Licensed to Ponca, Nebraska, USA. The station is currently owned by St. Gabriel Communications Ltd.....
, broadcasting on adjacent channel 88.1 FM and operated by St. Gabriel Communications, Ltd.
http://www.saintgabrielcommunications.com/. KFHC's license to broadcast was granted on March 14, 2008. Due to the limitations inherent with operating as a
low-powerLow-power broadcasting is electronic broadcasting at very low power and low cost, to a small community area.The terms "low-power broadcasting" and "micropower broadcasting" should not be used interchangeably, because the markets are not the same...
"Class D" station, KMSC was forced to give deference to KFHC's signal and discontinue broadcasting. The station has filed an application with the FCC to resume broadcasting on 92.9 FM. The station can also be heard via the streaming audio link on its website
http://webs.morningside.edu/KMSC/listen.htm.