| KNWN-FM | |
| Above: | Simulcast of KNWN Seattle |
| City: | Oakville, Washington |
| Area: | Seattle metropolitan area and Olympic Peninsula |
| Branding: | Northwest News Radio |
| Frequency: | 97.7 MHz |
| Translator: | 99.7 K259BG (Chehalis) |
| Repeater: | 101.5 KPLZ-HD2 (Seattle) |
| Airdate: | (as KSWW) |
| Format: | All-news |
| Erp: | 69,000 watts |
| Class: | C |
| Facility Id: | 51167 |
| Licensing Authority: | FCC |
| Coordinates: | 47.313°N -123.372°W |
| Callsign Meaning: | "Northwest News" |
| Owner: | Lotus Communications |
| Licensee: | Lotus Seattle Corp. |
| Sister Stations: | KNWN, KPLZ-FM, KVI |
KNWN-FM (97.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Oakville, Washington, and serving the Seattle metropolitan area and the Olympic Peninsula. It is owned by Lotus Communications.[1] KNWN-FM broadcasts an all-news radio format, simulcast with sister station KNWN 1000 AM. It is a network affiliate of ABC News Radio. The studios and offices are co-located with former sister station KOMO-TV within KOMO Plaza (formerly Fisher Plaza) in the Lower Queen Anne section of Seattle, directly across the street from the Space Needle.
KNWN-FM has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 69,000 watts. The transmitter is off West Skokomish Valley Road in Skokomish, Washington, just south of the Olympic National Forest.[2] With its high power and tower at 701sp=usNaNsp=us in height above average terrain (HAAT), KNWN-FM covers Seattle, Tacoma and much of the Olympic Peninsula with a 60 dBμ signal. KNWN-AM-FM are also heard on FM translator or booster stations in the region.
On October 26, 1984, the station first signed on in Raymond, Washington.[3] The first call sign was KSWW. It was originally a Class A FM station, powered at only 230 watts, a fraction of its current output. It was owned by Pacific Broadcasting Company and had an adult contemporary format.
In 1997, it was bought by Jodesha Broadcasting, Inc., for $182,400.[4] The call letters switched to KFMY, and it began airing a classic rock format as "Eagle 97.7".[5] It later was granted a power boost and increase in its antenna height, allowing it to be heard in the more lucrative Seattle-Tacoma radio market.
In May 2009, while still owned by South Sound Broadcasting, the station began simulcasting KOMO, with Fisher Communications operating 97.7 FM under a local marketing agreement.[6] On May 18, 2009, the call letters changed to KOMO-FM. In June 2017, the outright sale of the station to the Sinclair Broadcast Group (which had acquired Fisher several years earlier) for $6.75 million was announced.[7] The sale received Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approval several years later, and was consummated on June 9, 2020.[6]
On June 3, 2021, Sinclair announced they would sell KOMO-AM-FM, KVI, and KPLZ-FM to Lotus Communications for $18 million. Of the $18 million, $5 million was in cash paid at closing; the remainder was Lotus' choice of either cash or advertising for Sinclair properties on Lotus' stations. Sinclair retained KOMO-TV, as well as rights to the KOMO call letters. Lotus and Sinclair also agreed to allow Lotus to use Sinclair equipment and IT systems, including sub-leasing the current KOMO studios, for 18 months following the sale.[8] The sale was completed on September 28, 2021.[9] As required by the terms of the sale, the KOMO radio stations changed their call signs to KNWN on February 2, 2022, in conjunction with a rebranding as "Northwest News Radio"; during the week preceding the relaunch, competitor KIRO-FM preemptively began promoting itself as "Your Northwest News Station".[10]
KNWN-FM is also carried on the following booster and FM translator stations to improve reception of the station: