berkeley san francisco oakland san jose california branding pacifica radio slogan listener supported pacifica radio frequency 94.1 mhz first air date april 15 1949 format public radio erp 59 000 watts horizontal only haat 405 meters class b facility id 51246 callsign meaning pacifica owner pacifica foundation inc. webcast listen live website kpfa.org kpfa 94.1 fm is a listener funded progressive talk radio and music radio station located in berkeley california u.s. broadcasting to the san francisco bay area . kpfa airs public news public affairs talk and music programming . the station signed on the air april 15 1949 1 as the first pacifica station and remains the flagship station of the pacifica radio network . the aims of the station are to promote cultural diversity promote pluralistic cultural expression contribute to a lasting understanding between individuals of all nations races creeds and colours . it also promotes freedom of the press and acts as a forum for various viewpoints . 2 the station s studios are located in downtown berkeley and the transmitter site is located in the berkeley hills . contents 1 history 2 labor disputes 3 affiliated stations 4 see also 5 references 6 further reading 7 external links history edit launched in 1949 three years after the pacifica foundation was created by pacifist lewis hill kpfa became the first station in the pacifica radio network and the first listener supported radio broadcaster in the united states . previously non commercial stations were licensed only to serve educational functions as extensions of high schools colleges and universities . this departure into listener oriented programming brought many detractors as kpfa aired controversial programming . the first interview with anyone from the gay political movement was broadcast by kpfa as well as allen ginsberg s ground breaking poem howl in the 1950s . in 1954 the broadcast by a group of marijuana reform advocates extolling the pleasures of cannabis resulted in the tape being impounded by the california attorney general . in the 1960s kpfa and pacifica were accused of being controlled by the communist party and several challenges to its license were waged none of them successful . kpfa was the first station to broadcast a radio show specializing in space music with the debut of stephen hill and anna turner s music from the hearts of space in 1973 . ten years later the show now known by the shorter title hearts of space was syndicated in the u.s. to npr stations while remaining at its first home at kpfa . labor disputes edit in 1999 the station was effectively taken over by kpfa s governing pacifica foundation after dennis bernstein the long established host of the station s flashpoints news magazine was forcibly removed by police for airing grievances on air over a labor dispute . 3 4 5 a broad cross section of protesters joined in direct action outside of the station 6 7 8 9 10 in a weeks long lockout during which station management spent over half a million dollars on security measures . 11 at one point listeners created a separate fund to accept listener pledges that would be directed away from the pacifica foundation . 12 in 2007 kpfa derecognized its unpaid staff organization . the staff claimed that pacifica radio had been making network more corporate softening its voice of dissent and attempting to get rid of some of the volunteers at the station . in 2008 a forcible removal by police of a kpfa volunteer highlighted the concerns between management and volunteer staff . 13 a member of the kpfa board suggested that it was problematic that there was no grievance procedure for unpaid staff at the station . 14 in november 2010 the management of pacifica laid off most of the staff of the popular kpfa morning show . the union representing the paid staff of kpfa claims that the lay offs were done in violation of the union contract . 15 pacifica management says the lay offs were financially necessary and done according to staff seniority . 16 pacifica management replaced the paid staff of the morning show with an all volunteer crew . 17 affiliated stations edit kpfa s sister stations are wbai new york kpft houston kpfk los angeles and wpfw washington . pacifica continues today to be a listener supported network of stations . the main kpfa transmitter is a 59 kilowatt class b though there are also two smaller boosters kpfa fm2 in bonny doon and kpfa 3 in oakley . 18 kpfb 89.3 is a smaller station also in berkeley that covers areas of berkeley that kpfa can not reach . it also carries some separate programming specifically for its berkeley audience . kpfa programs are also rebroadcast by kfcf in fresno . kzfr in chico also carries kpfa s programming from 2 00 6 00 a.m. daily . in the bay area comcast carries kpfa s broadcasts on cable channel 967 as part of its digital radio offering . the channel is labelled variety berkeley . see also edit san francisco bay area portal liberalism portal politics portal radio portal socialism portal aimee allison charles amirkhanian larry bensky dennis bernstein pratap chatterjee laurie garrett adi gevins matt gonzalez doug henwood don joyce pauline kael ramsey kanaan william mandel richard pryor kenneth rexroth nicole sawaya bonnie simmons susan stone elsa knight thompson alan watts negativland over the edge references edit the history of kpfa . kpfa official website . retrieved 2012 02 22 . kpfa s mission . kpfa official website . 31 may 2009 . retrieved 2012 02 22 . henry k. lee july 14 1999 . kpfa broadcaster dragged away from studio police arrest supporters of program host . san francisco chronicle . retrieved 2012 02 22 . charles burress july 15 1999 . battleground at kpfa employees locked out hundreds of fans protest changes at berkeley radio station . san francisco chronicle . retrieved 2012 02 22 . charles burress janine defao july 16 1999 . legislators step into kpfa clamor hearing demanded as protesters besiege berkeley station a third night . san francisco chronicle . retrieved 2012 02 22 . michael taylor july 17 1999 . berkeley gets radical over kpfa lockout anyone with a cause welcome to protest . san francisco chronicle . retrieved 2012 02 22 . julie chao july 29 1999 . kpfa s owners reopening station in goodwill gesture pacifica foundation to take 6 12 month management hiatus . san francisco examiner . retrieved 2012 02 22 . dan fost july 29 1999 . silenced kpfa dissidents put out the rallying cry in cyberspace back in the 60s it was mimeographs today you just log on . san francisco chronicle . retrieved 2012 02 22 . jim herron zamora larry d. hatfield and julie chao july 30 1999 . kpfa olive branch sparks mass confusion station tells workers to return but protesters want offer in writing . san francisco examiner . retrieved 2012 02 22 . robert selna august 3 1999 . kpfa transmitter still off limits to staff employees return but tower continues to broadcast signal from houston . san francisco examiner . retrieved 2012 02 22 . debra levi holtz september 8 1999 . nearly 500 000 spent during kpfa lockout . san francisco chronicle . retrieved 2012 02 22 . debra levi holtz october 19 1999 . kpfa fans create separate fund . san francisco chronicle . retrieved 2012 02 22 . leslie fulbright september 2 2008 . tension high at kpfa after volunteer arrested . san francisco chronicle . retrieved 2012 02 22 . judith scherr september 4 2008 . rough arrest at kpfa stuns station community . san francisco chronicle . retrieved 2012 02 22 . david bacon november 18 2010 . behind the layoffs at kpfa radio . labor education and research project . retrieved 2012 02 22 . arlene engelhardt december 3 2010 . update regarding kpfa budget crisis and staff reductions . pacifica foundation . archived from the original on 2011 01 01 . retrieved 2012 02 22 . pacifica replaces union workers with political allies . kpfa worker . december 19 2010 . retrieved 2012 02 22 . kpfa at the fcc . federal communications commission . retrieved 2012 02 22 . further reading edit lasar matthew april 2000 . pacifica radio the rise of an alternative network . american subjects series . temple university press . isbn 1 56639 777 4 . lasar matthew january 2006 . uneasy listening pacifica radio s civil war . black apollo press . isbn 1 90035 545 0 . walker jesse september 2001 . rebels on the air an alternative history of radio in america . nyu press . isbn 0 81479 381 9 . external links edit kpfa official site pacifica radio archives the lengthening shadow lewis hill and the origins of listener sponsored radio in america query the fcc s fm station database for kpfa radio locator information on kpfa query nielsen audio s fm station database for kpfa query the fcc s fm station database for kpfb radio locator information on kpfb query nielsen audio s fm station database for kpfb w9wi.com list of superpower grandfathered fm radio stations in the u.s. kpfa a historical footnote seventy five hours of programs and interviews from the 1960s v t e radio stations in the san francisco california market by am frequency 560 610 680 740 810 860 910 960 1010 1050 1100 1170 1190 1220 1260 1310 1370 1400 1430 1450 1500 1510 1550 1590 16103 1640 by fm frequency 87.72 87.9 88.1 88.1 88.5 89.1 89.3 89.3 89.3 89.3 89.3 89.5 89.7 89.9 90.1 90.3 90.5 90.5 90.7 91.1 91.5 91.7 92.3 92.7 93.3 93.7 94.1 94.5 94.9 95.3 95.7 96.1 96.5 97.3 97.7 98.1 98.5 98.9 99.7 100.3 100.7 101.3 102.1 102.9 103.3 103.7 104.5 104.9 105.3 105.7 106.1 106.5 106.9 107.3 107.7 noaa weather radio frequency 162.4 162.45 162.5 162.55 by callsign kalw kalx kbay kblx fm kbrg kcbs kcea kcrh kcsm kdia kdow kdx54 kdya kear kec49 kecg kest kezr kfax kffg kfjc kfog kfrc fm kgmz kgo khb49 kioi kiqi kisq kits kksf kkup kliv kllc klok klvs kmel kmky kmtg kmvq fm hd3 knbr knew koit kosc kosf kpdo kpfa kpfb kpoo kqed fm krbq krev krsa krty krzz ksan kscu ksfb ksfh ksfn ksfo ksjo ksjs ksjx ksol ksqq ksrh ktct ktrb kufx kvto kvvf kvvn kvvz kwmr kxsc kxzm kyld kzdg kzsf kzsu wwf64 radio sausalito 3 defunct kabl kabl fm kfrc kya kjaz kkhi kmpx kome ksan defunct kusf defunct satellite radio local traffic weather xm channel 221 sirius channel 156 clear channel stations with extended nighttime coverage . 2 audio for tv channel 6 kbkf lp ind k love 3 part 15 station with notability . california radio markets bakersfield chico fresno los angeles merced modesto oxnard ventura palm springs redding riverside san bernardino sacramento san diego san francisco oakland san jose san luis obispo santa barbara santa cruz salinas monterey santa maria lompoc santa rosa stockton victor valley visalia tulare hanford other california radio regions barstow bishop crescent city diablo valley high desert eastern sierra eureka fort bragg ukiah gilroy hollister imperial valley marysville yuba city needles red bluff susanville sierra nevada tri valley yreka mass media in the san francisco bay area radio stations v t e pacifica radio network stations kpfa kpfb kpfk wbai kpft wpfw kfcf affiliates programs africa now alternative radio against the grain between the lines counterspin democracy now hearts of space hour of the wolf explorations flashpoints free speech radio news law and disorder making contact off the hook out fm something s happening wakeup call personnel current dennis bernstein blase bonpane don bustany deepa fernandes jack foley jim freund amy goodman juan gonz lez doug henwood michio kaku sasha lilley mwiza munthali jeremy scahill roy tuckman rickey vincent former margot adler aimee allison charles amirkhanian erik bauersfeld