WKCR FM 89.9

A radio station licensed to New York, New York, at 89.9 FM, owned and operated by Columbia University. It is one of the oldest and most historically significant college radio stations in the United States, with institutional roots dating to 1908 through the Columbia University Radio Club. The station became an early adopter of FM broadcasting in 1956, broadcasting from Philosophy Hall — the same building where FM inventor Edwin Howard Armstrong had conducted his foundational research. The station was also connected to Armstrong's experimental FM station W2XMN, for which Columbia students provided programming. Following the Columbia University protests of 1968, the station shifted from educational programming toward alternative and minority-format music, developing a reputation particularly in jazz. It has been recognized as one of the premier jazz radio outlets in the United States, with early broadcasts including what is documented as the first radio performance by Thelonious Monk. Through the Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Show, the station played a formative role in the development of hip-hop during the 1990s, and it was among the first stations in the country to broadcast salsa music. Programming today emphasizes jazz, classical, and hip-hop genres. The station's transmitter history reflects New York City infrastructure changes: its first FM broadcast originated from Philosophy Hall, later moving to the DuMont Building on Madison Avenue, then to the World Trade Center in 1985 following a lengthy regulatory process. After the towers' destruction in 2001, it temporarily used a rooftop transmitter before relocating to 4 Times Square in 2003, where it remains. Studios are currently located in Alfred Lerner Hall on the Columbia campus.