KNTU 88.1 FM: UNT’s high-powered station propels students from campus to career
By Riley Tamblyn
October 20, 2021
DENTON (AP) — KNTU 88.1 FM is a 100,000-watt radio station that has served the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex for 52 years and counting, broadcasting live from the University of North Texas campus.
The station gives students the opportunity to work with powerful industry-grade equipment while adhering to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules.
Programs Coordinator Michaela Garrison explains, “KNTU is unique because it’s a college radio station”—emphasizing this distinction with a curl of her fingers—“but it’s not really a college radio station. It functions more like professional radio stations do.”
Program, News, and Operations Manager Mark Lambert highlights the opportunity KNTU provides for students: “You’re working at a 100,000-watt FM radio station, the most power any FM station can have in the country.”
Over the years, KNTU has grown significantly. The station became a 100,000-watt station in 1987, as chronicled in the University of North Texas “University Libraries 125 Year Archival Retrospective” by Assistant Processing Archivist Emily Aparicio.
The station continues to evolve, implementing on-air playback systems and music scheduling software. Lambert calls the upgrade “one of the biggest innovations that’s happened in the last 10-15 years” at KNTU.
“We’re in the fifth-largest market in the country, Dallas-Fort Worth,” Lambert notes. “There are people who step right from KNTU into jobs if they’ve paid attention,” he continues, underscoring the unique opportunities available to students at UNT.
“People say radio’s dying—it’s going away,” Lambert says, before contesting that “It’s not going away. It’s still one of the most prevalent ways for people to discover music.”
Garrison offers similar insights: “You look at things like podcasts, which are huge right now. Those are a massive thing. Well, what is a podcast but a talk radio show?” she challenges.
The station leadership advocates for both the tangible relevance of equipment upgrades and the cultural relevance of radio broadcast. KNTU continues to evolve, providing UNT students with the opportunity to gain industry experience and volunteer at this steadfast station.