KNWD

Planning for what would become KNWD began in 1970{{cite news|title=Radio Station Proposed|author=|date=May 1, 1970|work=Current Sauce|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|volume=LVIII|number=22|page=2|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19691970_NSULA/page/n131/mode/2up|access-date=August 3, 2020}} with two competing plans being proposed: an independent student-run station or an academic station connected to NSU's Speech and Journalism Department.{{cite news|title=NSU Radio Station Plans Final Committee Authorization|date=June 12, 1973|last=Harrison|first=Tommy|work=Current Sauce|volume=LX|number=22|page=3|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19721973_NSULA/page/n99/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}}{{cite news|title=One More Idea: The Sounds of Controversy|last=Sanchez|first=Ronald|date=June 26, 1973|work=Current Sauce|volume=LX|number=24|page=2|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19721973_NSULA/page/n105/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}} The departmental proposal was for an AM station that would be used "only as an academic tool", while the student-led proposal was for an independent FM music station.{{cite thesis|title=A Short History of Northwestern's Alternative Sound, KNSU-KNWD|date=1983|last=Aymond|first=Cheryl L.|publisher=Northwestern State University|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana}}

In October 1973, while still working toward final approval for an over-the-air station, students Mike Price, Russell Morrison, and Gary Lampert launched an unlicensed AM carrier current station, KNSU-AM, in their dorm.{{cite news|title=Dorm station now operating|author=|date=October 2, 1973|work=Current Sauce|volume=LXI|number=4|page=3|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19731974_NSULA/page/n27/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}} In November 1973, students approved a referendum assessing a new 50¢ fee to support the station, pending approval by the state board of education and a license from the Federal Communications Commission.{{cite news|title=1,372 students vote to approve station|author=|date=November 13, 1973|work=Current Sauce|volume=LXI|number=10|page=1|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19731974_NSULA/page/n69/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}}

On April 22, 1974, KNSU-AM went campus-wide on {{Frequency|640|kHz}} via carrier current, broadcasting primarily contemporary progressive rock from the Russell Library while it awaited an FM license.{{cite news|title=Turn on --KNSU|author=|date=April 30, 1974|work=Current Sauce|volume=LXI|number=22|page=1|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19731974_NSULA/page/n153/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}} The station received its non-commercial FM construction permit in August 1974; the application was accelerated by the FCC with the help of the Louisiana congressional delegation.{{cite news|title=KNSU-AM receives FM construction permit|last=Austin|first=Kenneth|date=September 10, 1974|work=Current Sauce|volume=LXII|number=1|page=1|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19741975_NSULA/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}} Operating as KNWD-FM (the KNSU call letters having been previously claimed by Nicholls State University), the student-run station officially went on air on September 30, 1975,{{cite news|title=KNWD is ready|author=|date=September 16, 1975|work=Current Sauce|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|volume=LXIII|number=2|page=3|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19751976_NSULA/page/n9/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}} with the slogan "Creative FM Stereo 91.7."{{cite news|title=This is our sign|author=|date=July 22, 1975|work=Current Sauce|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|volume=LXII|number=27|page=1|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19741975_NSULA/page/n73/mode/2up|access-date=July 22, 2020}}

KNWD-FM continued to operate out of Russell Library (which later became Russell Hall when the library moved to a new building in the 1970s{{cite book|title=Making Our Mark: The 1989 Potpourri|date=1989|volume=78|publisher=Northwestern State University|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|chapter=Russell Hall|page=190|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/potpourri1989nort/page/190/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}}) until 1988, when the station moved across campus to South Hall,{{cite news|title=Campus radio station slates KNWD Week|last=Rigaud|first=Sonya|date=March 1, 1988|work=Current Sauce|volume=76|number=23|page=1|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19871988_NSULA/page/n117/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}} which the station referred to on air as "Croce Hall" in honor of 1970s singer-songwriter Jim Croce who died in a plane crash in Natchitoches in 1973.{{Cite magazine |date=Fall 2023 |title=Who's Randy |url=https://issuu.com/northwesternstateuniversity/docs/ac-fall-2023 |magazine=Alumni Columns |page=11}} In 1995, the station moved once again to Kyser Hall.{{cite news|title=KNWD finally moves to Kyser Hall|last=Martin|first=Andrew|date=November 28, 1995|work=Current Sauce|volume=84|number=17|page=1|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19951996_NSULA/page/n125/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}}

Equipment for the new station was funded through a $4,200 grant and a $6,600 loan from the student government, with the expectation that the loan would be paid back over several years from through the student activity fee assessment.{{cite news|title=State Board approves KNSU|last=Elizey|first=Carroll|date=January 29, 1974|work=Current Sauce|volume=LXI|number=12|page=1|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19731974_NSULA/page/n83/mode/2up|access-date=July 24, 2020}}{{cite news|title=KNSU receives FM grant form SBA|last=Coffey|first=Kathie|date=September 24, 1974|work=Current Sauce|volume=LXIII|number=3|page=1|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19741975_NSULA/page/n15/mode/2up|access-date=July 24, 2020}} The station also received donations of studio equipment from KTOC(AM) in Jonesboro, Louisiana.{{cite news|title=KNSU given equipment|author=|date=February 5, 1974|work=Current Sauce|volume=LXI|number=13|page=1|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19731974_NSULA/page/n91/mode/2up|access-date=July 24, 2020}} Throughout the 1970s, the SGA loan was a bone of contention between the station and student government, until it was repaid in 1977 following an increase in the student activity fee.{{cite news|title=Students decide KNWD future, increases; mock election slated|last=Rash|first=Bob|date=October 26, 1976|work=Current Sauce|volume=LXIV|number=8|page=1|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19761977_NSULA/page/n41/mode/2up|access-date=July 24, 2020}}{{cite news|title=KNWD plans antenna move|author=|date=October 4, 1977|work=Current Sauce|volume=LXV|number=9|page=1|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19771978_NSULA/page/n41/mode/2up|access-date=July 21, 2020}} Over the years, the station hosted a variety of fundraisers to support equipment purchases, including several notable radiothons, such as the 54-hour broadcast from atop the Old Bullard Mansion columns in 1982{{cite book|chapter=KNWD-FM Holds Radiothon|title=Potpourri '82|date=1982|publisher=Northwestern State University|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|volume=74|page=120|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/potpourri1982nort/page/78/mode/2up|access-date=July 24, 2020}} and the 1987 homecoming weekend-long "Stairway to Heaven in '87" broadcast from atop Turpin Stadium.{{cite book|chapter=A new site, a new sound, a new era for KNWD|title=A Touch of Purple: Potpourri 1988|year=1988|volume=77|publisher=Northwestern State University|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|pages=90–91|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/potpourri1988nort/page/90/mode/2up|access-date=July 24, 2002}}

The station transmitter and antenna were initially installed atop Russell Library, operating at 10 watts ERP.{{cite web|title=FM Broadcast Station License (File No. BLED-1437)|date=June 1, 1979|author=Federal Communications Commission|location=Washington, D.C.|url=https://cdbs.recnet.com/corres/?doc=69606|access-date=July 21, 2020}} To improve coverage, the station moved the antenna to an airport beacon tower at Natchitoches Regional Airport in 1978,{{cite book|title=1977–78 Potpourri|volume=70|date=1978|publisher=Northwestern State University|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|chapter=KNWD Chooses Slogan: 'Your Mother Wouldn't Like It'|page=242|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/potpourri1978nort/page/242/mode/2up|access-date=July 21, 2020}} before relocating to the top of Harry Turpin Stadium in the mid-1980s, which allowed the station to broadcast at its licensed 255 watts ERP.{{cite web|title=FM Broadcast Station Construction Permit (File No. BPED-791231A)|author=Federal Communications Commission|location=Washington, D.C.|date=February 25, 1982|url=https://cdbs.recnet.com/corres/?doc=69609|access-date=July 21, 2020}}{{cite web|title=Application Search Details|author=Federal Communications Commission|location=Washington, D.C.|date=April 24, 1984|url=http://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=56688|access-date=July 21, 2020}}

In September 1998, KNWD began streaming its signal online,{{cite news|title=Computers help Grambling basketball team score|last=Thomas|first=Mary Sharon|work=The Shreveport Times|location=Shreveport, Louisiana|date=September 20, 1998|page=3B|via=Newspapers.com|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61397734/|access-date=October 19, 2020}} and in 2014 it began streaming via the TuneIn app.{{cite web|title=KNWD 91.7 FM The Demon|date=February 23, 2014|website=Facebook|url=https://www.facebook.com/knwdnsu/photos/a.141023886870/10152033588591871/?type=3 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/iarchive/facebook/58906876870/10152033588591871 |archive-date=2022-02-26 |url-access=limited|access-date=July 22, 2020}}{{cbignore}} Also since 2014, the station has also broadcast RBDS RadioText.{{cite web|title=KNWD 91.7 FM The Demon|date=October 7, 2014|website=Facebook|url=https://www.facebook.com/knwdnsu/posts/10152489129171871 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/iarchive/facebook/58906876870/10152489129171871 |archive-date=2022-02-26 |url-access=limited|access-date=July 22, 2020}}{{cbignore}}

{{As of|2020}}, KNWD programs a mix of "alternative and progressive music not appreciated in mainstream media."{{cite web|title=About|website=KNWD Radio|date=18 February 2020|url=https://knwdradio.com/about/|access-date=July 22, 2020}} It also actively promotes local musicians, both through airplay and events.{{cite news|title=KNWD incorporates changes to broadcasting|last=Renteria|first=Anthony|date=October 17, 2018|work=The Current Sauce|url=https://currentsauce.com/2018/10/17/knwd-incorporates-changes-to-broadcasting/|access-date=July 24, 2020}} In addition, the station airs student-written news reports and coverage of Northwestern Demons athletics and NSU events.

Over its history, KNWD has had a variety of formats from progressive rock to Top 40{{cite news|title=KNWD promises Top 40|last=Curlee|first=Zina|date=June 13, 1978|work=Current Sauce|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|volume=LXV|number=29|page=5|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19771978_NSULA/page/n151/mode/2up|access-date=July 22, 2020}} to album oriented rock,{{cite book|chapter=Tuning In: KNWD's new image, format pleases students|author=|title=Potpourri 1987: Showing Our True Colors|date=1987|volume=76|pages=118–119|publisher=Northwestern State University|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/potpourri1987nort/page/118/mode/2up|access-date=July 22, 2020}} although for most of its history the station has followed a traditionally eclectic college radio format with a variety of specialty shows and some syndicated programming.{{cite news|title=KNWD OK's format|author=|date=September 14, 1976|work=Current Sauce|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|volume=LXIV|number=2|page=7|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19761977_NSULA/page/n13/mode/2up|access-date=July 22, 2020}}{{cite book|chapter=KNWD: The Next Wave|author=|title=In the Shadow of the Columns: The 1991 Potpourri|date=1991|volume=80|pages=112–113|publisher=Northwestern State University|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/potpourri1991nort/page/112/mode/2up|access-date=July 22, 2020}} The degree to which the station adhered to a more "professional" format with restricted playlists has also varied over the years.{{cite news|title=KNWD recruits new personnel|last=Harris|first=E.M.|date=January 27, 1976|work=Current Sauce|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|volume=LXIII|number=12|page=4|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19751976_NSULA/page/n73/mode/2up|access-date=July 22, 2020}}{{cite book|chapter=KNWD Management Regulates Airwaves for Professional Sound|author=|title=Making Our Mark: The 1989 Potpourri|date=1989|volume=78|pages=112–113|publisher=Northwestern State University|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/potpourri1989nort/page/112/mode/2up|access-date=July 22, 2020}} The station also produces themed Spotify playlists for holidays and events.[https://open.spotify.com/user/knwdradio @KNWDradio on Spotify]{{cite news|title=KNWD has something for everyone|last=Smith|first=Toria|date=February 15, 2017|work=The Current Sauce|volume=102|number=18|page=4|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://issuu.com/currentsaucenews/docs/issue_18_final|access-date=July 22, 2020}}

KNWD organizes music festivals and concerts on campus featuring local performers, as well as national acts. The station organized its first festival, featuring five local bands, in December 1975; instead of tickets, the station sold KNWD T-shirts for concert-goers to wear.{{cite news|title='Neato Torpedo' KNWD concert begins|last=Akinrinade|first=Olu|date=November 18, 1975|work=Current Sauce|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|volume=LXIII|issue=10|page=6|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19751976_NSULA/page/n61/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}}

CaddoFest was a fall pep-rally and music festival held in 2013 and 2015 to complement the annual "Battle for Chief Caddo" football rivalry game against Stephen F. Austin State University.{{cite news|title=CaddoFest: off radio, on stage|last=Martzell|first=Olivia|date=November 20, 2013|work=The Current Sauce|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|volume=99|issue=10|page=2|url=https://archive.org/details/CurrentSauce20132014/page/n37/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}} In 2016 and 2017, the station organized Neon Inferno, an EDM and hip-hop festival.{{cite web|title=KNWD to host its first electronic music festival|date=November 10, 2016|last=Fontenot|first=Joshua|work=Potpourri|url=https://nsulapotpourri.wordpress.com/2016/11/10/knwd-to-host-its-first-electronic-music-festival/|access-date=July 20, 2020}}

DemonFest is a music festival held in the spring by KNWD. It usually holds up to two or more up-and-coming bands as headliners and well-known local bands. KNWD launched the festival in 2000 in part as a reaction to the university booking Toby Keith for an on-campus concert, which the station felt did not reflect the interests of students.{{cite news|title=KNWD vs Student Activities Board|last=Naquin|first=Joni|date=February 22, 2000|work=The Current Sauce|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|volume=85|issue=24|page=5|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19992000_NSULA/page/n199/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}} In 2007, the station combined DemonFest with the Natchitoches Jazz & R&B Festival.{{cite news|title=KNWD Hosts Demonfest 2007|last=Bass|first=Andy|date=April 26, 2007|work=The Current Sauce|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|volume=92|issue=29|page=4|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE20062007_NSULA/page/n23/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}} After a hiatus of several years, DemonFest was restarted by KNWD in 2013.{{cite news|title=KNWD finalizes DemonFest line-up|last=Luck|first=Tara|date=February 27, 2013|work=The Current Sauce|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|volume=98|issue=16|page=2|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE20122013_NSULA/page/n65/mode/2up|access-date=July 20, 2020}} In 2017, weather concerns forced the traditionally outdoor festival into Prather Coliseum.{{cite news|title=DemonFest moves to Prather Coliseum|date=April 20, 2017|author=|work=Natchitoches Parish Journal|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://natchitochesparishjournal.com/2017/04/20/demonfest-moves-to-prather-coliseum/|access-date=July 24, 2020}} Over the years, the festival has ranged from one day of music to three days.

KNWD has organized a number of campus and local events over the years. Notably, on Halloween 1982, the station coordinated the move of the campus ghost, Isabella, from the burned ruins of Caldwell Hall to the oldest building on campus, the Old Women's Gymnasium{{cite news|title=Demons? No, a ghost!—The legend of NSU's ghost, Isabella|last=Hillard|first=Kathleen|date=October 30, 2019|work=Current Sauce|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://currentsauce.com/2019/10/30/demons-no-a-ghost-the-legend-of-nsus-ghost-isabella/|access-date=July 29, 2020}}{{cite web|title=The Legend of Isabella|website=Traditions of Northwestern State University|publisher=Northwestern State University|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=http://nsutraditions.com/the-collections/our-heritage/the-legend-of-isabella/|access-date=July 29, 2020}} (now Lee H. Nelson Hall and home to the National Center for Preservation Technology and Training{{cite web|title=Lee H. Nelson Hall|publisher=National Center for Preservation Technology and Training|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|url=https://www.nps.gov/places/lee-h-nelson-hall.htm|access-date=July 29, 2020}}). The event involved more than 750 people, a marching band, and a mounted honor guard.{{cite news|title=Ghost Moving a Success|last=Maron|first=Eric B.|date=November 9, 1982|work=Current Sauce|location=Natchitoches, Louisiana|volume=LXX|number=12|page=4|url=https://archive.org/details/CURRENTSAUCE19821983_NSULA/page/n103/mode/2up|access-date=July 29, 2020}}

• Campus radio
• List of college radio stations in the United States

{{reflist|30em}}

• {{Twitter|id=knwdradio|name=KNWD 91.7 FM}}
• {{Instagram|id=knwdradio|name=KNWD Radio}}
• {{YouTube|c=UC6BwesA2VgR3D5xqc-U2hwg|title=KNWD Radio|link=no}}

{{FM station data|49791|KNWD}}

{{Northwestern State University}}

{{Louisiana college radio}}

{{Natchitoches Radio}}

{{Modern Rock Radio Stations in Louisiana}}

Category:Radio stations in Louisiana

Category:College radio stations in Louisiana

Category:Radio stations established in 1975

Category:1975 establishments in Louisiana

Category:Northwestern State University