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| Classic KNLS QSL |
Jeff: One North American shortwave broadcasting station that I don’t think we’ve ever covered in Wavescan is World Christian Broadcasting’s KNLS at Homer, Alaska, just outside the town of Anchor Point. World Christian Broadcasting is an active member of the National Association of Shortwave Broadcasters (NASB), and operates two shortwave stations – KNLS, the ‘New Life Station’ in Alaska, and Madagascar World Voice, MWV, in Madagascar. This year, World Christian Broadcasting is celebrating 50 years since it was originally incorporated in 1976, so here’s Ray Robinson to tell us something about those early years.
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| Summertime at KNLS |
Ray:Thanks, Jeff. In the early 1970’s during the depths of the Cold War, a small group of American Christians began to dream of using shortwave radio to share the peace of God with a troubled world. Other Christian organizations were already doing that, of course, such as HCJB from Ecuador and Trans World Radio from Monte Carlo and Bonaire, but these folks felt there were gaps that needed to be filled, particularly in the closed communist countries of Asia, and they started to form their own vision for how those people groups could best be reached.
That vision began to take shape in July 1976 when World Christian Broadcasting was formed. Although it is a legally independent organization, it is closely associated with the Church of Christ denomination, and the Articles of Incorporation were signed on July 30, 1976. They particularly wanted to reach people in the Siberian region of Russia, in China, and in North Korea – areas where the Bible was not welcome and where traditional missionaries could not go. For this purpose, they figured a transmission site in southern Alaska would be optimal, and set about finding a suitable location.
However, things don’t always go smoothly in the Arctic, and just eight months after World Christian was formed, two founding members of the Board of Directors perished in a plane crash while surveying potential sites. They were Dr. Lowell Perry, of Abilene, Texas, and Ken Ferguson, a Californian businessman, and their deaths came as a terrible shock to the fledgling organization.
By December 1979, though, 7½ acres of land had been secured about 100 miles south of Anchorage on the Kenai Peninsula, just outside the small town of Anchor Point.
A mile of road had to be cut through the rugged Alaskan landscape just to reach the construction site. Wells were dug, rustic housing was built for the operators and engineers, and two antenna masts were erected.
Then, when the transmitter hall was nearly completed, tragedy struck once again. Kevin Chamber, who had been appointed as the station manager, arrived one cold morning to see smoke coming out of both ends of the building. The fire had been set deliberately by locals in an act of arson, apparently to force the station to go elsewhere. Half the transmitter building was destroyed by the fire.
But fortunately, the transmitter and other major electronic components had not yet been installed, and insurance did cover most of the loss. Chambers and his crew went to work, reconstructing the building before the winter came, and the transmitter, a Harris SW100A 100 kW unit, was successfully installed without further drama.
A giant curtain antenna was then installed, measuring about 400 feet square, suspended between the two masts. The curtain actually consisted of sixteen separate dipole antennas, strung together in a wire mesh. A second wire screen hanging just behind the antenna acted as a reflector to push the radio frequency radiation more efficiently towards the desired target areas. Using huge switches at the base of the curtain, operators could electrically slew the beam of the antenna towards different parts of Asia or the Pacific Basin.
A special counterweight system was designed and installed to allow the antenna to survive Alaska’s bitter winds, ice and snow. If high winds or heavy icing put an abnormally high load on the wires between the masts that support the antenna, the concrete counterweights, which are as large as a small car, would actually be lifted off the ground by as much as six inches, allowing the antenna to sag. It was a protective measure to prevent the masts from being damaged by the elements. World Christian Broadcasting obtained the FCC callsign KNLS, which stands for King’s New Life Station, and it finally went on air for the first time on July 23, 1983.
Tune in to the Audio
Clip – KNLS Alaska Calling at:
Initially, KNLS broadcast for four hours per day in Chinese, six hours per day in Russian, and an hour and a half in Ukrainian, all on frequencies in the 49-meter band. The opening broadcast was especially memorable for those involved, because it represented the sacrifice of thousands of individuals who had donated their time, energy and financial support to bring the dream to fruition. Dozens of people had battled Alaska’s unforgiving climate and difficult terrain to build KNLS, and founding board members Perry and Ferguson had given their very lives.
In 1989, an operations center was constructed in Franklin, Tennessee, just south of Nashville. The administrative staff and all international programming and production staff are located there. Unlike other missionary radio stations, World Christian Broadcasting does not sell airtime to other Christian ministries, but produces 100% of the content they broadcast themselves. Financially, they are supported primarily by donations from individuals and local Church of Christ congregations across North America. Their programs are produced in a magazine-style format, with current affairs, commentary on the news from a Christian perspective, entertainment and business news, music, sports, interviews, health tips, and the latest developments in medicine, science and technology, as well as the Christian message and lessons from the Bible.
In 2003, a third antenna mast was erected at KNLS allowing a second curtain antenna to be installed similar to the first. A second 100 kW transmitter was also added, a Continental 418F. Then in 2014, the original Harris transmitter was removed and shipped to station WTWW in Lebanon, Tennessee, to be replaced in 2015 by a second Continental 100 kW unit, model 418G.
Because it is illegal even to own a Bible in 13 countries, and illegal to evangelize or proselytize in another 15 countries, World Christian Broadcasting sees it as their purpose to reach people by broadcast media, primarily shortwave, in those countries where it is not safe for traditional missionaries to go. To this end, a second station was built in Madagascar in the early 20teens, mainly to target Asian and African countries that are hostile to Christianity. That station went on the air on Easter Sunday, 2016 with two more 100 kW Continental 418G transmitters, and it too has also been celebrating because this year’s its 10th birthday
So, today in 2026, KNLS and Madagascar World Voice are each still operating with two 100 kW Continental transmitters. KNLS currently broadcasts:
• in Chinese for eight hours per day,
• in Russian for five hours per day,
• in Korean for two hours per day, and
• in English for four hours per day,
using frequencies in the 49, 41 and 31 meter bands. The programming produced in Franklin in English, Chinese and Russian is used on both stations. A full A26 schedule for both stations can be found online at worldchristian.org/how-to-listen. KNLS doesn’t have a live stream as such, but some of the languages have mobile apps, and each day’s English program is available online at knls.org/home.
Additional audio clip of KNLS English intro at:
https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/wavescan/episodes/2026-08-15T17_00_00-07_00Back to you, Jeff ...
