KNLS
Encyclopedia
KNLS is an international shortwave radio station in Anchor Point, Alaska
. The station is operated by World Christian Broadcasting
, a non-profit company based in the United States of America. KNLS offers 20 hours a day of Christian-themed programming in Chinese
, English
and Russian
.
, when Maurice Hall, a young Army Signal Corps officer, was involved in delivering shortwave radio transmitters to the Yalta Conference so that President Franklin D. Roosevelt could stay informed of news from Washington. Hall, a devout Christian, realized that the Gospel
of Jesus Christ could also be sent to the entire world in the same way. After WWII, Hall became a minister, educator and missionary, but still dreamed of an international shortwave station that would reach the entire world with Gospel messages.
In 1976, World Christian Broadcasting Corporation was formed and work began on making the station a reality. The following year, Lowell Perry, one of the founding directors, was killed in a plane crash during a mission to find a transmitter site. In 1979, land was purchased in Alaska and a transmitter was built.
KNLS signed on the air July 23, 1983, broadcasting ten hours a day in Mandarin Chinese and Russian and reaching roughly one-third of the world. English was added later. As the Soviet Union
’s empire fell apart, listeners from those countries began writing and requesting Bible
s and other religious materials. In 2005, the station signed on a second transmitter in Alaska.
KNLS never asks listeners to send money. The station is funded by interested individuals, churches and other groups. Also, the Bibles and other materials that listeners can request are sent free of charge.
A number of noted American broadcasters and writers are contributors to KNLS programming, including Anthony Parker, Greg Taylor, Bill Young, Marcy Bryan, Glenn Randolph, Dick Brackett, Doug Poling, Paul Ladd, Gayle Crowe, Real Peloquin, Lloyd DeVries, Mary Westheimer, Bill Steensland, Dermot Cole, and others.
n audience. Other plans include the addition of Spanish
and Portuguese
broadcasts.
Anchor Point, Alaska
Anchor Point is a census-designated place in Kenai Peninsula Borough, in the U.S. state of Alaska. As of the 2000 census the population was 1,845. Anchor Point is the westernmost point in the North American highway system.-History:...
. The station is operated by World Christian Broadcasting
World Christian Broadcasting
World Christian Broadcasting is a non-profit Christian organization that operates international shortwave radio station KNLS. The station’s transmitters are in Anchor Point, Alaska, and all of its programs are produced at the company headquarters and broadcast operations center in Franklin,...
, a non-profit company based in the United States of America. KNLS offers 20 hours a day of Christian-themed programming in Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
.
History
The idea for KNLS came about during World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, when Maurice Hall, a young Army Signal Corps officer, was involved in delivering shortwave radio transmitters to the Yalta Conference so that President Franklin D. Roosevelt could stay informed of news from Washington. Hall, a devout Christian, realized that the Gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
of Jesus Christ could also be sent to the entire world in the same way. After WWII, Hall became a minister, educator and missionary, but still dreamed of an international shortwave station that would reach the entire world with Gospel messages.
In 1976, World Christian Broadcasting Corporation was formed and work began on making the station a reality. The following year, Lowell Perry, one of the founding directors, was killed in a plane crash during a mission to find a transmitter site. In 1979, land was purchased in Alaska and a transmitter was built.
KNLS signed on the air July 23, 1983, broadcasting ten hours a day in Mandarin Chinese and Russian and reaching roughly one-third of the world. English was added later. As the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
’s empire fell apart, listeners from those countries began writing and requesting Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
s and other religious materials. In 2005, the station signed on a second transmitter in Alaska.
KNLS Today
KNLS is currently on the air a total of 20 hours each day: ten hours in Mandarin; five in Russian and five in English. All programming is produced at the station’s Operations Center in Franklin, Tennessee, a suburb of Nashville. Programs are presented in a magazine-style format and provide Bible and religious teaching segments and reports about life in America as well as music. The station receives messages each month via email and postal mail from all over the world.KNLS never asks listeners to send money. The station is funded by interested individuals, churches and other groups. Also, the Bibles and other materials that listeners can request are sent free of charge.
Chinese Broadcast
Ed Ho, a veteran broadcaster, is host for the Chinese hour and is assisted by a team of contributors, including Edward Short, Salina Ho and Shu-Mei Lee. Regular segments include Spiritual Stories, Daily Bread, Happy Family and an English tutorial, along with solo hymns.Russian Broadcast
Constantin Chernushenko, a physician by training, is host of the Russian broadcast. Regular features include Famous Russians, a spiritual biography series; Book of Books, a Bible teaching segment; Parables of Jesus; and feature reports from the worlds of science and entertainment and other topics of general interest. Contributors to the Russian broadcast include Marina Kabulova, Galina Koval, Igor Ponomarev.English Broadcast
Rob Scobey, an award-winning journalist, produces and co-hosts the English hour with Lucy Grant. Regular features include Author’s Journal, First Person and Profiles in Christian Music. Also on the English broadcast is a prayer lesson presented by longtime evangelist Andy Baker, whose segment was heard by missionary Gracia Burnham during the time she was held captive by terrorist rebels in the Philippines. Burnham references the broadcast in her book, In the Presence of My Enemies.A number of noted American broadcasters and writers are contributors to KNLS programming, including Anthony Parker, Greg Taylor, Bill Young, Marcy Bryan, Glenn Randolph, Dick Brackett, Doug Poling, Paul Ladd, Gayle Crowe, Real Peloquin, Lloyd DeVries, Mary Westheimer, Bill Steensland, Dermot Cole, and others.
Future plans
A sister station is under construction on an island in the Indian Ocean and is scheduled to go on the air by 2010. The new station will offer programs in Arabic in addition to the current schedule of English, Mandarin and Russian. Information in various African languages will be available on the station website, with English-language broadcasts targeted toward an AfricaAfrica
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n audience. Other plans include the addition of Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
and Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
broadcasts.