KTIS, 98.5 FM, a local Christian radio station, has been the most popular radio station in the Twin Cities for the last four months.
“Rooted in our mission since our first radio station opened in 1949, Northwestern Media is a ministry of UNW that continues to lead people to Christ and nurture believers through Christ-centered media,” the University of Northwestern-St. Paul, which owns the station, said in a Facebook post announcing their streak.
The radio station was founded in 1949 by evangelist Billy Graham when he was the president of the school. KTIS is a nonprofit and doesn’t run ads on air.
The station’s Nielsen rating has been steadily climbing since April, with their rating for the month of July reaching 11.6% of the listener share. This makes the station more popular than other well-known names like KS95, which was in second place with a rating of 7.7%, KOOL 108, KDWB, and Cities 97.
Dave St. John, the station manager at KTIS, explained to Twin Cities Business (TCB) that they are trying to make Christian radio “fun.”
“We wanted to be part of making Christian radio more fun,” St. John said. This vision led the station to separate Christian music and talk into distinct formats about two decades ago, according to TCB.
KTIS also operates Faith Radio that’s mostly focused on teaching at 90.7 FM/900 AM.
“The goal is to play the music that reaches as many people as possible,” St. John told TCB.
The station employs 15 people, including three dedicated to engaging with the community face-to-face, TCB reported.
Hayley Feland
Hayley Feland previously worked as a journalist with The Minnesota Sun, The Wisconsin Daily Star, and The College Fix. She is a Minnesota native with a passion for politics and journalism.
