This is UMKC's NPR station. It's where Walt Bodine held court for almost 3 decades, and they still do area news coverage and music, some might say better than many others. KCUR started broadcasting in 1957, when FM was largely unknown. Way back in the Sam Scott (station founder/mgr.) era when I also studied music at UMKC, I was also a music programmer at KCUR, and I also later co-hosted a Spanish music and public affairs program there in the 1990s. So the station still holds my interest at 89.3 Megahertz. It's also full-power (100 Kw), so an easy choice for driving. KCUR has been a well-regarded fixture in this area for quite a while. Their mix of national and local programs has kept them relevant. Five cautious stars, because Republicans keep trying to destroy public media to silence its diversity-friendly commentary. read more

I've been a member of various NPR stations, depending on where I've lived in the country - and while I'm not currently a member of KCUR - I have been in the past. KC's NPR station stands up against any national station. Our own local programming, be it the KC Business Report, Up to Date, KC Currents - all on the news and storytelling side - and the Fish Fry and 12th Street Jump - on the music side - are awesome. Add that up with This American Life, Morning Edition, and Marketplace, and you have the sort of thought-provoking radio that everyone, not just Kansas Citians, need. read more

What a great npr station. Great programming and 24 he news. My favorite programs are central standard and up to date. Steve Kraske is one of the prime examples of good journalism. He brought to light a story of human rights which exposed Judicial corruption. I try to stay tuned in daily if I can. I enjoy both "up to date" and used to enjoy jabalonis central standard but the format changed. I'm glad to have a public radio option in kc. read more

This is a perfectly fine NPR affiliate station, but not a great one. To their credit, they have a good amount of home-grown programming. Unfortunately, most of it is not very good. The elephant in the room is the Walt Bodine show, a veritable broadcasting dinosaur who is unable to run his own show without a handler. While the handler asks questions and keeps the show moving, Walt simply interjects with occasional grunts, exclamations, half-intelligible questions and unfunny jokes that guests awkwardly feel compelled to laugh at. His continued presence on KCUR is an embarrassment and does disservice to the fine work of his earlier career. KCUR has some interesting music programming, probably the best of which is the Fish Fry, hosted by a local jazz/blues/roots music enthusiast, Chuck Haddix. Mr. Haddix is extremely knowledgeable, though the crazy genre mixing that goes on is somewhat jarring. Nonetheless, this show is a true KC original. On Sundays, KCUR features a solid five hours of new age music. As far as I'm concerned, this is inexcusable. I wouldn't mind it being spread out in more digestable (or ignorable) chunks throughout the week. But I simply can't tolerate this geriatric hodge podge of washy synthesizers, native american flutes, reverb-laden female vocals, and natural soundscapes. The classical music programming is quite good--I think it happens every night for a couple hours. The news shows Up To Date and KC Currents are both serviceable and occasionally very enlightening. Pledge drives on KCUR are some of the most painful things I've ever experienced. They recruit all these vaguely high-society figures from the area to shill for them, which provides an opportunity for all their doctor, lawyer, Kiwanis, Country Club and Junior League friends to call in with donations. The best part of KCUR is the syndicated national programming which is not perfect, but beats the pants off any other informational radio station. Their website is great. They have live-streaming and audio archives, podcasts, mobile-friendly content and more. read more

I'm really not an NPR head, but I really don't see how someone can have that many complaints about KCUR. Maybe it doesn't compare to stations in Chicago, Minneapolis or Portland; but I've been enlightened, interested and/or entertained most times I listen. The best thing about KCUR is the concentration of local news and arts programming. They seem to have a nice pulse on what people in Kansas City need to know about. Most of the information is centered on city topics wich is most needed in a region that greatly veers towards anything far away from the urban core. There is also a substantial archive of past current affairs programming as well as podcast which are helpful. I'm sure there's room for improvement, but no way you can tell me KCUR isn't a really nice media outlet for Kansas City. read more

I like most of the original programing on this station except for Central Standard at 10:00 AM M-TH. The topic are bizarre, but not in a good way. For example today they had a whole hour on Zombies and what they would be like if they where real. It was pretty Awful. I do like Steve Krasky quite a bit. On Fridays at 10:00 AM when the Food Critics or the Movie Critics are on I like that as well. Steve Krasky - 4 stars Central Standard 1 star Movie Critics - 3 stars Food Critics - 4 stars So as the movie critic moderator says, I will even that out to three stars. Sound good? read more

KCUR definitely get's that rare and illusive fifth star! I moved to Kansas City about four and half years ago from DC (where I listened to NPR as well) and I can honestly say that the bf is the only person who ever changes the radio station in my car, and that is rare. I even like to listen to the fund drives, I guess it's the constant reminders they give us all during the pledge drive that we are basically better people because we listen, and I like audible pats on the back! Now having been an avid NPR listener and supporter since I was at school in Chapel Hill, I have heard a wide variety of stations up and down the East Coast and beyond. When I entered the KC market I was floored by how much better KCUR seems to be ran. Transitions are smooth, the filler music between segments is taken from a wide breadth of musical genres, and anyone you here on their wave's sound professional and personable. I also love that on almost a monthly basis I hear news stories and reports that have come from our station on the national shows. Public Harvest Media does such a great job showing that our neck of the woods may be farm central (obviously speaking to our non-urban neighbors in every direction) but we are a modernizing and changing landscape too. Steve Kraske is such an awesome addition too. His show Up to Date is always a delight. He brings to light so many things that I did not even know where going on in KC. Sure, not all of it is good, but I am grateful that I know it's happening. Other KC originals include the KC Business Report and KC Currents. Then one can never forget the Fish Fry on Friday and Saturday nights and Cyprus Avenue on Saturday afternoon. Both of these music programs are so well done one may think that we are treated to them from New York or Chicago on a national syndicate...nope KC originals!!! On top of my favorite local programs are all of the one's they bring to us from the national pool...outstanding work guys and gals! Kansas City has so many jewels in it's crown these days that that crown has to look quite gaudy (this is a good thing of course) and KCUR is one of them. I am happy to support them and look forward to listening to them for years to come! read more

I'm a fan. How big of a fan? Big enough to give them a chunk of my money each month! Somewhere over the past 10 years or so, my tastes parted ways with the masses. Sure, I have other radio stations programed into the car stereo, but I don't listen to them. Oh, and I certainly NEVER listen to them online. Nope, I'm an NPR guy all the way. Locally, I'm a big fan of KC Currents, Up to Date, and Central Standard. All excellent news programs! For music I love The Fish Fry (though the theme song has GOT. TO. GO) and really, how cool is the concept behind 12th Street Jump? It's amazing, that's what it is. They DO lose a star for Night Tides, or as I like to call it 4 hours of Space Sounds Radio every Sunday night. Seriously...who checks into this? If you run out of programming, just plug in the BBC. Speaking of which, I LOVE that they play the BBC in the late nights. I used to manage a bar and worked many late nights. I would love listening to BBC broadcasts on my drive home. I miss that, though I don't miss the lack of sleep. Nationally, I'm a big fan of This American Life, and The Moth. Morning Edition and Marketplace are pretty great too. I can take or leave Car Talk. I am actively repulsed by A Prairie Home Companion. Barf. Also not a big fan of the Celtic show. But whatever, they have to be a station for everybody, not just me. So what about you? Do you like NPR in general or KCUR specifically? Then open up your dang wallet. Still not sure? Turn the dial and listen to 20 minutes of Nickleback and LMFAO and you'll change your mind. read more

So, when did I realize I was getting old? When I started really enjoying listening to KCUR rather than 96.5 the Buzz. That said - I think KCUR does an excellent job. I love the new central standard and wish it was on at a time that I could catch more often. Finally - an NPR show that caters to the young and urban listeners. Besides my computer - this is the only place I get my news. I think they do a pretty good job of pros and cons on most subjects. The interviews can be a little soft sometimes, but I've heard some really good investigative reports too. Then there's the fun weekend programming. Car Talk is AWESOME! We can turn it on and leave it all weekend! Support your local public radio and if you listen - don't forget to donate. read more

When I hop into the car for one of my many jaunts into Kansas City 9 out of 10, nay--9.99 out of 10 times I'll put the radio on NPR. In fact, my husband has told me that I no longer need to preface many of my sentences with, "I heard on NPR that..." KCUR is a fine NPR station, but I have a few problems with it that leads to its 3-star rating. First of all, the positives: I love the weekday and Saturday late morning programming schedule. I'm a fan of Central Standard and Up to Date, both of which are local shows and highlight local issues and businesses. And I enjoy the radio block of Car Talk all the way through Wait Wait Don't Tell Me on Saturday mornings. Additionally, if I have errands to run on Sunday mornings I try to be in the car by 10am so that I can catch This American Life. Ira Glass is, like, my boy. Okay, so what bothers me about KCUR? Past 1pm on Saturday afternoons, I switch the radio station or pop in a CD because I just don't like Cypress Avenue or American Routes (nor the Fish Fry, which I'll catch every so often). Believe me, I've tried to listen, but it's just not my thing. And I get that it's a ME thing. I know that Kansas City and many other NPR listeners around the country love that this kind of music that has been shunned from popular radio stations. But I'd rather listen to quiz, call-in, or some other talky show. My other big issue is the back-to-back replaying of shows. For example, Morning Edition runs from 5 to 10am on weekday mornings, but I believe Morning Edition is actually a 2 or 2 1/2 hour show because I will catch repeats of the same stories at about those time marks. Just the other morning, as I started my drive at about 7:30am I heard a segment about books. As I got back into my car after an appointment at 9:30am I heard the exact same segment. Same goes for All Things Considered on weekday afternoons. I wouldn't have a problem with a repeat of the show 3, 4, or even 2 hours after the end of the last show, but when I'm listening to the radio off-and-on for a period of 3-5 hours, which often happens when I'm running errands, I don't want to be hearing the same things. I will always be an NPR fan, and therefore I will listen to and support KCUR. There are a lot of great things about it, but it just isn't my favorite NPR station. read more

You know, I think Janet Jackson said it best, "You don't know what you've got, till it's gone". In this case, any semi-avid listner of 89.9 KCUR in Kansas City knows when they've left the NPR building of their listening area. For the most place, you'd think big cities like LA or NYC would have a comparable public radio scene, but truly, for it's size, KC stands up to them head and tails. Not to say the larger cities don't have some unique local programming, they do, but then why all the non public-radio stuff? KCUR has it's required 10 hours of classical music, but for the most part, you get a full day of NPR-biased news, PRI-biased magazine-programs. For some reason, maybe it's just me (very possible), overall the other big cities seem to have only a scant bit of actual news programs, local or otherwise. Well, you get your dose here in Kansas City. Now, Lawrence and Warrensburg have some decent NPR-style public radio, also, and so that's not knocking them. We're all one big happy family. One other thing, on Friday/Saturday nights there's the Fish-Fry: 4-friggin-hours of all-you-can-listen-to Blues, Zydeco, Gospel, and some other earthy-dirty-boggie music. Plus, there's a show called KC Currents which is actually really classy. It's a local show, but I have to say, they really get into some interesting topics which are not just rip offs of some bigger-market's trends. So that's nice. Anyhow, when I actually make money, I promise I will give them some money. Right now, I'm freeloading. read more

I love talk radio and KCUR is an excellent representation in KC. I love that they report local news in depth. Outside of local, they also have some great programming and national radio shows. Many of the podcasts I listen to regularly can be found on KCUR. Great radio! read more