Our History

KAMU is public media for Texas A&M University and the Brazos Valley. Owned and operated by Texas A&M University in College Station as part of the Division of Marketing and Communications, KAMU is both a television and FM radio entity. KAMU exists primarily to provide public broadcasting to the Brazos Valley, but also contributes to the academic mission of Texas A&M by providing on-the-job training for students while fulfilling a unique niche in the broadcast space as a storytelling outlet for Texas A&M and the entire Brazos Valley. In 1964, Texas A&M established the Educational Broadcast Services department as part of the “Educational Television Program” with an initial focus of providing closed-circuit television broadcasts from classrooms and lecture halls across the campus. Eventually, KAMU-TV and KAMU-FM were added to the department. KAMU-TV began broadcasting on Feb. 15, 1970, as a public television station licensed to the university, providing broadcast services to the Texas A&M University community, the cities of Bryan and College Station and the surrounding Brazos Valley area. Originally an analog broadcast on channel 15, KAMU-TV transitioned to HD broadcast in 2009 on Channels 12.1, 12.2 and 12.3.

From 1972-2023, KAMU was located in the Joe Hiram Moore Communications Center on the Texas A&M campus, a 17,000 square-foot one-story brick building in which KAMU operated two television studios and two radio studios. In 2023, KAMU moved its studios and offices to the third floor of the Innovative Learning Classroom Building.

KAMU-FM (90.9 FM) began programming on March 30, 1977, and is an affiliate of National Public Radio (NPR), Public Radio Exchange (PRX) and others. Programming includes a unique mix of news, storytelling and interview shows, along with locally hosted programs related to music, the arts and community issues. In 2022, KAMU-Classical HD-2 was launched, featuring 24/7 classical music programming.

A student worker in the early ’70s tests the first camera to ever be used at the KAMU studios.

Sharon Colson, host of KAMU’s popular local show “TV Magazine,” on set with a guest in the early ’80s.

One of KAMU’s earliest billboards highlighting its 1985 fundraising campaign.

A letter from Fred Rogers of the legendary PBS show “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” congratulating KAMU staff on their first 15 years “in the PBS neighborhood.”

Texas A&M former student and popular singer/songwriter Lyle Lovett on KAMU’s “TV Magazine.”

A mid-90s student worker in the FM production studio.

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