# Radio Station Call Letters **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 18, 2000, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-station-call-letters/19839 "2000-05-18T06:04:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2000, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-station-call-letters/19839/1 "2000-05-18T06:04:37Z")
Why do all American radio and television station call letters start with “W” and “K”? Also, what is the purpose of call letters in the first place? ---
**Author:** ![Grendel69](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7bcc69/32.png) [@Grendel69](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grendel69)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2000, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-station-call-letters/19839/2 "2000-05-18T06:20:16Z")
It’s W on the east of the Mississippi and K on the West of it. ---
**Author:** ![ChiefScott](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58f4c7/32.png) [@ChiefScott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChiefScott)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2000, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-station-call-letters/19839/3 "2000-05-18T06:52:33Z")
> [@](#): > > It’s W on the east of the Mississippi and K on the West of it. With some notable exceptions, like KYW in Philly. Some call letters were assigned prior to the FCC mandate governing call letters. IIRC, military stations had yet another first letter as do ham radio operators. ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_Bowe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df788c/32.png) [@Doug\_Bowe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_Bowe)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2000, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-station-call-letters/19839/4 "2000-05-18T07:11:59Z")
[http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=7689](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=7689) ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2000, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-station-call-letters/19839/5 "2000-05-18T07:13:12Z")
According to [Ask Yahoo](http://howto.yahoo.com/ask/20000112.html) > [@](#): > > By reading over the document, we learned that the letters K and W originated early in the 20th century as part of a worldwide index of ship radio stations. K stood for ships on the East coast, W for ships in the Pacific. For some reason, when the letters were extended to land-based stations, they were reversed, with the Mississippi River eventually adopted as the dividing line. Ever since 1923, stations west of the river start with a K, those east of it start with a W. > For more, check out the [original 1913 document](http://www.ipass.net/~whitetho/1913call.htm) that details the international call-letter assignments. ---
**Author:** ![Grendel69](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7bcc69/32.png) [@Grendel69](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grendel69)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2000, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-station-call-letters/19839/6 "2000-05-18T07:44:29Z")
As I am a philly native (a pox on the pacers and devils) I thought of KYW. But I assumed that it was similar to the NY station KROC (that’s not the actual call letters. its phonetic). and now i know… ---
**Author:** ![Grendel69](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7bcc69/32.png) [@Grendel69](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grendel69)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2000, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-station-call-letters/19839/7 "2000-05-18T07:44:30Z")
As I am a philly native (a pox on the pacers and devils) I thought of KYW. But I assumed that it was similar to the NY station KROC (that’s not the actual call letters. its phonetic). and now i know… ---
**Author:** ![GaWd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f08c70/32.png) [@GaWd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaWd)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2000, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-station-call-letters/19839/8 "2000-05-18T10:08:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*\* > As I am a philly native (a pox on the pacers and devils) I thought of KYW. But I assumed that it was similar to the NY station KROC (that’s not the actual call letters. its phonetic). and now i know… > > \*\* KROC is KROC because, IIRC, it is a syndicated show that plays where the corporate radio people pay for it. Northern Ca. has several areas that play KROC(Like chico), and I know that So. Cal also has several stations that play their programming(which I think is absolutely terrible by the way). So, KROC is not the station, but the show… -Sam ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2000, 11:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/radio-station-call-letters/19839/9 "2000-05-18T11:15:58Z")
Call letters exist for a threefold reason: · So the FCC can have something unambiguous to call them. I’m sure there are a million radio stations called Hard Rock 103.5. · So they can have real names, not something their DJs dreamed up. Honestly, if you were at a board meeting, and you had to use the name “Jammin’ Love 99.1” in an actual sentence, could you keep a straight face? · So the names are easier to send via Morse Code. You probably don’t realize this, but just about everything has a call sign, a version number, a UPC, or some other identifying, incomprehensible sequence associated with it. Radio and TV stations just happen to advertise theirs more.