What KJZZ does

KJZZ is a public radio station broadcasting on 91.5 FM from Phoenix, Arizona, founded in 1951 and operating as a service of Rio Salado College within the Maricopa Community Colleges system. The station produces and distributes local and regional journalism — including Arizona politics, education, business, sustainability, and the Fronteras Desk border/Latin America coverage — alongside flagship programming such as KJZZ's The Show, jazz and blues music programming (including the Jazz PHX sub-brand), and NPR national content. Distribution spans FM broadcast, web streaming, a mobile app, podcast platforms, and social media, with an expanding portfolio of original podcasts. The community engagement platform Q&AZ lets listeners submit questions for journalist investigation, and the station participates in collaborative journalism networks including the Mountain West News Bureau and Hermosillo Bureau.

The underlying technology stack is conventional broadcast and digital media infrastructure: an FCC-licensed FM transmitter, live audio streaming, podcast distribution, a WordPress/NPR Brightspot CMS-backed website, and standard social media channels. The one third-party AI-assisted element visible is Minute Mix, hosted on the external phoenix.newsmix.ai domain, suggesting KJZZ licenses AI-driven news personalization rather than building proprietary models. The station maintains no public API, no SDK, and no in-house developer platform.

KJZZ's revenue model is listener- and sponsorship-supported rather than product-priced. Funding comes from three primary streams: recurring listener donations and memberships (managed through Friends of Public Radio Arizona/FPRAZ), corporate underwriting from local and regional sponsors, and institutional support from Rio Salado College and Maricopa Community Colleges. A premium subscription tier, KJZZ Plus, has been introduced to provide enhanced streaming access. Pricing is not publicly disclosed, and the station operates within a public-service mandate rather than a profit-maximizing commercial frame. Customers in the conventional sense are a diffuse listener base across the Phoenix metro and Arizona, with no enterprise anchors disclosed.

Name

KJZZ

Legal name

The Division of Public Service at Rio Salado College

Website

https://kjzz.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1951

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

KJZZ is a Phoenix-area public radio station (91.5 FM) operated by Rio Salado College and Maricopa Community Colleges, providing local Arizona news, NPR programming, jazz content, and original podcasts to regional listeners funded by donations and corporate sponsorship.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Radio Broadcasting

NAICS

Radio Broadcasting Stations (51611), Radio and Television Broadcasting Stations (5161)

SIC

Radio Broadcasting Stations (4832)

akta.pro primary industry

Public/Community Local Stations (PBS Member Stations, Community Radio, LPFM) (MPABACAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Network-Affiliated Local Radio Stations (News/Talk/Sports Syndication Affiliates) (MPABACAF), Talk/News/Sports Radio Networks & Syndication (MPAIAEAG), News/Talk Radio Networks (MPABABAD)

Keywords

• Public radio broadcasting
• Local news journalism
• Jazz programming
• NPR member station
• Podcast production

Headquarters

HQ city

Tempe

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Listener Donations/Membership: Listener-supported funding through membership programs, donations, and pledge drives. The station operates a member portal and runs fundraising campaigns.
2. Corporate Sponsorship: Corporate underwriting and sponsorship from local and regional businesses. The station lists multiple sponsors including Arizona Commerce Authority, universities, healthcare organizations, and local businesses.
3. Institutional Funding: Operational support from parent institutions Rio Salado College and Maricopa Community Colleges.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

KJZZ is a public radio station broadcasting on 91.5 FM that produces and distributes local Arizona news, talk programming, and jazz music content. It operates as a service of Rio Salado College and Maricopa Community Colleges, distributing its programming via FM broadcast, live digital streaming, podcasts, and social media, with premium access offered through the KJZZ Plus subscription service.

Product overview

KJZZ is a public radio station (FM 91.5) operated as a service of Rio Salado College and Maricopa Community Colleges, providing news, talk programming, and jazz music content. The station operates as a unified platform combining local news coverage (KJZZ News, Fronteras Desk, Mountain West News Bureau) with flagship programming (KJZZ's The Show), on-demand audio content (Podcasts), and music programming (Jazz PHX). Premium access is available through KJZZ Plus subscription streaming.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Jazz PHX: A jazz music platform and brand operated by KJZZ, featuring jazz playlists, event listings, and jazz venue information.

Products and services

• KJZZ's The Show Flagship news and talk program featuring in-depth reporting, interviews, and coverage of Arizona issues, available as a live broadcast and on-demand podcast.
• KJZZ Podcasts On-demand audio programming including multiple original podcasts such as The Show, Sun Up, Friday NewsCap, Prickly Politics, State of the Arts Arizona, Period The End, Reefer Growing Madness, Exit Interview, Lit Squad, Untold Arizona, Arizona Monsoon Stories, The Recovering Caregiver, and Word, distributed via major podcast platforms.
• Jazz PHX Jazz music sub-brand and platform featuring jazz playlists, event listings, venue information, and a jazz map for the Phoenix metropolitan area.
• KJZZ Plus (Stream Plus) Premium subscription streaming service providing enhanced access to KJZZ content for station supporters and members.
• Fronteras Desk Border and immigration news desk providing dedicated coverage of U.S.-Mexico border issues, Latin American affairs, and Hermosillo Bureau reporting.
• Mountain West News Bureau Regional news collaborative covering stories across the Mountain West states, distributed across multiple public radio member stations.
• KJZZ News Local and regional news coverage focusing on Arizona, including politics, business, education, science, sustainability, elections, and tribal natural resources topics.
• Q&AZ Community question-and-answer platform where listeners can submit questions about the Valley and Arizona for journalist investigation and reporting.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Rio Salado CollegecoreOthersKJZZ is a service of Rio Salado College, a member of the Maricopa Community Colleges system. Rio Salado College provides institutional support and serves as the parent organization for the public radio station.
• Maricopa Community CollegescoreOthersKJZZ is a service of Maricopa Community Colleges. The college district provides institutional backing and operational support for the public radio station.
• NPR (National Public Radio)coreTechnology or IntegrationKJZZ is a member station of NPR, distributing NPR national news programming and content to its Arizona audience.
• Friends of Public Radio Arizona (FPRAZ)coreOthersThe station's listener support and membership organization. FPRAZ manages donations, memberships, corporate sponsorship, and station events.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• KCRW: KCRW is a Santa Monica, CA-based public radio station and NPR affiliate with strong local journalism, music programming, and a prominent podcast network — a closely comparable public radio model to KJZZ serving the LA market.
• WBEZ Chicago: WBEZ is a Chicago-based NPR member station producing local news, talk programming, and podcasts — directly comparable to KJZZ in format, audience profile, and public radio funding model.
• WBUR: WBUR is a Boston-based NPR member station with flagship local news programming and a robust podcast portfolio — a comparable urban-market public radio news operation with similar listener-supported economics.
• KQED: KQED is the San Francisco Bay Area's NPR and PBS member station, combining radio news, journalism, and digital content with listener/member funding — closely analogous to KJZZ's integrated public media model.
• Houston Public Media: Houston Public Media is a university-licensed NPR member station providing local news and music programming in a major Sun Belt metro — closely comparable to KJZZ in market profile, institutional backing, and format.
• KEXP: KEXP is a Seattle-based public radio station known for music discovery programming with strong digital/streaming distribution — a comparable public radio listener-supported model with overlapping music programming focus.

Broad incumbents

• WNYC: WNYC is New York's flagship public radio station, an NPR member with a much larger audience and budget — comparable public radio business model and programming mix but operating at significantly greater scale.
• Minnesota Public Radio: MPR is one of the largest public radio networks in the U.S., producing regional news and classical/alternative music programming — comparable business model and audience but operating at substantially larger scale than KJZZ.

Regional players

• Oregon Public Broadcasting: OPB is a regional public radio/TV broadcaster serving Oregon and the Pacific Northwest with NPR programming and regional journalism — comparable in editorial model, though KJZZ serves a single-metro vs. OPB's multi-state region.
• Nevada Public Radio: KNPR is Nevada's primary NPR member station serving Las Vegas and the state — comparable listener-supported public radio model in another western U.S. growth market similar to Phoenix.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@KJZZPhoenix
• Facebookfacebook.com/kjzzphoenix
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kjzz-phoenix
• Instagraminstagram.com/kjzzphoenix
• Xx.com/kjzzphoenix

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about KJZZ