On 1200 kHz (1938–1941) Following a
construction permit issued February 19, 1938, KVNU first
signed on on November 17, 1938, with a broadcast originating at
Brigham Young College. KVNU originally broadcast at 1200 kHz at 100 watts. In its early years, KVNU had a
full service format of news, music, and entertainment and had studios at the
Capitol Theatre in Logan. In 1940, KVNU increased its power from 100 to 250 watts.
On 1230 kHz (1941–1948) With the enactment of the
North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement (NARBA) in 1941, the frequency moved to 1230 AM. By 1945, the Bullens had become majority owners of the Cache Valley Broadcasting Company, with Herschel leading the company and Reed moving up from station general manager to company general manager to company director. KVNU also joined the
Mutual Broadcasting System by 1945. Then in 1946, KVNU began broadcasting games of the
Utah State Aggies football team of what was then Utah State Agricultural College (now
Utah State University).
The Billboard 1946–47 Encyclopedia of Music listed three regular music programs on KVNU, including a show devoted to
Bing Crosby and a
request show sponsored by
Sears, Roebuck. KVNU also broadcast some national entertainment programs, such as
Chandu the Magician and
The Roy Rogers Show.
On 610 kHz (1948–present) KVNU moved to its current frequency of 610 kHz in 1948 and raised its power to 1 kW. The permit was later transferred to the
University of Utah to put a
public television station on Channel 12. In 1961, KVNU raised its power from 1 kW to 5 kW. In the 1970s, the daytime power was doubled to 10,000 watts. The station was one of the early carriers of the syndicated American Top 40 with Casey Kasem, which it would maintain from 1972 through to the late 1980s. The
Broadcasting Yearbook 1980 listed KVNU as an
MOR formatted station. By 1985, KVNU changed its format to
adult contemporary. In the late 1980s, KVNU added
talk shows to its schedule, with the
Broadcasting Yearbook 1987 listing KVNU as an
NBC Talknet affiliate. Reed Bullen retired as KVNU manager in 1986 and transferred the station to his son Jonathan. Then in 1996, the Bullen family sold KVNU to the Cache Valley Media Group. The 2001 KVNU schedule included local news shows,
The Rush Limbaugh Show, and
ESPN Radio. In May 2017, Utah State discontinued its decades-long partnership with KVNU and changed its flagship station to
KZNS in Salt Lake City. Utah State student radio station
KBLU-LP became the Logan affiliate of the Utah State network. In July 2023, KVNU returned to the Utah State sports network. ==Programming==