KQED 88.5

KQED 88.5 FM is the main public radio station of San Francisco, a member of National Public Radio. The schedule is built around news and talk, with NPR programmes such as Morning Edition and All Things Considered, local news from the Bay Area, interviews, public affairs, science, technology and culture programmes, and podcasts produced by the station's own journalists. The tone is thoughtful and informed, and the programming reflects the diversity of the region.

KQED is a non-profit organisation supported largely by listener donations and sponsors, and it also runs public television and digital services. It has been a leading voice in Bay Area media for many decades, and its local reporting on politics, housing, the environment and the technology industry is widely followed. The language is English, with clear presentation that suits learners and makes the station a useful way to follow US news. Some programmes may be restricted outside the United States because of rights. This stream is a low-bandwidth version delivered as MP3 at 32 kbps, which uses very little data and is adequate for speech, although the sound is thinner than on standard streams. It plays in your browser on RadioKite, and you can add it to your favourites.