KSL remains a cornerstone of the Salt Lake City media landscape, serving as the oldest radio station in Utah. Originally signing on in 1922 as KZN, the station functioned as the radio voice for the Deseret News and has maintained ownership by the Mormon church through various call letter changes, including its 1925 transition to KSL.
The Salt Lake City market is a significant hub for broadcasting, featuring more than two dozen AM stations and 48 FM stations serving the area from Provo to Ogden. KSL's presence includes both radio and television operations. While the station previously operated out of Broadcast House on Social Hall Avenue near Temple Square, it moved in 1983 to its current Broadcast House location at 55 South 300 West within the Triad Center development.
KSL-TV operates alongside KSL radio within this facility, which features a lobby with a stained-glass NBC peacock. The station's newsroom and television studios, including those used for programs like Studio 5, are part of these downtown operations. KSL's parent company, Bonneville Communications, also manages several FM stations in the market, including KSFI, KRSP, and KSL-FM.
Beyond the downtown studios, KSL maintains significant technical infrastructure. The AM transmitter site has been located on the salt flats along the shore of the Great Salt Lake since 1933. The current transmitter building houses two Nautel transmitters and sits near a site that once held an Art Deco building housing a massive Western Electric 407A4 transmitter.
Television and FM signals are also transmitted from the Oquirrh Mountains at Farnsworth Peak. This site serves as a major hub for the market, hosting KSL-TV, KSL-FM, and various other signals including the DTV Utah community site and KSTU.
The history of KSL is marked by significant broadcasts, such as the weekly radio broadcast of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, which has originated from the area since 1929. The station's reach was historically vast, particularly during the era of its 50,000-watt clear channel signal.
