NAB Names 50 Finalists for 2026 Crystal Radio Awards

The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) announced 50 finalist radio stations for the 2026 Crystal Radio Awards on December 3, 2025, recognizing their exceptional year-round community service efforts, including radiothons for children's hospitals, veteran support, and disaster relief food drives. 

Ten winners will be selected by a panel of broadcast, community service, and public relations judges, with awards presented at the NAB State Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C., on March 3, 2026; finalists each receive a commemorative plaque, highlighting radio's pivotal role in local engagement since the awards' inception in 1987.

The diverse list spans markets large and small, owned by major groups like iHeartMedia, Cumulus, Audacy, Cox Media Group, and Beasley, plus independents, showcasing initiatives from hurricane recovery broadcasts to school supply fundraisers amid 2025's economic and weather challenges. Entries covered service from October 1, 2024, to September 30, 2025, with the October 31 deadline yielding standout entries that underscore radio's resilience in a streaming era.

Here are the 50 finalists, listed alphabetically by call letters:

KBHP(FM) Bemidji, Minn.; KBLB(FM) Brainerd, Minn.; KCLR(FM) Columbia, Mo.; KFGE(FM) Lincoln, Neb.; KFI(AM) Los Angeles, Calif.; KFRG(FM) Riverside, Calif.; KGLK(FM) Houston, Texas; KIKV(FM) Alexandria, Minn.; KIRO(AM) Seattle, Wash.; KIRO(FM) Seattle, Wash.; KKBQ(FM) Houston, Texas; KKFN(FM) Denver, Colo.; KNDE(FM) College Station, Texas; KNDE-HD3 College Station, Texas; KOSI(FM) Denver, Colo.; KRMG(FM) Tulsa, Okla.; KRSP(FM) Salt Lake City, Utah.

KSL(FM) Salt Lake City, Utah; KSTP(FM) Minneapolis–St. Paul, Minn.; KTAR(FM) Phoenix, Ariz.; KTMY(FM) Minneapolis–St. Paul, Minn.; KTXY(FM) Columbia, Mo.; KUPD(FM) Phoenix, Ariz.; KXKT(FM) Omaha, Neb.; KYGO(FM) Denver, Colo.; WALR(FM) Atlanta, Ga.; WAMO(AM) Pittsburgh, Pa.; WBAL(AM) Baltimore, Md.; WBZZ(FM) Pittsburgh, Pa.; WCCO(AM) Minneapolis–St. Paul, Minn.; WCFB(FM) Orlando, Fla.; WCLU(AM) Bowling Green, Ky.; WDRV(FM) Chicago, Ill.; WDSY(FM) Pittsburgh, Pa.

WDUV(FM) Tampa, Fla.; WEEI(FM) Boston, Mass.; WFLS(FM) Fredericksburg, Va.; WFMS(FM) Indianapolis, Ind.; WHJX(FM) Jacksonville, Fla.; WHPT(FM) Tampa, Fla.; WIYY(FM) Baltimore, Md.; WKIS(FM) Miami–Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; WMMR(FM) Philadelphia, Pa.; WNOR(FM) Norfolk, Va.; WOKV(FM) Jacksonville, Fla.; WSB(AM) Atlanta, Ga.; WTBC(FM) Tuscaloosa, Ala.; WTMX(FM) Chicago, Ill.; WYOT(FM) Rockford, Ill.; WZPL(FM) Indianapolis, Ind.

Ten winners will be announced in February 2026 and honored at the NAB State Leadership Conference on March 3, 2026, in Washington, D.C.