1990 in radio

Events

• KJJO in Minneapolis, Minnesota transitions from active rock to alternative rock.
• KBLN in Dallas, Texas becomes KXEB.
• Daytimer KKDA in Dallas, Texas begins nighttime broadcasting.
• Emmis Communications sells several of their most noteworthy stations to offset losses from the purchase of the Seattle Mariners, including KXXX in San Francisco, WAVA-FM in Washington, DC and WLOL in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
• March 13 - WLVK/Charlotte flips to "high octane country" as "Thunder 96.9"; this direction last only a few months, with the station shifting back to a more traditional country format.
• July 13 - Nationwide Communications sells off WGAR 1220-AM in Cleveland, which was a direct simulcast of country WGAR 99.5-FM, to Douglas Broadcasting. WGAR-AM signs off at midnight on July 13 after airing a brief retrospective on the station, highlighted with tributes from station alumni Jack Paar and Don Imus. The station relaunches as WKNR a few minutes later, carrying a satellite-delivered oldies format, but would gradually assume an all-sports lineup in less than a year.
• June – KNRJ/Houston flipped from Rhythmic CHR to Alternative Rock. The Alternative format would last only 5 weeks, and was promoted as a temporary format while the station's owners, Nationwide Communications, began researching the market for a new format.
• July 20 – Nationwide's KNRJ flips to Hot AC as KHMX, "Mix 96.5."

  Debuts

• Hessischer Rundfunk in Frankfurt debuts with Chippie, a radio program on computer topics.

  Deaths

• July 8 - Evelyn Kaye, known as "Evelyn and Her Magic Violin" when she performed on The Hour of Charm.
• July 30 – Karl Weber, actor in old-time radio
• Bill Cullen, radio personality, American game show host
• William S. Paley, the chief executive who built Columbia Broadcasting System from a small radio network into one of the foremost radio and television network operations in the United States