The station’s inaugural broadcast was on April 1, 1993. 

Back then, the studio was a caravan parked on the top of Scott Circuit in Salamander Bay, with a meagre output of just 30 Watts.

Now, it is in Port Stephens Community Centre and its reach extends from Newcastle west to Medowie and further west to Raymond Terrace depending on receivers, broadcasting 24 hours per day with 1000 Watts.

“The station runs entirely with volunteers and after our very humble beginnings, we now have two state-of-the-art studios, a production studio and administration office in the Centre,” Paddy Twohill, president of Port Stephens FM, said.

“Most importantly, we continue to go from strength-to-strength and are delighted with the results of the latest independent survey which found that PSFM was the most listened to radio station in the Port Stephens area.”

To help get the station started, volunteers sold raffle tickets in the Nelson Bay CBD and Salamander shopping centre to raise money for the purchase of the much-needed equipment.

The first presenters were the late Benni Lind (founder, president and the first life member), Margot Anderson (secretary) and Leighton Archer (sales representative).  

Port Stephens FM has been responsible for launching many careers in radio, the first being Archer who went on to be a popular 2NUR FM presenter with a career that continues in the industry to this day.

Within 12 months of Port Stephens FM’s launch, a permanent studio was established in the Nelson Bay CBD, with broadcasting being limited to just one week a month.

In 2000, the station moved to its current location in the Port Stephens Community Centre, next to Tomaree Library, in Salamander Bay.