AM DX NewsFlash 2-8-96
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AM DX NewsFlash 2-8-96
- To: hard-core-dx@xxxxxxxxxx (hard-core-dx)
- Subject: AM DX NewsFlash 2-8-96
- From: Risto Kotalampi <rko>
- Date: Fri, 9 Feb 1996 21:26:38 +0200 (EET)
- Organization: Kotanet Communications Ltd
- Reply-to: hard-core-dx@xxxxxxxxxx
- Sender: owner-hard-core-dx
This message is sent by Risto Kotalampi <rko>
to hard-core-dx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx:
Selected parts from:
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WELCOME TO IRCA's AM-DX NEWSFLASH - February 8 1996
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Mike Prindle - New Suffolk NY - MechMike1@xxxxxxx
KTRK - 1670 AM - Fort Meade, Maryland is on the air testing - 2301 UT id
said they were testing for 24 hours. Requested DX reports from outside 50
mile radius from Baltimore. Send to ABS, Room 340, 601 N. Fairfax St.,
Alexandria, VA 22314 and put DX on envelope.
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Robert S. Ross VA3SW - London ON - radiorob@xxxxxxxxx
Subject: KTRK AM 1670 Khz.
Hey Guys....They're on the air!!! This is their first night. It's 8:00 PM
EST and they're smokin' in with a doo-wop program. Catch them now before
they're gone!!
ID's as KTRK and K- TRUCK. 73 ROB.
Well I trust everyone has heard the new experimental AM station KTRK on
1670 KHz. Well they have changed call letters all ready!!!! This evening
since about 6 PM EST they have been using the call ARMY!!! I called the stn
to ask them why and the private first class that I spoke to says that they
had to change calls because the call KTRK is actually registered to a
Houston TV station on Channel 13!!! When I asked him if the FCC had
actually issued the call KTRK to the experimental stn on 1670 khz. he
said... " Hell NO... we just made it up!!!!! 'cause it stood for K-TRUCK...
which is what we are b/casting from!!!" We both had a real good laugh
before I asked him some more questions about the stn!!!
He says they will be on til Friday morning with no snags with the
equipment. They should be using the call ARMY until the end of the
mission... I guess someone is going to catch proper hell for using the KTRK
call without it being issued to them legally!!! The furthest reports to
date were Hawaii, Sweden, and Moscow!!!! The guy I called said they would
still verify any reports they got using the KTRK call sign... but we'll have
to wait to see about that??????
So... for those of you who did not log KTRK last night or earlier
today... I guess you'll have to settle for ARMY!!! What a hoot eh????
Strange things sure do happen in the DX radio world. Catch them tonite
before they change calls again!!! HIHI
2-8-96
Well as I speak KTRK/ARMY/ABS 1670 Khz from Ft. Meade, Md. is now
history. While driving home in my car this afternoon I noticed they were
ID'ing with yet another Callsign... namely ABS/Alpha Bravo Sierra. Not sure
if this is a legitimate call sign or just an acronym for Army B/cast Service
or ???? At 1638 EST, the on air DJ said they were winding down the tests
from this station. He played a song at 1640-1646 EST then said... "Testing
is now completed on this government B/cast station. Alpha Bravo Sierra is
owned by the United States of America and operated by the United States
Army. The DJ then thanked all the people who were associated with the stn.
and also thanked the many listeners who had called and written. He gave a
phone # of 703-4280401 for a Major Messersmith?? who was in charge of the
whole mission?? The DJ was Don Brown who at 1649 said "this is the final
song from Alpha Bravo Sierra". After the last selection at 1652-1654 EST
they went off the air with only a carrier remaining when I tuned out at 1654
EST.
Thanks to the United States Army for providing us with this interesting
bit of listening!!!!
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Mark Connelly WA1ION - Billerica, MA - MarkWA1ION@xxxxxxx
Receiver: JRC NRD-525; Antenna: two 37-m wires, DL-2 phasing unit
Dates: 1996 -=- Times: EST (UTC-5)
1670 KTRK a.k.a A-R-M-Y, Fort Meade, MD (NSA-land) - I heard this first on
the evening of 5 FEB with a strong signal equal to, or better than,
adjacent WJDM (NJ) on 1660. E-mail messages from Dave Yocis (via
hard-core) and Al Merriman had tipped me off to this. On 6 FEB from
0005 to 0052, I taped a section of the broadcast. Two male
announcers gave ID as "KTRK, K-Truck" and a pre-recorded announcement
by a woman gave the mailing address as "ABS, 601 N. Fairfax St., Room
340, Alexandria, VA 22314". A telephone number of 1-301-677-1377 was
also given. Hard rock from the '70s and early '80s was played: this
included AC/DC, Rush, and Deep Purple. The following evening (6 FEB,
around 1900 EST), the station was identifying as A-R-M-Y and a black
DJ (I think) was doing a show of dance and soul hits, mostly from the
'80s. I called their phone number and the operator on duty said that
the "KTRK" call had to be dropped because a TV station in Arizona
owned it. (That shows the degree of non-communication among various
government agencies ! We live in the "age of information" but you
wouldn't know it from this.) I told them that the station had a
great signal here 15 miles / 24 km outside Boston. At the time I
called, they had already gotten reports from all over the USA and
Canada as well as one report from Sweden. [Connelly-MA]
Greetings all. The KYUK-640 Alaska DX test from 0400-0430 EST (0900-0930
UTC) on 3 FEB 1996 was a no-show here in Billerica, MA. Before I went to
bed, I set up the receiver and a 6-hour video tape (on audio-record) and
tweaked the delay-line phasing unit for a cardioid pattern with a fairly
broad null to the south. Not only did this get rid of all slop from
WRKO-680 (50 kW, 3 miles south of here), but it also got rid of any
co-channel QRM from the Caribbean and South America.
When I reviewed the section of the tape covering 0400-0430 EST, the
following was observed: CBN (St. John's, NF) dominated most of the time with
a fair to good signal. At 0400 EST, it mentioned "CBC St. John's" and then
went into CBC Overnight's presentation of a newsmagazine program from Radio
Australia. This ran until 0430, at which time CBC news came on. During the
occasional fades of CBN, the channel seemed to be an incomprehensible jumble
of many signals. On one occasion, a second audio appeared for about 5 to 10
seconds: it was a US newstalk station with a monotone, business-like male
announcer reading news at a fast clip. Perhaps this was KFI Los Angeles
(itself a good DX catch), but that's just a guess. A 1 kHz heterodyne
believed to be from La Coruna, Spain (639) was very evident at 4 AM EST /
0900 UTC; it had pretty much faded away 20 minutes later. At no time did I
hear any evidence of polka music or KYUK ID's on voice or code.
So that's it for KYUK "not"; maybe I'll do better with Sunday morning's
KFQD-750 and KYAK-650 tests.
After the non-receipt of KYUK on Saturday morning, I was hoping for better
from the other two Alaska tests held Sunday morning. Unfortunately, they did
no better and no evidence of either station was noted here in Billerica, MA.
Set-up: Stereo VCR with 6-hour tape fed by audio from NRD-525 tuned to 650
(left audio channel) and Sony ICF-2010 tuned to 750 (right channel). The
650 set-up used the phased wires adjusted for a cardioid pattern nulling
south to eliminate usual channel-dominant HJKH ("Antena Dos") from Bogota,
Colombia. Doing this also removed slop from local WRKO-680. The 750 set-up
ran from a loop aligned for northwest / southeast reception (nulling CBGY to
the northeast and WSB from the southwest).
KYAK-650 test - 4 FEB - 0400-0500 EST (0900-1000 UTC): WSM was atop most of
the time, although its signal was not particularly strong. It surprised me
that a station of WSM's stature would be running a satellite-fed C&W show
rather than something using local talent from their own studios. A bit of
classical piano music, possibly from CKGA, emerged briefly. Once, a few
seconds of Colombian music leaked through from nulled HJKH: the null of this
powerhouse had been set up four hours earlier when I went to bed; it held up
surprisingly well through the period of the test. During fades of WSM, some
mains-borne electrical noise was in the background. I'm not sure that a
dead-quiet location would have made a difference, though. Most of the time,
there was a baseline carrier level from WSM, HJKH, and others that probably
weren't the desired DX. Some WFAN-660 slop got in the act on one or two
occasions. Only a very directional Beverage antenna would have given a DXer
in my area a chance at this test.
KFQD-750 test - 4 FEB - 0400-0430 EST (0900-0930 UTC): WSB and CBGY were off
the ends of the ferrite loop, but other interference was still a spoiler.
This came mainly in the form of CKGB Timmins, ON. This was right in the
main loop lobe and not too far off the bearing line to KFQD. CKGB's country
held sway through the lion's share of the half-hour period: sometimes it was
quite loud. A few times, a bit of WSB leaked through the null and traces of
Spanish (from YVKS or HJDK) rattled around in the background. Nothing
resembling KFQD programming, voice or code ID's, etc. was ever noted in two
plays of the tape.
I hope that some of you had better luck with these than I did.
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1996 M STREET RADIO DIRECTORY
The IRCA Bookstore is proud to announce that the 'M Street Corporation' has
agreed to offer a discount on their 1996 'M Street Radio Directory' to
NewsFlash members ordering through the IRCA Bookstore. The Directory
contains a complete listing of over 15,000 radio stations (AM/FM, US/Canada)
including the following information: facilities, ownership, formats, LMAs,
station personnel, phone numbers (and FAX), addresses, ratings, as well as
information on almost 400 radio markets in the US and Canada. Stations are
listed by location (complete info), frequency (frequency, call, location,
power and pattern) and call (call, frequency, location) and market
(frequency, call, location, rating, format). It also includes a former call
reference (old call, location and current call). Major network information
(addresses/phone numbers/etc) and several interesting radio articles are
included as well.
The pre/post-publication price to US and Canadian NewsFlash members ordering
through the IRCA Bookstore is $38.00 post paid (UPS address required). The
book is expected to be out by the end of February (usual disclaimer on date
'cause we can't be sure!).
Europe - add $5.00 for surface, $19.20 for airmail delivery.
Australia/New Zealand - add $5.00 for surface, $27.25 for airmail delivery.
IRCA Bookstore, 9705 Mary NW, Seattle WA 98117-2334
Please make checks payable to: Phil Bytheway.
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phil bytheway - Seattle WA - bytheway@xxxxxxx
Tabulated from WWV at ~0500 GMT nightly
Gomagnetic Summary February 1 1995 through February 7 1996
GEO - Geomagnetic activity pca - polar cap absorption
maf - major flare SA - Solar Activity
mas - major storm spe - satellite proton event
mis - minor storm ss - severe storm
Date FLUX A K SA GEO OTHER
2/ 1 75 3 3 very low quiet-unsettled swa
2 76 9 2 very low quiet-unsettled swa
3 74 3 1 very low quiet swa
4 74 4 3 very low quiet-unsettled swa
5 71 3 1 very low quiet swa
6 71 2 2 very low quiet -
2/ 7 70 7 1 very low quiet-unsettled -
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INDIVIDUAL LOGGINGS
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Andrew P. Gardner - Wellington, New Zealand - andyg03@xxxxxxx
DX down her in NZ has been great the last few days, so you guys might be
able to catch 1YA on tone tests. Generally, whn NZ stations do maintenance,
they'll switch off the Tx first, to clean stuff and make adjustments, then
they'll fire up with carrier only, then start doing tone tests of varying
frequencies. No ID's are usually given.
Transpacific DX seems to be improving by the day at present. I found
conditions extremely good on Saturday night, especially in the new band. All
times in UTC:
1YA 756kHz 20kW Auckland NZ is doing maintenance between 1105 & 1600 UTC on
6 Feb.
1228 1642 Aerobeacon MOR
1230 1656 Carrier noted here. Possibly a new Australian on the high band.
Could be a 2nd harmonic of 2XS Palmerston North 828kHz. I'll check this
out.
1019 1660 WJDM NJ. Weak (audio only copyable when R8A's preamp on). Fairly
steady signal with occassional peaks and fades but unfortunately spoiled
by continuous static crashes :^(. Running some weird format I've never
heard before, aimed at children. Does anyone know the QSL address for
WJDM?
1242 1660 WJDM still hanging in there.
1245 1647 Weak carrier detected. Another new Aussie? This one couldn't be a
1233 1689 Aerobeacon MH
1236 1691(approx) Aerobeacon 3BXU
2nd harmonic!
Does anyone have a list of the aerobeacons running between 1600 & 1710kHz?
That would be a handy thing to have. There is a beacon in New Zealand on
1630kHz if any of you are keen to listen out for it.
Lastly, from the really dumb question department, who is it that says "East
of the Rockies, you're on the air". I guess it's Larry King. Or maybe it's
not. Someone please tell me! (sounds like Art Bell - phil)
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Kent Winrich, NI9U - Waukesha, WI - kent.winrich@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Radio - GE Superadio III
Special
1670 KTRK Md Ft Meade 2/6 0108 - Strong signal with rock, and address
asking for loggings outside of 50 miles of Washington, DC. Also "IDed" as
K-Truck radio. Stange nulling, station seemed to null to the south west,
not the south east as expected. Strong enough in many instances to go
'wide' on the Superadio.
DX Tests
640- KYUK 2/3 0400 - Just KFI
690- HCJB 2/4 0100 - WTIX and a mess, no sign of it.
750 KFQD 2/4 0400 - Nothing noted execpt WSB.
1480+ WABB MS Mobile 2/5 0300 CID WABB Mobile, again at 0307 and 0315.
Strong Hets mixing in as well.
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Tim Hall - Chula Vista CA - MSNL77A@xxxxxxxxxxx
Sony ICF-2010, KIWA Loop
DX TESTS:
----------------
650 KYAK- AK, Anchorage 2/4 0400-0500 No trace of them. (TRH-CA)
750 KFQD- AK, Anchorage 2/4 0400-0430 No trace of them. (TRH-CA)
1670 KTRK+ MD, Ft. Meade 2/5 2253- 2/6 0038 Poor-fair but faded up nicely
at times. Classic rock (Smoke on the Water, Nights in
White Satin, etc.). Finally caught a nice ID on tape at
0038. Was stronger than WJDM tonight, but the following
night WJDM was much stronger. New, MD #2. (TRH-CA)
TIS and Other Stuff
----------------------------
1120 KZSJ CA, San Martin 2/3 1955 Fair-good with Spanish
programming, "La Zeta" slogans, tons of ads for local San
Jose businesses. What a boneheaded move on the part of the
FCC, putting this new station in KPNW's daytime coverage
area! New, CA #248. (TRH-CA)
1400 KSRR UT, Provo 1/28 0254 Fair with legal ID by man, talk about
the Mormon Tabernacle choir. Not heard since high school,
so wasn't in my totals. UT #42. (TRH-CA)
1620 WPGC527 CA, Lakewood 2/4 0505 Tape loop with info about City of
Lakewood, non-IDs as "KLWD". (TRH-CA)
1660 WJDM NJ, Elizabeth 2/6 2350 - 2/7 0300 Fair, but faded up very
nicely at times. Radio Aahs programming, local weather at
:23 and :53 past the hour, slogan "16-60 AM Radio Aahs".
Was playing a lot of uptempo oldies and classic rock so the
"kids format" wasn't completely obvious at first. Finally
caught an ID at 0300. New, NJ #1. (TRH-CA)
1700 HAR CA, Anaheim 2/7 0304 Fair with test broadcast. Automated
time announcements by female voice, then male voice with
"12345, 54321; this is a test." Also mentioned "Highway
Advisory Radio, owned by the city of Anaheim." Male voice
had heavy southern accent. New, CA #249. (TRH-CA)
Not a bad week! The strong electrical noise that usually blankets 1600-1700
kHz here was not as prevalent as usual this week. 73,
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Bruce W. Bacon KE6GLS - Brentwood CA - bwb@xxxxxxxxx
RX: R390A, HQ180C, R2000, SP200, Mod FRG-7
ANTS: 200' Horizontal Loop, 50' Attic Wire
Accessories: JRC ANC-4 Noise Reduction, Phasing Unit, MFJ 946 Tuner
532 Turks and Caicos Islands. Audible nightly in Brentwood. (Northern CA,
not OJ-land)
1660 WJDM Elizabeth NJ. Heard since began broadcasting, however, last night
(02/06 2200 EST) they ran well past their traditional 2200 signoff.
Generally weak, but readable. Especially loud last night. Power
increase to 5kw? Audible after local SS.
1670 KTRK/ARMY Heard this the last two nights. First night (02/06) they
were announcing as KTRK and requesting reception rpts. Last night
(02/07) IDing as ARMY. Terrific signal to WCNA. Classic rock
format. Audible after local SS, all night.
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MISC ITEMS
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Guy Kudlemyer - Springfield, OR - kuddles@xxxxxxx
OVERDRIVE RADIO NETWORKS
OVERDRIVE is a magazine for and about truckers. Each week, OVERDRIVE
produces at least two radio shows geared to and aimed at truckers. These
lists were taken from the January, 1996 issue of OVERDRIVE.
OVERDRIVE TOP TEN COUNTDOWN
The blurb reads, "Tune into Overdrive Top Ten Countdown on any of these
radio stations for the biggest hits of the week as voted for by the men and
women behind the wheel. The latest news from Nashville, a classic country
hit and Over-the-Road requests are only part of what the Overdrive Top Ten
Countdown has to offer." No broadcast times are given.
OVERDRIVE TRUCKING NEWS
"News For Truckers in the Know. Tune into Overdrive Trucking News and hear
what they have to offer. The news truckers want to hear-when they want to
hear it. 24 hours a day on your favorite radio stations. Information that
helps truckers make better decisions." No broadcast times are given.
BEWARE: These lists have been only minimally checked for call/frequency
accuracy (obvious errors, such as WFSR being listed as being on 972 Khz and
KGYN being located in "Amarillo, Texas" were corrected). For the most part,
these lists were taken verbatim from the magazine. All FM's have been
omitted.
ALABAMA
Bay Minette WBCA 1110 Top 10 only
Calera WBYE 1370 Top 10 only
Carrollton WLDX 990 Top 10 only
Centre WEIS 990 Top 10 only
Demopolis WXAL 1400 Trucking News only
Geneva WGEA 1150 Top 10 only
Opp WOPP 1250 Both
Pell City WFHK 1430 Top 10 only
Russellville WJRD 920 Top 10 only
Sumiton/Dora WRSM 1540 Both
Tuscaloosa WACT 1420 Both
ARIZONA
Bullhead City KFLG 1000 Both
Flagstaff KAFF 930 Trucking News only
ARKANSAS
Camden KAMD 910 Both
Conway KFCA 1330 Both
Fayetteville/Springdale KAMO 1390 Trucking News only
Nashville KBHC 1260 Top 10 only
CALIFORNIA
Barstow KSZL 1230 Trucking News only
Burney KAVA 1450 Top 10 only
Crescent City KPOD 1240 Both
Sacramento KRAK 1140 Trucking News only
San Francisco KNEW 910 Trucking News only
COLORADO
Delta KDTA 1400 Top 10 only
Denver KYGO 950 Trucking News only
Sterling KSTC 1230 Trucking News only
FLORIDA
Orlando WFIV 1080 Top 10 only
GEORGIA
Cairo WGRA 790 Top 10 only
Calhoun WJTH 900 Top 10 only
Cochran WVMG 1440 Top 10 only
Cuthbert WCUG 850 Top 10 only
Eatonton WKVQ 1520 Top 10 only
Hazelhurst WVOH 920 Both
Montezuma WMNZ 1050 Both
Sandersville WSNT 1490 Both
Summerville WGTA 950 Trucking News only
Swainsboro WJAT 880 Both
Thomaston WTGA 1590 Both
Tifton WTIF 1340 Top 10 only
Vienna WWWN 1550 Both
IDAHO
Bonner's Ferry KBFI 1450 Trucking News only
Old Town KMJY 700 Trucking News only
Osburn KWAL 620 Trucking News only
Sandpoint KSPT 1400 Trucking News only
ILLINOIS
Clinton WHOW 1520 Top 10 only
Jacksonville WJIL 1550 Trucking News only
Lincoln WPRC 1370 Top 10 only
Mattoon WLBH 1170 Top 10 only
Olney WVLN 740 Top 10 only
INDIANA
Huntington WPDJ 1300 Both
Mount Vernon WPCO 1590 Top 10 only
IOWA
Atlantic KJAN 1220 Top 10 only
Denison KDSN 1530 Top 10 only
Ft. Dodge KWMT 540 Top 10 only
Newton KCOB 1280 Top 10 only
Waterloo WXEL 1540 Trucking News only
KANSAS
Wellington KLEY 1130 Both
Winfield KKLE 1550 Both
KENTUCKY
Columbia WAIN 850 Top 10 only
Harlan WFSR 970 Top 10 only
Louisa WVKY 1270 Both
Louisville WHAS 840 Trucking News only
Madisonville WFMW 750 Both
Manchester WKLB 1290 Top 10 only
Marion WMJL 1400 Top 10 only
Paintsville WSIP 1490 Both
Pineville WANO 1230 Both
R.L.Providence/Madisonville WFMW 750 Top 10 only
Whitesburg WTCW 920 Both
Williamsburg WEZJ 1440 Top 10 only
LOUISIANA
Chipley WBGC 1240 Top 10 only
Jena KJNA 1480 Top 10 only
New Orleans WWL 870 Trucking News only
Shreveport KWKH 1130 Both
MARYLAND
Hagerstown WHAG 1410 Trucking News only
Lexington Park WPTX 920 Trucking News only
MICHIGAN
Alpena WATZ 1450 Trucking News only
Bad Axe WLEW 1340 Top 10 only
Grayling WGRY 1230 Both
Marquette WJPD 1240 Top 10 only
MINNESOTA
Minneapolis WMIN 740 Trucking News only
Redwood Falls KLGR 1490 Trucking News only
MISSISSIPPI
Columbia WFFF 1360 Top 10 only
Greenwood WABG 980 Trucking News only
Monticello WMLC 1270 Both
Picayune WRJW 1320 Top 10 only
MISSOURI
Carthage KDMO 1490 Both
Caruthersville KCRV 1370 Top 10 only
Charleston KCHR 1350 Top 10 only
Fredricktown KFTW 1450 Top 10 only
Houston KUNQ 1250 Top 10 only
Kansas City WDAF 610 Trucking News only
Sedalia KDRO 1490 Top 10 only
Springfield KTTS 1260 Trucking News only
MONTANA
Miles City KMTA 1050 Both
West Yellowstone KWYS 920 Top 10 only
NEBRASKA
Ainsworth KBRB 1400 Top 10 only
Broken Bow KCNI 1280 Top 10 only
Lexington KRVN 880 Trucking News only
NEW JERSEY
Asbury Park WJLK 1310 Top 10 only
NEW MEXICO
Raton KRTN 1490 Trucking News only
Ruidoso KBUY 1360 Both
NEW YORK
Albany WGNA 1460 Trucking News only
Booneville WBRV 900 Top 10 only
Buffalo WWKB 1520 Trucking News only
Lancaster WXRL 1300 Top 10 only
Port Jervis WDLC 1490 Both
Pulaski WSCP 1070 Trucking News only
Ticonderoga WIPS 1250 Both
Trumansburg WPIE 1160 Trucking News only
NORTH CAROLINA
Ashville/Black Mtn. WZQR 1350 Top 10 only
Henderson WIZS 1450 Top 10 only
Hickory WIRC 630 Top 10 only
King WKTE 1090 Trucking News only
Reidsville WREV 1220 Top 10 only
Rocky Mount WRMT 1490 Trucking News only
Newland WJTP 1130 Top 10 only
Shelby WAFA 1390 Trucking News only
Taylorsville WTLK 1570 Top 10 only
NORTH DAKOTA
Fargo KFGO 750 Trucking News only
Grafton KXPO 1340 Top 10 only
Jamestown KSJB 600 Trucking News only
Minot KHND 1470 Top 10 only
Wahpeton KBMW 1450 Trucking News only
OHIO
Cincinnati WLW 700 Both
Conneaut/Cleveland WWOW 1360 Top 10 only
Ironton WIRO 1230 Trucking News only
OKLAHOMA
Duncan KRHD 1350 Trucking News only
Enid KGWA 960 Trucking News only
Guymon KGYN 1210 Both
Hobart KTJS 1420 Top 10 only
Pauls Valley KULH 1470 Trucking News only
Tulsa KVOO 1170 Trucking News only
Vinita KITO 1470 Both
Wewoka KWSH 1260 Top 10 only
Weatherford KWEY 1590 Top 10 only
OREGON
North Bend KBBR 1340 Trucking News only
Reedsport KDUN 1030 Trucking News only
Toledo KZUS 1230 Top 10 only
PENNSYLVANIA
Bloomsburg WCNR ???? Trucking News only
Hazelton WAZL 1490 Trucking News only
McConnellsburg WVFC 1530 Both
Phillipsburg WPHB 1260 Top 10 only
Selinsgrove WYGL 1240 Both
Troy WHGL 1310 Both
Waynesburg WANB 1580 Top 10 only
RHODE ISLAND
Providence WHIM 1110 Top 10 only
SOUTH CAROLINA
Greenville WFIS 1600 Top 10 only
Holly Hill WJBS 1440 Both
Loris WLSC 1240 Top 10 only
TENNESSEE
Chattanooga/Pikeville WUAT 1110 Top 10 only
Dyersburg WTRO 1330 Top 10 only
Greenville WSMG 1450 Top 10 only
Johnson City WGOC 640 Both
Knoxville WAEW 1330 Trucking News only
Nashville WZYX 1440 Top 10 only
Nashville WLAC 1510 Trucking News only
Ripley WTRB 1570 Top 10 only
Springfield WSGI 1100 Top 10 only
TEXAS
Dimmitt KDHM 1470 Both
Fort Worth WBAP 820 Trucking News only
El Paso KHEY 690 Trucking News only
Hemphill KAWS 1230 Top 10 only
Lampasas KCYL 1450 Top 10 only
Livingston KETX 1440 Both
Midland/Odessa KJBC 1150 Top 10 only
Monahans KLBO 1330 Top 10 only
Orange KOGT 1600 Top 10 only
Robstown KGLF 1510 Top 10 only
San Antonio WOAI 1200 Trucking News only
Sherman/Denison KJIM 1500 Both
Texarkana KCMC 740 Top 10 only
UTAH
Price KOAL 750 Trucking News only
Salt Lake City KRGQ 1550 Both
Salt Lake City KSL 1160 Trucking News only
VERMONT
Barre WSNO 1450 Top 10 only
VIRGINIA
Floyd WGFC 1030 Top 10 only
Lebanon WLRV 1380 Top 10 only
Mt. Jackson WSIG 790 Trucking News only
Saltville WXMY 1600 Both
WASHINGTON
Colville KCVL 1240 Top 10 only
Forks KVAC 1490 Both
Longview KBAM 1270 Top 10 only
Prosser KARY 1310 Both
Puyallup KJUN 1450 Top 10 only
Seattle KMPS 1300 Trucking News only
Tri-Cities KORD 870 Top 10 only
Wenatchee KPQ 560 Trucking News only
WEST VIRGINIA
Huntington WTCR 1420 Trucking News only
Pineville WWYO 970 Both
Ravenswood WMOV 1360 Both
Richwood WVAR 600 Top 10 only
Sutton WSGB 1490 Top 10 only
Weston WHAW 980 Top 10 only
WISCONSIN
Amery WXCE 1260 Both
Appleton WRJQ 1570 Trucking News only
Durand WRDN 1430 Trucking News only
Green Bay WGEE 1360 Trucking News only
Platteville/Shawano WTCH 960 Top 10 only
Shell Lake WCSW 940 Trucking News only
WYOMING
Buffalo KBBS 1450 Both
Worland KWOR 1340 Trucking News only
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Doug Smith W9WI/4 - Nashville TN - desmith@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Telecommunications Act of 1996 - Broadcast provisions
Doug Smith - desmith@xxxxxxxxxxxx
There was a fair amount of publicity last week for Senate Bill 652, the
Telecommunications Act of 1996. After considerable debate (mostly over
telephone and cable-TV provisions) both houses of Congress have approved
this law. President Clinton has said he'll sign it. This law will lead to
some important changes in broadcasting in the USA, but the news stories
didn't go into any details. (face it, the average American doesn't know or
care what "duopoly", "LMA", and "multiple ownership regulations" are!) I'm
hitting some of the highlights of the Act below. If you want to see the
entire document, I'm told it's available at:
ftp.loc.gov: /pub/thomas/c104/s652.enr.txt
Or on Compuserve, in BPFORUM, DL1, SB652.ZIP. Uncompressed, it's about 400K
in size. If you read these, remember that corporations are legally regarded
as "persons". And note that at least half the text applies to telephone and
cable TV companies, and competitive local telephone service.
In the short term, multiple-ownership changes will be most obvious to
the DXer. SB652 requires the FCC to totally eliminate the national cap on
radio station ownership - one firm could own 100 or more stations.
Restrictions within a particular market will remain, but will be relaxed:
Number of stns in market: Number co-owned: Number on same band:
------------------------- ---------------- --------------------
45 or more 8 5
30-44 7 4
15-29 6 4
14 or fewer 5 3
In the last case, no firm may own more than half the stations in the market.
"Number on same band" means how many FM (or AM) stations one firm may own.
For example, in a market with 23 stations, one firm could own 4 FM and 2 AM
stations. However, they could *not* own 5 FMs and 1 AM or 1 FM and 5 AMs.
Non-commercial stations don't count towards these regulations. A provision
of SB652 allows the FCC to waive these limits if the Commission determines
it "...will result in an increase of the number of radio broadcast stations
in operation." Geez, just what every DXer needs <G>!
Congress had more trouble arriving at an agreement on TV. SB652 does
lift the national numeric cap on TV ownership; again, one firm could own 100
or more TV stations. It does not, however, repeal the cap on the proportion
of the national viewing audience reached by commonly-owned stations.
Currently, no firm may own stations reaching more than 25% of the homes in
the U.S.. This figure has been relaxed to 35%. No concrete action was
taken to allow ownership of more than one TV station in the same market.
However, the FCC is required to review TV duopoly regulations and consider
relaxing them. One-to-a-market regulations theoretically prevent one firm
from owning both radio and TV stations in the same market. These
restrictions are routinely waived; SB652 basically orders the FCC to
continue to waive them in the 50 biggest markets. Finally, a provision
requires the FCC to review its ownership restrictions every 2 years and
repeal any unnecessary restrictions. The Commission could potentially
further relax TV (or radio) ownership restrictions on its own motion.
In the longer term, advanced television (ATV) will be critical to the
DXer. The new law urges (but does not require) that ATV licenses be first
granted to those already holding NTSC licenses or CPs. It requires that any
second channels be granted only on the condition that one of the two
channels (either the NTSC or ATV channel) be surrendered to the FCC for
reallocation. No phase-in period is stated. If a broadcaster carries a
subscription program, or leases part of its ATV spectrum to another firm,
the FCC is required to collect fees. 10 years after the first ATV licenses
are issued, the FCC is required to conduct a study of the ATV program. They
are to determine the extent to which consumers are willing to spend money on
ATV receivers, the value of TV spectrum for other services, and the degree
to which the FCC has been able to recover TV spectrum. While SB652 doesn't
say it, presumably the FCC could backtrack and allow continued NTSC
broadcasts indefinitely if viewers aren't buying ATV receivers.
A modification to Section 312 is important to AM DXers. No longer will
stations be able to remain dark for years. An added clause states: "If a
broadcasting station fails to transmit broadcast signals for any consecutive
12-month period, then the station license granted for the operation of that
broadcast station expires at the end of that period, notwithstanding any
provision, term, or condition of the license to the contrary." In other
words, if a station goes silent for more than a year, it loses its license.
This change also applies to FM and TV stations.
In the past, when a station applied for renewal of its license, the FCC
was required to consider whether the public interest would be better served
by denying the renewal and granting a new license to a competing applicant.
In practice, the FCC only denied renewal if the renewing station had
committed serious violations of the regulations. But on several occasions,
existing licensees spent large amounts of money on legal fees to defend
themselves from renewal challenges. SB652 now prohibits the FCC from
considering competing applications at renewal time. If the station has
served the public interest, has committed no serious violations, and doesn't
have a pattern of abuse, the FCC must renew its license. If there *have*
been serious violations, the FCC can deny the renewal. Only after the
renewal has been denied on the Commission's own motion can they accept
competing applications for the (now vacant) frequency. On a similar
subject, the term of broadcast licenses has been extended from 5 to 8 years.
The so-called "V-chip" is now law. TVs with screens larger than 13"
(the same sets now mandated to contain closed-captioning decoders) must
contain circuitry allowing set owners to block certain rated programs.
There probably won't be a chip as such - the Act specifies that the rating
code will be transmitted on Line 21, the same line used by closed-captions -
and the rating code will presumably be part of the caption data. The same
chips currently used to display captions will be modified to also allow
blocking of programs. Set manufacturers will have, at most, two years to
begin adding this equipment. Ironically, I don't see anything in the Act
(unless it's well hidden) requiring stations to broadcast the rating codes.
Finally, I see one paragraph that *seems* to preempt local zoning
restrictions on receiving antennas. Section 207 gives the FCC 6 months to
enact regulations that "prohibit restrictions that impair a viewer's ability
to receive video programming services through devices designed for
over-the-air reception of television broadcast signals, multichannel
multipoint distribution service ("wireless cable"-ds), or direct broadcast
satellite services." The exact meaning of this paragraph isn't explained
though, and it may well not mean what I think it does!
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If you note any AM changes (call, format, slogan, etc), please send them to
the NRC Log coordinator (Wayne Heinen) @ nrclog@xxxxxxxxxxxx and the IRCA
Almanac coordinator: Rich Toebe, 2550 Hilborn Rd #34, Fairfield CA
94533-1070.
IRCA's MEXICAN LOG coordinator is Chris Knight. If you note any changes in
Mexican radio, please drop him a note at: ??
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END of February 8 1996 IRCA's "AM DX NewsFlash" - bytheway@xxxxxxx
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