Month: February 2023

Czechia

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Radio Dechovka does not broadcast today on 1260 kHz, so Sabras Radio with its 200 watt transmitter from Leicester can be heard with its Asian program around 1730 UT in Salzburg.

Christoph DX to A-DX Fernempfang FB group (2023-02-20)

United States

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The FCC has upheld the cancellation of International Aerospace Solution’s 590 KTHO and 96.1 K241BK South Lake Tahoe CA following an application for review.

The licenses were deleted in November 2021 after failing to respond to multiple FCC inquiries that they were Silent or operating with unauthorized facilities. FCC Field Office personnel and public complaints noted that KTHO went silent in December 2019 after its transmission equipment was deemed abandoned and seized by the tower owner due to nonpayment of rent. The translator was however, noted as being on the air from an unauthorized location originating programming as KTHO was off the air.

In December 2021, IAS admitted it had not been operating the stations from their licensed site but were running from the house of the station’s engineer. They argued that because the owner of the station had Parkinson’s Disease that affected his ability to execute certain tasks including to respond to the Bureau’s inquiries, would assign the licenses to the engineer who was a minority, were affected by the loss of site and advertising revenue due to COVID, loss of the stations would be anti-competitive, they provided safety information responsive to the area’s unique geography, weather, and wildfires, and operating from the unauthorized site did not cause interference and conferred a public benefit by providing local news, weather, and emergency information.

The media bureau dismissed that petition because it relied on arguments it could have timely raised. In the application for review, IAS stated that the bureau should have viewed those new matters merely as delayed responses to its letter of inquiry and not as untimely submissions on reconsideration. The agency responded to the review stating the procedural dismissal of IAS’ reconsideration request was correct as its rules specifically prohibit submission of new facts on reconsideration confirming that KTHO and K241BK expired as a matter of law due to the stations’ extended lack of authorized operations and not as a result of the failure by IAS to respond timely to the LOI and even had IAS presented them in a timely manner as a response to the LOI, it would not have supported reinstatement of the Stations’ licenses.
https://radioinsight.com/headlines/248851/fcc-report-2-19-fcc-upholds-ktho-cancellation/

Lance Venta, RadioInsight (2023-02-19)

United States

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On February 13, 2023, Audacy announced that KDWN 720 kHz would be signing off on March 1, while the translator would remain on air with the same programming. In November 2022, Audacy sold the land that the AM transmitter sat on for $40 million. KDWN is diplexed with KXST near the Las Vegas Motor on the same day; Audacy also announced that KXST would also go dark.

For many DXers, KDWN 720 is their only Nevada log, and the loss of the signal will make it even more difficult to log the Silver State. But in the midst of this bad news, there is a brief silver lining for DX hounds. KDWN and KXST Chief Engineer Tracy Teagarden announced on the “I Love AM Radio” Facebook group that “K-Dawn” would be going out with one last hurrah: 

KWDW DX Test on February 28, 2023, at 23:59 Pacific Time (7:59 UTC) for only ten (10) minutes. The test will be conducted at the full daytime power of the station, which has been 25,000 watts since 2020. We don’t have information about the station’s antenna pattern, but this is the best chance to log K-Dawn in years.  

Programming will be “unique” but will not feature Morse Code or sweep tones. The Courtesy Program Committee did inquire about adding some of this material and possibly extending the length of the test. Neither could be arranged in the short time frame available. Mr. Teagarden has been very helpful and open to hobbyists, so please don’t complain. It’s not his decision. I just wanted to let you know that there’s no QSL information currently available. If you seek a QSL from the test, please be polite in writing the station, which will continue as an FM translator. Please don’t send multiple requests, call the station or be rude. The CPC would strongly suggest sending a pre-filled card or letter, requiring only a signature from station personnel. Include a Self Addressed Stamped Envelope (SASE). 
Remember this test begins at 23:59 on Feb 28 Pacific Time. 
This is 00:59 Central Time. 01:59 Eastern Time. 07:59 UTC. 
Don’t miss your last chance to log the Talk of Las Vegas and the last whisper of KDWN. 

73, Les Rayburn, N1LF to mwcircle iog (2023-02-19)

India

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Watch out for extended schedule (past 2310 IST/1740 UTC) by AIR stations from South India carrying live broadcast/devotional programs songs/drama/talk etc in regional languages on the ocassion of religious festival “Shivaratri” on 18th Feb, 2023 (Saturday).

Andhra Pradesh in Telugu:
837 kHz Vijayawada
900 kHz Kadapah
927 kHz Visahakapatnam

Puducherry in Tamil
1215 kHz Puducherry

Karnataka in Kannada:
612 kHz Bengaluru
675 kHz Bhadrawathi
765 kHz Dharwad
1107 kHz Gulbarga
1089 kHz Udipi

Tamil Nadu State in Tamil:
720 kHz Chennai
936 kHz Tiruchirapalli
999 kHz Coimbatore
1197 kHz Tirunelveli
1269 kHz Madurai

Telangana State in Telugu:
738 kHz Hyderabad

Tamil FM stations from SriLanka also carry live relay of special program for Maha Shivaratri.
Last year AIR stations from Tamilnadu, Karnataka and Puducherry were not heard.

Alokesh Gupta to dxindia iog (2023-02-18)

United States

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Joseph Alex Duvall’s Duvall Media Group will purchase Classic Rock “The Rock of Daytona” 1340 WROD/104.7 W284AV Daytona Beach FL from Miracle Media Group for $350,000. An LMA will take effect on March 1.

Community First Broadcasting acquires News/Talk 1550 KIWA/100.7 K264CW and Classic Hits 105.3 KIWA-FM Sheldon IA from Sheldon Broadcasting Co. for $100,000. The acquisition splits the purchase price as $50,000 for the equipment and vehicles and the other half for the licenses and goodwill. Community First Broadcasting owns stations just to the west of Sheldon in Sioux Center and to the east in Spirit Lake.

Somerset Educational Broadcasting Foundation purchases Silent 1480 WNKW/97.5 W248DI Neon KY from Sunshine Media Group for $10,000. WNKW will join the buyer’s “King of Kings Radio Network” based at 90.5 WTHL Somerset KY.
https://radioinsight.com/headlines/248785/station-sales-week-of-2-17/

Lance Venta, RadioInsight (2023-02-17)

United States

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Sage Weil’s Civic Media is continuing its rapid growth across the state of Wisconsin with the purchase of three AMs and four translators from Magnum Media for $3.65 million.

Civic will acquire Oldies 1400 WRJN/99.9 W260CV Racine/98.1 W251BU Kenosha, Oldies “Eagle 1490” WLXR La Crosse, Soft AC 105.7 WEZY Chippewa Falls/93.5 W228EP Eau Claire, and translator 95.7 W239CV Oshkosh. Magnum had just closed on its purchase of WEZY (formerly WCFW) in October.

The deal will give Civic Media seventeen stations across the state of Wisconsin since the company was formed last July, most of which currently or will soon feature a Liberal News/Talk format.
https://radioinsight.com/headlines/248816/civic-media-continue-rapid-wisconsin-growth-with-magnum-media-deal/

LanceVenta, RadioInsight (2023-02-17)

Unid

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Someone is relaying Caroline Flashback on 765khz at 1745utc.
Heard on the BDMR with fair signal dominant on channel.

Steve Whitt to mwcircle iog (2023-02-17)

United Kingdom

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Ofcom has launched a consultation after receiving a request from talkSPORT to reduce its AM coverage.

The station wants to switch off four of its 22 transmitter sites. This will would reduce the coverage of its AM licence from 93% to 89.9% of the UK adult population.

talkSPORT says the reason for the proposed changes include declining listenership to its AM service, as more people are using alternative platforms, as well as the costs involved in maintaining AM transmitter sites because of current high energy prices.

The proposal includes closing four sites immediately because they may already be unviable. These are Dumfries (Dumfries and Galloway), Kingston upon Hull (East Riding of Yorkshire), Fern Borrow (Bournemouth) and Greenside Scalp (Tayside).

Ofcom says it is minded to approve the request, but before reaching a final decision, is giving affected and interested parties an opportunity to have their say.

The consultation will close on 17 March 2023.
https://radiotoday.co.uk/2023/02/talksport-submits-request-to-reduce-its-am-coverage/?fbclid=IwAR1SaI2xkSjmzEFt-JsCqDdCqm9LzagIukSTmCb0QM-iefkd90fqT4zREKI

Ydun Ritz (2023-02-17)