Author: mw

Netherlands

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Radio Seagull on Facebook
By Martin Wallis
14 April 2026
An article from our regional radio and TV station ‘Omrop Fryslan’ in the Frisian language:

It was such a great plan: the red lightship Jenni Baynton from Harlingen would go out to sea again, to make radio broadcasts from behind anchor. So the foundation behind the ship wanted to raise money for the maintenance, which is much needed. But it won’t continue. The diesel is too expensive.

The Jenni Baynton is the last ship that still broadcasts radio. It has a similar history to that of Radio Veronica. It started as a sailing lighthouse in 1949. After that, it was also a disco when it was located in Rotterdam.

In 2005, the Friends of the Lightship foundation bought it and the volunteers turned it into a functional ship again. Between 2005 and 2015, for example, Radio Waddenzee could be heard from the ship. The
ship would anchor in the Wadden Sea for five weeks. Not only to make radio, but also for other cultural events. And although the ship’s engines do not use much diesel when it is at anchor, electricity is needed. This is also generated on the old ship with diesel.

According to the board of the Friends of the Lightship foundation, the price of diesel has recently become so high that the cost of electricity on board can rise to 300 euros per day. Then the whole action would no longer generate any money, but money would have to be added.

The money would be used for a shipyard overhaul. The last shipyard overhaul the ship received was in 2009. The Friends of the Lightship foundation therefore wants to make the ship look good again. Volunteers usually maintain the ship, but for a major overhaul it has to go to a shipyard and the costs to do so are high.

 From June 1 to July 7, the ship will not be anchored at sea, but with its ropes on the shore in Harlingen. This also has an advantage, says the board: it will now be much easier for visitors to get on board.

It is possible that the ropes will still be loose for a while with the Tall Ships Races. These will be in Harlingen from July 3 to 6. The board is now investigating whether this is possible. “That beautiful red
lightship as a gatekeeper at the entrance to the harbor to welcome the sailing ships does have some extras”, says the board.

Mike Terry to nordx iog (2026-04-15)

United States

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Salem Media is turning in the license of 620 KTNO Plano/Dallas TX.

KTNO has been simulcasting Christian Preaching “100.7 The Word” KWRD Highland Village since November 1 when KTNO ended its former Spanish Christian “Radio Luz” programming.

After originating in Wichita Falls in 1939, the 620 facility moved into the Dallas market in 1996 as Standards KAAM. It would become the “Radio Disney” affiliate in the market in 1998 as KMKI through 2015 when it was sold to Salem for $3 million. At the time Salem had six stations in the Dallas/Fort Worth market; now it is down to just KWRD-FM and Conservative Talk “660 The Answer” KSKY Balch Springs.

KTNO’s translator 102.5 K273BJ Dallas will now rebroadcast KSKY.
https://radioinsight.com/headlines/345994/salem-surrenders-dallas-am-license/

Radio Insight (2026-04-10)

Russia

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Radio Vostok Rossii (Радио Восток России) is the last remaining large MW station in Russia. They broadcast on 765kHz from various sites from Khabarovsk Region in the Russian Ear East, which is 788 thousand square km, more than twice the size of Japan.

In Tokyo, as YBS Radio (Kofu, Yamanashi) on 765kHz and NHK-R2 Akita on 774kHz(500kW) were gone in March 2026, 765kHz has been a clear channel since the beginning of April. Then I can receive this Russian MW station with good reception in early evening hours (around 1000UT). It’s been a really long time since I last listened to the Russian station on MW!

As E-mail address of this station is not made public, I asked it on the “contact” form at their home page.  They soon informed me of the address. I sent reception report in Russian with receiver screen and sample recording to this address, they promptly replied with eQSL in pdf format. As the stuff of this station understand English, reception reports in English may be also accepted.

Using Frequencies
  MW – all 765kHz
    20kW at Khabarovsk / Komsomolsk-na-Amure
    5kW at Bikin / Vyazmsky/ Troitskoye/ Berezavy/ Zinmermanovka/ De-kashin/ Bogorodskoye/ Chegdemyn / 
       Yagodny/ Sovetskaya Gavani
   FM
     Khabarovsk 103.7MHz (main station)  Komsomolsk-na-Amure 88.9MHz
     Amursk 100.9MHz  Sovetskaya Gavani 103.6MHz  Vanino 105.6MHz  
     Vysokogrony 102.8MHz  Polina Osipenko 102.3MHz  Chumikan 101.1MHz   Ayan 102.0MHz   
     Okhotsk 102.9MHz  

URL:  http://vostoknews.ru   (in Russian)
Mailing Adress:   Dzerzhinsky Street 36, Khabarovsk, Russia 680000
E-mail address for reception report:   <adm –at- radiovostok.ru>
Telephone:   +7 4212 42 02 82

I received the important notice from the staff (?).  The station will cease all MW transmission within a year, replacing to FM. 5kW MW relay stations in the southern half of the region will be also closed and moved to some FM frequencies. The reasons are increasing cost of MW transmission and decreasing MW listeners in the region. 

Takahito Akabayashi, Tokyo, Japan to WOR iog (2026-04-10)

Hawaii

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KNDI 1270 Hawaii goes off

Beloved multilingual radio station drops off AM dial
A multilingual station that has served Hawaii’s immigrant communities for 66 years, has gone dark on the AM dial.
By Daryl Huff
Published: Mar. 11, 2026 at 3:11 AM UTC

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – KNDI radio, a multilingual station that has served Hawaii’s immigrant communities for 66 years, has gone dark on the AM dial after being forced to vacate its transmitter tower, leaving hosts and listeners scrambling to reconnect.

The station had been broadcasting from a tower in Kalihi, and says it still had three years remaining on its lease when it was told to vacate by Dec. 31 of last year, citing safety concerns.

The land under the tower is owned by the state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, which has not described the specific safety concerns.

Station executives say they do not plan to sue and are instead focused on raising money to install a new transmitter at a tower in Mapunapuna.

Hosts say listeners, especially elders, left without a signal

KNDI host Flor Martinez, who has been on the air for decades, said the loss hit him hard.

“I was devastated. For so many years that we had been in the air and all of a sudden we are not there anymore,” Martinez said. “Our responsibility to our audience, to our people listening to us, as if we have betrayed them and it’s so sad.”

Hispanic-language host Rolando Sanchez said listeners were left confused by the sudden disappearance.

“They had no idea what’s going on, what’s happening, and all of the station, we have a problem,” Sanchez said. “We’re on the air. We’re not. We’re here. We’re there.”

Host Ernie Bautista said he has been fielding calls from listeners who can no longer find his program.

“I don’t want my listeners confused. (They) keep calling me, ‘How can I get into your program?’” Bautista said.

He said he has been directing listeners to the station’s Facebook page as an alternative. “If they cannot find me on the regular program, AM, FM or whatever, you can always join me on Facebook.”

AM signal offered statewide reach

The station’s AM frequency provided statewide coverage because low-frequency AM signals travel farther than FM and can penetrate physical obstacles, making the band particularly valuable for emergency information.

The station launched a new FM site last year at frequency 104.7, and it is continuing all its programming, but its audience is shrinking, which means lower advertising revenue.

The station’s youngest host, Bryan Munoz said they didn’t have enough notice to stay on the AM band.

“We were heartbroken because it was like abrupt and we had to do what we could to keep things going,” Munoz said. “But a lot of people miss the AM.”

Station seeks $500K to restore signal

KNDI went on the air in 1960 with an all-female lineup as a short-lived attention-getter.

The station is known for its Filipino hosts and programming but also carries regular content in multiple immigrant languages. Between music, hosts share medical advice, community events and even funeral announcements.

The station broadcasts from a rented house on South King Street and operates on a modest budget.

Station executives say relocating the AM transmitter will cost approximately $500,000.

Along with a GoFundMe page for public donations, the station is seeking grants from government agencies and foundations.

Sanchez said the community’s connection to the station runs deep.

“The dependence of people to have some way of knowing what’s going on, we don’t want it to disappear,” he said.

Copyright 2026 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved. (via Kevin Redding, Crump, ABDX)

WOR iog (2026-04-10)

United States

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A fire early Tuesday morning destroyed the transmission building for a 50,000-watt FM station and its colocated AM signal on the Delmarva peninsula.

103.3 WESR(FM), “The Shore,” is licensed to Onley-Onancock, Va., and serves Virginia’s Eastern Shore region.

It broadcasts from a tower site in Tasley that is also home to its sister AM station, the country-formatted 1330 WESR(AM), and its 105.7 FM translator. As of Wednesday, the three signals were off the air.

The Tasley Volunteer Fire Company arrived after receiving a call for a fire at the station’s tower site and reported the structure was fully involved, according to WBOC(TV).

According to station owner Charlie Russell, both the AM and FM can be heard again via their online streams, and Russell said that the station is working to secure a backup transmitter, with the hopes of returning to the air soon.

He expressed gratitude to the emergency services that arrived quickly on scene.

The AM signal goes back to 1958 from the Accomack County tower site, according to its FCC license record. The 103.3 FM signal signed on 10 years later.

IRCA iog (2026-04-10)

United States

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American General Media has moved News/Talk 1180 KERN Wasco-Greenacres/Bakersfield CA to 1230, while retaining its translator 96.1 K241CI Bakersfield.

The move shifts the Talk programming from the 10kW directional 1180 signal to the 1kW 1230 signal. KERN was originally on 1410 until moving to 1180 in 2008. The signal downgraded from 50kW day to 10kW in 2023. It will continue to be heard on its 250 watt translator 96.1
K241CI.

What is now KERN had been Sports 1230 KGEO. While its call letters have moved to 1180, that signal has been taken silent for what AGM says are “technical reasons”. The Sports programming will continue to be heard on 101.1 K266CG Bakersfield now fed by 94.1 KISV-HD2.
https://radioinsight.com/headlines/345710/kern-moves-to-1230/

Radio Insight (2026-04-09)

Colombia

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 An era in Colombian broadcasting is coming to an end. 

📻

Colmundo Radio, a staple of the airwaves for over 40 years, is officially going off the air. The network’s history began in 1981 when it was founded as Grupo Radial Colombiano by the Rodríguez Orejuela brothers. During its early years, it was a media powerhouse that recruited top-tier talent to dominate the ratings.

In 1989, the network underwent a major transformation when it was sold to Pastor Chamorro, an Ecuadorian politician and religious leader who rebranded it as Colmundo Radio. Often called “La cadena de la paz” (The Peace Chain), it became a primary platform for the Student Crusade Church and Christian programming.

Due to the decline of AM radio listenership and the rise of digital platforms, the network has decided to return its licenses to the Ministry of Information Technologies and Communications (MinTIC).

The closure affects operations in the following cities:
* Bogotá (Main Base)
* Medellín
* Cartagena

All of these stations operated on the AM (Amplitude Modulation) frequency band. Currently, the stations have replaced their standard content with music as they prepare for the final shutdown, impacting over 50 journalists and staff members who now face an uncertain future.

Report by La Negra Candela.
Source: youtu.be/7HLP1fiBeV0
#ColmundoRadio #ColombianRadio #RadioHistory

73, Yimber Gaviria, Colombia to WOR iog (2026-04-08)