AM radio fights for survival

[Henry]

So this means that the Big Three will be completely out of the radio station business if CBS goes through with its fire sale. I know NBC got out of the business years ago (and all of its stations are now owned by ClearChannel iHeartMedia), and ABC did it most recently. Care to venture a guess as to where all the CBS stations will end up? Entercom, perhaps? As long as it's not iHeartMedia, then I could care less.

[vdeane]

I'm not sure if iHeartMedia is in a position to take them.  They're currently in litigation over whether they'll be considered in default to their creditors and forced to declare bankruptcy.

[Duke87]

That's quite resilient.  I wonder if they could survive a coronal mass ejection powerful enough to destroy the power grid.

It remains untested whether this scenario is really plausible. People point to what happened with the Carrington Event in 1859 and assume that a similar occurrence today must logically be much worse, but the flaw with this assumption is that the modern power grid has all sorts of safety features that the telegraph network in 1859 did not. Such an event would undoubtedly cause widespread power outages as these safeties trip all over the place, but if they perform as designed, there wouldn't be any widespread permanent damage.

That said, during such an event radio as well as any other form of wireless communication would likely be rendered useless by all of the extra ambient electromagnetic radiation, the static would drown out the signal. But radio stations would be able to resume broadcasting once the solar storm passed.


Besides, this is only one possible crisis scenario and it wouldn't take anything nearly this severe for radio to potentially make itself useful. Right after Sandy hit, the area of Manhattan which lost power had so many cell towers down that service was reduced to near zero. Took half an hour to send or receive a text if you were lucky.

[Road Hog]

Looked at the February book for Dallas-Fort Worth and the top 12 stations are all FM. The highest-rated AM is WBAP, followed by sports station KTCK (The Ticket), which somehow still outperforms its two FM sports talk competitors.

[SidS1045]

Care to venture a guess as to where all the CBS stations will end up?

As a lifer in the broadcasting business, that's what I want to know.  Most likely the stations will not be sold as a package deal, unless they find some company with oodles of cash which isn't mortgaged to the hilt...which leaves out iHeart Media, Cumulus and a few others.

The bigger question might be:  What do they want for the properties and what can they realistically get for them, especially the all-news operations?  CBS is virtually the only player in all-news stations, and there's also a question as to whether a buyer would keep them all-news.  It's an extremely expensive format to run, has short listening cycles ("You give us 22 minutes, we'll give you the world") and requires tons of people, which are the most expensive single expense in running a radio station.

[bing101]

Care to venture a guess as to where all the CBS stations will end up?

As a lifer in the broadcasting business, that's what I want to know.  Most likely the stations will not be sold as a package deal, unless they find some company with oodles of cash which isn't mortgaged to the hilt...which leaves out iHeart Media, Cumulus and a few others.

The bigger question might be:  What do they want for the properties and what can they realistically get for them, especially the all-news operations?  CBS is virtually the only player in all-news stations, and there's also a question as to whether a buyer would keep them all-news.  It's an extremely expensive format to run, has short listening cycles ("You give us 22 minutes, we'll give you the world") and requires tons of people, which are the most expensive single expense in running a radio station.

http://deadline.com/2016/03/josh-elliott-named-lead-anchor-of-cbs-news-cbsn-digital-streaming-news-service-1201712201/. So far CBS has put lots of emphasis on their all News App CBSN on the CBS News site/app as a ploy to get younger audiences to CBS Apps.

[Road Hog]

It probably wouldn't be worth it for Cumulus or iHeart to buy CBS because in a bunch of markets (like DFW) they'll have to turn around and sell off a bunch of stations. FCC rules cap the amount of stations a company can own in a single market. That rule would have to change.

[Desert Man]

In CA radio sets, there are still a few original classic AM stations: KFI-640 and KNX-1070 from L.A., KFMB-760 from San Diego, KCBS-740 from San Francisco and KFBK-1530 from Sacramento to name a few. I'm able to receive KDWN-720 Las Vegas, KFYI-550 and KTAR-620 Phoenix, KOA-850 Denver and KJR-950 Seattle. They happen to be clear-channel or 50,000 watt boosters.

[The Nature Boy]

In CA radio sets, there are still a few original classic AM stations: KFI-640 and KNX-1070 from L.A., KFMB-760 from San Diego, KCBS-740 from San Francisco and KFBK-1530 from Sacramento to name a few. I'm able to receive KDWN-720 Las Vegas, KFYI-550 and KTAR-620 Phoenix, KOA-850 Denver and KJR-950 Seattle. They happen to be clear-channel or 50,000 watt boosters.

Clear channel radio stations must've been incredibly interesting pre-internet or cable TV. I've gotten WBZ 1040 out of Boston as far south as West Virginia. I couldn't imagine being a kid in West Virginia in the 60s or 70s and happening upon Boston radio.

[D-Dey65]

Clear channel radio stations must've been incredibly interesting pre-internet or cable TV. I've gotten WBZ 1040 out of Boston as far south as West Virginia. I couldn't imagine being a kid in West Virginia in the 60s or 70s and happening upon Boston radio.

I can, because I've gotten radio and TV stations from other parts of the country on Long Island. I've actually been known to get a radio station as far west as the Kansas City area once in one of the used family station wagons we had.

[hbelkins]

Clear channel radio stations must've been incredibly interesting pre-internet or cable TV. I've gotten WBZ 1040 out of Boston as far south as West Virginia. I couldn't imagine being a kid in West Virginia in the 60s or 70s and happening upon Boston radio.

Growing up, we got two television stations (the NBC and CBS affiliates out of Lexington) on one black-and-white TV in the house. My dad listened to a lot of AM radio -- WHAS from Louisville for UK and Kentucky Colonels basketball games and WLW for Cincinnati Reds games. But we also listened to WSM out of Nashville (Grand Ole Opry) and there was also a station out of Chicago (WLS?) that we listened to on occasion.

Lots of out-of-staters who grew up in the Bluegrass State, back in the day, would drive to locations where they could pick up WHAS to listen to Kentucky basketball games.

[jp the roadgeek]

Clear Channel stations are interesting.  WTIC 1080 in Hartford brags that it can picked up in 23 states and eastern Canada, and is a de facto long distance flagship for Red Sox broadcasts.  I can attest to the eastern Canada part, as I picked it up to as close as 10 miles from Quebec City.  I've also picked it up in Virginia and West Virginia when far enough away from WBAL's (1090) city grade signal.  I've picked up WFAN (660) clear as a bell on 128 in the Boston area, as well as near DC.  WEEI (850) in Boston has a directional signal; you can pick it up in Halifax, but not Sturbridge.  Other than WFAN, other clear channel stations I can get (mostly at night and on a digital tuning radio): are

Boston: 1030 (fuzzy day, clear night)
NYC: 660, 710, 770, 880, 1010 (day and night for all)
Albany: 810
Philly: 1060, 1210 (610 has a local station blocking it)
Baltimore: 1090
DC: 1500
Rochester: 1180
Buffalo: 1520
Hamilton, ON: 900
Montreal: 690, 730, (940 when it was active)
Pittsburgh: 1020
Cleveland: 1120
Cincinnati: 700, 1530
Pittsburgh: 1020
Detroit: 760
Charlotte: 1110
Chicago (on a good night): 780, 890, 1000
Atlanta (on a good night): 750

I've picked up KMOX out of St. Louis down in Fairfield County, but there's a little 1120 station near me that blocks it.

[bing101]

http://www.robertfeder.com/2014/08/14/hey-kids-radio-disney-turning-off-stations/


From the 2014 archives Disney later sold its Radio Disney affiliates to different owners. One source indicated that Radio Disney audiences were using digital platforms over AM/FM platform.  Only KDIS Los Angeles stayed with Disney.

See Disney still owns Radio stations but 3 are ESPN sports talk affiliates and KDIS.  Its ABC radio division the ABC radio network went to slacker radio apps and its former stations went to Cumulus as in KABC-AM.

[MikeTheActuary]

That's quite resilient.  I wonder if they could survive a coronal mass ejection powerful enough to destroy the power grid.

Over the past few years, FEMA has been hardening the Primary Entry Point stations of the EAS network.  These stations are generally the primary AM stations in their regions.  As I understand it, the upgraded PEP station gear is intended to survive a Carrington-type event, but probably wouldn't survive a space-based EMP military attack.

Surviving a Carrington type event isn't actually that difficult, assuming you have enough warning and your own power-generating capability.  However, given the probable damage (but not complete destruction) to transmission infrastructure, the public probably wouldn't appreciate the distinction. 

Clear channel radio stations must've been incredibly interesting pre-internet or cable TV. I've gotten WBZ 1040 out of Boston as far south as West Virginia. I couldn't imagine being a kid in West Virginia in the 60s or 70s and happening upon Boston radio.

The real cool stuff was on shortwave, actually.   Heck, AM DXing is still kind of fun if you have the right gear.

The main reason I don't do much roadgeek-wise these days is that I got sucked into amateur radio.   The light blue dots on this map represent some of the places I've made contact with, using just 100w, mostly between 1810 and 1850 kHz (just above the AM broadcast band).

[hm insulators]

When I lived in Hawaii, I was probably the only person on the island of Kauai to have a Los Angeles radio station (KFI-640 long before they became a talk radio station) programmed on their car radio. I also used to DX the Mainland just to see how far away I could pick up a station. My best was WOAI in San Antonio.

[Duke87]

When I lived in Hawaii, I was probably the only person on the island of Kauai to have a Los Angeles radio station (KFI-640 long before they became a talk radio station) programmed on their car radio. I also used to DX the Mainland just to see how far away I could pick up a station. My best was WOAI in San Antonio.

Is that picking the station up loud and clear, or barely hearing something through the static?

I have picked up WCBS 880 from NYC loud and clear at night in Montreal, and clear enough to understand what everyone is saying in the eastern suburbs of Cleveland. Both cases are in the range of 300-400 miles from the source. The idea of finding a signal thousands of miles from its source is pretty damn impressive.

[bing101]

https://radioinsight.com/blog/headlines/105684/cumulus-making-major-changes-at-kgo-ronn-owens-to-ksfo/#comment-21959


Wow KGO-AM will have some programming changes soon. I'm not sure how Cumulus is going to convince younger audiences to listen to KGO 810 when KQED is beating them up in the ratings for San Francisco and KCBS All News.

http://ratings.radio-online.com/cgi-bin/rol.exe/arb009

[Pete from Boston]

Clear Channel stations are interesting.  WTIC 1080 in Hartford brags that it can picked up in 23 states and eastern Canada, and is a de facto long distance flagship for Red Sox broadcasts.  I can attest to the eastern Canada part, as I picked it up to as close as 10 miles from Quebec City.  I've also picked it up in Virginia and West Virginia when far enough away from WBAL's (1090) city grade signal.  I've picked up WFAN (660) clear as a bell on 128 in the Boston area, as well as near DC.  WEEI (850) in Boston has a directional signal; you can pick it up in Halifax, but not Sturbridge.  Other than WFAN, other clear channel stations I can get (mostly at night and on a digital tuning radio): are

Boston: 1030 (fuzzy day, clear night)
NYC: 660, 710, 770, 880, 1010 (day and night for all)
Albany: 810
Philly: 1060, 1210 (610 has a local station blocking it)
Baltimore: 1090
DC: 1500
Rochester: 1180
Buffalo: 1520
Hamilton, ON: 900
Montreal: 690, 730, (940 when it was active)
Pittsburgh: 1020
Cleveland: 1120
Cincinnati: 700, 1530
Pittsburgh: 1020
Detroit: 760
Charlotte: 1110
Chicago (on a good night): 780, 890, 1000
Atlanta (on a good night): 750

I've picked up KMOX out of St. Louis down in Fairfield County, but there's a little 1120 station near me that blocks it.

I've found the hills on 84 east and west of Hartford to be fertile ground for DXing at night.  WTOP Washington DC, CFZM Toronto, KMOX St. Louis, 3WE Cleveland (apparently now defunct).  KYW from Philly is almost a given.  KDKA Pittsburgh on occasion.

The Cape is another good place. A gazillion miles of flat salt water in every direction allows a lot of clear signals.

[bing101]

http://nypost.com/2016/03/31/cbs-plans-to-spin-off-radio-business-with-an-ipo/

CBS to offer its radio division its IPO.

[KEVIN_224]

Another idea is when a big local AM station simulcasts on an FM "sister" or with a commonly-owned station. Here in Hartford/New Britain/Middletown:

WTIC-FM 96.5 HD2 simulcasts WTIC-AM 1080
WUCS-FM 97.9 HD2 simulcasts WPOP-AM 1410
WDRC-FM 102.9 HD3 simulcasts WDRC-AM 1360 (the head of the 4-station Talk Of Connecticut group)

[bing101]

http://www.allaccess.com/the-letter/archive/24075/as-goes-kgo

Wow this is not just happening at KGO but this was used as an example about AM Stations in general today from Cumulus O&O's KGO, WABC 77 and KABC 790 all main talk stations for Cumulus.

[GCrites]

I picked up KEOM-FM 88.5 out of Mesquite, TX one day here in Columbus, OH around 9AM. I've noticed over the years that between 9-10:30 AM that I have been able to pick up faraway radio and analog TV stations back in the analog TV days.

[jp the roadgeek]

I remember a day about 12 years ago where FM stations from far away were coming in over local stations.  Here in CT, I was trying to pick up WWEI-FM in RI and instead picked up a station in Lebanon, MO.  Next thing I know, I was picking up stations in DC, Louisiana, and Florida. Lasted about 3 hours in the early evening.

[TravelingBethelite]

Longest DX I've ever received, FM OR AM, is WLS 890/WBBM 720 Chicago on a November night near Danbury, CT. The farthest FM, however WUSL 98.9 Philly during a rainstorm last April. I've found late nights, between 3-7:45 AM, especially around sunrise, to be the best FM DX'ing time. I couldn't tell you if there is a correlation or not. It is a pattern for me, though... 

[GCrites]

I definitely remember making a special effort to pick up 750 WSB out of Atlanta to pick up Jim Ross' Sunday night wrestling radio program in the early '90s. This was at our farm outside of town which didn't have as much interference from other radio and TV stations as where I live now. It was in and out.