Just a bit to the north, WRKL (910 New City) returned to the Rockland County airwaves this week, with a simulcast of the Polish-language programs from sister PolNet station WNVR (1030 Vernon Hills IL), now claiming a "New York-New Jersey-Connecticut" relay on 910. We were remiss last week in overlooking Rockland County's other commercial AM, little WLIR (1300 Spring Valley), ex-WGRC, WRRC, etc. The station is playing adult standards with little, if any, local content. We've been reading about 1300's history, as well as more than 150 other New York-area AM stations, in an incredible book called The Airwaves of New York, by Bill Jaker, Frank Sulek, and Peter Kanze (McFarland, 1998). We thought we knew a lot about New York radio history, but these guys have done their homework -- there are stations in here we never even heard of before now!
WRKL's former sister FM, now WYNY (107.1 Briarcliff Manor), is now Webcasting along with its "Y107" country quadcast-mates. Find it at the Y107 Web site.
And we'll wrap up the downstate report this week by noting that Sound of Life has been granted the calls W206AW for its new 89.1 Pawling translator.
In the Albany area, Sinclair is officially dropping its plans to buy WMHQ (Channel 45) from public station WMHT TV/FM. No word yet on what the WMHT folks will do now; they'd hoped to use proceeds from Channel 45 to fund DTV conversion and a new studio facility. NERW wonders whether the financially-strapped Sinclair will go forward with its plan to buy Buffalo's secondary public station, WNEQ (Channel 23); those plans are apparently in some doubt now as well.
The new modern AC station on 104.9 in Altamont, ex-WSRD Johnstown, is applying for the "WAAP" calls as "the Point." Its new PD and morning talent is Pat Ryan, who comes across the hall from nights at WYJB (95.5). And over at WABY/WKLI-WKBE, Paige Laimers succeeds former co-owner Bill Hunt as general manager.
The 99.7 formerly allocated to Old Forge has been granted a change of city of license to Newport Village, which in reality will mean 1400 watts from up in the hills east of Utica. Calls on this yet-unbuilt rimshotter are "WBGK" for now.
It was "back to basics" when a storm took out power to Ithaca's Eagle Broadcasting stations (WHCU, WTKO, WYXL, WQNY), forcing engineers to cobble together some portable equipment, a phone line, and a flashlight to get WTKO (1470) back on the air from a closet with emergency information. Now that's radio...
Houghton College in Allegany County is teaming up with Rochester public broadcaster WXXI to expand the reach of classical WXXI-FM (91.5 Rochester). If we're reading the FCC filings right, it appears WXXI will take over Houghton's WJSL (90.3 Houghton), while Houghton applies for a new campus-based station on 91.1 with 360 watts. Last we heard WJSL, it was using the Bath-based Family Life religious network.
Rochester's "Mix 100.5" has ousted much of its airstaff. The Jacor-owned AC station dismissed the morning team of Michael Gately and Shari Smith and afternoon guy (and ex-Boston jock) Tom Sheridan this week. Gately and Sheridan were both veterans of AAA WMAX, which Jacor bought and killed last year. Smith came down the hall to Mix (aka WVOR 100.5) last year from Jacor news-talker WHAM (1180). More on the replacement staffers next week.
We heard the new "WMNY" legal on Buffalo's AM 1120 (ex-WHTT) today, but that was the only change to the gospel daytimer. Over at sister station WHTT-FM (104.1), PD Tom Schuh is planning the "Buffalo Radio Reunion" June 25-27. Contact him at <htt104@aol.com> for more information on what promises to be a fun weekend. And if you like that, you'll love Buffalo Radio Roots, a very cool RealAudio compilation of classic airchecks.
Down in the Elmira market, little WEHH (1590 Elmira Heights-Horseheads) has applied for reinstatement of its expired CP for 470 watts from a directional array at night.
And across the border in Canada, the CRTC has rejected the application of CKPC (1380 Brantford) for a 98.9 FM relay in Simcoe, Ontario. Up in Quebec, the CBC has applied for another relay in Ste.-Anne-de-Beaupré, this time 124 watts on 89.9 MHz to rebroadcast the "Chaîne culturelle" programming from Radio-Canada's CBVX (95.3) in Quebec City.
Here's a Web site for Canadian radio fans: William Demmery up near Ottawa checked in to tell us about his Canadian Radio Pages, which include AM DX news, a Canadian AM directory, and more.
The three people with AM stereo receivers in Greater Boston may be pleased to know that WBZ (1030) has fixed its stereo generator and is once again available in glorious C-QUAM. (Okay, we're being sarcastic...but it's getting to the point where even at night, it's hard to find anything that lights the stereo indicator on any of this writer's five AM stereo radios...)
Newton's WNTN (1550) now has a Web presence.
Down on the Cape, there's a new morning host at WCIB (101.9 Falmouth). Frankie Foxx is out, and Kim Luve, formerly of WXEX (99.7 Wakefield-Peace Dale RI), comes on board.
You'll have a while longer to submit your comments to the FCC on low-power FM; the comment deadline has been extended from mid-April to June 1.
At WGAN (560 Portland), budget cuts led to the elimination this week of the morning-show producer position. Out, as a result, is Adam Wolf, who moved up to WGAN from Boston's WBZ a couple of years ago. NERW's sorry to hear that; Adam is a former colleague at WBZ and a good radio guy.
Cumulus has named new market managers for its Maine clusters. Tim Gatz will be based in Gardiner and oversee the Augusta-market cluster of WFAU/WSKW-WHQO/WCTB-WCME/WKCG/WABK-WIGY/WTOS, while Al Perry will oversee the Bangor-market cluster of WDEA/WBZN/WEZQ/WQCB/WWMJ.
And up in Winter Harbor, WAKN (97.7) has applied for a license to cover. Anyone hearing anything up there yet?
More surprise programming shifts at the always-unpredictable WKBR (1250 Manchester) this week, with ESPN Radio replacing One-on-One sports early in the week, then going back to the One-on-One folks later in the week. Huh?
Paul Parent's new syndicated gardening show will be heard Sunday mornings (as it was on Boston's WRKO until recently) on WGIR (610 Manchester) and Seacoast relays WGIN (1540)/WGIP (930).
And in the Upper Valley, Bob Vinikoor is looking for a co-host to share morning duties with Pete Ferrand on talker WNTK (1020 Newport/99.7 New London). Contact him at <wntk1020@aol.com> if you're interested. Bob reports he's going to court to fight zoning restrictions that have kept his WQTH (720 Hanover) from being built.
Across town, we hear ENCO automation is replacing several live DJ shifts at Citadel's WPRO-FM (92.3 Providence) and WWLI (105.1 Providence).
A correction: Greg Roche is still the PD at WWYZ (92.5 Waterbury), and checked in to tell us he's not going anywhere, no matter what we reported last week. NERW sincerely regrets the error.
New Haven's WELI (960) is adding a familiar voice to the Jerry Kristafer morning show, and, like Kristafer, he's a Hartford radio veteran. Gary Lee Horn was half of the "Picozzi and the Horn" show on WHCN (105.9) until he was fired two years ago. He joins WELI next week.
Revival Christian Ministries has applied for an 89.7 translator in Vernon -- but the application says it's supposed to relay "WESU," which is the 88.1 student-run station at Wesleyan University in Middletown. Once again, "Huh?"
And a Federal judge has cut the sex-discrimination award to former WFSB (Channel 3) anchor Janet Peckinpaugh. A jury awarded her $8.8 million earlier this year; now that's been reduced to $3.79 million. Former WFSB owner Post-Newsweek says it still plans to appeal the verdict.
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