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1040 WNJE now simulcasting WCHR

S

satech

As if anybody cares, 1040 WNJE in Flemington has dropped ESPN Deportes (Spanish), and is now simulcasting the religious format of 920 WCHR.
 
And, with new owners coming on board, paid religion is the most likely format for an AM station in an area that is not rated and has a pattern that covers a different area during the day than it does at night with the exception of its immediate proximity.

The question is: How much overlap is there between the signals of WNJE and WCHR? And will pay-to-play clients be willing to pay enough for a simulcast to keep the two stations on the air?

The Spanish programming was just ESPN making good on its existing contract to lease the station without taking any listeners away from its new FM.
 
The southern half of WNJE's daytime coverage largely overlaps that of WCHR. The main difference is that WCHR covers Trenton at night, while WNJE's nighttime signal mostly just covers woods and farmland.

I remember when WNJE (then under previous call letters) left their daytime pattern (and probably power level) running at night. After dark I could hear it loud and clear in Washington, DC!
 
I looked AM simulcasts up on FCC.gov. For two stations in the same band, the primary signal of one must not cover 50% or more of the primary signal of the other.
However, I do also know the FCC has granted temporary exceptions to this rule upon official request of the owners.
There is overlap between 920 and 1040. Hard to know whether it would meet the FCC's 50% limit.
 
The signal for 1040 really booms into Bucks & Montgomery counties (Pa.) much more than 920 which is weaker past lower Bucks. There were many times post sunset when I've wondered if they really dropped to the night signal because they were still booming into the Philly suburbs. It seems like there could be a better use for 1040 than a simulcast of 920. Or donate it to Hunderton High & let them simulcast their 78 watt FM country station WCVH throughout central NJ where there is no other station in the format!
 
Or donate it to Hunderton High & let them simulcast their 78 watt FM country station WCVH throughout central NJ where there is no other station in the format!
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, if you've ever driven by the WNJE transmitter site, you know it sits on a lot of expensive land, has several towers that require long-term maintenance and resides in a fairly expensive free-standing commercial building. And the electric bill for a 15-kw AM would be so much more than a 78-watt FM at the high school that there would be a tax revolt in Hunterdon, even though it's the third wealthiest county in the country.

Actually, while WNJE is now simulcasting WCHR rather than simulcast it could just run different recordings of the same programs at different times, and for a separate fee.

It does have a great daytime signal in Bucks, Montgomery and Hunterdon. It's too bad someone can't find a format that would uniquely serve the kind of people who live in that area which is also served by lots of variety coming out of Philly, NYC, and Allentown.

If there was a syndicated talk format available that targeted upscale suburban women it might have a shot. I am thinking of a kind of Joan Hamburg show for women who live in the country, not the city. Women who live in big houses with lots of land, may do gardening, can garden vegetables, raise horses, be active in church and civic organizations, have wine with dinner, take lots of nice vacations, stay in bed and breakfasts for weekend getaways, like antiques, do lots of shopping and redecorate their homes regularly. It's a lifestyle type that fits that area and the talk topics could range from getting your kids into the best colleges, to which type of exercise routine or diet works best.

Unfortunately, WNJE alone couldn't support a format like that. It's in a county not rated by Arbitron, and there are probably not enough potential local sponsors to support a locally produced talk format of any kind.

So, paid religion, infomercials, or some other kind of paid block time programming are its likely fate if it is to survive at all.
 
1040 WNJE really should simulcast 1510 WRNJ, to give that live, local, community-oriented station extra coverage, especially at night.

But unfortunately like TimeIsTight explained, the 1040 in Flemington is too expensive for its own good. If it actually went on the air in 1985 when the CP was first granted, or even a few years later after WMHQ and WCRV went dark, it could've been a success, but by the time 1040 finally went on the air in January 1998, it was far too late for an all-new AM station to gain a foothold.

In 1998, people were too busy exploring the Internet for the first time to worry about tuning in a new AM station, especially when half the local listeners would lose it at sunset when the pattern swings around and suddenly gives Somerset and Middlesex Counties a strong signal (I could hear 1040's nighttime signal loud and clear in my dorm at Rutgers in Piscataway!).
 
Simulcasting WRNJ woundn't make sense because RNJ superserves Hackettstown. Why would someone in Montgomery County or Allentown care what's happening in Hackettstown? I got a suggestion. Turn off the power and turn in the license!
 
If ESPN bought it and shut it off, how much could they let the pattern out on 1050? Haven't really looked at how much they could improve it.
 
1050, then called WHN, was on the air way before 1040 was. 1050's pattern was already established decades ago, having to live with a 1050 in Toronto running 50 kw and a 1060 in Philadelphia, also at 50 kw. It's true, some years ago, 1010 WINS did buy a 1010 in Little Rock AR and turned it off, to improve its coverage. But I don't think turning off WNJE would make a difference in WEPN's 1050 pattern.

But for those who say "turn the thing off and turn in the license" for struggling AM stations, there still are many potential buyers of AM stations... religious groups and ethnic organizations. It is amazing how many AM stations high up the dial are being bought by Catholic groups or an individual diocese. That's what happened to 1260 in Trenton and 1570 in Bucks County. 1360 in Newton NJ is now owned by a non-profit group for Spanish Evangelical broadcasts. Also note that in Rockland County a Polish broadcaster owns 910 and Indian broadcasters have 540 on Long Island.

Right now, 1040 and 920 are profit-making stations, where televangelists can buy time to raise money for their ministries. But if that doesn't work, there are non-profit organizations, religious or ethnic, who'd buy these stations.
 
EJ204 said:
It's true, some years ago, 1010 WINS did buy a 1010 in Little Rock AR and turned it off, to improve its coverage.
Click to expand...
They also got the former 1000 WRNJ in Hackettstown, NJ to vacate the 1000 kHz frequency and move up to 1510 kHz. (WRNJ still has 850-1000 as their main phone number and P.O. Box 1000 in their address, though.)

But even after all that, WINS's coverage is still pretty terrible in central and western NJ, especially at night.
 
satech said:
But even after all that, WINS's coverage is still pretty terrible in central and western NJ, especially at night.
Click to expand...

Despite all of that, they still have to protect 1010 in Toronto.
The AM 1000 move in Hackettstown was to help let out WINS daytime coverage a bit.
 
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