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EMF playing musical chairs with call signs in NYC and elsewhere

AND that 96.7 - no matter what it's called - will be an Air1 station very shortly - AND they're running "promos" tellin everybody that if they want KLove to go to 95.5 - Air1 will be a praise and worship format, if i remember correctly
 
And to think most industry people suggest call letters matter not. Those changes required a lot of work. Maybe EMF is successful because they don't follow any of the rules from mere mortals in the radio biz.
 
Tibbs4 said:
And to think most industry people suggest call letters matter not. Those changes required a lot of work. Maybe EMF is successful because they don't follow any of the rules from mere mortals in the radio biz.
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I really don't understand many of EMF's call letter shuffles. In the context of K-Love or Air 1, call letters are meaningless. They are not used in any way, except as part of the produced TOH bed.
 
Tibbs4 said:
And to think most industry people suggest call letters matter not. Those changes required a lot of work. Maybe EMF is successful because they don't follow any of the rules from mere mortals in the radio biz.
Click to expand...

EMF has money to burn, thanks to its listeners. They could afford to change call letters every other day if they were so inclined. It's all good in the world of this extremely wealthy nonprofit.
 
For commercial stations FCC call sign change application fee is $110 per station. Many EMF stations are non-commercial and according to FCC MM Docket No. 98-98, they are exempt from the fee.
 
Greg Strickland said:
For commercial stations FCC call sign change application fee is $110 per station. Many EMF stations are non-commercial and according to FCC MM Docket No. 98-98, they are exempt from the fee.
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Usually, unless the owner thinks they can do it themselves, the major cost involved is with the station's FCC attorney. In the case of larger groups, they will have counsel on retainer, so the cost is already covered.
 
With all that said and explained, what is the reason for EMF's interest in the call letters of its New York affiliate, especially since the branding is K-Love and the call is only mentioned in the top of the hour legal ID? Why not just leave it WPLJ, as it has in Hartford with WCCC -- call letters associated by more than a generation's worth of listeners with the sort of aggressive hard rock with a message antithetical to that delivered by Christian contemporary music? If nobody but the radio geeks now obsesses over call letters. why spend any money at all to change them, let alone to do what EMF is apparently doing in NYC: going through the trouble of changing the call temporarily until it can come up wiith one that is somehow better, then going through the whole process again?
 
CTListener said:
If nobody but the radio geeks now obsesses over call letters. why spend any money at all to change them, let alone to do what EMF is apparently doing in NYC: going through the trouble of changing the call temporarily until it can come up wiith one that is somehow better, then going through the whole process again?
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Because they can.
 
Usually there is some logic applied to call letters. While it is less important to the success and ratings of stations in a PPM world vs. the old diary system, I still contend it's a reflection on proper branding and attention to detail. How many IDs don't make sense when a station says they are "X 96.7" and then give call letters with no X? As for the use of these call letters with EMF, I have to say I can't see the pattern or logic, but maybe I am wrong. Seems like if you were going to do that or Air, at least brand em all with A and R in the calls. Again, probably immaterial, but...
 
Why do any stations change call letters, then?

As a MW DXer, I can tell you it's been hard even in the last decade to keep track of some call letter changes, on AM alone, that have happened with format changes -- even with some ethnic networks (who may or may not have the capital available that EMF does). Any more on my own log lists I just refer to them by their old calls that I remember, at least half the time.

So why do stations change every time there is an ownership change or format flip? They do it apparently because it's radio, it's part of their brand. Or maybe the owners have a pride in radio and see call letters as a reflection of that.
 
b-turner said:
Changing call letters is also for imaging. The old call letters usually are known for a certain format.
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It depends.

In Philly Urban One kept the WPPZ calls on 107.9 after flipping the station from Urban Gospel Praise 107.9 to R&B Oldies Classix 107.9 in December. The Urban Gospel format is now on 107.9 HD2.

In NYC 1600 is still WWRL even though they are running Desi programming now.

On Long Island 540 switched from WLIE to WBWD after they changed to Bollywood Programming.

In Connecticut K-LOVE kept the WCCC call letters on 106.9 in Hartford. The sale happened 5 years ago.

In Springfield, Mass Full Power Radio flipped 1490 from Oldies WACM to Spanish CHR WSPR and 1270 from Spanish CHR WSPR to Oldies WACM in 2016. The call sign switch makes absolutely no sense since 1270 was WSPR since the 30s and 1490 was WACM since the early 80s.

In Hartford Entercom's Hip-hop station HOT 93.7 is WZMX. 93.7 has been WZMX since 1991 when American Radio Systems bought the station (which was running Noaa Weather Radio for over a year). It was HOT AC MiX 93.7 later it was Dancin' Oldies (Infinity Broadcasting's version of Jammin' Oldies) and was Z 93.7

In Boston 97.7 is still WKAF even though it's no longer a simulcast of 107.3 WAAF. They're not co-owned any more either.
 
MarcB said:
It depends.

In Philly Urban One kept the WPPZ calls on 107.9 after flipping the station from Urban Gospel Praise 107.9 to R&B Oldies Classix 107.9 in December. The Urban Gospel format is now on 107.9 HD2.

In NYC 1600 is still WWRL even though they are running Desi programming now.

On Long Island 540 switched from WLIE to WBWD after they changed to Bollywood Programming.

In Connecticut K-LOVE kept the WCCC call letters on 106.9 in Hartford. The sale happened 5 years ago.

In Springfield, Mass Full Power Radio flipped 1490 from Oldies WACM to Spanish CHR WSPR and 1270 from Spanish CHR WSPR to Oldies WACM in 2016. The call sign switch makes absolutely no sense since 1270 was WSPR since the 30s and 1490 was WACM since the early 80s.

In Hartford Entercom's Hip-hop station HOT 93.7 is WZMX. 93.7 has been WZMX since 1991 when American Radio Systems bought the station (which was running Noaa Weather Radio for over a year). It was HOT AC MiX 93.7 later it was Dancin' Oldies (Infinity Broadcasting's version of Jammin' Oldies) and was Z 93.7

In Boston 97.7 is still WKAF even though it's no longer a simulcast of 107.3 WAAF. They're not co-owned any more either.
Click to expand...
And 955 nyc still wplj filp k love
 
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