First Waco gets the Beat, now it's 1590's turn

[jd]

From today's FCC Daily Digest: following the format flip of 104.9 and the upgrade application to move KWBT 104.9 from Mexia to Mart, M&M Broadcasting has applied to upgrade KRQX 1590. I can't say that I'm surprised by this.

The application calls for increasing the daytime power from 500 to 2500 watts, but with a slight decrease in nighttime power from 128 to 72 watts. The proposed four tower array would be location near the proposed KWBT site, 16 miles miles west of Mexia and 26 miles east of downtown Waco. The modified figure-8 pattern, with the same configuration day and night, can be viewed here on page 5: https://licensing.fcc.gov/cdbs/CDBS...?appn=101342224&qnum=5110&copynum=1&exhcnum=1 City grade coverage is the depicted by the inner blue circle.

To get this done M&M has proposed relinquishing the license for co-channel station KEAS out in Eastland, which apparently went silent last August; in fact the call letters have actually been deleted for some time. In their application to remain silent the KRQX application gave a terse description for the request, "transmitter inoperative."

I've got one question about this one. Was a frequency change to 1580 considered? It worked for many years in Waco with 1,000 watts day/500 watt and has been vacant for years since KRZI moved to 1660. They had a very critical daytime pattern with major protection to KRQX. In my opinion some of the required protections might have been a little easier to handle and might have allowed more power (daytime at least) so I'm just wondering if M&M looked into that possibility.

 

[jd]

One modification on this, to clarify, In their application to remain silent the KRQX KEAS application gave a terse description reason for the request, "transmitter inoperative."

 

[everydayguy]

Good find, JD -- but the question lingers -- why would Waco need another AM station?

 

[jd]

-- why would Waco need another AM station?

Honestly, I have no idea, especially one at the high end of the band with marginal daytime coverage and flea-power at night. I said a while back that something's always up at M&M, i.e., buying, moving or getting power increases for marginal facilities. I'm guessing that the upgrade for the FM isn't quite over and the AM application also may be subject to some revision later on, based on what I've seen from them in the past.

If M&M could have moved KRQX completely out of Mexia they would have done it. But wait, that's really what's happening, isn't it? We'll see how it goes as M&M tries to aim the programming on AM and FM toward Waco, ignoring Mexia and denying them any local service except on paper and the station ID. And they've killed the only AM station in Eastland/Ranger/Cisco (the former K-E-R-C), but what the hell. From what's been made public, it looks like it only cost them 85K to pull the plug.

All right, it's nothing personal and despite how it appears I'm not singling out M&M. They're simply doing what many other companies have done. It's another chapter in the ugly trend that's become the norm across the country, and this happened to be a timely example. With buyers using every available rule to their advantage and an acquiescing FCC the message would seem to be this: apparently small towns don't deserve to have any radio stations if they can be made to fit into a larger market.

 

[amisdead]

One shoe left to drop: 1660 "upgrading" out of Waco.

 

[fredcantu]

I've posted before that I believe 1600 in Pflugerville/Austin is a sleeping giant. Now that 1600 in Cuero, Brownsville and Cd Acuna (Del Rio) are gone, it could build a site northwest of Austin and boom to the south and southeast day and night.

 

[jd]

You're right, Fred. KOKE could get a fairly healthy power increase, too, although there would a couple of concerns with adjacent channel stations on 1590 in Sinton and Houston. Also, like I alluded to earlier, if the KRQX application gets approved that would get their foot in the door and they might apply for even higher power later on.

 

[jd]

One shoe left to drop: 1660 "upgrading" out of Waco.

Like into the D/FW area? That's the persistent rumor I hear.

 

[purpledevil]

I wonder how long it'll be before a company gets their hands on 104.9's neighbor, 99.1 KNES/Fairfield? "Texas 99" is another one of those old dyin' breeds, a mom & pop operation that still chugs along with farm reports, Fairfield High School sports, etc. At least, it was the last time I was up in Freestone County visiting family.

Funny thing, they used to play rock and roll on Saturday nights...and may still....on a show called "The Rock and Roll Frieght Train". I chuckled every time I caught the show, as being from Houston, their version of "rock" makes The Arrow sound like a heavy metal station.

Is 1590 remaining licensed to Mexia, or is it moving to Mart as well?

...and what the hell does Mart need with a licensed service? Unless it has blown up in population over the last couple of years, it would take 2 Marts to make a Mexia. Might as well give Teague it's own service too.

 

[fredcantu]

Funny thing, they used to play rock and roll on Saturday nights...and may still....on a show called "The Rock and Roll Frieght Train". I chuckled every time I caught the show, as being from Houston, their version of "rock" makes The Arrow sound like a heavy metal station.

Reminds me of KELT-FM (now Q94.5) down in the Valley. In it's early days it was easy listening except for an afterschool block they called "The Underground Show." It was really AC, but quite radical compared to the rest of their programming. And it was hosted by the local TV weatherman, so how underground could it be.

 

[mmnassour]

Fred....Larry James had a show on KELT????? I don't exactly think of the cutting edge when I think of him ;D.

As for 1600, is anyone putting money into AM at this point?

 

[amisdead]

As for 1600, is anyone putting money into AM at this point?

Apparently Gary Moss is. Building a new 4 tower array so that 1590 can be a bad, daytime rimshot into a small, poor market.

There are less than 10 AM shares in Waco to start with and almost half of those are for out of market stations.

Why even bother?

 

[amisdead]

Like into the D/FW area? That's the persistent rumor I hear.

That's the rumor. It will probably be proposed for the east side of the Metroplex. Think Ellis or Kaufman county.

 

[fredcantu]

Fred....Larry James had a show on KELT????? I don't exactly think of the cutting edge when I think of him ;D.

At one point KGBT-TV's Frank Sullivan and Les Brach also had air shifts. BTW-- Any idea what the KELT calls stood for... another Tichenor?

 

[LibertyNT]

There's nothing they could put on 1660 that DFW doesn't already have.
True Oldies Maybe.

 

[fredcantu]

A rim shot AM up against KLUV?

 

[jd]

As for 1600, is anyone putting money into AM at this point?

Apparently Gary Moss is. Building a new 4 tower array so that 1590 can be a bad, daytime rimshot into a small, poor market.

I find it a little ironic that we're talking about a Waco AM move-in by Gary's M&M Broadcasting a few years after they moved the legendary 1460 WACO out! Now they're putting money into another recently approved upgrade for that station (KCLE Burleson) from 5 to 11kW daytime. The new pattern will allow a little more signal to the east, but for the most part they'll still be covering just the "FW," no "Big D," no big deal. And they'll still have just 700 watts at night.

 

[amisdead]

There's nothing they could put on 1660 that DFW doesn't already have.
True Oldies Maybe.

It's not about filling a programming niche that is not currently being served. It's about: Can M&M make more money with 1660 as a bad (probably brokered) station in market 5 than it currently can with ESPN in market 200.

The answer is yes.

 

[yeahIwasinradio]

Frank Sullivan...wow...memories.

 

[mmnassour]

Yes, IIRC he sued KGBT for age discrimination and won?