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History of AM 620 and AM 760

C

cheapman

There's been a lot of discussion on Knoxville radio history lately. Can anyone here explain how and why AM 620 and AM 760 came to have the same transmitter site? The 760 tower looks to be VERY old. It seems rare for stations that old and not always under common ownership to share a site?
 
AM 620 (WRJZ) and AM 760 (WETR) do have a common owner, but the licensee names are different. The four-tower directional antenna ststem that they share was built for WRJZ a long time before AM 760 ever came to be. It is not uncommon for AM's to "diplex" (use the same tower) if the engineering parameters will allow it. The primary reason is economics. With the proliferation of NIMBY oriented tower ordinaces, it can be impossible to build a tower, especially a taller one to operate efficently on the lower end of the AM dial. WRJZ and WETR are not "diplexed," rather WETR uses one of WRJZ's nighttime towers during the day, as it is a daytime only station. As for its history, the FCC database shows a callsign dating back to 1988.
 
Not really sure about the 760 AM frequency in Knoxville, but 620 AM is the original WROL Radio frequency that the Mountcastle Broadcasting Group also acquired after they signed WROL-TV, Channel 6 on the air in 1953. That 5,000 watt daytime/directional nighttime frequency competed well with WNOX 990's 10,000 daytime/directional nighttime frequency. When Mountcastle switched the TV call letters to WATE-TV, they also switched their radio calls to the same. In 1965 when Nationwide Communications bought WATE-TV and sold the radio station, the WATE Radio call letters were switched by the new owner to WETE to separate it from the TV station, and the WROL call letters were then purchased by a group that used them on the 1490 frequency, playing underground college music that you hear on WUTK-FM right now.
 
tnlucky13 said:
AM 620 (WRJZ) and AM 760 (WETR) do have a common owner, but the licensee names are different. The four-tower directional antenna ststem that they share was built for WRJZ a long time before AM 760 ever came to be. It is not uncommon for AM's to "diplex" (use the same tower) if the engineering parameters will allow it. The primary reason is economics. With the proliferation of NIMBY oriented tower ordinaces, it can be impossible to build a tower, especially a taller one to operate efficently on the lower end of the AM dial. WRJZ and WETR are not "diplexed," rather WETR uses one of WRJZ's nighttime towers during the day, as it is a daytime only station. As for its history, the FCC database shows a callsign dating back to 1988.
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I guess this means--in the evenings--that WETR's transmitter must be OFF before WRJZ can switch to night pattern? And vice versa in the mornings?

Eric
 
I've heard WETR sign off a couple of times and they do it without so much as a sign-off announcement. One moment they're carrying the Dave Ramsey show and Dave's in the middle of a sentence when the transmitter just goes off! Sloppy if you asked me and it certainly leaves listeners wondering what happened.
 
cheapman said:
I've heard WETR sign off a couple of times and they do it without so much as a sign-off announcement. One moment they're carrying the Dave Ramsey show and Dave's in the middle of a sentence when the transmitter just goes off! Sloppy if you asked me and it certainly leaves listeners wondering what happened.
Click to expand...

Not to mention that--in addition to each hour--a legal ID is REQUIRED at the beginning and end of the broadcast day. Most stations do a more elaborate sign on/off "report" detailing their facilities and there may even still be some doing the National Anthem. In the late 80s, I worked at a music-intensive daytimer that only wanted a quick basic Legal ID to begin/end the day. He didn't want anything more, in order to fill every precious second with music.

Eric
 
I remember up until 76, 620 was WETE. Then Rick Jorgensen that owned 1310 WISE in Asheville bought it. Man, what a crankin top-40 station. The late great Bob Kagan programmed it. This was a time when John Isley(John Boy) did nights! He sounded totally different then. WRJZ sounded great for a number of years.
 
Re: WROL on 1490, it was formerly WOKE. Which was licensed to Oak Ridge, TN.
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I



I would have missed this one. I thought WOKI was on 1290 and WATO on 1490 in olden times, and that the owners of WATO bought WOKE and moved 1490 to Knoxville as WROL, then switched WOKE's calls to WATO. Live and learn, right?
 
I would have missed this one. I thought WOKI was on 1290 and WATO on 1490 in olden times, and that the owners of WATO bought WOKE and moved 1490 to Knoxville as WROL, then switched WOKE's calls to WATO. Live and learn, right?

My mistake. I meant to type WOKE, not WOKI, as being on 1290 in olden times. Sorry.

BB
 
Much obliged for anyone who can fill in the blanks on this, if there are any:

1490: From WROL to WKVQ to WITA?
 
Yes, the Oak Ridge frequency swap was done in 1960 when both Oak Ridge stations were under common ownership. WOKE was on 1290 and WATO was on 1490. WATO changed frequency from 1490 to 1290 and then shortly thereafter filed with the FCC for a power increase from 1 KW to 5 KW day and DA-3 with a power reduction to 1 KW/night. WOKE on 1490 then changed call signs to WROL.
 
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