KCOH Flipped

[purpledevil]

Deal consummated.

 

[Mediafrog+]

During my evening commute Thursday I found that 1230 was simulcasting 880, 980, 1380, 1590, and 88.1. That morning it was the same situation except 980 had something different.

Six frequencies for the exact same programming, five on AM. Ridiculous.

 

[purpledevil]

During my evening commute Thursday I found that 1230 was simulcasting 880, 980, 1380, 1590, and 88.1. That morning it was the same situation except 980 had something different.

Six frequencies for the exact same programming, five on AM. Ridiculous.

No, you know what's ridiculous? The fact that "Pueblo de Galilea LLC" is a bunch of baloney. A company in name only. It IS Radio Aleluya, Daij Media, or whatever the hell they want to call it. It's a damn farce!

The brothers now have in their portfolio 6, count them 6, AM facilities licensed to the Houston MSA.

KBRZ, KRCM, KCOH, KMIC, KQUE, and KJOZ. Then KFTG and K201EU, plus channel 30. It's a pack of bull.

Edit to add: and allow me to further the anger with one specific user here, Bruce Carter. While this license transfer received the rubber stamp of approval, allowing it to happen, there sits KSBJ's assignment of license for KUHA stuck on a review docket, because it was claimed that the ministry was doing this exact same thing, even though in reality it is not. KSBJ doesn't own 6 AMs within earshot of Houston. Yes they own KXBJ, KYBJ, KSBJ, and a couple of translators, but the translators don't count as facilities the same way, and they don't overlap with each other like all of these Aleluya facilities do. Don't bank on 91-7 dropping the classical music for NGEN Radio this summer, either. That thing won't happen for at least a year or better, unless KSBJ LMAs KUHA, and I highly doubt that's going to happen. This whole nom-comm playing by different rules is absolute nonsense. Aleluya makes as much, if not substantially MORE, profit than a majority of the commercial facilities. I've been a huge proponent of Spanish language representation in this market for many years, even battled Bruce Carter for years over it, but this specific operator has no candor and has manipulated the spirit of the rules to no end. I'm appalled that the Commission either doesn't see through it, or simply doesn't give a crap.

Oh, and before you say it, K.M., read the username in reverse. I've been a member of this forum, before it was THIS forum. Add over 2,500 posts to the number to the left of what this one says.

That's all I have to say, and it needed to be said in a place where it would do some good and where many radio industry types would read it. I'm going back to my hole again and let this particular area of Streamline's radio forum go silent again. That is, until the next time an injustice occurs. I'll be at the Houston Architecture Information Forum. You all want to visit, stop on by and say hello.

Have at it, Bruce. The floor is yours.

 

[TheBigA]

You have the right to challenge any or all of the licenses.

Anyone else want to buy any of those frequencies? From what I've seen, not a lot of interest in station ownership in Houston.

For better or for worse, this group is keeping those frequencies on the air.

 

[purpledevil]

You have the right to challenge any or all of the licenses.

Anyone else want to buy any of those frequencies? From what I've seen, not a lot of interest in station ownership in Houston.

For better or for worse, this group is keeping those frequencies on the air.

Big A, would you be willing to guide me through the process? I've been told that it can't happen after the fact, and that because the Villarreal brothers operate as a non-profit church organization, nothing can be done to stop it. If that's not the case, please send me a PM and let me know what steps to take. Preferably at the site listed above, where I am listed under my regular username of "purpledevil". I would certainly appreciate any assistance you can provide me.

 

[davideduardo]

The brothers now have in their portfolio 6, count them 6, AM facilities licensed to the Houston MSA.

KBRZ, KRCM, KCOH, KMIC, KQUE, and KJOZ. Then KFTG and K201EU, plus channel 30. It's a pack of bull.

I am not sure what is illegal here.

Five stations on AM in one market is not prohibited (1380 is a Beaumont station and not in the Houston MSA). You can have up to 6 AMs in a single market.

With no simulcast rules, it is odd but not prohibited to have multiple signals with the same format in the same market. In LA, we have one set of 3 FMs with one format, and in the Palm Springs market we have a team of one translator and three AMs all with the same format... in a market of 400,000.

 

[purpledevil]

I am not sure what is illegal here.

Five stations on AM in one market is not prohibited (1380 is a Beaumont station and not in the Houston MSA). You can have up to 6 AMs in a single market.

David, that is the catch. 1380 KRCM is no longer licensed to Beaumont. It moved to Shenandoah, boosted to 22kW day power, and was sold to Aleluya. With the move to Shenandoah, it became a part of the Houston MSA. This particular facility covers everything from Huntsville to Houston like a glove. All of these years I have been a member of Radio-Info and/or Radio Discussions, I have been of the understanding that no operator can possess more than 8 facilities in one market, nor more than 5 on one band. If that has suddenly changed, I have a plate of crow to eat, and will issue an immediate apology for even making the statements above. It'll sure do wonders for my blood pressure. I was told in private (and not by Joe, in case someone tries to bring something like that into play) that KCOH's license is now in the name of one of the brother's daughter.

If there is nothing stopping them from owning all 6 AM facilities as a church, why is there a need to license them under 3 separate company names (i.e. Daij Media, Aleluya Broadcasting, and now Pueblo de Galilea LLC)? I've always been told; if it smells fishy, you're likely near the ocean.

I am a bit beside myself, and I'm venting my frustration over it, so I sound somewhat crass. I see this going on, all the while, Tom Gray and the KSBJ ministry has had their opportunity to expand the ministry by way of a second full power Houston facility put on hold, for what? They aren't even CLOSE to the maximum allowed facilities in this market. KWUP is clear up in Navasota, a College Station station. KYBJ is down on the coast, nowhere near covering even a quarter of the Houston MSA. KXBJ is licensed to El Campo, nearly sitting in the Gulf, and can only cover southwest and far west Houston reliably.

It is infuriating, to say the least. It's exactly WHY I pleaded to Joe for his immediate retraction of the PTD, and why when my post to him was removed by Frank, I requested the immediate closure of my account here. I saw this coming a mile away, and all because of hurt feelings.

It's just not right. I have no qualms with the message brought by the Villarreals. If they aren't living what they're preaching, as others have claimed, that is between them and their Maker. I have never heard anything indicating that they are doing anything OTA other than spreading the word of God. They do ask for financial support often, but so does KSBJ. How else would you expect either of to be able to continue and expand on their respective ministries? However, when one group is afforded the seal of approval, while the other receives the backhanded slap in the face, there's a whole lot more to it than meets the eye. It's shady, pure and simple. For instance, why was the KCOH license assignment application addressed as 1600 Pasadena Avenue, as opposed to what it truly is; Pasadena Boulevard? That's no mistake. The address is given correctly on every Aleluya station twice an hour, religiously. Forgive the pun. It's those little details that make the, as you said in another thread, make the "B.S. meter" go off.

 

[TheBigA]

My sense is the government isn't going to take sides in a religious war.

 

[purpledevil]

My sense is the government isn't going to take sides in a religious war.

I'm not sure I follow. Radio Aleluya is a Christian ministry. The issue is the multiple licenses, under the guise of various company names, all simulcasting the same program over a common, single market. There's no religious war for the government to take sides on, A.

 

[TheBigA]

There's no religious war for the government to take sides on, A.

No law has been broken. Just a disagreement over ministries.

 

[davideduardo]

David, that is the catch. 1380 KRCM is no longer licensed to Beaumont. It moved to Shenandoah, boosted to 22kW day power, and was sold to Aleluya. With the move to Shenandoah, it became a part of the Houston MSA. This particular facility covers everything from Huntsville to Houston like a glove.

My bad. A number of industry directories show it as being home to Beaumont, still.

In any case, this station puts a 10 mV/M (the ITU standard for usable AM signals now) over less than 800,000 persons in a metro of over 6 million.

It can certainly argued that it takes 5 of those deficient AM signals to fully cover the Houston metro.

I have been of the understanding that no operator can possess more than 8 facilities in one market, nor more than 5 on one band.

That is true for Houston, but not for all markets. It depends on number of signals home to the Nielsen market, etc. Also, HD2 (and beyond) and translators don't count against the cap.

I was told in private that KCOH's license is now in the name of one of the brother's daughter.

Relatives may own stations in the same market... look at the Ingstad brothers in the upper Midwest. But they can't be operated together if doing so exceeds the caps.

If there is nothing stopping them from owning all 6 AM facilities as a church, why is there a need to license them under 3 separate company names (i.e. Daij Media, Aleluya Broadcasting, and now Pueblo de Galilea LLC)? I've always been told; if it smells fishy, you're likely near the ocean.

Companies like iHeart and Cumulus and CBS often have the licenses in the same market in the name of different corporate entities. It is likely that it is just to costly to change them all, file for transfers, etc. Nobody cares. Often different names comes from properties acquired by a stock sale from another party, or where a license was filed for by a different group and then consolidated into another. It is not fishy at all.

In fact, I have known of some small groups where a new acquisition may be made in a separate subsidiary in order to keep the assets that are subject to liens by a lender clear and separate. Again, no shady dealing.

It's just not right. I have no qualms with the message brought by the Villarreals. If they aren't living what they're preaching, as others have claimed, that is between them and their Maker. I have never heard anything indicating that they are doing anything OTA other than spreading the word of God. They do ask for financial support often, but so does KSBJ. How else would you expect either of to be able to continue and expand on their respective ministries? However, when one group is afforded the seal of approval, while the other receives the backhanded slap in the face, there's a whole lot more to it than meets the eye. It's shady, pure and simple. For instance, why was the KCOH license assignment application addressed as 1600 Pasadena Avenue, as opposed to what it truly is; Pasadena Boulevard? That's no mistake. The address is given correctly on every Aleluya station twice an hour, religiously. Forgive the pun. It's those little details that make the, as you said in another thread, make the "B.S. meter" go off.

The examples sound more like the all to often lax paperwork preparation of smaller operators who try to file without the aid of an attorney, or one that did not communicate properly with counsel. The ownership, under one or six entities under one umbrella is not uncommon all across the industry.

 

[purpledevil]

It's okay, David. Those in Beaumont probably don't realize 1380 is missing; while most Shenandoahans likely don't even know the station even represents them as the COL. As you aptly stated, it does not cover the largest half of the market, but it is a part of the Houston market now, nonetheless.

The coverage of the market does not necessitate all 6 AMs, however. Both 880 KJOZ and 1380 KRCM's patterns north of the City overlap a significant amount of similar land areas. KCOH covers inside of the Beltway by day, inside the Loop by night. So does KMIC. KMIC has the larger coverage, shooting down to the Gulf, and fully encompassing everything that KCOH could ever hope to cover. KMIC's deficiency is north and west, where either KJOZ or KQUE can pick up the baton, respectively.

The following is lifted directly from the FCC's website:
Local Radio Ownership

The rule imposes ownership restrictions based on a sliding scale that varies by the size of the market: (1) in a radio market with 45 or more stations, an entity may own up to eight radio stations, no more than five of which may be in the same service (AM or FM); (2) in a radio market with between 30 and 44 radio stations, an entity may own up to seven radio stations, no more than four of which may be in the same service; (3) in a radio market hosting between 15 and 29 radio stations, an entity may own up to six radio stations, no more than four of which may be in the same service; and (4) in a radio market with 14 or fewer radio stations, an entity may own up to five radio stations, no more than three of which may be in the same service, as long as the entity does not own more than 50 percent of all radio stations in that market.

As you said, Houston MSA Market #6 has over 45 licensed facilities. Therefore no entity can own more than 5 in one band. That is without counting KFTG-FM, KCVH-DT, K236AR, or K201EU. Only the AMs, of which they now own 6, regardless of whichever company name or family members they place the license name in. Only 5 are in simulcast, as KBRZ is leased to one of the South Asian programmers, which has it in combo with K236AR.

David, they just dropped $1.8 million to acquire KCOH. Money is apparently not the problem here. In the assignment notice for KCOH, the information sent to the Commission was incorrect, with it being filed using an address that does not actually exist in Pasadena, Texas. There is no Pasadena Avenue, only Pasadena Boulevard, of which is the address of the church. Why would they do that, unless there was some fear of being exposed in attempting to bend the rules listed above? It may not be uncommon in the industry, as you state, but according to the rules laid out by the FCC itself, it is illegal to have all of these facilities, under common ownership and in simulcast of each other. They own a TV station here, KCVH-LD. That means they are currently two over the limit in radio stations, only counting the class A, B, or C, AMs, and FM, while leaving out the class D translators, and need to divest.

I am correct in that, am I not?

 

[TheBigA]

The TV station is digital only, not broadcast, thus not subject to the same broadcast ownership limits. Same with the LP and translator stations you list.

Station purchases are usually subject to a number of approvals beyond FCC in order to prevent monopoly.

 

[Mrtejano]

Just heard (in Spanish of course) you're listening to KMIC 1590 AM this is Radio Aleluya.

I heard this on 1230 am and still simulcasting the same programing with 1230 playing the music first and then 1590 having about 3 second delay.

 

[purpledevil]

Yep, Radio Aleluya isn't IDing KCOH at all. As you stated, it only IDs as KMIC Houston 1590 AM. Same holds true for KJOZ, which is IDing solely as KRCM Shenandoah 1380 AM, KQUE Rosenberg/Richmond 980 AM. No mention regarding the return of KJOZ back to the Villarreal's programming control. What's it matter, anyway? The FCC doesn't care. No one else wants it addressed. So, what can you do?

Of course, then there's KFTG, which ID's everything from KUZN Centerville, KABA Louise, KTYR Trinity, KQUE-FM Bay City, to the slew of translators, AND K236AR Mo. City. Yep, a translator that doesn't even AIR Radio Aleluya. Imagine that!