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Kirkman AMs in Charleston OTA

C

charlestondxman

This has been going for about 2 months, but all three of Kirkman’s AM stations in Charleston are now off the air for different reasons. 910 AM (WTMZ) had copper piping stolen from its transmitter site and has been off the air for over a month, while two other AMs, WQNT 1450 and WQSC 1340 have lost their transmitter sites according to a notice Kirkman sent the FCC.

The 910 signal is on CP to lower their night power to something like 90 watts but keep their 500 watt day signal.

They are feeding the FM translators which go with those signals with WJNI’s HD signal which relays all of them. I know almost nobody listens to AM radio in this market any more other than the few that listen to WTMA or 730, but still crazy to see as that plus 950 AM and 1390 are the only AMs currently on locally. Only TMA has no translator attached.
 
When I was in Charleston a month ago, WTMZ's signal was not on one of the WJNI HD subchannels, so 94.7 had no "source." 1340 was on the air at that time, and was also on one of the WJNI subs... Of course that could have all changed in the last month.
 
Yup it’s a weird setup Kirkman has here. They own four FM translators and feed three of them through WJNI but 94.7 has no feeding station which should be illegal.

But they aren’t the only ones. We have two FM translators simulcasting the same EWTN feed from the local 730 AM 95% of the time, 106.7 (the official 730 AM translator) and 102.9, which is supposed to be the local Catholic high school’s LPFM but instead basically runs their programs.

Also we have a unlicensed 97.5 that is supposed to be a “community” station for West Ashley.

Kirkman already got a STA for 1450 and 910 to stay off the air and are in the process for 1340.
 
Crazy for an old community like Charleston to be so short on the AM side. Columbia has several, heck the Myrtle Beach area has 900 El Gallo, 1050 sports, 1200 and 1330 religious, 1450 country, and 1240 and 1370 community service stations are only a dozen miles away.
 
charlestondxman said:
Yup it’s a weird setup Kirkman has here. They own four FM translators and feed three of them through WJNI but 94.7 has no feeding station which should be illegal.

But they aren’t the only ones. We have two FM translators simulcasting the same EWTN feed from the local 730 AM 95% of the time, 106.7 (the official 730 AM translator) and 102.9, which is supposed to be the local Catholic high school’s LPFM but instead basically runs their programs.

Also we have a unlicensed 97.5 that is supposed to be a “community” station for West Ashley.

Kirkman already got a STA for 1450 and 910 to stay off the air and are in the process for 1340.
Click to expand...
im not not understanding what your problem is.. you call the EWTN stuff translators, then say one is an lpfm. i think i know what youre implying by calling 102.9 translator but there are legal difference between a translator and lpfm and that is sometimes important depending on the discussion about it

There isnt anything "legally" wrong with an lpfm rebroadcasting another source. Its not the spirit in which LPFM was intended, @charlestondxman but others have done it. Over in Nebraska, several local catholic groups own LPFMs that rebroadcast Spirit Catholic Radiof from Omaha and their full power FM.
 
910 WTMZ surprisingly has signed back on the air. They are running what was their normal 500 watts day, and 85 watts at night. They were off for almost a year. The other AMs Kirkman owns are still off the air.
 


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