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KSFO To 810

Where are you?If you're east of SFO yes, 560 is better because KGO is directional day & night.
Otherwise KGO is much better in SFO & NNW & SSE then KSFO.

The figure-8 null is there to protect WGY. This also made a fulltime AM possible in Kansas City in 1947. That one’s not called KCMO any more, either, much less KWKC.
 
560 is a great signal, and still has value. They could always sell or lease it to an ethnic broadcaster like Punjabi Radio for example. I'm sure KVTO, KEST, or KMKY would love to upgrade to 560.

It’s fun to speculate, but keep in mind that KVTO and KEST program to Chinese-language speakers - primarily Cantonese - who are concentrated in San Francisco and in the bayside East Bay. There are more Mandarin speakers in the south Bay but they are more widely distributed and are more recent arrivals. Thus I think it unlikely that either of those stations would want to spend the money needed to acquire a bigger signal that wouldn’t gain them (or the people buying time for programming on the stations) that much more audience.
 
There's clearly a reason Cumulus isn't talking about 560's future.

First, if they want the audience they have for the syndicated talk on KSFO to follow it over to 810, they're gonna need a few weeks of either a simulcast with a boatload of promos, or just a loop telling people that KSFO is now on 810.

After that, there'll be an announcement about what happens to 560.

I wouldn't be surprised if you don't see a call letter change until then. Just ID at "KSFO, KGO, San Francisco" and you're covered.

And then, when they're ready to take the training wheels off, the KSFO calls officially move to 810 and they tell us what's next for 560.

Given that they're saying, by this move, that 810 is more valuable to them than 560 (but not valuable enough for its own local programming), it could be leasing the 560 signal or selling the station outright.

I think you forgot to preface this with “Good Lord”.
 
Interesting fun fact about KSFO.

As KTAB they changed frequencies 6 times between 1925-1929.

1390, 1250, 990, 1070, 1280, 550, until finally settling on 560.

That wasn’t unusual in those days, as the FRC made various shifts to reduce the interference caused by stations interfering by another and having the ability to move around almost at will, thanks to a court decision that curtailed the federal government’s ability to regulate the airwaves. The original basis for the FRC’s creation was to sort all of this out. It wasn’t until November 11, 1928 that allocations settled down and there were still changes going into 1929 and even 1930.
 
If they don't turn in the license, the 2nd option is to have it go to Ethnic programming. I don't think 560 will have sports betting shows.
It could go to Salem so KDYA can move to 560 and go 24/7 with Gospel programming, but I know the odds are very slim.
 
If they don't turn in the license, the 2nd option is to have it go to Ethnic programming. I don't think 560 will have sports betting shows.
It could go to Salem so KDYA can move to 560 and go 24/7 with Gospel programming, but I know the odds are very slim.
I smell Bloomberg making a return.
 
This is exciting news!!! For the once uber-left KGO to be going conservative, I am giddy. I know my opinions are the minority here on this forum, but there are some of us out here, despite what CNN thinks, who are excited to have programming we enjoy in the flamethrower signal. I wish they had done this 8 years ago.
 
This is exciting news!!! For the once uber-left KGO to be going conservative, I am giddy. I know my opinions are the minority here on this forum, but there are some of us out here, despite what CNN thinks, who are excited to have programming we enjoy in the flamethrower signal. I wish they had done this 8 years ago.

KGO isn't "going conservative", it's going away.

All that's happening is that on Monday, someone will push a couple of buttons that sends KSFO's master control, with its current programming, to the studio-to-transmitter link for 810. Period.

If you're able to hear it better where you live, then yeah, that's good for you.
 
Of course, I get corrected. This forum isn't very friendly to people who enjoy KSFO programming. Too bad.

Paul, this has nothing to do with KSFO programming or friendliness.

There are no liberals crying that the once-mighty KGO has fallen. That happened 12 years ago.

Cumulus is moving the #21 radio station in San Francisco to a better signal that's been running sports betting for two years. That's all.
 
I think this move demonstrates that AM DOES have use in 2024. 810 is a great frequency that comes in clear in every pocket of the San Francisco market. It’s good to see that the company who owns it actually recognizes that, and wants to ensure that it receives the highest and best use.

I wouldn’t say that 560 is bad either. There are a lot of small AMs that probably do need to close up shop at some point or another, but I personally don’t see 810 and 560 as being derelict.
 
I think this move demonstrates that AM DOES have use in 2024. 810 is a great frequency that comes in clear in every pocket of the San Francisco market. It’s good to see that the company who owns it actually recognizes that, and wants to ensure that it receives the highest and best use.

810's highest and best use is to run 24/7 syndicated programming?

I mean, maybe.

I wouldn’t say that 560 is bad either. There are a lot of small AMs that probably do need to close up shop at some point or another, but I personally don’t see 810 and 560 as being derelict.

Reality check---and this won't be popular with a lot of people on this board.

Remember two years ago, when KGO went sports betting, I used the concept of "AM Mall"?


Well, stuff's gotten worse since then.


Look at the dial (and let's just look at the better-than average signals):


560: Future unknown. Unlikely to be anything that requires money to be spent.

610: In five months, it will have been Family Radio for 20 YEARS.

680: It's on the air, but I'd love to see a breakout of how much of the listening is actually on 104.5. The AM fills in where the FM can't reach.

740: Same. KCBS is really KFRC-FM at 106.9. The AM fills in what can be a spotty FM in some places.

810: For the past two years, Cumulus didn't have a better idea than sports betting. Now they don't have a better idea for replacing that than to move KSFO (which is 21st in the ratings) onto the signal.

910: It's behind sports betting on KGO and the KSAN-FM stream in the October ratings.

960: It has a 0.1.

There are no other AMs showing up.

And the other thing that should really stand out here----

There is NO programming on any of those AM stations that is created specifically for that AM station. It's either syndicated or a simulcast of an FM (at this point, you really have to understand that KNBR and KCBS are FM stations being simulcast on AM, not the other way around).


That sound you hear are the bulldozers. AM Mall is essentially Bayfair.

 
And before someone says "this will work", let's remember that Armstrong & Getty did mornings on KGO for four years (2016-2020). It wasn't enough to drive the station's ratings---it wasn't seen as critical enough to KGO's success to keep Cumulus from moving them to KSFO when Sussman retired.

So, now they're back on a signal that---yeah, in some places---is stronger than 560, but that's been running sports betting for two years.
 
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