Ordered off-air?

[johnbasalla]

I've been reading on the Canada radio board about a station ordered by their "FCC" to shut down due to some violations, and the inability to respond to the governmental agency in a timely and appropriate matter. It's a community station on a college campus, but not run or owned by the college, even though student activity fee money goes into its operation. Anyway, has the FCC in the U.S.A. ever ordered an operating over-the-air station, to shut down completely. If so, what were the circumstances?

 

[RadioDaze]

In Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina, WCRY 1460 kHz was ordered off the air as part of a settlement between owner Willis Broadcasting of Norfolk, Virginia and the FCC. Willis was cited for multiple violations at its stations across the southeast. The company is well-documented for letting its stations fall into extreme disrepair, but had mostly avoided the wrath of the FCC until 2004. I don't recall if they had to surrender any other licenses in the settlement.

 

[radioboy]

WSVE-AM 1280 in Jacksonville, Fla., another Willis-owned station, was also asked to surrender its license.

http://jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/070204/bus_16003783.shtml

 

[davideduardo]

I've been reading on the Canada radio board about a station ordered by their "FCC" to shut down due to some violations, and the inability to respond to the governmental agency in a timely and appropriate matter. It's a community station on a college campus, but not run or owned by the college, even though student activity fee money goes into its operation. Anyway, has the FCC in the U.S.A. ever ordered an operating over-the-air station, to shut down completely. If so, what were the circumstances?

There have been a lot of license revocations... a few examples...

70's. WMJX Miami, lost license due to fraudulent contest. Don Burden's Star Stations in Omaha, Indianapolis, Denver, Portland due to character issues, including bribing a member of Congress. WGCB Red Lion, PA, failure to follow Fairness Doctrine.

90's. An owner of stations in Terre Haute and various MO markets lost licensed upon conviction for child molestation.

70's, I think... 580 Tucson over contest and character issues. Also WFAB in Miami due to double billing and lack of candor.

LAte 70's into 80's... RKO General lost a TV and had to sell all radio upon conviction of parent, General Tire, for bribing government officials in several foreign nations in violation of US law.

There was a daytimere (1310?) in South Carolina where the license was revoked due to profanity and obscenity by morning show.

100.7 Bayamon PR... lost license in 70's due to lack of control by licensee, Prinair.

KRLA Los Angeles... owner was shown to not be US citizen, and license revoked.

There are others... those are just the ones I can recall.

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

I don't remember the details now but Don Burden was ordered to shut his stations down. He had an AM and an FM in Indianapolis. The stations did not get transferred to someone else... I think there were competitive applications to see who got to re-light the fires in those frequencies.

Shutting down WIFE was not a "small potatoes" action.

 

[dave73]

In Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina, WCRY 1460 kHz was ordered off the air as part of a settlement between owner Willis Broadcasting of Norfolk, Virginia and the FCC. Willis was cited for multiple violations at its stations across the southeast. The company is well-documented for letting its stations fall into extreme disrepair, but had mostly avoided the wrath of the FCC until 2004. I don't recall if they had to surrender any other licenses in the settlement.

Willis Broadcasting acquired AM 1270 WWCA Gary Indiana back in the early 90's, & that station went downhill after that. Supposedly, there were problems prior to Willis buying them. The station went off the air in 1994, & didn't come back on the air until December 1 2003, despite wikipedia claiming it was on & off the air throughout the 90's. Willis had been fined numerous times for not keeping the towers lit, due to height, & the fact that the towers are near the Griffith Airport. When Starboard Media Foundation bought the station, they spent millions of dollars getting the tower site up to code. People could just walk up to the towers as there were no fences around the towers. The property is now fully fenced in, along with fences around the towers & where the guy-wires go into the ground. A new shack even had to be built, as the old one was rundown, & that also allowed people to get go in & out. Starboard has an engineer check on the tower location from time to time to make sure the site is alright. While I'm not all that happy that relevant radio is on that station, it was a better choice in my opinion (station was off the air) than the original plan of buying WJOB AM 1230 Hammond, IN, & put the remaining workers still employed out of work (WJOB was owned by St George Broadcasting, & was in bankruptcy at the time).

 

[davideduardo]

After mentioning WFAB, the Richard Eaton station in Miami that had its license revoked for double billing, I forgot the other UBC station that was yanked, WOOK 1340 in DC. There, the cause was the use of religious programming to give "numbers" for illegal betting; the numbers were disguised as biblical citations.

 

[John-Summers]

I don't remember the details now but Don Burden was ordered to shut his stations down. He had an AM and an FM in Indianapolis. The stations did not get transferred to someone else... I think there were competitive applications to see who got to re-light the fires in those frequencies.

Shutting down WIFE was not a "small potatoes" action.

You're right. WIFE was a big gun at the time. Don Burden lost his licenses due to inappropriate political contributions if I recall. He also owned KISN in Portland Oregon and the legendary KOIL in Omaha. About six months before the licenses were revoked I was approached about an on-air job at KOIL-FM, whatever the calls were. I can't stand extreme cold and so I asked a friend who had lived in Lincoln how cold it got in Nebraska. He said one New Years Eve it was something like 20 below. I said no thanks to the job and six months later was very glad I did.

And just to correct a mis-statement from an earlier post: WGCB in Red Lion PA did not lose its license. I worked at their TV station for a while and the AM, FM and WINB shortwave were under the same ownership as they always had been. Believe me, you never wanted to bring up the Fairness Doctrine as a topic of conversation in that place!

 

[zman]

Back in the early 90's WCFL 104.7 Morris Illinois was ordered off the air because I believe they were broadcasting with too much power IIRC after several warnings to turn it down they were ordered off the air until it was fixed. someone else might have more details but that's what I remember.

 

[cd637299]

After mentioning WFAB, the Richard Eaton station in Miami that had its license revoked for double billing, I forgot the other UBC station that was yanked, WOOK 1340 in DC. There, the cause was the use of religious programming to give "numbers" for illegal betting; the numbers were disguised as biblical citations.

DE, what about the WRHC 1550 (Coral Gables FL) deal in 1982? Didn't *it* inflate their numbers as well? And didn't WWFE 670 "triple" their real ratings?

WRHC also moved to 1560 for a short time, and had to move back....and I think there were illegalities involved---don't quote me, I just seem to have read.

Their ownership seems to "skate around" being ordered off air....

I am sure you have more info than I.

cd

 

[Silkie]

If they can't bring themselves to pay for decent air staff then the least they should do is send the bad apples off the air when compliance issues are being looked into. In the long run it doesn't work, but it might buy some time.

 

[radioboy]

Another one was WMGA in Moultrie, GA:

http://transition.fcc.gov/eb/Orders/2003/DA-03-3513A1.html

http://www.covingtoninnovations.com/michael/blog/0705/#070503

 

[jh]

After mentioning WFAB, the Richard Eaton station in Miami that had its license revoked for double billing, I forgot the other UBC station that was yanked, WOOK 1340 in DC. There, the cause was the use of religious programming to give "numbers" for illegal betting; the numbers were disguised as biblical citations.

WNJR 1430 Newark NJ lost their license in the 70s for airing preachers with "numbers" disguised as bible verses. I think later an interim operator of WNJR got into some hot water with the FCC for the same reason.

And back in the 60s, the FM on 101.9 Skokie/Chicago IL had their license revoked for airing numbers racket info on their SCA.

 

[Silkie]

If stations are being ordered off the air for air staff "hiding" messages they are really missing the boat on a small, out of the way station. There was on in Baltimore several years ago who kept selling her stocked coke machines. That one is gone, along with the station, and while it is so rare and the incidents are few and far between, there is that occasional drug person, sicko, stalker that gets a microphone.

Just thought I would point that out while the coochy coo types get away with it.