WCLS-FM Signal Loss at Night

[Bomba]

Hello:

Does anyone know what is going on with WCLS-FM, at night? Some have reported they have been off the air for several days/weeks, during the overnight. Are they doing tower work? Are they trying to save money? Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, everyone!

 

[davideduardo]

Hello:

Does anyone know what is going on with WCLS-FM, at night? Some have reported they have been off the air for several days/weeks, during the overnight. Are they doing tower work? Are they trying to save money? Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, everyone!

Tower work is not done in hours of darkness.

At this time, the most likely reason for going off in overnights is to save money.

Other than that, most technical work can be done with a station on the air. Occasionally a project at the transmitter site, such as redoing AC power wiring and switching, might be better done with the station off the air but that is fairly unusual.

Perhaps some more experienced engineers can add to this observation.

But my guess is that it is about the Benjamins.

 

[PTBoardOp94]

Three possible explanations:

1. WCLS owner Dave Keister passed away a couple of weeks ago.
https://www.costinfuneralchapel.com/obituary/david-keister

2. WCLS's STL tower in the back of the studio was toppled in a storm this month. They are probably using a temporary STL.
https://www.facebook.com/97.7wcls/posts/2603828169888549?

3. Money, which may be related to #1, #2, or the Coronavirus as David has outlined.

 

[davideduardo]

Three possible explanations:

1. WCLS owner Dave Keister passed away a couple of weeks ago.
https://www.costinfuneralchapel.com/obituary/david-keister

2. WCLS's STL tower in the back of the studio was toppled in a storm this month. They are probably using a temporary STL.
https://www.facebook.com/97.7wcls/posts/2603828169888549?

3. Money, which may be related to #1, #2, or the Coronavirus as David has outlined.

The death of the owner likely put the station in the hands of an estate administrator and they looked at ways to cut expenses during the pandemic. Or, if the estate administrator is not yet in place, whoever is in charge looked to cut expenses given the loss of ad revenue.

 

[Bomba]

Thanks for Feedback

Thank you to PTBoardOp94 and to DavidEduardo, as I was unaware of Mr. Keister's passing; my condolences to his entire family, to his friends, and to his coworkers. I also did not know the company's STL was damaged a while back. My best wishes go to the entire organization and to Mr. Keister's family, during this difficult time.

 

[PTBoardOp94]

On May 15, applications for transfer of control of Mr. Keister's FCC licenses were filed. The assignee is an Indianapolis-based accountant.

My suspicion is that the accountant is not intending to permanently operate the stations. What is unclear is whether the heirs are working on a long-term plan to take over, or if the stations will be up for sale.

 

[Bomba]

Thanks for the Update

On May 15, applications for transfer of control of Mr. Keister's FCC licenses were filed. The assignee is an Indianapolis-based accountant.

My suspicion is that the accountant is not intending to permanently operate the stations. What is unclear is whether the heirs are working on a long-term plan to take over, or if the stations will be up for sale.

Hey, PTBoardOp94:

You have great timing; I just logged on here, yesterday, to see if anyone had posted any updates about this station. I have noticed that some of the on-air marketing has changed. The station is now using the moniker, "The Sound," in their on-air and online marketing. Thanks for the updates, PTBoardOp94!