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WOLD-LP

AMRocks

AMRocks

Was in the area recently and was extremely impressed with this little station. The signal seemed very good in all the areas I was in, and I noticed they now have another signal in addition to the 107.9 The reverb was a bit annoying but otherwise the music and jocks were pretty good. They even had ABC News at the bottom of every hour. I did think the commercials very annoying as every one started out that the programming was "sponsored by." Every single one. (I'm sure it's a requirement being a low power station.) But overall, they were just as good, if not better than the NYC stations I was listening to. They seem to do a lot of events in the community (even if they are bar appearances.)

Anyone know why they are looking to change the City of License from Woodbridge to Somerset? (I see they are moving their transmitter. Maybe the new tower location doesn't cover the old CoL?)
Here's the coverage area from their website. http://www.woldradio.com/about_us.html

From Radio-locator, it looks as if their translator at 95.1 is actually a much higher power than the originating signal, 250w, but highly directional.
 
Non-profit stations must acknowledge the business by FCC Rules, and that includes the Underwriting Announcements, the term used in lieu of 'commercials'. Underwriting designates a certain style of advertising where there is no call to action, no comparisons and no price and item that you find in a typical commercial. Some stations say 'support provided by' while others say 'we'd like to thank...' or 'sponsored by' or 'made possible by'. Most stations say the same wording to identify the business buying Underwriting on all spots. I suppose a positive is you're not hearing 6 or more of these in a row like you'd hear for commercial breaks on commercial stations.
 
b-turner said:
Non-profit stations must acknowledge the business by FCC Rules, and that includes the Underwriting Announcements, the term used in lieu of 'commercials'. Underwriting designates a certain style of advertising where there is no call to action, no comparisons and no price and item that you find in a typical commercial. Some stations say 'support provided by' while others say 'we'd like to thank...' or 'sponsored by' or 'made possible by'. Most stations say the same wording to identify the business buying Underwriting on all spots. I suppose a positive is you're not hearing 6 or more of these in a row like you'd hear for commercial breaks on commercial stations.
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I wouldn't say "6 or more" but it was at least 3 or 4. If I'm not mistaken, these Low Power stations can only sell so many of these announcements, so I'm kinda thinking they are over that limit. :)
 
There really is no limit on how many spots can be aired in an hour. They can pretty much run as many as they can sell. With that said, I suspect if that total per hour was way up there, maybe 20 or so every hour at 30 seconds each, the FCC might say something if they knew about it. Listening to a state public radio network one afternoon during All Things Considered, I heard 35 underwriting units in an hour. In reality it was only about 8 minutes in total and some were bunched together to create a 60 or they were sponsorship mentions for things like traffic or weather. I know the FCC did admonish one Low Power FM for their underwriting sounding too much like a commercial (ie: multiple voices, sound effects and background music). Some actually broke that line between commercial and underwriting.
 
The FCC has recently fined other non-commercial stations over $100,000 for playing underwriting announcements that are "of excessive length (between 30 and 60 seconds in duration)". Almost all of WOLD-LP's underwriting announcements are at least 30 seconds long, with some being a full minute.

The FCC also considers leading questions (such as "Looking to remodel your home?" or "Want to know where you can get the best pizza?") to be "calls to action", which are against the rules, and many of WOLD-LP's ads contain leading questions. They also run ads for one company whose jingle claims them to be "the best you can get", even though such qualitative statements are also against the rules.

WOLD-LP also has a simulcast on 1710 kHz AM in Manville, NJ, in violation of the FCC Part 15 rules (unlicensed AM transmitters are only allowed to operate between 535 and 1705 kHz).
 
kevtronics said:
The FCC has recently fined other non-commercial stations over $100,000 for playing underwriting announcements that are "of excessive length (between 30 and 60 seconds in duration)". Almost all of WOLD-LP's underwriting announcements are at least 30 seconds long, with some being a full minute.

The FCC also considers leading questions (such as "Looking to remodel your home?" or "Want to know where you can get the best pizza?") to be "calls to action", which are against the rules, and many of WOLD-LP's ads contain leading questions. They also run ads for one company whose jingle claims them to be "the best you can get", even though such qualitative statements are also against the rules.
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It's interesting, every time I happen to stumble across a post like this I find myself trying to see things from all sides, just to be fair. I happen to agree with the original poster that the station is run very well and seems to have a loyal following as I've seen them around town and heard them being played in businesses across their listening are which in today's world with all the competition seems to be quite an accomplishment for a smaller scale station like an LPFM and so I commend them for that, trying to do MORE with much LESS. I do like the fact that they're LIVE across most of the day when less and less stations seem to be anymore. There is just something to be said just knowing that as I'm listening to a station, someone is literally sitting there getting through the day with me. I think in the last few months (as someone above noted) they got a secondary frequency to expand their coverage. I'm guessing if the main station is non commercial then the secondary has to be too. If you listen to the station, you would have no obvious idea that they are non-commercial unless you hone in the items that they cannot say in their announcements and notice their absence. I didn't notice the frequency of the "sponsored by..." mentions until the original poster pointed it out. I'm not so sure, to me, that is a big deal if it means having something different available on the FM dial. I'm not sure where the core base of their listeners comes from, but I would guess the secondary frequency more so than the main one if the coverage is greater. Having seen this post, I am glad they are getting some good attention for what they are trying to do. I'm sure it has to be one heck of an uphill battle to wedge in between stations that have been around for much longer. I tip my hat to them all the way!

I did try to identify some direction on what the actual "rules" are regarding LPFM and non commercials stations and the info seems to be quite vague at best as written in different FCC statutes. What I did come across is this link, where it offers a general "nuts and bolts" checklist for underwriting rules:

https://www.fcc.gov/media/radio/nature-of-educational-broadcasting#ENHANCED

What I did not come across in the above article is a specific notation on time allotment for underwriting messages. I have seen several mention a general :30 but nothing to prohibit anything greater. This article, an official FCC document, even states in the last paragraph of the second page down that "The underwriting policy has some gray areas. Sometimes it is difficult to distinguish between language and images that are descriptive and those that are promotional." I guess just like most things with the FCC, it has to be complicated rather than concise...

https://transition.fcc.gov/osp/inc-report/INoC-31-Nonprofit-Media.pdf

Lastly I found this article from Radio World just last month written by someone with 35+ years of experience with non commercial stations and serves to be a pretty decent "guide" for stations that may be new or confused with the FCC verbiage on their site. The author mentions :30 messages but again no clear mention of a prohibited greater length.

https://www.radioworld.com/news-and-business/underwriting-and-psa-tips-for-non-coms

I think this is once again a prime example of the government making things overly complicated where "interpretation" becomes the threat at the end of the day. Now I just did some quick casual research on my lunch hour but does anyone else have a more clear and concise list of regulations for these types of stations that maybe I just didn't see? It would really be a shame if a station that really does try to do something unique by actually serving an audience were to run into an issue out of sheer lack of knowledge or misinformation or misinterpretation from FCC documents that are decades old at this point. In the violation the last poster noted, it did mention "excessive length" but where are those "mandated lengths" mention in the FCC rules?

Maybe someone from the station can read this board and see if anything warrants their attention.
 
The Underwriting Rules are intentionally vague. The FCC does not want to make the box smaller but allow for wiggle room. Still, the lack of clear cut leaves stations wondering where the line is drawn. For example, a station was fined for an announcement for an attorney that concluded with the address backed up with, in the same location for X number of years (maybe it was 20 or 25). The FCC concluded it implied the attorney was better experienced than others and thus gave the attorney a competitive advantage.

Another station mentioned 5 items a business carried in inventory. The FCC determined it was 'menu listing' or meaning there were too many items listed in the spot. I guess 4 is okay. The next guy from the FCC might be fine with 5 items. Funny, you don't see that rule in the Underwriting Rules.

While there is no limit on the number of units in an hour, there is not a length that becomes illegal either. The FCC advises 20 seconds is a good length noting once you exceed 20 seconds you run a better chance at triggering a fine for saying too much. One station tells the history of the business in their underwriting that sounds more like storytelling. They typically run about 60 seconds and have for years without triggering a fine. They also do not cross the line on Underwriting Rules as these 'storytelling' spots are carefully worded, many centering on how the business owner fell in love with the area or how you'd likely see their young daughter in the office, etc.

The FCC has come down on stations that sounded too much like commercial stations. They want Underwriting to sound different than a commercial. It never triggered a fine but an admonishment. There is no rule saying Underwriting cannot sound identical to a commercial even if the wording does not violate the rules. Clearly these stations sounded identical to their commercial counterparts complete with production music, sound effects and many spots multi-voiced in the style of a commercial.

I cannot say if WOLD is violating FCC Underwriting Rules but keep in mind they can run full commercials online, just not on the air. One station used to run Underwriting on air and the full commercial on their online feed. And yes, if WOLD has a translator, it too must be non-commercial just like the station it repeats.

It is the responsibility of every station licensee to abide by the rules, to do the research and get it right. Like law in general, ignorance is no excuse. When you push the envelope, you can bet they have their eye on you and are ready to nip it in the bud when you slip up. The other station that slips up but doesn't press the envelope usually gets away with any slip up because the FCC is not eyeballing them. That alone is a good reason to stay far from that line in the sand the FCC has drawn.
 
I can see how that could be an issue but as you said it's from 3 years ago and it would almost seem like that was posted up on YouTube with some sort of malice. Based on the tone of your posts it seems like you are in an area where the signal can be heard over the air to delineate from web stream content but it doesn't seem like you're a fan of what the station is doing or offering for content on a local level or maybe that is a misinterpretation on my part and I'm totally off base. I guess "oldies" aren't for everyone's cup of tea. Oh and it's interesting to note a station in 2018 still coining the term "oldies."

I had the station on yesterday for a while and I didn't hear anything that would be considered a flagrant violation to my laymen ears but then again as b-turner notes, if it's all up to honest interpretation then that pretty much tells the story, not just for this station but for all the other non commercial stations up and down the dial. I would think these stations would have an in-house "authority" or someone in a legal capacity crosscheck what is being aired for legality purposes to avoid any issues but on the other hand that's something else that costs money and perhaps not every LPFM and non commercial station can afford it like the big guys and groups.

I just heard them do a concert giveaway with the DJ as I'm typing this... pretty cool! I really am impressed with how seamless the station sounds and the fact that they do have quite a few local sponsors. Someone is doing some good work on the underwriting side.
 
The YouTube video is someone that has it out for them. If not the length of the underwriting would not be noted nor the legal ID which was perfectly fine.

Listening to the copy of the Underwriting I heard several phrases that I would never include. One of the questions you ask yourself in writing a spot is if the phrase makes the listener feel the business is superior or better than it's competitors. I would say both are subject to scrutiny by the FCC.They are presented in a typical Underwriting format.

Most LPFMs do not have legal counsel and many do not know a person that has experience writing Underwriting spots. They simply cannot afford it. Most LPFM stations bring in only a few thousand dollars a year. A station doing $20,000 or more a year is pretty rare. Most are in the $2,000 to $5,000 a year range.

Many have nobody that knows how to sell. And part of this is their fault. There is thinking that it is wrong to imply the Underwriter is getting anything of value but rather making a donation. Logic tells the average person businesses will shell out more money if they feel they are getting the benefit of increased awareness and building top of mind recall. That's what Underwriting does. Use yourself as an example: you go in a store to buy Christmas presents. You spend lots of cash on items and leave. The Salvation Army kettle is by the door with the bell ringer. Do you put an equal amount you just spent in the kettle? Maybe a dollar or two? Or, do you avoid eye contact and walk briskly past? If the last two are your choice it is because a donation means you give the benefit to the recipient and you likely cannot afford to part with much money without it benefiting you.

The LPFM I was associated with sold 'audio business cards'. This dictated content: who you are, what you do and how to get in touch. We had an online business directory where all the client wanted to say on the air was found. We tagged spots with it so listeners only had to remember one website address. The push was the average consumer is made aware via radio then goes online to be sold on doing business with you. The FCC does not regulate online content.
 
The ID with the barely audible "-LP" was removed shortly after that video was posted. And it's not a matter of being "out to get" the station. Clearly they wouldn't have lasted this long and added a translator on 95.1 MHz if they weren't providing good programming and attracting listeners.

But as the FCC has noted, non-comm stations who don't follow the underwriting guidelines do a disservice to all the other non-comm stations who take great pains to make sure they play by the rules, even if it means their sponsors get less bang for the buck in terms of the station simply mentioning their existence instead of giving them advertising almost identical to what is heard on commercial stations.

It is also notable that unlike virtually every other non-comm station in the area -- and even several commercial stations -- WOLD-LP has to my knowledge never once held a fundraising campaign to help pay the bills. So apparently those underwriting announcements are bringing in enough dough to keep the lights on without needing any extra help.
 
The YouTube video poster was out to get them. There is absolutely no logical reason to point out Underwriting lengths and the quick LP in the ID for any other reason. You should have heard one Texas station's ID. You know how those disclaimers on auto ads were done: where you could hardly make out a word? Well, that was their legal ID wrapped with their moniker on one side and their target community on the other. No it was not illegal to do that. I could never understand the call letters listening to the station. Then again those translators that ID the station with morse code is beyond me too.

So, some commercial stations where you are hold fundraisers for their stations? Never heard of that except for one New York FM with an eclectic format. It doesn't cost much to run a LPFM, typically under $1,000 a month even if you're leasing tower space. One that I work with took $300 a month to operate.
 
Complaints to the FCC regarding WOLD-LP were filed back in 2015 and 2016, but yet no action was taken... so if someone was "out to get them", then they failed.

And according to previous FCC rulings, and as others in this thread have noted, length of the announcement definitely is one of the factors in determining whether or not it is out of compliance with the guidelines.

Two commercial stations here in NJ which did have listener fundraisers were 99.1 WAWZ (to build a new tower, after their old one was condemned by the township), and 1070 WKMB (their "Rebuild-athon 2004").

p.s. WOLD-LP is modulating about 3 dB louder than any other station on the dial, too. So either they have some kind of super-duper audio processor that even the Top 40 stations in NYC don't have yet, or they're overmodulating.
 
That is very interesting about commercial stations holding fundraisers. It has never been done in my part of the country. I hope it worked well for them.

Don't think because a complaint was filed way back when that it will not be acted on. Sometimes it takes years. Only so many people in the FCC legal department and I'm sure there is always something requiring immediate action that leaves other complaints on the back burner. I personally think the ones that get the quickest action are those that might generate some much needed revenue but then again when you look at all the stuff the FCC is assigned to regulate, broadcast radio seems sort of insignificant. Literally anything capable of transmitting is theirs...garage door openers to TV remotes through telephones, their providers, two way radio to broadcast and satellite...a huge workload.
 
kevtronics said:
Complaints to the FCC regarding WOLD-LP were filed back in 2015 and 2016, but yet no action was taken... so if someone was "out to get them", then they failed.
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I'm learning quite a lot from this thread... if I can ask a question that may seem obvious... is it public knowledge that the station had a complaint(s) made against them? Where would one go to find this information or is it something that you are privy to in some way? Just curious as I wasn't aware that these type of things are made public unless there is some kind of action (correct word?) taken by the FCC? As far as them being louder, if you travel through their coverage area I often hear a religious 107.9 chopping into WOLD and the audio seems just as loud (to me) if not louder and no stereo light so I'm guessing a mono broadcast. Not exactly sure why/how I'd be hearing a station that I think is from somewhere north of Middlesex county this far south but I guess its a reality of the FM band just getting more and more company from translator stations coming aboard to salvage the AM band. Within the last few months the choppiness has definitely increased between the two stations, both the WOLD (oldies) and 107.9 religious. Maybe its weather-related somehow... really just too much on the 107.9 frequency in the area I guess...
 
Yes complaints should be available to see by using the AM or FM query at the FCC website. You need to click to see correspondence and/or application list. The FCC does not have to make a decision for it to be seen. One thing I can tell you is the FCC will only investigate those complaints for over the air underwriting. Some filers were submitting the internet feed (that can legally carry commercials) or did not designate if it was an over the air recording.

Length is a factor. The FCC frequently suggests 20 seconds or less but a 60 second unit will not draw a fine if it meets Underwriting Rules. For me, I prefer shorter.

Interference is happening all over. Lots of folks complain some FM 60 miles away doesn't come in when their protected coverage is only 30 miles. Sometimes stations do not play nice (overpowering or doing the wrong antenna array versus what they told the FCC). In short, the bad players will get caught and everyone will accept the crowded dial as the new normal.
 
My last visit to NJ, I tuned in again. The music is very good. Very "oldies" in the traditional sense. They run a LOT of spots, but so do other stations. But the jocks are pretty sad. At least the ones I heard during the day. Very low energy. It's doesn't fit the music, imaging or the reverb.
 
I heard a commercial station doing a fundraiser between the commercials. Pulse 87.7 had this crazy idea to raise money for its rent from its listeners. They owed 500,000 in back rent and the owner was threatening to shut it down if they didn't pay up. They did manage to raise 100,000 from its listeners in one day! $500 of that came from me.

b-turner said:
That is very interesting about commercial stations holding fundraisers. It has never been done in my part of the country. I hope it worked well for them.

Don't think because a complaint was filed way back when that it will not be acted on. Sometimes it takes years. Only so many people in the FCC legal department and I'm sure there is always something requiring immediate action that leaves other complaints on the back burner. I personally think the ones that get the quickest action are those that might generate some much needed revenue but then again when you look at all the stuff the FCC is assigned to regulate, broadcast radio seems sort of insignificant. Literally anything capable of transmitting is theirs...garage door openers to TV remotes through telephones, their providers, two way radio to broadcast and satellite...a huge workload.
Click to expand...
 
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