WXHM 91.9 Middletown now on

[rygert]

The new WXHM 91.9 Middletown is now on the air, simulcasting the contemporary Christian Reach FM network. The WXHL translator at 97.1 is still on the air as well, giving Reach FM two signals in Middletown. To the north at least, the 91.9 signal is not as strong at the 97.1 translator.

 

[DaveWilliams]

Its interesting to look at the FCC info on the stations here, 97.1 shows as bring a translator for WRBS Baltimore. Its also interesting to note that there is FCC paperwork pending for stations on 98.5, 99.5 and 104.9/translators in Middletown. I think 99.5 is a mistake in the nearness to WJBR (5 watts wouldn't go to far).

 

[jhguthlac]

I'm really getting disgusted with all of these little FM stations jamming up the band.

 

[MikefromDelaware]

There's nothing on the FM dial near 91.9, other than 92.1 from Vineland (which in the Middletown area might conflict, but Middletown doesn't conflict with 92.1 near New Castle). I like it that WAMU in DC put a 50K station that simulcasts WAMU's programming so when down in Kent and Sussex County I can still get the main NPR programming like ME, ATC, and Fresh Air. I was driving back up from Milford yesterday and noticed that WHYY's south Jersey FM's ( I'm assuming Cape May or Atlantic City) was coming in reasonably well so now Lower Delaware can hear all the WHYY-FM programs at least in their cars (not sure if that signal is strong enough to work in their homes).

However, I'd agree that WXHL aka Reach FM (CCM format) has a boat load of small powered repeater stations all over the east coast. They certainly have made good use of the rule allowing such repeaters, much as WRTI at Temple Univ has done with Classical /Jazz around the Delaware Valley. Lower Delaware seems to have a bunch of out of market stations running repeaters in Kent and Sussex, most are religious (WXHL, Bible Broadcasting Network, and WRTS 95.1 Baltimore has a repeater down there too), NPR via WAMU, WRTI Temple Univ, plus Dover's 1600AM simulcasting on 2 low powered FM's in Dover and Milford.

I scanned both AM and FM while driving down there yesterday and it seemed to my ear, there wasn't the variety of choices (from what I heard while scanning) on AM or FM that we have in Wilmington due to Philly being so close. Up here we have WIP, WPEN AM/FM, WWTX for sports talk, WDEL, WPHT for local talk, WILM (Premiere based), WNTP(Salem based) for syndicated satellite talk. Down there the talkers are WDOV WGMD and both seemed to be airing the same syndicated talk (Rush), I guess WGMD does do at least one local show, Dan Gatney (sp). No sports talk that I could find. We've got Eagles on both WDEL and WYSP-FM. No Philly sports other than WDEL and WPHT, so that means no Phillies night games unless you are able to get 1210 at night there. No night games for Eagles fans as WDEL doesn't reach there at night and neither does WYSP-FM.

We have all news on KYW, down there none.

For local news coverage, we have WDEL, WILM, to a lesser degree WHYY-FM, and KYW if the story is big. Down there they have WDOV and WGMD-FM.

Up here WHYY-FM NPR, WRTI, Jazz/Classical, WVUD UofDel, WXPN Uof Penn. Down there 89.5 Classical, 90.7 NPR and WAMU's simulcast for NPR. So they've got NPR covered as well as we have, but they are missing those other college type stations that offer much music not available on radio today.

Up here we have 3 country stations to choose from WXCY, WDSD, and WXTU, all come in quite well (depending where in NCC you are you might also get WPOC from Baltimore). Down there WDSD, and one other country station don't remember the calls. One would think they would have more country than us city slickers in Wilmington/Philly.

Up here for religious: WFIL 560 Salem Christian preaching/teaching shows, WVCH 740 (mostly preachers and easy listening praise as fillers), WTMR 800 Camden preachers, 1510 WFAI Gospel, 89.1 WXHL's flag ship (CCM Top-40), 89.9 WOEL Elkton Fundamentalist preaching with hymns, WDAC 94.5 evangelical preaching mellow praise music and farm info from Lancaster. 106.9 Family Radio fundamentalist preaching hymn based format. For a Blue County we sure do have a lot of religious stations available to hear (two of these listed are in New Castle County).

Down there translators of WXHL, WRTS from Balt, BBN, also can receive well a more fundamentalist station from Princess Anne Md, and their new local CCM station the Bridge from Harrington, DE.

Up here one oldies station WOGL and one oldies station down there. I personally like their oldies station better variety.

We also seem to have far more music stations (that I don't like) available up here that they don't have as much of available down there.
So in spite of all the stations that are down there, to my ear scanning the dial as I drove, it didn't seem like they have the variety or as many choices as we do up here.

Kind of makes you appreciate what we have available on our radios up here.

 

[jhguthlac]

Mike, you are wrong about WGMD. The only syndicated show they carry during the day is Rush. All the rest is live and local. And normally well done. They can do this since they have a great sales staff. They can sell anything and have done so since at least the 90's.

 

[MikefromDelaware]

Thanks for the correction. I knew of Dan's show from when Christine O'Donnell ran the last time, and he had some interviews of her on his show online, but didn't realize the station is mostly live and local, sort of like WPHT with only Rush coming from the bird. That is great. I'll have to try to check them out online at work. I did notice that WGMD has far more local spots during Rush than WILM has. It would appear that WGMD is actually making money with local spots as they air Rush, where I think WILM may not even be breaking even, but that's only a guess. Of course Sussex County is a Red County vs Blue New Castle County, which might help WGMD sell time during Limbaugh's show, but then again, they just might have a great sales team at WGMD.

I sometimes listen to Bill Bennett and Dennis Prager on WNTP Philly online as I can't get 990 at all at work. I've never been a big Mike Gallagher fan (even when I worked at WILM during the time the station carried his show), I've listened a couple of times online also to Mike via WNTP, but I like Prager far better. Online is a great thing. You can get all sorts of radio programming beyond your local neighborhood. It sure makes AM sound great. That might be the one thing that could save AM radio is listening online. Then its a level playing field for AM and FM. No static. Problem is unless you have a HD radio in your car there isn't a way to get that online AM sounding like FM experience, where most radio listening happens. I guess the I-phones and Blackberries have the ability, but then your car stereo system needs to be able to hook up to your Blackberry/I-phone, etc. But the new cars might indeed have that ability so this could be a way of getting that younger demo to listen to online programming in their cars.

How ironic that would be for the 20-30 somethings, who don't even know there's an AM part of their radio would end up listening to say WDEL.com online via their Blackberry when they could just as easily push the AM selector and hear the same program on WDEL-AM. But the online sound is superior.

 

[jhguthlac]

I wonder how close we are to internet radio being common in cars?