KFFF-FM, which currently carries a Christian Talk format, would change its community of license to Johnston and transmit from a tower owned by Clear Channel in Saylorville, using 6kW at 88m. The move would give the station city-grade coverage of most of the Des Moines metro area. (The tower is also used by Clear Channel's KPTL/106.3 Ankeny.)

To make way for the move, Truth Broadcasting proposes that KPUL/99.5 (Winterset) be moved to 101.7 with no change to its coverage area. The FCC will generally order stations to make frequency changes that don't involve a change in coverage area to allow other stations to upgrade. KPUL-FM's potential move would likely force KUNI translator K269EJ/101.7 (Des Moines) to change frequency or leave the air.

KFFF-FM would be the only broadcast station licensed to Johnston, while three other radio stations would remain licensed to Boone. However, FCC rules would not prevent KFFF-FM from targeting its programming to listeners in Des Moines.

North Carolina-based Truth Broadcasting recently bought KFFF-FM and KFFF/1260 from Faith & Freedom Communications in exchange for paying a $20,000 FCC fine for public file violations. (2/8/2010)

IOWA:
Augustana College's WVIK/90.3 (Rock Island, IL) has improved its signal in Dubuque. The station's Dubuque translator has moved from 95.7 to 95.9 as K240DZ, moved is transmitter from southwest of town to Finley Hospital, and upgraded from 115W to 153W. A map showing the change is on page 18 of this document. WVIK carries a format of NPR News and Classical music. (2/8/2010)

MINNESOTA:
For $10, Willmar Assembly of God Church has sold K28IF (Willmar) to UHF TV, Inc., which operates ten other low-power/translator stations in Willmar. The church determined it no longer has the resources to operate the station, which had carried TBN and is currently off the air. As part of the deal, UHF TV must return K28IF to the air by May 22, when special temporary authority to remain silent expires. Meanwhile, UHF TV recently converted its stations to digital, but programming is unknown. (2/8/2010)

SOUTH DAKOTA:
The programming of KPLO/94.5 (Reliance-Pierre) is now being heard on a 250-Watt translator at 100.5 in Pierre after the collapse of the KPLO-TV/FM tower on Jan. 22 took the station off the air. FCC rules allow fill-in translators to stay on the air for limited periods when the primary station is off the air; Jeffrey G. Dress' 2008 application to purchase K261CF had stated that he intended to use it as a translator for KPLO. The translator, formerly K261CF/100.1, had previously relayed KWYR-FM/93.7 (Winner) and was forced to change frequency by the sign-on of KJBI/100.1 (Fort Pierre). (2/8/2010)

IOWA:
KCRG-TV/9 (Cedar Rapids) reports that its own building, along with the larger Gazette newspaper building next door, could be the site for the new Cedar Rapids Public Library. The library board voted Thursday (Feb. 4) in favor of moving to the Gazette block. The move still requires approval from the city council and FEMA. The old library was flooded in the 2008 floods, which did not reach the Gazette block. KCRG has been located in the three-story building at 501 2nd Ave. SE since it was built in the 1970's. (2/4/2010)

WISCONSIN:
More than a decade after the applications were filed, new stations on 92.9 in New Holstein and 98.9 in Two Rivers will be awarded in a closed auction beginning July 12. The auction will be limited to organizations which applied for the frequencies in 1996 and 1997 filing windows. The competing applicants were unable to reach settlement agreements, and the applications have sat at the FCC ever since. (The FCC later switched to auctions rather than the filing of competing applications for new commercial FM stations.) Evangel Ministries and Michael R. Walton, Jr., applied for both frequencies; KM Communications and Metro North Commuications both also applied for the New Holstein station, while Tri-County Radio and BBK Broadcasting filed for the Two Rivers station. Minimum bids will be $25,000 for New Holstein and $35,000 for Two Rivers. Both stations are alloted as class A (6kW/100m). The Two Rivers station has possible rimshot coverage of Sheboygan, while New Holstein has possible rimshot coverage of Appleton and Oshkosh. (2/4/2010)

MINNESOTA:
Hubbard Broadcasting's WFMP/107.1 (Coon Rapids-St. Paul-Minneapolis) has rebranded as "myTalk 107.1" and changed its callsign to KTMY. The Personality Talk station had been known as "FM 107" since it moved into the Twin Cities market in 2002. (2/3/2010)

WISCONSIN:
UPDATE: ABC affiliate WBAY-TV/2 (Green Bay) and Wisconsin Public Televison station WPNE-TV/38 (Green Bay) returned to the air Saturday evening (1/30) after suffering what the Green Bay Press Gazette reports was a problem with the transmission line. The stations are at low power for now. WBAY continued to deliver its programming to some cable systems during the outage. (2/1/2010)

ONTARIO:
The CRTC has approved a frequency change for CKQV-FM-3 (Sioux Lookout) from 104.5 to 104.1. Owner Norwesto Broadcasting said the 49-Watt station was interfering with CKQV-FM-1/104.5 (Dryden). Both are rebroadcasters of CKQV-FM/103.3 (Vermilion Bay), which is also heard on CKQV-FM-2/104.5 (Kenora) and carries a Hot Adult Contemporary format as "Q104." (2/1/2010)

IOWA:
KFMG-LP/99.1 (Des Moines) went silent on Jan. 15. The 100-Watt station is licensed to Employee & Family Resources, whose board decided to take the station off the air for financial reasons. EFR is looking for a suitable non-profit organization to take the license. KFMG-LP had signed on in 2007 with a Progressive/Adult Alternative format. (1/28/2010)

MINNESOTA:
As planned, Twin Cities Public Television station KTCI-DT (St. Paul) has moved its actual broadcast channel from 16 to channel 23, upgrading from 50kW to 300kW. (WUCW/23.1, which had previously used analog channel 23, broadcasts on RF channel 22.) Broadcast viewers will need to rescan their receivers. KTCI-DT/16 had been home to channel 2.3 (TPT Life) and 2.4 (TPT Weather), but DX'ers report 2.4 is now on KTCA-DT/34, along with 2.1 (TPT2) and 2.2 (TPT Minnesota), leaving only 2.3 on KTCI-DT/23. TPT had earlier announced plans to swap the programming on channels 2.3 and 2.4 but apparently decided against that idea. (1/28/2010)

NORTH DAKOTA/SOUTH DAKOTA:
105.9 "Bob FM" (KKBO Flasher-Bismarck) is off the air due to transmitter building damage suffered during last weekend's storm. The station continues to stream its programming, commercial-free, at 1059bobfm.com. Meanwhile, DX-midAMerica reports KBJM/1400 (Lemmon, SD) is back on the air after its tower collapsed last weekend. (1/28/2010)

SOUTH DAKOTA:
Add KBJM/1400 (Lemmon) to the list of stations silenced by last weekend's storm. The station reports in a notification of suspension of operations that it suffered a "tower collapse due to high winds" on Saturday (1/23). As previously reported, a tower collapse near Reliance silenced KPLO-TV/6 and KPLO/94.5 (Reliance), while another collapse near South Shore silenced KSDR-FM/92.9 (Watertown), KIXX/96.1 (Watertown), and KKSD/104.3 (Milbank-Watertown). (1/27/2010)

SOUTH DAKOTA:
Sorenson Broadcasting is selling six stations to Riverfront Broadcasting, LLC for $3.2 million. The stations are KORN/1490 (Mitchell), KQRN/107.3 (Mitchell), KCCR/1240 (Pierre), KLXS-FM/95.3 (Pierre), KYNT/1450 (Yankton), and KKYA/93.1 (Yankton). Riverfront has been programming the stations since March 1, 2008, first under a sub-programming agreement with NRG Media, which had previously operated the stations, and then directly with Sorenson beginning Dec. 29, 2009. Riverfront is owned by Carolyn Becker (51%) and Doyle Becker (49%). It also holds the construction permit for KDAM/94.3 (Hartington, NE), which will serve the Yankton market, and owns KNCY/1600 (Nebraska City, NE) and KNCY-FM/103.1 (Auburn, NE). (1/27/2010)

MINNESOTA:
Minnesota Valley Broadcasting is exercising an agreement to buy KXLP/94.1 (Eagle Lake-Mankato) from Radioactive, LLC. Minnesota Valley Broadcasting, owned by the Linder family, has been operating KXLP under a local marketing and programming agreement since it signed on in 2007. Clear Channel orginally made the $1.2 million deal to buy 94.1 in 2006 and made a $960,000 down payment. In 2007, Clear Channel sold its Mankato group to Three Eagles Communications, and Three Eagles then transferred the 94.1 purchase agreement and two other stations to Minnesota Valley Broadcasting. Minnesota Valley Broadcasting owns five other stations targeting Mankato, while Three Eagles owns the city's other four commercial stations. (1/27/2010)

NEBRASKA:
Three Eagles' KLMS/1480 (Lincoln) has dropped ESPN Radio for an Oldies format capitalizing on the station's Top 40 heritage. Initial stunting, which can be heard at 1480klms.com, includes snippets of airchecks from the station's past. KLMS was the market's only all-sports outlet, though "Big Sports 590" (KXSP Omaha) and "ESPN 1620" (KOZN Omaha) can be heard in Lincoln. (1/27/2010)

IOWA:
The FCC has cancelled $7,000 fines against KHPP/1160 (Waukon) and KVIK/104.7 (Decorah) and replaced them with $187.50 penalties. The fines had been proposed for failure to file for license renewal in 2004 and continuing to broadcast after the old licenses had expired in 2005. Owner Wennes Communications filed the application using the FCC's online filing system but acknowledged it did not properly tender the filing fee. The company said it didn't realize there was a problem until it received letters from the FCC after the licenses had expired. A similar fine against Wennes' KNEI-FM/103.5 (Waukon) was cancelled last month. The $187.50 penalties amount to 25 percent of the original filing fee. (1/26/2010)

WISCONSIN:
New station WDTX/100.5 (Rothschild-Wausau) has ended the stunting and is now paired with WXCO/1230 (Wausau) as "Sports Fan 100.5." WisconsinBroadcasting.com reports both stations carry ESPN Radio, but will carry separate high school sports. (1/26/2010)

SOUTH DAKOTA:
Ice has fallen another broadcast tower in South Dakota. This time, it's a 820-foot tower near South Shore that was home to KSDR-FM/92.9 (Watertown), KIXX/96.1 (Watertown), and KKSD/104.3 (Milbank-Watertown). All are 100kW stations owned by Three Eagles Broadcasting, though the tower is owned by a separate company. The collapse comes just days after the KPLO-TV/FM tower near Reliance, SD collapsed. There were no injuries reported in either collapse. It's not yet clear when any of the stations will return to the air. (1/24/2010)

IOWA/NEBRASKA:
"New 102" (KQNU/102.3 Onawa-Sioux City) was knocked off the air by the weekend storm. The station has posted video of the expedition to its transmitter site in Thurston County, NE on YouTube. (1/24/2010)

WISCONSIN:
WisconsinBroadcasting.com reports that new station WDTX/100.5 (Rothschild-Wausau) is on the air and is stunting. The station is owned by JER Licenses and transmits with 25kW/84m from a tower southwest of Wausau. (1/23/2010)

SOUTH DAKOTA:
The KPLO-TV/6 (Reliance-Pierre, RF 13) tower has collapsed after a guy wire snapped due to ice buildup. KELOLAND reports the 712-foot tower crumpled after the guy wire broke. Then, the top 300 feet tipped over, snapping a power line. There were no reports of injuries. FCC records indicate the tower was built in 1957. KPLO is owned by Young Broadcasting and is a satellite of KELO-TV/11 (Sioux Falls), carrying CBS and My Network TV programming. The station says it hasn't determined how long KPLO-TV will be off the air, but most cable systems are still carrying the station, and satellite customers receive KELO-TV. KPLO/94.5 (Reliance), owned by James River Broadcasting, also used the tower and is also off the air. (1/22/2010)

MINNESOTA/WISCONSIN:
Liberal talk network Air America Radio is shutting down as it enters chapter 7 bankruptcy. Live programming ended Thursday afternoon, with repeats airing until 8 p.m. CT Monday when the network goes silent. The network has two affiliates in the Upper Midwest: KTNF/950 (St. Louis Park-Minneapolis) and WXXM/92.1 (Sun Prairie-Madison). However, both stations already carry other syndicated programming during the day and will only lose overnight and weekend programming. The network, which launched in April 2004, also had affiliates in Duluth and the Quad Cities at one time. (1/21/2010)

MANITOBA:
The CRTC has approved 5777152 Manitoba Limited's application for a new station in Neepawa. The new station will broadcast on 97.1 with 3.2kW/58m and carry 60 percent Country and 40 percent Pop and Rock, with eight hours of news weekly. Neepawa is about a two-hour drive northwest of Winnipeg and has a population of about 3,300. 5777152 Manitoba Limited is owned by William Gade. (1/21/2010)

MINNESOTA:
KDAL/610 (Duluth) will change its program schedule on Monday, Jan. 25, converting the Noon-2 p.m. slot from local news and talk to national programming. Pat Cadigan and Rik Jordan's local morning show will be shortened by an hour, making way for longtime news reporters Dave Walter and Dave Strandberg from 9-10 a.m. The "Dave and Dave Show" will take a deeper look into local news. Glen Beck moves up to the 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. slot, with his current 5-8 p.m. slot going to Jason Lewis. Dave Ramsey currently airs from 10 a.m. to Noon and will continue from 8-11 p.m. Clark Howard will be added from 1-2 p.m., with Joe Soucheray continuing from 2-5 p.m. (1/20/2010)

IOWA/WISCONSIN:
Indiana-based Calvary Radio Network is buying 31 FM stations and translators from Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa, CA for $1 million. The stations include KIHS/88.9 (Adel, IA), K233BT/94.5 (Des Moines), WJWD/90.3 (Marshall, WI), W270AU/101.9 (Madison), and dozens of others in Illinois and Indiana. The asset purchase agreement allows the stations to continue carrying their current network programming. (1/20/2010)

WISCONSIN:
Radio Multi Media, the owner-to-be of WNOV/860 (Milwaukee), is buying translator W273AT/102.5 (Milwaukee) from WRVM, Inc. In an unusual move, the purchase price was redacted from a sale document filed with the FCC. W273AT is a 99-Watt translator and was heard on the air last month relaying WNOV's R&B format. The FCC approved the transfer of WNOV's license to Radio Multi Media in 2008, but FCC records indicate Courier Communications still holds the license. (1/20/2010)

MINNESOTA:
The FCC has granted Educational Media Foundation's KRLP/88.1 a move from Windom to Fairmont. The "K-Love" station currently uses 40W/118m in Windom; it'll use 2.7kW/122m in Fairmont. (1/18/2010)

MINNESOTA:
The FCC has granted Northwestern College's KDNW/97.3 (Duluth) an upgrade from 40kW/167m to 72kW/168m. Though the upgrade won't result in much of an increase in coverage area, it will intensify KDNW's signal in Duluth, which suffers interference from intermodulation. (1/18/2010)

MINNESOTA:
The University of Minnesota Duluth's KUMD/103.3 is now broadcasting 24 hours per day. The syndicated "Undercurrents" is now filling the overnight hours when KUMD had previously been off the air. The station carries Adult Alternative, Folk, and Blues music during the day and student-produced programming in the evening. (1/18/2010)

MINNESOTA:
C.J. has left the morning show at KROC-FM/106.9 (Rochester) as she prepares to move out of the area. Morning co-host Troy Dunken continues solo. (1/18/2010)

WISCONSIN:
VCY America's WVCY-TV/30 (Milwaukee) is now broadcasting 24 hours per day, continuing to carry Christian programming in the overnight hours. (1/18/2010)

MINNESOTA:
KARE 11 reports longtime channel 11 news and public affairs director Stuart A. Lindman has died at age 87. Lindman began at WMIN/1400 on 1945 and moved to TV when WMIN-TV/11 signed on in 1953. WMIN-TV shared time on channel 11 with WTCN-TV, and Lindman continued on channel 11 after the stations merged in 1956. He retired in 1987 but remained active in community organizations. (1/13/2010)

ONTARIO:
It appears CHFD/4 (Thunder Bay) may be about to lose its CTV affiliation. In an application to the CRTC, CHFD owner Thunder Bay Electronics seeks to remove a condition of license specifying that it operate as a CTV affiliate, saying its been unable to reach a new agreement with the network. The station will continue to carry programming from Global. CHFD and CBC affiliate CKPR-TV/2 are run by Dougall Media and are one of Canada's few remaining "twinstick" operations; there are no other commercial TV stations in Thunder Bay. CTV affiliates from other cities will continue to be available through cable and satellite. (1/12/2010)

WISCONSIN:
FOX 6 (WITI Milwaukee) will move the start of its morning newscast up a half-hour to 4:30 a.m., effective Jan. 18, becoming the first station in the Upper Midwest to crack the now-traditional 5 a.m. local news start. FOX 6 already has newscasts from 5-9 a.m., 11 a.m.-Noon, 5-6:30 p.m., and 9-10:35 p.m. All stream online. (1/12/2010)

WISCONSIN:
WisconsinBroadcasting.com reports that 250-Watt translator W243CM/96.5 (Shawano) is now on the air relaying WTCH/960 (Shawano). The station carries a format of News and Country music. W243CM was moved in from Clintonville. (1/12/2010)

IOWA:
Clear Channel has dropped Sports at KMJM/1360 (Cedar Rapids) and debuted a Classic Country format in its place. Clear Channel also owns "95-7 Kiss Country" (KKSY Anamosa-Cedar Rapids), which competes with Cumulus' KHAK/98.1 (Cedar Rapids). Ironically, 1360 was the original home of KHAK. It became KTOF in 1995 with a Christian format, and then switched to KMJM with a Nostalgia format in 2001. (1/11/2010)

MINNESOTA:
KSTP-TV/5 has announced that Joe Schmit will return as sports director/anchor on Jan 14. Schmit had been at the station for 21 years, the last year as a news anchor, before leaving in 2006. (1/7/2010)

MINNESOTA:
Northern Lights Broadcasting has flipped "B96" (KTTB/96.3 Edina-Minneapolis) from Hip-Hop to Contemporary Hits as "96.3NOW," and changed its callsign to KHTC. The switch puts 96.3 in direct competition with Clear Channel's heritage CHR, KDWB/101.3 (Richfield-Minneapolis). The St. Paul Pioneer Press reports KHTC has let go four on-air personalities, including Peter Parker, but morning host Tone E. Fly is still with the station. 96.3 had carried a Hip-Hop format since moving into the Twin Cities market in 2000. Last year, the station moved its transmitter to New Hope, strengthening its signal across the metro area. (1/6/2010)

IOWA:
KNEI-FM/103.5 (Waukon) has dropped Citadel's Real Country format and is now progamming a local country mix using the name "Bluff Country." The lineup includes Chuck & Sherry from 6-9 a.m., Erik Kelly from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m, operations manager Josh Blake from 2 to 8 p.m., and station owner Greg Wennes from 8 p.m. to Midnight. (1/6/2010)

MINNESOTA:
KRBI-FM/105.5 (St. Peter-Mankato) has reverted its slogan to "The River" and its format to Classic Hits. The Three Eagles Communications station had switched to "The Buzzard" in 2006 and moved to Classic Rock. The change back to Classic Hits came on Monday (Jan. 4) after a weekend of stunting with "Ole Olson and Lars Larson." "The River" is dropping "Bob and Tom" in favor of a local morning show hosted by Mike Schoen and Clay Kepner. (1/4/2010)

WISCONSIN:
W234BG/94.7 (Chetek-Rice Lake) is now carrying an Adult Contemporary format as "Rice Lake's 94.7, The River." The Zoe Communications station identifies itself as a translator of WGMO-HD2 (Spooner). (1/4/2010)

IOWA:
Iowa Public Television will no longer broadcast 24 hours a day effective Jan. 4. The network says it'll be off the air from Midnight to 5 a.m. as part of its effort to absorb a ten percent state budget cut. IPTV will continue to make its three channels available to Mediacom cable 24/7. To ensure broadcast viewers don't lose key programming, K-12 classroom programs will be broadcast from 10 p.m. to Midnight on IPTV Learns (.2), and Charlie Rose and Tavis Smiley will air at 10 and 11 p.m. on IPTV World (.3). IPTV's network includes nine full-power and seven low-power/translator stations. (1/4/2010)

MINNESOTA:
Twin Cities Public Television plans to move KTCI-TV (St. Paul) to a new, more powerful channel on Jan. 28 at 9 a.m. KTCI, which was analog channel 17, currently transmits on channel 16 and remaps to 2.3 and 2.4. It'll move to channel 23, upgrading from 50kW to 375kW, more closely matching the coverage of counterpart KTCA-TV/2.1-2.2 (RF 34). With the move, TPT plans to swap KTCI's channels, with weather programming moving to 2.3 and TPT Life moving to 2.4. Broadcast viewers will need to re-scan to continue receiving 2.3 and 2.4. It's been a long journey for KTCI, which originally planned to move to channel 26 and then proposed channel 38 before finally settling on channel 23. 23 was formerly occupied by analog WUCW, now digital 22 remapping to 23.1. (1/4/2010)

NEBRASKA:
The Lincoln Journal-Star reports former state senator John DeCamp plans to start a network of thirteen or more unlicensed half-Watt transmitters on 1710 in the Lincoln area. DeCamp, a lawyer, tells the paper the transmitters will not be powerful enough to require FCC licenses. The transmitters will carry a 24/7 commercial format, complete with an experienced airstaff and downtown studio. The format will be Oldies in the morning, liberal Talk in the afternoon, and Old Time Radio in the evening. A mid-January launch is planned through Live365. (1/1/2010)

WISCONSIN:
In what may be the last format change of the decade, WCHK-FM/104.3 (Seymour-Green Bay, formerly WECB) became "Chuck FM" with a Classic Hits/Hot Adult Contemporary format at 3 p.m. Dec. 31. The change came after two months of Christmas music. The Woodward Communications station had previously carried an Adult Contemporary format as "The Breeze." It's now also heard on 52-Watt translator W278AU/103.5 (Green Bay). (12/31/2009)

SOUTH DAKOTA/NEBRASKA/IOWA/MINNESOTA:
Shining Light Ministries has merged into Church Planters of America. The new organization has a total of a dozen rural, non-commercial stations and construction permits, including five in South Dakota, three in North Carolina, two in Nebraska, and one each in Iowa and Minnesota. Only three of the stations are currently on the air, including KJBB/89.1 (Watertown, SD) and two in North Carolina. (12/31/2009)

IOWA:
Community First Broadcasting will take over operation of nine northwestern Iowa radio stations on Dec. 31. The stations are KUOO/103.9 (Spirit Lake), KUQQ/102.1 (Milford-Spirit Lake), KUYY/100.1 (Emmetsburg-Spencer), KAYL/990 and KAYL-FM/101.7 (Storm Lake), KKIA/92.9 (Ida Grove-Storm Lake), KSOU/1090 and KSOU-FM/93.9 (Sioux Center), and KIHK/106.9 (Rock Valley-Sioux Center). NRG has operated the stations for the past five years and is transferring station assets to Community First Broadcasting. The KKIA and KUYY licenses are currently held by Jim Dandy Broadcasting, while Sorenson Broadcasting holds the rest of the licenses. Sorenson and Jim Dandy are sister companies to Community First Broadcasting, which is headed by CEO Neil Lipetzky, who also operates Dakota Broadcasting in Aberdeen, SD. (12/30/2009)

MINNESOTA/WISCONSIN:
UPDATE: WEBC/560 (Duluth) returned to the air Tuesday afternoon (Dec. 29) after a four-day outage caused by water leaking into the transmitter building. The station was first noted off the air Dec. 24, though general manager Merry Wallin said it was off and on that day and went completely off the air the next day. Wallin said technical support for the transmitter wasn't available over the holiday weekend, making the outage longer than it might otherwise have been. WEBC carries ESPN Radio and is the Northland's oldest radio station, having signed on in 1924. It moved to its present frequency and transmitter site in the Town of Parkland, near Superior, in the mid-1950's (a technological history can be found here). During the outage, WIND/560 (Chicago) was easily heard in the Twin Ports at night. (12/29/2009)

IOWA:
KZIA, Inc. president and general manager Eliot Keller died Monday (Dec. 28) of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. He was 62. Keller worked in news at WOC AM-TV (Davenport) and WHBF AM-FM-TV (Rock Island, IL) before co-founding KRNA/93.5 (Iowa City, now 94.1) with Rob Norton in 1974. They bought KQCR/102.9 (Cedar Rapids, now KZIA) in 1994, sold KRNA in 1998, and bought KGYM/1600 (Cedar Rapids) in 2006. Keller was inducted to the Iowa Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame earlier this year, and was also an active supporter of passenger rail. (12/29/2009)

SOUTH DAKOTA:
KWYR-FM/93.7 (Winner) returned to the air Saturday after a two-day, storm-related outage. KWYR/1260 reported the power was out at the FM's transmitter site. (12/27/2009)

WISCONSIN:
The Christmas music hasn't stopped at WECB/104.3 (Seymour-Green Bay). As WisconsinBroadcasting.com first reported, the Woodward Communications station is stunting, telling listeners they'll be opening a gift at 3 p.m. on New Year's Eve. The station had carried an Adult Contemporary format as "The Breeze." It's now also heard on 52-Watt translator W278AU/103.5 (Green Bay). (12/27/2009)

WISCONSIN:
Clear Channel's WRIT/95.7 (Milwaukee) has emerged from all-Christmas music by returning to its former slogan, "Oldies 95.7." The format remains a mix of mostly `60s and `70s Oldies. The station had been "Oldies 95.7" before switching to "95.7 WRIT" followed by "Milwaukee's 95.7" and then "My 95-7." (12/26/2009)

NORTH DAKOTA:
KQDJ/1400 (Jamestown) will soon be heard on translator K246AM/97.1 (Jamestown). Two Rivers Broadcasting is buying K246AM from Horizon Christian Fellowship for $20,000. The 170-Watt translator is currently licensed to transmit from west of Jamestown and has only a fringe signal to the city. KQDJ carries a Sports format and is specified as the primary station for K246AM in the application for assignment of license. (12/26/2009)

NORTH DAKOTA:
KSJZ/93.3 (Jamestown) has upgraded from 57kW/78m to 100kW/137m, continuing to transmit from south of Jamestown. The upgrade puts Valley City on the edge of KSJZ's main coverage area. The station is owned by Chesterman Communications and carries an Adult Contemporary format. (12/26/2009)

MINNESOTA/WISCONSIN:
WEBC/560 (Duluth) and KUWS/91.3 (Superior) were both knocked off the air as a Christmas blizzard moved through the Twin Ports. WEBC, which transmits from rural Superior, was first noted off the air Thursday night and was still off as of Sunday morning. KUWS was off the air Friday morning but back in the afternoon. (12/25/2009, updated 12/27)

IOWA:
Iowa Public Radio reports that Classical station KSUI/91.7 (Iowa City) and News/Talk station KOWI/97.9 (Lamoni) are both operating at very low power due to a buildup of ice on the antennas. The network says the problem may continue for a few weeks. The problem also affects translator K269EK/101.7 (Dubuque), which receives KSUI over the air. (12/24/2009)

IOWA:
Iowa Public Televison translator K44AB (Keokuk) has unexpectedly gone silent. The network says the antenna failed during a recent attempt to convert the translator to digital broadcasting. There's no projected date for the translator to return to the air. In the meantime, IPT is advising Keokuk viewers to attempt to receive the Fort Madison translator, K28JD-D. (12/24/2009)

WISCONSIN/MINNESOTA:
WDGY/740 (Hudson-St. Paul-Minneapolis) has applied to upgrade its daytime power from 2.5kW to 5.5kW. It would continue to use a directional antenna pattern from a site east of Hudson, and still be daytime-only. No physical changes would be made to the transmitter site. The upgrade would improve the True Oldies Channel affiliate's signal across the Twin Cities metro area. (12/24/2009)

WISCONSIN:
WIIL/95.1 (Kenosha) has applied to change its community of license to Union Grove, WI, though it would not change its actual facility (50kW/117m, class B). Owner Nextmedia, Inc. says the proposal is an attempt to come closer to compliance with FCC ownership caps. Kenosha is in the Chicago radio market and Union Grove is in the Milwaukee-Racine market, so the change would legally remove one station from the Chicago market. Nextmedia has ten other stations in the Chicago market. (12/24/2009)

MANITOBA/ONTARIO:
The CRTC is raising some concerns as it prepares to consider license renewal for CHNK-FM/100.7 (Winnipeg) and CJIV-FM/97.3 (Dryden). The concerns about CHNK include broadcasting more popular music than specified in its license, while CJIV does not appear to have carried the 90 minutes of local programming per week specified in its license. The CRTC also says both stations may not have made some of the Canadian talent development contributions specified in their licenses. (12/23/2009)

MINNESOTA:
An updated FCC filing reveals more details of the previously-reported sale of translator W220DK/91.9 (Mora), and shows Radio Power, Inc. is buying K287AU/105.3 (Olivia) as well. Radio Power will pay Horizon Christian Fellowship $9,000 for W220DK and $10,000 for K287AU. The applications states plans to relay Christian station KCFB/91.5 (St. Cloud) on both translators. Radio Power is owned by Timothy Martz, who owns three stations in New York state. (12/22/2009)

IOWA:
Northwestern College's KNWM/96.1 (Madrid) has moved its transmitter closer to Des Moines. KNWM is now transmitting with 6kW/100m from a new tower near Sheldahl, delivering a good signal to the northwestern part of the Des Moines metro, while also keeping Ames in the main coverage area. The station uses a directional antenna to prevent interference to KCOB-FM/95.9 (Newton). KNWM simulcasts a non-commercial Adult Contemporary Christian format with KNWI/107.1 (Osceola). (12/22/2009)

IOWA:
KXGM/850 (Waterloo) went silent Saturday (Dec. 19) and will not return for at least several months. In an FCC filing, owner Extreme Grace Media says the transmitter site on the eastern edge of Waterloo was sold and they're still looking for a new one. KXGM, formerly KWOF, had been a 500-Watt directional daytimer with a large coverage area across north-central Iowa. It had relayed "89.1 The Spirit" (KXGM-FM Hiawatha-Cedar Rapids), which is still heard on translator K217FT/91.3 (Waterloo). (12/21/2009)

IOWA:
New station KRNF/89.7 (Montezuma) is on the air carrying The "God's Country" network of Christian Country and Southern Gospel during the day and "Music `Til Dawn" from VCY America overnight. The station uses 1.6kW at 105m and has a good signal to Grinnell. It's owned by American Radio Missions Foundation, headed by Doug Smiley of Pella. Smiley also heads Horizon Broadcasting, which owns KOJY/106.9 (Bloomfield). KOJY's format is similar to KRNF's. (12/21/2009)

NATIONAL:
Note: This site normally only covers happenings in the Upper Midwest, but this is an interesting regulatory decision which has not yet gotten coverage in other media.

The FCC has denied an unusual request by PMCM, Inc. to reallocate TV stations from rural Wyoming and Nevada to New Jersey and Pennsylvania. PMCM purchased KJWY/2 (Jackson, WY) and KVNV/3 (Ely, NV) last year and proposed reallocating them to Wilmington, DE and Middletown Township, NJ, respectively, serving the Philadelphia and New York City markets. The company cited an obscure 1982 law requiring the FCC to reallocate VHF channels to states without VHF stations, which was intended to satisfy concerns from New Jersey lawmakers about the state's lack of a VHF station while allowing RKO General to keep the license of WOR-TV/9 (New York) as it fought character issues. WOR-TV ultimately changed its community of license to Secaucus, NJ, and became WWOR, but continued to transmit from New York. New Jersey and Delaware once again had no VHF licenses after the digital transition, and PMCM said it was prepared to accept reallocation of its stations to fill the void.

At the heart of the issue is the definition of the term "reallocate." The FCC determined that a "reallocation" was one in which the new facility is mutually exclusive with the old one. Since both the old and new stations could exist simultaneously, the FCC determined that PMCM was actually proposing new allocations, not reallocations, and denied the request. However, recognizing the 1982 law, the FCC proposed the allocation of channel 4 at Atlantic City, NJ, and channel 5 at Seaford, DE for future stations.

KJWY and KVNV are located in rural areas and had acted as satellites of NBC affiliates before the sale, but apparently now carry weather programming. (12/19/2009)

MINNESOTA:
KMFX/1190 (Wabasha) is off the air again. Clear Channel first took the station off the air on January 10, 2008 for financial reasons and put it up for sale. According to FCC filings, the station has been on and off the air since then, and most recently went silent on Dec. 9. In July, Clear Channel announced plans to donate KMFX to the Minority Media and Telecommunications Council, but the license has not yet been transferred. KMFX is a 1kW daytimer and was last known to rebroadcast "Fox Country 102.5" (KMFX-FM Lake City-Rochester). (12/17/2009)

MINNESOTA/WISCONSIN:
Radio Power, Inc. is buying translators W220DK/91.9 (Mora, MN) and W258BG/99.5 (Beloit, WI). Radio Power will pay Edgewater Broadcasting $42,000 for W258BG and states the translator will rebroadcast WFEN/88.3 (Rockford, IL). W220DK is being purcahsed from Horizon Christian Fellowship, but an asset purchase agreement listing the sale price was not filed with the application, which also did not indicate which station W220DK would rebroadcast. W220DK has been on the air for several years rebroadcasting a staticy signal from KVSC/88.1 (St. Cloud). Radio Power is owned by Timothy Martz, who owns three stations in New York state. (12/17/2009)

NEBRASKA:
Educational Media Foundation, operator of the "K-Love" and "Air-1" Christian music netorks, is buying the construction permit for KSTJ/91.7 (Norfolk) from Church Planters of America for $35,000. The KSTJ CP calls for 8kW/138m from a tower 20 miles west of Norfolk. It will displace CSN International translator K219DW/91.7 (Norfolk). (12/17/2009)

NEBRASKA/KANSAS:
Kansas Catholic Education Radio Corporation is the tentative selectee for a new non-commercial station in St. Paul, NE. The FCC tentatively selected their application from among 24 competing applications filed in October 2007 for new stations in Nebraska and Kansas. K.C.E.R.'s application calls for 100kW/172m (class C1) on 89.5 from a tower between Loup City and Litchfield, delivering a rimshot signal to Kearney and Grand Island. The application was tentatively selected because it would provide new non-commercial service to the largest number of people. (12/16/2009)

WISCONSIN:
Translator W234BG/94.7 (Chetek-Rice Lake) is on the air relaying WGMO-HD2/95.3-2 (Spooner). Currently, the 35-Watt translator is carrying Christmas music. The translator is licensed to Chetek but actually transmits from west of Rice Lake. It may be the first HD2 translator in the Upper Midwest. (12/15/2009)

MINNESOTA:
Minnesota Public Radio plans to expand "The Current" to Austin, according to this FCC filing. MPR is 9-Watt translator K280EF/103.9 (Austin) from Calvary Chapel of Twin Falls for $8,000 and states plans to relay KCMP/89.3 (Northfield-Twin Cities) in the application. MPR had sold K280EF to Calvary Chapel of Twin Falls for $1 in 2004 as part of a settlement agreement resolving competing applications for a new station, which allowed MPR to sign on KNSE/90.1 (Austin). K280EF will be at least the sixth transmitter carrying "The Current" Adult Alternative format, which is also heard in the Twin Cities, Rochester, Hinckley, St. Peter, and Mankato. (12/14/2009)

IOWA:
The FCC has cancelled a $7,000 fine against KNEI-FM/103.5 (Waukon) and replaced it with a $187.50 penalty. The fine had been issued for failure to file a timely license renewal application. KNEI-FM licensee Wennes Communications said it used the online filing system but didn't realize there was a problem, didn't receive an FCC staff letter stating that the station's license had expired, and found the KNEI-FM application still listed as "ready" when it checked the database after receiving staff letters about other stations. The $187.50 penalty amounts to 25 percent of the original filing fee. (12/14/2009)

IOWA/ILLINOIS:
KGCW-TV/26 (Burlington-Quad Cities) has added "this tv" on channel 26.2. The station continues to carry The CW and syndicated programming on 26.1. (12/11/2009)

NEBRASKA:
KSNB/4 (Superior) has gone off the air. The full-power station had been on the air since 1965, first as a satellite of ABC affiliate KHOL-TV/13 (Kearney, now KHGI) and then FOX affiliate KTVG/17 (Grand Island). The Superior Express reports the shutdown occurred at midnight Nov. 30/Dec. 1 when Pappas Telecasting's time brokerage agreement with KSNB licensee Colins Broadcasting expired. The paper reports the shutdown resulted in the loss of a full-time and a part-time job in Superior, and a part-time job in Axtell. With the shutdown, KSNB analog translators K18CD (Lincoln) and KWAZ-LP/35 (Lincoln) have left the air. It's not clear what Colins plans to do with the license; nothing has been filed with the FCC. "FOX Nebraska" programming continues to be seen on KFXL-TV/51 (Lincoln), KTVG/17 (Grand Island), KHGI/13.2 (Kearney), and KWNB/6.2 (Hayes Center). (12/11/2009)

NEBRASKA:
KQKX/106.7 (Norfolk) will apparently soon be "106 Kix Country." The station, formerly KEXL, has been simulcasting "Lite Rock 97.5" (KEXL Pierce-Norfolk) since the new station signed on a few weeks ago. 106.7 previously carried a Hot Adult Contemporary format. A "106 Kix" Facebook page says the new format will start in mid-December. KQKX is one of five commercial stations based in Norfolk; crosstown "US92" (KUSO Albion-Norfolk) also carries a Country format. (12/10/2009)

MINNESOTA:
Tom Barnard isn't retiring after all, according to the Pioneer Press and Star Tribune. Both cite comments on his Facebook page, which isn't accessible to the general public. The KQRS/92.5 morning titan announced in September that he'd leave the station at the end of 2012. (12/10/2009)

WISCONSIN:
Radio/DX Information from Wisconsin and DX-midAMerica report that translator W273AT/102.5 (Milwaukee) is on the air relaying WNOV/860, which carries an R&B format. The 99-Watt translator broadcasts from WNOV's tower in Milwaukee, sandwiched between WLUM/102.1 and WHQG/102.9 on the dial. The translator's license was moved into Milwaukee from Port Washington. (12/10/2009)

WISCONSIN:
The region's first major winter storm of the season caused some problems for some stations in eastern Wisconsin Tuesday night (12/8). A power outage knocked at three Midwest Communications stations off the air in the Sheboygan market (WBFM/93.7, WXER/104.5, and WHBZ/106.5). Meanwhile, viewers reported brief outages of several Milwaukee TV stations. (12/9/2009)

MINNESOTA/WISCONSIN:
The "Northland's NewsCenter" has announced plans to begin a 6:30 p.m. newscast on KDLH/3 (Duluth) on Jan. 11. With the addition, KDLH and sister station KBJR/6 (Superior) will have a total of six hours of news per day, excluding repeats, more than any other station in the market. KBJR operates KDLH under a shared services agreement. The "NewsCenter" recently dropped the "NewsCenter" title from the KDLH newscasts in favor of "KDLH 3 News." The new 6:30 newscast will displace "Seinfeld" reruns which have been seen in the timeslot for more than a decade; KBJR/6.2 already carries "Seinfeld" at other times. (12/9/2009)

IOWA/ILLINOIS:
KALA/88.5 (Davenport) has increased its power 100-fold, upgrading from 100 to 10,000 Watts. The St. Ambrose University station now transmits from northwestern Davenport but must use a directional antenna to protect existing stations, which limits the signal in the southeastern part of the Quad Cities area. With the upgrade, KALA began HD broadcasting and is now carrying Radio Bilingüe on 88.5-2. KALA/88.5-1 carries a variety of music, including R&B, Jazz, Blues, Gospel, and Latin, as well as PRI programs "The Takeaway" and "The World." KALA continues to be rebroadcast on 43-Watt translator K288CY/105.5, which is licensed to Bettendorf but transmits from Rock Island. (12/8/2009)

ONTARIO:
The CRTC has approved the $4.5 million sale of "Magic 99.9" (CJUK-FM Thunder Bay) and "105.3 The Giant" (CKTG-FM Thunder Bay) from Newcap Inc. to Northwoods Broadcasting Ltd., a subsidiary of Acadia Broadcasting Ltd. The new owners also have stations in Fort Frances, Dryden, and Kenora. No objections were filed to the sale. CJUK and CKTG are two of the five commercial radio stations in the city of about 109,000. (12/8/2009)

MINNESOTA/WISCONSIN:
Longtime KQDS-FM/94.9 (Duluth) morning co-host Bill Jones is leaving the station Dec. 15. Jones, who has been with the Classic Rock station since the mid-90's and has been its operations manager for the past eleven years, is leaving the industry and Duluth. The "KQ Morning Show" has been number one in Adults 25-54 and Men 25-54 for the past decade. Morning co-host Jason Manning is being promoted to program director, with a revamped morning show set to debut Jan. 4. Meanwhile, market veteran Tim Roubik will take over as operations manager for KQ and Red Rock Radio's other three Duluth-market stations, "The Fan 1490" (KQDS Duluth), "92-1 Lite FM" (WWAX Hermantown), and "94X" (KZIO/104.3 Two Harbors). (12/3/2009)

MINNESOTA/WISCONSIN:
Album rock on vinyl is making a comeback in the Twin Ports. Today (12/3) from 9 a.m. to Midnight, "Classic Rock 102.5" (KHQG Superior-Duluth) is playing entire rock LP album sides without interruption from an actual turntable. Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Pink Floyd, and Boston will be among the artists featured. The Midwest Communications station is considering making "Album Side Thursday" a semi-regular feature. (12/3/2009)

WISCONSIN:
WisconsinBroadcasting.com and DX-midAMerica report that WTKM/1540 (Hartford) has dropped its simulcast of WTKM-FM/104.9 and is now carrying an Oldies format as "Cruisin' 1540." WTKM-FM continues to carry a unique full-service format including Polka and Classic Country music. Both stations have fringe coverage of Milwaukee, which lacks an Oldies station. (12/3/2009)

IOWA:
The FCC isn't backing down on a $20,000 fine against Boone Biblical Ministries, the former licensee of KFFF/1260 and KFFF-FM/99.3 (Boone), for problems with the stations' public inspection files, including at least twenty missing issues/program lists. The FCC disagreed with arguments that the fine was inconsistent with precendent and that a license renewal application was its first opportunity to disclose the problem and remedial actions taken. Current KFFF AM-FM licensee Faith & Freedom Network is selling the stations to Truth Broadcasting Corp. with the condition that the new owners pay the fine. (12/3/2009)

MINNESOTA:
The FCC has issued a $250 fine against the St. Louis Park school district for failing to file a timely license renewal application for KDXL/106.5. The application should have been filed by Dec. 1, 2004, but was not filed until Feb. 18, 2005. The FCC had originally proposed a $1,500 fine but reduced it after the school district requested a reduction due to its status as a non-protected class D non-commercial educational station. (12/3/2009)

MINNESOTA:
A correction, or is it? We reported last week that KLBB/1220 (Stillwater-Minneapolis) had switched its affiliation from the Music of Your Life network to Dial Global's Adult Standards format. However, as of Wednesday, the station was once again carrying the Music of Your Life network. We'll have to stay tuned to see what happens, since KLBB was running the Dial Global format complete with liners from the network announcers last Friday. (12/3/2009)

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