March 2012

MINNESOTA:
With a construction permit to move its transmitter to suburban Falcon Heights about to expire, 95.3 "Praise FM" (KNOF St. Paul) now has its sights set on the IDS Center in Minneapolis instead. The non-commercial Christian outlet, owned by North Central University, has applied to move to IDS with 900W/258m. The main coverage area would be virtually identical to another station which broadcasts from IDS, Cumulus Media's WGVZ/105.7 (Eden Prairie). (3/29/2012)

WISCONSIN:
Longtime WFRV-TV/5.1 (CBS, Green Bay) sports anchor Larry McCarren has resigned, the station announced Tuesday. Outside of northeastern Wisconsin, the former Packer is better known as an analyst for the Packers Radio Network, a job he still holds. The Green Bay Press Gazette notes that McCarren's departure comes as Packers preseason games move from WFRV to Journal Broadcast Group's "NBC 26" (WGBA/26.1). (3/27/2012)

IOWA:
CW affiliate KCWI-TV/23 (Ames-Des Moines) has announced a new morning show hosted by longtime radio team Lou and Heather. The duo worked at KGGO/94.9 for years. "Great Day with Lou & Heather" will air from 6 to 9 a.m. starting April 16 and include existing KCWI host Caryn Lee along with meteorologist Jason Parkin. KCWI, owned by Pappas Telecasting, does not have a news department, but the station's announcement did promise some news along with weather, sports, traffic, guests, animals, comedians, and music. (3/27/2012)

IOWA:
Truth Broadcasting has filed a response to the FCC's concerns over its plan to move KTIA-FM/99.3 (Boone) into the Des Moines market. KTIA-FM would move to 99.1, transmit from Saylorville with 6kW/88m, and change its community of license to Johnston. The proposed facility would provide a strong signal to 78.5 percent of the Des Moines Urbanized Area, and the FCC said that made the proposal in conflict with new rules intended to preserve rural radio service. Truth Broadcasting's amended application presents new evidence that KTIA-FM could, theoretically, move its transmitter site to the east to serve more than half of the Ames Urbanized Area while keeping Boone as its community of license. Therefore, Truth Broadcasting states that the move should not be considered a move from a rural area to an urbanized area, but rather a move from one urbanized area to another which would be allowed under FCC rules. Meanwhile, Truth Broadcasting proposes that KFMG-LP/99.1 (Des Moines), which has complained about being bumped off the air, be moved to 103.7. (3/27/2012)

MICHIGAN:
As first reported by MichiGuide.com, WKNW/1400 (Sault Ste. Marie) has dropped its longtime News/Talk format for Sports. Sister station WSOO/1230's website lists WKNW as an ESPN affiliate. (3/27/2012)

SOUTH DAKOTA:
The FCC has decided to allow a Sioux Falls translator that's been off the air for nearly three years to keep its license so it can relay an AM station. K252DG/98.3 will move to 98.1 with the new callsign K251BH and relay Backyard Broadcasting's KWSN/1230, with its transmitter at KWSN's site south of town. KWSN carries FOX Sports Radio. The FCC normally deletes licenses that have been off the air for more than a year, but K252DG owner Christian Heritage Broadcasting asked to keep the license valid. The translator had previously relayed KCGN/101.5 (Ortonville, MN). (3/26/2012)

MINNESOTA:
KRBT/1340 (Eveleth) is transitioning from News/Talk to Sports following the station's sale to Red Rock Radio. The new owners announced Tuesday that KRBT would affiliate with the Minneapolis-based FAN Radio Network and the format will change gradually over the next few months. KRBT's lineup currently includes local sports and national conservative talk shows. The new format will keep the local sports and add the Twins, Vikings, Wild, and UMD Bulldog hockey and football. There are no other all-Sports stations on the Iron Range. Red Rock's KQDS/1490 (Duluth) also carries the FAN Network. (3/21/2012)

WISCONSIN:
Translator W267AF/101.3 (Rhinelander) is now on the air relaying the recently-launched "Hodag Country Legends" format originating at WOBT/1240. NRG Media is in the process of buying W267AF from WRVM, Inc. for an undisclosed price. The translator upgraded to 250 Watts during its silence. (3/20/2012)

WISCONSIN:
The FCC has granted an upgrade to Wisconsin Public Radio's WHSA/89.9 (Brule), which is also in the process of replacing its tower. WHSA currently uses 38kW/168m (class C2) and will upgrade to 92kW/157m (class C1), improving its signal to Ashland, Hayward, and Superior. As previously reported, WPR is also establishing new, smaller stations in the Ashland and Superior areas. WHSA carries WPR's NPR News and Classical Music network on its primary channel and 24-hour Classical on HD2. (3/20/2012)

IOWA:
The FCC has dismissed Iowa Public Television's application for a new translator on channel 18 in Dubuque. The commission said the application was not allowed under a ban, in place since 2009, on new translator/low-power TV stations within 121 km of the top 100 markets. Cedar Rapids, Davenport, and Madison are all within 121 km of the proposed translator's transmitter site. The Iowa Public Broadcasting Board had said the Dubuque translator was needed to serve households that could no longer receive KRIN/32.1 (Waterloo) after the digital transition. In 2010, the FCC granted a Dubuque translator for NBC affiliate KWWL/7 (Waterloo), but that translator will operate on the same channel as KWWL with synchronous transmission. (3/20/2012)

NORTH DAKOTA:
KRWK/101.9 (Fargo) has dropped its "Rock 102" format for "101.9 Talk FM." The lineup includes a local show from Tom Becka, formerly of KFAB/1110 (Omaha), from 5:30-9 a.m. He's followed by Brian Kilmeade from 9-11, Rush Limbaugh 11-2, Sean Hannity 2-5, J.D. Haywarth 5-6, Jason Lewis 6-9, Michael Savage 9-Midnight, and Red Eye Radio overnight. Limbaugh moves over from "The Flag" (WZFG/1100 Dilworth-Fargo); Limbaugh has actually been carried on all three of the market's AM News/Talkers. 101.9 is co-owned with one of those talkers, KFGO/790, under the Radio Fargo-Moorhead umbrella. 101.9, a core 100kW signal in the market, had carried variations of Rock for the past ten years and was Country for sixteen years prior to that. (3/19/2012)

WISCONSIN/MINNESOTA:
CBS affiliates WISC-TV/3 (Madison) and WKBT/8 (La Crosse-Eau Claire) are back on DISH Network after a brief outage due to a retransmission consent dispute, which was resolved Saturday night, March 17. The outage ran for eighteen hours Saturday and affected 23 counties in south-central and western Wisconsin and two counties in southeastern Minnesota. The stations are owned by Morgan Murphy Media, and the dispute also affected the company's stations in two Washington state markets. (3/17/2012, updated 3/18)

MINNESOTA:
Alexandria's Selective TV, the largest translator/low-power TV system in the Upper Midwest, has converted more of its channels to digital. Eight channels recently joined at least two others broadcasting digitally with several analog signals still on the air, according to FCC filings. The Alexandria Echo Press reports the new digital channels include standard-definition feeds of the Minneapolis NBC, FOX, CW, MyNetworkTV, and ION affiliates plus RFD-TV, FamilyNet, and independent station KSTC. The paper reports the channels plan to convert to HD in the future, a move which would presumably result in the stations mapping to their standard channel numbers and the addition of a half-dozen Minneapolis subchannels. Two other Selective TV digital translators were last known to carry the Appleton and Brainerd PBS stations, remapping to their standard channel numbers with a total of eight subchannels (including two duplicate feeds). Two more Selective TV stations also have construction permits to convert to digital, with an application pending for a third flip. Visit the Alexandria Dial Guide for a complete listing. (3/17/2012)

NORTH DAKOTA:
Sioux Valley Broadcasting is buying translator K240CJ/95.9 (Oakes) from Northwestern College for $10,000 and plans to use it to relay KDDR/1220. KDDR is part of the "Dakota Country" simulcast also heard on KOVC/1490 (Valley City) and KDAK/1600 (Carrington). The station once had an FM partner, but it was moved into the Fargo market a few decades ago. K240CJ had most recently relayed KFNW-FM/97.9 (Fargo) but is currently listed as being off the air. (3/16/2012)

WISCONSIN/MINNESOTA:
The sign-on of a new commercial FM station serving the Wisconsin side of the Minneapolis-St. Paul market is imminent. Zoe Communications' WDMO/95.7 (Baldwin), having moved from 95.9 in Durand, will have a strong signal to most of St. Croix County and part of Pierce County with fringe coverage likely reaching as far as St. Paul on car radios. It'll use 4kW/124m (class A) from a tower along I-94 southwest of Baldwin. WDMO has received the license for the new facility but is waiting for WPCA-LP (Amery) to leave 95.7 before signing on full-time from Baldwin. WPCA-LP says it will leave 95.7 on March 19 and return on 93.1 the next day. Meanwhile, KNXR translator W239AM/95.7 (Hudson) has left the air and has a construction permit to move to 96.7 from a tower in Woodbury, Minn. (3/15/2012)

IOWA:
A new application seeks to move a translator into Cedar Rapids to relay "1600 ESPN" (KGYM). KGYM owner KZIA, Inc. recently bought K245AE/96.9 from Extreme Grace Media for $11,000. The translator is currently licensed for a transmitter site between Walford and East Amana but has applied to move to the KZIA building in southwest Cedar Rapids with 250 Watts. The application lists KGYM as the station to be rebroadcast. KGYM is also heard on a translator in Iowa City via the HD3 simulcast on KZIA/102.9. (3/14/2012)

IOWA:
The FCC is asking L4 Media Group, LLC to show why its thirteen low-power TV stations, including WBXF-CA/4 (Des Moines), should keep their Class A statuses. Class A status gives LPTV stations protection from being bumped off the air by full-power stations and, possibly, the right to sell spectrum in a potential future auction. This inquiry is the latest in a series as the commission makes sure Class A stations are compliant ahead of the possible auction. The FCC says L4 Media's stations have apparently failed to maintain main studios, broadcast a minimum of three hours per week of local programming, and file children's programming reports, and says they may not even be on the air. The FCC gave L4 Media until April 16 to respond. WBXF-CA at one time carried the now-defunt "Box" video request channel and later switched to MTV2. (3/13/2012)

MINNESOTA/WISCONSIN:
Charter Communications has removed "CW2" (KDLH-DT2/3.2) and "My9" (KBJR-DT2/6.2) from its Duluth-Superior cable system amid a retransmission consent dispute with Granite Broadcasting. The stations have been removed from analog channels 2 and 9 but were still available via clear QAM digital channels as of midday Monday. Notices posted on Charter's website indicate the stations will also be removed from systems in the Ashland, Hayward, and Ironwood areas next month. KDLH/KBJR has run announcements about the dispute for a few weeks saying Charter refuses to pay "a penny per day" to carry the channels. Such disputes are nothing new, but this case is somewhat unique since it involves subchannels not affiliated with a big-four network. KDLH-DT2 carries the national CW+ feed for small markets with a local 9 p.m. newscast, while KBJR-DT2 carries My Network TV and syndicated programming. Both stations got their starts on cable: "CW2" is the successor to cable-only WB affiliate "KWBD" and "My9" got its start as "UPN9," replacing KMSP (Minneapolis) on Charter and other cable systems when KMSP switched from UPN to FOX in 2002. KDLH-DT2 is also seen on satellite providers in the market but KBJR-DT2 does not have satellite carriage. KDLH and KBJR's primary CBS and NBC channels are not affected by the dispute. (3/12/2012)

IOWA:
As first reported by DX-midAMerica, KSOU/1090 (Sioux Center) has flipped from Contemporary Christian to Oldies as "Classic KSOU." With the new format, the station added a webcast at classicksou.com. KSOU is a 500-Watt daytimer with fringe coverage of Sioux Falls and Sioux City. Community First Broadcasting owns KSOU along with Adult Contemporary KSOU-FM/93.9 and "Hawk Country 107" (KIHK/106.9 Rock Rapids). (3/12/2012)

MINNESOTA:
Minnesota Public Radio has returned the license for translator K245AK/96.9 (Redwood Falls), which had used 250 Watts. MPR had purchased the translator and two others from Radio Assist Ministry five years ago in exchange for two pieces of equipment. MPR signed on new 360-Watt station KRFI/88.1 (Redwood Falls) last year carrying its News service and also owns 115-Watt translator K216FZ/91.1 (Redwood Falls), which the network's website lists as also carrying the News service. The network had no transmitters in Redwood Falls prior to 2007. (3/12/2012)

WISCONSIN:
New station WEQS/89.3 (Sparta) has signed on carrying the "Prayz Network" already heard at WTPN/103.9 (Westby) and translator K250AZ/97.9 (La Crosse). The network, which is based in Sparta, says WEQS signed on Thursday, March 9. The new station is owned by the Salvation Poem Foundation and uses 450W/229m (class A), with Tomah included in its main coverage area. (3/12/2012)

WISCONSIN:
NRG Media's WLKD/1570 (Minocqua) has flipped to News/Talk, dropping Soft Oldies. The new lineup includes Laura Ingraham, Jerry Doyle, Rustie Humphries, Phil Hendrie, and America's Radio News Network from 5 to 8 a.m., 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., and 5 to 8 p.m. (3/12/2012)

NORTH DAKOTA:
The FCC has denied an application to move a Hettinger-licensed FM station into the Bismarck market. Midnation Media had applied to change KNDH/102.3's community of license to New Salem using 51kW/161m (class C1) from a tower between New Salem and Bismarck, covering the entire Bismarck Urbanized Area. The proposal ran afoul of the FCC's new policy on station moves into Urbanized Areas because the change would theoretically leave 1,586 people in KNDH's currently-licensed area without a strong local signal, though FCC rules can't account for the fact that KNDH has only been on the air for a little over three months and at greatly reduced power. (The station went silent before it received its license a year ago and indicated in a filing last November that it was using 250 Watts from a temporary site due to storm damage. Current programming is unknown.)

There are just 3,205 people in KNDH's currently-licensed coverage area along the North Dakota/South Dakota border. The station could be upgraded to serve a broader area around Hettinger, but it would not result in a huge increase in population since the region is so sparsely-populated. The region is served by three local AM stations but no full-power FM's. Midnation Media bought the station from ALMA Corporation in 2008 for $60,000 and moved it from 93.5 to 102.3 while it was still in the construction permit stage. Midnation has no other broadcast interests, but one of its members has an interest in two Wyoming stations. (3/9/2012)

NEBRASKA:
NRG Media is buying translator K233AN/94.5 (Lincoln) from Mission Nebraska and plans to use it to relay KLIN/1400's News/Talk format. The purchase price was redacted from documents filed with the FCC. K233AN is currently licensed for 99 Watts from a tower southeast of town but has applied to move to the US Bank building downtown with 250 Watts. Mission Nebraska no longer needed the translator for its "My Bridge Radio" network after buying KRKR/95.1 (Waverly-Lincoln). (3/9/2012)

WISCONSIN:
Radio Power, Inc. has amended its application to move an FM translator into Milwaukee, but the application does not address issues raised by the FCC last month. Radio Power had previously sought to move W250BN/97.9 from its present site in Muskego to the antenna farm on the north side of Milwaukee; it's now proposing a move to West Allis. The proposed 250-Watt facility would still reach most of Milwaukee and would change its community of license from West Allis to Milwaukee. The application still specifies Wisconsin Public Radio's WHAD/90.7 (Delafield) as the station to be rebroadcast, but Radio Power has eventually used its translators commercially to relay HD2 signals in other markets.

Radio Power has moved W250BN from Beloit to the Milwaukee area in a series of moves over the past few years. In a letter last month, the FCC asked whether the latest application would be in violation of an earlier decision that translator "hops" are an abuse of process, since they accomplish a major change while only minor changes are currently allowed. Among other things, the FCC asked Radio Power to provide documentation that it had permission to use each tower site, the precise length of time each facility was on the air, the stations that were rebroadcast from each facility, and proof that the originating stations had granted permission to be rebroadcast. (3/8/2012)

MICHIGAN:
WIHC/97.9 (Newberry-Sault Ste. Marie) is back on the air carring the non-commercial Christian "Strong Tower Radio" network based in the lower peninsula. The network says WIHC returned to the air at Noon on Saturday, March 3. West Central Michigan Media Ministries bought WIHC, which previously carried a Classic Rock format, from Northern Star Broadcasting from $150,000. Northern Star had taken WIHC off the air in 2010 after selling all of its other Upper Peninsula stations. (3/8/2012)

IOWA:
Iowa State University, part of Iowa Public Radio, has applied for changes to the construction permit for KICG/91.7 (Perry) that would improve the future station's signal to Ames. KICG's current permit calls for 23.5kW/111m from just north of Perry, and it's applied for 10kW/110m from a tower near Boone. The move would add part of Ames to KICG's main coverage area. KICG's new callsign and proposed coverage area fit with KICP/105.9 (Patterson-Des Moines) and KICL/96.3 (Pleasantville), which carry IPR's 24-hour Classical service. Classical programming is also heard part of the day on core 100kW station WOI-FM/90.1 (Ames-Des Moines), but IPR has stated it would consider increasing the amount of News/Talk and Adult Alternative programming on WOI-FM since its purchase of KICP/KICL. IPR's KDMR/88.9 (Mitchellville), which carries News/Talk and Adult Alternative programming for an area northeast of Des Moines, recently changed its callsign to KICJ. (3/7/2012)

IOWA:
Three Eagles Communications has dropped one format and moved another in Fort Dodge. Classic Rock format "The Eagle" moved from KTLB/105.9 (Twin Lakes-Fort Dodge) to the stronger signal of KZLB/92.1 (Fort Dodge), while KTLB reverted to its previous Oldies format as "The Beach." The formats stream through yourfortdodge.com. The changes mean the end to the Active Rock "Blaze" format at KZLB; Three Eagles also dropped the format recently in Mason City and Mankato, Minn. Three Eagles owns all seven commercial radio stations in Fort Dodge. (3/4/2012)

NATIONAL:
The sound of top-of-the-hour radio news is one month away from big changes. NBC Radio News is making a comeback in a new partnership with radio programming distributor Dial Global, but the press release is only half the story. All Access and other outlets report Dial Global is also ending its distribution of CNN Radio with the April 1 re-launch of NBC, and CNN will end its radio network. CNN Radio has been around for decades and has dozens of affiliates in the Upper Midwest, many of which will presumably switch to NBC since both networks come down using the same equipment. In fact, many current CNN affiliates carried NBC until Dial Global's predecessor ended five-minute NBC newscasts in the late 1990's. NBC, of course, was the first major radio network but has had virtually no radio presence for the past decade. ABC and CBS never left radio news, and FOX News launched a radio network six years ago. (3/1/2012)