July 2010

MINNESOTA:
The FCC has cleared the way for an upgrade by KMOJ/89.9 (Minneapolis), approving a construction permit modification for the station to broadcast with 6.2kW/116m from Arden Hills. KMOJ already had a CP to move to Shoreview with 1.4kW/273m and then sought a modification to 4kW/171m, which was rejected due to problems with the proposed directional antenna pattern. The station also states that the rent was too high at the originally-planned Shoreview tower. The upgrade will improve KMOJ's signal to St. Paul and the eastern metro, but much of the western metro will remain outside of its main coverage area, which is shown on page 15 of this document. The station carries R&B and information for the African-American community. (7/30/2010)

MANITOBA:
The CRTC has approved the CBC's plan to switch the programming source of CBWST/8 (Dauphin) to CBWT/6 (Winnipeg). The 120kW station had relayed CBC affiliate CKX-TV/5 (Brandon) until CKX-TV went dark last year. The public broadcaster has not proposed restoring over-the-air service of the CBC in Brandon, or, for that matter, in Thunder Bay, where longtime CBC affiliate CKPR-TV/2 is leaving the network. (7/30/2010)

IOWA/ILLINOIS:
WQAD/8 (Moline) has announced plans to become the first all-HD news operation in the Quad Cities. The full HD debut is expected to happen within the next few months. WQAD is an ABC affiliate owned by Local TV, LLC. (7/29/2010)

MANITOBA:
The CRTC has given final approval to a new radio station in Winnipeg Beach. CJIE-FM will broadcast on 107.5 with 1.62kW, carrying a mix of Country, Pop, and Rock. The CRTC approved the new station for 5777152 Manitoba Ltd. earlier this year but said it had to choose a frequency other than 93.7, which had been originally sought. Instead, 93.7 was set aside for a fugure station in Winnipeg. CJIE-FM will have a 119-Watt rebroadcaster on 99.5 in Arborg. 5777152 Manitoba is owned by William Gade, who owns similarly-formatted stations in Neepawa and Swan River and has applied for a station in Virden. (7/29/2010)

MINNESOTA:
Duluth's Red Rock Radio is moving Minnesota Wild hockey broadcasts to "The Fan 1490" (KQDS) starting this fall. The team had previously been heard on 94X (KZIO/104.3 Two Harbors and translator K231BI/94.1 Duluth). The move comes as Red Rock moves University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldog hockey from 1490 to 94X. (7/29/2010)

WISCONSIN:
Ahead of a new football season and November elections, U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wisconsin) is urging the FCC to use its influence to get Wisconsin-based TV programming into the thirteen northern and western Wisconsin counties assigned to the Minneapolis, Duluth, and Marquette markets. Feingold says the lack of Wisconsin stations is often brought up at listening sessions in the region. Though many are concerned about a lack of Wisconsin news, the major public complaint seems to be Green Bay Packers games, some of which are not carried by Minneapolis and Duluth stations due to conflicts with the Minnesota Vikings and contracts that limit when stations can air a double-header. Some cable systems are able to carry Wisconsin commercial stations, but FCC rules don't allow that option in cities such as Hudson, River Falls, and Superior. Wisconsin Public Television is available on cable systems everywhere in the region except Superior. The rules are more strict for satellite; current rules would allow some Wisconsin commercial stations to be carried by satellite in four of the counties (Barron, Dunn, Florence, and Pepin), but neither provider has opted to offer the service. (7/28/2010)

MINNESOTA:
Clear Channel's new Twin Cities translator, K279AZ/103.7 (Cottage Grove), is now relaying "Cities 97" (KTCZ/97.1), but is still transmitting from Inver Grove Heights. The translator had previously carried the "K-Love" Christian network. K279AZ has a construction permit to move to the IDS Center in Minneapolis but is awaiting FCC approval for a modification of the CP after it couldn't reach an agreement with the owners of the shared antenna it originally planned to use. It proposes using 250 Watts from a different antenna on IDS. The translator could potentially be used to relay an AM or HD2 station. Clear Channel bought it from K-Love operator Educational Media Foundation in exchange for giving EMF the rights to program an HD2 channel on a Clear Channel station in Detroit. (7/28/2010)

IOWA:
KWWF/22 (Waterloo) returned to the air July 20 and is carrying Untamed Sports TV. The station had left the air last June 12 because its former owner, Equity Broadcasting, went bankrupt and couldn't afford to convert the station to digital. It's now owned by Waterloo TV Licenses and is broadcasting with a special temporary authority for 18.7kW/330m from the KPXR-TV/48 (Cedar Rapids) tower near Urbana. Waterloo TV Licenses is a partnership of Fusion Communications of Davenport and PLLW-LLC of Miami, which is owned by Paul Libovitz. Fusion Communications is owned by Jeff Lyle and David McAnally of Davenport. The companies own stations in about a half-dozen markets outside the Upper Midwest. (7/24/2010)

WISCONSIN:
UPDATE: Weigel Broadcasting's WBME/49.1 (Racine-Milwaukee) is back on the air, but WDJT/58.1 (Milwaukee) remains off after Thursday night's flooding. WBME, which normally carries "Me TV" on 49.1 and "Telemundo Wisconsin" on 49.4, is carrying the independent WMLW lineup on 49.2. WDJT's primary "CBS58" programming is being seen on Journal Broadcasting's WTMJ-TV/4.3, displacing "The Cool TV." WDJT subchannels "This TV" and "Shore West TV" remain unavailable. (7/23/2010) 7/27 update: WDJT has since returned to the air.

IOWA:
Iowa Public Radio has returned the license for translator K254AE/98.7 (Dubuque). The translator had gone off the air last fall due to the loss of its transmitter site, which IPR says it was not told about until one day before the antenna was removed. The translator had been on the air since 1983 relaying KUNI/90.9 (Cedar Falls) but became less necessary when KUNI repeater KDUB/89.7 (Dubuque) signed on in 2006. IPR also has translator K269EK/101.7 (Dubuque), which relays KSUI/91.7 (Iowa City). (7/22/2010)

IOWA:
Calvary Satellite Network translator K233BT/94.5 (Des Moines) went off the air July 17 after lightning damaged its transmiter and antenna. The station states in an FCC filing that the transmitter is repaired, but the antenna will be out of commission until later this month. (7/22/2010)

WISCONSIN:
Tri-County Radio, Inc. is the winning bidder for a new station on 98.9 licensed to Two Rivers. Tri-County had been competing with Radio Plus and won with a $49,000 bid in the sixth round. The new station will be class A (6kW/100m maximum) and could be a potential Sheboygan rimshot. (7/21/2010)

MINNESOTA:
In a surprise move, Clear Channel is donating KFXN/690 (Minneapolis) to the Minority Media and Telecommunications Council. KFXN is a 500-Watt daytimer that acts as a sister station to KFAN/1130, carrying FOX Sports Radio and Jim Rome. The station had carried ESPN Radio until the network moved its affiliation to KSTP/1500 earlier this year. Clear Channel states the donation is part of "an ongoing program to expand ownership and training opportunities for minorities, women, and other underserved groups." KFXN is one of six stations Clear Channel is donating to MMTC, four of which were announced last year, including KMFX/1190 (Wabasha).

The donation will reduce Clear Channel's presence in the Minneapolis market to six stations (1 AM and 5 FM), although it is in the process of putting a translator (K279AZ/103.7) on the air from the IDS Center which could be used to relay KFAN or an HD2 channel. (7/20/2010)

NORTH DAKOTA:
Duluth's Red Rock Radio has named Bruce Ciskie its new Sports Director. He replaces Mark Fleischer, who left earlier this month to return to his former position as Operations Manager of Midwest Communications' Duluth group. Ciskie was already the voice of University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldog men's hockey games, and will now join the KQDS-FM/94.9 morning show and host a Noon-hour show on "The Fan 1490" (KQDS). Ciskie had previously been heard on Midwest's KDAL/610 and WDSM/710. (7/20/2010)

NORTH DAKOTA:
New station KDXN/105.7 (South Heart-Dickinson) is on the air as "The Mix," carrying Adult Contemporary and Oldies. KDXN broadcasts with 100kW/166m (class C1) and is owned by Totally Amped, LLC, which bought the station for $40,400 after its last owner, Western Edge Media, filed for bankruptcy. The station had originally been scheduled to sign on in fall 2008 with a Country format. It's the fifth commercial station in the Dickinson market. (7/19/2010)

MINNESOTA:
Leighton Enterprises' "Wild Country 104.1" (KBOT Pelican Rapids) has applied to move its transmitter closer to Detroit Lakes, where it would remain 50kW but reduce its antenna height from 150m to 139m. It would use a directional antenna to prevent interference to stations in East Grand Forks and Breezy Point. The change would improve KBOT's signal to Detroit Lakes but remove Fergus Falls and Wahpeton from its main coverage area. (Here's the current coverage area and the proposed coverage area.) KBOT would continue to have a fringe signal to Fargo. (7/19/2010)

NORTH DAKOTA:
A month after signing on with 4.7kW, KFAA/89.5 (Horace-Fargo) has applied to upgrade to 50kW. The station is owned by Selah Corporation, a local non-profit, and is carrying Educational Media Foundation's "Air1" network. Its transmitter would remain in West Fargo with an antenna height of just 27m. EMF also runs the "K-Love" network heard on KKLQ/100.7 (Harwood-Fargo). (7/19/2010)

NEBRASKA:
"K-Love" station KMLV/88.1 (Omaha) has upgraded from 3.7kW/242m (class C3) to 59kW/390m (class C0). The upgrade puts Lincoln on the edge of KMLV's main coverage area. It was possible because of the end of analog broadcasting by WOWT/6 (Omaha), which now broadcasts digitally on channel 22, since channel 6 lies just below the FM band. KMLV is owned by K-Love operator Educational Media Foundation. (7/19/2010)

NEBRASKA:
Bott Radio Network's translator in Fremont has moved from 102.9 to 103.1 following an upgrade by KVSS/102.7 (Papillion) last year that put Fremont in its main coverage area. The move happened on July 13. The translator, now K276FI, continues to use 250W. It relays KLCV/88.5 (Lincoln). (7/19/2010)

WISCONSIN:
WRVM translator W203AV/88.5 (Oshkosh) wants to move south. The station is currently licensed to transmit from a site north of Oshkosh with 38 Watts and has applied to move to a site south of town with 250 Watts. WRVM translator W268BC/101.5 (Oshkosh) transmits from the same site currently used by W203AV, which completed a daisy-chain move from Omro last year. (7/19/2010)

MINNESOTA:
Red Rock Radio is moving broadcasts of University of Minnesota Duluth Men's Hockey to "94X" this fall (KZIO/104.3 Two Harbors-Duluth and translator K231BI/94.1 Duluth). Bulldog Hockey moved to Red Rock's "The Fan 1490" (KQDS) last year after decades on crosstown KDAL/610. Red Rock says the move to 94X is being made to improve the Bulldog broadcast's reach; 1490 is a "graveyard" channel with about 170 stations in the U.S., limiting KQDS' coverage to the immediate Twin Ports area at night. Bulldog Hockey will continue to be simulcast on KBAJ/105.5 (Deer River-Grand Rapids) and KAOD/106.7 (Babbitt), which relay Red Rock's KQDS-FM/94.9 at other times. (7/16/2010)

NORTH DAKOTA/SOUTH DAKOTA:
Longtime farm broadcaster Lyle Romine has died of cancer at the age of 59. Romine was Farm Director at the American Ag Network, which serves 40 radio stations in the Dakotas and Montana. He began his broadcasting career 35 years ago at KDLR/1240 (Devils Lake) and became a farm broadcaster with Ag America in 1981. He joined American Ag Network in 1986 and was a member of the National Association of Farm Broadcasters. Long time on-air partner Rusty Halvorson takes over as lead farm broadcaster while the American Ag Network searches for a replacement. (7/16/2010)

MINNESOTA:
Companies that own radio groups in the Duluth and St. Cloud markets will soon be operated under the same corporate structure, pending FCC approval. Oaktree Capital Group Holdings proposes combining ownership and control structures for GAP Broadcasting and Townsquare Media, formerly known as Regent Communications. The companies own stations in 36 markets. The GAP stations include WEBC/560 (Duluth), KLDJ/101.7 (Duluth), KKCB/105.1 (Duluth), and KBMX/107.7 (Proctor); the Townsquare stations include WJON/1240 (St. Cloud), KXSS/1390 (Waite Park-St. Cloud), KMXK/94.9 (Cold Spring-St. Cloud), KZRV/96.7 (Sartell-St. Cloud), WWJO/98.1 (St. Cloud), and KLZZ/103.7 (Waite Park-St. Cloud). (7/16/2010)

MINNESOTA/NATIONAL:
Hubbard Broadcasting is suggesting that the FCC break up virtual duopolies among TV stations in the Duluth and Rochester (MN) markets as part of its review of ownership rules, whether or not it decides to allow duopolies in small markets.

Hubbard owns stations in the two markets and has long sought an FCC review of the shared services agreements that have led to combined operations of some competitors. In Duluth, Granite Broadcasting's NBC affiliate KBJR/6 runs CBS affiliate KDLH/3, while in Rochester, Quincy Newspapers' NBC affiliate KTTC/10 runs FOX affiliate KXLT/47. In its filing, Hubbard suggests that SSA's are "improper conduct" and may be a violation of the current duopoly rule.

It writes, "Parties that have been in violation of the current rule should not be permitted to profit form behavior that was inconsistent with the letter and spirit of the duopoly rule or benefit from the lack of decision-making under past administrations."

Current ownership rules prevent a company from owning more than one station per market unless the combination would leave the market with at least eight owners of full-power TV stations, limiting duopolies to the Minneapolis, Milwaukee, Des Moines, and Cedar Rapids markets in the Upper Midwest. The rules also prohibit co-ownership of more than one of the top four stations in all markets, which are typically the ABC, CBS, FOX, and NBC affiliates.

Besides Duluth and Rochester, virtual duopolies among top-four stations also exist in the Cedar Rapids, Fargo, and Sioux City markets, and virtual duopolies involving a station outside of the top four are found in the Green Bay, Lincoln, and Omaha markets. In Cedar Rapids' case, the market is large enough to qualify for a duopoly under the current rules, but the stations involved in the virtual duopoly are both in the top four, prohibiting one station from completing an agreement to buy the other.

The National Association of Broadcasters has asked the FCC to allow duopolies in smaller markets but did not specify exactly how it believes the rules should be changed.

For full disclosure, it should be noted that your reporter has worked for stations that compete with virtual duopolies in Duluth and Cedar Rapids, including Hubbard's WDIO-TV. (7/14/2010)

MINNESOTA:
Minnesota Public Radio's "The Current" is now heard in New Ulm on 250-Watt translator K237ET/95.3. It's the ninth signal for the Adult Alternative network, which is also heard on two translators in Mankato as well as translators in St. Peter, Austin, and Hinckley, full-power stations in the Twin Cities and Rochester, and an HD2 channel in St. Cloud. (7/14/2010)

IOWA:
Iowa Public Television is seeking a new translator in Dubuque, stating that viewers in Dubuque can no longer receive KRIN/32 (Waterloo) after the digital transition. The Dubuque translator would broadcast on channel 18, remapping to channel 32 on digital receivers. It would broadcast with 15kW, the maximum allowed for translators, from the same tower used by KFXB-TV/40 (Dubuque) across the Mississippi River in Wisconsin. (7/13/2010)

NEBRASKA:
KDCV-FM/91.1 (Blair) has gone off the air following Dana College's decision to close. An FCC filing indicates the 6-Watt (class D) station went silent on July 6. The FCC stopped issuing new licenses for class D educational stations in 1978. Last month, the FCC denied a petition for reconsideration of its denial of a construction permit to upgrade KDCV to class A by changing its community of license to Herman and moving to 88.7, using 1.051kW/86m. (7/12/2010)

NEBRASKA:
A potential new FM station in the Lincoln market has signed on, but it's not reaching Lincoln yet. KOLB/93.7 (Firth) is on the air with 310 Watts from a tower near Firth. KOLB -- the callsign stands for its original owner, Kolbe Media -- is owned by VSS Catholic Communications and carrying "Spirit Catholic Radio," which originates at KVSS/102.7 (Papillion-Omaha). VSS had announced plans to sell KOLB when it bought the present-day KVSS. The original construction permit for KOLB was for 6kW/69m from a tower north of Firth which would have had a rimshot signal to Lincoln. (7/12/2010)

WISCONSIN:
Wisconsin Public Radio's WHSA/89.9 (Brule-Superior) has gone HD and is carrying WPR's 24-hour Classical service on HD2. The service simulcasts the programming heard on the NPR News & Classical Music network, which is WHSA's primary stream, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and carries Classical 24 at other times. The HD2 service is heard on at least eleven other WPR stations, including KUWS/91.3 (Superior). (7/12/2010)

MICHIGAN/MINNESOTA/NEBRASKA/SOUTH DAKOTA/WISCONSIN:
King Street Capital LP is buying a 40 percent interest in Armada Media, which owns 28 radio stations divided among subsidiaries in Aberdeen, SD, McCook, NE, Menominee, MI, and Watertown, SD. Current principals of Armada Media will see their share of the company fall, with Shockley Broadcasting continuing to have the largest chunk of 46 percent. (7/10/2010)

MINNESOTA/WISCONSIN:
Mark Fleischer is returning to his old position as Operations Manager of Midwest Communications' Duluth-Superior group, which includes KDAL/610, WDSM/710, WGEE/970, KDAL-FM/95.7, KTCO/98.9, and KHQG/102.5. Fleischer was most recently Sports Director at crosstown Red Rock Radio. He replaces Corey Carter, who's moving to Midwest's WIXX/101.1 (Green Bay) after working at every commercial radio group in Duluth over the last decade. Fleischer takes over Monday. (7/9/2010)

NEBRASKA/SOUTH DAKOTA:
New station KDAM/94.3 (Hartington, NE-Yankton, SD) signed on at 6 p.m. July 1 with a Rock format as "The Dam." It's the only station on the genre in the Yankton/Vermillion area. KDAM is owned by Riverfront Broadcasting LLC, which also owns KYNT/1450 and KKYA/93.1 (Yankton). It uses 50kW/103m (class C2) from the KKYA tower south of Yankton. (7/9/2010)

WISCONSIN:
The FCC has granted a construction permit for a new FM station to potentially serve Appleton and Oshkosh. Metro North Communications and three other groups applied for the new station on 92.9 licensed to New Holstein in 1996, but when the FCC recently announced an auction for the frequency, Metro North was the only one of the four to complete all of the required steps. The CP is for 6kW/100m from a tower near Chilton, which would give the station a fringe signal to Appleton and Oshkosh. It's possible the station could seek a site closer to Appleton or Oshkosh before it actually signs on.

Metro North is owned by Bonita Meyer of Mishicot (28%), Donald G. Burcham of Randolph (18%), Douglas H. Engelbrecht of Two Rivers (18%), Kelly T. Meyer of Two River (9%), Mark Heller of Two River (9%), Thomas S. Tomter of Malone (9%), and Wendy S. Tomter of Malone (9%). Heller is the owner of WGBW/1590 (Two Rivers). (7/9/2010)

WISCONSIN:
OnMilwaukee's Tim Cuprisin reports Milwaukee Public Television plans to shuffle its channel lineup. Currently, WMVS/10 carries one HD channel while WMVT/36 carries four standard-definition channels and four audio channels. On Sept. 1, PBS World, V-Me, and MPTV Weather will move to channels 10.2, 10.3, and 10.4. WMVT will begin an SD simulcast of WMVS/10.1 on 36.2, while Create and audio channels carrying Classical, Jazz, and traffic information will occupy channels 36.3 through 36.6. Also, WMVT/36.1 will be upgraded to HD in 2011.

The simulcast of 10.1 on 36.2 is intended to reach viewers who have difficulty receiving WMVS' VHF broadcast (channel 8). The FCC has granted WMVS a construction permit to add a UHF translator on channel 36 (WMVT actually broadcasts on 35), but the station has not announced plans to activate the translator. (7/9/2010)

NEBRASKA/IOWA:
The Omaha World-Herald reports FOX affiliate KPTM/42 plans to outsource production of its 9 p.m. newscast, the station's only newscast, to Independent News Network beginning Sept. 6. INN produces newscasts at its Davenport studio using content provided by local reporters and photographers, and it appears Omaha will be the largest market they serve. KPTM management would not specify how many jobs will be cut, but said the number of reporter positions would increase. The change conceivably eliminates the need for anchors and production staff in Omaha. KPTM is owned by Titan Broadcast Group, which bought the station after longtime owner Pappas Telecasting entered bankrupty proceedings last year. (7/8/2010)

MANITOBA:
Newcap Broadcasting's CHNK-FM/100.7 (Winnipeg) has flipped to its fourth format since signing on in 2002: a broad Classic Rock-based format as "K-Rock." The switch from Country "Hank FM" happened on Tuesday (July 6). The new format includes the Bob and Tom Show from 6-10 a.m. 100.7's new format competes primarily with Rogers Broadcasting's CITI-FM/92.1 (Winnipeg). The flip leaves Standard Radio's "QX104" (CFQX-FM/104.1 Selkirk) without a direct competitor in the market, though NCI-FM (CICY-FM/105.5 Selkirk) carries a substantial amount of Country music as part of its format targetting the aboriginal community. CHNK first signed on as CHNR in 2002 with a Nostalgia format and was later sold to Newcap, which changed its format to Adult Alternative as CKFE and then Country. (7/8/2010)

IOWA:
All Access reports a coincidental format flip at two nearby stations on the same frequency: KQMG-FM/95.3 (Independence) and KIFG-FM/95.3 (Iowa Falls) have both dropped Hot Adult Contemporary for Classic Hits. KIFG-FM, owned by Times Citizen Communications, is simulcast on KIFG/1510. KQMG-FM, owned by KM Communications, contunues to go by the slogan "Brite 95.3" and has a pending application to move into the Cedar Rapids market, where it would be licensed to Solon on 95.1. However, that application has sat at the FCC without action for more than three years. (7/7/2010)

MINNESOTA:
There's a delay in Clear Channel's plans to add a sixth FM signal in the Twin Cities. They're in the process of moving translator K279AZ/103.7 (Cottage Grove) to the IDS Center in Minneapolis, where it could be used to relay an AM station or HD subchannel. However, in an FCC filing, Clear Channel states it has been unable to reach a lease agreement for the shared antenna it had planned to use at the top of IDS. Instead, K279AZ has now applied to use its own antenna on the top of IDS with 250 Watts, the maximum for translators. The antenna would be directional to limit the signal towards KLZZ/103.7 (Waite Park-St. Cloud). As a translator, K279AZ will be required to resolve interference complaints from KLZZ listeners who say the translator is interfering with their reception. (7/3/2010)

WISCONSIN:
Just months after "Majic 102.5" launched in Milwaukee, Radio Multi Media has asked the FCC to move the translator station to a different frequency. W273AT/102.5 is a translator of WNOV/860 and carries a community-oriented R&B format. The station says it has received fourteen interference complaints from listeners of Northwestern College's WNWC-FM/102.5 (Madison) and proposes moving to 93.9, where it would remain 99 Watts. Many of the complaints, shown in this document, appear to come in response to a letter from WNWC asking people to report reception problems.

W273AT is seeking special consideration from the FCC for the move; the rules usually only allow translators to move to a first- or second-adjacent frequency, or to an IF frequency (10.6/10.8 MHz away). In this case, existing Milwaukee stations on 91.7, 102.1, and 102.9 prevent a move to any of those frequencies. On 93.9, the translator could still interfere with deep-fringe reception of WLIT/93.9 (Chicago), though its application suggests Radio Multi Media believes the WNWC-FM complaints only came about because the station offers a unique niche format. (7/3/2010)

MINNESOTA:
Radio Power, Inc. is continuing modifications at two translators it bought from Horizon Christian Fellowship earlier this year. W220DK/91.9 (Mora) and K287AU/105.3 (Olivia) each applied for licenses to cover their previous construction permits on Monday (June 28) and then applied for new facility changes two days later. W220DK moved to 102.5 with 250W, where it will be W273BX, from a tower southeast of Mora. It's now applied to move to 101.9 with 100W. Meanwhile, K287AU had already moved its transmitter out of Olivia and now has a side northwest of Hector; it's applied to move the station farther east and change frequency to 105.5. The community of license would change to Buffalo Lake and the transmitter site would be north of town. It appears K287AU may be headed for Hutchinson or Glencoe. Radio Power lists KCFB/91.5 (St. Cloud) as the primary station for both translators, though W220DK has been off the air during your reporter's travels through Mora in recent months. FCC rules would allow the translators to relay AM stations. Where will they finally end up? Stay tuned. (7/3/2010)

WISCONSIN:
After just a few weeks of running Adult Standards from the Music of Your Life network, WFDL/1170 (Waupun) has switched to a locally-automated mix of Oldies and Adult Standards. The station had carried an Adult Standards format for years and switched to the Oldies-formatted "Hit Parade Radio" network earlier this year. That network ceased operations last month. (7/3/2010)

SOUTH DAKOTA:
Christian broadcaster The Praise Network has changed its plans for a new station in central South Dakota after the collapse of the KPLO-TV/FM tower north of Reliance last winter. The current construction permit for KGRJ/89.9 (Chamberlain) is for 47.5kW/310m (class C1) from the now-collapsed tower. KGRJ has now applied to use a tower in Chamberlain with 14kW/78m (class C3). The station has until Aug. 22, 2011 to begin broadcasting. (7/3/2010)

WISCONSIN/MICHIGAN:
Heartland Communications' four AM stations in northern Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula made their anticipated flip to "Freedom Talk" on Thursday, July 1. WPFP/980 (Park Falls, WI) dropped ESPN Radio, while WATW/1400 (Ashland, WI), WERL/950 (Eagle River, WI), and WFER/1230 (Iron River, MI) dropped Dial Global's Adult Standards network. Each station has an identical lineup: America's Morning News (5-8a), Glenn Beck (8-11a), Rush Limbaugh (11a-2p), Sean Hannity (2-5p), Michael Savage (5-8p), Laura Ingraham (8-11p), Dr. Dean Edell (11p-Mid), and Coast-to-Coast with George Noory (12-5a). The weekend lineups include some local programming, Leo Laporte, Handel on the Law, Bill Cunningham, and repeats of weekday programs. IRN-USA News airs on the hour. (7/2/2010)

MINNESOTA:
News anchor Cyndy Brucato plans to leave KSTP-TV/5 (St. Paul) around Labor Day. Brucato worked at the station from 1979 into the 1980's, and returned in 2004 as main evening co-anchor. She now anchors KSTP's 6:30 p.m. newscast. Brucato plans to return to public relations but will work with KSTP on special projects. (7/1/2010)

WISCONSIN:
Bustos Media, owner of Regional Mexican-formatted WDDW/104.7 (Sturtevant Milwaukee) and Azteca America TV affiliate WBWT-LP/38 (Milwaukee), is merging with NAP Broadcast Holdings, LLC. The value of the transaction was redacted from documents filed with the FCC. NAP is owned by NewStar Financial, Atalaya Capital, and The Prudential Insurance Company of America and will be the surviving company after the merger. (7/1/2010)

NEBRASKA:
Dana College, licensee of KDCV/91.1 (Blair), is closing its doors after regulators denied a plan to sell the 125-year-old ELCA college to the for-profit Dana Education Corporation. The future of the 6-Watt KDCV was not immediately clear. Last week, the station applied to transfer the license to Dana College Broadcasting Corporation, a group associated with Dana Education Corporation. (7/1/2010)

MANITOBA:
The CRTC has ordered Golden West Broadcasting to pay a $19,000 shortfall in Canadian talent development contributions for CFEQ-FM/107.1 (Winnipeg), even though the shortfall happened when the station was owned by Kesitah, Inc. The CRTC says Golden West inherited the liability for the previous owner's non-compliance when it bought the station. It ordered Golden West to make the payment by August 31 and renewed CFEQ's license for another four years. (7/1/2010)