October 3, 2011

Nassau Stares Down Chapter 7

• MAINE
• NEW HAMPSHIRE
• MASSACHUSETTS
• VERMONT
• RHODE ISLAND
• CONNECTICUT
• NEW YORK
• NEW JERSEY
• PENNSYLVANIA
• CANADA
• CLASSIFIEDS
• FROM THE ARCHIVES
• BASEBALL ON THE RADIO

*The creditors holding the debt for NEW JERSEY's Nassau Broadcasting Partners are moving quickly on their attempt to force the company into Chapter 7 bankruptcy and liquidation: they've persuaded Judge Kevin Goss of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware to move up a hearing on the petition to this Thursday morning at 10, claiming "there is a genuine concern that assets of the alleged debtor's estates may be used for purposes other than those directly related to the normal course operations of the alleged debtor's businesses." The petition from the lenders, led by Goldman Sachs, says they're worried that Nassau money may be used "to further the personal and parochial interests of" Lou Mercatanti, who's run the company since 1986.

If Nassau is liquidated, it would be a sudden end to a company that was once the region's largest broadcaster, at least by number of stations owned - and if the liquidation takes Nassau's stations off the air, it would mean a lot of dead air for listeners everywhere from the Lehigh Valley to Maine. (We'll have a full update later this week as we know more about what happens at the hearing.)

*There's a TV station sale in PENNSYLVANIA: WTVE (Channel 51) is licensed to Reading but serves most of the Philadelphia market through the use of a "distributed transmission system" that employs multiple RF channel 25 transmitters scattered across the region. Richard French, who owns WRNN in the New York market, paid $13.5 million for the station at a bankruptcy sale in 2008. He'll get $30.4 million from NRJ TV for the signal, and it's not at all clear yet what NRJ plans to do with WTVE.

NRJ recently bought two former Shop at Home stations, Boston-market WMFP and San Francisco's KCNS, and thus far it has made no change to those stations' programming. That's fueled speculation that NRJ is less interested in running TV stations than in reaping the value of the UHF spectrum on which those stations operate; in an interview with TVNewsCheck.com, NRJ principal Ted Bartley (sort of) denied those rumors, saying "We’re trying to buy at a price to operate them efficiently and make money as broadcasters," but also saying of the possible auction of TV spectrum to wireless operators, "We are certainly not speculating on that as the only way to make money."

*On the other side of the state, there's a programming change at Pittsburgh's WINP (Channel 16): the ShopNBC programming that had been running on 16.1 is gone, replaced by the main-channel programming from new owner ion Media. When ion bought the station (formerly WQEX) from public broadcaster WQED, it inherited the ShopNBC contract, but now that it's over, WINP is taking on the usual set of ion multiplex channels seen elsewhere in the country: ion's main channel on 16.1, with Qubo and ion Life on 16.2 and 16.3.

*In Philadelphia, there's a new owner at WHAT (1340), which recently returned to the air with a Spanish-language hits format as "El Zol 1340, el ritmo de Philly."

Aztec Capital Partners has been programming that format, and now it's buying the station from former owner Marconi Broadcasting Company.

Marconi paid $5 million for the 1000-watt signal five years ago, but Aztec's paying only a fraction of that: just $475,000.

*Pittsburgh's new public broadcaster continues to staff up its management team, and it's made a big new hire from out of town. Deanne Hamilton comes to Essential Public Radio's WESA (90.5) as general manager after a career that's included stops at KQED in San Francisco and most recently at WKAR public radio/TV at Michigan State University in East Lansing, where she departed in July just ahead of some unflattering news stories about serious financial problems and what appears to be a rather serious lack of transparency at the stations.

Hamilton starts her new job at WESA on October 17th, and her first big challenge will be getting the station's studios moved out of the old WDUQ temporary space on the campus of former owner Duquesne University and into its new home shared with sister station WYEP (91.3) on the South Side.

*A radio veteran with much deeper Pittsburgh roots is off the air for now. Bev Smith has been hosting a daily talk show aimed at the African-American community since 1998, but that show will be history after October 28th. Syndicator American Urban Radio Networks says the cancellation of the "Bev Smith Show," heard on WGBN (1150 New Kensington) and 30 other stations around the country, is purely a matter of economics. Before moving to WGBN, Smith's show was a fixture on the old WAMO (860) prior to that station's sale.

*It's been a week of big radio changes in CANADA, starting with the demise of the last high-power CBC station on the AM dial between Newfoundland and Manitoba.

With its new FM outlets, CBEW (97.5 Windsor) and CBEW-1 (91.9 Leamington), now on the air and some interference issues with cross-border signals resolved, the CBC shut down CBE (1550 Windsor) early on the morning of October 1, the sixty-first anniversary of CBE's sign-on in 1950.

The sign-off itself happened without fanfare; indeed, the scheduled midnight end to CBE was stretched out for a bit as the station popped back on and off the air several times before finally dropping audio at 12:25, leaving just a dead carrier on 1550 instead of the "tune to FM" audio loop that has accompanied other CBC AM-to-FM moves in the past.

Earlier in the day, CBE offered a little more acknowledgment of its move, including segments on CBC Windsor radio and TV newscasts about the station's history. There was also an open house Saturday at the CBC Windsor studios, part of a national set of CBC open houses to mark the network's 75th anniversary and Canada's Culture Days weekend.

*While CBE's passing into history, a Toronto broadcaster is poised to make history with a new station launch today. Fitzroy Gordon's CKFG (98.7) will make its official debut later this morning, with an 11 AM news conference scheduled to announce the station's on-air identity. Gordon fought for years to establish a station owned by and serving Toronto's Afro-Caribbean community, operating his "CARN" on 98.7 for several successful test runs and overcoming objections from the CBC about potential interference to its CBLA (99.1) signal in order to win a license from the CRTC.

And CKFG isn't the only new sound hitting the Toronto airwaves: down the dial at 88.1, there will soon be something new to replace the departed CKLN, which lost its license earlier this year amidst accusations of loss of management control.

Evanov's "103.9 Proud FM" (CIRR) has asked the CRTC for permission to move the gay-oriented station down the dial to the now-vacant 88.1 slot and to boost its power in the process. Rather than simply ruling on CIRR's application, though, the CRTC is opening the process up to competing applications. It's set a December 19 deadline for other interested parties to submit their own applications for new 88.1 signals, though it warns that "the Commission has not reached any conclusion on the licensing of any service at this time."

By the time the CRTC gets around to reviewing those applications, it will have a new leader, too: while chairman Konrad von Finckenstein had hoped to be reappointed to a second five-year term, it was not to be: Heritage Minister James Moore announced last week that von Finckenstein will depart the agency when his term is up in January 2012.

*But wait - there's still more change coming to the Toronto radio scene: down at the bottom of the AM dial, Rogers is again rebranding its CJCL (590), which has transitioned over the past few years from "FAN 590" to "Sportsnet Radio, the Fan 590" to the new "Sportsnet 590, the Fan." Starting this morning, the station's morning show, Brady and Lang, will also be simulcast on Sportsnet's national TV network.

*Elsewhere in the province, the CRTC turned down a few applications last week, most notably one from Evanov ("Dufferin Communications") for a new high-powered FM signal on 104.7 in Muskoka Lakes. That application ran up against a wall of opposition from the other broadcasters who already serve the Muskoka region. They argued that while the Evanov entry might be the first local station licensed to the "Township of Muskoka Lakes," the area already enjoys local service from other nearby stations in Huntsville, Orillia, Parry Sound and Bracebridge, and the CRTC determined that the new station would indeed overlap with - and cut into the economic viability of - Haliburton's CFBG (100.9) in Bracebridge.

The CRTC also denied a power increase for CJLF-FM-1 (90.1 Owen Sound), ruling that the religious station had failed to make a compelling economic or technical case for a boost from 75 to 780 watts. To the north, though, Le5 Communications did get approval for a power increase from 1400 to 4620 watts at CHYC (98.9 Sudbury), while way out to the northwest, CKPR-FM (91.5 Thunder Bay) has been granted a 180-watt rebroadcast transmitter that will bring its programming to Atikokan at 93.5 on the dial.

*Near Montreal, a pirate station on tribal land is going legit: the CRTC has granted a license to "Kahnawake Keeps It Country Station" for a new 610-watt directional signal on 89.9. The new station, already granted the callsign CKKI, will replace the current unlicensed "KKIC" signal at 106.7 on the Mohawk reservation across the river from the big city.

*One of NEW YORK state's newest radio stations may also be the next to leave the airwaves. Out on Long Island's East End, Hamptons Community Radio won a construction permit in 2008 for a share-time operation at 90.7 in East Hampton, a facility it eventually augmented with the acquisition of the former WPKM (88.7 Montauk, now WEER) from Connecticut-based WPKN.

But while the Hamptons are home to some of the wealthiest people in America, it's been a challenge for broadcasters out there to convert their listenership into money. We've reported at length on the struggles Peconic Public Broadcasting has faced in converting what's now WPPB (88.3 Southampton) to local ownership, and for the folks at Hamptons Community Radio, things have been no easier. Last week, Hamptons posted an announcement on its website, saying WEER is shutting down.

"We finally found a grant writer to work with but it’s too late. We’ve tried to explain that the only way WEER could survive was with community support especially in the way of benefactors. We have been unsuccessful in getting that kind of support. We have worked hard to accomplish our mission - to that end we were succeeding. But without benefactor and down the line grant support and the support of businesses and the community WEER has to say goodbye," said the message.

The station is holding out hope for a last-minute turnaround: in its farewell note, WEER says it could keep going if it can find eleven other area businesses willing to join one existing sponsor in covering the station's expenses, which include $4,000 in monthly tower rent.

If WEER doesn't make it, the terms of its $60,000 purchase of the 88.7 facility (which specified payment in 60 monthly installments of $1,000 each) specify that the signal will return to WPKN, which had been using it as a Long Island relay of its main Bridgeport signal; it's not clear what would become of Hamptons' two unbuilt construction permits, the part-time WEEG (90.7 East Hampton) and WEEW (89.1 Westhampton).

*In Albany, veteran PD Terry O'Donnell is gone from WFLY (92.3 Troy), with no replacement named yet. But O'Donnel's not going too far: he's headed for a new job across town at Townsquare's "Crush," WQSH (105.7 Malta), where he starts as PD next Monday, replacing the departed Mike Morgan.

Down the road in Catskill, the Black United Fund of New York has filed to sell WCKL (560). The operator who's been LMA'ing the station is "Harvest Broadcast Services," run by Brian Dodge, whose adventures in New England radio were chronicled extensively in this space a decade ago, but in the filings with the FCC, the new buyer is listed as "Family Broadcasting and Media, LLC," owned 100% by one Tammy Thayer. Family is paying Black United $25,000 over four years - and "Harvest," which will continue to LMA the station, is assuming $96,000 in debt, including $80,000 in back rent to Clear Channel. Clear Channel donated WCKL to Black United in 2003, and the station was mostly silent in the years that followed until Family began its LMA earlier this year.

*On TV, Jerry Barmash at FishbowlNY.com reports veteran anchor Jim Watkins is gone from the airstaff at New York's WPIX (Channel 11), where he'd been doing the weekend shows after losing his longtime spot behind the desk on the 10 PM weekday newscast. Replacing him, at least for now, is his former weekday co-anchor Kaity Tong, who'd been doing field reporting.

Around the region, two new networks are making an impact on DTV subchannels. The new BounceTV network launched on Monday with the aim of serving African-American audiences, and charter affiliates included WROC-TV (8.2) here in Rochester, WTNH (8.2) in New Haven/Hartford and WMCN (44.2) in the Philadelphia market.

Meanwhile, the Chicago-based MeTV network continues to sign up new affiliates, often at the expense of the faltering RTV network. New launches just this week included WHEC-TV (10.2) here in Rochester, WMUR (9.2) in Manchester, New Hampshire and WJAR (10.2) in Providence, where it displaces RTV from that subchannel. RTV has also recently disappeared from WGRZ (2.3) in Buffalo, which will also be losing its 2.2 subchannel when Universal Sports exits terrestrial DTV distribution at the end of the year. And just last week, RTV lost its low-power affiliate in New York City when it was dropped from the 42.3 subchannel on WKOB-LD (RF 2), which is now programming old public-domain movies on that stream.

*It's not just Canada's CBC celebrating its 75th anniversary this year: New York City's WQXR also hits that milestone this fall, and the station's current incarnation (now at 105.9 as a noncommercial facility owned by WNYC) is marking the occasion with a special audio stream called "Vintage WQXR" featuring programming from the station's extensive archives and a website full of archival pictures and stories.

On the commercial side of the New York dial, CBS Radio's WXRK (92.3 NOW FM) is looking for a new midday host now that Lisa Paige, who was the station's original midday jock, has decided not to come back from maternity leave. (She's headed to Dallas instead, reports AllAccess.)

*The merger of WBFO (88.7) into its former Buffalo public broadcasting rival, WNED, is nearing completion. Tomorrow night, WNED officials will hold a public forum at their downtown studios to discuss their programming plans with listeners. The session starts at 6, and WNED is asking prospective attendees to RSVP because of limited seating.

Those same WNED studios are the location each fall of the Buffalo Broadcasters Association's annual Hall of Fame induction, and now the group is adding a second annual awards ceremony.

While the Hall of Fame ceremony is meant to honor the veterans who made the largest impact on the city's media scene over the course of their careers, the new "Buffalo Excellence in Media Awards," or "BEMA," are intended to recognize the people and stations still active in the business.

The initial crop of BEMAs will be handed out April 13, 2012 at a ceremony to be held at Salvatore's Italian Gardens in Depew, and they'll include categories such as "digital media outlet of the year, "rising star," "backpack journalist of the year" and "best use of social media." Nominations are being taken through October 30 at the BBA website.

*One of the BBA's previous Hall of Fame inductees has died. Iney Wallens was a fixture on the Niagara Falls radio scene back in the days when there was a Niagara Falls radio scene, hosting a talk show on WJJL (1440) that ran for decades before winding down in 2008. Wallens was honored with a Distinguished Broadcasters Award from the BBA in 1998; she died on Sunday.

*And here's another reminder about a great opportunity to come see your editor in person: at booth D14 on Wednesday at the SBE22 Broadcast & Technology Expo at the Turning Stone Casino & Resort in Verona, just off the Thruway between Syracuse and Utica.

It's always a worthwhile event, with a floor full of new technology and interesting vendors and a day full of educational seminars, and it's all free. Registration is now open at www.sbe22expo.org, and we hope to see you there! (We'll have the new Tower Site Calendar on hand, too...)

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*There's a format change in southern RHODE ISLAND: Judson Group-owned WCNX (1180 Hope Valley) is dropping its news-talk format to become WCRI, a daytime-only AM simulcast of sister FM classical station WCRI-FM (95.9 Block Island).

*After the cutbacks at Cox Radio's southern CONNECTICUT cluster, there's a promotion: Jolana Smith moves from weekends to middays at WEZN-FM (Star 99.9) and assistant PD for that station and sister stations WPLR and WFOX.

*There's a new TV newscast in southern NEW HAMPSHIRE, where Bill Binnie's WBIN (Channel 50, ex-WZMY/WNDS) quietly launched its local news operation last week. "News Now at 10" starts off as a nightly half-hour in standard definition, with Amanda Decker as anchor and Kyle Dennis (rather than longtime channel 50 staple Al Kaprielian) doing weather. Binnie has big plans for the station, including co-sponsoring a Republican presidential debate in Hanover next week. (Bloomberg and the Washington Post are the other sponsors for that event.)

Speaking of Hanover and vicinity, James McKay is the new general manager/general sales manager at Bob Vinikoor's WNTK (99.7 New London)/WUVR (1490 Lebanon), where he's been doing the morning show alongside John Harper since April.

And in Concord, Harry Kozlowski's new WCNH (91.5 Bow) signal is on the air; it will soon replace the classical station's old LPFM home at 94.7, which is now known as WNHN-LP and will be transferred to a local group that will program a "news and blues" format at that frequency.

*In eastern MASSACHUSETTS, WGBH is kicking off the month with a revamped lineup on its classical service, newly rebranded as "Classical New England" now that it includes not only WCRB (99.5 Lowell) and WGBH's 89.7-HD2 but also WJMF (88.7 Smithfield) in Rhode Island. ("Classical New England" continues to be heard on WNCK 89.5 on Nantucket and on translator W242AA 96.3 in "East Cambridge and Beacon Hill," too.)

The new lineup gives morning host Laura Carlo an extra hour, extending her show to 10 AM, followed by Alan McLellan at 10 and Cathy Fuller at 2. Former afternoon host Brian McCreath moves to weekends-only with his "Bach Hour"; in the evenings, the "Classical New England" schedule now includes "Performance Today" at 7 and a new live, local host from 9 PM until midnight, James David Jacobs. The station has made one more addition, too: Cheryl Willoughby joins WGBH from Vermont Public Radio to serve as classical music director.

*There's a new news director at Springfield's WGGB (Channel 40/"Fox 6"), where Jim Tortora lands after a decade at WSYR-TV in Syracuse; Tortora's move completes a western-Massachusetts-for-upstate-New-York shuffle that found previous WGGB news director David Baer moving west to WXXA in Albany.

*There's a slew of new callsigns for all those construction permits the FCC recently issued: Horizon Christian Fellowship's new stations around the region will be WJXP (90.1 Fitchburg MA), WTYN (91.7 Lunenburg MA), WYZX (88.3 East Falmouth MA), WYDI (90.5 Derry NH) and WXEV (91.1 Bradford RI). And mark down WNNI (98.9 Adams MA) for the new relay of WFCR's secondary public radio service out in the Berkshires; that call was issued a month ago but slipped past us until the FCC put out a new "callsign change report" last week.

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