WBTP City of License

Why do I continue to hear 95.7 WBTP identifying it's city of license as "St. Petersburg"? It's been going on for quite some time and the HD2 signal is doing the same thing. I know it's not a big deal but I'm just curious. FCC and every indication to me is that signal should still be "Clearwater".

Aren't they still broadcasting from the Gandy tower location across from Channel 10?

Byron

If WBTP is identifying in its legal ID as "WBTP Saint Petersburg" instead of "WBTP Clearwater" then they are incorrect as the 95.7 MHz allocation is assigned and licensed to Clearwater and not Saint Petersburg. Is it possible what you are hearing is the TOH positioning statement formatted as a legal ID and the real legal ID is buried in the 00:50 stop-set (or some other place) and said very quickly where it is hardly noticeable?

Nope. I've listened for something like that. They're also identifying themselves as WBTP-HD2 St. Petersburg as well.

That's very interesting. I can find no construction permit for a COL change nor even an application for such a change. If they have applied (or are in the process of applying) for a COL change, WBTP still cannot legally identify themselves as Saint Petersburg until such time the application has been approve and a CP issued. Very strange. Maybe there is something at play so simple we have overlooked it.

With the legal and promotional IDs now just files on a computer, someone could easily, deliberately or accidentally, leave out the correct TOH ID with just a few screen touches or keystrokes. It's hard to believe that someone would tune out just because they said "Clearwater" though, so its hard to believe someone would do it deliberately. Can they ID as Clearwater in Morse Code at a low modulation level at an odd audio frequency? Or is that just Translators?

Primary licensed AM and FM stations are required to identify as call letters followed by city of license as the legal ID at least once each hour. In the case of WBTP the minimum legal ID is "WBTP CLEARWATER". A licensee may add anything before and after the minimum legal ID requirement so long as call letters followed by COL is in there somewhere. The only exception, and there is only one, to the call letters followed by COL is the licensee legal name may be inserted between call letters and COL such as "WBTP, CLEAR CHANNEL BROADCASTING LICENSES, INCORPORATED, CLEARWATER."

jmtillery said:

Primary licensed AM and FM stations are required to identify as call letters followed by city of license as the legal ID at least once each hour. In the case of WBTP the minimum legal ID is "WBTP CLEARWATER". A licensee may add anything before and after the minimum legal ID requirement so long as call letters followed by COL is in there somewhere. The only exception, and there is only one, to the call letters followed by COL is the licensee legal name may be inserted between call letters and COL such as "WBTP, CLEAR CHANNEL BROADCASTING LICENSES, INCORPORATED, CLEARWATER."

Click to expand...

That appears to be incorrect. There are FOUR things that can be inserted. See below directly from Code of Federal Regulations Section 73 - Rules Applicable to All Broadcast Stations

§ 73.1201
Station identification.
§ 73.1201
Station identification.
(a) When regularly required. Broadcast station identification announcements shall be made:
(1) At the beginning and ending of each time of operation, and
(2) Hourly, as close to the hour as feasible, at a natural break in program offerings. Television and Class A television broadcast stations may make these announcements visually or aurally.
(b) Content. (1) Official station identification shall consist of the station's call letters immediately followed by the community or communities specified in its license as the station's location; Provided, That the name of the licensee, the station's frequency, the station's channel number, as stated on the station's license, and/or the station's network affiliation may be inserted between the call letters and station location.