WRHC 1550 question

[Mike Sheridan]

Sometime in the mid-1990's WRHC moved from 1550 to 1560. I see now that it's back on 1550. Anybody know why? What happened? There has got to be a story there of interest to a few of us radio geeks.

 

[jmtillery]

Sometime in the mid-1990's WRHC moved from 1550 to 1560. I see now that it's back on 1550. Anybody know why? What happened? There has got to be a story there of interest to a few of us radio geeks.

I remember WRHC had a CP to move to 1560 with a power increase to 50kw-D and 10kw-N with a DA-2 antenna pattern. I was unaware, however, that WRHC actually completed the upgrades and had ever moved to the new 1560 frequency. I believe I had seen where someone had said the CP had expired and WRHC moved after the CP expiration. Once the FCC discovered what had happened, WRHC was forced to move back to 1550. This, of course, is just rumored and competely unconfirmed. As I said, I was unaware WRHC had made any moves beyond applying to move to 1560 and receiving a CP for said upgrades. Maybe someone else who knows much more about this will chime in and shed more light on the subject, giving us a much more acurate explaination.

 

[Stormychuck]

WRHC, although this little diddy is not about changing frequency's and construction permit's, some may find this of interest about WRHC as a scandal was born (LOL). On or about 1981 WRHC's chief engineer by accident or so it's been said, received a diary from Arbitron and "happily" participated in the Spring rating's for that year. Arbitron, some how or another was not paying close attention and preferring non-radio people to take part in their survey's, had to recall once their error was discovered, the books were late, and the rest is history, Arbitron getting "egg all-over-their-face" is paying very close attention and go's through great pains now-a-days to avoid these sort of situations.

But, the Miami Telephone Book scandal by far was the best.......

 

[DavidEduardo]

Arbitron, some how or another was not paying close attention and preferring non-radio people to take part in their survey's, had to recall once their error was discovered, the books were late, and the rest is history, Arbitron getting "egg all-over-their-face" is paying very close attention and go's through great pains now-a-days to avoid these sort of situations.

Arbitron asks about media affiliations on every diary placement call. If the potential diarykeeper does not reveal any affiliations, or, in other words, lies, the diaries will go out to them.

Arbitron has a procedure in software that looks for unusual patterns of too many hours by too many people to one station and they will investigate any that are kicked out by the computer. They also look at comments from stations about things that should not have occured and also do diary reviews. I've gotten two books and one trend reissued, and Arbitron actually counts on market feedback to make sure the system is not biased.

 

[cd637299]

WRHC actually was on 1560 for a few months. I believe that the story behind the return to 1550 was posted on this very board some years back. (I wanna say it was radiosanchez who knows the story, but I cannot say for sure.) Again I believe there were some illegalities involved, but I cannot say for sure.

The 1560 had COL as Kendale Lakes, IIRC.

cd

 

[HGR1290]

Check this out for some fun reading for WRHC:

http://www.fcc.gov/eb/Orders/da001637.doc

 

[jmtillery]

Check this out for some fun reading for WRHC:

http://www.fcc.gov/eb/Orders/da001637.doc

Thank you for the FCC link. That is certainly a very interesting read and sheds a lot more light on the subject.

 

[jmtillery]

But, the Miami Telephone Book scandal by far was the best.......

Oh, tell us about the Miami Telephone Book scandal.

 

[Gregg]

I always wondered how WRHC got on the air at 1550, 10,000 watts days, 500 watts nights. It is only one channel away from 1540 ZNS Nassau, the Bahamas' only clear channel station. And Nassau is only a few hundred miles from Coral Gables, across salt water. According to www.radio-locator.com, WRHC nulls to both the east and west, both day and night. But that's fine since most of the population around the Miami area is along the coast anyway. (Are they trying to protect a Mexican station to the west? Do they have to protect 1550 CBE Windsor, which is about to go off the air anyway, replaced by two CBC FM stations.)

For years, 1540 ZNS only put out 10,000 watts, even though it had I-A status. A few years ago it did upgrade to 50,000 watts, the maximum for North American AM stations. It can be heard in the Miami area in the daytime, although you either need a very good AM radio or have to be quite a few miles from the WRHC transmitter to pick it up.

So is WRHC too close on an adjacent channel to a Class I-A station? WABC, KFI and WGN don't have 10,000 watt adjacent channel stations a couple of hundred miles of sea water away from them.


Gregg
nh153@mailcom

 

[jmtillery]

So is WRHC too close on an adjacent channel to a Class I-A station? WABC, KFI and WGN don't have 10,000 watt adjacent channel stations a couple of hundred miles of sea water away from them.


Gregg
nh153@mailcom

Greg - You have posed a very good question that I don't have a definitive answer, but I am curious now to learn how these two station co-exist as they are being so close to one another. Perhaps one of our engineering experts will chime in and give us a more clearer picture as to how this came about from an engineering and technical perspective. It may also be from a legal point of view that there is an agreement or treaty between the United States and the Bermuda goverment allowing these two stations to operate as they do so close to each other.

 

[cd637299]

1550 Coral Gables debuted around 1965 as WRIZ, only a daytimer until around 1980ish. We'd have to go back that far for the answer.

Mark: Bermuda gov't? You musta meant Bahamas....although it'd be interesting to have any US station protect Bermuda.

The nighttime patterns for US & Canada 1540's are quite interesting.....I don't believe that any signal is meant to go south of Ohio or thereabouts. (How CHIN got night authority betwixt KXEL & WDCD is another story.)

cd

 

[jmtillery]

Mark: Bermuda gov't? You musta meant Bahamas....although it'd be interesting to have any US station protect Bermuda.

cd

Ah, yes, I see what I did now. I meant the Bahamas and not Bermuda.

 

[cd637299]

Ha....I just edited like you did....ne'er mind.

Been to Bermuda....wanna go back to DX some more....funds won't permit.

cd

 

[jmtillery]

I've never been to Bermuda nor the Bahamas although I would like to go sometime if time ever permits. What is it like in Bermuda? Anything you care to share will be appreciated.

 

[cd637299]

Well we are going to far OT, but I'll just say that BDA has hands-down the most interesting daytime DXing experience (AM, anyway) that one can have.

Groundwave extremes:

WBZ 1030 to north US
560, 670, 940 Miami to south US
WKAQ 580 PR
890 & 790 Cuba, 530 Turks (when they were running more power)
Many NYC AM's *including* 1600!

This was using Superadios II & III + Select-a-Tenna.

Been to Bahamas too, but the DXn isn't as much fun.

Bermuda has nice scenery & the bluest water. Trips there are expensive though! Also not too hot. But by all means beware of possible hurricanes. Ain't nowhere to go.

cd

 

[Stormychuck]

Since this really has nothing to do with the topic at hand some may find it funny and interesting. The Miami Southern-Bell Telephone book scandal: In 1981 Southern Bell Telephone commissioned a renowned artist to create a mural for the cover of their new phone book. This mural would have the artist rendition of various different scenes throughout South Florida ie; a beach scene, people water skiing, one of the Freedom Tower, the Florida Key's etc.

The artist also included in the painting, President George Washington, and right underneath President George, as clear as day, for all of god and South Florida to see, this artist painted a man's "Penis" right in the center of the mural. That's right, yes he did, a man's "Penis", and without prior discovery before printing the cover went into print and several hundred thousand phone book's were printed and distributed before Ma Bell, who's own phone started ringing off the hook with customer complaints was forced to launch one of the largest and only known phone book re-calls ever going back door-to-door having to retrieve all of their "privately enhanced" phone books by estimates at my understanding was nearly 350,000. (LOL)

WOOP's what a slip. And he did, slipped it right in so to speak, so Long story short, as turns out the artist had had a beef with Ma bell years prior to his mural with some sort of law-suit, and now he's being sued for the "Penis" issue, but he ended up winning in the end because of contractual agreements so forth and so on it was very lengthy and drawn out but in the end he got what he wanted. So their you have the phone book scandal......And it's all true....

 

[jmtillery]

Since this really has nothing to do with the topic at hand some may find it funny and interesting. The Miami Southern-Bell Telephone book scandal: In 1981 Southern Bell Telephone commissioned a renowned artist to create a mural for the cover of their new phone book. This mural would have the artist rendition of various different scenes throughout South Florida ie; a beach scene, people water skiing, one of the Freedom Tower, the Florida Key's etc.

The artist also included in the painting, President George Washington, and right underneath President George, as clear as day, for all of god and South Florida to see, this artist painted a man's "Penis" right in the center of the mural. That's right, yes he did, a man's "Penis", and without prior discovery before printing the cover went into print and several hundred thousand phone book's were printed and distributed before Ma Bell, who's own phone started ringing off the hook with customer complaints was forced to launch one of the largest and only known phone book re-calls ever going back door-to-door having to retrieve all of their "privately enhanced" phone books by estimates at my understanding was nearly 350,000. (LOL)

WOOP's what a slip. And he did, slipped it right in so to speak, so Long story short, as turns out the artist had had a beef with Ma bell years prior to his mural with some sort of law-suit, and now he's being sued for the "Penis" issue, but he ended up winning in the end because of contractual agreements so forth and so on it was very lengthy and drawn out but in the end he got what he wanted. So their you have the phone book scandal......And it's all true....

FUNNY STUFF... I'll be the radio morning show hosts were talking about that one for months.

 

[Stormychuck]

I know the Phone book thing was wayyyyy off topic, but hey once in awhile slip in something that may be of interest.

True, every station in Miami had something going on about the phone book thing, morning. noon and night for months, it made for good radio, Vagas has the saying "What happens in Vagas"
Well, Miami's slogan "That only happens in Miami" So Whatever "THAT IS" it only happens in Miami......It was great growing up in Miami, there was always some sort of side show.

 

[Ai4i]

We babysat La Cadena Azul's offshore transmitter for several years when they were a daytimer and for a few months when they used an inland transmitter just at night. We rememjber when a vandal brought (think it was just) one of their three towers down (that could be why they were QRM'ing WQEW) but have not seen that site to this day. A deep null protected all of the Bahamas Islands and we believe their city grade signal went as far north as "Surf 16"s went south. Radio Locator still shows their old day signal but stiltsville has been vacated and the FCC charts show WRHC as having a DA-1, same pattern all hours. Remember Vic DaMone, "WRIZ, Rise to the right side of your dial".