Why are there only 2 CHR radio stations in Alaska? 101.3 KGOT and 98.1 The Wolf. Why don't they have simulcasts all over the state as well as the other stations in the Fairbanks and Anchorage Markets?
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CHR's in Alaska
- Thread starter XCountry285
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XCountry285 said:Why are there only 2 CHR radio stations in Alaska? 101.3 KGOT and 98.1 The Wolf. Why don't they have simulcasts all over the state as well as the other stations in the Fairbanks and Anchorage Markets?
Market tastes vary more widely in Alaska than in the lower 48. What works in one place stands a pretty good chance of not working at all in another city. In addition, once you are outside of Anchorage, Fairbanks or Juneau (that is, beyond the normal signal range of stations in those markets) stations tend to be extremely local. "Full Service" is not an antiquity in the smaller communities.
P
PAJake
Guest
To add to VelvetR's post. . . In remote Native villages you may be dozens, even more than a hundred miles from the nearest community, with all of just a few hundred residents populating the village. To reach a community like that a station would need to spend enormous amounts of money for very little in return.
For example, I live in a North Slope village about 250 miles north of Fairbanks and 250 miles south of Barrow. There are only about 350 people living here, in a community spanning just a few miles at most from one end to the other. No roads in or out, so the nearest village could take the better part of a day to travel to by snowmachine across the Tundra or through the mountains. We have two translators here: one for KBRW from Barrow, which plays a mix of NPR, several different music formats, Inupiat language programming, public announcements from all North Slope villages, weather updates from across the Arctic, and religious services weekday mornings and Sundays. The second station, with a religious format, broadcasting I think out of Bethel, has relatively few listeners that I'm aware of. KBRW seems to be what everyone listens to, even when internet radio is the best listening option.
It just wouldn't make financial sense for a commercial station of any format to broadcast to most Alaskan villages off the road system (with the exception of the larger hub communities like Nome, Bethel, Kotz, etc, and Southeast).
For example, I live in a North Slope village about 250 miles north of Fairbanks and 250 miles south of Barrow. There are only about 350 people living here, in a community spanning just a few miles at most from one end to the other. No roads in or out, so the nearest village could take the better part of a day to travel to by snowmachine across the Tundra or through the mountains. We have two translators here: one for KBRW from Barrow, which plays a mix of NPR, several different music formats, Inupiat language programming, public announcements from all North Slope villages, weather updates from across the Arctic, and religious services weekday mornings and Sundays. The second station, with a religious format, broadcasting I think out of Bethel, has relatively few listeners that I'm aware of. KBRW seems to be what everyone listens to, even when internet radio is the best listening option.
It just wouldn't make financial sense for a commercial station of any format to broadcast to most Alaskan villages off the road system (with the exception of the larger hub communities like Nome, Bethel, Kotz, etc, and Southeast).
M
Mid West Clubber
Guest
have you ever heard 98.1 the wolf in your area.. it seems to be a pretty powerful station, and with open frequencies, i wonder how far it gets on DX.
Mid West Clubber said:have you ever heard 98.1 the wolf in your area.. it seems to be a pretty powerful station, and with open frequencies, i wonder how far it gets on DX.
You're right about the lack of co or adjacent channel interference but the geography of Alaska precludes FM signals from getting to a lot of places they might were the land flat and not all wrinkled up with those doggone mountains. And then there's that pesky curvature of the Earth.
AZJoe said:I actually picked up 98.1 and 102.5 in Paxon, which is 150 miles southeast of Fairbanks.
Topo map suggests you oughta get both pretty much regularly. A little to the west I would estimate it would be tough if possible at all.
I can substantiate the thing about radio stations in Alaska being very local in nature. I live in Southeast, but will move to Fairbanks for college this year. I feel like Anchorage, and Fairbanks are the only places that really have "big-city" sounding radio dials. Even Juneau is a STRANGE place for radio in my opinion. But that's almost a good thing, it's not like just any other big-city radio market.
As far as FM signals go, they don't get far here in Southeast, due to all those pesky mountains and being relatively low-powered anyway! One exception to that rule I can think of is K216AA 91.1, a translator of KFSK 100.9 in Petersburg. For 140 watts, that thing gets out! Not bad for not much more than light-bulb power! I live in Port Alexander and it barely comes in here. It's COL is Point Baker, but in Petersburg, and on the mainland outside Petersburg, it booms in.
In the Fairbanks area, though, I'd think they tend to get out a lot better. Considering the overall layout of the area, I'd think for much of the Interior you'd get several FMs in any given spot, at least weakly. Anyone care to chime in and substantiate this?
As far as FM signals go, they don't get far here in Southeast, due to all those pesky mountains and being relatively low-powered anyway! One exception to that rule I can think of is K216AA 91.1, a translator of KFSK 100.9 in Petersburg. For 140 watts, that thing gets out! Not bad for not much more than light-bulb power! I live in Port Alexander and it barely comes in here. It's COL is Point Baker, but in Petersburg, and on the mainland outside Petersburg, it booms in.
In the Fairbanks area, though, I'd think they tend to get out a lot better. Considering the overall layout of the area, I'd think for much of the Interior you'd get several FMs in any given spot, at least weakly. Anyone care to chime in and substantiate this?
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