How Class A AMs Protected Each Other

[frankberry]

That's a long long story.

Hubbard Broadcasting, Inc., Appellant, v. Federal Communications Commission, Appellee, Americanbroadcasting Companies, Inc., Intervenor, 663 F.2d 220 (D.C. Cir. 1980)

Hubbard Broadcasting, Inc., Appellant, v. Federal Communications Commission, Appellee, Americanbroadcasting Companies, Inc., Intervenor, 663 F.2d 220 (D.C. Cir. 1980) case opinion from the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit

law.justia.com

I know. I was CE at KOB. At one time, the FCC granted them the authority to switch to 1030kHz in the event they were required to shut down on 770kHz.

 

[ajaynejr]

KOB ultimately got Class B (II-A) status on 770. It got approximately what it applied for and built out for, facilities similar to Class A (I-B) , 50 KW DA-N.

WABC kept its 50K ND-U facilities. but gave up the territory west of KOB. The other Class B (II-A) assignments were made around the time period of the KOB-WABC dispute , and one of WABC's two primary competitors (WCBS, 880) was also broken down with a II-A allocation, which went to Lexington NE.

 

[ZantennaG1]

What about KOB/KKOB, 770kHz, 50kW non DA day, DA night?

Oh yeah, that's right! Isn't that the one where the FCC told (WJZ at the time) to go directional to protect KOB, and in response, they got the 20th century equivalent of "shove it"?

 

[frankberry]

KOB ultimately got Class B (II-A) status on 770. It got approximately what it applied for and built out for, facilities similar to Class A (I-B) , 50 KW DA-N.

WABC kept its 50K ND-U facilities. but gave up the territory west of KOB. The other Class B (II-A) assignments were made around the time period of the KOB-WABC dispute , and one of WABC's two primary competitors (WCBS, 880) was also broken down with a II-A allocation, which went to Lexington NE.

When I worked for KOB, they were 1-B. The FCC hadn't yet ruled on the WABC/KOB issue.

 

[Gregg.]

I guess KOB Albuquerque was the first station to get I-B status on a I-A frequency? In the 1970s it was broadcasting as a II-A, running 50,000 watts directional on WABC's frequency, while WABC lawyers kept asking the FCC to stop it. Frankberry says when he worked at KOB, it had gotten I-B status. And that ended WABC's appeals. By coincidence, they eventually were both owned by Cumulus for many years.

Originally, if you were a big dog on one of 37 I-A frequencies, you did not share it with anyone else, at least at night. WGY Schenectady was originally a I-A. When General Electric wanted to share 810 between two of its owned stations, WGY had to drop to I-B status, even though it kept the same non-directional 50,000 signal. That allowed KGO San Francisco on the same frequency with a directional 50,000 watt signal, also a I-B.

When Mexico complained it didn't get enough I-A designations, 540 was allowed to have two I-A stations. CBR Regina remained and XEWA San Luis Potosí was allowed to also get I-A status, going to 150,000 watts.

By the 1980s, I guess the FCC had eased those protections. It started permitting powerful stations on the I-A frequencies as long as they were 750 miles apart, approximately. After KOB won the right to keep its 50 kw directional signal, other stations began popping up on I-A channels. KTNQ Los Angeles got a boost to 50,000 watts at night in Los Angeles on KDKA's 1020 frequency. 770 KXA Seattle didn't have to be a daytimer anymore. WOAI was no longer the only station on 1200 in America.

I don't remember exactly when stations in Alaska and The Maritimes got their boosts to Class A status, but I imagine it was fairly recent. Since they are so far from the original Class A stations on their frequencies, some used the new status to boost their power but many stayed with what they have. Now Alaska has more than a dozen Class A stations and The Maritimes have about five.

And as David points out, I was mistaken on the 1580 frequency. CBJ Chicoutimi was not a I-A. It was a I-B, with a directional antenna. CBJ and XEDM Hermosillo shared 1580 as I-B stations. XEDM was powered at 50 kw, using a directional antenna.

 

[semoochie]

For the high-powered stations that today are called "Class A," the FCC originally had two classifications, Class I-A and Class I-B. All were 50,000 watts except when noted below.

Class I-A: These were the 37 top stations, the Cream of the Crop, with no other stations on their frequencies within 1,000 miles or more at night. (WOAI San Antonio had no other U.S. station, NONE, on 1200 kHz, day or night.) They all were non-directional except WWL and WBZ, which wanted directional antennas to put a stronger signal over New Orleans and Boston.

540 CBK Regina and XEWA San Luis Potosí (150 kw)
This was the only frequency with two Class I-A stations
640 KFI Los Angeles
650 WSM Nashville
660 WNBC New York (now WFAN)
670 WMAQ Chicago (now WSCR)
690 CBF Montreal (now CKGM)
700 WLW Cincinnati
720 WGN Chicago
730 XEX Mexico City (100 kw days/50 kw nights)
740 CBL Toronto (now CFZM)
750 WSB Atlanta
760 WJR Detroit
770 WABC New York
780 WBBM Chicago
800 XEROK Ciudad Juarez (150 kw)
820 WBAP Fort Worth
830 WCCO Minneapolis
840 WHAS Louisville
860 CJBC Toronto
870 WWL New Orleans
880 WCBS New York
890 WLS Chicago
900 XEW Mexico City (250 kw - the highest power station in North America until a few years ago)
990 CBW Winnipeg
1020 KDKA Pittsburgh
1030 WBZ Boston
1040 WHO Des Moines
1050 XEG Monterrey (150 kw)
1100 WWWE Cleveland (now WTAM)
1120 KMOX St. Louis
1160 KSL Salt Lake City
1180 WHAM Rochester
1200 WOAI San Antonio
1210 WCAU Philadelphia (now WPHT)
1220 XEB Mexico City (100 kw)
1570 XERF Ciudad Acuña, Coahuila (100 kw)
1580 CBJ Chicoutimi, Quebec (10 kw until going 50 kw in the 1990s, now silent)

======

Class I-B stations usually had two or three other high-powered stations on their frequencies but at least 1,000 miles away. With a few exceptions, they used directional antennas to protect the other Class I-B stations on their frequency. They operate with 50,000 watts fulltime unless otherwise noted.

--680 KNBR San Francisco (It's non-directional, even though it's a Class I-B)
--810 WGY Schenectady and KGO San Francisco (WGY is non-directional, KGO only slightly directional)
--850 KOA Denver (non-directional Class I-B)
--940 CBM Montreal and XEQ Mexico City (150 kw D/50 kw N - both stations were so distant that XEQ was non-directional and CBM only slightly directional)
--1000 WCFL Chicago, KOMO Seattle and XEOY Mexico City (50 kw D/20 kw N)
--1010 CFRB Toronto and CBR Calgary
--1060 KYW Philadelphia and XEEP Mexico City (100 kw D/20 kw N)
--1070 KNX Los Angeles and CBA Moncton (both stations were so distant that they both used non-directional antenna - CBA is now silent)
--1080 WTIC Hartford and KRLD Dallas
--1090 WBAL Baltimore, KAAY Little Rock and XEPRS Tijuana
--1110 WBT Charlotte and KFAB Omaha
--1130 WNEW New York, KWKH Shreveport and CKWX Vancouver
--1140 WRVA Richmond and XEMR Monterrey
--1170 WWVA Wheeling and KVOO Tulsa
--1190 KEX Portland, WOWO Fort Wayne and XEWK Guadalajara (50 kw D/10 kw N)
--1500 WTOP Washington and KSTP St. Paul
--1510 WLAC Nashville and KGA Spokane
--1520 WKBW Buffalo and KOMA Oklahoma City
--1530 WCKY Cincinnati and KFRK Sacramento
--1540 KXEL Waterloo, Iowa and ZNS-1 Nassau, Bahamas (10 kw)
--1550 CBW Windsor, Ontario (10 kw), KGAR Vancouver, Washington (10 kw) and XERUV Xalapa, Veracruz (10 kw)
--1560 WQXR New York and KPMC Bakersfield (10 kw)

I've always been a bit confused about KGAR Vancouver WA being a Class I-B. They began as a daytimer in 1963 and went to a nighttime directional in 1977, protecting KKHI San Francisco which bombed into the Portland area at night. You would think that if anyone were designated a I-B, it would be KKHI!

 

[ZantennaG1]

Does anyone here recall General Order 40, which called for the US to be divided into five zones, with clear channels from each zone, like 830 (back then) was KOA Denver, and 970 was KJR Seattle, and 1040 was KRLD Dallas?

 

[Gregg.]

>>>I've always been a bit confused about KGAR Vancouver WA being a Class I-B. They began as a daytimer in 1963 and went to a nighttime directional in 1977, protecting KKHI San Francisco which bombed into the Portland area at night. You would think that if anyone were designated a I-B, it would be KKHI!<<<

I've had a number of questions over the years about how various stations got their I-A or I-B status. I always wondered if the I-B in Broadcasting Yearbook next to KGAR was a misprint? It was in a suburb of Portland, not the city itself. As Smoochie says, it had a not-so-special history. And it was only 10,000 watts.

But then, how did Waterloo, Iowa get a I-B? Or Wheeling or Fort Wayne? Meanwhile, Houston, Miami, San Diego and Phoenix had none? How did Upstate NY get a Class I-A station, 1180 and two Class I-Bs, 810 and 1520? The nation's capital only got a single Class I-B, 1500.

 

[ZantennaG1]

Waterloo, Iowa get a I-B

So what you're saying is that KXEL is an I-B not an I-A?

But then, how did Waterloo, Iowa get a I-B? Or Wheeling or Fort Wayne? Meanwhile, Houston, Miami, San Diego and Phoenix had none? How did Upstate NY get a Class I-A station, 1180 and two Class I-Bs, 810 and 1520? The nation's capital only got a Class I-B, 1500

I think back then, rural service was prioritized more than it is today. For most cities, it was sufficient enough to put the big station there and it would still reach wide audiences, but perhaps they also needed ones actually closer to where the ranchers live. I mean, that was the whole point behind KRVN, after all.

 

[TheBigA]

Meanwhile, Houston, Miami, San Diego and Phoenix had none? How did Upstate NY get a Class I-A station, 1180 and two Class I-Bs, 810 and 1520? The nation's capital only got a single Class I-B, 1500.

It really shows how much the population has shifted during the past 90 years. Buffalo was once a Top 25 market.

The other change is the cost of owning and operating a radio station was significantly more expensive in the 30s than it became by the 1950s.

 

[DavidEduardo]

By the 1980s, I guess the FCC had eased those protections. It started permitting powerful stations on the I-A frequencies as long as they were 750 miles apart, approximately. After KOB won the right to keep its 50 kw directional signal, other stations began popping up on I-A channels. KTNQ Los Angeles got a boost to 50,000 watts at night in Los Angeles on KDKA's 1020 frequency. 770 KXA Seattle didn't have to be a daytimer anymore. WOAI was no longer the only station on 1200 in America.

The change was in the 70's when the FCC decided to provide "first service" to gray areas that lacked fulltime radio service.

Most of the eastern and midwestern clears were duplicated with significant stations in the west with signals that would cover big rural areas.

1020 was duplicated in Roswell, NM. Storer offered to finance their facility if they would permit overlap in the LA are. And Reno and Las Vegas got 720, 840 and 780. Idaho got 670, Oregon got 1120, western Colorado got 1120, and in the plains states we got things like 1210 in OK and 880 in Nebraska. The Navajo Nation got 660 in AZ, MT got 1180 and so on across the western USA.

I don't remember exactly when stations in Alaska and The Maritimes got their boosts to Class A status, but I imagine it was fairly recent. Since they are so far from the original Class A stations on their frequencies, some used the new status to boost their power but many stayed with what they have. Now Alaska has more than a dozen Class A stations and The Maritimes have about five.

Of course, in the case of Hawai'i there was no real change... just a label. One attempt at 50 kw on 870 from a site across the straits from Honolulu was too expensive; Hawai'i has America's highest electric rates except for Puerto Rico. So they all stayed at 10 kw as any greater power was too expensive and the cost of land prohibited directional systems at least on Oahu.

And as David points out, I was mistaken on the 1580 frequency. CBJ Chicoutimi was not a I-A. It was a I-B, with a directional antenna. CBJ and XEDM Hermosillo shared 1580 as I-B stations. XEDM was powered at 50 kw, using a directional antenna.

I saw XEDM's site many years ago and it was non-directional. Its QSL cards, going back to the 60's, had a single tower. It's funny, but there was an Hermosillo station at the very low end of the dial with 5 kw and that station covered more than XEDM! Of course, 1580 stations in Tempe and Santa Monica had to build severely directional systems to protect Mexico.

 

[DavidEduardo]

So what you're saying is that KXEL is an I-B not an I-A?

Yes, it is directional.

I think back then, rural service was prioritized more than it is today. For most cities, it was sufficient enough to put the big station there and it would still reach wide audiences, but perhaps they also needed ones actually closer to where the ranchers live. I mean, that was the whole point behind KRVN, after all.

KRVN did not become a clear channel until the breakup of the Eastern1-A clears in the 70's. Prior to that, it had been a daytimer.

The duplication of the clear channels eliminated "national" protection and allowed for major stations on all the eastern US clears in more sparsely populated areas of the plains states and western US.

Once the protection was reduced, then other stations could either go full time or move onto clear channels and get night directional operations.

 

[DavidEduardo]

It really shows how much the population has shifted during the past 90 years. Buffalo was once a Top 25 market.

And Phoenix, about to become a Top 10 market, had 48,000 persons in 1930 around the time when the clear channels were allocated. It was mostly a railroad junction in those pre-airconditioning years.

The other change is the cost of owning and operating a radio station was significantly more expensive in the 30s than it became by the 1950s.

I once saw a photo of the engineering staff of WOR in the very late 40's; there were over 40 employees just to keep it running on the air.

 

[TheBigA]

I once saw a photo of the engineering staff of WOR in the very late 40's; there were over 40 employees just to keep it running on the air.

I think they were still part of Mutual at that time, so they may have been involved in some of the national programming.

But a typical transmitter building was staffed 24/7. Not any more.

 

[Gregg.]

I didn't realize Phoenix had only 48,000 people in the 1930s. Amazing.

Yet I don't think Waterloo ever had much of a population, or Wheeling or Fort Wayne, all cities with I-B assignments. And while they aren't the size they are today, I'm sure Kansas City, Miami, Memphis, San Diego and Tampa were all bigger than Waterloo, Wheeling and Fort Wayne, even in the 1930s. Yet they didn't get a I-A or a I-B like those smaller towns.

When I read how LBJ was able to keep Austin TX from getting a second VHF television station, not wanting to have any significant competition for his Channel 7, I realize the FCC was swayed by political considerations and politician pressure. So perhaps Wheeling, Waterloo and Fort Wayne had friendly senators lobbying on their behalf.

 

[semoochie]

The change was in the 70's when the FCC decided to provide "first service" to gray areas that lacked fulltime radio service.

Most of the eastern and midwestern clears were duplicated with significant stations in the west with signals that would cover big rural areas.

1020 was duplicated in Roswell, NM. Storer offered to finance their facility if they would permit overlap in the LA are. And Reno and Las Vegas got 720, 840 and 780. Idaho got 670, Oregon got 1120, western Colorado got 1120, and in the plains states we got things like 1210 in OK and 880 in Nebraska. The Navajo Nation got 660 in AZ, MT got 1180 and so on across the western USA.

Of course, in the case of Hawai'i there was no real change... just a label. One attempt at 50 kw on 870 from a site across the straits from Honolulu was too expensive; Hawai'i has America's highest electric rates except for Puerto Rico. So they all stayed at 10 kw as any greater power was too expensive and the cost of land prohibited directional systems at least on Oahu.

I saw XEDM's site many years ago and it was non-directional. Its QSL cards, going back to the 60's, had a single tower. It's funny, but there was an Hermosillo station at the very low end of the dial with 5 kw and that station covered more than XEDM! Of course, 1580 stations in Tempe and Santa Monica had to build severely directional systems to protect Mexico.

This is confusing. You are combining two different eras of breaking down the clears. 660 was in the 1980s, when they went to a 750 mile limit. The rest are from the '60s and only involved one other station per frequency.

So what you're saying is that KXEL is an I-B not an I-A?

I think back then, rural service was prioritized more than it is today. For most cities, it was sufficient enough to put the big station there and it would still reach wide audiences, but perhaps they also needed ones actually closer to where the ranchers live. I mean, that was the whole point behind KRVN, after all.

There were no US Class 1-A(s) above 1210.

 

[DavidEduardo]

This is confusing. You are combining two different eras of breaking down the clears. 660 was in the 1980s, when they went to a 750 mile limit. The rest are from the '60s and only involved one other station per frequency.

IIRC, the decision to not allow the 1-A's to go to as much as 750 kw was finalized in the very late 60's. That opened the door to allow those channels to be duplicated with protection to the 1-A, outside the 750 mile limit. The airdate for most of those was in the 70's.

For example, Roswell on 1020 could not get on the air until KGBS/KTNQ in LA financed the build in exchange for a waiver to put 50 kw, highly directional, on in LA. and that all did not happen until the mid-70's.

When this was all happening, there was interest in reducing even further the 1-B protections. I filed for that to allow my WQII in San Juan on 1140 to let out its null towards Richmond; the FCC never acted on that.

 

[DavidEduardo]

Yet I don't think Waterloo ever had much of a population, or Wheeling or Fort Wayne, all cities with I-B assignments. And while they aren't the size they are today, I'm sure Kansas City, Miami, Memphis, San Diego and Tampa were all bigger than Waterloo, Wheeling and Fort Wayne, even in the 1930s. Yet they didn't get a I-A or a I-B like those smaller towns.

Remember, one of those channels had to be filed for... not like FM where they are pre-created. So stations that already had decent city coverage in those cities did not see a need to waste power if "we cover the whole city".

In Miami, signals like 620, 560 and even 1360 covered the market nicely. Kansas City had some nice low frequency signals like 610, 710 and 810. Memphis had 600, 680 and several other decent signals. San Diego with 600 and 1360 and a couple of others was just fine for the size of the market... heck, even Class IV KSON was a good signal back then. Tampa had beautiful 620 as well as 970 and 1250, good enough for the Red, Blue and CBS to have nice signals.

So in those markets nobody filed to upgrade as doing so would leave the "old" frequency open for a competitor to file and bring a new station to the market.

 

[ZantennaG1]

IIRC, the decision to not allow the 1-A's to go to as much as 750 kw was finalized in the very late 60's. That opened the door to allow those channels to be duplicated with protection to the 1-A, outside the 750 mile limit. The airdate for most of those was in the 70's.

For example, Roswell on 1020 could not get on the air until KGBS/KTNQ in LA financed the build in exchange for a waiver to put 50 kw, highly directional, on in LA. and that all did not happen until the mid-70's.

When this was all happening, there was interest in reducing even further the 1-B protections. I filed for that to allow my WQII in San Juan on 1140 to let out its null towards Richmond; the FCC never acted on that.

How much skywave coverage would a station have with 750kw? Nation-wide? Also, 1020 is an oddball frequency to me; KDKA in the east is a good start, but then you have KMMQ Omaha very directional to the west, then KCKN Roswell, again directional to the west, and finally KTNQ Los Angeles, super directional to the west. And the interesting thing? They are all a Spanish format. Also, sorry to hear about the FCC's denial of WIIQ's pattern. With them, sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.

 

[ZantennaG1]

Remember, one of those channels had to be filed for... not like FM where they are pre-created. So stations that already had decent city coverage in those cities did not see a need to waste power if "we cover the whole city".

In Miami, signals like 620, 560 and even 1360 covered the market nicely. Kansas City had some nice low frequency signals like 610, 710 and 810. Memphis had 600, 680 and several other decent signals. San Diego with 600 and 1360 and a couple of others was just fine for the size of the market... heck, even Class IV KSON was a good signal back then. Tampa had beautiful 620 as well as 970 and 1250, good enough for the Red, Blue and CBS to have nice signals.

So in those markets nobody filed to upgrade as doing so would leave the "old" frequency open for a competitor to file and bring a new station to the market.

Why is it that on FM, the FCC hand-picks a frequency for LPs, but not for full-power FM or AM stations? Anyways, you do have a point there; the lower MW band between 540 and 900 can be surprisingly useful at getting a signal out there, like how WIBW Topeka is audible Omaha to Wichita and beyond with just 5kw. One thing I should mention is that the old FCC (FRC at the time) was super finicky letting stations go above even 1,000 watts, nonetheless 50kw. However, today is not the 1900's, so I wonder if these places have a chance of getting an I-A, and how likely would be a frequency shuffle in modern times?