WWCS faces FCC additional fine
June 27, 2014Birach Broadcasting faces its third fine against WWCS (540 Canonsburg) for lack of proper fencing around antennas. According to Tom Taylor, last summer a Philadelphia FCC agent found large sections of fencing around two of the towers which had fallen to the ground. Additionally there was no perimeter fencing which allowed just about anybody to walk through. The fine incurred was $12,000. This is the third penalty the station has received lately.
WOW, wouldn’t it be less expensive to repair the fencing around the towers which among other things is a public safety issue? The fine incurred could have be used towards the repairs.
[…] Birach Broadcasting faces its third fine against WWCS (540 Canonsburg) for lack of proper fencing around antennas. According to Tom Taylor, last summer a Philadelphia FCC agent found large sections… […]
The signal is very weak here in Johnstown,Pa.It used to blast in here during the day.I think they are running 500 watts day and night.
On another note…Birach broadcasting has filed for license renewal for our local defunct am-850 WKGE.This station has numerous tower problems.They have not been on the air for almost two years.I seen the notice in our local paper a while ago.The signal was so out of phase,it was actually bleeding down on your 770kfb here.I can imagine what it was doing to the old WAMO-860 down your way.One more thing,I think 540 Cannonsburg is running low power during the day as well.They used to blast a good signal here.It is very faint now.When it was Spirit54,the signal was very strong during the day.
I’ve always had a fondness for this station, following them from their 250 watt days, to the power increase to over 5000 watts with night operation, and solid AM Stereo classical music format, to BBC and freeform, Radio Disney, Spanish and now sports.
Since either the Spanish or when the sports started, I’ve been noticing low signal issues, weak and noisy in Pittsburgh at times, on a signal that was a powerhouse when it was classical. Maybe that was a problem, weeds choking the antenna and making the power cut back.
In my opinion, they could be a cool station again, if they do something different and interesting again. Scrappy little 540 at the bottom of the dial where underground people would listen. I liked the 1990s freeform, so they could do something like this station, The Goat, but for Pittsburgh. http://www.540wxyg.com/
Let’s have local ownership and focus again!
Boomer
I forgot about Spirit 54, but it only sounds familiar, I don’t remember a bit of what it was like or when it was. I’m guessing it’s when they were 250 watts and before classical started.
My mom liked their classical, and even with the audio dynamics of the format, they had enough signal to keep the noise down, even in downtown Pittsburgh for the most part. At that time I think they might have had 7500 watts. They even had a banner for the station on a street corner in downtown’s cultural district.
We even were getting the classical and jazz magazine they offered. I guess it was like WQED offering Pittsburgh Magazine. I liked the BBC relay after it was classical and their chart shows, and the freeform guys with their crazy music, learning about Scott Walker as a solo artist, and the 5 UUs.
Boomer