the old WEEI and CBS

[Mark Shneyder <mshbc@bu.edu>]

The way it went down :

CBS had to sell WEEI-AM 590 in Boston to meet FCC
ownership regulations(in 1983, it was still 7-7-7 in a market)
so that it could make room for the purchase of Metromedia's KRLD AM 1080
in Dallas. 'EEI was the weakst signal (only 5k watts) in CBS group's
portfolio while KRLD and Dallas represented more powerful signal in
a bigger market.

While Metromedia petitioned FCC to keep both KRLD AM and a UHF
station(ch.33) in Dallas, it also had agreed to sell KRLD to CBS
convinced that FCC would reject their petition. Suprisingly, FCC bought
Metromedia's argument(KRLD was going to produce news and public service
programming for the UHF station) and allowed Metromedia to keep both,
KRLD and the UHF station, despite one-to-a-market rule.  In turn, it
spoiled KRLD sale to CBS. At that point it was too late to retain WEEI
which was already going to Helen Valerio, of the Papa Ginos' fame.

13 years later, CBS ended up with KRLD through a swap with SFX.
In 1996, CBS traded its longtime oldies signal KKWR/Houston for
KRLD.

- -M

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