NorthEast Radio Watch 12/10: John Otto Dies at 70

[Scott D Fybush <fybush@world.std.com>]

*We begin this week's news in western NEW YORK, and we begin with an
obituary.  John Otto, the talk host credited with pioneering the form
in the region, died early Monday morning at Buffalo General Hospital
of emphysema.  

Otto's broadcast career began at the old WBNY (1400) in Buffalo at the
tender age of 19.  After two years in the Navy, Otto spent the rest of
his five-decade tenure in Buffalo radio, most of it with WGR (550),
where his "Extension 55" and "Night Call" were the city's best-known
talk shows in the 1960s and 70s.  

Otto took a detour to WWKB (1520) for a few years in the mid-80s, then
returned to WGR for the rest of his career.  For the past year, Otto
did his 10PM-1AM shift from his home, as his health deteriorated and
he became unable to get to the WGR studios.  

In 1998, Otto was named to the Buffalo Broadcast Pioneers' Hall of Fame.

Otto was hospitalized last weekend after suffering a fall at home.  As
news of his death spread Monday morning, the response was immediate
from across the Buffalo media community, exemplified by WBEN's Sandy
Beach: "We have lost our teacher."

WGR devoted its Monday and Tuesday night shows to remembrances of
Otto.

John Otto was 70 years old.

*In other news from the Empire State, there's now a format war in
Rochester -- in adult standards, of all things!  Just like it did in
Dallas and Denver this fall, Crawford Broadcasting has dropped the
religious format from WDCZ (990) in Rochester, replacing it with a
locally-generated (or, in any event, very slickly voice-tracked)
standards format as "Legends 990," WLGZ(AM), complete with PAMS
jingles.  The religion continues on WDCZ-FM (102.7 Webster).  

WLGZ goes head-to-head with dial neighbor WEZO (950), whose standards
format is entirely satellite-delivered, not to mention pre-empted by
Spanish nightly from 7-9 PM.  

For those keeping score, this is callsign number six (WNYR, WEZO,
WRMM, WCMF, WDCZ, WLGZ) and format number eight for 990 in the twenty
years it's been on that frequency.   (Boston-area listeners might want
to check WLGZ out at night; its directional signal comes in very
nicely in and around the Hub!)

Will Crawford's religion-to-standards conversion make its next stop at
Albany's WDCD (1540)?  Our spies in the Capital District are keeping
their ears open...

As the NERW-mobile sped towards I-86 (covered signs and all) last
weekend, we found one surprise: Not only was WEHH (1590 Elmira
Heights-Horseheads) still silent, there was a mound of fresh dirt
where its tower once stood on Latta Brook Road in sight of Route 17.
NERW wonders whether WEHH will eventually return as a diplex on
co-owned WELM (1410)'s nearby towers.

Up the road in Watkins Glen, Sabrecom has restored the WGMF calls to
their heritage spot at 1490, at least according to the FCC.  The
on-air announcement on Sunday still had WBZD as the AM calls on the
simulcast of WPGI (100.9 Horseheads), though.

The big three-way swap in Binghamton still hasn't happened, so WNBF
remains at 1290, WINR at 680, and WKOP at 1360 -- but one voice has
made the move down the dial from 1290.  Polka host Bill Flynn has
parted ways with WNBF after 30 years, moving his Sunday show to WINR
for the time being.  And when WINR moves to 1360?  Flynn's not
saying...

Also noted in Binghamton: an 88.1 pirate in the Vestal area, running a
skipping CD...all weekend long.  The 99.7 that's been running a
simulcast of patriot-wacko-talk KHNC (1360 Johnstown CO) for years is
still on the air as well.  And WSKG (89.3) has indeed added WSQA
(88.7) in Hornell, adding a new coverage area out to the west and
north of the Corning-Elmira WSQE (91.1) signal.

Not far away in Ithaca, there could soon be two new signals on the
air.  The FCC auction for channel 52 has ended with "Ithaca 52"
getting the CP, with plans (at least initially) to run just 100
kilowatts visual ERP, just enough to trip the cable headends in
Ithaca.  In nearby Cayuga Heights, Family Life Ministries is applying
for an 89.5 translator, presumably to relay WCII (88.5 Spencer).

Hello, FCC?  The database currently shows two different Utica-area
signals carrying the WODZ-FM call letters, apparently the result of
some confusion by Forever Broadcasting, which owns both stations.
Forever changed the heritage calls of its Johnstown, Pennsylvania AM
station from WJAC to WODZ(AM) this week (the station is known on-air
as "The Oldies Network"), and apparently filed at the same time to
change WODZ(FM) in Rome (on 96.1) back to WODZ-FM (which it was, back
when the WODZ(AM) calls were on 1450 in Rome).

With us so far?  Good, because the FCC isn't anymore.  Somehow, the
FCC seems to have thought that the station changing to WODZ-FM was
WFRG(FM) -- the calls that *were* on 96.1 in the early nineties.  But
the WFRG calls are now on 104.3 in Utica (ex-WKGW, WKFM), and *that*
station is now also listed as WODZ-FM in the database.  We'll be
looking for a correction from the FCC next week -- and hoping that
Forever will stop trading callsigns like Pokemon cards (poor WAJC in
Lima, Ohio went back to WUZZ this week, the second time it's made the
WAJC-to-WUZZ swap this year alone!)

A quick bit of Utica TV news: WUTR (Channel 20) is changing owners, as
Ackerley (aka Central NY News, Inc.) converts its LMA into ownership,
replaicing Utica TV Partners.  Ackerley was previously unable to buy
WUTR outright because the overlap with WIXT (Channel 9) in Syracuse
was considered duopoly.

Heading towards Albany, we stop in Schenectady to note the sale of
Off-Track Betting's AM station, WVKZ (1240).  Ernie Anastos' company
is paying $137,000 for the graveyarder, which will drop its sports
programming (including horse-racing!) to simulcast the adult standards
of Anastos' WUAM (900 Saratoga Springs) as "the Moon."

Anastos could soon have a shot at buying many more stations in the
Capital Region, as Clear Channel tries to spin off the stations it
has to ditch due to its purchase of AMFM.  Mark McGwire of the Albany
Times Union says the stations on the block are:

-Country giant WGNA AM-FM
-Jammin' Oldies WABT
-Oldies WTRY-FM
-Active rock simulcast WQBJ Cobleskill
-Sports WTMM

Staying in the group: 50kW giant WGY, rockers WPYX, WQBK, WRVE, and
WXCR (offering the AOR, active, adult, and classic flavors,
respectively, for those who can still tell the difference), modern AC
WHRL, and probably oldies WTRY(AM).  So, to look at it another way,
Clear Channel ends up adding just WPYX and perhaps WTRY(AM) to its
existing group.

Over at Tele-Media, WKLI (94.5 Ravena) puts "K-Lite" on hold to go
all-holidays as "Christmas Lite"; we're told the soft AC will be gone
when the station drops the holiday format in January.  Also gone is
K-Lite morning guy David Allan; he's headed to Anastos' WUAM/WVKZ to
do mornings there.

On TV, WXXA (Channel 23) will indeed add a 6:30 PM newscast to its
"Fox News at Ten" next year.  Kristin Stinar will join 10 PM anchor
Greg Floyd for the earlier show.

And out on Long Island, WRHD (1570 Riverhead) has applied to change
calls to WFOG(AM).  

*In MASSACHUSETTS, Citadel begins filling the gaps between its New
Hampshire cluster (ex-Fuller-Jeffrey) and its Connecticut/Rhode Island
stations (ex-Tele-Media and Spring) with a $24.5 million purchase of
Montachusett Broadcasting's WXLO (104.5 Fitchburg) and WORC-FM (98.9
Spencer).  WXLO's huge signal reaches from southern New Hampshire
across central Massachusetts (east as far as Boston) and into
Connecticut and Rhode Island.  Classic rock WORC-FM is a much more
limited signal, serving southern Worcester County and not much else.
The sale pretty much completes the mega-grouping of Worcester, with
WTAG and WSRS in Clear Channel (ex-Capstar, ex-AMFM) hands and WAAF
part of Entercom.  (And it's not even the highlight of Citadel's week;
that would be the 9-station, 9-figure purchase of Liggett's Michigan
clusters...)

We'd bet that Citadel won't do much to alter WXLO's top-rated
modernish AC format (except, perhaps, more targeting of sales towards
Boston, a la WAAF?) -- but as for WORC-FM, who knows.  Montachusett
keeps WIZN and WBTZ in the Burlington, Vermont market, and principal
owner Jay Williams Jr. hangs on to WLKZ (104.9) in Wolfeboro NH.

Also in Worcester: WWFX (100.1 Southbridge) loses PD Bob Mitchell due
to the usual philosophical differences.

No more Tone-Loc?  WBOT (97.7 Brockton) has unveiled its permanent
format, and no, it's not "All Dead Air," either.  "Wild 9-7-7" made
its debut Monday night as "Boston's New Home for Hip-Hop and R&B,"
taking dead aim at WJMN (94.5) and WILD (1090) with a signal that at
least does a decent job of covering the city's black neighborhoods,
even if it does leave something to be desired to the north and west.
Programming, at least for now, is being directed out of Radio One's
WERQ (92.3) in Baltimore.

To the east, WOMR (92.1 Provincetown) adds Met Opera broadcasts this
year (replacing WFCC on the Cape), and to the west, Mark Williams
replaces Dan Yorke in mornings on WNNZ (640 Westfield), at least for
the week.  In addition to his stint a few years ago at WGY in
Schenectady, Williams was at WNNZ back in 1977...in its earlier
incarnation as WDEW (1570).

*CONNECTICUT's ABC affiliate brings anchor Keith Kountz home at
month's end.  He'd been at WJXX (Channel 25) in Jacksonville; starting
Dec. 31, he'll anchor the 5, 6, and 11 shows on WTNH (Channel 8) in
New Haven.

*One RHODE ISLAND correction: Bill O'Brien was afternoon jock, not PD,
at WSNE (93.3 Taunton MA); he is going to the PD chair at WERO (93.3
Washington NC).

*Say goodbye to one NEW HAMPSHIRE station: Notre Dame College in
Manchester has returned the license of WRND (91.7) to the FCC, and the
calls have been deleted.  WRND went silent in 1997, and last year
began simulcasting public radio WEVO (89.1 Concord).  Notre Dame
dropped its journalism program this year, and the radio station went
away as well.  

January 10 is the day New Hampshire Public Radio plans to sign on its
newest rebroadcaster, as WXLQ (107.1 Gorham) changes calls to WEVC and
goes noncomm, bringing NPR programming to the area north of Mount
Washington.  Still more of the North Country will get NHPR service
next fall, as the network signs on its new station at 99.5 in
Jackson.  

Imus stays where?  We hear that while WNHI (93.3 Belmont) will keep
the I-Man and classic rock under Vox ownership, the future is perhaps
less clear for the other half of that simulcast, WRCI (107.7
Hillsboro).  Stay tuned...

*A new station in MAINE?  That's what two optimistic high-school
sophomores in Pittsfield hope to bring to Maine Central Institute
before they graduate.  They're working with volunteer engineers to try
to get a license for a noncomm station there.

*We heard CANADA's newest AM station using its calls this week.  CINF
(690 Montreal) is getting ready for next Tuesday's launch as "Info
690," and the signal both day and night in Rochester sounds an awful
lot like that of the old CBF from its Brossard, Quebec transmitter
site -- but it's not!  A last-minute message from Sheldon Harvey up in
Montreal informs us that 690 is diplexing off the CIQC (600) site,
while English sister "940 News" (whose calls will in fact be CINW, not
the previously-announced CKNN) is diplexing off French-language CKVL
(850)'s towers a few miles to the east.

Weekday programming on CIQC and CKVL wrapped up with Friday's shows,
and weekend programming will conclude Sunday, with Monday being a dark
day on all four frequencies before Tuesday's 11 AM launch of Info 690
and 940 News.  Simulcasts will reportedly continue on 850 and 600 for
up to six months.

The Web site at <www.ckvl.com> is finally announcing the
impending frequency change for CKVL (850) as well, though there's no
such announcement for English sister CIQC (600, becoming "940 News.")
Sketchy sites are also now in place at <www.info690.com> and
<www.940news.com> for those who haven't yet seen the new stations'
logos.

Turns out the NERW-mobile won't be heading for Montreal after all next
week, so we'd be thrilled to hear from anyone able to tape the 600 and
850 farewells or the debuts of 690 and 940.

*One final Web note: Steven Medicis' directories of Syracuse and
Buffalo radio have mow moved to a new address.  Find them at:
<http://www.cnymusic.com/broadcast>.

*And that's that for the last regular issue of NERW for 1999.  Next
week, our look at the region's broadcast news will be followed by Part
One of NERW's 1999 Year in Review, which will conclude in our last
1999 issue on December 24.  See you then!

---------------------NorthEast Radio Watch------------------------
                     (c)1999  Scott Fybush

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