WUMB/WAVM/Living Proof - The End

[Eli Polonsky]

 > From: "Bob Nelson" <raccoonradio@gmail.com>
> To: "Scott Fybush" <scott@fybush.com>,
>     boston-radio-interest@rolinin.bostonradio.org,
> raccoonradio@gmail.com
> Date: Fri, 14 Apr 2006 03:27:02 -0400
> Subject: Re: WUMB/WAVM/Living Proof - The End
> 
> Here's a link to an article in Friday's Metrowest News. FCC approval
> still needed.
> 
> http://metrowestdailynews.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=127400
> 
> Maynard High School radio station WAVM and its University of
> Massachusetts-Boston broadcast partner WUMB have reached an
> agreement with a competitor for the 91.7 FM broadcasting frequency
> that may end a six-month license nightmare and result in a much
> stronger broadcast signal.
> 
> "What this agreement will do is allow WAVM to go from 10 watts to
> 500 watts of power," said Pat Monteith, general manager of WUMB.
> 
> The agreement was reached with Living Proof, Inc., a Christian
> broadcaster, which had been granted rights to the frequency by the
> Federal Communications Commission last fall.

I'm not completely sure, but I think that if this gets approved,
the 500 watt signal from Maynard would prevent another religious
broadcaster, CSN International, from pursuing their application
for a 100 watt network repeater on 91.7 in Lexington.

I'm guessing that one of Monteith's main goals was most likely
not only to get the part-time WUMB relay on a more powerful 500
watt WAVM in Maynard, but also to save Boston's northwest suburbs,
where many WUMB listeners (and most generous contributors) reside,
from adjacent channel interference to WUMB's greater Boston area
main transmitter in Quincy from CSN's 91.7 Lexington application.

I don't recall WAVM ever applying for as much as 500 watts for
their original upgrade before WUMB became directly aligned with
them. I recall WAVM's earlier upgrade proposals being a bit more
modest, such as 200 watts. I'm guessing WUMB probably arranged
with WAVM to raise their application to 500 watts to help stave
off the religious broadcasters signals for their mutual benefit.

EP