On February 6, 2025, Audacy License filed for Minor Changes to move KBZT (FM) 94.9 and KXSN (FM) 98.1 MHz from the KFMB transmitter site multiplexed FM antenna on Mt. Soledad across the street to the KGTV site multiplexed FM antenna, where they would join sister stations KYXY (FM) 96.5 and KSON (FM) 103.5. Neither station proposes a change in coverage. The KGTV site has long implemented a 10-bay, 1/2-wave spaced ERI SHPX antenna for its FM tenants. In 2021, several stations had moved from the KGTV and UCSD towers to the KFMB site.
All posts by Gary Stigall
February Meeting: WiseDV TV Automation Systems
This month we’ll meet in person to catch up with each other as the new year gets underway. We’ll see a presentation from WiseDV, the company headquartered in San Diego that builds TV broadcast channel playout system WisePlay and the live studio production assistance system WiseStudio, as well as other video control modules. Vassil Lefterov and Atul Anandpura are scheduled to represent WiseDV.
Join us Wednesday, February 12, at 12:00 noon at iHeartMedia, 9660 Granite Ridge Drive, San Diego. We’ll provide a light lunch and drinks.
FCC Approves Time-Shared Construction Permit for Three 96.9 LPFM Applicants
On January 24, 2025, the FCC approved the amended applications for the upcoming 96.9 MHz San Diego LPFM stations. The three parties, each broadcasting from a different location, have agreed to a complex schedule of operating hours to share the single channel.
The Football Camp for Kids station will transmit from a pole in front of Dixieline Lumber in National City west of Interstate 5.
The Labors Training and Community Development Alliance station will transmit from a pole across the freeway in National City, just east of I-5.
The Justice Overcoming Boundaries in San Diego County station will transmit from a structure in Bonita’s Long Canyon Park.
The three associations have three years to construct the stations.
Los Angeles Fires Take Lives And Buildings, But Not Broadcast Transmitters
The fires in Pacific Palisades and Altadena that tragically killed multiple people and consumed thousands of homes last week apparently did not damage broadcast transmitter facilities. Electrical and data fiber outages forced some stations to use their auxiliary sites. Some, like KUSC, are still broadcasting from their aux sites.
Fires Climb Mt. Wilson Again
The Eaton Fire that started in Altadena extended to Mt. Harvard and Mt. Wilson, where most LA FM and TV stations house their transmitters. However, the fire destroyed only one small 2-way and pager building, which was identified by a sign in a photo taken earlier as being owned by “Touch Tel Corp.”
KNBC-TV Transmitter Supervisor Dennis Doty reported from the Mt. Wilson site (YouTube) as the fire approached. (Dennis was, from 2000 to 2004, the Director of Engineering for the XETV Fox 6 San Diego operation.)
Fire crews protected the historic Mt. Wilson Observatory from damage.
iHeartMedia Facilities Undamaged
Doug Irwin, LA market Director of Engineering for iHeartMedia, reported on Facebook on the evening of January 9 that their facilities on Mt. Wilson for KRRL 92.3, KYSR 98.7, KIIS 102.7, KOST 103.5, and KBIG 104.3 (edited for clarity) sustained no damage:
“The fire burned over the top of Mt Wilson today. We got to the site about 6 pm, after the immediate danger had passed, and took a diesel fuel delivery, changed all the air filters we could, and looked things over. To say it was nerve-wracking is an understatement. I got down from the mountaintop a little after 9 pm, and our facilities survived. There were still small fires burning all over—imagine seeing dozens of campfires on the hills—but the local firefighters were there keeping an eye on things, and they would have taken care of any flareups. It’s too early to say it’s over for us because I understand another wind event is coming. I am cautiously optimistic, though.”
Complaints About Fire Alerts Accumulating
A conversation on the SBE EAS forum reported some failures of timing and localization with the Genasys emergency reporting system in Los Angeles County:
“County officials announced Friday they are overhauling their emergency alert system after residents across the Los Angeles area continued to receive erroneous emergency alerts that urged them to prepare to evacuate, even though many were not close to any of the fires sweeping across the foothills of the sprawling metropolis.
“On Friday evening, the county announced it would suspend its current alert system operated by a third-party vendor called Genasys and switch all local emergency alerts to a separate CalOES system as Genasys conducted testing to determine what caused the glitch.”
More in this LA Times article and this FEMA article.
Apps That Report Localized Emergencies
You can keep informed of fires and other emergencies in your area using these mobile device applications:
Genasys – As mentioned above, the app can report fires and other emergencies personalized for your location, assuming you allow reporting of your location. I have no experience with how reliably this handles timeliness, localization, and repetition.
Watch Duty – This app reports fires, and you can restrict them to your county. If you allow default reporting, you’ll get bombarded with frequent updates to an incident that may be 50 miles away. You can silence this by clicking on the flame symbol for that particular fire incident on your map and toggling the Notifications switch. Of course, if that fire marches toward you…
Lotus Acquiring KFBG (FM) 100.7
Lotus Communications on December 18, 2024 announced it was acquiring KFBG 100.7 MHz San Diego from Local Media San Diego. LMSD will continue to operate Tijuana stations XHITZ 90.3, XETRA 91.1, and XHRM 92.5. LMSD had acquired KFMB-AM and -FM from TEGNA in 2019. Employees were told to expect being discontinued when the transition is approved by the FCC.