SBE Chapter 36 welcomes new member Mario Armstrong, who recently joined the engineering staff at KPBS. We asked a few questions and he responded:
Where do you work and what do you do there?
I’m currently a Broadcast Engineer at KPBS, a role I transitioned into after working in operations.
How did you make the transition from operations?
I didn’t start with a background in broadcast engineering, but my technical skills came from setting up PA systems for KPBS as a freelancer after college, and climbing the operations ladder at KGTV from stage manager to weekend director. I also gained hands-on experience working as a grip and gaffer for local commercial productions, which helped me get comfortable on commercial sets.
My real introduction to broadcast engineering came in late 2019 when I officially stepped into the field. The pandemic became my “soft launch” into this world, and it was a steep but rewarding learning curve.
I’ve posted the 2025 EAS Regular Monthly Test calendar for 2025 here.
The San Diego EAS Plan is undergoing a minor change to include the LP1 and LP2 HD2 and translator stations you may monitor. We’ll let you know when the plan has been approved by the state.
KOGO (AM) 600 kHz started broadcasting full-time from their new site at the west end of Santee beginning October 28, 2024. iHeart filed with the FCC a License to Cover the Construction Permit for that move from Emerald Hills. At the new site, KOGO will operate with a transmitter output of 9,000 watts daytime, 10,000 watts nighttime, both directional to the southwest with a slightly different pattern than they had at the old site. The extra power from their previous 5 kW output is needed to compensate for the inefficiency of the short antenna (69°) designed for KFMB (now KGB-AM) at 760 kHz, and the losses due to multiple matching and filter devices used to multiplex with KGB-AM.
When KLNV 106.5 and KWFN 97.3 are finished moving to the KGB-FM tower, owner Vertical Bridge will be free to convert the old Emerald Hills site property to a residential development.
KOGO had been at the Emerald Hills site since 1948, when its callsign was KFSD.
The FCC issued a Public Notice on October 16, 2024, selecting from 2023 LPFM filing window mutually exclusive (MX) applications for further processing. The PN listed filings in a separate spreadsheet with selection criterion scores. Petitioners have 30 days to file objections to the selections. Applicants have 60 days to file Major Change (usually frequency move) amendments and 90 days to file frequency time share proposals.
Three San Diego area applicants were given the green light, forcing them to time share the 96.9 MHz channel each chose. The three applicants were:
The Labors Training and Community Development Alliance with its site near the intersection of Interstate 5 and California State Highway 54.
The Football Camp for Kids with transmitter in the same area.
The Justice Overcoming Boundaries in San Diego County with the transmitter at Bonita Long Canyon Park.
The three parties could ask to share the channel with differing time schedules, or carry some or all of the programming over a merged operation. Sometimes parties get cold feet with the complications and expenses and quit the process altogether.
