More comments have trickled in to the commission on Richard Arsenault’s proposal to allow AM daytimers to begin pre-sunrise service earlier.
Summit Media, licensee of WVAR(AM), Richwood, W.Va., said operation with 500 watts pre-sunrise at 5 a.m. would allow WVAR an opportunity to reach out to additional early-morning risers with news, weather, school closing announcements, community events and other service.
Lewis Kevin Raper, chief engineer of WCKI(AM), Greer, S.C. said that the change would “allow WCKI to reach out to additional listeners during the early morning than is currently realized with 94 watts.”
Butte Broadcasting’s KKXX(AM), Paradise, Calif., which has a nighttime power of 37 watts, supports the proposal, as does Edward Schober, a licensed PE with Radiotechniques Engineering, who says this proposal should be considered as part of a larger review of pre-sunrise and post-sunset operation of AMs.
Electrical engineer and amateur radio operator John Pavlica supports the proposal and adds that “severe weather watches and/or warnings warrant full daytime power to any Class D station until the crisis has subsided.”
I wrote last time that the premise of Richard Arsenault’s proposal (RM-11599) is that higher power would make AM daytimers more competitive in their markets.
