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Sky Daniels, now retired,
brought KCSN to prominence in LA
and engineered the collaboration
that created 88.5 FM
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The
future of Adult Alternative 88.5 FM is again up in the air.
California State
University – Northridge (“CSUN”), the licensee of KCSN, has issued a Request
for Qualification (“RFQ”) to solicit proposals from noncom public media
organizations to manage and program 88.5 FM, a duopoly the covers most of the
Los Angeles metro area.
KCSN’s
partner in the project is KSBR, owned by South Orange County Community College
District. KSBR is licensed to Mission Viejo and operates from offices and
studios on the campus of Saddleback Community College.
KCSN
and KSBR started a programming collaboration in 2017 to increase the
audience size of 88.5 FM, the frequency on which both stations operate. The
collaboration ended years of disputes between the two stations. Expansion of coverage by
either station was was impossible.
CSUN
is taking the lead to establish a Public Service Operating Agreement (PSOA) for
88.5 FM. Both institutions will continue to own the FCC licenses if/when the
PSOA agreement is finalized.
The
process appears to be moving quickly. According to the RFQ, interested organizations must file Requests for Information by Wednesday,
November 20th. Responses to the Requests are due on December 11th.
Full
formal proposals are due on January 10, 2020. In-person interviews and
discussions will be conducted through January 31, 2020. Finalist(s) will be notified
by February 7th. Then negotiations on the PSOA will begin. CSUN hopes the
process will be concluded by March 15, 2020.
Organizations
that want to review the RFQ should email Deborah Wallace at
Deborah.wallace@csun.edu.
THE “LITTLE STATION THAT
COULD” HAS BIG DREAMS
88.5
FM is viewed as big success, particularly in Nielsen Audio’s monthly PPM
ratings.
According to Nielsen, the two signals combined reached 181,200
estimated weekly listeners in October and had a 0.4 AQH share.
Neither station
could have reached this many listeners without the other partner.
But, 88.5 FM's revenue has not grown as fast as its audience success.
88.5 FM is seeking a PSOA with a larger noncommercial
operator.
Neither station receives support from CPB. KCSN was once was
CPB-qualified. They lost their CPB funding a couple of decades ago when CSUN turned
down CPB’s request that tKCSN adopt a Spanish language format.
CSUN
and Saddleback want to fwork with an organization that has deep pockets resources to take 88.5 FM to the next level – becoming a major player in the nation’s
top radio market.
Speculation
is that PBS So Cal, a partnership
between KCET-TV and KOCE-TV, will likely be a contender. The PBS stations want to add
a public radio station to their cluster that will provide a new source of
revenue. If PBS So Cal is chosen it
might lead to a format change.
American
Public Media (APM) operates NPR News/Talk KPCC via a PSOA. APM also owns The
Current in St. Paul, perhaps the nation's most successful noncom Adult Alternative
station in both ratings and revenue.
KCRW
has expressed interest in the past about purchasing KCSN. KCRW needs a second
signal in order to compete with KPCC.
It
is possible that Saul Levine’s Mt. Wilson Broadcasting might be interested. They
operate Jazz KKJZ via a PSOA with Cal State Long Beach, a university with many similarities to CSUN.
I have little to add other than it would be a shame to lose the station as it is now.
ReplyDeleteThat said, if KCRW takes it over, that would lead to significantly less choice in LA...
While this is not on the table as far as I know, I vaguely recall looking at the signal contours in the LA market and there isn't really a huge advantage to either KCSN or KSBR shutting down with the idea that the remaining station could expand to fill the gap and put a better signal over the heart of the market. I think there's too many other adjacent-channel stations to make that a realistic option.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Aaron, the next step is for either KCSN or KSBR to agree to shutting down turning in the license as the other station boost power. After that it would make the station more powerful complement to either KPCC, KCRW, KUSC (doubt it) or KKJZ.
ReplyDeleteI took another look; it would be tricky but I think KCSN could move to the same tower as KCRW with roughly 1000 watts (omni) to 2000 watts, maybe 3000 watts (directional), and increase the population inside their 60 dBu contour substantially (from 2.3 to 7.1 million). But it's tricky. There's co-channel KHMS off to the east, and several first-adjacent stations close in (KTCN, KSPC, KDRW, KCLU). Oddly enough, the most problematic might be KKJZ on 88.1. The Raleigh waivers make it easier but Raleigh doesn't allow you to put an interfering contour into their protected contour. And the presence of mountains really limits the locations you can put a signal. KKJZ's 60 dBu comes juuuuuuuust far enough out to cover the Hollywood Hills where KCRW's tower is. You might be able to fudge it by using an antenna array with huge downward supression, and claim the 100dBu interfering contour never hits the ground. It's possible but very difficult on a 190ft tall tower.
ReplyDeleteYes, KSBR would have to shut down. But overall the increase in coverage is probably worth it.
But if there's one thing I remember from visiting Mount Wilson is that's maps don't tell the whole story in the Los Angeles market. The mountains really mess with your ability to reach some key regions/neighborhoods; that's why they need a 1000ft tower ON TOP OF an already very tall Mount Wilson: to reach down into the San Fernando Valley. They'd need someone local to take a harder look at it than I can provide.