WSTV (AM)

Last updated

WSTV
WSTV-AM radio logo.gif
Broadcast area Northern Ohio Valley
Frequency 1340 kHz
Programming
Format Defunct
Ownership
Owner
  • Keymarket Communications
  • (Keymarket Licenses, LLC)
History
First air date
November 4,  1940  ( 1940-11-04) [1]
Last air date
December 5,  2011  ( 2011-12-05)
Former call signs
WSTV (1940–2012)
Call sign meaning
Steubenville
Technical information
Facility ID 65407
Class C
Power 1,000 watts (day and night)
Transmitter coordinates
40°20′30″N80°37′08″W / 40.34167°N 80.61889°W / 40.34167; -80.61889

WSTV (1340 AM) was an American broadcast radio station licensed to Steubenville, Ohio, serving the Northern Ohio Valley. The station was owned and operated by Keymarket Communications and the broadcast license was held by Keymarket Licenses, LLC. Due to a dispute in regard to the land where the broadcast tower is located, the station was forced to go silent on December 5, 2011. [2]

Contents

History

Signed on in 1940, WSTV was founded by Valley Broadcasting Company. [3] It later added sister stations WSTV-FM (103.5 FM, now WOGH) in 1947 and WSTV-TV (channel 9, now WTOV-TV) in 1953. When WSTV went on the air it was a part of the Mutual Broadcasting System and a member of the Friendly Group, an alliance of four radio stations in Steubenville, Pittsburgh, Atlantic City, and Kingston, New York.

In the spring of 1945 WSTV started the Steubenville Radio Forum moderated by A. Robert Anderson, then pastor of the 5th Street Methodist Church. On October 21, 1946, during that program, local news editor Harry Cochran delivered an editorial that sparked the greatest transformation in the history of Steubenville. At the time crime in the city was rampant; corruption among elected officials was expected. Because of the officials' corruption, unchecked crime, and open displays of vice, Steubenville had taken on the reputation and name of "Little Chicago". Cochran decided that he had had enough and declared on air, "It's time for a rat extermination campaign in Steubenville." An association of 12 ministers agreed, banded together, and proceeded to stamp out prostitution, gambling, and official corruption. For their involvement in the effort, WSTV won a plaque and special recognition from Variety for displaying "responsibility to the community". The role WSTV played in the effort is mentioned in the book entitled "Twelve Against The Underworld." by Norman E. Nygaard.

In 1963, Jack Berkman merged his growing broadcasting companies with the Rust Craft Greeting Card Company to form Rust Craft Broadcasting. [4] This company would be folded into Berkman's The Associated Group as Associated Radio, Inc., in the 1970s. In June 1999, The Associated Group was acquired by Liberty Media for $3 billion. [5] Liberty Media was not interested in over-the-air broadcasting so WSTV and three sister stations were sold effective March 2000 to Keymarket Communications through its Keymarket Licenses subsudiary. [6]

In its 71 years of broadcasting, WSTV aired a variety of music, information, and talk radio formats with a focus on the local community. WSTV's news team covered a number of historic moments, including the Attack on Pearl Harbor and the Assassination of John F. Kennedy. [7] At the time the station signed off the air, WSTV aired a sports talk format, airing the feed from ESPN Radio, simulcast with sister station WOMP. [1]

Going silent

Due to Keymarket being delinquent on taxes for the property on Altamont Hill outside Steubenville where WSTV's transmitting tower sits, the land was foreclosed and sold to another party in 2006. [8] WTRF-TV reported the station's owners "were at odds" with the current property owner. [7]

As a result of the land dispute, WSTV signed off the air on December 5, 2011, with its last programming being those of ESPN Radio. [7] An unnamed employee at Keymarket Communications told Radio Info that "the station has gone dark and will no longer be broadcasting". [9] Keymarket Communications subsequently filed a request with the FCC for special temporary authority to remain silent, to allow them time to settle the dispute. [10]

Steubenville Mayor Domenick Mucci called the station's signing off "a sad day not only for the city of Steubenville, but, really, for the Ohio Valley". Mucci said the station will "be sadly missed". [7] Former WSTV general manager Bill Chesson said, "Hearing that the station has closed is like losing a child." [11]

On November 19, 2012, Keymarket surrendered the station's license to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). On December 11, 2012, the FCC cancelled WSTV's license and deleted the call sign from its database.

Notable alumni

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WCMH-TV</span> NBC affiliate in Columbus, Ohio

WCMH-TV is a television station in Columbus, Ohio, United States, affiliated with NBC and owned by Nexstar Media Group. The station's studios are located on Olentangy River Road near the Ohio State University campus, and its transmitter is located on Twin Rivers Drive, west of downtown Columbus.

KDKA-TV, also known as CBS Pittsburgh, is a television station in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, serving as the market's CBS outlet. It is owned and operated by the network's CBS News and Stations division alongside Jeannette-licensed WPKD-TV, an independent station. The two stations share studios at the Gateway Center in downtown Pittsburgh; KDKA-TV's transmitter is located in the city's Perry North neighborhood. KDKA-TV, along with sister station KYW-TV in Philadelphia, are the only CBS-affiliated television stations east of the Mississippi River with "K" call signs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WTAE-TV</span> ABC affiliate in Pittsburgh

WTAE-TV is a television station in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, affiliated with ABC. It has been owned by Hearst Television since the station's inception, making this one of two stations that have been built and signed on by Hearst. WTAE-TV's studios are located on Ardmore Boulevard in the suburb of Wilkinsburg, and its transmitter is located in Buena Vista, Pennsylvania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WHIO-TV</span> CBS affiliate in Dayton, Ohio

WHIO-TV is a television station in Dayton, Ohio, United States, affiliated with CBS. It has been owned by Cox Media Group since its inception, making it one of two stations that have been built and signed on by Cox. WHIO-TV's transmitter is located off Germantown Street in the Highview Hills neighborhood of southwest Dayton. It shares facilities with sister properties the Dayton Daily News and Cox's Miami Valley radio stations in the Cox Media Center building on South Main Street near downtown Dayton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WTRF-TV</span> CBS/MyNetworkTV/ABC affiliate in Wheeling, West Virginia

WTRF-TV is a television station licensed to Wheeling, West Virginia, United States, serving the Wheeling, West Virginia–Steubenville, Ohio market as an affiliate of CBS, MyNetworkTV, and ABC. The station is owned by Nexstar Media Group and maintains studios on 16th Street in downtown Wheeling; its transmitter is located in Bridgeport, Ohio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WTOV-TV</span> NBC/Fox affiliate in Steubenville, Ohio

WTOV-TV is a television station licensed to Steubenville, Ohio, United States, serving the Wheeling, West Virginia–Steubenville, Ohio market as an affiliate of NBC and Fox. Owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, the station maintains studios and transmitter facilities on Burr Avenue in Mingo Junction, Ohio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WFMJ-TV</span> NBC affiliate in Youngstown, Ohio

WFMJ-TV is a television station in Youngstown, Ohio, United States, affiliated with NBC and The CW. The station is locally owned by the Maag family. WFMJ-TV's studios are located on West Boardman Street in downtown Youngstown, and its transmitter is based in the city's Lansingville neighborhood.

WOGG is a radio station broadcasting a country music format. Licensed to Oliver, Pennsylvania, United States, the station is currently owned by Forever Media, and simulcasts with sister stations WOGI and WOGH.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WSYX</span> ABC/MyNetworkTV/Fox affiliate in Columbus, Ohio

WSYX is a television station in Columbus, Ohio, United States, affiliated with ABC and Fox. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which provides certain services to TBD station WTTE and Chillicothe-licensed CW affiliate WWHO under separate local marketing agreements (LMAs). However, Sinclair effectively owns WTTE as the majority of Cunningham's stock is owned by the family of deceased group founder Julian Smith. The three stations share studios on Dublin Road in Grandview Heights ; WSYX's transmitter is located in the Franklinton section of Columbus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WBOY-TV</span> NBC/ABC affiliate in Clarksburg, West Virginia

WBOY-TV is a television station licensed to Clarksburg, West Virginia, United States, serving North Central West Virginia as an affiliate of NBC and ABC. Owned by Nexstar Media Group, the station maintains studios on West Pike Street in downtown Clarksburg, and its transmitter is located east of downtown and US 50.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WVTX-CD</span> TV station in Bridgeport, Ohio (1998–2017)

WVTX-CD was a low-power, Class A television station licensed to Bridgeport, Ohio, United States, serving the Wheeling, West Virginia–Steubenville, Ohio market. WVTX-CD, along with its transmission facilities, were owned by OTA Broadcasting, LLC, a company owned by Michael Dell's MSD Capital, which also owned 11 other Class A television stations. WTRF's owner, Nexstar Media Group, programmed WVTX under a time brokerage agreement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KODE-TV</span> ABC affiliate in Joplin, Missouri

KODE-TV is a television station licensed to Joplin, Missouri, United States, serving as the ABC affiliate for the Joplin, Missouri–Pittsburg, Kansas television market. It is owned by Mission Broadcasting, which maintains joint sales and shared services agreements (JSA/SSA) with Nexstar Media Group, owner of NBC affiliate KSNF, for the provision of certain services. The two stations share studios on South Cleveland Avenue in Joplin, where KODE-TV's transmitter is also located.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KFRU</span> Radio station in Columbia, Missouri

KFRU is a radio station located in Columbia, Missouri. Its programming format consists primarily of news, talk and sports. The station is licensed to Cumulus Media. The station is also audible on translator K255DJ 98.9 FM in Columbia.

WOBG was an adult standards formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Clarksburg, West Virginia, serving Clarksburg and Harrison County in West Virginia. WOBG was owned and operated by Burbach Broadcasting Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WOMP (FM)</span> Radio station in Bellaire, Ohio

WOMP is a radio station broadcasting a classic hits format. Licensed to Bellaire, Ohio, United States, it serves the Wheeling, West Virginia, area. The station is currently owned by Cody Barack through licensee Ohio Midland Newsgroup, LLC and transmits from studio facilities in Bellaire.

WOYL was an American radio station, licensed to the community of Oil City, Pennsylvania. WOYL operated at the assigned frequency of 1340 kHz and a full-time output power of a thousand watts.

WLYV is a radio station broadcasting a news/talk/sports format. Licensed to Bellaire, Ohio, United States, it serves the Wheeling area. The station is currently owned by Cody Barack, through licensee Ohio Midland Newsgroup, LLC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WEIR</span> Radio station in Weirton, West Virginia

WEIR is a News/Talk/Sports formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Weirton, West Virginia, serving the Weirton/Steubenville area. WEIR is owned and operated by Cody Barack, through licensee Ohio Midland Newsgroup, LLC known River Talk North with WLYV 1290 100.1 being River Talk South covering Bellaire/Wheeling.

WASP was a radio station formerly licensed to Brownsville, Pennsylvania, United States. It served the Pittsburgh area. The station was owned by Keymarket Licenses, LLC.

WOGH is a commercial radio station licensed to Burgettstown, Pennsylvania, United States. It serves Western Pennsylvania including part of Greater Pittsburgh, as well as the West Virginia Panhandle and Eastern Ohio. It is owned by Forever Media and airs a country radio format known as "Froggy".

References

  1. 1 2 "Regional roundup". Weirton Daily Times. December 6, 2011. Retrieved December 26, 2011.
  2. Nygaard., Norman. Twelve Against The Underworld. THE HOBSON BOOK PRESS.
  3. "Directory of Broadcasting Stations of the United States". Broadcasting 1941 Year Book. Washington, DC: Broadcasting Publications, Inc. 1941. p. 41.
  4. "Jack N. Berkman, Philanthropist, 90". The New York Times . August 5, 1995. Retrieved December 26, 2011. In 1940, he founded WSTV-AM in Steubenville, the first step toward his widening interests in communications.
  5. "Liberty Media Buys Local Firm For $3 Billion". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . June 2, 1999. p. C1. Retrieved December 26, 2011.
  6. "Application for Consent to Assignment of Broadcast Station Construction Permit or License (BAL-20000114ABI)". Federal Communications Commission. March 14, 2000. Retrieved December 5, 2011.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Rovnanik, Bob (December 5, 2011). "WSTV is Off the Air". WTRF-TV/West Virginia Media Holdings . Retrieved December 5, 2011.
  8. Gossett, Dave (December 10, 2011). "Radio station ownership in legal dispute". Weirton Daily Times. Retrieved December 22, 2011.
  9. "Making Moves: Tuesday, December 6, 2011". Radio Info. in3media, inc. December 6, 2011. Retrieved December 8, 2011.
  10. "Notification of Suspension of Operations / Request for Silent STA". Federal Communications Commission. December 14, 2011. Retrieved December 22, 2011.
  11. Gossett, Dave (December 10, 2011). "Memories of the community radio station". Weirton Daily Times. Retrieved December 26, 2011.
  12. "Elsewhere". Miami Herald . February 6, 1998. p. 4B. Retrieved December 26, 2011.