There are only four ways that station can give a legal ID!
1. "WTOS, Skowhegan." That's the calls followed immediately by the city of license.
2. "WTOS, 105.1 on your dial, Skowhegan." That's the frequency or channel said between the calls and the city of license.
3. "WTOS, owned by Clear Channel Communications, Skowhegan." That's calls, owner and city of license.
4. "WTOS, owned by Clear Channel Communications, 105.1 on your dial Skowhegan" That's the ownership and the frequency are inserted between the calls and the city of license.
Despite the very narrow set of correct possibilities, Stations everywhere do it differently. KABL once got into trouble for ringing a rather loud cable-car bell so no one could hear the word "Oakland" in their legal ID. At WFLA in Tampa runs a legit ID in a jingle every hour on the hour. In Providence Rhode Island, WHJJ-AM, used ot have a similar jingle for their legal ID then they tradded it out for an all-girl chorus singing the call letters followed by a low male voice dropping the city of license almost inaudibly
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I remember the KABL story my days at a college radio station in the early 1990s. One of our trustees played a series of top-of-the-hour jingles (KABL's being one of them) where the city of license was somehow obscured or otherwise made to be less obvious.
ReplyDeleteI recognize that this is a long shot, but do you know where I could get a copy of that KABL jingle? I'd be happy just to hear it as a .wav file on someone's web site.
Thanks.
And now that I think of it (again, prompted by your comments), I also wonder whether the WHJJ jingle you describe was one on the tape that we were invited to listen to. Was the city of license Pawtucket?
ReplyDeleteWHJJ-Am is licensed for Providence, btu it's possible they weren't always.
ReplyDeletetophour.com has a lot of station IDs.. they seem to have a larger collection than is posted. I'd try there. Plus, contact the station, usually that sort of content languished on carts for decades without being used or thrown out. I found one for 960 KABL-Am easily http://pw2.netcom.com/~wb2jia/radios/kabl216.wav
I believe that only the first example you gave is an actual legal id. The one requirement is the call letters, immediately followed by the city of license. ie:
ReplyDeleteWXYZ, Boise.
Anything can follow or precede this.
I'm pretty sure I'm right on this unless FCC regulations have changed since I was last on air.
ReplyDeleteFYI, You're half right. Even though this is an old post, I figured I would correct you on this: phrases like "owned by" and "on your dial" prevent a legal ID from being legal.
ReplyDeleteSo:
"WTOS, Skowhegan." is ok.
"WTOS, 105.1 on your dial, Skowhegan." is not a legal ID but, "WTOS 105.1 Skowhegan". Would be legal.
Same with the owner.
"WTOS Clear Channel Skowhegan".
"WTOS Clear Channel 105.1 Skowhegan".
I always welcome another voice of matters like this. Because I am old and forgetful, there is always the possibility that I am wrong. But, because there is an arbitrating body (the FCC) there is also the possibility of an unequivocal right answer. Title 47 Code of Federal Regulations
ReplyDeleteCHAPTER I
SUBCHAPTER C
PART 73
Subpart H
Sec. 73.1201 Station identification.
Official station identification shall consist of the station's call letters immediately followed by the community or communities specified in its license as the station's location: Provided, That the name of the licensee or the station's frequency or channel number, or both, as stated on the station's license may be inserted between the call letters and station location. No other insertion is permissible.
(2)
A station may include in its official station identification the name of any additional community or communities, but the community to which the station is licensed must be named first.
(c)
Channel -
(1)
General. Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph, in making the identification announcement the call letters shall be given only on the channel identified thereby.
(2)
Simultaneous AM (535-1605 kHz) and AM (1605-1705 kHz) broadcasts. If the same licensee operates an AM broadcast station in the 535-1605 kHz band an AM broadcast station in the 1605-1705 kHz band with both stations licensed to the same community and simultaneously broadcasts the same programs over the facilities of both such stations, station identification may be made jointly for both stations for such periods of simultaneous operation.