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KICY Radio To Increase Signal Reach
NOME, AK (December 30, 2003) - KICY Radio has been granted permission to go to
50,000 watts of non-directional power, thanks to recent approval by the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding its transmission status.
KICY (found at KICY AM-850 and ICY 100.3 FM on the radio dial) has been
granted permission for 50,000 watts non-directional (via one transmission
tower antenna) 24 hours a day, according to a representative from Arctic
Broadcasting Association (ABA), which oversees KICY. Previously, KICY could
only broadcast 50,000 watts directionally (using a three-tower antenna
system) and only during night-time hours beamed in the direction of Russia
from 11:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m.
The approval means that KICY's nightly audience potential would grow from
40,000 (covering a 200-mile radius) to some 600,000 potential listeners
throughout Alaska, says ABA Board Chair Ted Haney. KICY can also reach an
unknown number of potential listeners in northwest Canada.
Approximately seven years ago KICY began the process of obtaining
permission to put up two additional towers to that it can direct its
nighttime signal toward the Russian Far East between the hours of 11 p.m.
and 4 a.m. The request by KICY was unique, said Haney - no other U.S.
radio station had ever asked for permission to direct a signal outside of
the country using the AM (850 kHz) or medium wave band.
KICY requested permission to increase its transmitter power from 10,000
watts to 50,000 watts, the maximum the FCC would allow for a U.S. radio
station. After almost two years of discussion, the FCC agreed to allow KICY
to increase its power to 50,000 non-directional watts during daytime hours
- increasing KICY's daytime coverage by an additional 40 to 60 miles. It
also gave permission for KICY to install a new three-tower directional
antenna system to broadcast toward the Russian Far East at night. KICY
general manager Dennis Weidler said that the directional focus is
equivalent to 243,000 non-directional watts being transmitted into Russia.
Once the FCC gave approval, it was then necessary to gain approval from the
International Telecommunications Union (ITU) based in Geneva, Switzerland,
because KICY might be heard in Russia, Japan, China and possibly other
countries as well. The ITU took nearly two more years before granting full
permission.
KICY's hopes to increase its transmission from 10,000 to 50,000 watts
non-directionally at night became more viable after an Anchorage station
went out of business. Previously, KICY's signal might have affected that
station's transmission.
"The list of miracles, major and minor, just keeps getting longer and
longer," said Weidler of the recent news. "We're one of the most powerful
stations in North America - we can't get any higher (in transmission). I'm
just so glad that in the four and a half years I've been at KICY,
supporters have seen that it is a viable ministry. We're totally dependent
on churches and individuals to support us. And we're excited about our
future.
"Because of the huge coverage we get, the AM dial is still a viable market
in the villages," Weidler continued. And our local coverage will only
continue to expand."
KICY will host a listener appreciation dinner and staff members hope to
travel to Scammon Bay, a village of around 1,000, next month. On January
30, KICY representatives will be at Excelsior Covenant Church near the Twin
Cities for a salmon fundraising dinner.
During the Covenant's Pastors Midwinter Conference February 2-6 in
Rosemont, Illinois, Weidler will be available to answer questions about
KICY and its ministries. And on February 7, KICY will host a fundraising
salmon dinner at Glen Ellyn Evangelical Covenant Church in Chicago's
western suburb of Glen Ellyn.
For more information about KICY and its upcoming fundraising dinners, call
the station toll-free at 800-478-5429. Details pertaining to KICY's recent
transmission upgrade by the FCC can be found via email by contacting Haney
at wmtedhaney@earthlink.net or Weidler at Dennisw@kicy.org. The KICY web
site can be found at www.kicy.org.
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