Update 1/25: While no FCC filings have been made, 860 WNOV has gone silent as well.
As a correction, 102.5 had been using the name “102.5 The Beat” recently after a complaint from Clear Channel, which used the Majic name on 100.7 WKKV-HD2.
Original Report 1/24: Due to interference claims from Northwestern College’s WNWC-FM Madison, “Majic 102.5” 860 WNOV Milwaukee has taken its translator silent.
W273AT Mequon, which had been operating with 99 watts, had been causing interference to WNWC-FM’s reception in the Milwaukee area. While WNWC-FM has no protection from full powered stations in the disputed area, translators cannot cause interference to existing stations. While awaiting the FCC to approve the translator application to move to 93.9, they have applied for a STA to take it off the air in the interim.
WNOV continues to operate on its primary 860 signal with 250 watts in the daytime and 5 watts at night.
WNOV-AM also is dark, and remains dark. Calls to the station were not answered.
WNOV should have known about that WNWC was nearby and should have made sure the translator would stay in the intended area of Northern Milwaukee county. But for whatever reason the WNOV FM simulcast made it’s way all the way to the Hartland/Delafield area. This FM simulcast never made sense to me given the fact 860 is stronger during daylight hours and !02.5 located short spaced between WLUM 102.1 and WHQG 102.9 much stronger stations the FM simulcast was hard to get anywhere because of that.
The only issue is that the supposed interference took place out of WNWC’s protected contours. There was a loophole in that if a station gets one complaint about alleged interference a translator, that translator must do whatever it can to alleviate. Its what got 104.7 in Detroit shut down a few months ago as well.
So an AM signal that can’t be heard at night is superior to an FM? That argument is moot anywhere.
The bottom line is this the FM dial is too crowed there is no room for anymore stations. I don’t know why there is an WHAD 97.9 simulcast in Milwaukee now. They will be getting interference complaints from WLUP in Chicago I never had an issue with getting 90.7 in Milwaukee anyways. Now there is a 97.5 station in Chicago you can be sure they will get interference complaints from WZOK in Rockford.While it’s true 102.5 was better then 860 at night. It wasn’t a huge boost in New Berlin you couldn’t get 102.5 at all unless you had a good antenna WLUM and WHQG did a good job of blocking it out.