790 WQSV, Ashland City is selling out to the Mexicans!

[scottwmro]

I got word over the weekend that Corky Albright, owner of WQSV in Ashland City, has sold his station to a Hispanic Group out of Irving, TX for a big $600,000.00. I’m sure he loves the money, but this leaves that community without a local station, due to the community (black & white) speaks English and are hometown folks. The reason why I say that is because most of the Ashland City’s population is non-Hispanic.

The Fairview station (850 WPFD) has been taken over by the guy that owns 1380 WHEW, in Franklin.

This is sad, really sad. Our government is allowing the AM band to be taken over by illegal aliens that these damn home contractors brought up here, gave them a job, and when the job was finish, instead of sending them back to Mexico, that linger in the streets here. What is the U.S. coming to?

How do you guys feel about this?

[Tenn Radio Boy]

Doesn't the FCC require a licensee to be a US Citizen.  Is this Hispanic Group a shell corp with a US citizen listed on the application?

The hispanic situation is out of control, their governments want people to cross the border because they cannot provide even basic services for their citizens.

Our government has totally dropped the ball on this issue.  Instead of sending troops to Iraq, about a surge of troops on the border to stop this crap.

Stop sending financial aid to Mexico, Hondurus, or any other Central American country until they close their own borders.

[firepoint525]

This is the first I've heard about any of this, but if it is true, then Corky got far more for his sorry excuse for a station than it is worth.  I knew they were in trouble, at least from the time my parents moved here (to Pegram) almost eight years ago.  They are (were?) the only station whose broadcasts originate(d) here in Cheatham County, and yet my parents never listen to them.  My dad keeps WSM on in the garage, sort of as aural wallpaper, and listens to the Dickson station (WDKN 1260) for their "swap-n-shop" programming.  WQSV has never really served the South Cheatham area (Kingston Springs and Pegram).  The Cumberland River forms such a natural divide across the county that many of us here in Pegram are more likely to go to Bellevue and west Nashville to shop (and work) than to Ashland City.  I believe WQSV's programming is aimed more at the Ashland City-Pleasant View half of the county than to us.  We (Pegram) might just as well be annexed by metro (or at least Bellevue), and Kingston Springs might as well join Dickson County.  I don't even need to go to Ashland City on county business.  I can register my car at Community Bank, and I can get my driver's license at the examining center off Centennial Blvd.  (Can't even get a driver's license in Ashland City!  Must go to Nashville, Clarksville, or Dickson County!)  There was even a letter in the South Cheatham Advocate (our local weekly paper) suggesting that South Cheatham secede from the rest of the county (north of the Cumberland) and form our own county!

WQSV has a piss-poor signal, especially at night.  I seriously doubt many Cheatham Countians are even aware that they exist!  Bon Voyage, Corky!  We won't miss you here! 

But Cheatham County is about 97% white.  I wonder if the buyers of WQSV know that!  Their signal won't reach much (if any) beyond the county lines. 

[w9wi]

Doesn't the FCC require a licensee to be a US Citizen.  Is this Hispanic Group a shell corp with a US citizen listed on the application?

There is a limit (25%?) to the permissible amount of foreign control of a US station.

I saw the application for transfer, didn't recognize the transferee & they don't come up as the owners of any other broadcast stations.  But that's not unusual, it may be co-owned at some other level.

Right now the station is still in English.

This move is probably all that really makes sense for this station.  Most of the business in the county is national chains, and the Anglo audience is fragmented by dozens of Nashville and Clarksville English stations that blanket the county with excellent signals.

You would be surprised how many Hispanics you'd encounter in daily life in Cheatham County.  And none of the market's existing Hispanic stations have a decent signal up here - so a Spanish-language WQSV will have little to no competition.

[scottwmro]

Doesn't the FCC require a licensee to be a US Citizen.  Is this Hispanic Group a shell corp with a US citizen listed on the application?

There is a limit (25%?) to the permissible amount of foreign control of a US station.

I saw the application for transfer, didn't recognize the transferee & they don't come up as the owners of any other broadcast stations.  But that's not unusual, it may be co-owned at some other level.

Right now the station is still in English.

This move is probably all that really makes sense for this station.  Most of the business in the county is national chains, and the Anglo audience is fragmented by dozens of Nashville and Clarksville English stations that blanket the county with excellent signals.

You would be surprised how many Hispanics you'd encounter in daily life in Cheatham County.  And none of the market's existing Hispanic stations have a decent signal up here - so a Spanish-language WQSV will have little to no competition.

Corky filed an application on 2/15/07. It is on the FCC's CDBS database. Corky just got a power increase from 500 watts to 2 KW some time back. I can hear 790 in Gallatin, and it comes in good near Downtown since he took it to 2 KW.

I'm wondering why Bud Walters just didn't sell 1550 to the Hispanics?  Doug, something tells me after the 830 move is granted, the commission will let him keep 1550 on. I know he is to abondon 1550 after the 830 move is granted, but politics and strings can be pulled and that very thing could happen. I've seen it too many times.

The station is still in English due to the application has not been granted, but they can do a LMA and go ahead and take over.

NOW, lets see what he and his two partners to with 1060 in Waverly.

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

I see three different topics wound together in this thread.

As you may have noticed in presidential politics this year, our nation is divided big time over the issue of allowing Mexican nationals to have access to enter our country.  That is a political-social-econimic-religious issue that has a life of it's own that goes far beyond broadcasting.

If there are Spanish speaking people living in an area, whether native born, naturalized or illegal, is it within the legal paramaters of broadcasting, and the traditions of American broadcasting that some stations would have specialized broadcasts for them.  Northern cities have long had stations broadcasting to the Polish and other language groups.  Out west there are stations broadcasting to Native Americans.  In the upper midwest you find the stations that cater to polka music.  Isn't that a form of ethic broadcasting?

Ownership is another topic.  In my area we have stations broadcasting in Spanish that I think are owned by a Chinese gentleman,  and other stations broadcasting in Spanish owned by an African American.  I don't think there is much liklihood that someone who swam the Rio Grande or sneaked through the dessert of Arizona is going to pluck chickens for Tyson for a couple of years and end up buying out a radio station.

[jetfli]

...and I have this question: How can all of these Nashville area hispanic-language stations be supported by the Nashville area advertising community, even including both hispanic-owned businesses and other businesses wanting to reach hispanics? Where is the research? How can they possibly make enough money for all of them to thrive?

[scottwmro]

...and I have this question: How can all of these Nashville area hispanic-language stations be supported by the Nashville area advertising community, even including both hispanic-owned businesses and other businesses wanting to reach hispanics? Where is the research? How can they possibly make enough money for all of them to thrive?

    I can tell you one way these Hispanic Owned & Operated stations make money, and it's the illegal way. There is more to it than the nasty taco stands along Murfreesboro Rd and Thompson Ln. It's brought in at the border, if you know what I mean.

   When WYXE here in Gallatin was sold from Richard Deck and Gary Frank (who now owns WTNK in Hartsville) to the Hispanics that have it now, I did engineering work for them. They always payed me CASH and they always had loads of cash in thier pockets.

   I had the pleasure of turning off 1130 WYXE's "Wixie in Dixie's Classic Country Format at the transmitter, disconnecting the ISDN line from the studio in Hendersonville, and hooking up the ISDN line from the hispanic studio on Murfreesboro Rd to the transmitter in Gallatin. I think the last song play in English was from Loretta Lynn, but I forget the title. During the song, Mr. Deck gave me the command to pull the plug, and I did.

  When the hispanic/spanish jocks and music came on, damn...it stirred up the whole country music community of Sumner County. They were calling me at Magic 1560 asking what has happen to Wixie in Dixie!

[w9wi]

I'm wondering why Bud Walters just didn't sell 1550 to the Hispanics?  Doug, something tells me after the 830 move is granted, the commission will let him keep 1550 on. I know he is to abondon 1550 after the 830 move is granted, but politics and strings can be pulled and that very thing could happen. I've seen it too many times.

I've not seen anything like that.

It's not the same thing as the expanded-band situation. 

But these days, you never know...

(certainly once 830 comes on, someone could apply for a *new* 1550 facility in Clarksville - but they'd have to re-implement the directional antenna as you can't have a new Class D station anymore)

[jetfli]

    I can tell you one way these Hispanic Owned & Operated stations make money, and it's the illegal way. There is more to it than the nasty taco stands along Murfreesboro Rd and Thompson Ln. It's brought in at the border, if you know what I mean.

Are you suggesting there's a smuggling ring dealing in spot inventory?