W50CF applies to move to channel 6

Applications aren't normally something I deal with or talk about when it comes to broadcast stations, but this is one that's worth noting.  W50CF has, until recently, been a low power analog broadcaster of religious programming with a transmitter site in downtown Mobile.  WFGX recently boosted its coverage and power, relocating to one of the tall towers in Baldwin County, and as it is also on channel 50 in digital, the little LPTV station had to sign off.  (There was a period where the analog low power signal and the high power digital signal were on at the same time, it was a mess.)

Rather than turn in the license and give up, translator owner Franklin Media has applied to move the station to channel 6, in analog.

What makes this sort of application special is the possibility that this will be built out not as another TV repeater, but as a radio station.  As most of you know, channel 6's audio happens to fall right at the beginning of the FM band, at 87.75 MHz.  Many FM radios will tune this — or close enough to it — to make it possible to listen to the audio on these radios.

While it's a technical gray-area as far as FCC rules go, LPTV broadcasters have wholeheartedly taken advantage of this to start up new radio stations in cities with crowded FM dials.  One in Los Angeles broadcasts Christian programming in Spanish; one in Memphis hosts Flinn Broadcasting's unique "Pig" format; one in Jackson is just getting up and running at this time; one in Chicago picked up the smooth jazz format cast aside by one of the big broadcasters; the grand-daddy of them all is New York's Pulse 87, which has had stints with brokered ethnic programming and dance music.

With this in mind, it's a distinct possibility the area could get a new radio station at the very top of the dial.  The application's 62 dBu contour map shows it skirting the edges of both Mobile and Pensacola.  In real-word experience, the audio portion of the broadcast usually exceeds that line, meaning this station could be competitive in both markets if it's built out.  For that reason, this application is definitely worth keeping an eye on.