Talk:WCPT (AM)

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I hate being lied to. WCPT is tape delaying Randi Rhodes to air Ed Schultz. Then they tell us FCC regulations are to blame for not hearing the entire R.R. show. Sounds like a White House briefing. WCPT should have more respect for their listeners than to lie to us.

-- Love Randi, not Ed.

Thanks to whoever created this page! Recently, a progressive discussion group in Chicago discussed that there was this station, WCPT, but that it had no home page. This summary works well. It will be much appreciated.

--A listener in Suburban Chicago.

BTW, WCPT uses a really great sign-off recording of the Star Spangled Banner. It's a military band, perhaps Navy or Marines? I wish someone could post the source of that recording. The arrangement is crisp, ceremonious and bright.

--Another listener in Suburban Chicago.

850 AM has a long history in Crystal Lake. Some of my favorite memories are of listening to Rick Bellairs, who ran a great show called Crossroads on his fathers station back in the '70's. The Crossroads would play almost anything, and was known for playing whole album sides when they came out. Mal Bellairs, who owned and operated WIVS, was also a great on-air presence, along with his wife Jo. I still remember how sad I felt when she passed away- they could count almost every listener as their family. For a brief history of AM 850, strewn within a very interesting story about Mal Bellairs life, including being owner of a home in Ireland, see http://bellairs.org/MAL.html Best wishes to the new operators, and I hope that WCPT prospers!

--Long time resident of Crystal Lake

[edit] In a sense, it is "FCC regulations" ...

Because WCPT-AM 850 is a "daytimer". They go off the air at night to "protect" the major users of 850 kHz, primarily KOA Denver, which is easily received in Chicagoland. That really is an FCC regulation.

OTOH, it's much like buying a house next to the train tracks and then complaining about the noise of the trains. If you don't like being a daytimer, apply for a licence on a full-time channel or (more likely these days) buy a station that's full time. --4.19.111.130 19:21, 21 November 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Help Improve AAR in Chicago

You probably have noticed that Chicago's Air America station, WCPT 850 Progressive Talk has become very hard to listen to. Please write a letter to the Sun-Times' Robert Feder at feder@suntimes.com and discuss the following talking points:

  • Chicago area Air America listeners were excited to hear that we would get an affiliate, but we are disappointed that we can’t hear most of Randi Rhodes, and we can’t hear any of Mike Malloy.
  • WCPT’s signal was only supposed to cover the Northwest suburbs, but the Newsweb Corporation is trying to use it to cover all of Chicago.
  • Newsweb says that they can’t improve the situation, but they have better stations, with lower ratings than WCPT that they could put Air America on.
  • Please include your own problems with WCPT.


Send a letter with these concerns to Robert Feder at feder@suntimes.com. We hope he will publish them, and put pressure on Newsweb to improve Chicago’s Progressive Talk.