UTICA-ROME — The FCC has finally approved a request filed in late December, for 1310 WTLB to remain silent for an indefinite period of time due to a tower site sale. Now, the clock is ticking for Syracuse-based owner Galaxy Media Partners to get WTLB back on the air or lose the license for good.
The chain of events started on December 30, when Galaxy took the station off the air and filed a “Silent STA” request with the FCC. Licensees are required by law to file a silent STA application anytime a station expects to be off the air more than 30 days; an approval allows a station to remain off the air for up to 6 months.
In the application, Galaxy revealed that it was selling the station’s longtime transmitter site on Kellogg Road in the Washington Mills section of New Hartford. By January 7, we were able to share photos showing the WTLB transmitters towers had been taken down.
On January 30, the FCC finally approved Galaxy’s silent STA application. As expected, the approval lasts for 180 days, but can be extended if needed. However, even if an extension is granted, the approval comes with a stern warning in boldface text: “the broadcast license for the Station will automatically expire as a matter of law if broadcast operations do not resume by 11:59 p.m., December 29, 2026.”
WTLB had been broadcasting “ESPN Utica-Rome” but the sports talk format has not disappeared entirely — it can still be heard on 1350 WRNY Rome, 1230 WIXT Little Falls and translator W243DY (96.5FM) Rome. The station also streams through its website at https://www.espnur.com/.
CNYRadio has not received any responses from Galaxy regarding a timeline or possible new locations for WTLB to resume broadcasting.
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RUDY PAOLANGELI says:
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Josh Media says:
The website is offline. 1350 Rome has been off the air for months. 1230 Little Falls broke from the sports format long ago and is broadcasting “Tony FM”. The translator however remains on the air. This over powered translator shouldn’t be on the air without WRNY 1350 on the air. Something is amiss…..