WCPT

Infobox Radio Station
name = WCPT


city = Willow Springs, Illinois
area = Chicagoland
branding = AM 820 WCPT
Chicago's Progressive Talk
slogan = Our Kind of Talk for Our Kind of Town
airdate = (May 5, 2005 As WCPT)
frequency = 820 kHz
format = Liberal/Progressive Talk
power = 5,000 watts (Daytime)
Off the air (Nighttime)
erp =
class = D
owner = Newsweb Corporation
licensee = WYPA, Inc.
website = [http://www.wcpt820.com/ wcpt820.com]
affiliations = Air America Radio Jones Radio Network
callsign_meaning = We're Chicago's Progressive Talk
sister_stations = WAIT

WCPT (820 AM) is a daytime-only AM Progressive talk radio station licensed to Willow Springs, Illinois, and serving the Chicago area. The station carries programming from Air America Radio and Jones Radio Networks. WCPT is owned by Newsweb Corporation.

Because WCPT shares the same frequency as clear channel station WBAP in Fort Worth, Texas; it broadcasts only during the daytime hours.

History

For many years this station played Adult Standards as WAIT. In the late 1990s, this station, on 820 AM, was WCSN, an all-sports station and affiliate of Sporting News Radio.

In February 2005, a column by Robert Feder in the "Chicago Sun-Times" sparked speculation that a progressive talk format could end up on a station in Chicago. The article said that the station was rumored to change formats by March 31, the one year anniversary of Air America's original launch in Chicago on their original affiliate, WNTD. Air America's affiliation with WNTD was interrupted after only a few weeks, due to conflicts with the station's owner.

Many thought that WRLL 1690-AM would switch to the format, as its owner, Clear Channel Communications, had rolled progressive talk on quite a few of their struggling radio stations across the country. However, WRLL decided to continue with their oldies format, and on May 5, 2005, AM 850 launched progressive talk with the new call letters WCPT. The WAIT call letters were moved to 820 AM.

In November 2005, the FCC denied an application by Newsweb to move the station to Addison, Illinois.fact|date=July 2008

On November 26, 2007, WCPT moved its format from 850 AM to 820 AM, doubling its power and providing coverage to all of Chicago. [ [http://ltradio.blogspot.com/2007/11/wcpt-doubles-power.html WCPT doubles the power] ] The WCPT call letters moved along with the format to 820 AM, and the WAIT call letters returned to 850 AM.

Newsweb's owner, Fred Eychaner, is a significant donor to Democratic Party causes, [ [http://www.motherjones.com/news/special_reports/mojo_400/8_eychaner.html "Fred Eychaner," "Mother Jones," March 5, 2001.] ] and many seeweaselword|date=July 2008 WCPT's format as a natural fit for one of his stations.fact|date=July 2008

In its first year of existence, WCPT was a relative ratings success, even with its signal limitations.fact|date=November 2007 As of October 17, 2007, WCPT did not appear among Arbitron's top 30 Chicago stations and was beaten out by other competing high-profile Chicago talk radio stations, WGN, WLS, WIND, and WCKG. [ [http://articles.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4155/is_20071017/ai_n21050027 Chicago Sun-Times report of Arbitron ratings, October 17, 2007] ] WCPT ratings have gone from 0.4 share in Fall 2007 to a 0.8 share in Winter 2008 and a 0.9 share for Spring 2008, according to Arbitron. It was the 29th most popular commercial station in Chicago. ["Arbitron Ratings Data for Chicago" [http://www.arbitron.com] ]

Programming

WCPT's weekday radio format is based on broadcast syndication of nationally-produced progressive talk radio personalities, mixed with CNN news-on-the-hour, and top- and bottom-of-the-hour station-produced news and weather with rush hour traffic reports. Until recently, weekend radio programming included few progressive weekly syndicated shows and relied upon investing, real estate, health supplement, motivational, fertilizer, and other packaged infomercials to fill the time. The station has reduced (but not eliminated) weekend infomercials by adding Air America weekly shows and local programming. Following the departure of popular host Randi Rhodes from Air America, the only weekday programming it receives from the network is "The Thom Hartmann Show," although "The Lionel Show" can be heard over the station's 24-hour Internet stream. Its three major shows — "Bill Press," "Stephanie Miller" and Ed Schultz" — are syndicated by the Jones Radio Network.

In early March 2008, the station added its first locally originated, locally oriented regular program — a two-hour program hosted by former WMAQ-TV channel 5 political editor Dick Kay. After nearly four decades of television news reporting and analysis, Dick Kay takes caller comments and questions on his show "Back on the Beat" starting at 2:00 pm Central Time on Saturdays.

On March 29, WCPT added another locally popular on-air talk personality, Jake Hartford (formerly on WLS-AM radio), and popular locally-produced show "Awake With Jake" from 6-10 a.m. Central Time on Saturdays. On May 31, 2008, Chicago radio veteran Linda Mitry joined Jake's show as newscaster and co-host. The station further strengthened its Saturday line-up by adding "Michael Feldman's Whad'Ya Know" created by host Michael Feldman and produced by Wisconsin Public Radio and distributed weekly by Public Radio International. The show broadcasts right after Hartford at 10:00 a.m. Following Feldman's show, WCPT airs (noon to 2:00 p.m.) the locally-produced "Family Values with an Oy Vey."

In April 2008, Mike Nowak's locally-produced weekly gardening show came to WCPT at noon Sundays. Mike Nowak is a Master Gardenerfact|date=July 2008, and a certified Treekeeper from the Openlands Project. The show takes calls from listeners about gardening and answers their questions based upon conservation, the environment, and recycling issues. Also on Sundays, the station now broadcasts "Uncommon Law," a call-in show with Chicago divorce and family law attorney Kurt Muller and frequent special guests.

Criticism

The most common complaints about WCPT relate to the station's status as a daytimer.fact|date=July 2008 As the station claims on its website, it is a situation that is out of their control, due to FCC mandates. WCPT doubled its signal power when it moved from 850 kHz to 820 kHz. While on 850, WCPT signed off from sunset to sunrise to protect the signal of KOA in Denver. With the move to 820 AM, they sign off at sunset to protect WBAP in Fort Worth, Texas.

Events

*The station hosted its first event on December 9th, 2005 when Al Franken did a live broadcast of The Al Franken Show from the Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago. Al's guests were Senator Barack Obama, Congressman Rahm Emanuel, Amnesty International Midwest director Dori Dinsmore, writer Studs Terkel, and a 13-year-old "Wait, Wait, Don't Lie To Me" contestant named Mike.

*The station's second event was when Jerry Springer did a live broadcast of Springer on the Radio in front of a live audience from the Chicago Center for the Performing Arts on March 27, 2006. Topics included immigration, the Iraq war, abortion, and topics from the audience.

*Al Franken returned for another live broadcast from the Steppenwolf Theatre on Monday, May 8, 2006. His guests were Senator Dick Durbin, executive director of the Death Penalty Education Project Edwin Colfax, Congressional candidates John Laesch (IL-14) and Dan Seals (IL-10), universal healthcare advocates Dr. Quentin Young and Ajitha Reddy, and Cass Sunstein.

*Ed Schultz was featured at a "meet and greet" at the Green Dolphin Restaurant on August 8, 2006. He returned for another "meet and greet" at Joey's Brickhouse on May 3, 2007 and is scheduled to return for another on December 6, 2007.

Logo gallery

External links

* [http://www.wcpt820.com/ wcpt820.com]
*amq|WCPT
*aml|WCPT
* [http://www.fcc.gov/mb/audio/bickel/daytime.html Why AM Radio Stations Must Reduce Power, Change Operations, or Cease Operations at Night]
* [http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/srsstime?dlat=42&mlat=14&slat=28&dlon=88&mlon=18&slon=57&tzone=B Approximate Sunrise/Sunset times for WCPT's transmitter location]

References