Fm

IN THE SUMMER of 1776, a small band of determined underdogs gathered at a fortress of freedom called Independence Hall and challenged an entrenched, seemingly invulnerable power. Two-hundred-and-thirty-six years later, just a short ride from that hallowed spot, an equally challenged band of insurrectionists from its "Fishtown fortress of freedom" is taking on a seemingly insurmountable foe. Earlier this spring, WWIQ-FM, a/k/a IQ 106.9, went on the air with a single mission: To pry listeners and ad revenue from two AM radio stations that have dominated the nonsports "spoken word" realm in the Philadelphia market for decades: all-news behemoth KYW (1060)

David L. Kurtz, 73, founder of the widely popular B101 - one of the last independently owned FM stations in a major U.S. market - died of kidney cancer Thursday at home in East Falls. Born in Ephrata, Lancaster County, Mr. Kurtz tinkered with electronics and loved music when he was a child. "He bought a kit and built his family's first television set," his son, David, said. "He worked part-time at a radio station during high school. " In 1954, Mr. Kurtz earned a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Lehigh University.

In a pre-dawn raid of the kind more often employed against drug smugglers than fanatical rock 'n' rollers, the Coast Guard yesterday boarded a pirate radio ship broadcasting off Long Island without a license and arrested three people. The raid effectively silenced the four-day-old RIN, Radio New York International, New York's newest radio station. "It's not going to cause me to give up, but obviously this is a major setback," said Randi Steele, the station's operations manager.

WOGL-FM (98.1) is adding another of Philadelphia's big-name oldies jocks to its roster - Harvey Holiday. Holiday, swept out with 20 others when WIOQ-FM (102.1) dumped oldies for contemporary dance five months ago, will begin hosting the weekly Street Corner Sunday, from 7 p.m. to midnight, beginning July 2. Holiday, who has done a Sunday show in local radio since Moses was a baby, could not be reached for comment. But 'OGL spokesman Ted Kelly said the new show would feature "a lot of the real Philadelphia oldies, with plenty of doo-wop music and even some in-studio a cappella singers.

The Phillies will be expanding their radio presence to FM for the 2012 season. Games will be heard on WIP (94.1-FM) along with WPHT (1210-AM), a source confirmed. CBS Radio owns both stations and has been expanding its local game coverage, with the additions of Union soccer and Saint Joseph's basketball to WIP's AM station (610). Neither the Phillies nor CBS Radio have commented.  

Local sports-talk radio is shifting gears - and getting ready to roll out a new set of wheels. At 6 p.m. Friday, WPEN-FM (97.5) became the only home for the Fanatic, as a Christian broadcaster took over the 950 AM spot. As of Jan. 2, WIP's full local lineup will be heard only at 94.1 FM, as owner CBS launches a new national sports radio network, airing in Philadelphia on 610 AM, the original home of WIP. Not that WIP is pulling out of AM entirely. "We can and will preempt national content for local programming," said WIP program director Jeff Sottolano.

Can anybody catch WMMR-FM (93.3)? For the third consecutive quarter, the album-oriented rock station knocked out all comers in the Arbitrons - scoring the highest numbers in its 17-year history during the Sept. 19-to-Dec. 11 ratings period. WMMR morning man John "Wake Up and Smell the Croissants Burning" DeBella was again the dominant personality in the 6-to-10 a.m. drive-time slot. The "Morning Zoo" head trainer celebrated his impressive 11.3 audience share by shelling out $145 for a bottle of '79 Roederer Cristal Rose.

Two big behind-the-scenes departures in Philadelphia radio last week. At country station WXTU-FM (92.5), vice president and general manager Jeff Laird got squeezed out Friday despite what many would consider a laudable performance during his 2 1/2 years at the helm. In the most recent Arbitron ratings book, 'XTU ranked ninth out of 27 stations in the city. Laird's replacement is veteran broadcaster John Hiatt, 39, just up from San Antonio, Texas, where he was president and general manager of KMMX-FM/KCHL-AM.

As promised, the National Association of Broadcasters yesterday unveiled what it hopes will become the radio of the future - a combination AM/FM stereo receiver with "continuous band dialing. " This means that within the next year or two - presuming radio manufacturers embrace the idea - you will be able to buy radios that tune in both AM and FM, in stereo, with the listener making one long twist of the dial, rather than manually shifting from AM to FM frequencies. The radio, designed by New York electronics engineer Richard Seguerra at the behest of the association, was one of the feature attractions at the trade organization's four-day annual radio convention, which concludes here today.

Members of the millennial generation spent last week getting slapped around in a Time cover story labeling them "lazy, entitled narcissists," living off their parents and Instagramming their irony. But at Sunday's birthday show for WRFF-FM (104.5), millennials were out in force and showing plenty of energy. Though headliners Phoenix, fronted by 37-year-old Thomas Mars, were too advanced in age to qualify (and WRFF's six years on-air made it far too young), most of the day-long festival's acts were squarely in the millennial demo.

THEATER IS SUPPOSED to surprise. But there was no way I was prepared for what happened last Sunday afternoon when I arrived at the Players Club of Swarthmore for a matinee performance of playwright Tom Gibbons' "Permanent Collection. " I opened the playbill and learned the character of Paul Barrow is being played by John Harvey. The name "John Harvey" may not immediately ring any bells, but readers of a certain age are likely to remember "Harvey in the Morning," the popular show he hosted for more than two decades on WIOQ (102.1-FM)

Local sports-talk radio is shifting gears - and getting ready to roll out a new set of wheels. At 6 p.m. Friday, WPEN-FM (97.5) became the only home for the Fanatic, as a Christian broadcaster took over the 950 AM spot. As of Jan. 2, WIP's full local lineup will be heard only at 94.1 FM, as owner CBS launches a new national sports radio network, airing in Philadelphia on 610 AM, the original home of WIP. Not that WIP is pulling out of AM entirely. "We can and will preempt national content for local programming," said WIP program director Jeff Sottolano.

WHYY-FM has won the Alfred I. DuPont-Columbia University Award for excellence in broadcast and digital journalism. WHYY shared the award with Harrisburg station WITF-FM and NPR for a jointly produced series of radio and Web reports on issues related to natural gas drilling in Pennsylvania. The awards were announced at the Columbia University School of Journalism in New York City on Wednesday morning. The announcement praised the project, "StateImpact Pennsylvania," as "an important model for reporting on local issues.

During his 30 years behind an FM radio microphone in Philadelphia, WMGK-FM (102.9) morning host John DeBella has interviewed thousands of people, among them many big show business names. Here are his top five all-time favorite guests: 1. Who guitarist-composer Pete Townshend: "Hands-down No. 1. He's my favorite to talk to. " 2. Musician Peter Gabriel: "A much funnier man than people give him credit for being. But the [philosophically] heaviest person I have ever met. " 3. Comic Bobcat Goldthwait: "An interview with Bobcat goes like this: 'Bobcat Goldthwait is here.' Ten minutes later: 'We'll be right back.' " 4. Actor and Rydal native Bradley Cooper: "This city should be proud . . . he is such a wonderful, down-to-earth person.

IF SHE didn't know it already, Lisa DeBella will now: her husband of 17 years has been carrying on a 30-year love affair. But she needn't worry: the object of his affection isn't a woman; it's Philadelphia. How else do you explain why John DeBella, the 62-year-old WMGK-FM (102.9) morning-drive host - a native New Yorker, no less - has been in Philadelphia since the days when Ronald Reagan was president and Julius Erving and Moses Malone were the talk of the town? Why else would he have hung around even during the years when he was suffering professional humiliation and personal tragedy?

ROCKIN' female radio DJs like Carol Miller have always been a rare breed. And almost extinct, some would argue, in today's age of YouTube and Spotify. Yet Miller counters in her breezy new autobiography, Up All Night: My Life and Times in Rock Radio , that broadcast FM is "the medium that just won't quit. " And this hearty survivor is certainly an apt case in point. Over the past four decades, Miller has charmed millions of rock-lovin' radio listeners - and been courted by several highly visible rock stars - thanks to that sultry smoky voice, uncommonly friendly and easygoing demeanor and deep musical knowledge.

IN THE SUMMER of 1776, a small band of determined underdogs gathered at a fortress of freedom called Independence Hall and challenged an entrenched, seemingly invulnerable power. Two-hundred-and-thirty-six years later, just a short ride from that hallowed spot, an equally challenged band of insurrectionists from its "Fishtown fortress of freedom" is taking on a seemingly insurmountable foe. Earlier this spring, WWIQ-FM, a/k/a IQ 106.9, went on the air with a single mission: To pry listeners and ad revenue from two AM radio stations that have dominated the nonsports "spoken word" realm in the Philadelphia market for decades: all-news behemoth KYW (1060)