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Clear channel



         


For information on the company named Clear Channel, see Clear Channel Communications.

Clear channel stations are AM radio stations that are designated as such so that only one or two 50,000 watt powerhouses operate at night on each designated frequency, covering a wide area at night via sky wave propagation. In North America, some frequencies were designated by the North American Radio Broadcasting Agreement (NARBA) (to which the U.S., Canada, and Mexico are signatory) as clear channels. These are considered by the FCC and CRTC to be "class A" (formerly class 1-A or I-A) stations. For the U.S. clear channels first appeared in 1922 when the Commerce Department moved stations which had all used two frequencies (one for entertainment stations, one for news) onto 52 frequencies. Two were used for all low-power stations and the large stations each got their own frequency. A few frequencies were used on both the East and West Coast, which were considered far enough apart to limit interference. At this time large stations were limited to 1000 watts. Later in 1928, the AM band was reorganized with local, regional and clear channels (and a few reserved for Canada) by the new Federal Radio Commission. Gradually maximum power was increased to 50,000 W. This system was continued in the 1941 NARBA system although almost all stations shifted broadcast frequencies.

Recently however the FCC has authorized high power nighttime operation by lower-powered stations on these frequencies, thus limiting the non-interference range of the primary licensees. Also regional class stations have been allowed to increase their power to the same 50,000 W as clear channel stations.

This article is not related to Clear Channel Communications, a San Antonio, Texas-based company that owns a large number of U.S. radio stations, though they did take their name from the term.

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Clear channels in North America

Stations are listed by frequency in kilohertz (kHz), then by callsign. Stations noted beside frequency are the ones designated under NARBA as clear channels (class A stations).


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