I remember when I lived in North Carolina listening to an AM station out of Selma. I was impressed that they were still going. They played local news, catered to local events and even played Lum and Abner...not surprising knowing what I knew about the area.
Looks like this station in Salisbury at 1000 watts was considered not enough to play in the big boy market. And, since the owners have other options decided to let it die rather than sell it off.
I wish I had a 1000 watts to play with in my small town. I could do some good...
What this story tells us is that a radio station has no legal means of growing with a community.
Meanwhile, all through the years, the records fail to show the FCC idling time on long lunches and unexplained abscences from the office while secretaries maintained filing systems designed to keep radio stations the way they were.
Now, in our age, the FCC is pretending to be awake as they belatedly invite comment on the question, "Is there any truth to the interference notion?"
Go back to sleep.
It would definately appear that this radio did not grow, or was not able to grow with the community. That is obviously out of the picture at this time for all the AM stations I think.
But in years past, I can not say. Perhaps their fatal error was made decades ago when they might have achieved a power upgrade during more friendly times for AM.
Then again, would it matter? AM broadcast across the nation is in a death gasp because of the FCC and THEIR own bad decisions of poor programming and following the leader because someone told them AM was only good for voice or news programming.
They may have ended up in the same grave with only a variation in the road they covered if they had upgraded power / technology or ??
It sometimes seems that regardless of what should be done, things don't go that way because of "thats the way we have always dun'it".
Soon all AM staions will be owned by Rush H. Limbaugh of the Limbaugh Institute for Irrational Thinking. Our local AM station when not broadcasting Dead Air carries The Alex Jones Show.
And yet another one goes dark as well, maybe.
This story barely gives any details and my sources don't know much either.
EDIT: Go to the facebook link , there are more details there if you dig.
Maybe the future for AM is hobby Broadcasting.