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Question: In the original series was WKRP radio an AM or an FM station?


Answer: An AM station.
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After seeing an article in Broadcasting magazine that said the fictional station in the TV series was an FM station, therefore an existing AM station in Georgia could use the WKRP call letters, I wrote to the creator and Executive Producer of the show Hugh Wilson.

I always thought the station was an AM station because on the series' pilot a map in the lobby said that WKRP was a 50,000-watt station. When the series went on the air, the map had been changed to read: WKRP 5000-watts.

These two power levels are usually associated with AM transmitters. Even though FM transmitters can have powers of 50,000-watts, even 100,000-watts in most of the United States, I only thought of WKRP as being an AM station.

As you can see from the letter, Mr. Wilson said that the fictional station was always an AM station.

Furthermore, as you can see in the page from TV GuideÆ, in an episode titled "Real Families" (number 49 from the third season) Arthur Carlson announces the fact that WKRP is an AM station.