The Eagle has landed - and Marty Pieratt isn't happy.

The owner of the county music "Eagle" stations in Aurora and Versailles, Ind., is upset that Susquehanna Radio's country music WYGY-FM (96.5) in Cincinnati has been renamed "Eagle 96.5."

"We've got a bit of a mess here, and I don't know what to do. They didn't do their homework, or they overlooked us," says Mr. Pieratt, the former WLWT-TV reporter who owns Aurora's WSCH-FM (99.3) and Versailles' WXCH-FM (103.1). They have simulcast "Eagle" country programming since August.

"I'm trying to take a deep breath, and be a gentleman about it. A small guy like me won't take on a big company like Susquehanna," says Mr. Pieratt, who owns six Southeastern Indiana stations.

Dan Swensson, general manager of Susquehanna's WYGY-FM, WRRM-FM (98.5) and WMOJ-FM (94.9), says his station's search at Arbitron Inc., the national radio ratings firm, didn't show another "Eagle" in Greater Cincinnati.

But Mr. Pieratt's Eagle 99.3 is licensed to Aurora in Dearborn County, part of Arbitron's "Cincinnati metro" survey area.

An Arbitron spokesman confirms that WSCH-FM is listed as "Eagle 99.3." Mr. Pieratt says he notified Arbitron about the new branding shortly after it was announced in August.

However, neither Arbitron nor the Federal Communications Commission have any authority in disputes on station branding, Mr. Pieratt says.

"It's a marketing issue between the two stations," says Thom Mocarsky, Arbitron vice president for communications. "We're not the What-Stations-Call-Themselves Police."

Confusion over the two stations could impact Arbitron ratings, if someone with an Arbitron diary writes down "Eagle" without a frequency. Mr. Mocarsky says most people's diaries report a station's name and frequency in Arbitron diaries.

Mr. Swensson indicated Tuesday that he won't abandon the Eagle, which was launched Monday with a billboard campaign. The station also introduced a new morning co-host, Mike Stiles from Atlanta, as Bubba Bo's partner on Monday. He replaces Vince "Black Jack" Zimmer, who was fired last week.

"We have very high expectations for the morning show," Mr. Swensson says.

The Eagle campaign is Susquehanna's first major promotional push for the station acquired from Salem Communications last summer. It has broadcast country music since 1993, when it was the "young country" sister station to country WUBE-FM (105.1).

As for the older Eagle in the area, Mr. Swensson says: "We'll watch the situation carefully, and we'll be reasonable about it. But there is plenty of room for two Eagles in the sky."

Mr. Pieratt doesn't agree, which is why he met Tuesday with an attorney. His business plans calls for expanding Eagle 99.3 into Northern Kentucky and Hamilton County. His first step was having his "Eagle" co-sponsor Alabama's Aug. 25 Riverbend concert.

"We're interested in protecting Pieratt Communications in the Cincinnati market, which includes Dearborn County," says Lisa Lehner, his attorney. "We'll explore all legal remedies."

Says Mr. Pieratt: "We want to be a Cincinnati metro station. We don't want to be a country bumpkin station."

Around the dial: Mark Dorschung of Cincinnati will compete in the premiere of Escape from Experiment Island (10 p.m. today, Learning Channel).

The 27-year-old former Marine and three teammates raced against another four-person team to convert an automobile into a seaworthy boat on a rugged island off Scotland's west coast. Different four-persons teams will compete in the six-week series.

Talk shows: Today's guests:

Live With Regis and Kelly (9 a.m., Channel 9): Julianne Moore, Jeff Gordon.

Wayne Brady Show (10 a.m., Channel 9): Dean Cain, Bev Tanner, Frankie Avalon.

The View ( 11 a.m., Channel 9): Trista Rehn from The Bachelorette, Jacqueline Bisset.

Caroline Rhea Show (3 p.m., Channel 19): Oliver Platt, Portia de Rossi.

Tonight Show (11:35 p.m., Channels 5, 22): Billy Crystal, actor Steve Schirripa, Alanis Morissette.

Late Show (11:35 p.m., Channels 12, 7): Merv Griffin.

E-mail jkiesewetter@enquirer.com