Finally, Local Community Radio Act Was Passed Saturday. Time For A Media Revolution!
It took ten years, but they finally passed the act that will allow community radio to get a foothold in the community. This is really exciting, and just about anyone who can scrape together a few thousand bucks can pull it off:
Little noticed but extremely important to progressives, on Saturday afternoon Congress also passed the Local Community Radio Act.This legislation opens up radio spectrum to hundreds, if not thousands, of local independent radio stations (also known as LPFM).
Its passing will bring new choices and voices on the radio dial nationwide, but is especially relevant to a broadcast area reaching 160 million people who lived in areas where these stations had previously been barred from local airwaves.
Anyone tracking the rise of radio personalities like Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh and Michael Savage understands the primary political significance of gaining access to spectrum.
With the opening of the airwaves to LPFM stations, progressives can gain a small but consequential spot on the radio dial. The challenge now is to organize local groups to gain access to licenses. Follow and support the Prometheus Radio Project to learn more.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaI8wwj6Plo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHcD2Xl1n9o
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nlB99fX7z8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nS5-pyWrw_Y
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
tens of millions of radio listeners starving for a progressive alternative to Rush and Beck could have made a difference.
TFR
Just think of all the noveau rich wingnut small fry that will buy their way into local radio thinking they can be the next Rush Beckbaugh.
"Anyone that makes less than $150K in this country, has no business voting Republican."
http://radiomovimiento.org/directe/
TFR
In Woodburn, Oregon, KPCN allows immigrant farmworkers to share news, information and music in Spanish and several other Latin American languages.
TFR
to keep the elite from buying up the licenses?
or nothing at all?
TFR
That is exactly what I was thinking. I remember many years ago when there was a big push to deregulate electric companies. The propaganda was that there would be many electric companies to choose from it was going to be like shopping for the least expensive gas station. As soon as the law passed the giant energy companies bought all of the small ones and we are left with one. The telecommunications act that Clinton passed was going to allow for more innovation because of more investment. If any of these small stations get any listener ship at all they will be bought and shut down. Capitalist hate competition.
is going to make decisions about who get's a license and who doesn't?
hear some voices or people over the air who aren't doing it for their own personal ego trip.
And cracks can get bigger.
Corruption favors the wealthy.
crackpots.
http://www.current.org/rad/rad0802koop.shtml
TFR
rigidly on his principles doesn't he? Compromise is unacceptable.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
I know a very nice woman who will stand on your principles for just $100.
"Anyone that makes less than $150K in this country, has no business voting Republican."
Sounds painful actually. She serves a predominantly Republican clientele I presume.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
Keep FOX out and all Fascists, nutty Christofascists and Commie Repugnants
out of Community Radio. There is no room for Saint Reagan's greed and
Bush's Fascists in America!
Let the Patriot Act and Homeland Security monitor LPFM. The last time Congress did this the licenses were scarfed up by Bushies and SOLD to preachers left and right for huge sums.
The Christian Coalition? "Groups as different as Free Press and the Christian Coalition agree that passing the Local Community Radio Act should be a no-brainer." http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/techno...
You mean like the United Chruch of Christ and the US Conference of Catholic Bishops? http://www.reclaimthemedia.org/deepmedia/sena...
TFR
this invaluable resource will fall to the progressives and not the tea party crowd how?
Hasa Diga Eebowai
...first thing passed my mind when I read the headline was, "I'm sure the reich will buy up all the licenses?"
...over the air than on the Internet.
has opened the floodgates of LPFM channels but has failed to provide proliferation of a dying medium to a public that is now digital.
Bleeding edge non-licensed LPFM operations in the 1990's prompted me to ask a Los Angeles operator the following questions:
Q: What products or services have you purchased in the last year from listening to radio?
A: None.
Q: What political information have you obtained from radio broadcasts that have given you enough persuasive information so that you could cast a vote?
A: None.
Q: What information have you been able to draw from radio broadcasts that informed you of an entertainment venue that you've attended?
A: None.
Q: Of possible widespread emergencies that have occurred in your area, how have you used radio for information?
A: I Have not.
http://clipmarks.com/clipmark/C9210499-B9D5-4...
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On the one hand, more LPFM is good but not utilizing the same spectrum for digital use is bad.
The almighty FCC talks a good new entrant but analog proliferation simply makes Verizon/AT&T/Sprint et al stronger. This is what potential licensees are up against in an era of iTunes radio choices.
When LPFM was made licensable by the Kennard Federal Communications Commission, issues such as Emergency Alert Systems costs and participation upped the true price of new entry substantially. A low power station still uses phone systems, leases and expensive transmission gear.
Be careful when the cost of entry is touted as low price. An LPFM station can still be fined into the thousands after a simple FCC inspection might reveal lax compliance.
LPFM is very limited in its true range of audience. A term known as City Grade Coverage takes into account that a station signal must penetrate densely populated areas where made-made structures interfere with the average radio receivers ability to pick up a signal. The public simply turns the dial until a strong signal is present before setting an alarm clock radio. It's the short on patience public that also turns away from websites that fail to load in a matter of 100's of milliseconds.
LPFM could not succeed. In the metro area where I live, a certain radio station started out as low power AM. It provided shows on music not covered by commerical stations (i.e., bluegrass, folk, and roots music, local opinion and entertainment information, progressive authors and discussion, Democracy Now!, Free Speech Radio Network, amd much more. Even more amazing was that it has always been subscriber supported. Two years ago, they aquired a higher power permit, and an FM frequency, often providing parallel formats. We also have several NPR stations around the state with their own formats and scheduling, all subscriber supported.
I would like to see more of this kind of thing, free of commercial support/interference from corporate overlords and sponsors. More local music, more venue information, more local issues discussed, more audio art. This is a perfect venue for such a thing.
What's going to happen is every town will have 100 Rush-lites with their own radio show, further crodwing out reality based voices.
Climbing out of LAX in the darkening winter afternoon with thousands of car tail lights on an east-west street with their drivers all listening to Rush.
http://crooksandliars.com/comment/permalink/1...
"Anyone that makes less than $150K in this country, has no business voting Republican."
My community is PRIME for this sort of thing, with an active liberal and artistic base. I'll put the word out.
I think Bluegal and Driftglass had better get a license!!!
"If the US government enforced its banking laws like it did its park regulations, we wouldn't be
in this damn park in the first place." OCCUPY.!!
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