NPR has weighed in again on how to implement the Local Community Radio Act of 2010, which gives the green light to more Low Power FM signals across the country. The ex parte filing takes on the question of whether the Federal Communications Commission should tackle the backlog of applications for translators (which extend the […]
Truly wish I’d been there for the Broadcasting Board of Governors’s Commission on Innovation gathering held in Washington D.C. on February 10. The BBG oversees most United States broadcasting services, including the Voice of America, Radio Free Europe, and Radio Free Liberty. The subject of the event: “how U.S. international broadcasting can add renewed luster […]
Regular readers of Radio Survivor likely are aware that we’re big fans of independent media, especially, and obviously, independent radio. It seems quite serendipitous that during the same week as World Radio Day we also have Support Your Media Day. It’s a one-day fundraiser focused on some of the most vital independent media organizations online, […]
Costa Rica’s Tico Times recently published a profile of unlicensed Guatemala radio station Radio Ixchel, as part of an examination of the radio scene in that country. Guatemala has as many as 800 pirate stations, where most radio licenses are auctioned for as much as $100,000. While there are license categories for public stations, there […]
AMARC is the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters and for nearly 30 years has worked for media democracy by supporting the growth of community radio. This year AMARC’s Middle East and North Africa conference will focus on “community media and the Arab Spring.” The conference will be held March 9 and 10 in Tunis […]
The biggest news in pirate radio so far this year is the story about Ft. Myers, Florida resident Albert Knighten, a retired Navy air traffic controller who was arrested in December on charges of unlicensed broadcasting. Knighten’s Dunbar Radio, named for his neighborhood, focused his broadcasts on the city’s underserved population of older residents who […]
Last week the FCC released its report on the economic impact of low-power FM stations on commercial radio. The report was mandated by passage of the Local Community Radio Act of 2010 (LCRA), and its primary conclusion should surprise nobody with any knowledge of LPFM: “LPFM stations are unlikely to have more than a negligible […]
The FCC released a list today, updating its statistics on the total number of licensed broadcast stations in the United States. Based on this list, there are more radio stations today (14,952) then there were a few months ago. The number of AM stations, FM commercial stations, and FM educational stations all increased since the […]
Berkeley, California based listener supported station KPFA did an interesting and informative program on the candidacy of libertarian Republican Ron Paul on Tuesday. KFPA talk show host, Mitch Jeserich, hosted the discussion on his Letters and Politics show as Republicans (including Paul) compete for favor in the Iowa Caucuses. [UPDATE 10:41 PM CST: Paul comes […]
The United Kingdom’s broadcast regulation agency Ofcom has published its annual report (.pdf) on the state of community radio, and the figures indicate that income for UK community outlets has markedly declined. No big surprise, given the global recession. But the data also contains interesting clues suggesting that certain kinds of community radio strategies or […]
