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 and seems especially timely as tens of thousands of Egyptians continue to rally in Tahrir Square, celebrating the anniversary of Egypt’s popular revolt.

The conference’s concept statement offers the observation that the protests that started with the Arab Spring

have shared techniques of civil resistance in sustained campaigns involving strikes, demonstrations, marches and rallies, as well as the use of social media such as community radio, and web-based and mobile technologies. These means of communication allowed protesters to organize, communicate, and raise awareness in the face of state attempts at repression and Internet censorship.

Coordinating solidarity and mutual aid between broadcasters, media activists and communication rights activists is a top item on the conference’s agenda. Sessions will also focus on women’s access to community media and participatory sustainable human development. The conference concludes with work towards a “Tunisia Declaration” featuring “debate on a policy declaration and on advocacy strategies, for reinforcing the capacities and to strengthen community broadcasting social impact.”

Here in North America we are too often absorbed in our own over-mediated bubble of constant communication access. So it’s good to be reminded how radio and other community media still play a vital and revolutionary role in the struggle of people for freedom around the world.

It might also remind us that we still need to harness that potential, too.

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 economic impact on full-service commercial FM stations.”

A pithy comment made to a post on The Hill’s technology blog sums it up even more vividly: “It sounds like a study investigating the Salvation Army thrift stores to see if they unfairly compete with Walmart.” In effect, this comment and the report make clear that the idea that LPFM could be a real threat to commercial radio is and always was a red herring tossed out by the commercial broadcast industry to try and thwart any addition to the radio dial that would not be under its own umbrella.

Of course, I’m certain there are many low-power radio advocates who wish low-power stations could be a bigger threat to the commercial radio establishment, especially given how the likes of Clear Channel decimated the medium in the wake of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. However, the ability for low-power FM to be an actual threat is mitigated by many of the same factors that blindsided the largest commercial radio companies while they were too focused on buying up stations, consolidating operations and firing staff around the turn of the century.

Nevertheless we are on the cusp of adding many more low-power community stations to the airwaves of towns and cities across the country. The stats uncovered in the Commission’s report paint an interesting portrait of LPFM that underlines both the power and limits of their reach.

With regard to the question of effect on commercial stations, the most significant face is that LPFM stations have a miniscule impact on ratings, if they show up at all. The station with the highest listenership managed to rank only 18th in its market.

The flip side of that coin is that, according to the report, amongst those stations that appear in Arbitron ratings, LPFM stations have a high value for “time spent listening” (TSL). This means that LPFM listeners tend to stay tuned in for longer periods of time. This fact leads the Commission to conclude that, “these measures suggest that the popular LPFM stations tend to attract a small but loyal fan base, which tunes in for long periods of time and/or switches stations less frequently than the average full-service station listener.”

LPFM stations are more likely to carry niche programming. So the National Association of Broadcasters told the FCC that it should consider the potential harm LPFMs would have on the small segment of commercial stations that cater to a niche audience. In particular the NAB argued that niche stations are more vulnerable due to having lower average revenues from a more typically formatted station.

However, the Commission notes that the NAB provided no examples of an LPFM that current duplicates or previously duplicated an existing commercial station’s format. The Commission cites comments filed by LPFM advocate Wesli Dymoke who contends that it is unlikely that a low-power station would choose to compete head-on with a more powerful commercial station. It also notes that the NAB provided no plausible explanation why a LPFM station would choose such a Quixotic path. In the end the FCC concludes that there is no evidence that low-power stations pose any threats to commercial stations with niche formats.

The completion of this report represents the penultimate hurdle in front of the expansion of LPFM, which it has now successfully leaped over. The final one is the outcome of the FCC’s proceeding to resolve the queue of pending applications for translator repeater stations, many of which could take up frequencies that would be suitable for new low-power stations after the LCRA. As of last June the Commission was leaning towards establishing a minimum number of LPFM-qualified frequencies that must remain available in a given market after translator applications are approved.

With luck the commissioners will resolve that proceedings in the first quarter of this year. In turn that could pave the way for a new LPFM license application window in the second or third quarter. Then it will have taken only twelve years to overcome the NAB’s attempt to cut low-power community radio off at the knees. Yet, after all that time communities of all sizes across the country still need true community radio, perhaps more than before.

Daniel Roberts (at window) at Pirate Cat Radio in June 2010 (Photo: J. Waits)

A month ago the FCC issued a $10,000 Forfeiture Order to Pirate Cat Radio founder Daniel “Monkey Man” Roberts, for “willfully and repeatedly violating section 301 of the Communications Act of 1934…by operating an unlicensed radio broadcast station” in San Francisco.

Today, Roberts’ attorney Michael Couzens filed a Petition for Reconsideration with the FCC, claiming that there is no proof that Roberts was involved with illegal broadcasts. According to Couzens’ letter:

“Daniel K. Roberts is subject of a $10,000 Forfeiture Order issued on October 21, 2011. At the time of the alleged violation, he operated Pirate Cat Radio, a cafe, studio, and internet stream located at 2781 21st Street in San Francisco. In 2009 FCC Agents detected unlicensed transmissions, not at that location, but at 841 Corbett Avenue, San Francisco. The Order contains no factual evidence that Roberts participated in the establishing, facilitating or operating equipment for the tramisssions [sic] at Corbett in any way. His involvement is merely assumed, based on statements or activities of Roberts and Pirate Cat Radio and the generous use by the government of broad inferences. The Order makes it a violation that the stream was broadcast, without any evidence as to who broadcast it.”

The Petition goes on to argue that there is no proof that Roberts was responsible for the terrestrial broadcasts emanating from 841 Corbett Avenue and that there is no evidence “linking the actual location of the unlawful transmission with” Roberts. Roberts claims to have been simply operating an Internet radio station. Although the Petition does not deny that someone was broadcasting the station illegally over the terrestrial airwaves, it states that the FCC has presented no evidence that that someone was Roberts:

“In the present case it is clear that someone was violating Section 301 when transmitting at 841 Corbett Avenue. It should be equally clear that Roberts was not violating Section 301, merely because at the same time he was operating the board at an internet radio service, speaking into the microphone, and serving bacon lattes. The Order shows no evidence and makes no claim that the transmissions were deliberately relayed point-to-point or affirmatively controlled from the Pirate Cat Radio studio.”

Roberts’ attorney concludes his Petition for Reconsideration by stating his concern that the forfeiture order “depicts a new standard of Section 301 enforcement that is vague, amorphous, incomprehensible, over reaching, and Unconstitutional. The Government should reconsider this Order and on reconsideration should vacate the penalty.”

Pirate Cat Radio is no longer broadcasting in any form, but former Pirate Cat Radio volunteers (without Roberts) are now running the online-only Mutiny Radio from the former Pirate Cat Radio Cafe.

Canada Celebrates Community Radio (Photo: J. Waits)

On Monday, November 14, 22 non-commercial radio stations in Canada took part in a day of action and celebration dubbed “Reclaim Your Radio.”

Organized by the National Campus and Community Radio Association (NCRA), the day-long radio event was designed to bring awareness to the importance of campus and community radio. A special 8-hour broadcast (an archive of the entire broadcast is available here) aired on 22 stations all across Canada and the entire day served as a kick-off for a campaign geared towards establishing policy changes in Canada in order to preserve community radio.

NCRA, a “not-for-profit group of organizations and individuals committed to volunteer-driven, non-profit, community-oriented radio across Canada” explained the purpose of Reclaim Your Radio on their website:

“The airwaves are public. But because of limited spectrum, sometimes communities that want to start their own local non-profit stations find there’s no room for their voices. Over the coming year we will be asking the government and individual MPS to help reserve at least one frequency for campus and community radio stations in every community across Canada.”

NCRA’s statement goes on to point out the plight of campus-community station CKLN in Toronto, which had its license revoked by the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) in January 2011. According to NCRA, “The station had had problems with regulatory compliance, but also had a long and strong history of community involvement and amazing programming. Now that CKLN has stopped broadcasting, it is the only frequency available in greater Toronto.”

NCRA’s hope is that CKLN’s replacement in Toronto will also be a non-profit, community radio station and through Reclaim Your Radio, they wanted to spread the word about the future of the CKLN frequency. The archive of the live broadcast is full of not only testimonials about the importance of community radio in Canada, but also contains more background on the situation at CKLN.

Jim Ellinger with Temporary Bamboo Radio Tower (Photo: Jim Ellinger)

Jim Ellinger of Austin Airwaves wrote with exciting news about a community radio station that he’s helping to launch along with RadioActive Radio in Borneo. Apparently the first community-run radio station in Malaysia, Radio Bario launched two weeks ago over the FM airwaves in the central highlands of Borneo.

Yesterday Ellinger reported that the station has “been on the air two weeks, with few problems. Still waiting on steel pipe/tower to double coverage area from about 800 Kelabit members to maybe a thousand. Interestingly, as many or more folks listen on their mobile phones as over the air.”

On Wednesday Ellinger gave a bit of background about the location and early programming on Radio Bario:

“Radio Bario has now been on the air for ten days at fifty watts strong. Serving the Heart of Borneo in this extremely remote locale. Only 800 folks in village, similar number of indigenous hunter/farmer communities in nearby valleys. B-casting about 8 hours a day on solar power. PC-based station brought in by London’s RadioActive group. First Team just flew out, leaving, um, me, as sole trainer…

Their temp tower is made out of BAMBOO! I will be leading a crew to building a 20′ steel pipe tower, at the top of a 100′ hill behind studio, in the middle of a pineapple grove, this week. Signal was ‘moved’ by gov’t to 94.0 from 94.5 to avoid reaching Indonesia, about a six hour walk from here. Again, no roads. All programming in Kelabit language.

Bamboo Radio Tower in Borneo (Photo: Jim Ellinger)

Curiously, American country/western music is their 1st choice. Kinda corny to my Austin-taeous (sp?) ears.

Cheatin’ hearts, lonely women, drinkin’ and pick up trucks fill the airwaves.

Some of the older songs, of the June Carter/Family genre, would be the very same that were b-cast on the world’s first ‘mass media,’ the legendary X stations along the Tex/Mex border. Go figure.

In someways the region is sorta’ Texas-like; rural, pick ups, construction/farm workers…if Texas was a dense jungle.

cheers,
jim
Radio Bario 94FM”

Ellinger has worked on numerous community radio projects all over the world. He helped out in Haiti following their major earthquake in 2010, worked on AstroDome Radio following Hurricane Katrina, and has also been to Ghana and Panama on radio missions. He was slated to go to Thailand next for a Community Radio Forum, but that has been cancelled due to massive flooding in Bangkok.

The roots-up activism promoted by the GRC is reflected in their organizational structure – or lack thereof.   For 15 years the Conference and the Coalition have remained purposefully unincorporated.  The organization has as Mission Statement but no officers, no By-Laws.   It is run by a Steering Committee that includes, but is not limited to, members of previous and future GRC host stations and representatives from the People of Color Caucus.

The stated purpose of the Grassroots Radio Coalition is to bring attention to importance of “volunteer-based community radio stations” as “cornerstones of participatory democracy, offering ordinary citizens the chance to exercise First Amendment rights in a mass medium and audiences the opportunity to directly support the programming that is of importance to them.”   2011 Conference host station KKFI would be the model member of the GRC. . . if, of course, the GRC had members.

Sylvia Richardson spoke about "Growing Winds of Freedom," during her keynote. Photo: Tom Crane.

KKFI is a 20 year-old, 100,000-watt community radio station that is run almost entirely by volunteers.  Broadcasting on 90.1 FM, KKFI serves the Kansas City metropolitan area with access to locally produced public affairs programs and a range of music shows that are unlike anything else in the region.  KKFI is the voice of Kansas City and it does not take this responsibility lightly.  Community activism is central to station programming.   In recent years, Ann Suellentrop, Tom Klammer, and other KKFI News producers have received national recognition for their use of community radio to resist the establishment of a nuclear arms factory in Kansas City.

The staff of KKFI partnered with the Friends of Community Media (FCM) to become the perfect hosts for Prairie Fire: The 15th Annual Grassroots Radio Conference, which ran from August 18-21, 2011.  Top level sponsors included Raymond James Financial – Sharon Lockhart, Free Press, and Austin Airwaves.   According to Tom Crane, FCM President and KKFI Founding Member, the purpose of this year’s conference was to “exchange ideas that will help our radio stations become more effective in the twenty-first century.” 

When I arrived in Kansas City late Friday afternoon, the final session of the day was about to begin. There were several interesting conversations happening at once.  I hovered in the hallway and finally dove into the Meeting Room where Producer Noelle Hanrahan was beginning her discussion of Prison Radio. Hanrahan has been working with Mumia Abu-Jamal for twenty years, recording his commentary over the telephone lines, and distributing it to international radio news programs.  She described the difficulties a radio journalist faces when working with American correctional facilities and she suggested creative ways around them.  She also discussed the challenges of working with broadcasters to get airplay for controversial material.  She stressed the importance of a good technical recording.  “Make them censor content not quality” she said, which might have been the most important take-away of the entire event.

Immediately following the discussion was a Banquet Dinner that consisted of local, organic, and vegetarian foods.   Over the meal, lively conversation filled me in on all I had missed earlier in the day, which included Keith Rozendal’s presentation on “Grassroots Science & Medical Journalism,” JR Valrey’s “Battling Police Terrorism with the Media,” and Myron Jackson’s workshop on “Creating and Presenting Radio Theater.”

That evening GRC participants hit the streets of Kansas City seeking Bar-B-Q and talking radio with the carnivorous crowd.  It was discovered that Jim Ellinger of Austin Airwaves was on his way to Borneo to set up a solar powered radio station and that Otis Maclay is the wizard behind Pacifica Radio‘s Audioport technology.

Saturday morning 9 AM came early.  The Grassroots Radio Conference, however, would not wait.  While presenting my own discussion of the College Radio Crisis with a spotlight on my alma mater WRVU, Ellinger was in the Bragg Auditorium presenting his preview of “The Next 100 Community Radio Stations”; Maclay was hosting a Question & Answer session on “Internet Technology: Copyright Reporting,” and Maggie Avener of Prometheus Radio Project gave “The DC Report” a session discussing new legislation and its impact on community broadcasters.

With competition like that, it is a wonder anyone attended my session at all!  The loss of KTRU, KUSF, WRVU, and BSR, however, makes the College Radio Crisis a hot topic these days and participants were anxious to learn how they could protect their own educational frequencies.

Eric Wolff and Ted Coe of KCSB. Photo: Tom Crane.

Ted Coe and Eric Wolff from KCSB 91.9 FM at the University of California in Santa Barbara announced the 50th Anniversary of their student-run radio station.   The yearlong celebration of student broadcasting at  KCSB includes a logo design contest with a $500 reward; “Wireless,” a radio-oriented art-exhibition at the Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum (SB-CAF); and a radio-themed film festival.  It is this sort of fun and proactive approach to station viability that college radio stations across the country should consider implementing in these dangerous times.  Other Saturday sessions at the GRC included “The Feminist Programming Roundtable” facilitated by Frieda Werden of WINGS and “Copyright Concerns for Grassroots Radio” a discussion led by Dr. Andrew Ó Baoill, Professor of Communication Studies at Cazenovia College.

Brice Phillips of WQRZ-LP led a somber discussion of his experience as a community broadcaster providing emergency assistance during the Hurricane Katrina disaster.  This was followed by workshops on predicting weather and preparing for local emergencies.   Other seminars focused on day-to-day station operations, volunteer management and programming for FM.

Podcast 411 President Rob Welch hosted “Podcasting 101″  a workshop that provided a step-by-step tutorial for turning a radio program into a successful podcast.  David Pakman‘s “No-Holds Barred Guide to Using the Internet to Promote Indie Media” was a fun presentation in which he introduced useful marketing techniques such as shareyouraccount.com and affiliate shopping programs with Amazon.

Other events of the day included the Pacifica Network lunch meeting in which Affiliates Coordinator Ursula Ruedenberg recognized Betsy McDougall for her work constructing KKWE, Niijii Radio, a public broadcasting initiative on the White Earth Reservation.  Ruedenberg, it turns out, has her own exciting news. She and her colleagues at KHOI have received a permit to construct 89.9 FM as a new community radio station for central Iowa.

These inspirational stories led me into a hopeful session entitled “Get Your LPFM Permit and UU Grant” where Mary Francis, President of KVOY 89.7 FM Oklahoma discussed the recent passage of the Local Community Radio Act.  The FCC will make hundreds, potentially thousands, of Low Power FM frequencies available as early as next year.  Mary Francis provided practical instruction for community groups who are interested in acquiring them.  This was the perfect introduction to Sunday’s post-conference workshop “How to Start Your Own LPFM” presented by Vanessa Graber and Maggie Avener of Prometheus.

The meetings, lectures, and discussions at this year’s Grassroots Radio Conference were engaging, informative, and well attended.  The session offerings were rivaled only by the discussion taking place in the hallways and in the outdoor garden where the likes of Simon Frech, Donna DiBianco, and Tom Vorhees traded legal advice for technological tips.  While the workshops provided first class instruction and lively discussion, it is backstage and behind the scenes of the GRC that the real work in community radio was being done.

Saturday evening’s GRC field trip included a dinner at the legendary Author Bryant’s down on 19th and Vine.  The Kansas City Bar-B-Q was followed by desserts and the music of Gerald Trimble at the Writer’s Place.  The late-night party continued at the home of Tom Crane.  Sporadically throughout the evening, groups of individuals snuck off to the new KKFI studios.   There, they were invited to make appearances on “Driftless Dark” with Todd Fisher Wallin of WDRT as he demonstrated Open Source technologies with a live hometown audience in Viroqua, Wisconsin from the studios of KKFI.

On Sunday, a breakfast roundtable included a historical breakdown of the GRC from Norman Stockwell, Operations Coordinator at WORT 89.9 FM Madison. This was followed by open-mic discussion of strategies for future conferences.  Chief among the concerns were communication and outreach. The effectiveness and longevity of the GRC depends upon its ability to connect America’s community radio stations. While stations as far away as KMUD, Redwood Community Radio, in California sent representatives to the Conference, volunteer stations as nearby as KDHX in St. Louis did not.   In the dangerous waters of FM radio where every frequency is considered “Beachfront Property” (as stated by Public Radio Capital’s Susan Harmon during the “How to Save College Radio” panel at SXSW), community stations should seize the opportunity offered by the Grassroots Radio
Conference to share strategies and make allegiances.

The GRC has a strong foundation and is certain to grow with the gold rush of LPFM licenses that will become available in the next few years.  The Grassroots Radio Conference will provide these infant stations with the perfect opportunity to connect with the veterans of community broadcasting and learn their tricks of survival.  WEFT 90.1 in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois is set to host the 2012 Grassroots Radio Conference.   Community stations that have never attended the GRC should plan to attend next summer.   The stations that were present at Prairie Fire 2011 in Kansas City have already made it a priority.

A former college radio DJ at WRVU (Vanderbilt University), Sharon Scott is the author of Toys and American Culture: An Encyclopedia and the President of WRVU Friends & Family, a non-profit organization designed to support FM broadcasting opportunities for the students of Vanderbilt University.  WRVU Friends & Family continues to fight the proposed sale of 91.1 FM from Vanderbilt Student Communications (VSC) to Nashville Public Radio (WPLN).

In a statement, Congressman Doyle said,

“The benefits of low power FM radio have been demonstrated time and time again. These stations have been instrumental in local news reporting, emergency response, and cultural enrichment. I hope the FCC will recognize these important values so that many more Americans, in Pittsburgh and all other cities and towns, can enjoy the richness of local radio.”

The 28 House members also urged the Commission “to ensure the licenses are awarded to truly local churches, non-profit organizations, local governments and schools.” Given that local ownership is strictly required by FCC for LPFM licenses one has to wonder if this isn’t a bit of a swipe at the networks of translators piping in distinctly non-local and distant signals which compete with LPFMs for space on the dial.

The deadline to comment on the FCC’s rulemaking on pending translator applications and the implementation of the Local Community Radio Act was Tuesday, September 6.

The National Association of Broadcasters slipped its comments [PDF] in Tuesday just under the wire, pretty much urging the FCC to reduce the priority of licensing LPFM stations in the most densely populated urban cores, while asking the Commission to process and license as many translator stations as possible before moving on to opening up LPFM licensing windows. In particular the NAB suggests the FCC rely on Arbitron markets for determining the availability of LPFM frequencies, rather than the currently proposed method which focuses on keeping frequencies available inside a city’s urban core. Using an Arbitron market as the geographical measure, the requisite number of LPFM-eligible frequencies may remain available, however they could be only on the fringes, unable to serve the city centers that were a priority for many of the Congresspeople who supported the Local Community Radio Act.

The Commission is now accepting replies to comments that have been submitted. This is when the sparks really start to fly, as LPFM advocates attack the NAB’s counter-proposal, and the groups hoping for new translator licenses return the favor. The deadline to submit these reply comments is September 20.

The applications for new translators–which are low-powered stations that may only rebroadcast the signal of a full-power station–would be processed for small markets and rural communities. In order to leave some space on the dial for new LPFM stations the Commission proposes dismissing translator applications in larger markets where new translators would fill up any last available space appropriate for LPFMs.

In 2007 the FCC froze the processing of 6,500 pending applications for FM translator stations because the Commission concluded that doing so would “frustrate” the further development of LPFM. It then established a limit of ten applications per applicant, which the Commission has now reconsidered. Instead, the FCC proposes a policy based on the availability of spectrum for LPFM on a market-by-market basis. This is in part motivated by a stipulation in last year’s Local Community Radio Act, under which the Commission is required “to ensure that licenses are available for LPFM and FM translator stations; licensing decisions are based on community needs; and translator and LPFM stations remain equal in status.” The change is also propelled by the recognition that a simple translator application cap likely would not preserve spectrum space for LPFM in the largest, most crowded radio markets.

In today’s proposal the Commission suggests a “floor” specifying a minimum number of LPFM frequencies that must remain available in a market in order for translator applications to be processed and awarded.

Responding to the FCC’s proposal, Brandy Doyle, Policy Director at the Prometheus Radio Project, said,

Today the FCC starts to redeem the promise made to thousands of community groups and national organizations that successfully fought to pass the Local Community Radio Act. The Act requires the FCC to ensure channels for low power stations, and we believe a market-specific solution could accomplish that.

Congressman Mike Doyle (D-PA), lead cosponsor of the Local Community Radio Act, said,

I am delighted to see that the FCC is moving forward to carry out legislation I championed for so many years. This is a major victory for community radio, and I urge the FCC to license as many LPFM stations as possible.

Radio Entasi 100.1 broadcasting live from the protests in Athens, Greece on June 5, 2011 (Photo: M. Nevradakis)

In recent weeks, thousands of Greek citizens have taken to the streets in an unprecedented series of protests.

These protests have been a response to the economic difficulties that the country and many of its citizens are facing during the present crisis, the policies that have been undertaken by the government in response to the crisis, and the harsh new measures that are now being imposed.

These policies and proposed new measures include tax increases, salary cuts (in both the public and private sector), cuts to pensions and social services, layoffs in the public sector, and the privatization and selling off of key national assets, including airports, harbors and electric and water systems.  These harsh measures, being implemented at the behest of the European Union (EU) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have been met with a strong display of disapproval by large numbers of Greek people, many of whom have seen their salaries or pensions diminished or who have lost their jobs.

What is particularly noteworthy about these protests is that they have been almost entirely organized through the use of social networking tools such as Facebook and Twitter, with the support of many Greek bloggers.  In a country where civil society has traditionally been associated with political parties and labor unions, the current protests have represented an unprecedented, spontaneous, grassroots mobilization of the populace.

Protest in Athens, Greece on June 5, 2011 (Photo: M. Nevradakis)

Protestors have been congregating each evening at 6pm at Syntagma (Constitution) Square in Athens, outside the Greek Parliament, and this past Sunday’s protests are estimated to have drawn as many as 500,000 people—the largest protests in modern Greek history.  Similar protests have taken place in other cities and towns throughout the country, while some protestors have even begun to camp out at the main protests sites on a 24/7 basis.  The Greek protests—known as the “Angry in Syntagma” movement, named after the central square in Athens that is the epicenter of the protests—were inspired, in part, by similar protests taking place in countries such as Spain, which have also been heavily affected by the economic crisis.

For many people in Greece, this year’s protests bear at least a bit of a resemblance to protests which took place in 1973.  Those protests, largely organized by university students, were aimed at overthrowing the military junta which ruled Greece at that time. Just as in 1973, young people have been at the forefront of the protests, even if for a very different cause.

One of the lingering memories of the student uprising of 1973 was the pirate radio station organized by the protestors—broadcasting the voice of the uprising at a time where any dissenting voice risked brutal suppression.  This station played a major role in spreading the word about what was taking place in Athens, and other pirate broadcasters throughout Greece began to rebroadcast its signal, spreading word of the uprising outside of Athens.  What has changed in 38 years, and what role is radio playing in Greece during this current wave of protests, in an era dominated by social networking and blogging?

Protest in Athens, Greece on June 5, 2011. (Photo: M. Nevradakis)

Certainly, the nature of the protest is different.  Greece is now a democracy (albeit with a very unpopular government at the moment), and unlike the tightly-controlled state-run media of the military regime, Athens boasts at least 60 FM stations, most of which are privately owned.  How have these stations covered the protests?

Perhaps the most notable example is Radio Entasi 100.1 FM.  Based out of the Department of Legal, Economic and Political Sciences at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, the station operates without a license, aided by the academic asylum haven that is afforded university campuses in Greece, where police and military forces are barred from entering.  Since the start of the protests in late May, the station has set up a makeshift broadcasting facility in Syntagma Square, at the heart of the protests.

Comprised of little more than some basic equipment, a computer and some hand-painted signs, Radio Entasi has become the radio voice of the protest movement, with live broadcasts of the public assembly and speeches that take place there each evening.  The station’s broadcasts are also available online and are also rebroadcast by one of Greece’s few community-based radio stations, Radio Kokkinoskoufitsa 88.2 FM, in the city of Agrinio in Western Greece.

Aside from Radio Entasi, however, most radio stations in Athens have continued with their normal programming, and a quick scan of the radio dial in Athens would not really lead to any indications that a large protest movement is brewing.  Most news and information radio stations have earned a reputation of being largely in favor of the Greek government’s economic austerity measures and the “bailout” by the EU and IMF, and have not devoted a great deal of attention to the protests, downplaying their significance.  While the protests have indeed been a top story on many radio newscasts (especially on Sunday, June 5^th, the date of the largest protests to date), more detailed coverage of the protests has often been lacking.  The exceptions have, at times, however, been surprising.

One of the best locations on the dial for dialogue and conversation between listeners about the protests and the overall economic and political situation is an overnight call-in show, “Anemologio,” which airs on Skai 100.3 FM, which is consistently the top station in the Athenian ratings charts.  The program airs from 12 to 5 am five nights a week, and features calls from listeners, often of an extended nature, with little interruption by the host of the program, Konstantinos Lavithis.

As can be expected, the predominant topic of conversation since the start of the economic crisis, and especially in recent weeks, has been the state of the economy, and more recently, the protests that have been taking place.  Many regular callers to the program seem to be on a first-name basis, while it is not unusual for callers to respond to each other’s comments over the air.  Interestingly, while Skai 100.3 and its television counterpart, Skai TV, have maintained an editorial stance that is squarely pro-IMF, pro-austerity and pro-bailout, this overnight program has featured intriguing conversation between listeners, many of whom are against the austerity measures that have been undertaken and which are being proposed.

Another popular radio show which has addressed the protests as well as the larger economic issues facing Greece is a satire program called “Ellinofreneia.”  Ellinofreneia was, until recently, broadcast on Skai 100.3 but has recently moved to another news-oriented station, Real FM 97.8.  Ellinofreneia has become known for its satirical coverage of politicians and political events taking place in Greece, and in the past week, its hosts participated in an open conference call sponsored by an online journalism initiative, The Press Project, which was open to members of the “Angry in Syntagma” protest movement.

Broadcast Towers atop Mount Imittos overlooking Athens, Greece (Photo: M. Nevradakis)

Interestingly enough, talk about the protests and the current economic climate has also been present on the city’s sports talk stations, including ERA Sport 101.8 & 100.9 FM and NovaSport FM 94.6.  While the topic of conversation on these stations is centered about sports, many listeners that have been calling in, especially during the overnight hours, have discussed the protests and economic issues with the overnight hosts.

Extensive coverage of the protests has also been afforded by Sto Kokkino 105.5 FM, which is operated by the left-wing SYRIZA political party.  The station has featured extensive interviews with protestors and academics about the protests and their ramifications.  Some of these interviews are also available as podcasts on the station’s website.  Another news-oriented station, Radio 9 98.9 FM has featured numerous live reports from Syntagma Square with its on-site reporter, Maria Georgari, who has interviewed numerous protestors and provided hourly updates as part of the station’s newscasts.

Finally, web radio has gotten into the mix as well, with the live webcasts of “Radio Zougla” from the heart of the protests at Syntagma Square.  This web radio station is operated by zougla.gr, one of Greece’s largest online news sites, and has featured live audio and video coverage of the protests, including numerous live interviews with protestors who are on site.  The live audio and video streams can be found here.

Unfortunately, even with the above examples, most of the Athenian radio dial continues to feature highly commercialized programming, while much of the news and information programming has continued to downplay the protests and have not given much of an opportunity for the protestors to be heard, in contrast to the many interviews that have been aired with members of Greece’s political establishment.  Clearly, in an era of social networking tools and blogging and in a country where most citizens still get a large amount of their news from television, radio is not playing the role that it did 38 years ago, during the students’ uprising against Greece’s military junta.

However, radio does continue to give an opportunity for the everyday person’s voice to be heard—even if their voice is heard on small, unlicensed stations such as Radio Entasi, or is relegated to the “graveyard shift” on major news stations such as Skai 100.3.  And since radio remains, for me, a magical medium, I have taken the opportunity to provide reports about the events going on in Greece to radio listeners back in the United States—including a live interview which aired on the University of Texas’ KVRX 91.7 FM on Wednesday evening, and an interview with Austin’s NPR affiliate, KUT 90.5 FM which will soon be available on the station’s website.

Michael Nevradakis is both a radio academic (currently a Ph.D. student in Radio-Television-Film at University of Texas at Austin) and a radio practitioner. Much of Michael’s academic research has centered on radio, both in the United States and globally, and his first academic publication, “Government-Sanctioned Anarchy: Greece’s Chaotic Airwaves” is scheduled to be published in the fall of 2011.  In addition, Michael is the webmaster and editor of www.media.net.gr, an online resource on Greek radio and television.  Michael also hosts “Austin Hellenic Radio,” a weekly program dedicated to Greek music and culture, on the University of Texas’ student-run radio station, KVRX 91.7 FM.

Mutiny Radio Launches Today

Today the former Pirate Cat Radio/PCR Collective relaunched their online-only community radio station in San Francisco as Mutiny Radio.

As mentioned in our post yesterday, with this new name they hope to reference their pirate past, but also suggest that they are moving on to a new chapter in the station’s history.

According to a statement on their website today:

“Today the PCR Collective, the community  of DJs that formed moments after the collapse of Pirate Cat Radio,  announced the launch of a new broadcast home—Mutiny Radio.

Streaming  live from San Francisco’s Mutiny Radio Café, Mutiny Radio features the  same eclectic mix of live music, interviews, DJ performances, news, and  comedy the members of the PCR Collective have been producing for the  past 6 years.”

If you stop by the Mutiny Cafe today, it’s expected that they will be slapping on a new coat of paint to symbolically transition to their new identity.