Top Menu

Author Archive | Matthew Lasar

Rough notes: towards the end of Pacifica Radio (and the start of something new)

Rough notes: towards the end of Pacifica Radio (and the start of something new)

As the troubles facing Pacifica radio persist without apparent end, I sometimes wonder whether the five station listener supported radio network should voluntarily dismantle itself—that is, transfer its licenses to five local non-profit entities. I am not the first person to suggest this. Community radio pioneer Lorenzo Milam more or less laid the idea out […]

Continue Reading
CBC: no bias in angry debate about gun control

CBC: no bias in angry debate about gun control

Several months ago CBC Ottawa ran what turned into a no holds barred debate about gun control. Someone complained about the discussion, charging that CBC host Hallie Cotnam had shown a “lack of respect” for the guest who opposed collecting personal information about gun owners. A CBC Ombudsman review has found no bias in the […]

Continue Reading
Peter Bergman and Phil Austin

Object to reruns of Car Talk? Then what about Firesign Theater and Alan Watts?

We briefly return to the Great Car Talk Debate in this post. I lean towards the argument that public radio stations shouldn’t recycle old editions of the popular show, now that it has ceased new broadcasts. Radio Survivor’s Paul Riismandel put it very well in his commentary supporting Ira Glass’s objection to the idea. “I […]

Continue Reading
NPR

NPR, religious broadcasters split on FCC third party fundraising proposal

Opinions are coming in on the Federal Communications Commission’s proposal to let public broadcasters spend a little more on air time running fundraising campaigns for charities and related nonprofits. One divide is obvious. Religious broadcasters love this idea. NPR hates it. “Removing the prohibition on third-party fundraising would create the potential for stations to be […]

Continue Reading
Zemanta Related Posts Thumbnail

Some John Cage on FM in the garden

Despite the east coast heat, I wish I’d been at the Suffolk Street Community Garden on the Lower East Side of New York on Sunday. There free103point9 revved up a couple of FM transmitters and treated the locals to a performance titled “Habits of Imagination,” an “outdoor public installation/performance using live broadcast radio and audience interaction […]

Continue Reading
Ofcom

UK revises short term radio license procedures for Ramadan

One of the more interesting permits that Britain’s radio/telecom regulator offers radio broadcasters is short term restricted service licenses (SRSLs for you acronym lovers). They’re reserved for community events, festivals, non-profit offerings, those kind of things. Some noted restricted license holders of the past have included Radio Caroline, Radio Avalon (the Glastonbury Festival), and Takeover […]

Continue Reading

Powered by WordPress. Designed by WooThemes