Radiotopia’s Kickstarter & Gimlet Media Pose Podcast Funding Options
Alex Blumberg’s podcasting company Gimlet Media just crowd-funded $200,00 in less than two days. Only the company didn’t use Kickstarter, Indiegogo or another familiar platform. Instead Gimlet invited qualified investors to become actual equity stakeholders under a provision of the 2012 JOBS Act. Gimlet ran this campaign using the help of a new platform called […]
New Book Chronicles LPFM Activism & Organizing
A new book chronicles “the practices of an activist organization focused on LPFM” during the first low-power licensing window at the turn of the century. Low Power to the People: Pirates, Protest, and Politics in FM Radio Activism is written by Christina Dunbar-Hester, a professor of Journalism and Media Studies in the School of Communication […]
WQXR’s Meet the Composer podcast: the first six months
WQXR-FM’s Meet the Composer podcast is now around half a year old, and it has already become a wonderful resource. I just finished listening to the latest episode, focusing on the Brazilian composer Marcos Balter. “As a composer, [Balter] writes an almost unthinkable amount of music, and not all of it works,” observes MTC host and […]
New Mexico “ghost town reborn” gets Low Power FM station
The Prometheus Radio Project has a blog post about its efforts on behalf of a fledgling Low Power FM radio station serving the hallowed town of Madrid, New Mexico. The LPFM station in question is KMRD, 96.9-LP, aka “Madrid Community Radio.” I am intrigued by the KMRD website description of Madrid’s environs, situated on the Turquoise […]
LPFM News: New Stations Include Movie Theater & Library
First off, be sure to read contributor Gavin Dahl’s awesome article on budgeting for new LPFM stations. Advice comes from some great people at KDRT-LP, KIDE-FM, WRIR-LP and KYRS-FM. A fair number of construction permits were issues in the last week, twenty-six, bringing the total up to 1,458. Notable are two new stations in Los […]
Your New LPFM Needs An Operating Budget
Budget planning is one of the keys to success for community radio stations. You will need to assess your revenue sources, account for all expenses, pay careful attention to your bookkeeping and be prepared for unforeseen circumstances. Some stations rely on staff-led budgeting, others divide up responsibilities among various committees. Whether you hire a bookkeeper, […]
Wellesley College Radio Station WZLY Says it Will Sell its FM License
Last December I reported that students at Wellesley College radio station WZLY 91.5 FM were concerned about forthcoming changes to the station related to campus construction and a reduction in space. Well, now we are hearing that students may be giving up the WZLY 7 watt class D FM radio license. (more…)
A Year of Podcast Survivor: More than Surviving; Thriving
I would be remiss if I did not mention yesterday’s debut of Wolfpop, the new popular culture podcast network from Earwolf that is curated by actor/comedian/podcaster Paul Scheer. I also must point out that I work for Earwolf/Wolfpop parent company Midroll Media, and specifically worked on the promotional campaign. That said, I do think it’s […]
FCC Fines WAIC at American International College for Late License Renewal and Public File Violations
The FCC has issued a Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture to American International College in Springfield, Massachusetts for late renewal and public file violations at WAIC-FM. Additionally, the license renewal term was shortened in response to the violations. As of October, 2011, WAIC-FM has been airing public radio content from WNPR/Connecticut Pubic Radio, but […]
Look out FCC Part 15 devices: AM radio is gonna getcha!
I am continuing to follow the Federal Communications Commission’s proceeding on saving AM radio. A recent comment submission comes from iHeartCommunications (formerly Clear Channel) Executive Vice President Jeff Littlejohn. Among his observations at an ex parte meeting with the FCC: Mr. Littlejohn noted that many commenters in the AM Revitalization proceeding have called for increased […]