College Radio Survivor: Archiving College Radio History, Upcoming Events, and LPFM Update
Right now I’m dwelling on college radio’s past, as I prepare my presentation for University of Maryland’s “Saving College Radio” Symposium in two weeks. In connection with an exhibit about the history of student radio station WMUC, this symposium will focus on the importance of (and challenges inherent in) archiving college radio’s history. I’ve become […]
LPFM Watch: Over 1100 Applications Granted so Far, including More than 40 for College Radio Stations
This week the total number of granted LPFM applications crossed 1100. LPFMs-to-be are already fundraising and making plans for their new stations. For example, in Portland, Oregon, Q Center’s station Wild Planet Radio, purportedly the “the world’s first nonprofit LGBTQ radio station,” is gearing up to get on the air, sharing a frequency with The […]
Ousted Executive Director Summer Reese Occupies Pacifica Offices
Summer Reese, along with her mother and supporters, has been occupying the Pacifica Foundation’s offices in Berkeley, CA for almost ten days. Recall that Reese was abruptly fired from her position as Executive Director by the Pacifica National Board two weeks ago, without any public statements justifying the action. She and many others contest the […]
SoundCloud: the Twitter monster
Judging by this table of music application inspired tweets compiled by Swarm.fm founder Peter Watts, SoundCloud users are the hugest tweeters these days. Here are the top ten tweet generators: SoundCloud: 42,604,555 open.spotify.com: 10,914,820 last.fm: 8,039,354 Spotify: 4,862,187 Pandora: 3,715,642 Bandcamp: 3,488,443 Myspace: 3,410,535 Shazam: 3,079,587 soundtracking: 2,679,342 deezer.com: 2,459,766 Watts’ application checked the Twitter […]
Podcast Survivor: The Week in Podcasting News and Stories
It’s been kind of a quiet week on the podcasting news front this week. Adam Carolla continues to make the rounds in support of his Save Podcasts Legal Defense Fund and has set up a Soundcloud page with clips from shows discussing the patent troll case. The fund’s benefit event added comedian and podcaster Doug […]
Spotify premium student discount: loss leader challenge to the young?
“The Student Discount is here,” Spotify announced today. “Spotify Premium is now 50% off for students.” This is for college students, I presume (I sneaked a peek at the discount form; it definitely asks users for their “college”). So qualified college attendees get ad free Spotify for $4.99 instead of $9.99. The discount comes as Pandora […]
UK ponders 12 year terms for “re-advertised” analog radio stations
The United Kingdom’s broadcast regulator Ofcom is considering letting “re-advertised” analog radio station licenses extend for twelve years, the maximum possible license length. The current policy is to set licenses approaching their expiration date at seven, but “market and regulatory developments” since 2010 suggest a reconsideration, a Ofcom consultation concludes: ” . . . we […]
Beyond the wild west: government and the future of music radio
Turntable.fm shut down its last component earlier this year: Turntable Live—a concert version of now gone turntable.fm. TT.fm founder Billy Chasen reflected on the end of the Turntable project in a blog entry posted on Wednesday: “Ultimately, I didn’t heed the lessons of so many failed music startups. It’s an incredibly expensive venture to pursue […]
High School Radio News Round-up: High School LPFMs, KVHS Footage from 1983, and WKHS’ 40th Anniversary
With High School Radio Day Coming up on April 23, it seemed like a good time to do a round-up of recent high school radio news. First and foremost, it’s been thrilling to see that so many school districts and high schools are in the running for new LPFM licenses. One such group, Jasper High […]
50th Anniversary Celebrations for Radio Caroline, the UK’s 1st Pirate Rock N Roll Ship
March 27 is the 50th anniversary of the launch of Radio Caroline, the infamous pirate radio ship that brought rock n’ roll to the UK airwaves and sparked many a pirate radio fantasy thereafter. On that day in 1964 Radio Caroline began broadcasting with a test transmission. Broadcasts Aboard a ship In Liverpool the Mersey […]