Sony to end manufacture of minidisc, a stalwart of radio studios
Minidisc is an audio technology that never quite took off in the US the same way it did in Asia, and especially Japan. After enjoying a brief period of mainstream popularity just prior to the introduction of the iPod, many people are probably surprised to learn that minidisc is actually still around now. However, Sony […]
NPR listeners irked by “illegitimate child” remark
“There is no such thing as an ‘illegitimate child’,” early public radio producer Elsa Knight Thompson once said. “There may be illegitimate parents.”* Thompson made this remark during the Battle of Britain in 1940. Raised in Seattle, she had married an Englishman and come with him to Europe. She was evacuating children from London when […]
Family Radio Airs Replacement Programs in Open Forum Slot
Much of my obsession with Harold Camping’s Family Radio empire has been a direct result of his live call-in radio show “Open Forum.” On the air for 50 years, the show was an amazing glimpse into the beliefs of the founder of the large Christian religious broadcasting network. Through that show, Camping spread the word […]
FCC proposes action for more LPFM community radio stations
As expected, at today’s open FCC meeting the Commission released a Third Further Notice of Proposed Rule Making which lays out a plan of action to both clear out the queue of pending translator station applications and to begin taking new applications for low-power FM community radio stations. An application window for new LPFM stations […]
Motion to Dismiss Filed with FCC Regarding Pending KUSF Sale
The contentious pending sale of college radio station KUSF to Classical Public Radio Network continues to keep the lawyers busy, as a Motion to Dismiss the entire application was filed with the FCC just before the July 4th holiday. At the same time that the FCC was sending out its Letter of Inquiry to University […]
Appeals Court rejects weakened radio ownership rules
Thursday the Third Circuit Court of Appeals struck down a 2007 FCC decision that loosened rules restricting the co-ownership of newspapers and broadcast stations, known as the cross-ownership ban. At the end of that year the Kevin Martin-led FCC rushed through that last minute decision to erode the rule which generally prevented one company from […]
Dutch government to slash Radio Netherlands Worldwide, focus on regions needing “free speech”
As part of a government austerity program, the Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced plans to make significant cuts in the budget of shortwave broadcaster Radio Netherlands Worldwide. RNW has been relied upon by both Dutch expatriates and other listeners around the world for a unique take on world events, in addition to news from […]
Le Show’s Harry Shearer will do KALW-FM on Sunday
If you still haven’t seen Le Show host Harry Shearer’s documentary, The Big Uneasy, you can catch it at the Elmwood Theater in Berkeley this Saturday at 4:30 pm, followed by a QA with the author. The next day Shearer will produce his radio show from the studios of KALW-FM, the public station of the […]
Report: pirate radio generates over half billion dollars for US workers in jobs
I have often wondered how many jobs “unlicensed” media produce, be it P2P file sharing sites or pirate radio stations. A new study commissioned by the National Association of Broadcasters inspires me to attempt a rough cut of the pirate radio question. Based on my guesstimate study, broadly modeled on its methodology, I think that […]
Podcast Prowler: Heights of WFMU; Hamlet in prison; Caine mutinies again
For once, I wish that I still lived in Washington Heights, Manhattan. My favorite free form radio station, WFMU-FM of New Jersey, is holding a Listener Meetup Group literary reading in that lovely neighborhood on Monday July 11 at the Word Up community bookshop. Scheduled readers include WFMU DJs/fiction writers Kurt Gottschalk, Amanda Nazario, and […]