What is “professionalism” in community radio?
In the world of community radio, there is probably no term more contentious than “professionalism.” Say the word and watch the conversation flare up. Why is the p-word so threatening? Probably because at places like community/college/LPFM radio stations, most community media people are volunteers. So when words like “professionalism” surface, folks imagine themselves being replaced […]
Former Rock Station KSJO Morphs into Chinese Pop
I felt like such a traitor this week. Instead of keeping my radio dial locked to college radio, I decided to delve into commercial territory and see what was going on at San Jose station KSJO 92.3 FM. Rumors were afoot that they were about to change formats after their recent station sale and curiosity […]
FCC Dismisses University of San Francisco’s Request to Move KUSF Transmitter
About a month ago, University of San Francisco filed a request with the FCC (PDF), asking for permission to move KUSF’s transmitter and antenna to a site north of San Francisco in Sausalito. As stated in their “minor change to a licensed facility” application to the FCC, this request from USF regarding 90.3 FM was […]
Microsoft cancels Zune HD leaving one last portable HD radio on the market
This week Bloomberg reported that Microsoft will introduce no new versions of its
Doug Henwood’s Radio Days
Doug Henwood of the Left Business Observer is one of my favorite people in the world of arts, letters, and radio. A brilliant and entertaining critic of neo-liberalism, neo-conservatism, and neo-crackpotism, Henwood is the author of Wall Street and After the New Economy—the latter a remarkable analysis of the dot-com-bomb phenomenon. Doug is long associated […]
FCC Provides Guidelines for Japan Relief Fundraising over Non-Commercial Stations
As was the case after the devastating earthquake in Haiti, the FCC is softening its stance on fundraising for outside organizations over non-commercial educational stations. In a statement (PDF) released today, they provide details on how a non-commercial station can obtain a waiver from the FCC in order to fundraise for the relief efforts in […]
College Radio is Revived at Youngstown State with Rookery Radio
I was excited to hear a few months back about the work going on at Youngstown State University to launch Rookery Radio, a brand new online-only radio station. It’s easy for me to get fixated on sad news about station shutdowns, so it’s nice to see that there are campuses where new radio ventures are […]
Suze Rotolo, Bob Dylan, and the Woman Question: The Virtues of Thinking Twice
Susie Rotolo, Bob Dylan’s lover in the early sixties, died last month, and NPR recently played an excerpt from a 2008 interview with her. I was very moved by the interview, and felt that it gave me a startling and fresh perspective on an important part of Dylan’s early work—his love (and hate) songs, and […]
Radio Guide to SXSW 2011
As I’m watching various friends’ Facebook updates and check-ins from Austin, I’m getting a serious case of SXSW-envy. Although I can’t be there at the famed music/interactive/film festival this year, there are tons of radio-related events that I wish I could be a fly on the wall at (especially the How to Save College Radio […]
Thank you Canada! Unused FM app for Samsung Galaxy S now in play
The Canadian government’s communications technology lab has released a new Android application: FM TwoO (pronounced: two “O,” as in Web 2.0). FM TwoO accesses’ the embedded FM receiver in the Samsung Galaxy S class series. “FM TwoO can be tuned to any station manually or by seeking through usual FM frequency bands,” the Communications Research […]