Monday, November 30, 2009
Low-power FM radio could get a boost from Local Community Radio Act
One bill (HR 1147) under consideration by Congress could make it easier for smaller operations to go on air.
Just a few months after the Federal Communications Commission decided to create low-power FM radio, students at Roanoke College were denied a license for their campus station.
The reasoning: The station wouldn’t be “three clicks” of the dial in both directions from surrounding full-power radio stations.
Students reapplied three years later and won access to the only frequency that was available in the area, said David Mulford, who oversees the station, WRKE.
Their struggle, which cost about $1,200, is not uncommon. In fact, it’s a phenomenon that has kept various individuals and groups from operating low-power stations — commonly popular among nonprofit groups and minorities — for almost a decade.
But one bill (HR 1147) under consideration by Congress could make it easier for smaller operations to go on air.
“Low-power FM serves a tremendous public interest by providing an electronic voice for colleges, for nonprofit organizations or various kinds, for some religious organizations and for others who want to engage in a commentary on matters of public concern,” said U.S. Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Abingdon, chairman of a congressional panel on telecommunications and the Internet.
The FCC created low-power FM in 2000 as a way to promote local programming. Low-power stations are authorized for noncommercial educational broadcasting and operate with a power of 100 watts or less, which is about 3.5 miles.
But at the end of that year, amid pressure from large stations worried about interference issues, Congress implemented regulations that prevented low-power stations from operating within a certain frequency distance from full-power stations. That decision, according to the bill, prevented millions of Americans from having a locally operated, community-based radio station in their neighborhood. Currently, there are only about 800 low power stations nationwide.
Low-power stations themselves are not protected from interference that might be received from other classes of FM stations. A construction permit is also required before a low-power FM station can be operated, according to the FCC. Some stations are built from the ground up, while others involve the renovation of existing space.
Roanoke’s campus station is one of only four low-power stations in Southwest and Central Virginia and one of only 14 in the state. The other local licensed stations are operated by the Fellowship Community Church in Madison Heights, the International Religious Society in Danville and Belle Meadows Baptist Church in Bristol.
Boucher oversaw the approval of the bill last month that would remove certain distance requirements for low-power stations but also protect larger stations from some degree of interference.
Currently, FM translator stations that allow full-power FM stations to provide supplementary service to isolated areas can operate on frequencies two or three “clicks of the dial” from full-power radio stations up to a power of 250 watts. In doing so, the translator stations use the very same transmitters that low-power FM stations would use. The bill would provide protection for those translator stations.
Glenn Gleixner, general manager of WVTF in Roanoke, had pushed for that protection. He said translator stations are more susceptible to interference because they don’t produce as strong a signal as a full-power station. The bill would require low-power FM stations to maintain a certain frequency distance from translator stations.
The measure also would require low-power stations to periodically announce to listeners that any interference could be a result of their own operation. The stations would be required to report that interference to the FCC.
“Thousands of communities could finally have a chance to have their own radio station,” Cory Fischer-Hoffman, campaign director for the Prometheus Radio Project, said in a press release in early October. “We hear from schools, churches, community groups, emergency responders, and local governments who want a local forum for news and information. They’re eager for this opportunity.”
The Prometheus Radio Project is a Philadelphia-based nonprofit that advocates for community radio nationwide.
A group of 100 African-American men in Pennsylvania is eagerly awaiting passage of the bill to start their own station, according to bill sponsor U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle, D-Pa.
Boucher said he thinks the bill will be on the House floor before the end of the year. A Senate version (S592) was introduced in March and marked up and approved by a Senate panel on Nov. 19.
The next step would be for the passage of both measures in their respective chambers and then a conference meeting to reconcile the differences before sending a final bill to the president.
The reasoning: The station wouldn’t be “three clicks” of the dial in both directions from surrounding full-power radio stations.
Students reapplied three years later and won access to the only frequency that was available in the area, said David Mulford, who oversees the station, WRKE.
Their struggle, which cost about $1,200, is not uncommon. In fact, it’s a phenomenon that has kept various individuals and groups from operating low-power stations — commonly popular among nonprofit groups and minorities — for almost a decade.
But one bill (HR 1147) under consideration by Congress could make it easier for smaller operations to go on air.
“Low-power FM serves a tremendous public interest by providing an electronic voice for colleges, for nonprofit organizations or various kinds, for some religious organizations and for others who want to engage in a commentary on matters of public concern,” said U.S. Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Abingdon, chairman of a congressional panel on telecommunications and the Internet.
The FCC created low-power FM in 2000 as a way to promote local programming. Low-power stations are authorized for noncommercial educational broadcasting and operate with a power of 100 watts or less, which is about 3.5 miles.
But at the end of that year, amid pressure from large stations worried about interference issues, Congress implemented regulations that prevented low-power stations from operating within a certain frequency distance from full-power stations. That decision, according to the bill, prevented millions of Americans from having a locally operated, community-based radio station in their neighborhood. Currently, there are only about 800 low power stations nationwide.
Low-power stations themselves are not protected from interference that might be received from other classes of FM stations. A construction permit is also required before a low-power FM station can be operated, according to the FCC. Some stations are built from the ground up, while others involve the renovation of existing space.
Roanoke’s campus station is one of only four low-power stations in Southwest and Central Virginia and one of only 14 in the state. The other local licensed stations are operated by the Fellowship Community Church in Madison Heights, the International Religious Society in Danville and Belle Meadows Baptist Church in Bristol.
Boucher oversaw the approval of the bill last month that would remove certain distance requirements for low-power stations but also protect larger stations from some degree of interference.
Currently, FM translator stations that allow full-power FM stations to provide supplementary service to isolated areas can operate on frequencies two or three “clicks of the dial” from full-power radio stations up to a power of 250 watts. In doing so, the translator stations use the very same transmitters that low-power FM stations would use. The bill would provide protection for those translator stations.
Glenn Gleixner, general manager of WVTF in Roanoke, had pushed for that protection. He said translator stations are more susceptible to interference because they don’t produce as strong a signal as a full-power station. The bill would require low-power FM stations to maintain a certain frequency distance from translator stations.
The measure also would require low-power stations to periodically announce to listeners that any interference could be a result of their own operation. The stations would be required to report that interference to the FCC.
“Thousands of communities could finally have a chance to have their own radio station,” Cory Fischer-Hoffman, campaign director for the Prometheus Radio Project, said in a press release in early October. “We hear from schools, churches, community groups, emergency responders, and local governments who want a local forum for news and information. They’re eager for this opportunity.”
The Prometheus Radio Project is a Philadelphia-based nonprofit that advocates for community radio nationwide.
A group of 100 African-American men in Pennsylvania is eagerly awaiting passage of the bill to start their own station, according to bill sponsor U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle, D-Pa.
Boucher said he thinks the bill will be on the House floor before the end of the year. A Senate version (S592) was introduced in March and marked up and approved by a Senate panel on Nov. 19.
The next step would be for the passage of both measures in their respective chambers and then a conference meeting to reconcile the differences before sending a final bill to the president.
