From rrb@deja-vu.aiss.uiuc.edu Sat Jan 8 19:56:12 1994 Return-Path: Received: from deja-vu.aiss.uiuc.edu by mail.netcom.com (8.6.4/SMI-4.1/Netcom) id TAA11406; Sat, 8 Jan 1994 19:56:07 -0800 Received: by deja-vu.aiss.uiuc.edu (AIX 3.2/UCB 5.64/4.03) id AA41789; Sat, 8 Jan 1994 21:11:53 -0600 From: rrb@deja-vu.aiss.uiuc.edu (Bill Pfeiffer) Message-Id: <9401090311.AA41789@deja-vu.aiss.uiuc.edu> Subject: Radio Resistor's Bulletin #5 To: rrb-mod@gagme.chi.il.us (rrb moderator) Date: Sat, 8 Jan 1994 21:11:53 -0600 (CST) Reply-To: articles@airwaves.chi.il.us X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.4 PL22] Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Content-Length: 39799 Status: RO [Airwaves editor's note: Radio Resistor's Bulletin is being fwd'd to the AIRWAVES mailing list and to rec.radio.broadcasting as a service to the editor of that publication. Please note that references to "RRB" are to Radio Resistor's Bulletin and not to Rec.Radio.Broadcasting. Bill] Date: Sat, 8 Jan 1994 18:36:59 -0800 (PST) From: "Frank Haulgren - R.R. Bulletin" Subject: Radio Resistor's Bulletin #5 RADIO RESISTOR'S BULLETIN #5 1993 / 1994 c 1993 RE-DISTRIBUTE FREELY. Please cite RRB #5 when excerpting. comments and articles to: Radio Resistor's Bulletin PO Box 3038 Bellingham, WA 98227-3038 E-MAIL haulgren@well.sf.ca.us We are specifically looking for pieces about women involved in community radio and the micro or pirate movements for RRB #6. Please submit by January 25, 1994. However, all kinds of materi- al and all points of view are welcome. FRANK HAULGREN Page 1 THE FUTURE: More of the same or less of the different... By Frank Haulgren Non-commercial broadcasting sits on the edge of a new age. At first glance this new age may seem to be defined by rapid change in available technologies. Just steps away from us are interac- tive television, 500 cable channels, Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB), perhaps even micro-radio or micro-TV, and even the "infor- mation superhighway". But to see only the technology and the pos- sibilities it dangles before us is to be duped. The real engine that can drive and define this looming new age is people -- peo- ple who grow increasingly wary of and hostile towards media that seems to be serving the needs of the state and corporate economies. These two monsters must cringe recognizing the irony that these new technologies present. Product! More product! But at the same time providing access to the tools and knowledge that enable real democratization of society. Writing for the ZEBRA News out of Denmark, Steffen Knudsen and Lisa Klocker call the appropriate use of new communication technologies an enabling force for democratic development. They write, "If progressive movements and organisations are to in- fluence the political development seriously, they need more powerful media. . ..It should be just as natural to make commun- ication projects as to dig wells and support poor farmers. ...(Amazon) rubberworkers need their own radio (stations) in order to take active part in drawing up their own future. Cattle kings and oil companies will, like any other authority, consider the radio a dangerous weapon in the hands of rubberworkers. This because the radio has a much more immediate effect than for in- stance a health project. ...Within hours after the inauguration of a new radio or TV-station, local (or) even national power structures can be challenged." This call for a participatory people's media is growing everywhere. Radio B-92 in Belgrade has captured the support of its community and has become a trusted information channel by the people. Black Liberation Radio in Springfield, Illinois has likewise siezed the hearts of that city's African American com- munity. Last issue we reprinted an editorial by Lisa Vinebohm, editor or AMARC's newsletter InteRadio, in which she spoke (as Knudsen and Klocker above) for the empowerment of aboriginal peoples through the community radio movement. All this is happen- ing at a grassroots level. It is happening because the people who stand outside of the mainstream media (and this, unfortunate- ly, has come to include the bulk of non-commercial radio) have a very different vision of the possibilities presented by this evolving technology and because the communities they are speak- ing to and of also embrace this vision, rejecting the one tied to consumption and the bottom line. Some herald DAB as providing a place on the radio dial for everyone. The evolving technical specifics of this system, howev- er, seem to dictate that radio broadcasting will become increas- ingly centralized, controlled by fewer people and that the future of localized small audience radio will be threatened by this new technology. DAB could, in some schemes, supplant conventional FM broadcasting entirely. Neil Postman has said that the question we should ask when ex- amining any new technology is not "if" we need it but "why" do we need it. Harold Hallikainen maintains in his Radio World arti- cles (see p.4) that given current micro technologies there is space on the exisiting FM band for low power stations if the FCC chose to allow them. So why do we need DAB and more stations with far reaching signals? Why replace an exisiting technology that has served quite well with another? Why 500 TV channels when most people can't find a thing worth watching on those we have? What increasingly disturbs me a year after the first issue of RRB is the pace at which access and local concern for minority audiences (once the stock-and -trade of non-comms) is giving way to concerns about "success", "credibility", and professionalism. Concepts that once were the far off concerns of commercial broad- casters. Lydia Sargent, writing in an issue of Z Papers devoted to the state of progressive media, says, "To reach more people, by way of being taken seriously in the larger media world, you are supposed to make your message more palatable, but this usual- ly becomes toning down the message and eventually selling out. You can never break into mainstream visibility unless you func- tion the way the mainstream functions..." This is a time of "demassification", says Alvin Toffler. Our society is abandoning the cultural baggage that has been carried since the industrial revolution. The time of mass production and mass consumption and perhaps even mass communication has passed. We see educational institutions once modeled after factories strive to redefine success among students. Environmentalists are successfully changing the definition of economic impact by in- cluding consideration of environmental factors and the cost of their mitigation in the cost analysis of major construction pro- jects. Broadcasters seem to be swimming upstream, however, look- ing large, measuring with obsolete tools and seeking to limit access to a preferred few (be they listener or volunteer) rather than embrace the concept of inclusion. In David Kirsch's letter on page 2 he correctly states that the people must fight for access to all media in order to insure democracy. And he's right. There is a lot more at stake than what kind of music gets played on your community radio station. ### p.2 Micro Radio: Not For Everyone & Not The Best Answer Dear RRB, I appreciate your refreshing newsletter and the spirit it up- holds. I'd also like to enter the discussion on "Sandbox Radio." Even though this is the land of Jesse Helms, Balance & Accura- cy in Journalism (BAJ) got its start because there are so many people in this area of North Carolina who are fed up with the lack of diverse and non-mainstream public affairs programming on the radio. BAJ is now campaigning to strongly encourage WUNC-FM (a power- ful and wealthy NPR station) to include some diverse and contr- oversial programming as well as the shrink-wrapped and dumbed- down fare it currently has on. I strenuously disagree with the suggestion in the front page piece (RRB #4, Who Knows What Evil Lurks in Sandbox Radio) that, "the time may have arrived to give up seeking a return to 'com- munity radio' and start anew. Recreate - with the scale small and the possibilities undefined." I believe it is important to use all possible media to main- tain access to information for those without much power and wealth. That includes micro radio. But please don't concede any territory. People should organize and struggle for greater con- trol of public and community radio. Some points to consider: The airwaves are ours not theirs (the corporate and governmental hacks). The original mandate for public broadcasting was for controversy, unheard voices and diversity. It was established for the express reason that it could be protected from the corporate and government pressures to which networks are subjected. People expect more from public and community radio. Even though NPR and its local stations are very far from the original mandate, it tends to reach those with the most education and influence within communities, such as teachers, doctors and other professionals. NPR got a progressive reputation over the years even while it shifted more and more to the right. Media critic Norman Solomon likens the situation to this: throw a frog into boiling water and it will jump out, but put a frog into lukewarm water and slowly raise the heat and it will boil to death. Many folks will respond if they become aware of the problem. Micro radio may be terrific for an urban concentration of population. But consider the geography of an area such as the Triangle (Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill), which covers a wide and decentralized region of city, suburbs & country. A micro station would cover a micro stationary audience and an even smaller mobile radio audience. (People commute long distances by car and are captive audiences of the rush hour radio programs, hence the big influence of NPR News). A strong signal like that of WUNC-FM easily covers the Triangle and many miles beyond. Even if a prolonged effort to demand the reinstatement of public input into public radio is unsuccessful, the effort itself is worthwhile because it is consciousness- raising. People getting sufficiently disgusted by NPR News items on bubble-gum blowing contests can feel good about supporting stations that broadcast stimulating and provocative shows. BAJ is not only involved in pressing for an improvement in mainstream sources like WUNC, it is also involved in supporting and producing alternative media such as The Unofficial Story on WSHA-FM from Raleigh's Shaw University, The Prism (a free all- volunteer monthly newspaper) and local broadcasts of Pacifica Evening News on WSHA and WXYC-FM (Chapel Hill). BAJ is distributing a bumpersticker: "PUT THE PUBLIC BACK IN PUBLIC RADIO", for $2 each. BAJ, PO Box 824, Carrboro, NC 27510. Thanks again for your great work, David Kirsh NOTE: David Kirsh is a journalist writing occasionally about media in EXTRA!, published by FAIR (Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting) #### p.3 FCC Uses 20 Cops to Obtain Pirate's ID Excerpted from RECLAIMING THE AIRWAVES,Oct.1993 the newsletter of Free Radio Berkeley and the Free Communications Coalition (the People's FCC) In a scene resembling a French noir film, one person associ- ated with San Francisco Liberation Radio was detained by 20 San Francisco police officers until his ID could be presented to FCC agent David Doon. At approximately 9:30PM on Wednesday, September 22, Richard Edmondson was approached by David Doon who asked for identifica- tion. After refusing to produce identification or answer any questions, Richard drove away and was stopped on Webster St. by SF police officers who blocked off the entire northbound lane of the street with 8 vehicles. A confused scene ensued wherein the police officers had virtually no idea of what was going on or why such massive backup had been called. Edmondson was ordered to get out of his vehicle with his hands up and in clear sight by clearly agitated SF police who subsequently handcuffed him. Pol- ice officers were heard to say "Who is this guy" and "What do we have him for". For several minutes these questions went unanswered. By the time the FCC agent arrived to examine Edmond- son's ID there were at least 20 SF police officers on the scene. After learning of what was going on, some of the officers were clearly exasperated at having their time wasted by this FCC agent. A few were amused and asked for information regarding San Francisco Liberation Radio's frequency and broadcast schedule. After his ID was verified, Edmondson was released without any further consequences by the SF police. San Francisco Liberation Radio's Richard Edmondson described it this way: "Before it was all over there were at least 20 pol- ice officers on the scene. They were all so pumped up with adre- naline you would have thought I had committed the crime of the century. It was clearly irresponsible for this FCC agent to call for such a massive response without giving clear reason or in- struction to the SF police. When police officers go into a si- tuation not knowing the details they naturally assume the worst. For one dark moment I feared my life was in danger." This was an obvious case of over-reaction by FCC agent David Doon who clearly endangered the life of Richard Edmondson by cal- ling in such a massive police response. The FCC must be held ac- countable for the actions of their agents who use such extremely excessive and reactionary methods to suppress a growing micro power broadcasting movement. It would have sufficed for David Doon to have written down the license plate number of Edmondson's vehicle and run a DMV check. As more micro power broadcasters go on the air in the Bay area and Northern California, we can anticipate further actions by the FCC to harass and intimidate those involved. However, we shall not be moved by their threats and police state tactics. ###### p.4 Publication Notes & REVIEWS: RADIO IS MY BOMB, anonymous, Free Radio Campaign - Fin- land In 1988 the Free Radio Campaign in Finland published an anonymously authored booklet called RADIO IS MY BOMB. The text of this book and its electronic's diagrams are now available elec- tronically via anonymous ftp. (See InfoBox on page 3 for de- tails.) This essential book is divided into two sections. The first contains some fairly detailed technical information about transmitter and antenna construction as well as explanations of and notes about using signal compressors, limiters, osillators, harmonic filters and a good deal more very valuable information. While part one provides essential practical information that someone on your micro broadcasting team had better be knowledge- able about, the second part provides a wealth of information that gives a solid grounding for working through questions and issues that have much grayer answers. Consider your medium: AM, FM, SW, television? Will you broad- cast live or via tape? How do you plan an escape in the event the authorities come knock, knock, knocking at your door or pounding up the pathway to your hilltop broadcast site? What kind of internal structure should your "station" have? What does one say in the event of a bust? RADIO IS MY BOMB is a necessary textbook (well, as much as there can be one) for anyone considering wading into micro broad- casting. Though the shopping lists may be a bit dated given the pace at which micro technology races, the theory remains sound even if the specifics seem a bit too European: "On a tower block in London the DTI squads can tell where you are, within 20 me- ters, less than 10 minutes after you switch on... The detection squads...are officially responsible for stamping out 'radio in- terference'... They use mobile detection vans and lots of un- marked cars... The DTI squads are not supposed to arrest you, so they bring along the local filth on busts..." Ditto the FCC. (See story on page 3) If you are interested in more than playing your favorite music for a select small audience and feel the need to challenge a sys- tem that unfairly and perhaps illegally keeps the disempowered off the public airwaves, RADIO IS MY BOMB poses some serious questions that will need to be worked through: "The word 'commun- ity" has lost any real meaning through misuse and overuse... The old style communities are a thing of the past... as the sys- tem breaks us all down into consumers. So if you're talking about 'community radio' you should be quite clear what you mean by it... What class, ethnic, interest, political or gender sec- tions of the people are you aiming (at)? Or better, creating your pirate radio with? Or are your really working on your own career? Or trying to create 'community' in your own head?" And finally, RADIO IS MY BOMB provides just good stuff that gets lost in the shuffle of excitement. How to set-up. How to knock-down. How to set up a studio. And this bit, perhaps the most valuable and often overlooked consideration for anyone pur- suing a vision: "It's hard to give advice about long term development, but there's a few things worth saying. First of all it's important to pace yourselves. It's easy to start off with a lot of enthusiasm, then get busted off the air, or just burnt out with too much work or too few people. However good or dif- ferent you are you will be very lucky to build up a regular audi- ence or mass support overnight... Breaking down passive consump- tion of the media is not easy... Your long term aim, as a pirate, should be to reach a situation where you have so much support...that the state just cannot wipe you out at will." The title, RADIO IS MY BOMB, comes from a remark Chantal Pater- nostre, a Belgian anarchist and broadcaster for Radio Air Libre (a Brussels Pirate station in 1985), made while being interrogat- ed on charges of arson and bombing. After more than a year in prison authorities apparently believed her claim and let her go. #### 3 ARTICLES BY HAROLD HALLIKAINEN. Radio World, November 10, December 8, 1993 January _, 1994 (See InfoBox P.6 for subscription details.) Harold Hallikainen has written a series of three articles for the monthly Radio World. The articles discuss the impact that the FCC's interpretation of spectrum scarcity and its licensing prac- tices have had on the existing micro broadcasting movement and how a reinterpretation of the commission's rules could open up various opportunities for micro radio. Article #1 "The Fairness of Spectrum Leases?" (RW 11/10/93) broaches the touchy issue of First Amendment rights and how the FCC uses the concept of spectrum scarcity to control the elec- tronic media in a way that would horrify if applied to print. Hallikainen proposes a system of spectrum leasing rather than spectrum "selling" as we now see. While he concedes that such a scheme would likely do little to open the airwaves up to those without hundreds of thousands of dollars to spend, he suggests that spectrum leasing (as he details it) might put the incredible amount of money that is now paid to broadcast attorneys more ap- propriately into the public coffers. Article #2 "Ideas on MicroBroadcasting", (RW 12/8/93) explores the FCC's rules governing low power FM broadcasting and secondary services such as FM translators and repeaters and how these rules might be altered to accommodate legalized micro radio. Halli- kainen's arguments are well documented and compelling. For exam- ple, in discussing the FCC's rationale that translators have the potential to provide larger numbers of options to the "consumer", he cites a study by the National Association of Broadcasters. This survey of small counties and large population areas showed that, overwhelmingly, translator applications tend to propose ad- ditional service to areas where there is already significant choice and, consequently, extreme spectrum scarcity. "The fact that translators are authorized at all seems to in- dicate that it is possible for low power stations to operate in the gaps between highpower stations and still meet interference requirements," he notes. Article #3, "License Free Low Power FM?" (RW 1/94). In this piece Hallikainen briefly mentions the cases that KAPW (a half watt station in Phoenix, Arizona) and Free Radio Berkeley have pending with the FCC. While both have been cited with Notice of Apparent Liability fines far in excess of what their actions war- rant ($17,500 and $20,000 respectively) both continue to operate. Suggested is a practical strategy whereby the FCC could identi- fy "holes in the spectrum" and define specific transmitter set- tings that would be significantly greater than current rules al- low, protect existing licensed stations and allow low power FM stations, such as KAPW and FRB, to operate unharrassed. Referring back to his original article, Hallikainen asks the question that both of these micro operations and the information he has provided seem to pose. "If freedom of speech is applied to broadcasting, does the FCC have a 'compelling governmental interest" to prohibit low power stations that can (as KAPW and FRB have) operate without interference with existing stations?" ### MONDO 2000, #11 $5.95 Mondo 2000, #11, contains an extensive feature by Wes Thomas on pirate media. There is extensive cover- age of Free Radio Berkeley & Stephen Dunifer, an article about setting up a national micro broadcasting network, a step by step on Do It Yourself FM with great pictures of some homebrewed equipment, an interview with Veran Matic, Director of Belgrade's Radio B-92 movement (mentioned in the last RRB), an article about Internet radio (which provides access to digitized audio files which subscribers can download to a PC and play back), and a comprehensive guide to guerrilla media resources. All this and more, well worth $5.95 and a trip to your local book seller. CURSEword!, #7. November 1993 Free The voice of KCMU-FM's strident opposition presents its anniversary issue with a pretty good recap of last year's battle over control of the one-time flag ship station of Seattle's (and the world's) alternative music scene. Ring up the Hotline 206-298-CURS or write to CURSEword, PO Box 85839, Seattle, WA 98145-1839 p. 5 STATION UPDATES: Community Radio On The Rocks! Station Updates: Information comes in from around the country regularly about college and community stations that are falling to "professionalization". This time around Station Updates looks farther afield than it has in the past and posts the first installments of some new struggles as well as bringing news about some "old favorites". RRB KOPN-FM Columbia, Missouri Community Radio By Jay Teutenberg There has always been a lot of passionate volunteer disapproval with the direction KOPN's staff/board has been taking us. But, it's only recently that we are learning exactly what that direction really means. Basically, the yuppies have stolen our community station. Our board/staff has teamed up with the National Federation of Community Broadcaster's (NFCB) David LePage and under a plan named "The Healthy Station Project" (HSP), they are hammering the final nails into the coffin of free radio in Columbia, Mis- souri. KOPN's board/staff has agreed on a 3 year plan to become the number one station in Columbia, securing 30% of the affluent 25- 45 year old crowd of listeners by the end of that period. The vehicle for this is going to be the Triple A format (Adult Album Alternative) . Even though we already have a new commercial sta- tion (KBXR) doing Triple A, KOPN is going to compete using a different variation. We have been told that this will involve "hotboxes" and "rotation clocks", possibly with the djs eventu- ally being told what cuts to play and when. They are looking for a "more homogeneous, predictable, consistent" airsound, (which will probably sound a lot like World Cafe, is my guess). The board/staff maintains that we must go in this direction because we are in such dire financial straits - caused by a bad decision to relocate KOPN's (fund raising) bingo game, and the other usual causes such as government money drying up, etc. How- ever, last year the staff's salaries amounted to $145,000, ap- proximately half our budget. This year the station will carry forward a debt note of $20,000, in addition to the other accounts payable. What I am getting at is that while the board/staff points at how they have taken a 10% pay cut for the 4th quarter it has been their salaries and their decisions that have created this dire situation. They now use it as an excuse to take con- trol away from the volunteers and community. David LePage has laid it out in black and white terms, either we can lift the budget to $400,000, or we can run at $100,000 with no paid staff or CPB (Corporation for Public Broadcasting) funding. No one has talked much about what it would be like to run without paid staff, just left it as sort of an 'unspeakable horror'. (Editor's note: Jon Bekken's paper, "Community Radio at the Crossroads:...", mentioned in RRB #4 clearly outlines this particular cycle of addiction.) Our board has a long history of being very difficult to deal with. Their meetings are run by people who are very skilled at controling direction and frustrating the com-munity's input. Over the years they have assumed near total control of the board with the exception of one seat - 1 out of 12. Although the station's volunteers are preparing to make a more organized argument when the big format change comes, I doubt the situation will be changed by other than forceful means, such as interfering with their fund raising, underwriters, etc. I don't know if there is going to be enough community support to save KOPN. If we cannot restrict the flow money before their commercialized programming begins to pay off, we are sunk. The volunteers at KOPN-FM left themselves open for this, in a way. We didn't work hard enough at getting out into the community and encouraging new listeners. We didn't see the problem with accepting money from the government, from bingo, from other non- listener sources. Our biggest problem has been lack of organiza- tion among the djs and other volunteers. The staff/board has been able to divide and conquer, and make us feel like we're powerless to do anything about it. The information from the Net has been extremely valuable to us. Not only for resistance ideas, but also from knowing that we are not alone, that there are others fighting, and a few winning. We needed to realize that this is a nationwide trend, and to look at the big picture. I have been in touch with just under 10 con- tacts who have an interest in KOPN's battle, and there are 5-10 people in town who have e-mail and are involved also. The trouble is, whenever a meeting takes place off-line, there is no way for anyone else to learn from it. To update a new member of our 'resistance' is too inefficient, we wind up saying the same things over and over. I would really like to see the topic of resistance to professionalization on a listserver, linked to the Usenet, and the ftp archives consolidated or at least a directory of pertinent sites maintained. It would also be cool if one of the resistance newsletters could be a snail-mail interface to those who are off the Net. Communication will mean organization and education, and that's what we need if we hope to outwit such an entrenched adversary. NOTE: Jay Teutenberg is a volunteer at KOPN-FM a community radio station in Columbia Missouri. He speaks only for himself and does not represent the station or any specific organization at- tempting to beat back the changes at KOPN. Jay can be reached by e-mail at jteutenb@bigcat.missouri.edu ####### KRCL 91 FM Salt Lake City, Utah. By Robert Nelson. There hasn't been any huge crisis and showdowns between KRCL's staff and volunteers like the one raging at KCMU in Seattle. It's been a gradual, subtle change in direc- tion: let's target the upscale listeners at radiothon, let's use commercial radio strategy, like arbitrons, and shoehorn them to fit demographics. Longtime programmers have been told to "dumb down" their shows; don't play so much esoteric stuff, play more recognizable tunes/artists. Some of staff's "pet shows" get ad- vertised in mass media where they've never (run) such ads before. Last summer there was an abrupt change in programming. The World Beat people affected were given two week notice that they were losing a half hour from their shows. No advance warning, no appeals, no input; accept it. A meeting was called and volunteers were extremely offended that such a large change was quickly rammed in. Staff said they did it because they wanted to make the change as painless as possible. However, the volunteers felt like they were being taken for granted and pa- tronized. Now they have changed the policies on programming changes. Volunteers can participate in a comment period regard- ing the shows and times involved. The staff will weigh into account the volunteer's suggestions before they implement the de- cision. Although volunteers still have no "vote" in the final decision making process. I guess there are pros and cons to this. The station manager has a formal review this year. I think the staff is more aware that volunteers do care more about the station than just programming a show. I don't think they'll be so cavlier in decisions in the future. I support staff and generally think the station manager is do- ing a good job. (Many others at KRCL think he is too dictatori- al). However, I am perceiving a greediness oozing into certain decisions regarding fund raising. Our contributor categories used to go from $35, $50/60, $75. Now they were raised to $40, $75. There isn't much of a middle category anymore. Where does that leave students, artists, working people who love the station but can't absorb a $75 pledge? They feel like their lousy $20 bucks goes unwanted. Staff is now very concerned not just with money pledged but collection rates. After our last radiothon, we were supposed to air these admonishing PSA's the tenor of which was basically, "OK you listeners, remember, you pledged; now DON'T FORGET TO PAY!!!." Even though we say to them throughout 'thon, "Take 6 months to a year to pay, pledging's a voluntary act, we won't send a bill collector after you..." And we send people bill reminders every month. That ought to be enough reminding. Think of it - we've been bombarding them for 2-4 weeks before hand that 'thon is coming. Then 10 days of beg, beg, beg. Then, after it's over (staff) wants us to keep hounding them...??? 'Thon's been over for a month and every week it's still these damn PSA's. I think that's an insult to our listeners... ######## p. 6 Puget Sound Stations: KUGS-FM, Bellingham: New GM, Dan Tritle, took over the first of November. One of his first official acts was to accompany the outgoing interim GM before the AS (Associated Students Board - caretakers of the station's license) and stand by a recommenda- tion that the KUGS Advisory Committee (KAC) be disbanded. The university's newspaper, The Western Front, reported on 11/2 that the KAC could be reinstated after the charter and mission state- ment were re-written. The problem, the paper stated, was that the current charter allowed non-students to be seated on the ad- visory committee. The AS passed the recommendation unanimously. And, the November 27th, Bellingham Herald ran a story announcing KUGS' strategic success in capturing a larger share of its tar- geted listener group. The Herald states that in the 15 months since the bitter battle which resulted in a purge of many non- student programmers and a dramatic shift in programming to a ro- tation format featuring "alternative rock" almost exclusively the number of coveted 18-24 year olds listening to the station has doubled while the 35-54 year old listener group has been halved. Not much of a net gain to speak of but the age group is the one the the station's management and AS wanted. Whillhight Radio Research out of Seattle reports that the number of Western Wash- ington University students listening has risen from 7.3% to 18.4%. Though Tritle said in the Herald article, "We're well aware that our signal goes out into the community. We haven't forgotten them..." Anyone tuning in Thanksgiving Day though would have im- mediately realized that the station is now primarily for and about students. Dead air was the main fare proving the GM's fol- low on statement to the above, R...but, it's the students who we're mainly serving." KCMU / CURSE, Seattle: The stand off between the University of Washington's KCMU-FM and CURSE (Censorship Underminds Radio Sta- tion Ethics) continues. While CURSE has won over many of the volunteers who were hired to replace striking CURSE members and their supporters, pushed World Cafe to the weekends and accumu- lated a significant escrow of pledge monies that could have gone to the station, KCMU may finally be finding new support. Its fall on-air fundraiser was the most successful since the battle began more than a year ago. GM Chris Knab has been replaced by an interim GM, sister station KUOW's development director Tom Mara. Depositions by the 14 former volunteers and listeners who have filed a First Amendment suit against the UW, the university's director of broadcasting Wayne Roth and Knab have been filed in Federal Court and a June 1994 court date is set. For a comprehensive year end review of the KCMU/CURSE situation, get yourself a copy of CURSEword #7. (See InfoBox, p. 6) ########### p.6 ********************************* Info Box. Info Box Info Box DJ-L for folks involved in and interested in college radio. Send a subscribe message to the listserver at listserv@vm1.nodak.edu NACB run by the National Association of College Broadcasters. For the "career minded"... Send a subscribe message to: listserv@gwuvm.bitnet Usenet newsgroups: rec.radio.noncomm rec.radio.broadcasting alt.radio.pirate CURSE / CURSEword PO Box 85839 Seattle, WA 98145-1839 Hotline 206 298-CURS Free Radio Berkeley / Peoples FCC 1442 A Walnut St., #406 Berkeley, CA 94709 phone 510-464-3041 e-mail frbspd@crl.com RADIO WORLD PO Box 1214 Falls Church, VA 22041 Phone 703 - 998 - 7600 BAJ (Balance and Accuracy in Journalism) PO Box 824 Carrboro, NC 27510 PUT THE PUBLIC BACK IN PUBLIC RADIO Bumper sticker is $2.00 RADIO IS MY BOMB, anonymous Available electronically by anonymous ftp from dg-rtp.dg.com /fm10/incoming/radioismybomb.zip Or contact RRB if you're not connected and we'll see what we can be worked out. NEW MAILING LIST: Devmedia: Media for Development and Democracy. Send subscribe message to listserv@uoguelph.ca SUBSCRIBE DEVMEDIA (name) Additional 12/6 insert URGENT 12/6/93 BREAKING INFORMATION As Radio Resistor's Bulletin #5 went to the printer the follow- ing information was received. San Francisco Liberation Radio and Richard Edmondson have been served a $10,000.00 Notice of Apparent Liability by the FCC for alleged illegal broadcasting. They have retained Louis Hiken of the National Lawyers Guild Committee for Democratic Communication to represent them. Free Radio Berkeley has received a reply to its 13 page legal response to the $20,000 Notice of Apparent Liability levied against Stephen Dunifer last spring. Dunifer paraphrased the FCC's response this way: "Your legal arguments do not mean a thing to us, send us a check for $20,000.S Both San Francisco Liberation Radio and Free Radio Berkeley will continue to broadcast despite action taken by the FCC. FRB is intent on getting a network of micro stations on the air and notes that many stations are now coming up all over the Bay area, In a related case the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals surprised U.S. micro broadcasters and ordered the FCC to respond to briefs filed in support of KAPW's Bill Dougan and Tom Reveille. The case is slated to come before the court in San Francisco on De- cember 14, 1993. The court's order states in part: "The court is interested in the way (the FCC's) regulations serve public con- venience, interest and necessity and the government's interest involved in precluding micro power broadcasts." Louis Hiken released a statement saying that, "The Committee for Democratic Communication, FRB and SFLR are pleased that the court has seen fit to question the FCC's total prohibition of micro broadcasting. The court order reflects an awareness that the FCC appears to have totally exceeded its authority as a regulatory agency and, instead, has come perilously close to being an arm for government censorship - an institution which serves to stifle democratic communication." In a statement released by the National Lawyers Guild attorney Peter Franck, former president of the Pacifica Foundation and Guild member, called micro radio the "pamphlet of the 90Us and beyond." Further information regarding all of these cases is available from: NATIONAL LAWYERS GUILD COMMITTEE ON DEMOCRATIC COMMUNICATION One Sansome Street, Suite 900 San Francisco, CA Phone 415-705-6464 Free Radio Berkeley and The Free Communication Coalition Phone 510-464-3041 1442 A Walnut, #406, Berkeley, CA 94709 e-mail frbspd@crl.com San Francisco Liberation Radio Phone 415-487-6308 KAPW, Bill Dougan PO Box 47473, Phoenix, AZ 85068-7473 602-548-1054 R R B 12/23 The court will not issue its ruling for several weeks. In- formation received indicates however that of the 3 judges hearing Dougan's case one was sympathetic to the idea of Micro broadcast- ing, one was on the fence and the third was hostile to the whole idea. While the 9th Circuit Court has a reputation for its li- beralism its rulings have not always stood up well in higher courts. Watch for additional information on this. RADIO RESISTOR'S BULLETIN PO BOX 3038 BELLINGHAM, WA 98227-3038 E-MAIL haulgren@well.sf.ca.us RE-POST FREELY. END. -- William Pfeiffer - Moderator/Editor + Better Dead rec.radio.broadcasting - Airwaves Radio Journal + Than Satellite Fed - Internet email - + ********* Article Submission: articles@airwaves.chi.il.us + Support Subscription Desk: subscribe@airwaves.chi.il.us + Local Radio