(Low) Power to the People

This article explores trends related to low power FM radio (LPFM).

According to the author, the current regulatory (radio) environment has limited the variety of programming that people in the United States can enjoy. Today, nearly 219 million Americans (96% of those 12 and over) tune into 13,012 radio stations for news, sports, weather, traffic, music, and talk. Two corporations, Clear Channel and Viacom, claim 42% of listeners and 45% of industry revenues. Since the passage of the Federal Communications Act in 1996, Clear Channel has grown from 40 stations to 1,240 stations, 30 times more than Congressional regulation previously allowed. (By way of contrast, according to statistics included in the article, in the 1920's fewer than 5% of USA radio stations were operated commercially). One music industry commentator cited in the article notes that certain elements of American music culture - zydeco, jazz, the blues - are difficult to find on the commercial airwaves; classical music and opera, he says, have all but vanished.

LPFM stations operate against this trend. Owned by churches, charities, environmental groups, schools, and governmental agencies, the stations use as few as 100 watts (the power of the average light bulb) in contrast to the 50,000 wattage of commercial stations. Whereas LPFM stations beam shows to their communities (typically within a radius of three or four miles), the signals of commercial stations can be heard for 100 miles.

The article highlights one example. In 2003, volunteers associated with the Southern Development Foundation (SDF) launched a new LPFM station in Opelousas, Louisiana, USA. The station's barn raising, organised by Prometheus Radio Project, involved workshops on topics ranging from radio production to funding techniques to new technologies. SDF plans to use the station to promote zydeco, a traditional black creole music. This music is an endangered species on commercial radio stations, according to an associate of the Future of Music Coalition. To support these efforts, Internet broadcasting (which involves programmes being streamed over the Internet) can offer local programming.

Commenting on these trends, one media scholar quoted in the article notes that, for a democracy to be effective, "you need some sort of media system that's going to do two things. First of all, it's going to ruthlessly account for the activities of people in power and people who want to be in power so you know what they're actually doing. Secondly, it's going to give a wide range of opinions on the fundamental social and political issues that citizens need to know about." Media in the USA, he says, fail to meet that obligation. In the words of William Kennard, chairman of the F.C.C. during the Clinton Administration, "Low-power FM enhances democracy on the dial: It fosters new opportunities for true community radio to flourish in an age marked by the increasing consolidation and homogenization of the industry and the marketplace of ideas."

Click here for the full report on the Ford Foundation site.