Foundation Journal

Prometheus Radio Project, the leading advocate and organizer for community-based low-power FM radio stations, echoed the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) announcement that the deadline for applications has been extended until November 14. The Local Community Radio Act of 2010 promises to enable hundreds of community organizations to start FM radio stations with a short broadcasting range. Organizers at the Prometheus Radio Project have  assisted 1000 groups with the application process , including groups focused on "environmental protection, veterans' issues, serving immigrant and diaspora communities, healthcare access, and cultural preservation."

Since serving on the KKFI board of directors for three-plus years I've witnessed a range of activities which indicate the station is moving in a positive and stable direction, but KKFI faces some serious challenges to remain relevant and grow, while staying true to it's mission. For those of you with your ear tuned to the community radio world all is not calm in the world of community radio -- WBAI, one of five Pacifica Radio Network stations, laid off 19 of 29 employees last month as a step to fix it's $3 million debt; WPFW, the Washington DC-based Pacifica station, has seen a large drop in listeners and has been working to correct "six-figure deficits;" KBOO in Portland is in the middle of a nasty public dispute ; and Pacifica announced recently that Free Speech Radio News may be shutting operations due to a financial crisis at the radio network. In the public radio sphere National Public Radio announced last week that it is seeking to reduce it's ...

GRC conference quilt Community radio producers, DJ's, advocates, organizers, engineers, and students came together for the 2011 Grassroots Radio Conference in Kansas City to share the joys and frustrations with producing independent, community-focused media. The vision of an informal national network of Community Radio stations is represented by the conference quilt that stitches together several radio station T-shirts. This vision, which references a dedication to local communities is as strong as ever, but masks the difficulty of maintaining resources and developing new programs. Representatives from stations as disparate as KPFA in San Francisco, KKFI in Kansas City, WORT in Madison, KOPN in Columbia, Missouri, KCSB in Santa Barbara, and many others spoke about the difficulty in attracting community organizations and individuals to produce their own programs. Joy Rushing with KOPN noted the lack of student involvement in the operations and programming of that station desp...