FCC to release the low power FM logjam

Just in time for the election, the FCC is finally going to announce how it is going to resolve the licensing issues with new FM stations.

The FCC is trying to balance competing interests:
– existing commercial FM stations that want NO more stations to EVER be licensed on THEIR band under ANY circumstances (unless of course it is to them!)
– religious broadcasters who want to establish national networks (like EMF, the company behind KLove/Air1) delivered by satellite with no local presence beyond a “Transmitter in a box”
– Local community groups like ACORN and “immigrant rights” who want to operate low power FM (LPFM) stations to organize their communisties
– people who want to start brand new full power FM stations

The last group is very small – the FCC just had an auction of possible new FM stations in very thinly populated areas and many of them didn’t even have a single bid. Those that did attract bids were for tiny amounts of money.

George W Bush was very “religious friendly” and under his watch the FCC began a process to allow the religious broadcasters to apply for FM Tnanslators that were lower power than a regulr FM stationa and therefore could slip in between existing commercial FM stations. These FM translators were not limited to the non-commercial FM band (88-92 Mhz), but could be anywhere on the FM band (a lot of those new FM translators carrying AM stations are rented from those non-commercial broadcasters to carry commercial programming!). Two groups in particular – EMF and Calvary Chapel of Twin Lakes) and others had radio people familair with the FCC licensing process and knew how to do engineering studies and flooded the FCC with several 1000 potentially viable locations for an FM translator. The FCC was overwhelmed with processing the applictions, and largely due to pressure from the NAB (group #1) slammed the brakes on new FM licenses, and those already filed 10 years ago have been sitting at the FCC gathering dust while the FCC decides what to do, knowing that no matter what they choose, someone is going to sue them (on top of the political consequences)

So now the FCC under the leadership of Julius Genachowski (Barack Obama’s long time lawyer friend from Harvard), with two new members on the 5 panel commission just approved – is ready to publish its new rules. The FCC has already relaxed the rules to stop protecting 3rd adjacent frequencies (which may have made sense back in 1962 when receivers were very primitive)… the main issue is precdence where licenses come into conflict – which is more important? – another FM translator for Donald Wildmon’s American Family radio or La Raza operating a local low powwer FM station to do “community organizing”? hmmmm…. hard choice for Friends of Obama.

Low Power FM and FM Translators have much relaxed engineering and testing requiments – since their signals only go a few miles, they can’t do much damage to other stations as long as they aren’t running over power. Typically they are nothing more than a 10 or 12 foot high antenna on top of an existing building. No FAA aircraft concerns, local Zoning/Land Use Nazis won’t even know they’re there, and would have a hard time making a case against something no more obnoxious than a satellite dish on someone’s roof… so once the license is issued, the new stations may be on the air within a few weeks, sooner if the people are well organized and have the equipment purchases already lined up waiting for the “Go!” order.

The main umbrella group pushing for Low Power FM is a place called the Promethius Radio Project
http://www.prometheusradio.org/
which carries the description of “Freeing the Airwaves from Corporate Control” [including the Corporation for Public Broadcasting?]. Prometheus in Greek Mythology is the father of humankind, and taught humans dangerous things like astronomy, mathematics, navigation, medicine, and metallurgy. Pometheus build the box containing evil that Pandora would later open.

Featured prominantly on the Promethius web site is Rashad Robinson, the head of Color of Change, which is a familiar group if you listen to Glenn Beck. Interestingly (given my earlier post), Mr Robinson took that job after having worked for GLAAD.

I decided a couple years ago to include Low Power FM stations in the directory. Many of them are surprisingly good given their limited options for funding their operations – many being run by the “real” radio people displaced by the radio consolidation of Clear Channel  and Cumulus.   Things may get very busy for me in a few weeks.