From: pete tridish <[log in to unmask]>

Date: August 22, 2008 5:22:11 PM EDT

Subject: research bounty on evangelical radio networks


Hi scholars and friends


This is a research bounty through the Social Sciences Research Council. Please let us know if you or someone you know is interested, or pass it on to others who might be interested in taking up this project. Prometheus has always felt that while many details of how we operate are public knowledge on our website or in articles and interviews with us, it is much harder to really understand some of the groups that are vying for spectrum with the community groups that we represent. As many of you are aware, our groups frequently find themselves in competition with large satellite networks of hundreds of stations beamed from a single studio that have taken advantage of certain loose elements of the FCCs rules to apply for frequencies that should have been allocated to a local entity.
This project would help to sharpen our analysis of their interests and find possible solutions and strategies that could be of use in our work to get radio stations for small grassroots groups.


thanks,

pete tridish




A Strategy, Acquisition, and Revenue Model of Evangelical Radio Networks $ 7500


Low-power FM (LPFM) was established to give non-profit, educational organizations an outlet for local programming and community news. Religious organizations, many of them evangelical Christian churches, comprise approximately half of the applicants for low-power FM licenses approved by the FCC. Evangelical broadcasting corporations have also been effective in leveraging the low-power translator service, which allows a primary FM station to be simultaneously rebroadcast on a different frequency, to start hundreds of low-cost translator stations across the country.


We would like to see a research project that explores the business models of the major Christian broadcasting companies - their organizational structure, sources of revenue, financial make-up, and affiliate churches. The research should also determine what links these organizations have to larger social movements and in what way and to what extent the stations serve their local communities. Analysis of the local/non-local nature of the programming on these stations, and their local public service would also be very illuminating and useful.


The deadline for claiming the bounties will be 30 Sept. This is to ensure that in case the bounties are not claimed, we can re-direct the funds to new small grants projects (see the call for proposals, deadline 8 Sept: http://mediaresearchhub.ssrc.org/grants/small-grants-project).


If you have any possible researcher candidates in mind for your bounty projects, please alert them about this opportunity!


Let me know if you have any further questions.


Best regards, Minna


Minna Aslama

Program Officer

Media and Democracy

Social Science Research Council

810 7th Ave, 31st Floor

NY, NY  10019

tel. +1 212 377-2700

fax. +1 212 377-2727

 Making Communications Research Matter


Clemencia Rodriguez
Associate Professor
Department of Communication
The University of Oklahoma
610 Elm Avenue Norman OK 73019
405 325 1570
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