From the Ghana Community Radio Network, Congratulations, Martha, Pete
Tridish/Prometheus Radio Project and all LPFM Advocates on your historic
achievement!
Following closely on the announcement in October of the go-ahead for the issuing
of licences to Community Radio in Nigeria, we like to think that this happily
forebodes many beginnings, new and ever renewed.
May Low Power become Big Power!
________________________________
From: Martha Wallner <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Mon, 20 December, 2010 23:49:51
Subject: YES! Senate Joins House in Passing the Local Community Radio Act:
Thousands of community groups rejoice at new opportunity for locally owned media
Untitled Document
We finally did it!!!! It took some squirmy maneuvers at the end but YESSSS!
This was voted on Saturday.
If you’re in Bay Area, CA and interested in a local celebration in the coming
year get back to me.
Low Power to the People!
Martha Wallner/ Nat’l Advisory Board to Expand LPFM / Pass the Community Radio
Act
________________________________
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
December 18th, 2010
Contact: Hannah Sassaman, 267-970-4007
[log in to unmask]
Senate Joins House in Passing the Local Community Radio Act:
Thousands of community groups rejoice at new opportunity for locally owned media
WASHINGTON, DC – Today a bill to expand community radio nationwide – the Local
Community Radio Act – passed the U.S. Senate, thanks to the bipartisan
leadership of Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and John McCain (R-AZ). This
follows Friday afternoon’s passage of the bill in the House of Representatives,
led by Representatives Mike Doyle (D-PA) and Lee Terry (R-NE). The bill now
awaits the President's signature.
These Congressional champions for community radio joined with the thousands of
grassroots advocates and dozens of public interest groups who have fought for
ten years to secure this victory for local media. In response to overwhelming
grassroots pressure, Congress has given the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) a mandate to license thousands, of new community stations nationwide. This
bill marks the first major legislative success for the growing movement for a
more democratic media system in the U.S.
“A town without a community radio station is like a town without a library,”
said Pete Tridish of the Prometheus Radio Project, the group which has led the
fight to expand community radio for ten years. “Many a small town dreamer –
starting with a few friends and bake sale cash – has successfully launched a low
power station, and built these tiny channels into vibrant town institutions that
spotlight school board elections, breathe life into the local music scene, allow
people to communicate in their native languages, and give youth an outlet to
speak.”
The Local Community Radio Act will expand the low power FM (LPFM) service
created by the FCC in 2000 – a service the FCC created to address the shrinking
diversity of voices on the radio dial. Over 800 LPFM stations, all locally owned
and non-commercial, are already on the air. The stations are run by non-profit
organizations, local governments, churches, schools, and emergency responders.
The bill repeals earlier legislation which had been backed by big broadcasters,
including the National Association of Broadcasters. This legislation, the Radio
Broadcast Preservation Act of 2000, limited LPFM radio to primarily rural areas.
The broadcast lobby groups claimed that the new 100 watt stations could somehow
create interference with their own stations, a claim disproven by a
Congressionally-mandated study in 2003.
Congressional leaders worked for years to pass this legislation. As the clock
wound down on the 111th Congress, they worked with the NAB to amend the bill to
enshrine even stronger protections against interference and to ensure the
prioritization of full power FM radio stations over low power stations.
Though the amendments to the bill will require some further work at the FCC, low
power advocates celebrated the first chance in a decade for groups in cities,
towns, and other communities to take their voices to the FM dial.
“After ten years of ef for t, a $2.2 million taxpayer-funded study, and new
provisions to address this hypothetical interference, we are finally on our way
to seeing new community radio stations across the U.S. This marks a beginning,
not an end, to our work,” saidBrandy Doyle, Policy Director for the Prometheus
Radio Project. “For the first time, LPFM community radio has a chance to grow,
and we’re ready to seize that opportunity.”
“All of us at UCC OC Inc. and at Prometheus express our incredible gratitude to
Congressmen Mike Doyle and Lee Terry and Senators Maria Cantwell and John McCain
for the leadership and counsel during this process,” said Cheryl Leanza, a board
member of the Prometheus Radio Project and a Policy Advisor to the United Church
of Christ, Office of Communication, Inc. “Without their work and the work of
their committed staff we would not have come this far. At long last the 160
million Americans who have been deprived of the opportunity to apply for a
local low power radio station will get a chance to be a part of the American
media.”
"I am a leadership organizer from the ranks of the poor working with other
low-wage workers – fighting for human rights in Maryland ,” said Veronica
Dorsey of the United Workers, a human rights organization in Baltimore . “Low
power FM radio would allow the United Workers to expand the message of our End
Poverty Radio show, which is currently only available on the internet. End
Poverty Radio develops leaders and gives workers a way to tell their stories and
be heard – and a low power FM station would reach a lot of people who do not
have access to the internet. LPFM is a way for those in the community who are
struggling to survive to hear stories that they can relate to, and to know that
they are not alone in this struggle for human dignity. We can’t wait to work to
build low power FM in communities like ours, so we can accomplish these goals."
“Civil rights groups and community organizations have wanted low power FM radio
for years, and now the chance is here,” said Betty Yu, coordinator of the Media
Action Grassroots Network, a national media justice network with members in many
cities and communities that lost their chance to get low power FM radio
stations. “From Seattle , Oakland , and Albuquerque to Minneapolis , San
Antonio , Kentucky and Philadelphia , thousands of communities know that having
access to our own slice of the dial means a tool to build our movements for
justice. We have won something huge in Congress, but the fight is not over. Now
we need to work at the FCC to make sure as many licenses as possible can be
available in rural communities, towns and suburbs, and America 's cities.”
LPFMs have saved lives in powerful storms when big broadcasts lose power or
can’t serve local communities in the eye of the storm. WQRZ-LP in Bay St. Louis,
MS received awards from President Bush and other organizations post Katrina in
2005, when one of the station operators swam across flood waters with fuel
strapped to his back to keep his station on the air. The station proved so
important that the Emergency Operations Center of Hancock County set up shop
with the LPFM to serve the community after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
Bipartisan Senators and House members have expressed support for the Local
Community Radio Act as a vital way to expand emergency service media across our
nation.
“I’m Frank Bluestein from Germantown , Tennessee , one of the several large
suburban cities located just outside of Memphis . We have been fighting for the
past 10 years to persuade Congress to give communities like ours the opportunity
to establish a low power FM radio station. Our city wants to provide community
and civic groups, students of all ages, local artists and others the power to
communicate over their own LPFM channel,” said Frank Bluestein, a media teacher
and Executive Producer of Germantown Community Television.
"Equally important for Germantown , we need a dedicated communication outlet
that will serve the needs of our citizens in the event another tornado rips
through town or if any kind of natural disaster hits,” continued Bluestein. “In
this day and age, emergency management is a must for a city of our size and
LPFM perfectly fits our needs. A low power FM radio station can stay on the air
even if the power goes out. Low power FM saved lives during Katrina but
strangely, the federal government is banning it from this part of Tennessee .
That is not fair or wise. We have the right to be as safe as any other community
in the US .After 10 years, now is the time! Congress has passed the Local
Community Radio Act, and chances are so much greater that groups in towns like
mine can apply for LPFM licenses. Germantown is ready to work here and at the
FCC to make licenses for communities like ours possible.”
Grassroots leaders were key in helping Senators understand that expanding low
power FM was important and urgent. “Our station provides some of the only local
service to Gillette when big storms come through, and it puts great content on
the air. That's why so many in our town think it is such a vital resource,” said
Pastor Joel Wright of the First Presbyterian Church of Gillette, WY, licensee of
KCOV-LP 95.7 FM . “Senators Barrasso and Enzi had concerns about expanding low
power FM, but they heard from many Wyoming folks who want these stations, and
dropped those concerns. Communities of faith and so many others can celebrate
that we've jumped this big hurdle to more license being available in cities,
smaller towns, and rural communities nationwide. I look for ward to working with
many other pastors and groups to launch their own wonderful new community
voices.”
"The Media Mobilizing Project works with a huge diversity of leaders across
Philadelphia -- from taxi drivers and immigrant communities to students and low
wage workers," said Desi Burnette of Philadelphia 's Media Mobilizing Project.
"Our leaders have been lucky enough to produce multiple programs with WPEB-FM,
88.1 – bringing all of these communities together. But WPEB is a 1-watt station,
only covering a few city blocks. Now with the passage of the Local Community
Radio Act, Philadelphia has a much greater chance of getting at least one
100-watt station of its own. With low power FM in our community, poor and
working people across this region would have an incredible tool to learn
together, to understand their shared struggles and conditions, and to work to
change them."
"Our low power FM radio station has allowed Guatemalan, Haitian, and many other
hard-working immigrant farmworkers to communicate in their native languages, and
to build the power for dignity and respect in the fields of Southwest Florida ,"
said the Coalition of Immokalee Workers' Gerardo Reyes Chavez. "Our radio
station, WCIW – Radio Consciencia – has developed womens' leadership, has
allowed us to mobilize rapidly in crises, and has helped us trans for m not
just our community but the hundreds of communities inspired by our struggle. We
look for ward to helping many other farmworkers learn how to build their own
stations and how to expand justice on the FM dial."
"In the rural areas we serve and all across the country, low power FMs are
poised to celebrate and preserve unique local culture," said Nick Szuberla of
Appalshop, a group that uses media to preserve Appalachian culture and tradition
while working to improve quality of life. "More low power FMs mean that the
vibrant, beautiful, and vital voices of America 's rural areas and small towns
will shine – and it will mean sustainable local resources in times of crisis.
Low power FM stations can stay on the air in storms and save thousands of lives.
Congress and community radio advocates should be proud of the resources they've
won for American communities."
“Our group of 150 volunteers here at the Chicago Independent Radio Project
(CHIRP) is extremely pleased that the Local Community Radio Act has been passed
by Congress, and will be signed into law by our fellow Chicagoan, President
Obama,” said Shawn Campbell, a founder of CHIRP. “For three years, CHIRP
volunteers and supporters have worked diligently toward the goal of being able
to apply for a low power FM broadcast license, and we look for ward to working
with our national allies and the FCC to make sure new stations are licensed in
large markets around the country, including Chicago .”
"For decades, the Esperanza Center has worked in San Antonio and beyond to
bring people together across cultures, and to ensure the civil rights and
economic justice of everyone," said Graciela Sanchez of the Esperanza Center for
Peace and Justice in San Antonio. "Whether we are fighting for the right to
publically protest or to save the water systems of our region, we need to
communicate and coordinate to effectively organize. Low power FM in San Antonio
can unite people across cultures and issues to work together to make this city
better for everyone. We celebrate this victory for everyone and pledge to work
with allies to win as many stations as possible for communities nationwide."
Over 10 years, hundreds of groups of all walks of life struggled to bring
community radio stations to every community possible, and they cannot all be
listed here. We would like to thank the coalition who worked weekly to move this
mountain including: Free Press, United Church of Christ Office of Communication,
Inc, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Media Access Project, the Future of
Music Coalition, the Media and Democracy Coalition, the Leadership Conference on
Civil and Human Rights, the National Hispanic Media Coalition, the Benton
Foundation, the Prometheus National Advisory Committee and Board of Directors.
We thank those who were instrumental in this final push including: Reclaim the
Media, The Media Action Grassroots Network, New America Foundation, Chicago
Independent Radio Project, MoveOn.org, Color of Change, the Christian Coalition,
and the National Association of Evangelicals, and Spitfire Consulting. Our
partners in supporting community media including the National Federation of
Community Broadcasters and the Grassroots Radio Coalition, and Media Alliance,
Pacifica, REC Networks, the Alliance for Community Media.
We thank those who have helped at key moments throughout these ten years
including: United States Public Interest Research Group, Consumers Union, the
Esperanza Peace and Justice Center, the United Methodist Church Office of
Communication, the Indigo Girls, OK Go, Nicole Atkins, the Microradio List,
Amherst Alliance, MIcroradio Implementation Project, Pacifica Radio, Common
Frequency, Christian Community Broadcasters, KYES -TV, National Lawyers Guild
Committee on Democratic Communications, Virginia Center for the Public Press,
every FCC Commissioner since 1999 (except for Harold Furchgott Roth).
We thank our radio barnraising partners who have time and again shown up to
represent the best of what LPFM can be: WGXC-FM in Hudson, New York with
Free103point9; WMXP-LP in Greenville, South Carolina with the Malcolm X
Grassroots Movement; KPCN-LP in Woodburn, Oregon with Pineros y Campesinos
Unidos del Noroeste; WRFU-LP in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois with Radio Free
Urbana; WXOJ-LP in Northampton, Massachusetts with Valley Free Radio; WRFN-LP in
Pasquo, Tennessee with Radio Free Nashville; WSCA-LP in Portsmouth, New
Hampshire with Portsmouth Community Radio; WCIW-LP in Immokalee, Florida with
the Coalition of Immokalee Workers; KYRS-LP in Spokane, Washington with Thin Air
Community Radio; KOCZ-LP in Opelousas, Louisiana with the Southern Development
Foundation; KRBS-LP in Oroville, Cali for nia with the Bird Street Media
Project; and our very first radio barnraising with WRYR-LP in Deale, Maryland
with South Arundel Citizens for Responsible Development.
“We've built community radio stations from coast to coast and around the
country,” said Hannah Sassaman, a longtime organizer with the Prometheus Radio
Project. ‘The faith and perseverance of low power FM's legislative champions and
the thousands who pushed the Local Community Radio Act has paid off in
incredible ways. After ten years of struggle, it's stunning to know that in the
next years, the FCC will work to and begin licensing LPFMs in city
neighborhoods, in suburbs and towns, and in rural areas. It's humbling to
understand that new young people will gain a love of telling stories at the
working end of a microphone or at home listening to their neighbors. And it's
powerful to know that these stations will launch leaders in every walk of life
to change their communities, and this country. We look for ward to launching the
next generation of community stations with you.”
To learn more about low power FM community radio, visit
http://www.prometheusradio.org.
This email was sent to [log in to unmask] If you are no longer interested you can
unsubscribe instantly.