This is an extremely important bill, and another huge win for Progressives from our still Democratically controlled Congress.
It may not have achieved MSM attention, but that's because the MSM most likely didn't want it to succeed. Those interested in having more local, independent (and non-corporate sponsored) voices on the radio across the country, however, have been watching with bated breath to see if it would pass.
It just did.
Forgive the short diary, here, but it had to be mentioned, and championed.
From Reclaimthemedia.org:
The Local Community Radio Act, which will allow the FCC to issue possibly thousands of new noncommercial LPFM radio licenses, earned broad, bipartisan support after some ten years of organizing by grassroots media democracy advocates from coast to coast. Backers of the bill included a stupefying range of civil rights groups, religious organizations, musicians, unions and garage-bound radio dreamers around the country.
Washington State elected officials played a pivotal role in passing the bill into law; Senator Maria Cantwell championed the bill in the Senate, and House cosponsors included Washington Rep. Jay Inslee.
"This is a huge win for communities across the northwest and across the country who have been pining for more and better local radio, more support for local music and more diversity on the airwaves," said Jonathan Lawson of Reclaim the Media, a Seattle-based media justice organization which has worked alongside many other advocacy groups since 2002 to expand community access to media, including LPFM. "Senator Cantwell deserves our thanks for seeing this through to the end."
From Huffington Post:
Its passing will bring new choices and voices on the radio dial nationwide, but is especially relevant to a broadcast area reaching 160 million people who lived in areas where these stations had previously been barred from local airwaves...
...With the opening of the airwaves to LPFM stations, progressives can gain a small but consequential spot on the radio dial. The challenge now is to organize local groups to gain access to licenses.
From Free Press's press release:
The Local Community Radio Act removes restrictions on the licensing of low power FM radio stations, and opens up the public airwaves for the 160 million people who have been excluded from the benefits of community radio. These noncommercial stations will help to diversify the airwaves, support local music and culture, and assist communities during emergencies. This is an amazing and exciting victory for the many organizations across the country who have been waiting for an opportunity to get on the air.
Please read the articles, and please thank Senator Maria Cantwell for fighting so hard for this to pass.
This is a major victory.
Thanks.
A Brief Overview of LPFM/What's Required:
1. The service is non-commercial.
2. There are two classes of stations-LP 100 (100 watts, 100 feet HAAT) and LP 10 (10 watts, 100 feet HAAT). So far the FCC has not opened up an LP-10 window.
3. Eligible licensees can be non-commercial government or private educational organizations, associations or entities; non-profit entities with educational purposes (the definition of which has now been broadened enough to include a wide variety of content).
4. LPFM stations are required to broadcast a minimum amount of hours per week and participate in the EAS system. Check the FCC's site for more on this.
5. The license term will be for eight years, and cannot be sold to another party.
You will have to certify that your organization does indeed operate in the city in which you wish to broadcast, and that a majority of your board (or other persons) live within ten miles of the proposed station.
Also, take a long look at what the FCC's asking from potential LPFM applicants. If you have specific questions, please contact your legal council or other professional representative.
Good luck!
UPDATE: Rec List? Thanks, guys. Hopefully this means more people in their communities will know about the bill's passage and take advantage.
Happy Holidays!