[IRCA] Re: Tip for Western US listeners...

[Michael Hawkins <downsized99@xxxxxxxxx>]

No, I don't own a station.  Long, long ago, I thought about buying and operating a local FM that was having some severe financial difficulties.  I think most of the reason for wanting to do it was so I could be a DJ any damned time I wanted to (yeah, I was young) and to subsidize my music collection.  I didn't do it, and the station's still around 20 years later.

 

As you can tell by my comments, I really enjoy the local presence.  Even when its boring, you always have the option of calling the station and telling them.  When its a satellite feed, nobody really cares what you think, as long as you keep listening.  When I was a kid, I used to pedal my bike down to KLIV/San Jose and hang out with the announcer while he was doing his show.  As long as I kept my mouth shut at the appropriate times, it was OK.  With the exception of a few years as CNN Headline News, they have always been (and still are) a locally operated station.

 

Its funny that you mention a station being in a suitcase.  In 1928, the FRC (Federal Radio Commission...predecessor to the FCC) cleaned up the AM frequencies and forced a lot of slackers to start going by the rules.  In the process, they pulled the licenses for all of the stations that were running "out of suitcases."  There were a bunch of mobile stations then.  If they got in trouble, they changed frequency.  If they got in *real* trouble, they packed up and moved.

 

There is at least one radio station owner in California who has gotten nailed because they held licenses for numerous AM & FM stations which didn't exist.  I read that in one case, the transmitter location was an empty lot that had no sign of any antenna or building (past or present).  All ownership and correspondence to the stations went to a building in the Los Angeles area.  He eventually got nailed.  There is currently one "station" on 1480 in Concord CA that goes through periodic call changes, and if you read the FCC queries, you would think they are for real.  They have not been on the air since around 1990-1992.  I can't see the point of hoarding licenses and masquerading as a radio station when others may be able to put the frequency to good use.  The FCC says I am mistaken.   Heh heh heh...your tax dollars at work!  I better stop before I find another soapbox.

Mike (you can tell its Monday) Hawkins

Mike McKenna <way2twohot@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Mike,  Good thing you don't own a station - yet.  LOL  Its very difficult to tell -- and it seems that more stations are just broadcasting directly from a  satilite -- but there are still some FCC rules.    Fist -- a real "local" studio of some type where even the programming from a network feed or satilite -- must go through in route to the transmitter.   The studio must relay all "programming" to the transmitter by telephone lines or STL.    This main studio may -- or may not be the local business office to the fulltime station managent person and the fulltime office staff member that must be in the office during nomial business hours.    There also has to be a station Chief Engineer --.  Other than that -- you are right on the mark -- 860 could just as well be in a suit case -- packed and ready! to go. 

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