Things will be static around here until the new year; in the meantime take a tour of the Media Minutes production space I cobbled together.
The initial plan called for utilizing the facilities of the university’s public broadcast complex, but the radio stations are woefully behind the times technologically (nearly-abandonware audio editing systems and no network capability within or between studios). Plus, during pledge drives I’d find myself with no place to work. Going the DIY route is not bad, especially when you’ve actually got a budget to work with and expert advice available. Continue reading “Media Minutes: Behind the Scenes”
Month: December 2004
"The Fish Was Delish and It Made Quite a Dish"
Strong Bad does the radio dial.
“College radio can pretty much be summed up in five words: Dead air, um, dead air.” Not always true, but enough to bust a gut.
Making Waves Update; FCC in MN
Michael Lahey’s been getting around: his killer microradio documentary will get more screenings around the country next year, one of which will be in April at the Anthology Film Archives in NYC. Also, a professor from the UK recently contacted Michael about using Making Waves as part of an exercise/discussion in a new textbook on alternative media.
Earlier this month Michael also was a special guest on The Power Hour, a talk show carried on the Genesis Communications Network. Not only did Michael get two hours to plug the film and talk about the issues behind it, but they also opened the phone lines. That’s where things got interesting: Continue reading “Making Waves Update; FCC in MN”
Dutch Pirate Blowtorch Blowout
It’s tough to fully understand because it’s all in Dutch, but there was one hell of a pirate broadcast in Europe this past weekend. Radio Koning, Keizer, Admiraal (“King, General, Admiral”) took to the airwaves Friday on 97.0 FM, running 11,000 watts out of an antenna more than 100 meters tall.
The broadcast was the result of a combined effort of four pirate station-groups operating in the eastern Netherlands, laid on (in part) to protest the methodical sweep of the FM band carried out by the Dutch government in the past few years as part of a policy of spectrum commodification. Practically speaking, however, it was just one big party. Continue reading “Dutch Pirate Blowtorch Blowout”
Denver Free Radio Packs It In
Sad news from the mile-high city: KCTS Radio, after a short but spirited game of cat-and-mouse with the FCC, has decided to retire the operation. From a communiqué first e-mailed (now available on the station’s web site), station spoke Carl Nimbus answers, in detail, the question, “So what happened to ‘we’re just going to keep coming back’?”
The FCC was all over us. More than they have the time and budget for. More than nearly any other pirate station in the country….[Denver FCC agent Jon] Sprague and friends were coming faster and more frequently than their counterparts do in markets like LA, SF, NYC, Dallas, Chicago and other large cities. Why would that be? The FCC responds to complaints from licensed broadcasters. They very rarely go out at random to shut down a pirate. Continue reading “Denver Free Radio Packs It In”
FCC as Sketch Troupe
Shamelessly lifted from the trade rag Radio & Records, this is not the work of beings in the reality-based community:
In a taped performance shown [Dec. 3] at the Federal Communications Bar Association FCC Chairman’s Dinner… [Mikey] Powell donned a wig that looked only slightly worse than [Donald Trump’s] actual hair and faced down Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein, Media Bureau Chief Ken Ferree and Powell Chief of Staff Bryan Tramont at a large table in a spoof of the boardroom scenes from the NBC TV show The Apprentice. Dutifully filling in for real-life Trump assistants Carolyn and George were Commissioners Kathleen Abernathy and Michael Copps. Continue reading “FCC as Sketch Troupe”