In any three-way war, the enemy of your enemy is your friend.
The Federal Communications Commission’s initiative to legalize low power FM radio was a something many unlicensed broadcasters had supported (and worked to demonstrate) and some formally petitioned the FCC to undertake the initiative.
During 1999, while the FCC fleshed out its plans for LPFM, agents in the field claimed to have closed down 154 “pirate” stations.
While the agency won’t publicly admit it, in the wording of its LPFM rules was buried a small caveat to currently active unlicensed broadcasters that they could qualify for a license if they desired, so long as they shut down immediately. Continue reading “The Carrot and the Stick”
Tag: enforcement
Party Pirate Gets Broadside
On Friday, Tampa’s Party Pirate 102.1 received a double whammy from the FCC.
The day’s issue of the Federal Register included a terse announcement from the agency that Leslie “Doug” Brewer and his two-way radio business had been fined $10,000 for allegedly selling an “unauthorized FM radio transmitter” above the legal Part 15 power limit. According to the FCC, an undercover agent placed the order and made the purchase.
Also on March 3, Doug Brewer found out that a Federal court ruled in favor of the FCC in its seizure of two-way radio equipment stemming from the November 1997 raid of his station. The government gets to keep thousands of dollars worth of equipment not remotely related to FM piracy as “spoils” from their military-style raid on his home. Continue reading “Party Pirate Gets Broadside”
Radio Cops: Beefup or Breakdown?
Just one day before the Federal Communications Commission approved the creation of a low-power FM service, Chairman William Kennard spoke to a group of telecommunications companies and laid out his vision of what the FCC’s new “enforcement ethic” would be in the year 2000 and beyond.
A couple of months ago, the FCC reorganized its resources and created a whole new Enforcement Bureau – consolidating all of the agency’s enforcement activities into one central organization.
Under the old hierarchy, the regulation of telephones, cable companies and radio stations were handled in different FCC bureaus – and each bureau had its own enforcement agents. Now, those agents share a bureau of their own. Does this portend good or bad news for pirate stations? Continue reading “Radio Cops: Beefup or Breakdown?”
Martyr No More
Two years is a long time to stay silent. But in the case of Doug Brewer, who can blame him?
Doug was one of those raided by law enforcement and the FCC on November 19, 1997. That day is referred to by unlicensed microbroadcasters nationwide as “Black Wednesday” – when the FCC swept through Florida with guns at their back and shut down at least three low power FM radio stations. One person was even arrested in the sweep.
Doug’s case was one of the most brutal. He was woken up early the morning of November 19 to the sight of a SWAT team and held “in custody” for most of the day in his home while agents methodically destroyed not only his station, 102.1 “Tampa’s Party Pirate,” but also damaged his home and ransacked his radio equipment sales and repair business. Continue reading “Martyr No More”
After the Bust
As the number of pirate stations in the U.S. has risen, the level of work for the FCC’s enforcement folks has also risen dramatically. This comes in the face of a waning cycle of FCC budget cuts, which forced the agency’s “police” apparatus to consolidate into regional offices.
Now, the FCC has announced the creation of a new “enforcement bureau” dedicated to policing the American airwaves. Under the previous system, the friendly field agents pirates occasionally encounter drew their pay from the Compliance and Information Bureau (CIB).
The move is part of what’s called “A New FCC for the 21st Century,” but it’s actually growth for the agency. Amoeba-like, the CIB has split and multiplied – now the “radio cops” have their own whole bureau to play with! Continue reading “After the Bust”
Revolutions Begin Locally
re·volt (ri-‘vOlt) n. An act of protest, refusal, revulsion or disgust. See synonyms under REVOLUTION.
rev·o·lu·tion (rev&-‘lü-sh&n) n. An extensive or drastic change in a condition, method, idea, etc.
It seems you can find strong support for low power radio on the local level, but the farther one gets up the government chain (and the greater the physical distance between the governors and governed is), the enthusiasm fades away.
It is the federal government who sets the rules for broadcasting and enforces them. When the FCC knocks on a pirate’s door, they’re not doing so at the behest of city councilmen or county board-members – they’re doing it because it’s the law of the land. Continue reading “Revolutions Begin Locally”
Expanding Your Lifespan
Turning on a transmitter is almost like daring the authorities to come knocking. The simple act of being on the air in the first place is illegal; broadcasting without a license is one of the only crimes where the perpetrator boldly announces they’re defying authority while they commit the offense.
Outside of the rule-breaking aspect, being on the air is simply fun. There is no other thrill quite like the one you get from “pirate” broadcasting. Trust me – you will know it when you feel it.
Unfortunately, the fun only lasts as long as it takes the authorities to find you. Eventually, they will. Sometimes, they’ll take little or no action. But in the majority of cases, they’ll shut you down in the end.
That is why any free radio broadcaster should always set up shop with the thought that, one day, the fun’s going to stop. However, you can influence just how long it takes for the radio cops to take action.
To help get a jump start on a long station life, here are some tips of the trade: Continue reading “Expanding Your Lifespan”
Balkan Busts, Bloodshed Continue
While the bombs might have stopped falling, the casualties in Yugoslavia’s war on independent media are still coming in. In fact, the military respite Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic has is giving him more energy and resources to devote to rooting out any remaining opposition and consolidating his power.
It is not a war of words, either. Central to the conflict is radio station B92, a 200-watt free radio station in the capital city of Belgrade. After ten years on the air (and two busts during that time), a third – and possibly final – one happened shortly before NATO bombs began to fall on Serbia and Kosovo.
The Yugoslav central government raided Radio B92, seizing its equipment and briefly detaining its chief operators. After maintaining firm control over the hardware, authorities apparently upgraded it, assembled a new “management team,” and opened up a “new” Radio B92 a few days after the raid – with a signal five times stronger than the original B92 ever put out. Continue reading “Balkan Busts, Bloodshed Continue”
Risks and Rewards
It seems there’s a bit of confusion over the terms “pirate” and “free” when applied to radio. Some associate piracy with breaking the law, while “free radio” seems to be thought of as some sort of quasi-legal community operation.
The two terms, in the eyes of the law, are one and the same. “Pirate” or “free” radio stations both have one thing in common – they both broadcast without an FCC license, and therefore are illegal operations.
Being a radio “pirate” used to be a compliment, until the movement toward legalization of low-power radio stations began in the United States – then, as more moderate activists joined the scene, the term “pirate” was phased out as being politically incorrect.
Leave the United States, though, and most of the unlicensed stations operating out there will still refer to themselves as “pirates,” and they’re proud of the moniker. Continue reading “Risks and Rewards”
The Yugoslav Crackdown on Free Radio
All good things must come to an end, and it appears that’s the case with Yugoslavia’s B92. The Belgrade broadcasters had been an unlicensed, full-service community radio station in every sense of the word.
When the NATO air campaign began, B92’s importance changed significantly. Only hours before the first bombs fell, Yugoslav authorities confiscated B92’s transmitter and arrested and detained its founder for about eight hours.
The station wasn’t intimidated, though: it became a coveted source of information to the rest of the world from inside a country under political siege. Internet and satellite uplinks from B92 staffers continued – until Friday. Continue reading “The Yugoslav Crackdown on Free Radio”