Blue Ox radio 97.7 FM has company.

Since January, a quarter of the approximately 800 low-power FM radio stations across the country face dial relocation or the loss of broadcast privilege as a result of a rule change by the Federal Communications Commission.

“I’ve met with the chairman of the FCC twice on this,” said Pete Tridish, founder and executive director of the Prometheus Radio Project. “He thought it was deregulation, part of the fad to get rid of burdensome rules and bureaucracy.

“It was not explained to him at all that the low-power FMs are going to be swept off the dial. He told me that if that was the case, (the FCC) should be doing something to address it.”

The Prometheus Radio Project is a nonprofit organization committed to a diverse, democratic media growing out of community-based radio. It is opposed to the consolidation and homogenization of media and successfully sued the FCC when its last chairperson “tried to allow one person to own a community’s three TV stations, eight radio stations, cable, daily newspaper, billboards and nuclear power plant.”

Tridish was the driving force behind the FCC’s decision in 2000 to offer low-power FM stations free of charge to community groups.

“A lot of low-power FMs are more civic-minded, include vocal volunteer expression and educate communities and students,” he said. “I would love to go head to head in a courtroom with one of those primary stations that play classic rock all day to determine who does a greater public service.”

Tridish expects the issue to come to a head in the next six months as low-power stations “start getting their orders to go off the air.”

Blue Ox 97.7 and Caltrans KMKE 98.1 are Humboldt County’s low-power FM stations impacted by the Jan. 19 rule change that allowed full-power primary stations to change their community of service by means of a “minor amendment” to the application for a construction permit.

Darryl DeLawder, the winning bidder for Willow Creek’s FM license, wants to move up one channel, change classification and appear at 98.7 on the dial. If approved, DeLawder’s signal will reach beyond Willow Creek, north of Trinidad and south of Eureka.

But the price for a bigger footprint for DeLawder’s station is an involuntary shift by KJNY of Ferndale. It must show cause why it should not shift from 99.1 to 97.7 to remove interference — a move that will force both the Blue Ox and Caltrans stations to get off the air or find a new spot on the dial.

“The way the rules are now, it absolutely will happen, even if no one figured out beforehand how bad it would be,” Tridish said.

Considered secondary stations by the FCC, the two low-power stations receive no formal notice or input in the process. They are notified by the FCC after the decision is made.

“We’ve been complaining about secondary status for many years, asking the FCC to change it,” Tridish said. “It wasn’t the top thing on my agenda, but the changes in the rules and what’s happened have made it much more important.”

Blue Ox radio manager Viviana Hollenbeck can’t remember reading much about secondary status in the “mountains of paperwork they gave me. I know the big guys have more power than the little guy, but it’s important the little guy has a voice.”

Hollenbeck has already contacted U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson — a move that gets a thumbs-up from Tridish.

“I hope the low-power FMs get letters and documentation of what they are doing in the community from the community,” he said. “They need to write the FCC and their congressman.

“It’s one thing to stamp on individual rights, but if Congress is involved, the FCC ends up rethinking the situation.”

“Is the community better served by the new station? I don’t know,” Hollenbeck said. “But comment would be nice to have. I don’t know how it will officially be received, but there will be comment.”


Viviana and Eric Hollenbeck sit in the Blue Ox radio broadcast booth. Daniel Solomon/The Eureka Reporter


Prior to January, Tridish said, the FCC utilized a two-step process to change the community of service. That process included a hard-to-get rule-making appearance before the FCC commissioners and “cost tens of thousands of dollars,” he said.

“It was harder to move stations and it didn’t happen often,” he said. “Maybe 12 to 15 times when it was a costly proposition.”

Prometheus Radio Project filed its opposition to the change with the FCC.

“We weren’t aware of how big a problem it would become,” Tridish said. “Right now, 200 is a pretty good guess of the stations impacted. For some, it’s increased interference. For others, it’s off the air. About 10-15 would have no recourse.”

The minor amendments are often a surprise to low-power stations without the resources to keep an attorney on retainer to monitor changes.

“Changing can be quite expensive for low-powers,” Tridish said. “They may have to spend a few thousand on engineering, find a new transmitter site, deal with a new tower to rent. It can be tens of thousands to keep on going.”

DeLawder offered last week to do — at no charge — the analysis and engineering studies for Blue Ox radio’s relocation.

Tridish said the secondary status of low-power stations and the rule change are “technical” concerns that have yet to filter down to the public.

“When stations get their orders, there will be a much larger outcry and a lot of re-evaluation,” he predicted.