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| Community Radio for Marginalized Communities |
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Important Community Radio Opportunity for Communities of Color By Alex Nogales and Joseph Torres Radio historically has played a critical role in the lives of people of color. In 1924, Pedro J. Gonzalez first took to the airwaves in Los Angeles to stand up for immigrant rights, more than 80 years before millions of Latinos marched in cities and towns throughout our nation in demand of a just immigration system. Ora Eddleman Reed also began broadcasting in 1924 on KDFN in Wyoming, becoming one of the first American Indians to host a radio program and one of the first talk show hosts in radio history. During the 1960s, African-American deejays advocated for social change and were instrumental in giving voice to the protest for equality during the civil rights movement. Despite this long history, radio still fails to reflect the concerns or informational needs of communities of color. According to a recent study by the media reform group Free Press, people of color own just 7.7 percent of the 10,000-plus radio stations in the United States -- even though they currently make up close to 35 percent of the U.S. population. And people of color make up just 6 percent of the U.S. radio workforce, according to the latest study released by the Radio and Television News Directors Association. While radio remains a critically important medium for communities of color, people of color are seldom in a position to determine the format or editorial direction of a radio station. And increased media concentration has made it more difficult for people of color to purchase a station or to compete in a consolidated marketplace. But people of color have a rare opportunity this fall to obtain a license to operate a full-power station in many markets across the nation. It is an opportunity they can not pass up. For one week this fall – Oct. 12-19 – the Federal Communications Commission will accept applications for new, noncommercial radio licenses. These stations will appear between 88.1 MHz and 91.9 MHz on the FM dial. The power of these stations will range from 100 watts to as strong as 100,000 watts. To be eligible to apply, applicants: Must be an organization with a noncommercial, educational mission. An individual cannot apply. Should be an incorporated organization. But groups do not need to have a 501(c)3 (tax-exempt) nonprofit status to qualify. Don't have to be a school to have an educational mission. These stations won't be available everywhere and are more likely to be found in rural or suburban areas. Please visit GetRadio.org to find out if any licenses might be available near you. The deadline is approaching fast, and you should be aware that the process of obtaining a license and constructing a station is a major investment of time and money. It may take up to five years before a station actually makes it on the air. And depending on the area, the cost of constructing a station could range from $25,000 to $200,000. If there is room on the dial for a station in your area, the next step is hiring an engineer to conduct a study to demonstrate that your prospective station won’t cause interference with existing stations. The study costs about $3,000. Both GetRadio.org and RadioForPeople.org provide a listing of resources to help you through the application process, including finding a radio engineer and a telecommunications lawyer. It is critical for communities of color to take advantage of this rare opportunity to ensure that our diverse news and information needs are being served on the public airwaves. Radio remains a critical medium for our communities. Let’s make sure our voices are heard on the radio dial. (Alex Nogales is president of the National Hispanic Media Coalition and Joseph Torres is a government relations manager with Free Press.) |
