Funferal

Broadcast Lobby Caught Red Handed With Red Herring

“Oceans of Radio Interference” Proven To Be Puddles In Independent Study
[a press release from the Prometheus radio project]
Results have been released from a long anticipated study ordered by Congress.to determine whether small community radio stations could cause interference to full power broadcasters. The study, conducted by an independent testing company called the MITRE Corporation, recommended the lifting of onerous restrictions imposed by Congress in December of 2000 upon the new Low Power FM (LPFM) radio stations.
Though the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) had complained that the FM radio dial would be drowned in “An Ocean of Interference” in it’s testimony before Congress, the study found so little interference after years of study that they chose not to implement some later stages of the study, such as an economic impact study and subjective listening tests.

“I hope that the wild goose chase for the interference that a dinky hundred watt community station can cause to a 20,000 watt commercial station can finally come to a close.” said Pete Tridish, Technical Director of the Prometheus Radio Project. “I know some lobbyists at the National Association of Broadcasters may not know what to do without Low Power FM radio to beat up on anymore, but I’m sure they can find gainful employment searching for other imaginary things like African uranium shipments to Iraq.”
A few key points from the MITRE study:
*As predicted by the FCC and LPFM advocates, only small zones of interference right around the transmitter site of the LPFM were found.
* No significant LPFM-related degradation to a full power station was ever identified at more than 333 meters from an LPFM transmitter.
*New digital radio channels and Radio Reading Services To The Blind were tested, and no significant problems were found.
*Despite public notices and a 1-800 number, there were no complaints from the public related to any low power radio test site
*In the very worst case found, .0013 of receivers in the service area of a full power station could be affected. As the report stated, “In most cases, this fraction is orders of magnitude smaller.”
The report made a few suggestions for minor rule changes that could prevent even this tiny bit of interference, if necessary. Advocates believe that the more extensive complaint procedure already developed by the FCC especially for low power radio is more than adequate for ferreting the out the few cases of interference that may occur. “As the result of these bizarre political pressures exerted by the broadcast lobby, the FCC has a more extensive complaint procedure when you turn on a hundred watt station than when you turn on a 50,000 watt station. We proved in 1999 that the interference issue was a red herring, and MITRE has proven it again.” said Pete Tridish. “It is time to let low power radio into the cities.”
The low power radio service was launched in January 2000, but soon after was curtailed in most metropolitan areas by a debilitating Act of Congress requiring more study before most licenses could be issued. Under pressure from the large broadcasting interests, key Congressmen slipped in language to an appropriations rider that eviscerated the FCC’s new rules in November of 2000. Under the new rules, about 75% of low power FM opportunities were eliminated, leaving only 1 new station available in the top 50 American cities. Smaller towns, further away from major metropolitan areas, were unaffected by the bill and allowed to build. Over 200 Low power radio stations are on the air in small towns around the United States today, run by schools, churches, activist groups, unions and other civil society groups. If adopted by an act of Congress, MITRE’S recommendations would allow thousands of small community groups in cities across the US to build these vibrant new neighborhood institutions of a democratic media.
Prometheus Radio Project is an activist organization that fights for more democratic ownership and regulation of media. Prometheus advocates for community organizations that want to start radio stations, and has helped build the first radio stations owned by civil rights and environmental organizations in the United States.