It’s been 14 years since I last made an appearance on real radio. It was an honest to goodness frequency modulated signal emanating 3,000 watts in stereo out of Carrollton, Georgia. Sorry, you new age Internet radio types, but nothing compares to an actual FCC license pinned to the control room bulletin board along with your fellow DJs’ operators permits, telemetry readings, etc.
Having my own Internet radio station last year was a great learning experience; but it would have never passed as a legitimate station, no matter how many listeners were “tuned” in, I felt like a pirate. To quote a comic hero, Jerry Seinfeld, “I don’t wanna be a pirate!”
That brings me to a very interesting development in the world of broadcasting LPFM or Low Power FM. The FCC has passed legislation (Which I will research for a later blog in full detail.) that will allow us enterprising programmers an honest to God FM radio station that will serve a 7 or 8 mile radius. While that may not sound like much, a suburban Atlanta area like mine has a population concentrated enough that I could reach a considerably diverse base. As I figure it, my future low power station could potentially reach far more listeners than my last radio home did with 3Kw out in the boon docks. That first Sunday in August of 1995, I never envisioned the options available today. There are almost too many choices, but that is another story.
Stay tuned
