Sound and Fury

part 4

by Dan Kennedy

Corporate radio's ugly triumph proves that Ronald Reagan was right: government is the problem. Despite 50 years of established policy that the airwaves belong to the public, and despite the simple physical reality that there are only a limited number of slots on the AM and FM dials, the federal government -- social engineers pursuing their own agenda, to expropriate the language of conservatives -- handed radio over to huge, powerful corporations, to the detriment of everyone except those corporations and their shareholders.

And what government did, it can undo -- at least in part.

Ideally, it would break up the monopolies that it created. Realistically, that is unlikely to happen, because consolidation itself has driven the price of radio stations into once-unheard-of ranges. Consider the case of WNRB (AM 1510) -- sold to a Christian group for $1.5 million in 1995, just before the telecom act was passed, and resold a couple of months ago to a sports programmer for $8 million. That's a $6.5 million monopoly premium. Even if Congress were inclined to restore ownership limits, it certainly would not want to take responsibility for the massive losses that chain owners would incur.

Nor can government create great radio. But there's plenty government can do to foster an environment in which great radio can flourish -- and to make sure it doesn't repeat the mistakes of the past few years when new technologies come online. Some suggestions:

* Reregulate. Congress should restore requirements that radio stations serve the public interest by broadcasting a specified quantity of news and public-affairs programs. At a minimum, the arrogance recently demonstrated by several Boston stations in refusing to run ads from city council candidates should be prohibited.

* Go public. James Love, director of the Ralph Nader-affiliated Consumer Project on Technology, proposes a tax on commercial radio stations that would be used to fund public stations, awarded on the basis of demonstrated community support. Such a tax should be levied only on the big chains, so as not to stress hard-pressed indies. That would solidify public radio's base, and eliminate the annual drama over whether the Republican Congress will fulfill its oft-stated threat to kill it off once and for all.

* Duty now for the future. In the next few years, one or more new, competing radio bands, based on digital technology, will begin to come online. Congress can regulate those the way it should have regulated the AM and FM bands. To wit: strict ownership limits; generous portions of the spectrum reserved for nonprofit use; and a requirement that commercial broadcasters serve the public interest.

"We can condition the licensing for these new stations in such a way that guarantees new participants, including women and minorities," says US Representative Ed Markey (D-Malden), ranking minority member of the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and Finance. "That will be a huge moment in the history of radio."

Of course, two years ago Markey fought -- and lost -- a battle to keep ownership restrictions in the Telecommunications Act of 1996. And he warns that the forces of unfettered corporatism will prevail again unless a Democratic majority returns to Congress.

Markey wanted to introduce a number of changes into the legislation, but the GOP leadership limited him to three. He chose to focus on television and cable. As a result, radio suffered.

"In the Gingrich era, it's politically undoable," Markey says of his vision for a regulated digital radio spectrum. "Remember, they wanted to kill National Public Radio just over a year ago."

* Hoist the skull-and-crossbones. Low-power, neighborhood radio operations are called "pirate" stations in the US not because their proprietors hobble about on peg legs, but because the FCC has forced them underground: since the late '70s, the agency has refused to grant licenses to stations of less than 100 watts. Yet in Canada, Italy, and Japan, to name just three countries, microbroadcasters fill the need to provide intensely local information that the big guns simply can't be bothered with.

Despite their illegal status, there are an estimated several hundred neighborhood stations in the US, though from time to time the FCC cracks down. Two recent examples: Radio Free Allston and Worcester's WDOA (see "Don't Quote Me," News, November 7). Now Cambridge artist/activist Ian MacKinnon is talking about starting a Radio Free Cambridge.

Congress should compel the FCC to change its regulations so that neighborhood stations can win a legal place on the dial.

* Get ready for the Net. The real future of radio may well be on the Internet, which can theoretically accommodate an infinite number of stations. Todd Wagner, CEO of Dallas-based AudioNet, which carries some 175 stations on its Web site (http://www. audionet.com), predicts that Internet radio will become as portable as other forms of radio within five years. Once that happens, you'll be able to listen to a station based anywhere in the world, or to the amateur station your neighbor's kid set up in his cellar.

The rationale for government regulation will disappear, since the Net, unlike the broadcast spectrum, is not a scarce public resource. Indeed, government's main role will be to refrain from idiotic moves such as the late, unlamented Communications Decency Act. The Internet presents an unprecedented opportunity for do-it-yourself media devoted to innovative programming. And in an endless sea of data, the netcasters that focus on serving local audiences will probably be the ones who are the most successful.

There is, however, a potential hitch: money. Unless current licensing practices governing the broadcast of music change, grassroots Net stations could have problems. Some may not be able to afford the licensing fees today's stations pay for music.

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At WILD, Rick Anderson and his staff are just trying to survive. On a recent morning, Anderson meets with the promotions staff, goes over playlists with his music director, Steve Gousby, and juggles phone calls. It's a constant whirl, and he's got to wrap up soon: in two hours, he'll be on the air.

Ironically, the merger of Westinghouse and American Radio Systems could help WILD overcome what's long been its biggest obstacle: its sunrise-to-sunset signal, which sends thousands of listeners over to JAM'N every evening. Westinghouse-ARS may have to shed as many as three Boston stations to pass Justice Department muster, and there's talk that WILD could move to a 24-hour slot, AM 1150. That space is currently occupied by ARS's WNFT, which now simulcasts rocker WAAF (107.3 FM). There's also a separate rumor that WILD might switch frequencies with UMass/Boston's station, WUMB, 91.9 FM. Anderson says only that WILD and WUMB will make an announcement on November 25.

"Being an independent, we have to fight twice as hard," Anderson says.

But that's an outdated philosophy. The modern radio credo was perhaps best stated by Mel Karmazin, the fiftysomething mogul who's now running all of CBS's radio and television stations, and of whom it was once said, "Mel could sell shit in a bag if he had to."

In a rare interview with Fortune magazine earlier this year, Karmazin described his first big thrill in the radio business.

"I was driven by opening up the paper and seeing my stock price rise every day," he said. "I truly get off on that."

Back to part 3 - On to part 5: Monopoly Pieces

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Dan Kennedy's work can be accessed from his Web site: http://www1.shore.net/~dkennedy/

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Dan Kennedy can be reached at dkennedy[a]phx.com

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Articles from July 24, 1997 & before can be accessed here

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