Copyright 2000 The Houston Chronicle Publishing Company
The Houston Chronicle
January 24, 2000, Monday 3 STAR EDITION
SECTION: A; Pg. 15 MetFront
LENGTH: 848 words
HEADLINE:
Station may emerge from undergound;
Supporters plan to discuss future, new
FCC rules
SOURCE: Staff
BYLINE: RAD SALLEE
BODY:
Supporters of a low-power, semiunderground radio station in the Montrose
area will meet Tuesday to discuss its future, now that new federal rules offer
such stations a chance to broadcast legally.
First Amendment Radio is
one of many small "community radio" stations around the country. Its studio is
above the Texas Hemp Co., 1533 Westheimer.
The station's "pirate"
predecessor, Radio Free Montrose, was silenced April 28 when the Federal
Communications Commission seized its transmitter after several warnings.
Since 1978, FCC regulations have not allowed licenses for such so-called
microradio stations.
First Amendment Radio skirts that problem by
distributing its signal legally via the Internet, where it may be heard at
www.firstamendmentradio.org.
A supporter said another person, not
affiliated directly with the station, takes the signal off the Internet and
broadcasts it at 94.9 FM - Radio Free Montrose's old spot on the dial.
On most days, he said, the signal can be heard about three miles from
the unlicensed 20-watt transmitter.
Tuesday's meeting, set for 8 p.m. at
Rudyard's, 2010 Waugh, follows a decision last week by the Federal
Communications Commission to grant two-year licenses for some noncommercial
low-power FM stations (LPFM).
One type of license would
allow a signal power of 50 to 100 watts, covering a radius of about three and a
half miles. Another license would allow transmitters of one to 10 watts, which
cover one to two miles. This compares with 100,000 watts for some commercial
stations.
The FCC board voted 4-1 to allow the licenses despite
opposition by the National Association of Broadcasters and National Public
Radio.
FCC Chairman William E. Kennard said in a prepared statement that
there is a special need today for noncommercial community radio.
"Every
day, it seems, we read about a bigger merger and more consolidation, all of
which leads to the perception that the interests of small groups and individuals
are being lost, and that important voices and viewpoints are being shut out,"
Kennard said.
Commissioner Gloria Tristani agreed, citing a trend to
"distant owners, national play lists and syndicated programming." Microradio,
she said, "promotes localism and diversity . . . by adding new voices to the
mix."
Although the new rules have not been released, Commissioner Susan
Hess said they will require local ownership for two years, and the licensees
cannot own another station.
Applicants with "an established community
presence" will get priority, she said.
Commissioners Harold W.
Furchgott-Roth and Michael K. Powell said the microradio signals may interfere
with those of other FM stations.
And although microradio is nonprofit,
they said, its broadcasting of local news and public service programs could
drain crucial advertising revenue from struggling commercial stations.
Mark Martin, a computer software developer and general manager of First
Amendment Radio, said it costs about $ 1,000 a month to operate, with the money
coming from his pocket, those of several "like-minded individuals," and
fund-raisers such as recent tributes to Velvet Underground and David Bowie.
The station is on the air 24 hours a day, seven days a week. "But that
includes canned content," Martin said.
"We're trying to get a daytime
show going, but our live schedule is largely between 6 p.m. and midnight or
later.
"The mix now is about 70 or 80 percent music (largely alternative
rock) and the remainder public affairs and political commentary."
Martin
said Friday he hopes the station's board will decide to seek a license. He said
he would much rather spend money on the application than in fighting a legal
battle over the right to broadcast.
But success is not guaranteed, he
said, since there may be multiple contenders.
Martin said he hopes to
set up the station as a nonprofit organization with a board of "people who have
made significant contributions to the community," plus an advisory board.
A possible obstacle is an FCC policy that says former pirates who kept
on broadcasting illegally after being told to stop are ineligible for licenses.
That fits Radio Free Montrose, several of whose volunteer staffers now
work for First Amendment Radio. Martin said he and First Amendment Radio itself
have never been cited by the FCC.
Martin's long-time friend Kevin
Jackson, who founded and operated Radio Free Montrose, said he supports Martin's
leadership of the new station.
Jackson said he is considering an offer
to work there in an advisory or other "grandpa" capacity if it is licensed. Both
men said they would be at Tuesday's meeting.
Jackson said he hopes the
new station can avoid some problems of its predecessor. Radio Free Montrose was
set up as a community resource, he said, but its operation was hampered by
factional disputes.
First Amendment Radio "should be operated
benevolently with no faction at the helm," Jackson said.
"The factions
are allowed to use the airwaves," he said, "but the factions are not allowed to
confiscate them for their specific and sole use."
GRAPHIC: Photo: Cedric Ary, known to First
Amendment Radio listeners as "Jazzymystic" of the Jazzmataz show, digs through
broadcast equipment and records at 1533 Westheimer, where the small, community
radio station is based.; Steve Campbell / Chronicle
TYPE: Profile
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January 25, 2000 
