Don't Touch That Dial

Free Radio Berkeley takes on the FCC and official history

Jesse Walker from the October 1995 issue

(Page 4 of 4)

Inaugurating a line of thought to which the FCC still hews, the commission argued that there simply wasn't enough 'room in the broadcast band for every school of thought, religious, political, social, and economic, each to have its separate broadcasting station, its mouthpiece in the ether.' While this wasn't necessarily true, it nonetheless helped the commission fulfill the big broadcasters' agenda. The National Association of Broadcasters, the commercial stations' trade association, was effectively under the control of the two major networks (CBS and NBC), and a revolving-door relationship between the association and the commission was firmly in place. Many commissioners went on to lucrative positions at the networks or the NAB.

In short, the system of the early 1920s was not chaotic. When chaos did arrive, it was induced by government policy, not market failure. Alternatives to regulatory control were ignored. And from the very beginning, broadcast regulation did more to protect established interests and limit program ming variety than it did to stave off disorder and protect consumers.

It's not clear whether Stephen Dunifer and Free Radio Berkeley will prevail against the FCC. At press time, his hearing, which has been delayed several times, is scheduled for September 22. Only this much is certain: If he wins, his victory will be a welcome sign for those who would like to see radio become a more open and participatory medium.

Another certainty: Despite the scorn of establishment stations such as KQED, Dunifer and Free Radio Berkeley have their supporters in the 'legitimate' radio world. 'I think they're great,' says Rasta Black, a volunteer at KPOO-FM, an independent community station located on Dunifer's home turf, the San Francisco Bay area.

'They can say a lot of stuff we're not allowed to saythings that we have to keep aware of, that we're not allowed to do,' explains Black, who goes on to complain about the cost, in money, paperwork, and time, of meeting FCC regulations.

'They have a lot more freedom, and that's what we'd like to have,' he concludes. 'Power to the pirates.'