Can you talk about the process of getting an FCC license and other legal logistics to broadcast?
The technical side, while interesting, is relatively clear to me. The legal side, including cost, is something I have no idea about.
Can you talk about the process of getting an FCC license and other legal logistics to broadcast?
The technical side, while interesting, is relatively clear to me. The legal side, including cost, is something I have no idea about.
You essentially have to be in the right place at the right time. The FCC releases LPFM channels every year all over over the country. If you have a 501c3 non-profit within the designated broadcast area you can apply for the channel. They tend to award the channels to more established non-profits. There are no filing fees.
In our case we created the non-profit in anticipation of applying for this license. We got really lucky and no one else applied for the license and it was awarded to us.
Do you have links to resources for people wanting to go through this process?
I worked with https://commonfrequency.org to acquire the license. Their mission is to help local community groups acquire LPFM licenses nationwide.
When Lorenzo Milam died, i heard about his book "Sex and Broadcasting" that describes this process (as well as other details about running a community radio station). As an avid HAM, i was very interested in the technical side of it, but the political side was interesting as well. I highly recommend reading it.
https://a.co/d/03EQ3Ouo
Congratulations to the OP for getting something like this off the ground!