Low-Power Radio in Gainesville

Gainesville, Florida has a low-power FM radio station on 94.7. Different organizations use this frequency at different times. Sometimes I hear evangelistic Christian programming on it. Other times, I hear symphonic music. Still other times, I hear “alternative” political radio programming put on by Gainesville’s left-and-green-leaning Civic Media Center. I’m never quite sure what I’ll get when I tune in, and that doesn’t make much sense to me. I’ve heard different call letters used for this station, depending on whose programming is running. I am particular to the Civic Media Center’s “WGOT” programming which, besides the political and left-social talk shows broadcasts alternative music programs as well.

Earlier, I wrote an article about HD radio, which also promises to diversify the radio bands. One of the problems expressed with HD radio is that the signals involved in this new technology would crowd out weaker signals from other stations on nearby frequencies. And I can see how this could possibly conflict with low power radio signals.

I wonder whether either HD radio or low power radio has much of a future, as far as radio is concerned. Rather I tend to be of the opinion that, in the future, radios will be based not on atmospheric broadcasting, but rather on the Internet in some form.

I even saw once, while surfing around, that I could set up my own personal radio station on the Net. Of course, if I played music I liked on it, I would have to make sure that music copyright laws were respected. And deal with the cost of broadcasting streaming audio. But I can see this type of undertaking as a form of “stepping out”, even if I just record some monologues à la Jean Shepherd, (take your pick) Keith Olbermann, or Glenn Beck. Or a perverse mixture of the styles of these three.

Meanwhile, I do like having access to a station like WGOT on 94.7. Their music and talk programming is a refreshing departure from the generally homogenized and boring choices I usually get on the broadcast bands. And I like their orchestral music when I’m driving home from work late at night (the local classical music station plays jazz at that time).

I don’t see the point, though, in shelling out a monthly fee to a Web-based company to broadcast a streaming signal, especially when only a tiny number of listeners could access it at any given time. Better to create my own audio file that a visitor to my site can just click on. Now if I had planned to play copyrighted music, I would have needed to go with a streaming signal since the laws in place would steer me in that direction. But MY radio would (or will) be about me trying to convey a coherent message a sustained period of time (a few minutes). Listeners beware!