Captain Hook and his Pirate Radio Buddies

“What are you doing there…with all that electronic gear on your boat?”

“Ayyyyy, Matey.  I’m runnin’ a pirate radio station.”

“Really!”

 

“You bet your lime barrel.  We are transmittin’ on 103.9 FM.  Look above the topsail.  You’ll see two bays of antenna peekin’ atcha.  We’re transmittin’ away.  Go back to your car, landlubber and tune us in.”

 

“Well, I’m afraid I can’t do that.  Seems you’re using the wrong verb tense.”

 

“What’s that ya’ say, Matey?”

 

“Wrong tense.  You’re not transmitting.  You were transmitting.  You’re shut down.  Now.  I’m from the enforcement bureau of the FCC and you were operating a pirate station.  Now you’re not.  See – look over there.  One of our staff just literally pulled the plug on 103.9 FM.”

 

“Go ahead.  Try.  I’ll be back on in a day.”

 

“Maybe, but that’ll make the fine that much bigger.  Hey!  Your parrot just ate my badge.”

 

I envision a conversation something like that.  Well, actually, nothing like that.  There are a few pirate stations on boats but those usually try to stay in international waters.  Most of them are on land – and around us.  [As an aside, if you have a chance to see Pirate Radio, do it.  Fun film.]

 

Some are relatively benign.  Those are the ones that operate on vacant channels, not really interfering with licensed stations but siphoning listeners from them.  Then there are the dirty birds, willfully and/or maliciously interfering with licensed signals or transmitting profane or indecent language and music at all hours.

 

It’s the FCC Rules and Regulations, a subset of the Code of Federal Regulations that permits stations to broadcast on allocated frequencies for which they are licensed.  Unless you’re operating under what’s called “Part 15” at extremely low power, you can’t flick the ON switch on a transmitter without a license.

 

For some time, the commission has been relatively, well, for want of a better term, “relaxed” in their enforcement of anti-piracy.  Part of that is the political clime but it’s more a function of reduced budgets and small field staffs. 

 

That said, it doesn’t mean they’re asleep at the switch.  This page shows the number of enforcement actions by state since 2003.  It’s not really clear what that means.  The action could be a “ticket” (violation), Notice of Apparent Liability (NAL otherwise spelled f-i-n-e), property seizure or even stronger action.  So, they’re out there.  Not tuning and listening like they used to (anyone remember the Allegan, Michigan monitoring station?) but certainly, if they get a call or two, they’ll do some level of investigating.

 

Well, a couple of folks complained awhile back¹and a couple of weeks ago, the commission announced a fine of $144,344 against an alleged pirate in North Miami, FL.  You can read the release here but, bottom-lining, these guys had been around the pirating block more than once.  So how many warnings before the camel’s back breaks? 

 

The question from a lot of people is, “What’s the big deal?”  After all, everyone should be allowed to voice his/her own opinions, play his/her music over the airwaves.  A great argument in the 1950’s but, today, specious at best. “80/90,” which vastly increased the number of FM stations across the country gave more and arguably varied voices.  Low Power FM (LPFM) added yet another level of stations, most of which really are operating in, as the Commission says, the Public Interest, Convenience and Necessity.

 

Also consider that, as you would guess, pirates don’t employ EAS equipment so if the nukes come, you won’t get the warning.

 

Despite all of this, the pirates are there.  Maybe it’s the thrill of evading the law.  Doubtful it’s monetary – while there are pirates out there selling advertising time on their ersatz station, it really can’t be much.²

 

However, if the commission is charged with protecting the airwaves for the public and that protection is extended to willful and harmful interference and impact on legal station listenership and revenue, then it’s time to enforce the law.  We could change the law but if you want to see anarchy in action, just change that one.  Since there’s no longer a rule that you must have a construction permit before buying a transmitter³, they’ll be on every corner.  Heck, they’re almost there now.

 

Federal Communications Commissioner Michael O’Rielly had a great summary in a 2015 FCC blog.  Basically, he said pirate radio is not innocuous, It’s not innocent and it’s not even multicultural.  It’s a violation of law.

 

There may be some angry emails coming my way but, seriously, the rules/laws are there.   If you want to do your Part 15 partying, go ahead.  But beyond that 100 milliwatts, turn it off.  Oh, and, please – disconnect that lousy mini-FM transmitter you’re using to feed your smartphone audio to your car radio.  I hear you at every intersection.

 

¹The complaints actually started in 2012 but the activity began years before!

²I checked Ad Age.  They don’t track pirate radio revenue

³Just go to ebay.com and search for FM transmitter.  And while you’re perusing, keep in mind that a high percentage of these do not comply with US emissions rules so not only are they causing interference on their tuned frequency but at numerous other frequencies, too.  Then call to mind the frequency assignments just above the FM band:  air traffic control.  Just sayin’.

The Dreaded Public File

I’m choosing now to talk about broadcasters’ Public Files.  Why?   It’s renewal year for radio stations.  Some are already way down the path to another eight year cycle.  Others are busy trying to figure out the rules, some calling me to ask, “Now when do I run the renewal announcements?”

I’m not a lawyer.  I don’t even play one on TV…and I don’t give legal advice.  However, the programming, operations and tech sides of the business are closely intertwined with the legal world.

Let me say, first off, that broadcasting is the only business where companies have to help their competition.  They even have to help their detractors put them out of business.  What?  C’mon.  If you’re with a broadcast entity, you know the drill.  If you’re not, check out the FCC’s publication, The Public and Broadcasting. 

Everything you need to know – including how to find a “petition to deny” the renewal application of a station.  Anyone can do it.  Pick a station.  Go in and ask to see the public file.  Everyone has a right…you don’t have to identify yourself and you don’t need a reason.  The station even has to make copies for you at a reasonable price.  The public file has to contain all of the following (links are to the section of the publication that references the topic): 

• The License
• Applications and Related Materials
• Citizen Agreements
• Contour Maps
• Material Relating to an FCC Investigation or Complaint
• Ownership Reports and Related Material
• List of Contracts Required to be Filed with the FCC
• Political File
• EEO Materials
• “The Public and Broadcasting”
• Letters and E-Mails from the Public
• Quarterly Programming Reports
• Children's Television Programming Reports
• Records Regarding Children's Programming Commercial Limits
• Time Brokerage Agreements
• Lists of Donors
• Local Public Notice Announcements
• Must-Carry or Retransmission Consent Election
• DTV Transition Consumer Education Activity Reports

If you find any of the “folders” empty or lacking, you can go after the station for remediation – from fixing the problem to additional programming all the way to denial of a station’s license.

For many stations, the files coast quietly in a drawer somewhere, heavily guarded by the receptionist or possibly by the local librarian (under some conditions the files may be kept off site).  Seldom does someone ask to see them.  They’re most often checked by FCC field inspectors.  In fact, violations are a major source of revenue for the commission.  Many times the violations are for inaccessibility rather than lack of content.  Witness this FCC Notice of Apparent Liability.   (If you stop reading here, at least get a cup of coffee and click the preceding link.  It’s great reading!) 

Here are a couple more courtesy of Davis Wright Tremaine LLP, with whom my company has NO relationship:

Three $10,000 fines

$10,000 to $14,000 fines

and $9000 more

So, at license renewal time, the public file becomes extremely important.  And right about now, stations are scrambling to make sure everything’s in order – quarterly issues and programming reports, EEO materials, even the filing of records that you aired announcements telling people that they have the right to come see the records! 

It becomes a little panicky and you see a lot of jumpy and tense station management and employees.  In fact, walking into a radio station in the next couple of months and asking to see the public file is a sure way to send a GM to a cardiac specialist.

The public file is definitely integral in the license renewal process, both TV and radio.  Beyond that, there are other elements related to renewal – they deal with whether the station is actually compliant with all the rules.  Here are a few that are often found “out of tolerance” by inspectors:

Tower location!  You have to be kidding, right?  Nope.  I’ve taken the trusty GPS to more than one station and found the actual location off by more than a few seconds.  Yes, even being on the east pylon on Chicago’s Sears/Willis Tower is different from being on the west pylon.  Time to file for a minor change.

Power.  C’mon.  If you’re licensed 10kw, run 10kw.  If you do the math on 10.6kw, which is out of tolerance, you’ll see the increased coverage is almost immeasurable.  If you’re running 20kw and licensed for 10, hey, you’re probably really interfering with another station.

Pattern.  If you’re a directional AM, check the monitoring points.

EAS.  With all the brouhaha about EAS in the past year, if a station’s system isn’t working at this point, they deserve the fines

Logs.  Is there a designated chief operator and assistant?  Is he/she reviewing the logs?

Tower lights.  Duh.

Station ID’s.  Again, we’re not lawyers here.  But remember this:  Call Letters & Location.  That’s the legal ID.  Not call letters then “Boise’s home for sports” then location.  Check the rules or call your lawyer.  Oh yeah – if you’re WXXX-FM, don’t ID WXXX!

If you’re having technical problems, more than likely you can file for an STA (special temporary authorization).  Do it.  It keeps you legal.  You can operate “at variance” with the license till you get the problem fixed…and it’s legal.  If someone checks the file – including an inspector – you’re legal.

Now a couple of parting comments about the public file:  The whole idea of “…public interest, convenience and necessity…” in the broadcast licensing process is based on the scarcity of frequencies/channels available in the radio spectrum.  Even though there are thousands of media outlets now, it’s still true that not everyone can have their own radio or television broadcast station. 

Some pirates seem to think otherwise but, in fact, it’s physically impossible.  As a consequence, a broadcaster does have some level of obligation to the rest of us who have abdicated our claim to any frequencies in order for them to be able to operate their station(s).  Some may say that just playing music that listeners want is enough.  The Nicholas Johnsons of the world will demand that entire dayparts be devoted to needs and problems of the community.

The public file does force stations to select some issues to deal with.  It makes them think about what’s out there beyond the audio console and video switcher.  In that respect, it’s a reasonable idea.  Are there better approaches?  Absolutely.  Competition can go a long way.  Stations which identify major problems in a community often lead other station to cover the same story or to do some level of investigative reporting on other topics. 

Linked coverage, stations covering a topic superficially then carrying it over to an HD2 channel or to web pages or streams provide significant coverage while, at the same time, retaining their main channel for more general programming.  Viewers can even sign up for RSS feeds on selected topics.

And about the file, itself:  The FCC is considering requiring all stations to publish the public file online.  It would allow anyone and everyone to access it via the web.  I don’t see the problem.  Sure, everyone can see it.  So what?  And there’s an upside.  Scan an item and stuff it into an online file and it’s there.  Barring crashes, it doesn’t get lost.  There’s a log file that will tell everyone when the item was posted.  Look, if the rule is there, compliance is mandatory.  If there’s some set of steps or a procedure that helps you do that, what the heck.  As for everyone seeing it?  Let ‘em look.  Give a staff member “ownership” of it and challenge them to shine.*

One last time, let me say that if you’re a station operator and you have legal questions, call a (your) communications lawyer.  Call your tech consultants to get you “legal” on the operating side.  One more thing:  File on time.  And, if you haven’t read Red Quinlan’s The Hundred Million Dollar Lunch, why not?

*While they’re shining – or not – remember that regardless who you give ownership to, it’s the station's ownership who is responsible as far as the FCC is concerned.