The Dallas Observer notes that John Rody, a proud resident of the Texas Radio Hall of Fame, has launched his own Low Power FM radio station. It broadcasts to a chunk of Fort Worth at 97.5 FM and calls itself The Southside Pirate. KFTW’s lineup includes Art Bell’s Midnight in the Desert show, but mostly will continue the mission it has pursued as an Internet signal, broadcasting the output of local musicians and “the great Southside community.”
Like a lot of LPFMs, fundraising has been a challenge. The Southside Media Collective’s Indiegogo transmitter campaign met around a third of its goal. But John and Sally (his wife) rounded up some military surplus equipment and the station went live over the weekend. A member of the Ft. Worth City Council helped flip the switch.
At the same time the project ran a fundraiser auction. “We had so many amazing silent auction items donated to help raise funds for our new station,” KFTW’s Facebook page says. “Not all items sold so look for an online auction soon with lots of concert tickets.” Anyway, KFTW is on the air, and that’s what counts.
