As 2018 draws to a close the FCC is poised to throw another death blow at radio, proposing to allow complete ownership monopolies in hundreds of radio markets. At the same time the Commission has to defend its decimation of network neutrality in court, even after the DC Court of Appeals ruled the earlier open […]
Author Archive | Paul Riismandel
Internet Radio History: The Real Networks Years
In part two of his history of internet radio, Dom Robinson covers RealAudio, the technology that pushed streaming internet audio into the mainstream, years ahead of video. He talks with Dave Mallinson, an early employee at Progressive Networks – which would become RealNetworks – who discusses the delicate balance between getting good enough sound quality […]
The Free Music Archive Lives On
After coming to the brink of a shutdown when grant monies were dramatically reduced, the Free Music Archive announced that it will live on under the ownership of camera rental company KitSplit. A few weeks ago my Radio Survivor colleague Erick Klein talked at length with FMA Director Cheyenne Hohman, who explained why the project […]
Podcast #171 – It’s the End of 2018 and Radio Is Thriving
At the end of 2018 all indicators are that radio is thriving. From community radio to podcasting, internet radio to college radio, we’re seeing new stations, new listeners and new ideas. It’s all more evidence that we’re in the post-‘radio is dead’ era. All four Radio Survivors join together to dig deeply into the year […]
Podcast #170.5 – Bonus: São Paulo FM Bandscan
Paul shares a few more details of his trip to Brazil, and then he and Eric listen to a bandscan of the FM dial recorded on a Sunday night in São Paulo, the country’s largest city. Christian radio? Check. Bad 80s pop music? Yep. One takeaway is that commercial radio everywhere kinda sucks, in general. […]
Podcast #170 – Community Radio in Brazil
Álvaro Burns is a community radio broadcaster in São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil, where he hosts a local sports show on Rádio Paraty FM and he produces the podcast “A Hora do Cafezinho.” Álvaro is a long-time friend of the show, and Paul recently traveled to Brazil and was able to meet up with him […]
Podcast #167 – Alternative Histories of Podcasting
Do you remember audioblogging? Prof. Andrew Bottomley does, and he’s here to tell some alternative histories of podcasting. From “Geek of the Week” to Odeo, he illuminates many more bygone shows and platforms from the 1990s and early 2000s that gave rise to what we’ve now settled on calling “podcasts,” for better or worse. Bottomley […]
Podcast #166 – The FCC’s Effort To Decimate Community Media
The FCC has proposed to de-fund community media through an arcane rule that determines how contributions from cable companies to public-access, educational and government (PEG) stations are counted. Because it’s arcane, the effort is flying under the radar. But we have two community media advocates to help explain what’s at stake. Martin Jones is the […]
Listening Notes: KXCJ-LP in Cave Junction, Oregon
This past weekend I accompanied my wife for a short trip to Oregon’s Illinois Valley where she facilitated a Conversation Project for Oregon Humanities. Of course I tuned around the FM dial in search of something interesting and local. Quickly I stumbled upon KXJC-LP at 105.7 FM broadcasting from Cave Junction, an eclectic and artsy […]
Podcast #165 – College Radio Is Truly Local Radio
Live from the College Broadcasters, Inc. Convention in Seattle we take on college radio’s place in the contemporary media landscape. After deciding not to sell its radio station 13 years ago, the University of Evansville administration said, “we are once again examining the relevancy of the medium and exploring opportunities to enhance our curriculum through […]