Low power FM radio stations are popping up all over the United States right now. In the Salish Sea, there are thirteen stations on their way to the airwaves. Getting one of these stations on the air is no small task. Groups that have been granted permits to build a station by the Federal Communications Commission are scrambling to raise funds, develop staff, build studios, produce content and hoist their antennas, Radio Tacoma included. It is a very exciting time in radio and community media history.
Some of the stations that are working to get on the already exist online. Both Voice of Vashon and Seattle University Radio started as streaming stations and are now broadcasting on the FM dial. Hollow Earth Radio is another online station in the process of seizing the airwaves.
Hollow Earth Radio is a freeform station based in Seattle. The station has a unique personality that exposes listeners to a wide array of audio aesthetics. It is hard to find anything like it on the radio dial. A combination of DIY ethic, love, sweat and tech savvy have kept the station running over the year. AJ Colosimo, head of their LPFM committee, connected with me to talk about the getting Hollow Earth on the air, where they get their funding, and why radio is so damn great.
