The Promise of Low Power FM

The voices aired on low-power stations include evangelists, social critics, tomato pickers and indie rockers--all linked by the credo that radio should reflect the heterogeneity of the communities it serves

By Michelle Chen

The movement to develop alternatives to mainstream corporate-owned radio got a boost recently with a bi-partisan congressional bill to expand low-power FM (LPFM), a class of frequencies devoted to non-commercial community groups. Though LPFM stations only broadcast a radius of three-and-a-half miles, they offer the [RETURN TO ARTICLE]