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Globe article on 96.5 pirate in Brockton

raccoonradio

raccoonradio

I guess they applied for an LPFM license; not sure if they're going to get it. They may have gotten
warnings from the FCC about illegal operation but I'm not sure--the "Enforcement Action Table"
at diymedia.net lists complaints about pirates at 88.5 and 92.1 in Brockton but maybe there have
been no complaints about 96.5 yet. Not sure if they're exceeding flea power or not...

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/01/06/one_radio_station_two_communities/?page=1

"(B.C. Professor Michael) Keith said the FCC has loosened licensing guidelines so that low-powered stations can serve a community purpose with local programming. But still the application procedure is strict and too expensive for many community groups."

The enforcement action table at http://diymedia.net/fccwatch/eadtable07.htm lists a couple instances
where aviation frequencies--133 MHz--were affected by various pirates (88.5 was one). Shut down.
 
raccoonradio said:
I guess they applied for an LPFM license; not sure if they're going to get it. They may have gotten
warnings from the FCC about illegal operation but I'm not sure--the "Enforcement Action Table"
at diymedia.net lists complaints about pirates at 88.5 and 92.1 in Brockton but maybe there have
been no complaints about 96.5 yet. Not sure if they're exceeding flea power or not...
Click to expand...

It's not technically a LPFM license that they applied for, it's a 250 watt class A that they applied for:

http://www.fccinfo.com/CMDProEngine.php?sCurrentService=FM&tabSearchType=Appl&sAppIDNumber=1185306

96.5 is WAY over flea power. I'd guess that they're probably running a couple hundred watts.
 
I can hear it faintly around south facing areas of greater Boston from around downtown Boston southward and from Route 9 in the suburbs southward. North or West gets WMLL Manchester, NH, and you can hear the two, both weak but fighting, in the west suburbs within 128.

I've heard there was another 96.5 in Dorchester, but I don't think that's what I'm currently hearing on the air. I think it's probably Brockton.
 
I believe the 96.5 in Dorchester is still on the air, though I haven't payed too much attention to it lately. It's sometimes hard to tell which one you're hearing, since they both have similar formats, and are not in english. In the past, the switching point was the top of route 24 in Randolph.
 
jlehmann said:
I believe the 96.5 in Dorchester is still on the air, though I haven't payed too much attention to it lately. It's sometimes hard to tell which one you're hearing, since they both have similar formats, and are not in english. In the past, the switching point was the top of route 24 in Randolph.
Click to expand...

I can tell the difference between the two. The Dorchester boot is in Stereo, the Brockton boot is in mono and is overmodulated and muddy sounding. It's truly amazing. These guys actually apply for a non-commercial license with the FCC for a non-commercial station and yet are still operating in the clear with several hundred watts of power on 96.5 FM and actually sell advertising. Talk about "putting the cart before the horse". If in the unlikely event (and crazier things have happened before.....) they are granted a license, how are they going to operate without that commercial income? Underwriting? How I'd love to see their 96.5 rate card. ;)
 
I confirmed that 96.5 in Dorchester is still on the air, and in stereo, while I was sitting in traffic this morning on the expressway.
 
Speaking of pirate radio, a station in Winter Haven, FL just got shut down by local authorities--
as that state has a first-in-the-nation law which allows faster action on shutdowns. They
broadcast "gangsta rap with offensive language" and the police feel the pirate was
encouraging gangster activity. One of those arrested (and subject to a third degree
felony) was a man who paid $700 for the station to run ads for a place called
the Jamaican Lounge. I am sure that the IRS saw no revenue from this income...

It would be interesting if such a law were passed here in Massachusetts, allowing local
authorities to raid and shut down stations well before the FCC might...

http://www.tampabays10.com/news/local/article.aspx?s=rss&storyid=71619

The pirate stations have been putting up websites that make them seem
legitimate. One Boston outlet, Choice FM, made it sound like they had the
call letters WCFM, which should come as news to a legit station in
Williamstown with those calls. The site boasts of a 100 mile reach
and 2,000 watts.

http://choice1029.com/about.php
 
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