"Touch FM" Story In Today's Boston Globe

[Laurence Glavin]

If proof were needed for the proposition that Saturday's paper is the least-read edition of the Boston Globe (or any paper for that matter), then the fact that nobody has posted a link or commented on the Globe's featurelength story on "Touch FM" 106.1 here or on the Boston Radio Interest Group (except for me) clinches it. The casual reader could be excused for believing that the Globe is providing coverage of a legitimate station, not a pirate. It's not until the middle of the jump that the reporter notes that the station just MAY be on shaky legal grounds. The URL is: http://www.boston.com/news/globe/living/articles/2007/01/20/message_received/

 

[Varulven]

it appears to be an Allston Brighton Free Radio type deal. With the FCC Boston office being stationed right in Quincy, Mass. if they are on shaky ground they won't be up and running for long.

 

[raccoonradio]

I didn't see the article till about an hour ago (read Globe as I ate lunch) and while it's nice that they're
serving the community, they are not a legit station and hopefully nobody there will be shocked if
the FCC shuts them down should they get a complaint.

"The Federal Communications Commission defines a low-power station as one whose signal does not exceed 100 watts and reaches a radius of only 3.5 miles, which serves as a noncommercial educational entity, and does not interfere with larger stations."

Are they running ads...?

"But an FCC spokesman said low-power FM stations do need a construction permit or a license to broadcast, which Touch does not have. Clemons told the Globe he does not need a license because his station operates at no more than 100 watts ; the FCC says he is mistaken."

The old "FCC doesn't license stations under 100 watts" excuse. Think I'll buy a transmitter and put
my own station on at 95 watts because it's OK, right?

 

[Varulven]

what about Part 15? Part 15 was created so someone could go to a shopping mall and broadcast.
Getting a CP for that would be counterproductive. If people choose to broadcast 24/7 from that Shopping Mall, or as Touch Radio, what's the difference?

 

[johnster]

what about Part 15? Part 15 was created so someone could go to a shopping mall and broadcast.
Getting a CP for that would be counterproductive. If people choose to broadcast 24/7 from that Shopping Mall, or as Touch Radio, what's the difference?

Joe you are very mistaken about what Part 15 is all about. Don't go on the air!

 

[Varulven]

[EDIT]
http://www.gate.net/~advradio/fcc.html

Back To Our Homepage The FCC authorizes the use of these FM Low Power Transmitters a/k/a Intentional Radiators. Its a great public service and a profitable business ( See our Sale Ideas Page). If it's to remain around for our use, it should not be abused. I'm including this page because I receive inquiries on a daily basis and this will set the record straight. Further into this page, you will find links to the FCC home page and copies of the part 15 rules that apply to these devices that verify what I quote and I'll also include direct phone numbers to the FCC examiners office for any questions you have. They are not the FCC police and will gladly answer questions if you don't believe these facts..

[EDIT-inflammatory]

 

[johnster]

Part 15 involves thousands of unlicensed devices on all different bands that have been deemed to be at a power level that won't cause any interference. It is not about you being able to set up you radio station. Are there Part 15 devices in the FM band. Why sure there are. Your little Ipod car transmitter, the XM radio thing etc. etc. But the requirements for a Part15 device in the FM band are basically flea power. Anything that can be heard any distance is in violation. Don't be fooled.

 

[JimmyJames]

A pity people like Clemons no longer have a home on local radio. These are the types of people we need programming our local radio stations, people with a community oriented mindset and the willingness to serve the listeners rather than the stockholders. Touch FM may not be FCC legal but it's a LOT more focused on local service and the public interest than corporate radio.

 

[Eli Polonsky]

what about Part 15?

I think the regulation for Part 15 stations is that they aren't supposed to go more than a radius of 200 feet from the transmitter.

If people string a number of Part 15 transmitters simulcasting in nearby locations to one another, they can legally cover some ground that way, but each one is still limited to 200 feet individually.

"Touch FM" and all the other pirates we're hearing are not Part 15.

 

[Mickey37]

Touch FM may not be FCC legal but it's a LOT more focused on local service and the public interest than corporate radio.

That's only one of the reasons why radio listenership in general is declining.

 

[webcastboy]

The rule for legal, unlicensed broadcasting in the FM band under Part 15 rules is that you cannot have a field strength of more than 250 microvolts/meter measured at 3 meters from the radiating element.

The FCC is known to relax this SLIGHTLY for Part 15 college radio stations and allow the measurement to be taken 3 meters from a dorm (where a radiating-cable FM system is installed) as opposed to 3 meters from the radiating element. The actual difference in power is pretty minimal.

The field strength determination is used because, as we all know, transmitter power output (TPO - in watts) alone in FM is meaningless. You must also account for feedline loss, antenna efficiency, and (most importantly) height above average terrain (HAAT). Most radiating-cable FM installations use 1 watt amplifiers but the "antenna" (usually a 100-400ft run of Andrew NF2D cable) is intentionally so inefficient that the 1 watt results in very little signal being radiated. If you hooked up that same 1 watt to a regular FM antenna bay - you'd get some halfway decent range (0.5 to 1 mile) if you had a little height and a clear frequency.

The FCC specifically states (not in the CFR "rules", but they do state it in Report & Orders which are equally "the law") that the intention of Part 15 FM signals is to limit their reception to a max of 250ft from the radiating element. Obviously receiver sensitivity plays a big part in that...but 250ft is the guideline. In reality, the FM dial is so crowded that most legal Part 15 FM transmissions aren't receivable more than 25-50ft from the antenna. At best.

FWIW, a sizable percentage - probably more than half - of the little FM retransmitters that satellite radio and iPods use in cars are not legal Part 15 devices; they radiate a lot more signal than is legally allowed. NPR released a bombshell study on this a few months ago.

Part 15 AM is a different beast. For free-radiating AM, the output power is limited to 100 milliwatts and the radiating element (antenna) cannot be more than 3 meters in length. That length restriction means terrible antenna efficiency; between that and the flea power...the range is quite limited. You can boost it somewhat by having a fabulous ground skirt and high soil connectivity, but 100 milliwatts is still flea power; you might reach some car radios at a distance (0.5 mile or so) but you won't penetrate buildings worth a damn even 50ft away. There is an exception made specifically for college campus radio stations, where the field strength can be a given level (it depends on the frequency) measured 30 meters from the campus boundary. In theory...if you have a gigantic campus (dozens of miles across) in the middle of nowhere...you could have up to several watts of AM transmitter strength. But in real terms it doesn't give you any more power than the 100 milliwatts. Besides, if you had that big a campus...you'd be so far away from anything that you would've almost certainly would've qualified for LPFM (which is far superior). Part 15 AM also encompasses carrier-current systems, which injects about 20 watts of AM signal into a building's electrical grid and make the AC wiring in the walls into your antenna. That method is so inefficient that even 20 watts won't go more than 20-30 ft beyond the outer walls of the building (if that).

The bottom line, however, is that Part 15 AM or FM is not a means of broadcasting to any sort of audience. The FCC never intended it to be; it's meant for very specific, niche, purposes. If you wanna broadcast to an audience - go get a licensed station, either by filing for a new station or buying an existing one. If you can't do either of those - you're illegal, and stop trying to pretend you're not.

Actually I don't really care if TouchFM is a pirate per se, but it annoys me when these yahoos like to think they're legal when they're so clearly not. Makes me wonder what other boneheaded things they're doing with their equipment that could potentially hurt or kill someone.

FWIW, Radio Free Allston & Allston-Brighton Free Radio got several write-ups in the Globe over the years. That's not what got RFA shut down by the FCC, and ABFR never was busted; they just ran out of money for the studio rent. I'll also add that the format the article says TouchFM claims to champion is the exact same format that 540AM R-LOG said they were championing a few years ago. I dunno if R-LOG is still doing that format, though.

 

[raccoonradio]

Good point about how Part 15 radio was never intended to broadcast to a large audience. Sorry Touch FM
but 99 watts is NOT permitted under Part 15!

>>you might reach some car radios at a distance (0.5 mile or so)

You were talking about AM here. For a little while on my way to work in N. Reading, there was a "talking house"
set up (it was on Haverhill St. near the intersection of Franklin St., which leads to Rt 28) and it broadcast
on the expanded band. Yes, I'd say the radius was about half a mile or so, maybe not even.

For awhile (not sure if still in effect) VT state rest areas had some TIS-es that you could pretty much only
pick up in the parking lot of the rest area. Now there are some LPs at 100 watts or so that do the
same thing (Randolph on I-89 for example)--legal and licensed.

In Beverly if you're on Brimball Ave, just off Rt 128, you can pick up Companion Radio broadcasting from
the Blueberry Hill Rest Home at 98.9 FM. I don't know the actual range in miles but if you were to get off Rt 128
and pass the Shell gas station, it starts coming in, gets slightly stronger, then fades as you approach
the intersection with Rt 22 (though the other day I turned right onto Colon St. and it kept going, but not
for long). (companionradio.com)

As an experiment I took one of those mini-FM transmitters and put it in the headphone jack of my comp.
It was putting out a classic country stream from MusicMaxRadio. Got in my car (car radio, for best
reception with whip antenna) and found it pushed for a very short distance--5 houses or so, then
faded. (May have helped that I was on third floor). These devices, indeed, are mostly for people
broadcasting their Ipod/mp3 or satellite radio over their car stereo and, as has been said, they put
out a bit more power than intended. Which is why I found Opie and Anthony coming through an open
FM freq while on I-91 in Holyoke, but once the "Big Scary Truck" (as Howie calls it) that was going
alongside me sped up a bit (actually, I slowed down, just out of curiosity) it was gone.

But you can still hear Stern 100 at a certain intersection in Beverly (someone in an apt. building nearby)
for a block or so (not me, but someone just off Rantoul St...) on 88.5. If you go under the railroad bridge, you start to pick it up--very strong at the intersection--and as you cross Rantoul and continue on Federal, up a small
hill, it starts to fade then you wind up getting (very faint) 88.5 from Amherst instead.

 

[Mickey37]

An experiment, of sorts, by yours truly:

I was driving on 93 south this morning pasing Montvale Ave in Woburn when I remembered this thread. I decided to see if I could tune it in.
It was spotty reception at Winchester Highlands, breaking in-and-out. Got more solid reception around Spot Pond.
It broke up again as I drove past Medford Square and onto the lower deck. I blame all the buildings.
Lost signal completely in the O'Neil tunnel. On the other side, though, 106.1 boomed in. It was a solid but static-infested signal. Strongest around the union hall with the wind turbine.
Lost signal when I hopped on Route 3 South. I could make out certain things til the lane drop at Derby St., then WCOD boomed in.
The programming was a bit of a tribute to John Coltrane's wife, who I guess died on January 12th.
The station calls it self the only lack owned signal in Boston, and it's undoubtedly right about that. Sounds like it's positive-themed stuff, much as described in the article.
I give it two thumbs up. I hope it lasts, there's an urban market in Roxbury-Mattapan-Southie-Dorchester-Milton-Quincy that could be well served by it.
Definitely should be licensed though. Play by the same rules as everyone else.

 

[JimmyJames]

But how can he "play by the rules" and have this station? Even if he had a ton of money, the fact remains it would still be hard to get a license to broadcast unless he bought out an existing station - and with that much money at stake, it's doubtful he could operate the station the way he is now. I'm not endorsing broadcasting without a license but I believe from the viewpoint of the public interest, Touch FM and operators like it deserve an opportunity to be licensed and have a place on the public airwaves. It's a sad commentary on our industry and nation's laws that they stand little chance of being granted a license.

 

[johnster]

Negative! Them nor you have any right to do what you want. You don't have a right to have a radio station. You have the right to have an Ipod. Nor do you have the right to have a TV station or an unlicensed bar.

 

[JimmyJames]

Big difference between applying for a radio licenses vs a bar. There's tons of locations for bars and only so much spectrum for radio. However, radio airwaves supposedly belong to the public, therefore we should give responsible and community minded people like those at Touch FM a place on the airwaves, and it's a shame to our "Democracy" that we can't seem to find a legal way for them to pursue their mission of positive programming for their community. A diet of songs about strippers, drug pushing and criminal lifestyles served up to them by Clear Channel is much better for them I suppose in some people's minds. Sad.

 

[webcastboy]

Ehhh, sorry Jimmy - I see your point but the analogy was designed to trap you into being incorrect again. There are only so many legal liquor licenses issued by each town or city. Competition for them is usually fierce; even though the "official" fees for obtaining a liquor license for your average bar in Boston are quite low (under $100 I think), since the cap has been fixed and filled for decades...you can easily spend $725,000 to purchase one of those licenses from another operation. Otherwise, you're serving alcohol illegally.

Plus the FCC has long since held that nobody has a "right" to broadcast; not on 1st Amendment grounds or any other. This fact has been rammed home since Congress the Telcomm Act of 1996 and commercial licenses were assigned based on auction. It may not be "fair" but it's the reality...he who pays is he who plays.

Besides, if these guys wanted to broadcast their message so badly, why didn't they hit the non-comm stations and volunteer for airshifts? Especially over the summertime, stations like WMFO and WBRS are hurting for warm bodies to fill the time...even on nights and weekends. Hell, WRBB bills itself as "Boston's Spice" and is supposed to have a more "urban" playlist. (IIRC it doesn't really, though) Even stations like WZBC and WMBR can be cracked into over the summer, although I don't know if WZBC & WMBR would accept TouchFM-formatted programming.

Alternatively, they could've purchased airtime on any one of the half-dozen AM signals around Boston that lease airtime.

Saying that the only way TouchFM could've hit the airwaves would be through purchasing an existing license for mucho dinero is just not true.

_________________________________________________

I suspect the reason the pirate route was taken instead is because their programming, while appreciated by radio aficionados like those on this list...it's not appreciated enough to draw a viable listenership. So he lowered his operating costs to the point where it appears viable. The only problem is, he's lowered the costs too much to be legal. Let's not forget, TouchFM almost certainly is not running EAS, has no public file, and is not meeting the staffing requirements of the main studio rules....ALL things the FCC defines as part of broadcasting in the public interest. So let's not canonize TouchFM just yet, shall we?

BTW, I said "appears viable" above because there's a basic operating cost (rent, utilities, etc) that exists for any radio station - even a pirate one - and running this ultra-niche programming alone will not generate enough revenue to pay for it. That's exactly why Allston-Brighton Free Radio went off the air; they ran out of money to pay the rent. And that's why I predict TouchFM will only be around for a few years, tops, even if the FCC leaves them alone.

 

[raccoonradio]

WTCH-(not-legal-FM) mentioned in NERW
http://www.fybush.com/nerw.html

"Will the operators of the "Touch 106.1" pirate FM station in Roxbury regret the publicity they got in Saturday's Boston Globe?"

 

[Eli Polonsky]

Besides, if these guys wanted to broadcast their message so badly, why didn't they hit the non-comm stations and volunteer for airshifts? Especially over the summertime, stations like WMFO and WBRS are hurting for warm bodies to fill the time...even on nights and weekends. Hell, WRBB bills itself as "Boston's Spice" and is supposed to have a more "urban" playlist. (IIRC it doesn't really, though)

It used to. I recall that WRBB was heavily urban in the 80's and 90's, utilizing their proximity to Boston's urban neighborhoods. Nowadays it seems to be urban mainly on weekends. I don't know what happened, perhaps at some point NEU students felt that the station wasn't representing them? I really hadn't heard.

Even stations like WZBC and WMBR can be cracked into over the summer, although I don't know if WZBC & WMBR would accept TouchFM-formatted programming.

I don't know about WZBC, they seem to be committed to blocks of alt-rock (days) and avant-garde electronica (nights) during the week, with some other specialty shows on weekends.

At WMBR the holdup wouldn't be the program format, but the fact that the station hasn't allowed any new non-MIT student outside community people to join for well over a year, including during last summer. A very small handful were allowed in during 2005, a couple of whom are doing urban shows. There are other urban shows hosted by longtime community staff who joined many years ago, from back when the station was more open to admitting community people.

It appears that the Touch-FM people aren't interested in getting some individual shows on college or brokered stations. They want a 24/7 urban station, and it appears at this time that the only way to do that here is to go the illegal route.

 

[webcastboy]

Well I want a solid gold bidet but it's just not in the cards now is it?

In WMFO's case, and arguably in WBRS's case, getting a few people in over the summer could quickly lead to more people next summer. Pretty soon you'll have some seats on the executive board. Within five years, you've effectively pulled off a bloodless coup and you're running any format you want.

What's that? TouchFM doesn't want to wait five years? Well then, they're not really serious radio people now are they? Considering how we all know you don't build an audience overnight; it takes a few years. The more I look at these guys, the less respect I have for them.

_________________________________________________

Yeah, I know what you mean about WMBR and WZBC...the only reason I mention them is that they're the only signals in the city that actually cover most of the market and still allow pretty much anyone in off the street to apply for a show. Although I'd forgotten that WMBR really doesn't allow that anymore. FWIW, WUML and WUMD are also potential places to try and start a "non-comm coup" assuming your target audience is concentrated enough in the Merrimack Valley and South Coast (respectively). Although both signals could be considered marginal rimshots into Boston (assuming WMFO is off the air for WUML to get in).

Don't think you could do this at WMLN, though - they've got a pro GM who would stop a coup before it starts. And I forgot about WHRB...I suppose in theory you could attempt something like a coup there, but it'd be damned hard to get it past the alumni council.

Regardless, I didn't say this would be fast or easy, I just said it's a way that could potentially work and it's still 100% legal. TouchFM's current path is not legal in the slightest.