TOUCH 106 CALLED A 'ONETIME' PIRATE STATION BY NEWSPAPER COLUMNIST

[johnster]

I tell you when pirate TV stations start poping up with advertising I think people will start to care...

 

[raccoonradio]

Re Radio Free Vermont:
http://lists.bostonradio.org/bri/v02/msg03704.html (boston-radio-interest archive)
It quotes from Fybush's NERW:

>>There's a new unlicensed station in VERMONT, and this "Radio Free
Vermont" on 96.5 is trotting out the hoary (and repeatedly
discredited) claim that it's purely an "intrastate" broadcaster and
thus not covered by FCC jurisdiction. Their website...is an unusual combination of big-band music
and hardcore right-wing "patriot" links. NERW wonders: if what RFV is doing is so very legal, why doesn't the website include any actual information about the station's location, phone number, personnel etc.?

Another pirate pushed out 99 watts and claimed it was OK because the FCC wasn't licensing stations under 100 watts. Right.

The page linked above also had a response to Scott from the head honcho of RFV himself:
>>Title 47 USC Sec 151-153 state that the Federal Communications Commission was created to regulate interstate and foreign commerce by radio, and that nothing in 47USC should be construed to give the FCC jurisdiction over INTRASTATE broadcasts. Go to the FCC's homepage and see for yourself

 

[fybush]

Oh gosh, "Monty." Wonder what ever became of him? Our "conversation" deteriorated from there, as I recall...at one point, he devoted an entire page of his website to bashing me, complete with an offer to find Mrs. F. a divorce lawyer if she wanted to get away from me! We're still together all these years later...

 

[Uncle Kaimbridge]

.... Pirate radio, or let's call them "undocumented broadcasters"....

Even better: “Unauthorized signal”. 8)

 

[Bos79]

I tell you when pirate TV stations start poping up with advertising I think people will start to care...

Has there ever been pirate TV stations?

 

[raccoonradio]

Not common in US but it has happened

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirate_television
Tougher to do with digital TV though in some ways the tech. is there.

>>In April 1978, a weekend broadcast on Channel 7 in Syracuse, NY called "Lucky 7" captured headlines across the nation. "Lucky 7" broadcast episodes of Star Trek and the pornographic movie Deep Throat. The source of the transmission was not identified, but it was speculated in an article in the 'New York Times that the signal may have been transmitted from the area of Syracuse University

See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadcast_signal_intrusion
><On November 22, 1987, an unidentified man wearing a Max Headroom mask intercepted the signals of two television stations in Chicago. Independent station WGN-TV (now a CW affiliate), owned by Tribune Company, was hijacked first. Its signal was hijacked during the sports report on its 9:00 pm newscast for about 25 seconds. Then came PBS station WTTW, where the man was seen and heard uttering garbled remarks before dropping his trousers, and was then spanked with a flyswatter before the screen went black. The interception occurred at about 11:00 pm during an episode of Doctor Who entitled "Horror of Fang Rock" and lasted almost 90 seconds. To this day, none of the individuals responsible for the intrusion have been identified.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWdgAMYjYSs

 

[mescutia]

I keep telling people on this board, IT IS NOT A PIRATE ANYMORE. It became a legitimate Low Power station in 2011 due to the Local Radio Act or something like that. Its legal, Charles Clemons is running for mayor of Boston and he is the owner of the station and hes using it as part of his image.

I hope his rivals are having a field day with this.

"Charles Clemons runs an illegal radio station, and now he wants to be mayor of Boston."

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

The page linked above also had a response to Scott from the head honcho of RFV himself:
>>Title 47 USC Sec 151-153 state that the Federal Communications Commission was created to regulate interstate and foreign commerce by radio, and that nothing in 47USC should be construed to give the FCC jurisdiction over INTRASTATE broadcasts. Go to the FCC's homepage and see for yourself

A nice try on RFV's part at selectively reading the law. That exact same law, in Section 301, states, in part:

"No person shall use or operate any apparatus for the transmission of energy or communications or signals by radio (a) from one place in any State, Territory, or possession of the United States or in the District of Columbia to another place in the same State, Territory, possession, or District...except under and in accordance with this Act and with a license in that behalf granted under the provisions of this Act."

 

[CTListener]

I keep telling people on this board, IT IS NOT A PIRATE ANYMORE. It became a legitimate Low Power station in 2011 due to the Local Radio Act or something like that. Its legal, Charles Clemons is running for mayor of Boston and he is the owner of the station and hes using it as part of his image.

I hope his rivals are having a field day with this.

"Charles Clemons runs an illegal radio station, and now he wants to be mayor of Boston."

When that station is listened to by thousands of potential voters and advertised on by legitimate businesses that employ potential voters, this may come across as siding with Big Government trying to keep the little man powerless. The Sheriff of Nottinham never would have beaten Robin Hood in an election.

 

[Bill981]

So if Touch 106 is legitimate, what is the official FCC-issued call sign? Checking the FCC database for all stations on 106.1 in Massachusetts, we have:
WCOD-FM Hyannis Main
WCOD-FM Hyannis Auxiliary
W291CH Pittsfield
W291CC Newburyport

The Local Community Radio Act of 2011 changes the minimum separation distances to third-adjacent stations. Given that WCOD-FM is a co-channel, the minimum distance for a Class B to a Class A (Class D isn't listed) is 178 km, and from the WCOD-FM transmitter to downtown Boston is only 96 km. There is NO WAY the Commission would allow Touch 106 to be licensed on 106.1 MHZ.

I doubt 90 watts in Newburyport really makes it into Boston, nor does 10 watts in Pittsfield.

It boils down to another reporter not checking the facts. "Onetime" is is misnomer. Touch 106 is STILL a pirate. I wonder why the FCC hasn't taken notice. Show me the license.

 

[promixcuous]

If Touch 106 is illegitimate, why is it still broadcasting year after year? Even if it's good local politics to give it a pass, the FCC is a federal agency, so why would they care if the mayor or city council is OK with it?

 

[Bill981]

As I said, show me the license, or proof they're operating at a power level that doesn't require a license.

 

[reelyreal]

If Touch 106 is illegitimate, why is it still broadcasting year after year? Even if it's good local politics to give it a pass, the FCC is a federal agency, so why would they care if the mayor or city council is OK with it?

The FCC doesn't have law enforcement powers. The best they can do is issue fines. They've done that. It would take action on the part of the U.S. Attorney's office to go in and take away equipment. That hasn't happened, and that's where you get into the "politics" argument.

I could also ask you, if selling weed is illegitimate, why do people do it year after year?

It doesn't make it legal.

Here's a nice little test for the "doubters:" Go to the Touch 106 studio. Ask them to see their FCC license. It's public information, they have to show you their public file, which will include all authorizations to operate.

Let me know how that works out.

 

[fccman]

Police are worried about people going crazy if it is shut down and a persons life is not worth it.

 

[Eli Polonsky]

Police are worried about people going crazy if it is shut down and a persons life is not worth it.

I doubt that. Did anyone "go crazy" when WILD, a legitimate once-heritage true urban station serving Boston's black community (and beyond), changed format? Of course, there were some very disappointed listeners, but no one "went crazy" or killed anybody over a radio format going away.

It's simply another case of lax law enforcement, just like with the other pirates that have been operating for over a decade.

 

[MickeyD]

Not common in US but it has happened

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirate_television
Tougher to do with digital TV though in some ways the tech. is there.

>>In April 1978, a weekend broadcast on Channel 7 in Syracuse, NY called "Lucky 7" captured headlines across the nation. "Lucky 7" broadcast episodes of Star Trek and the pornographic movie Deep Throat. The source of the transmission was not identified, but it was speculated in an article in the 'New York Times that the signal may have been transmitted from the area of Syracuse University

See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadcast_signal_intrusion
><On November 22, 1987, an unidentified man wearing a Max Headroom mask intercepted the signals of two television stations in Chicago. Independent station WGN-TV (now a CW affiliate), owned by Tribune Company, was hijacked first. Its signal was hijacked during the sports report on its 9:00 pm newscast for about 25 seconds. Then came PBS station WTTW, where the man was seen and heard uttering garbled remarks before dropping his trousers, and was then spanked with a flyswatter before the screen went black. The interception occurred at about 11:00 pm during an episode of Doctor Who entitled "Horror of Fang Rock" and lasted almost 90 seconds. To this day, none of the individuals responsible for the intrusion have been identified.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWdgAMYjYSs

Ah yes the good old days. I remember both of these incidents pretty well. Capt Midnight was relatively easy to do, in fact, I was working at an Uplink station in CT when it occurred. There isn't too much to do on the late night and over night shifts at and earth station and jamming another signal is just too easy. There was no way of being caught in those days. When we would lease a satellite transponder and the client tried to squeeze out an extra 10 minutes or so we would just blast the trasnponder until it couldnt be seen anymore. I had one particular bit of mischief that I had planned that never took place.

The Max Head room thing was pretty easy to do also. Taped material and a microwave transmitter and you were on the air. They switched to a landline feed to the transmitter after that.

 

[Bill981]

The FCC doesn't have law enforcement powers. The best they can do is issue fines. They've done that. It would take action on the part of the U.S. Attorney's office to go in and take away equipment. That hasn't happened, and that's where you get into the "politics" argument.

[/quote]

Massachusetts needs a law similar to Florida's where it is a criminal offense to operate a radio transmitter that requires a FCC license without one. The police can come in and shut you down. Usually after the FCC has performed the confirming DFing, signal intensity measurement, etc., and then requested the local law enforcement to assist. This one holds up in court, as there have been convictions with unsuccessful appeals.

 

[johnster]

from: http://www.massbroadcasters.org/mba-issues

Pirate Radio: The Massachusetts Broadcasters Association has been the driving force behind Massachusetts House Bill 1679, an Act relative to an unauthorized (re: pirate) radio telecommunication. The bill would give the Massachusetts Attorney General the power to bring action upon a violator of the law. The bill, which can be found on MAlegislature.com, has been referred to the Joint Committee on the Judiciary. Broadcasters who are affected by pirate stations in Massachusetts are encouraged to tell the MBA their story by email to [email protected] or by phone at 800-471-1875.

 

[raccoonradio]

Speaking of pirates--and state law, this from Tom Taylor Now:
>>A Clear Channel tip leads to the shutdown of a Florida pirate and two arrests.
The two men busted under Florida's unusual state law covering unlicensed stations had been broadcasting at 97.7 for over a year - and selling ads. Orlando's WKMG television says they were "playing Mexican music and advertising Hispanic businesses in the Marion County area." WKMG says the authorities were tipped off by a Clear Channel engineer.

========================
(The operators were busted thanks to a new state law that "lets state and local authorities move in much faster than the FCC typically can.")

 

[MickeyD]

Speaking of pirates--and state law, this from Tom Taylor Now:
>>A Clear Channel tip leads to the shutdown of a Florida pirate and two arrests.
The two men busted under Florida's unusual state law covering unlicensed stations had been broadcasting at 97.7 for over a year - and selling ads. Orlando's WKMG television says they were "playing Mexican music and advertising Hispanic businesses in the Marion County area." WKMG says the authorities were tipped off by a Clear Channel engineer.

========================
(The operators were busted thanks to a new state law that "lets state and local authorities move in much faster than the FCC typically can.")

Brilliant! Putting people in jail over radio.