Challenging corporate control of the public's air waves 
By Joanne Cvar 
Pacific Green Party of Oregon 

"Peacemakers are up against a concerted media barrage designed to turn the tables on logic," says Byron De Lear, 2006 Green Party candidate for Congress in California's 28th District. "The reality is, the same machine that purports to spread liberty would just as well support, invest and prop up tyranny." 

Americans should be concerned that the corporate-owned mass media conglomerates in the United States are "disappearing" voices of opposition or progressive thought, causing democracy and freedom to wither. The 2005 Worldwide Press Freedom Index, published annually by Reporters Without Borders, ranks the United States 44th of 167 countries surveyed, and in a fast decline from its rank of 17th in 2002.

Photo: Deyva Arthur / Green Party of New York State

In a recent survey by the Strategic Planning Working Group of the Green Party of the United States (GP-US), media access was listed as a high priority, and exclusion from the media was seen as one of the major factors preventing Greens from winning more elections. The top-rated goal for public image and media access, chosen by 78 percent of the respondents, was to get more spokespeople on radio and television. The new "Greens on the Air" site ( www.gp.org/onair/ ) demonstrates that Greens are using creative options to become their own media.

Alternative media options include low-power (micro) radio, public access television, videos, and webcasting. The Rocky Mountain Bedrock, broadcasting from Telluride, Co. ( www.KOTO.org ), utilizes radio and web streaming. The Village Greens in Connecticut use public access television. De Lear's Global Peace Network ( www.globalpeacesolution.org ) offers good news weekly from world peace leaders, academicians and activists discussing provocative topics. GPN, broadcasting from Los Angeles on an international network, reaches a weekly audience estimated at 10-15 million. And De Lear's new candidate website ( www.DeLearforCongress.org ) offers streamable "Green Talk Radio" in addition to pod-casting. 

Community radio 

Low-power radio stations, limited to 100 watts or less and usually reaching no more than a 3.5 mile radius, are offering programming that replaces the coverage of local issues largely missing since the deregulation of radio in 1996. Access to low-power radio licenses is in great demand and controlled by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). This access has been severely limited due to lobbying by commercial and public radio interests. A small window of opportunity currently exists, however, for noncommercial organizations to apply to the FCC for a low-power radio license. Guidelines and forms for filing an application are available at www.fcc.gov. Technical services, advocacy and help with negotiating the red tape are available through Prometheus ( www.prometheusradio.org ).

n southern Oregon, a group of volunteers is in the process of launching radio station KSKQ ( www.kskq.org ). Suzia Aufderheide, treasurer of the Jackson County chapter of the Pacific Green Party and a long-time advocate for public access to the airwaves, is the group's organizer. It took four years to get their license. They then had 18 months, until July 2006, to construct the station, gather the equipment, and begin regular programming. At least eight of the 12 hours they are allotted on air must be locally produced. Although they are already webcasting, radio broadcasts will allow them to reach a wider audience with local news and music, Spanish-language programs, public announcements and more, depending on the interests of their community. They are also installing a wind/solar-powered generator for emergency transmission. 

Public access TV 

An FCC ruling in 1972 required cable companies to provide, in return for use of the public airwaves, free channels for government, education, and public access. Public access was construed to mean use of equipment, airtime and sometimes training. However, a 1979 Supreme Court ruling struck down the FCC mandate, leaving the authority for such rulings to Congress and making public access a matter of political clout at the time the franchise agreements are negotiated with local government entities. 

Public access TV offers a powerful medium for the independent noncommercial voices of those who normally are not allowed access to the mass media. Free training and use of equipment and facilities may be available to those living in communities served by cable companies. Green TV in South Bend, Ind. is an example of public access TV supported by Comcast. Green TV, like several other "Greens on the Air" sites, offers videos of its shows and commentaries for a small donation. Many also accept exchanges of films and videos from other Green efforts. 

Promotional design crews sought 

Richard Scott, GP-US online fundraising and outreach coordinator, has issued a call for interested persons to help develop design crews in print, radio and TV media and to begin the process of creating video and taped ads for the Green Party. Scott asks that anyone with experience who is willing to work on developing promotional materials contact him at scotty@gp.org. A discussion group concerning audio-visual materials has been set up at media-a-v@lists.gp-us.org. 

Although the Federal Communications Act of 1934 established that the airwaves are part of the public commons, owned by the people in a democratic society, public ownership and access have been allowed to erode significantly. The very existence of public access is currently threatened by pending legislation in the U.S. Congress. "The broadcast airwaves are among our most precious assets," says John Rouse, producer of "Green Hour" in Arlington, Va. "Citizen access, diversity of viewpoints and respect for local community interests are best promoted by local control over these resources." 

Greens are beginning to offer a powerful challenge to the control of the public's airwaves by corporate media.

Radio Free Green Party
Domestic drama, sample script by Starlene Rankin 
(Soap opera music) 

MAN: Honey, I just can't help myself! 
WOMAN: Darling, you've got to try! 
MAN: Every election, I see the same Democrats and Republicans on the ballot, and they're sold out to the big corporations. Oil companies, big real estate developers, HMOs, drug lobbies…. Nobody cares about the rest of us. Why bother to vote? 
WOMAN: What about the Green Party? 
MAN: The Green Party? Isn't this a two-party system? 
WOMAN: No, sweetheart. America is a democracy. 
MAN: It's easy to forget sometimes. 
WOMAN: It's not a healthy diet without your Greens. 
MAN: Kiss me. 
WOMAN: Okay, dear, but first recycle that beer can. 
VOICE: The Green Party takes no corporate donations. Register Green; vote Green. 

Paid for by the Green Party of the United States, www.gp.org, 202-296-7755.

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