Albuquerque Center for Peace and Justice 202 Harvard SE Albuquerque, NM 87106 505-268-9557   Updated: 30 September 2007 Newsletter October 2007
October 2007 Newsletter Contents UPDATE ON EFFORTS TO BUILD A NEW COMMUNITY RADIO STATION TO SERVE THE ALBUQUERQUE AREA Membership Application	UPDATE ON EFFORTS TO BUILD A NEW COMMUNITY RADIO STATION TO SERVE THE ALBUQUERQUE AREA The FCC will open a filing window in October for communities to apply for free FM radio licenses. Available Media, a local nonprofit organization, is taking on this task in the Albuquerque area. Although the license is free, proparing the application will cost about $10,000. The response to our August fundraising letter has been amazing! Together, we raised about $6,000 by mid-September. It is clear that our community is well aware of the importance to diversify the local media pool and to put the public airwaves back in the hands of the people. Thank you.
Update on the license application process: The preliminary studies by the engineers showed two frequencies available to serve Albuquerque and the surrounding communities. However, a national Christian-right media conglomerate put in a request to expand one of their station's broadcast areas, effectively taking our best frequency. The FCC considers this a "minor change" for an existing license holder. We will still file for the second frequency, which will be able to serve Albuquerque at reduced signal strength. We will also file for 2 additional available frequencies at the low-end of "full power," in the Albuquerque/Laguna Pueblo area. They will provide some good coverage to Albuquerque, Bernalillo, Jemez Springs, Los Lunas, Isleta Pueblo, Laguna/Acoma pueblos, Grants, and more - in total reaching almost 500,000 people. It is not the best we could hope for, but if we win these licenses we could expand later, possibly using translators. This process is extremely difficult and frustrating - the FCC's role is to protect the airwaves for the corporate media giants, not to protect access for the grassroots community. You have to be patient but tenacious. Media Justice requires a long-term commitment. Since an opportunity like this one may not come around again in our lifetimes, we are going for all we can now. We may end up without any license at all, but at least we'll know we fought as hard as we could to find a voice for peace and justice. And our application may be all that stands between north-central NM and another national Christian-right radio station, as we are sure they will be applying for these same frequencies and locations. We continue to request your help and support! Get involved: Call Maria, 247-9694 or Allen, 304-3144. Send a tax-deductible contribution: Available Media, Inc, POB 1434, Albuquerque, NM 87103-1434. Thank You! Please send calendar items, comments, and questions concerning this Web document to Web@abqPeaceAndJustice.org .