The Amazing Power, Purpose and History of Community Radio

As you look back to the origin of radio in the 1910s and 1920s, it was 100% focused on community. Fast forward to 2022 and radio, like TV, the Internet, and all media has been largely co-opted and dominated by non-local interests (side note: I’m not out to roast anyone here). But Community Radio continues to survive and thrive against these headwinds and a great example is Grand County and the Fraser Valley’s own, KFFR-FM 88.3. 

KFFR DJs, Supporters and Staff Celebrating a Great Fall Membership Drive at the KFFR Open House Finale

All of the DJs are volunteers, along with an incredible cadre of community support via donors, businesses, board members and foot soldiers who have helped the station grow and thrive from its modest roots. Starting an FM radio station is no easy task – as there are numerous federal, state and local regulations that must be abided by to reach full-fledged broadcast status.

As the airwaves are deemed public property by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), there is an incredible array of regulations that must be followed and these rules continue to this day since the beginnings of radio and the Communications Act of 1934. The 1934 Act established the FCC and much of the telecommunications and broadcasting framework (TV and radio) that we still operate under as a country – excepting the Internet, which is not regulated under the same public auspices as broadcasting.

KFFR live at Fraser Valley Distilling

In the case of KFFR, it was one passionate person, Denis Moynihan, alongside a group of intrepid funders, community members and seasoned veterans like Steve Skinner (Current Station Director, aka DJ Skindog) who willed the station into being back in 2015. When you’re driving into Grand County and tune to the incredible programming and DJs on KFFR (free of corporate influence, playing whatever they wish), it took nothing short of a herculean effort from this crew, who had to secure a tower foundation, build a studio infrastructure and set the table for this throwback to the origin of radio.  KFFR is now a community radio station that is made up of, by and for the community that is Grand County. In addition to the broadcast signal, which is limited by the FCC, the Internet takes KFFR broadcasts anywhere in the world.

As a board member for KFFR, I am proud to announce that we held our annual Fall Membership Drive & in the span of a week we nearly doubled the number of evergreen/sustainable (monthly) supporters that we had enlisted up to that point. This is an amazing affirmation that Grand County loves community radio.  It would not have been possible without an amazing staff and people like Joanna Goodman, Jen Gold, Robyn Wilson, and Jason Trow.  As the team took to the road and completed a series of remote broadcasts from Granby to Grand Lake so many community members stopped by and expressed their love for the station.  They did so with words and with their pocketbooks, and everyone involved is grateful for this support.

In the Booth: DJ Todd and DJ Skindog during the KFFR VIP Open House Membership Drive closing event

 As many think of radio for music and/or news, community radio serves as critical community infrastructure, harkening back, again, to its original founding roots at the turn of the 19th century. When Steve Skinner worked with Stacy Stein to keep the community informed and safe about the pandemic while much of the world was on lockdown, this type of programming is precisely the goal of community radio.  KFFR event earned a major award and acknowledgment from the Colorado Broadcasting Association for these efforts.  

During the tragic 2021 Troublesome Fires, KFFR was also there.  DJs worked with local organizations to distribute urgent updates and information.  When the fire subsided, it continued to help heal the community as DJs shared their experiences on the air and helped with fundraisers that supported victims of the fire.   

 This amazing story of the power of community radio was recently highlighted in the Smithsonian Museum a few years back and I happened upon it in a podcast out riding one day: When a Quake Shook Alaska, a Radio Reporter Led the Public Through the Devastating Crisis

A publicity photo of Genie Chance – Smithsonian Magazine and courtesy of Jan Blankenship

In the hours after a massive earthquake struck Anchorage in March of ’64, an unexpected figure named Genie Chance came to the rescue. Genie was a working mother and part time radio reporter at local radio station KENI who’d hustled to the police station within minutes of the quake to gather information to report. Now, with everyone scrambling, Anchorage’s police chief had effectively made her the city’s public information officer: It would be up to her to decide whether to put the information and requests people passed to her over the air. [Source: Smithsonian Magazine] The rest of the story is amazing (link) and truly highlights the power, value and immense importance Community Radio holds in our lives and culture.

As almost all of the music I play on KFFR is an exploration, each week, of America’s great exports of Blues and Jazz and how they are the foundation of Rock, Soul and Funk. Corporate radio interests and stations would not allow for this exploration, which is so fundamental to so much of the music we all listen to. For instance, when the great Chick Corea passed earlier this year, I celebrated his life and untold contributions by playing the entire first song from the landmark Bitches Brew album he recorded with Miles Davis, Wayne Shorter, Jack DeJohnette, John McLaughlin, Dave Holland and other pioneers & eventual band leaders in their own right, over 20 mins in length – not possible on today’s commercial radio. 

So, please support KFFR and community radio however you can, as individuals are the lifeblood of this incredible asset to so many communities across America. See you on the airwaves most Wednesdays from 2PM – 4PM MT on KFFR-FM 88.3 and on kffr.org.  Thank you for being a part of community radio! If you’d like to donate or become a member of KFFR, please visit kffr.org/donate.  Your support is critical to the growth of the station and our community.

In Community,

DJ Mateo
KFFR DJ and Board Member