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Chapter 1: Introduction

Chapter 2: Literature Review

Chapter 3: Methods

Chapter 4: Findings

Chapter 5: Conclusions

Sailing the Spectrum from Pirates to Micro Broadcasters:
A Case Study of Micro Broadcasting in the San Francisco Bay Area
by Ted M. Coopman, master's thesis, 1995

CHAPTER 1

Introduction
After months of planning and testing, Free Radio Berkeley, an unlicensed 10-watt radio station, began broadcasting in 1993 at 104.1 FM. Operating below the minimum power required by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Free Radio Berkeley was not the first "micro broadcasting" station to go on the air. Unlicensed broadcasters, or "pirates" as they are often known, have existed since the advent of intensive radio regulation in the 1920s. What made Free Radio Berkeley different from previous unlicensed broadcasters was the organization's direct challenge to governmental regulations that made such stations illegal.

Stephen Dunifer, the founder of Free Radio Berkeley, set out to challenge the FCC's rules through what he termed "electronic civil disobedience." Dunifer was not alone in his defiance of FCC regulations. By 1995, at least eight unlicensed FM stations were in operation in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area. Moreover, the transmitter kits produced by Dunifer were shipped both domestically and abroad. This suggested that the micro broadcasting movement was not restricted to California or the United States (Fine, 1994).

The purpose of this study was to examine the development of the micro radio movement in the San Francisco Bay Area. Accomplishing this goal involved pursuing three interrelated avenues of research: (1) The history of Free Radio Berkeley and its founder Stephen Dunifer; (2) Dunifer's legal interaction with the Federal Communications Commission; and (3) an examination of other micro radio operations in the Greater Bay Area with a focus on Free Radio Santa Cruz.

Unlicensed radio broadcasting in general has received little scholarly attention (Phipps, 1990). This is also true of the micro radio movement, a modern incarnation of unlicensed broadcasting. One reason for the lack of research in this area of mass communication is micro radio's relatively recent appearance on the broadcasting scene. Another reason is grounded in the complex nature of unlicensed broadcasting and micro radio. Any investigation into micro broadcasting must address federal regulation, legal analysis, Constitutional issues of free speech, the technical requirements of broadcasting, and social issues of access to media.

Unlicensed broadcasting is defined as broadcasting without the benefit of a license issued by the Federal Communications Commission (Communications Act, 1934). The vast majority of these broadcasters intentionally operate their stations without a license (Jones, 1988). Those who broadcast in this manner historically have been termed "pirates" (Yoder, 1990). Micro radio refers to a specific class of unlicensed broadcaster that appeared in the late 1980s. Such radio stations broadcast under the minimum 100 watts of power mandated for a licensed radio station (69 FCC 2d 240, 1978). Further, these stations are typically non-commercial, broadcast on the FM band, and of a politically-activist nature (Fine, 1994; Milner, 1993; Shields & Ogles, 1992).

The next section of this thesis, Chapter 2, is a review of the literature relevant to micro broadcasting. To gain a better understanding of micro radio's development in the San Francisco Bay Area, the forces and history behind the larger phenomenon of unlicensed broadcasting are examined in this chapter. Reviewing this literature provides the historical context from which the current micro radio movement emerged and illustrates the important differences between past pirate activity and modern micro radio. Chapter 2 also examines unlicensed broadcasters' motivations, short-wave pirates, off-shore radio piracy, clandestine radio, the legal and Constitutional considerations of unlicensed broadcasting, FCC regulation and enforcement, and the current status of micro broadcasting. The chapter ends with a list of the research questions which structured the development of this thesis.

Chapter 3 provides a detailed account of the methods used to explore the research questions posed in Chapter 2. Interview schedule design, observation procedures, document analysis, and data gathering strategies are discussed in the third chapter of the thesis.

Chapter 4 presents the results of the study, a discussion of those findings, and the researcher's interpretations of the data gathered. This chapter traces the San Francisco Bay Area micro broadcasting movement from its origins to current status. In addition, the perspectives of major "players" in the micro broadcasting movement are described, with a specific focus on those involved with Stephen Dunifer's legal entanglements with the FCC. As of this writing, Dunifer's case, United States of America v. Dunifer, (referred to after this as United States v. Dunifer, or U.S. v. Dunifer) is in its early stages. Therefore, the final outcome is uncertain. Analysis is based on preliminary arguments and data that are available at this time. The FCC's enforcement difficulties associated with micro broadcasting are also discussed.

Finally, Chapter 5 provides a summary of the study and presents conclusions and implications of the project as well as suggestions for future research. Radio is discussed as an indicator technology with parallels drawn to other mass communication technologies. Further, it is posited that the micro radio movement is one part of a larger effort to bring democratic principles to electronic media.