Personal Essay

            As a Media Arts & Studies student, one of my main focuses throughout my education has always been on radio. I know that in reality, radio seems to be a dying field. Although it is still going strong today, it has a very difficult time competing with television and the Internet. Overall, I would like to try and find a way that radio can get back on its feet again. Not necessarily to become the leading media, but to give it a push in the right direction. Something that I think radio has lost over its lifespan is its dedication to education and news. Now saying this, I don’t believe that it should be used solely for these purposes. I think that it is possible for this media to be used not only for music and advertisement, but for education and news as well. This fall away from news and education began in 1927 with the formation of the Federal Radio Commission (FRC). The FRC believed that the radio should be used solely for “public interest, convenience, and necessity.” Evidently, education was not something that they saw fit in to one of these categories. By 1928, the FRC separated radio stations in to three different classes, differing in content and broadcast power. The second class was given low broadcasting power and limited hours. This was where the educational stations fit in. As early as a year later around one hundred of these stations collapsed, leaving only a few left. However at the same time, Britain, Australia, and Canada were all capable of running stations that broadcasted commercial and educational content. So what was the problem with us? This is something that I would like to acknowledge with my Media education. I would like to somehow find a way that this content can not only co-exist on a radio station, but also do it successfully. On top of that, I would also like to bring the community feeling back to radio stations. In the 1930’s and 40’s, radio was used as a way to update people about what was going on with the war and other crises around them. It was a way of bringing people together in times of fear and need. Now, although I am an advocate for involving radio with the news again, I don’t think that this is the only way that we can bring the feeling of community back. One thing that I would like to do with radio stations is to help them start giving back to their own communities. I would like to help stations create organizations that help with things like the homeless, victims of abuse, or even simpler ideas like keeping their city clean. I know that some stations are already on-board for ideas like this, but it’s something that should be very important to everyone and radio is a great way to broadcast different ways to help.