Entries categorized as “CHIRP Radio News and Info.” 335 results

Jenny Lizak writesLocal Community Radio Act Unanimously Passes House Commerce Committee!

CHIRP volunteers are celebrating this morning, as we’ve just received word that the House Commerce Committee has unanimously voted in favor of the Local Community Radio Act, HR 1147. This bipartisan bill, which is supported by thousands of people across the country from a variety of community organizations, churches, artist groups, indigenous tribes, emergency responders and labor organizations, would allow the further expansion of low power FM radio, and would result in many more low power FM radio stations in urban areas. The Act will now go to the floor of the House for a full vote. Efforts are being made to progress the Senate’s version of the bill as well, and we are hopeful that lead co-sponsor Representative Mike Doyle’s prediction that this will be our “Christmas present” will in fact come true, and we’ll see President Obama signing it this year.

While CHIRP will begin to stream a new Chicago community radio station online within a few months, we have always believed that it is important to continue to advocate for the expansion of low power FM broadcast signals in order to fully serve all of the community, particularly those who may not have access to the internet. It is our hope that if this bill passes, we will have the opportunity to apply for a low power FM license to further our mission of serving the Chicago community with a great arts and cultural, locally-focused radio station.

During last spring’s trip to Washington D.C., we met so many people doing wonderful things in their local communities – churches, youth art organizations, farmworker coalitions, independent musicians, just to name a few – and many who hope to build upon their success with the ability to have a low power FM radio station. It is not only because of CHIRP’s own broadcasting dreams, but also because of the great people who we met in DC that we support the expansion of LPFM service across the nation, so these other groups can have the chance to serve their local communities as well.

Today’s great news should be a cause for celebration, but also a time to light the fire under all of us. Please take a moment to ask your legislators to support the Local Community Radio Act by visiting their website

DJ Sherbert - Uneasy Listening writesWhat Does Community Radio Mean To Me?

Nobody ever asks me that question. I tend to get more “Do you have a quarter?” and “What are you looking at, man?” Maybe the reason for that is purely geographical. I hail from the southwest corner region of Logan Square. Although maybe it’s more of a corridor than a corner. That’s not important. What is important is the present state of community radio in the neighborhood. Right now it’s fairly limited to the enormous Harley Davidson that likes to swing by blasting AC/DC’s “Back in Black” and MGMT’s “Electric Feel” which rises through my apartment’s floorboards on a regular basis thanks to my downstairs neighbor’s egomaniacal stereo. Don’t get me wrong. I love both those songs and could listen to them all the time. And do. But I yearn for more. Sometimes I get it when the neighbors two doors down pump up their tejano music to set their Friday night garage party in motion. Plus there’s the not-so-faint sounds of electric guitar thrash and reverb that escape the walls of Ronny’s four nights a week. Still, the sound quality is poor. I get better static tuning in an AM station from St. Louis. And so for these reasons and many more, I look forward to the day CHIRP launches and changes what community radio means to me, which is more often than not the neighborhood ice cream truck’s twenty minute rendition of “Pop Goes the Weasel” on calliope

Shawn Campbell writesCHIRP’s Webstream Kickstart Almost Halfway There

Launched merely a week ago, the fund raising campaign that CHIRP set up in conjunction with Kickstarter to cover the first year of CHIRPradio’s web streaming fees has been a great success. In 6 short days we’ve gotten almost halfway to our goal (As of this writing we’re at 47% of our goal). Can you be the one to put us over the halfway mark? Whether you can donate a dollar or a hundred dollars, we’ve seen this week that it all adds up extremely quickly. Let’s keep the momentum going strong into this weekend and perhaps we can not just break the halfway mark today, but by this time next week I’ll be following up with a post about succesfully shattering our entire fund raising goal!

Make your Kickstarter pledge now to show your support and read more about the campaign right here.

Shawn Campbell writesHelp CHIRP Kickstart Its Webstream

CHIRP volunteers have been working all summer to get the new station ready to launch at CHIRPradio.org. We’re excited to be getting very close to the point where the new station will go live, and to make it to the finish line, we need your help.

One of CHIRP’s biggest expenses will be streaming fees — our next biggest cost after rent. That’s why we’re so excited that social funding site Kickstarter invited us to launch a fundraising campaign to cover our first year of streaming expenses.

The way a Kickstarter campaign works is that donors pledge money in support of a specific project, but no money is collected unless the group meets its goal. CHIRP’s goal is $4800, the anticipated cost of our first year of streaming.

You can help get CHIRP Radio up and running. Make a pledge right now and you can pick from all sorts of cool thank you gifts, from CHIRP t-shirts and water bottles to limited edition mix CDs and exclusive house parties from well-known CHIRP DJs. And everyone who makes a pledge at any level will be invited to a special open house at the brand new CHIRP studios later this fall!

With your help, Chicago’s brand new music and arts focused community radio station will launch before the end of the fall. Make your Kickstarter pledge now to show your support!

Shawn Campbell writesBe A Part of CHIRP

The next new volunteer meeting for CHIRP is coming right up on Wednesday, September 16th. If you’ve been thinking about getting involved with CHIRP, we have lots of opportunities. Find out about working in the music department, becoming a DJ, writing for this site, assisting with promotions and events, and much more. CHIRP is an all-volunteer organization, and there will be plenty to do as we speed toward the fall launch of our new station.

The meeting will take place at Sulzer Library at 4455 N. Lincoln Ave. at 7:15PM. If you’re interested, please RSVP to volunteer coordinator Jenna Murfin.