SUPPORT PIRATE RADIO Letter Campaign

Do you listen to pirate radio in San Diego? Do you appreciate commercial free, honest, real radio from real people like you? Do you like hearing anti-war voices on the FM dial?

Please send in a letter today! Print this out or email it to an elected representative, a person at the FCC, or a local newspaper! Custom tailor it to who you're sending it to. Its written now to be sent to a public official like Donna Frye or Barbara Boxer.

Please help out pirate radio in San Diego by showing your support and urging the FCC to stop their harassment campaign against community broadcasters in San Diego. Send us an email at info@1069fm.org if you do send something out, or just cc us on your email to your elected official. At the bottom of the letter are some suggested places to send this.

Support community media outlets!

Also, if you don't have time to send a letter, you can comment directly to the FCC here: http://www.prometheusradio.org/localism

=============================================


Dear [[[NAME OF LETTER RECIPIENT HERE]]],

106.9FM is a new low power FM radio station that has been set up in order to provide a voice for community media activists in San Diego, and those working for peace and social justice, on the San Diego airwaves. The FCC has publicly stated that there are no more frequencies available for licensing in the San Diego region, so there are no legal avenues for community broadcasters.

The content of 106.9 consists of community members, local poets, musicians and spoken word artists. 106.9 provides important community announcements that provide communication for people in San Diego in a way that no other corporate owned stations do.

In the few months that 106.9FM has been on the air, the FCC has already visited our broadcast location twice and sent us letters threatening us with massive fines. At both visits they sent three agents. This huge expense of taxpayer money comes at a time when the claim is being made that San Diego has no money to build a new homeless shelter and Governor Schwarzenegger is making massive cuts in education spending.

The FCC is using intimidation tactics of questionable legality, such as demanding entrance to our broadcast location without a warrant. Senator Diane Feinstein began a Senate Inquiry into the legality of these tactics in 2003. Further, the FCC has stated that 106.9FM is not causing any interference with other stations and that there have been no complaints about the signal.

Also, there is a bill before the Senate, s2505, to allow for a more broad use of low power FM. Senate Bill #2505, the bill designed to 'implement the recommendations of the Federal Communications Commission regarding Low Power FM', (LPFM) was introduced by Senators John McCain, Republican of Arizona, and Patrick Leahy, Democrat of Vermont. Approximately 400 Low Power FM (LPFM) radio stations currently serve communities across the United States. Corporate lobbying interests such as the National Association of Broadcasters have curtailed the expansion of the LPFM service, keeping these non-commercial, completely local stations from being built in all but one of the top 50 markets in the US. If s2505 becomes law, thousands of stations will reach American communities, including at least one to four in most major cities.

We urge you to contact the FCC office in San Diego and demand that they stop their intimidation and harassment of community media activists who are only exercising their free speech rights. In addition, we urge you to contact Senator Feinstein and ask her to proceed with her Senate inquiry into the FCC's illegal practices. Lastly, we urge you to tell the FCC to stop their harassment of all low power FM broadcasters until senate bill 2505 has been voted upon and the legality of their actions is decided and to support senate bill 2505.

Thank You,

[[[YOUR NAME HERE]]]

Contact Information:

June E. Gonzalez
Compliance Specialist
Enforcement Bureau
4542 Ruffner St, Room 370
Phone: (858) 496-5111
jgonzalez@fcc.gov

Commissioner Michael J. Copps
Federal Communications Commission
445 12th Street SW
Washington, DC 20554

Commissioner Jonathan S. Adelstein
Federal Communications Commission
445 12th Street SW
Washington, DC 20554

Chief of Investigations and Hearings, Maureen Del Duca
Federal Communications Commission
445 12th Street SW
Washington, DC 20554

Enforcment Bureau Chief David Solomon
Federal Communications Commission
445 12th Street SW
Washington, DC 20554

Federal Communications Commission
Southern California Enforecment Division
4542 Ruffner St Rm 370
San Diego, CA 92111 – 2216

Senator Dianne Feinstein
331 Hart Senate OB
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: (202) 224-3841

Senator Barbara Boxer
112 Hart Senate OB
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: (619) 239-3884
Phone: (202) 224-3553

Mayor Donna Frye
202 "C" Street, MS #10A
San Diego, CA 92101
Telephone: (619) 236-6616
Fax: (619) 236-7329
E-mail: donnafrye@sandiego.gov

"Mayor" Dick Murphy
202 "C" Street, 11th floor
San Diego, CA 92101
Telephone: 619-236-6330
Fax: 619-236-7228
E-Mail: DickMurphy@sandiego.gov