School Radio Station?

Question

I am proposing to my school to start a radio station ( i am a freshman in high school.) I am going to start a club, with a teacher moderator and i already have a group of kids to start out. My school funds these clubs.. so how much would a small radio station cost? What would i do to get started?

Answer 1

Depending on where you live and how crowded the radio dial is, this can get very complex very quickly.

Some schools have used AM "carrier-current" radio stations, which involves a small AM transmitter feeding the signal into the power lines, rather than using a tower.

A similar set=up is unlicensed Part 15 radio (which is legal within certain power levels, field strength and other restrictions.

A Part 15 station can be built for about $2000.

If you're thinking about an FCC licensed station..it will cost more. LOTS more.

Here's a site to check out:

http://www.part15.us

Answer 2

You could probably do a part 15 or current carrier for a few hundred dollars , these stations require no license and would only broadcast in the neighborhood around the school.

After that requires a permit from the FCC, and you would be a senior or out of school probably by the time the FCC would get around to issuing a license (as most new stations take many years to put on the air) as well as a few thousand dollars.

http://www.part15.us/

Answer 3

Wouldn't know an exact dollar amount, but I'd say 10s of thousands of dollars minimum,  but starting an actual real radio station is complicated and expensive. You have to apply for a licence with the FCC, purchase a transmitter, pay fees to music copywriting agencies and that's not including the actual studio and equipment.

What you might consider, is creating an internet radio station. While in recent years many laws have made that nearly as complicated as traditional radio, if your school doesn't make a financial profit from the internet station, being that is for educational purposes, you probably wouldn't encounter legality issues and programs to run an internet station would be much more affordable than trying to create a traditional radio statio.