Radio for a Change

The healing potential of grassroots radio in Central Ohio

You're careful about what you eat: You read labels, look for organic or locally grown food, and you know how much fat is in an ice cream bar or a slice of pizza. Odds are, you aren't so careful about the media you consume. Poor radio listening and TV watching habits can have negative effects on personal wellness. Some psychologists even speak of it as metaphorical poison.

"People who come to me don't even realize they've swallowed so much toxin," says Dr. Lucy Papillon, a clinical and media psychologist in Beverly Hills. She cites mass media's constant glorification of the unattainable ideals (the perfect body, the perfect family, the perfect life) as one reason it can be harmful to mental health.

"You really have to search out places in the media where diversity is encouraged. We're so isolated…we think we're the only ones who want what we want. People get so hypnotized by [the media]; because it's geared toward terrible things, they don't ever hear about the miracles that happened today. There's no sense of balance."

There are broadcasters, both local and national, who are working to change that. Wisdom Media, a commercial broadcaster, has introduced an "all self-help" network. The broadcaster's offerings include TV and radio stations geared toward, as their mission statement says, "enhancing the human experience and improving the world." Barbara Marx-Hubbard, John Bradshaw, and Hugh Prather are among the program hosts.

Closer to home, a group of five local non-profits are waiting for a construction permit to take advantage of new FCC regulations allowing small, non-commercial, locally-owned radio stations to begin broadcasting. Local efforts are part of a movement that is national in scope, known to insiders as "grassroots radio." Officially it's called Low Power FM, authorized by Congress in 2000.

Delay tactics by the broadcasters' lobby have successfully kept all but a few stations from getting on the air. Most of those that have succeeded are operated by educational institutions or local governments.

There could be a Low Power FM station on the air in Columbus in the near future at 102.1. It would be co-programmed by five local entities, including Simply Living, a Clintonville-based group that promotes sustainable consumption, environmental, and health issues.

Simply Living's mission dovetails nicely with that of the grassroots radio movement, which, in the words of pioneering station KRFC (Fort Collins, CO), is to create stations where "local citizens are the programmers, producers and hosts of the programming." KRFC typically involves anywhere from 40 to 100 people per week on the air, and their website, titled "Home-grown Radio," shows that they take the potential for this to change lives seriously:

Grassroots radio stations are training grounds for journalists, audio artists and activists. In the culture of grassroots stations, training (is) an important part of what should be done.

Ken Kraska, with a history in radio's technical side, has a self-described "passion and knowledge" for community radio. He's currently conducting a study for Simply Living on the feasibility of moving the project forward from the financial side. He's the perfect person to do it, too, because he's the one who's been traveling the Byzantine path through the FCC applications, permits, and delays since 1997.

In spite of his seven-year battle with bureaucracy, Kraska maintains a healthy, upbeat attitude about the project's long-range chances for success. "Think how empowering it would be to hear your friends and neighbors on the radio, people from Clintonville, and Columbus, and Worthington, and all over - people who know you and relate to you - talking about local issues," Kraska says.

Operating the station will be a stretch for Simply Living, a 10-year-old organization of 400-plus members, which has seen explosive growth in the last few years as people search for a way out of consumerism and toward personal empowerment. But the organization is not without competent and willing volunteers. "People have already volunteered everything from grant writing to legal services, and we have several [other] former radio people on board, refugees from corporate radio," says Kraska, chuckling.

Even so, says Simply Living director Marilyn Welker, "We're still looking for a core group of people who will operate as an oversight board for our piece of the programming. [We] are in a unique position to do community radio, though. I like the idea of the broadcast laboratory, people getting to be heard. Given the Cultural Creatives phenomenon, there are so many of us around - how else are we going to meet?"

"You can get personal transformation from the radio," says Dr. Papillion, "but commercial stations aren't doing it, so we have to do it ourselves." The grassroots radio movement demonstrates that we are. "The media is changing," foretells Kraska. "It's just a matter of having [grassroots radio] reach critical mass." But like most social change, however promising the outcome, the process can seem interminable.

While you're waiting, here are some tips for making your media consumption healthier in the present:

• If you're of the activist bent, work toward getting media to present both sides of an issue. Healthy debate is more about common ground than who's right or wrong.
• Dr. Andrew Weil recommends taking a weekly "news fast" in which you purposely tune out any media. You're not withdrawing forever, just long enough to protect your "mental health."
• With children, be cautious of commercial content. Talk about the psychology behind advertising and its subconscious messages.
• Participate in a grassroots radio station, public access TV, or start your own opinion-oriented internet site by organizing a group of friends to discuss community issues.

When Joe Fox-Barrett has to leave his "acre of paradise" in Delaware County, he is computer trainer by day, writer and league bowler by night, not necessarily in that order. If you don't pass him on a local bike trail, you can contact him by e-mail at joefouroh@yahoo.com.