"We had a report you were the Unabomber," FBI Special Agent Alston apologetically explained to Stephen Dunifer during a recent official visit. Dunifer isn't, but from the FBI's standpoint the suspicion probably made sense. Dunifer, a 43-year-old Berkeleyite - who doesn't mind the label "anarcho-syndicalist" - has been a thorn in the Establishment's side since the '60s.
As a preteen in Kentucky, Dunifer was interested in electronics. By age 17, he had earned his first-class radiotelephone license, knowledge that eventually helped Dunifer build a series of sophisticated, portable low-power radio transmitters. He started out broadcasting at rallies and demonstrations. Two years ago, Dunifer founded Free Radio Berkeley.
Free Radio Berkeley serves Berkeley and surrounding Northern California communities with its unlicensed 30 to 40-watt transmitter. For most of its life, it has operated under the cloud of threatened FCC sanctions. The FCC's objections are not technological - the Berkeley outfit scrupulously avoids interfering with the signals of other radio stations. The FCC's concerns are strictly legal. There are no provisions for licensing low-power stations, but unlicensed stations are prohibited. Though the FCC usually wins its pirate-radio cases, a federal judge recently refused to grant the FCC a preliminary injunction that would have taken Free off the air. She was concerned about First Amendment issues raised by the case.
So for now, the station remains on the air through donations, the sale of micropower transmitters, and the help of an ever-changing staff of volunteer DJs. Because there is no "management," programming is solely determined by the volunteers. This anarchic setup guarantees controversy. In addition to solid community information, listeners can also hear "dirty" words, inflammatory rhetoric, strong sexual content, and wacko conspiracy theories. Complainers are told if they don't like what's on Free Radio Berkeley, they can start their own station. This isn't a snotty kiss-off. Dunifer's concept of community radio is that everyone should be free to have a voice. To that end, the station sells do-it-yourself transmitter kits. Hundreds of individuals and groups across America and around the world are getting on the air with Free Radio Berkeley transmitters.
What does longtime left-activist Dunifer think about various hate groups buying transmitters? "That's OK with me. It's a free speech issue. The only cure for free speech is more free speech."
And what would Stephen Dunifer personally like to see in his lifetime? For now, he would be happy if the FCC freely licensed low-power community-voice radio stations using a simple one- or two-page form and charging a modest filing fee. Ultimately, he wants to see "the complete dismantling and overthrow of the world corporate state." Well, at least he doesn't think small. For more information about Free Radio Berkeley and its microbroadcasting kits: +1 (510) 464 3041, e-mail frbspd@crl.com, ftp to ftp.netcom.com/pub/pe/peyote/frb/frb.html.
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Radio Is My Bomb
