Born Dylan Wrynn in Brooklyn, N.Y., Tridish, 42, has a wild beard, a prankster's magnetism, and a radical's passion for social change. A 1991 graduate of Antioch College, he is a trained radio engineer who also has worked as a carpenter, solar-energy system installer, and a volunteer at a homeless shelter. He helped build stations across the United States, Guatemala, Colombia, Nepal, Tanzania, and Jordan. Mostly, he calls himself a "freelance troublemaker." In this edited conversation with staff writer Michael Matza, he talks about low-power FM and its future.
Question: What is LPFM? Who is eligible for a new license?
Tridish: A low-power station . . . can only be owned by a nonprofit organization. It has to be noncommercial, [100 watts, with a three-mile signal radius], and primarily devoted to a neighborhood or small town. [It has to broadcast at least 12 hours a day, with at least eight hours of locally produced programming.] Each nonprofit takes a different tack. We have built stations with farm workers, neighborhood organizations, environmental groups, small churches.
Q: When will the FCC open the application process? How many licenses will be available locally?
Tridish: Our best guess is the fall. It is hard to say how many will be allocated . . . because there are still some implementation decisions being made by the FCC. Some full-power stations have applied for translators, which are repeaters to boost their signals. There is a dispute between low-power applicants and full-power applicants over who has priority. There probably will be eight to 10 opportunities [for new LPFM] licenses in and near Philadelphia.
Q: Free Berkeley Radio in California was a prominent pirate in the 1990s. It fought for access when huge networks had as many as 1,200 affiliated stations. Did that inspire you?
