Page 38 - Spring 2024

GARDEN SHED RADIO
Garden shed radio – that was the name
coined by a UK MP (Tony Benn) around 2002
when community radio was included in the
Communications Bill put out for consultation
by Parliament. That Bill became an Act of
Parliament in 2003, over 20 years ago.
Many changes were desired by the authors of
that Act, centered around the privatization of
broadcasting – TV and radio – freeing the sector
from the clutches of the BBC. Hence it included
a third tier of broadcasting, at a “not for profit”
level within the charity sector encouraging
community groups and activities, at a local
level.
Government approves but leaves it to
individuals to implement – and in the case of
local radio, to amateurs who largely had no
experience of radio. I know that, I sat with them
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in working groups.
But did the Government foresee the digital
revolution. I hope so, because that revolution
had already started in the 1970s with the “silicon
chip”. That revolution led to signal processing
that enabled modulation more advanced
than AM (amplitude) or FM (frequency) making
more efficient use of the spectrum. It led to
audio compression saving bandwidth whilst
retaining fidelity (mp3 and now AAC). It provided
computers which enabled audio and video
editing, plus automation of playout. It enabled
remote control of equipment, telemetry
of information, transfer of media files, and
accessible storage of media. And this revolution
took broadcasting out of the hands of the
educated elite and dropped it into the hands of
the amateur who did not have huge financial
resources or vast infrastructure.
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