The biggest hurdle to both setting up and running a radio station is probably the Federal Communications Commission, or FCC. They are the judge, jury and executioner of all radio station. They are in charge, and if you’re a radio station you refer to their rules for just about everything. From the legal radius of broadcast, to a maximum amount of watts for the broadcaster, and ensuring that every station is capable of running an emergency system should the need arise. The most dangerous regulation for a small station such as KXCI is their policy against profanity.
The regulation against profanity shapes how DJs at KXCI handle and choose the music to play. If the station were to mess up and air profanity during the day, they could be hit with a $325,000 fine, which would knock a small community radio station off the air. Although, it’s not as if the FCC is capable of single-handedly monitoring every radio station at once. For the station to be fined, someone listening must complain, and then the FCC will take action. There is a device at the station called a skimmer. It records everything that is broadcast and compartmentalizes its recordings into hour long segments. This allows both the FCC and KXCI to review previous broadcasts and verify any rule-breaking. There is a small exception to this profanity regulation
Safe harbor in radio is known as a time period late at night where the content broadcasted is not regulated for profanity. From midnight to six in the morning it is possible for stations to air pretty much whatever they please. Despite this, KXCI does not follow safe harbor and still maintains an incredibly strict policy on no profanity. This is both to be extra-careful and to maintain a family oriented radio station.
If you really don’t want to read, the summary is: The FCC can be pretty scary.
