What are the Benefits of Community Radio and Independent Media? (Part 2 Q&A)

CKXU began as CKUL in 1972, when a public address system was set up in Section A of University Hall at the University of Lethbridge to broadcast musical content inside the building during the day. The station was managed by the University of Lethbridge Students' Union. The CKUL Radio Society was incorporated in Oct. 1977, to govern the affairs of the station, and a year later the CRTC granted the society a license to broadcast on 530 AM In 2003, the CRTC approved the application to operate a new English language community based campus FM radio station in Lethbridge. CKUL’s call letters were changed to CKXU, and on April 8, 2004, the station began to broadcast at 88.3 FM to the city of Lethbridge and the surrounding area from a 125W transmitter located on top of the Students’ Union Building at the University of Lethbridge. CKXU 88.3 FM now broadcasts for more than 168 hours per week, year-round, with a volunteer core of over 100 members. The importance of community radio and independent media will be discussed in the context of corporate mass media and social media competition as well as issues regarding the need for grass-roots funding to operate. Speakers: Benjamin Maine and Aaron Trozzo Benjamin Maine is an enigma wrapped in a tortilla and served with a side of guacamole. He started with CKXU as a founding member of the Coalbanks Dispatch, a radio collective focused on Social Justice and Human Rights issues. This is his second year as CKXU's Program Director where he trains new DJs, manages the program schedule, and - with the help of our wonderful Technical Director - oversees live broadcasts for the station. Aaron Trozzo is like if Jean Luc Picard and Ned Stark had a baby and that baby was raised to preside over a community radio station. He's a collaborative artist that has worked in a variety of media (music, video, photography) and has been CKXU's Benevolent Overlor-er, Program Director since 2009 and he's transformed the station from a ragtag bunch of hooligans into the well-oiled machine that it is today.