Community Radio Station Struggles for Survival

Radio Station WDFH-FM will hold a public meeting at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, April 12, at the Chappaqua Library. WDFH, the only community radio station in the area, can be heard at 90.3 FM and at http://wdfh.org. 

A community radio station is nonprofit, noncommercial, and participatory, and is often described as "grass-roots media." These stations are licensed by the Federal Communications Commission for broadcasting in the public portion of the FM band and usually have volunteers participating as broadcasters.  

The meeting on April 12 will discuss plans for the station's short- and long-term survival and will introduce the public to WDFH's greatly expanded listening area. The station is need of funds, according to Marc Sophos, WDFH's founder and chief executive. If fundraising efforts are not successful, it is possible that the station's broadcast license will be sold.  

Until last year, WDFH had a small broadcast signal, which meant it could not be widely heard. "We had terrific volunteers and were producing great programming -- in-depth news and public affairs, nationally recognized political coverage, eclectic and adventurous music programming, and interviews and in-studio performances by local and regional musicians. But relatively few people could hear our signal," said Sophos. 

Last year, the station boosted its signal and can now reach about 400,000 potential listeners in central and northern Westchester and eastern Rockland. This makes WDFH one of the larger community radio stations in the country in terms of potential audience reach.  

However, in 2006 the station lost its studio space, which limits the amount of new programming it can produce. "After decades of work, we finally have a viable signal, but without live studios we can't fully develop a stable listening and funding base," said Sophos. 

The station's parent organization is Hudson Valley Community Radio, Inc., a 
local nonprofit organization that is tax exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. WDFH is an affiliate of the Pacifica Radio Network and is the Lower Hudson Valley's on-air source for Democracy Now! and Free Speech Radio News.  

The Chappaqua Library is at 195 South Greeley Avenue in Chappaqua.