What's the importance of pirate radio?

Question

I've a question on this topic. Assess the important of pirate radio to the modern music broadcasting.

Answer 1

What else would Captain Pugwash listen to? Can't imagine Master Bates or Seaman Stanes being happy listening to Classic FM! They'd end up trying to Roger the Cabin Boy! ;-)

Answer 2

20 years ago I would have answered, because it's outside government control. These days, I'd argue, at least in the U.S., pirate radio is important because it's outside corporate control. Corporations don't censor, per se, they just control what gets on the air and what doesn't. The content doesn't much matter and that's why commercial radio is so bland and repetitive.



These days, I think the most vital broadcasting is on the Internet, not traditional pirate radio (an illegal transmitter being operated offshore, or as I use to do, from friends' parents' basements moving around from week to week). Still it serves the same function of pirate radio of old: to air material that would not otherwise be heard if left to the commercial broadcasters.

Answer 3

Radio Caroline was broadcast "illegaly" from a small ship/trawler.

The D.J.s on it mostly got taken up by legit. BBC Radio (Tony Blackburn et al)

Suggest you do websearch on " Radio Caroline " for starters.

As a general comment Pirate radio allows people to broadcast from their own p.o.v. especially if "The establishment" isn't giving them a voice.

M

PS There is a "Pirate FM" local radio in Devon/Cornwall. but is pirate only in name

Answer 4

It allows the professionals to see how it should be done .



PS most of the best known names in radio began their careers as presenters of pirate radio stations .

Answer 5

it allows people who are passionate and knowledgeable about music to play it unfettered with concerns such as audience profile / share etc.



i grew up in london in the '80s. as far as the legal stations were concerned, black / dance music didn't exist. neither radio one, radio london or capital radio played it. even if black / dance music charted, it rarely received enough airplay.



however, there was a huge pirate scene; JFM, LWR, SOLAR, KISS, to name but a few. all of these stations had dj's who knew their music, they weren't elitist, but they did specialise; for example, tim westwood had a electro / hip-hop show on LWR, weekdays between 4 - 6pm, tues - fri, and on mondays for quite a while all he would play was go-go ( think trouble funk..).



KISS, when it was pirate was truly excellent; matt black

( coldcut ) used to have a show on tuesday mornings between 01 - 03am, which i had to stay up to tape; but it was always worth it, and it was the first time i heard any hamilton bohnannon.



when i went to uni, my friends couldn't understand how a white guy knew knew so much about black music; but they'd grown up out in the provinces, where there weren't any pirates.



pirates were and still are true public service broadcasters,

Answer 6

No censorship, innovative, personal

check out radio caroline

Answer 7

Not relevant at all compared with the 1960's

Answer 8

just independance really without cencership (a real pain in the *** these days) (ignore bad spelling im nakered and really couldnt give a sh!t) (see there it goes again with the cencership)

Answer 9

It allows the little guys voice to be heard.

Answer 10

mainly independence- no censorship or regulations