by Corey Matsumoto

With the apparent imminent demise of CJMP Radio 90.1FM, Powell River will no longer have a community radio station unless an application to the CRTC is made for a new community radio license.

On Tuesday, April 21, an open conversation about creating a local, dynamic and independent media collective was held at the Unitarian Hall in Cranberry. The goal of the meeting was to initiate open discussions about ways to strengthen and rebuild independent community media in Powell River, including the possibility of developing a new community radio station.
The consensus of the meeting was that the scope of independent media was too large to handle as a whole, so several subgroups should be formed in the areas of broadcast radio, television, film, and internet radio & podcasting.

One of the insights revealed at the meeting was that although the development of a new community radio station may take as long as two years and require sources of funding, the simultaneous development of internet radio and podcasting in Powell River can provide an immediately affordable stream of ready-to-air content. An open workshop on podcasting will be held at the Community Resource Centre at 4752 Joyce Ave on May 13 at 7pm. All are invited to both learn and share their knowledge about how to create and share podcasts.

Those interested in joining Powell River’s New Media Collective can email parkidavid@gmail.com to be included in the open email list. There’s lots to discuss—join Powell River’s Media Collective!