Music in Range: The Culture of Canadian Campus Radio

Music in Range explores the history of Canadian campus radio, highlighting the factors that have shaped its close relationship with local music and culture. The book traces how campus radio practitioners have expanded stations from campus borders to sur-rounding musical and cultural communities by acquiring FM licenses and establishing community-based mandates.

The culture of a campus station extends beyond its studio and into the wider community where it is connected to the local music scene within its broadcast range. The book examines campus stations and local music in Vancouver, Winnipeg, and Sackville, NB, and highlights the ways that campus stations—through music-based programming, their operational practices, and the culture under which they operate—produce alternative methods and values for circulating local and independent Canadian artists at a time when ubiquitous commercial media outlets do exactly the opposite.

Music in Range sheds light on a radio sector that is an integral component of Canada’s musical and cultural fabric and positions campus radio as a worthy site of attention at a time when connectivity and sharing between musicians, music fans, and cultural intermediaries are increasingly shaping our experience of music, radio, and sound.Chapter 1 Introduction

Brian Fauteux

Outlines recent trends in the North American campus and community radio sector, namely notable station closures and instances where stations have been recognized as providing a valuable mix of musical and cultural programming. Presents the book’s main points of inquiry and argues that there is a significant gap in research studies of Canadian radio and culture—that of the campus radio sector.Chapter 2 “Alternative” Radio

Brian Fauteux

Situates Canadian campus radio within the North American media environment, describing the political economy and cultural context of Canadian radio broadcasting and the changing nature of media regulation in North America. Outlines the social processes that constitute a culture in order to explore the ways in which campus radio culture operates and extends into music scenes.Chapter 3 The Campus Radio Sector takes Shape

Brian Fauteux

Discusses the historical and political background of Canadian campus radio, beginning with early educational radio broadcasting and ending with the policy currently regulating the sector. Describes how social activism and cultural hierarchies have been influential in shaping the sector.Chapter 4 From Campus Borders to Communities: Campus Radio in Three Canadian Localities

Brian Fauteux

Investigates the pre-FM histories of CHMA in Sackville, New Brunswick, CKUW in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and CiTR in Vancouver, British Columbia. These stories illustrate the various paths that campus stations have taken in order to become FM broadcasters. Also focuses on the programming, structure, and operations of these stations.Chapter 5 Canadian Campus Radio and Local Musical Activity

Brian Fauteux

Looks at the relationships between campus radio stations (CHMA, CKUW, and CiTR) and local musical activity including connections to live music venues, record stores, and festivals. Shows how stations are connected to the individuals and cultural institutions within their broadcast range and how they are central to the circulation of local music.Chapter 6 Alternative Music Culture and Imagined-Community Radio

Brian Fauteux

Presents concluding arguments and questions about campus radio culture, including issues of exclusion and inclusion and the future of the sector. Reflects on the current role of campus stations in relation to Canadian media and culture and argues for the need to sustain this sector.