By David F. Rooney
Scott Duke is bullish on radio — specifically community radio as envisioned by the soon-to-be-broadcasting Stoke FM station set up in the basement of his Cedar Road home.
“We think this will be very good for the community,” he said in an interview.
The station will provide listeners with a variety of musical, news and current affairs programs with a distinctly local flavour. The only drawback is that, restricted to a five-watt transmitter, it will only be heard in Revelstoke.
But that’s okay.
“We’ll cover the town and that’s all we need,” Duke said.
The station expects to begin broadcasting in mid-November but you will be able to tune into its sound before then — on your computer.
“We’re launching our website next month and we will be streaming audio on the Internet before we begin broadcasting. That will allow us to try out our programming grid and work out any bugs.”
The station, which is sponsored by the Stoke FM Radio Society, will be financed by society memberships for individuals and businesses as well as four advertising spots per hour and program sponsorships. Memberships will cost $45 for adult individuals, $30 for students and seniors, $65 for non-profit societies, $100 for new businesses and $200 for established business. It will also solicit donations.
Duke acknowledges that some people may be concerned that Stoke FM will be going head-to-head with EZ Rock for listeners and advertising dollars but thinks those fears are misplaced.
“We’re not trying to steal their business,” he said, adding that the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission won’t allow them to play the same kind of music as EZ Rock.
“We’ll be catering to a different demographic.”
The station will soon be looking for DJs and broadcast news reporters. If you are interested in a DJ position at the radio station, please contact them through e-mail at info@stokefm.com. They will soon be looking for people to host the shows.
Although the nascent station’s official website is not yet completed you can visit a pre-launch version for additional information.
