A Brief History of Pirate Radio in the United States

While many American’s are accustomed to Freedom of Speech being the norm in the United States, it is not the norm when it comes to radio broadcasting. The Federal Communications Commission created in 1934, a more robust and firm regulatory body compared to its counterpart the Federal Radio Commission. The FCC enforced morality, profane and indecent speech as well as illegal broadcasting.

Illegal broadcasting, is when an individual or group of individuals, uses an FM or AM transmitter to use a vacant or occupied radio frequency to broadcast an opinion, news or music over said frequency without a license. To obtain a license you must essentially rent the frequency from the Federal Government. The FCC owns the frequency, you have to rent it from them. Therefore, it is stealing of property and you can be fined and punished, First Amendment be Damned. While I can write at depth about this topic, I want to save you all the time and redirect you to my Pirate Radio Mini Series on my Podcast, Backpacking America.

Here is a brief list I compiled of how Pirate Radio has evolved since the 1960’s and how the tradition of Radio Piracy ended up birthing the Podcast Boom.

1960s: Offshore Radio and the Counterculture Movement

The modern era of American pirate radio gained momentum in the 1960s. Offshore stations like Radio Veronica, broadcasting from ships off the coast of Europe, inspired American radio rebels. In the midst of the counterculture movement and the fight for free expression, pirate radio stations began to appear on both coasts, primarily in major cities like New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. These stations played a crucial role in disseminating alternative music, political dissent, and underground culture.

1970s: The Heyday of Pirate Radio

The 1970s were the golden age of pirate radio in the United States. Stations like Radio Free D.C. and WQAX became iconic for their defiance of Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulations. Pirate…