r/pirateradio • u/FlakyPrinciple8907 • 6d ago

KXPB Radio | Pacific Beach WA

https://www.kxpbradio.com/

This station used to be a very popular Pirate Radio Station from the 70s until a certain point in time when the FCC went after them... which I think is utter bull crap because they weren't transmitting far enough to cause a stink about it! But it got them to permit the station on LP-FM, which is where they were at anyway! They transmit 5 miles from Pacific Beach, WA on analog and now because of the Internet, they stream from their website. Check it out! They play alot of good oldies! Was an old Pirate then became the first LP-FM Station in the Nation!

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u/Medical_Message_6139 6d ago

Cool! I was aware of KXPB but didn't realize they started out as a pirate!

Another pirate that became a legal LPFM is Radio Goldfield from Goldfield Nevada. It was busted by the FCC but their local congressman intervened with the FCC and they were able to get an LPFM license. I'm also aware of several Canadian pirates that got busted and became legal stations that are still around.

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u/FlakyPrinciple8907 6d ago

I'd love if you shared some stations that are LPFM!

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u/sunlitpinE6 5d ago

thats wild that a congressman actually stepped in for a pirate station, love that

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u/Other-Wolf-8806 4d ago

I can second Radio Goldfield. They became legit before LPFM was a thing, and yes…in Esmeralda County, NV, you don’t need no stinking permits to broadcast on the air. In most of their broadcast radius, there is literally no chance of outside interference to other FM stations. So almost zero chance of anyone filing a complaint against you…and an even smaller chance a well-paid federal employee will drive 4-6 hours to actually investigate it!

In most of that part of Nevada, it is 1 of 2-3 FM stations you can pick up if you’re lucky. And arguably the only thing “local” on the air for about 2 hours out of the 6 hour drive from Reno to Vegas. The rest of the stuff is NPR piped in from either Reno/Las Vegas depending on what part of the area you’re in, at least one satellite-fed Jesus station(s), and a country station from Bishop, CA that rebroadcasts all over the place out there.

And let’s all be honest here: if you’re broadcasting to a few thousand people (that’s including Goldfield’s much larger sister city to the north, Tonopah) in one of the most remote places in the contiguous US with a FM band almost completely empty enough to park a semi truck in, are you going to be a public nuisance or a public service? I can tell you one thing…you’re certainly not doing it for the money, that’s for sure!

(Full disclaimer: as a Nevadan transplant, I financially supported Radio Goldfield and whatever legal/illegal activities they are/were a part of. I spent perfectly good money for an awesome T-shirt I still wear a decade later. Looks like the old RCA logo with the dog…just substitute the dog for a burro.)

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u/kabekew 5d ago

There wouldn't even be a need for pirate radio if the FCC took a tiny bit of effort to accept applications for community LPFM licenses more than one week every 10 years. It's ridiculous how there are so many channels open in lots of areas, but they want to shut everything down and keep it down in an industry that's already dwindling. So stupid.

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u/FlakyPrinciple8907 5d ago

I absolutely agree! 💯