At a moment when local radio already feels increasingly… not so local, the musicFIRST Coalition is stepping into the regulatory spotlight. The organization has launched a nationwide push encouraging music fans to submit short comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) with one clear message: don’t loosen the rules that prevent FM radio monopolies in local markets.
The concern is simple, but the stakes are high. Current FCC ownership caps limit how many commercial FM stations a single company can control in a given market. Roll those back, and the result could be fewer independent voices, fewer chances for new music to break through, and even less local flavor on the dial.
As musicFIRST attorney Rachel Stilwell puts it, “This is a bipartisan issue about the public interest in broadcasting, preserving what’s left of localism, viewpoint diversity and competition in audio.” Translation: it’s about whether radio remains a community medium or becomes another centralized pipeline.
To make participation easy, musicFIRST is offering a one-click tool that auto-generates an FCC comment urging regulators to keep current limits in place. Fans can send it as-is or personalize it with experiences from their own hometown stations—an important touch, considering how often policy debates ignore what listeners actually hear day to day.
Behind the campaign is a broad coalition that represents nearly every corner of the music ecosystem: artists, producers, engineers, labels, managers, unions, and performance rights organizations. Founding members include SoundExchange, the Recording Academy, the Latin Recording Academy, A2IM, the RIAA, SAG-AFTRA, and the American Federation of Musicians, among others. While musicFIRST is best known for fighting for fair compensation for creators, this effort underscores a related belief: who controls radio matters just as much as how artists get paid.
For music fans who care about discovery, local DJs, and hearing something unexpected between the hits, this is one of those behind-the-scenes fights that quietly shapes what comes out of your speakers.
