Thanks to streaming I can listen to radio stations from all over the country, or even all over the world. Although I now live in Texas, over the years I’ve lived in Florida, Kansas, New Mexico, and Arizona. If I want to see how things are going in my old hometown, or at my old college, or if I am just feeling a tad nostalgic, I can google up the radio station I used to listen to “back in the day” and listen to it from my desktop. My favorite classical station is still KHFM, and I don’t mind the fact my local Smooth Jazz station is gone, because I still have WSJT.

In this respect streaming media is a lot like the shortwave radio my Dad had when I was a kid. Then I could listen to Radio Australia, several different services of the BBC, or even Radio Moscow. Yesterday I was listening to a classical music stream from Greece.

However, given that most American talk radio stations now draw much, if not all, of their programing from the same dozen or so national shows, (WMAL and KKOB AM are interchangable for much, if not most, of the broadcast day, for example) there is, at least as far as streaming is concerned, a decreased need for talk radio stations. It matters not to me if I hear Hugh Hewett on KNTH or KRLA or WGKA. One assumes it matters to the managment of those stations, at least it should, but from where I sit, there is literally no difference at all.

In that respect Mr.Feinburg is right on target. When you are dealing with over the air radio the physical limits of what a transmitter can do means you must have dozens, or hundreds, of stations if you want to have nationwide reach. With streaming media, all you need is one website.

How could that be? I’m really impressed by two things – sound quality and imaginative programming. Funny, but I get neither off of “commercial” FM or even the government-subsidized (NPR) stations.

I’m very fortunate to have a local station (KKUP) here in silicon Valley that is a owned and operated by a club! Completely supported by listener donations with no commercials.

Their sound quality is the best that FM standards will allow – unlike the commercial stations with their compression for car radios. When they do studio broadcasts, the quality EXCEEDS that of CDs.

The content is chosen by real people, volunteers all. Of course, some of it is wacked but for many hours of my listening day, it is revelatory in breadth and scope – and enjoyment.

If the FCC will allow the bandwidth to stay unmolested, a declining value of licenses could allow this model for broadcasters to spread.

Of course, a BIG if.

You know, and I know, and Todd Feinburg knows exactly what is meant by ‘radio’ – the four-character stations (like WKRP) that transmit audio via one-way FM or AM transmissions to receivers. Or using satellite technology to deliver the same. Commercial radio, as opposed to cellular communications or ham radio.

Don’t be an ass.

Certainly radio can’t offer time shifting, as Mr. Benson uses his Ipod for, but obviously those potential listeners who use Ipods or multi-disk CD changers are telling radio that they do not like or care to listen to the product the radio stations are delivering.

So,like the railroads, radio does need to learn how to compete for listeners ears now that the listener has more options.