Wired FM and LCCR invite you to National Community Radio Day 2018
Community/Speak campaign aims to increase Participation community Broadcasting
Launch on National Community Radio Day to focus on the theme…
‘Your Voice in Your Community’
A national campaign to increase participation in community broadcasting around the country will be launched on National Community Radio Day, Friday, June 22. 
The campaign, entitled Community/Speak, is being organised by the Community Radio Forum of Ireland – CRAOL.
CRAOL is the representative, co-ordinating, advocacy and support group for Irish Community Radio.
Every week, across Ireland, 2,000 Community radio volunteers broadcast to 170,000 people in 20 fully licensed stations and 30 aspirant stations.
The aim of the Community/Speak campaign is to encourage more people to take an active part in broadcasting within and to their local communities and to raise awareness of community radio as the third-tier of broadcasting in Ireland.
The campaign will be launched by Athlone Community Radio, which has been on-air since 2008, with a two-hour programme about the role of community radio in Ireland. The programme will recall the historic part which Athlone played in the evolution of radio broadcasting in Ireland. This dates back to 1933 when then Taoiseach Eamon de Valera opened what was described as “the new high-powered RTÉ radio transmitting station,” providing national broadcasting from the centre of Ireland.
Stations around Ireland will also broadcast special programmes to mark National Community Radio Day and encourage new volunteers, and for the 3rd year running Wired FM will link with Limerick City Community Radio for a special broadcast on the day.
Ray Burke of Wired FM and current Craol Coordinating Committee member had this to say, “LCCR have been broadcasting on Wired FM’s frequency since it’s formation five years ago. We try to team up on projects when we can, and love working with them. Community Radio is non competitive, we believe that like community radio across the country, we are stronger together. We have an open door policy for all students in Limerick, and our focus is to increase interest in radio broadcasting and to encourage more volunteers into broadcasting in all capacities” 
Declon Gibbons, the current Chair of Craol added “Community radio is volunteer-led and driven, with the support of professional staff. It is not a competitor to the primary radio broadcasters, but is an additional service responding to the desire within communities to have their own resource to represent, speak for and to themselves and make the type of programmes which would not be possible on stations that must depend on commercial profitability to survive.”
CRAOL stations are non-profit, licensed and supervised by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland and run by voluntary boards. Last year community stations put over 100,000 local voices on-air. The stations provide wide diversity in programme production and presentation, with news and current affairs and documentaries of community interest. They encourage writers and dramatists in the community, specifically include young people in broadcasting, discuss matters of community interest, record and broadcast sports events.
“The Community/Speak campaign is intended to increase interest and participation in broadcasting and in community development, helping to build the communities which it serves. It can help in the development of future broadcasters and we would like to build relationships with the primary broadcasters,” said Mr.Gibbons. “What we are initiating will, we hope, increase interest in radio broadcasting in all its facets.”
This Friday Wired FM team up with Limerick City Community Radio (LCCR) for a special broadcast to celebrate community radio in Limerick.
See the specially arranged schedule below.
08:00 Irish Show – Chat agus Ceol
09:00 Community Brunch (Mike O’ Connor & Julianne Henelly) – Guests and Live Music
11:00 #NationalCRDay Live from Athlone (Outside Broadcast from Athlone)
13:00 In the afternoon (Kyle Slattery and Ronan Dunne) – Guests and Live Music
15:00 Wired in to Limerick City (Current Affairs – Wired FM and LCCR)
16:00 Live Drive time – (Jan, Jude, Tommy and Louise – from LCCR)
18:00 Slice of Life – Supporting Marginalised Groups in Limerick
19:00 Eclectic Celt Special
20:00 Left of the Dial – Limerick Special
22:00 End of Broadcast
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