Independent radio indicates a
radio station
Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radi ...
that is run in a manner different from usual for the country it broadcasts in. In countries where there exist government-run radio stations that served as the primary or only the variety of licensed broadcaster, the term independent radio generally means
commercial radio stations which are not operated by the government, and thus ''independent'' of the government.
Conversely, in places such as the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...
, where
commercial broadcasters are the norm, independent radio is sometimes used to refer to
non-commercial educational radio stations that are primarily supported by listener contributions and are thus ''independent'' of commercial
advertising
Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...
concerns. With the advent of large commercial broadcast
radio network
There are two types of radio network currently in use around the world: the one-to-many ( simplex communication) broadcast network commonly used for public information and mass-media entertainment, and the two-way radio ( duplex communication) typ ...
companies, and the general adoption of the term ''
public radio'' in the United States to refer to non-
religious radio
Religious broadcasting, sometimes referred to as faith-based broadcasts, is the dissemination of television and/or radio content that intentionally has religious ideas, religious experience, or religious practice as its core focus. In some coun ...
-oriented listener-supported stations, the term has also been used to refer to
commercial radio stations that are run ''independently'' of the large radio conglomerates.
See also
*
Independent Local Radio
*
Internet radio
References
Radio broadcasting
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