Static : Bristol Verifizierter Sender

Among certain, particular hipster circles, the word static has shared the same breath with its more pretentious cousin, 'tastemaker', in recent years. This is thanks, in no small part, to an almost-accidental infusion of American public and commercial media, due to a rapidly shrinking broadcast workspace. Where, once these two cliques seemingly (and diabolically) opposed the way the other chose to 'waste' their shared, beloved medium, in 2023, amidst fierce competition for coveted management roles, they're now forced to combine strategies. The result might be more interesting and innovative audio programming, combining the better ethos of both the for and not-for-profit media sectors. Static Multimedia Network was founded by American radio executive Brian Rickman in 2015. As a broadcast programming and operations consultant, Rickman first had plans to utilize the network to service clients requesting that he create music libraries for their newly licensed HD Radio frequencies. During the pandemic, as many on-air personalities were unable to work in their professional studios, demand for Static's remote programming significantly and rapidly increased, ultimately tripling the network's size and reach. Static Multimedia Network additionally offered its programming free of charge for Community, Tribal and Educational radio stations during the crisis, expanding its reach significantly into the non-com broadcast space. While Rickman continued his work a radio host, Station Manager, and Vice President of Programming & Operations for American commercial and public radio stations, Static also continued its growth, offering new, unique format options while venturing into film and VR/AR content creation. A small staff has formed around Static's ethos of providing listeners with ample opportunities to explore the network's vast library of music, and expanding their artistic horizons beyond the expected palate of tried and true American pop culture (i.e. - the same 300 songs repeated ad nauseum on most contemporary radio stations). This, coupled with recruiting genuinely unique and knowledgable hosts and content creators, has made SMN an intriguing outlier as radio faces an uncertain future and media consumption continues to evolve as quickly technologies advance. In 2022, Static Multimedia Network continued its expansion into the public broadcasting sphere with a considered focus on educational media, partnering with PBS, the University of Minnesota and North Texas Public Broadcasting. Static additionally grew to offer 4 unique radio formats to both commercial and public broadcasters: the original Adult Alternative (the namesake, Static) is now joined by an Alt-Country/Americana cousin alongside its previous siblings, a very aggressive but groovy heavy metal format and one aging, ever-cynical library targeted specifically at Gen-X adults and elder Millenials; R&B and Hip Hop formats are also forthcoming. 2023 marked the first year of Static's Community Content Scholarship Program, with the network presenting 20 underserved U.S. communities with LPFM and turnkey online radio operations, giving voice to numerous minority neighborhoods, while also teaching enthusiastic teens and young adults the skills needed to become the next generation of content creators, responsible journalists, and insatiably curious storytellers.