• CHINATOWN EXCHANGE—1042 Grant Ave., San Francisco, Calif. 94108 (415) 421-0943
• THE HELP UNIT—86 3rd St., San Francisco, Calif. 94103 (415) 421-9850
• WESTERN ADDITION SWITCHBOARD—Fell & Fillmore, San Francisco, Calif. (415) 626-8524 California
• CHICO SWITCHBOARD—120 W. 2nd St., Chico, Calif. (916) 342-7546
• EAST OAKLAND SWITCHBOARD—2812 73rd Ave., Oakland, Calif. (415)569-6369
• MARIN MUSIC SWITCHBOARD—1017 “D” St., San Rafael, Calif. (415) 457-2104
• WEST OAKLAND LEGAL SWITCHBOARD—2713 San Pablo, Oakland, Calif. (415) 836-3013
• SWITCHBOARD OF MARIN—1017 “D” St., San Rafael, Calif. (415) 456-5300
• BERKELEY SWITCHBOARD—2389 Oregon, Berkeley, Calif. (415) 549-0649
• SANTA CRUZ SWITCHBOARD—604 River St., Santa Cruz, Calif. (408) 426-8500
• PALO ALTO XCHANGE—457 Kingsley Ave., Palo Alto, Calif. (415) 327-9008
• SAN JOSE SWITCHBOARD—50 S. 4th St., San Jose, Calif. (408) 295-2938
• SANTA BARBARA SWITCHBOARD—6575 Seville, Isla Vista, Calif. (805) 968-3564
• EUREKA SWITCHBOARD—1427 California, Eureka, Calif. (707) 443-8901 & 443-8311
• UC DAVIS SWITCHBOARD—(on campus), UC Davis, Calif. (916) 752-3495
• TURNSTILE—1900 Emerson, Denver, Colorado (303) 623-3445
• BLACKHAWK INFORMATION CENTER—628 Walnut St., Waterloo, Iowa (319) 234-9965
• TAOS SWITCHBOARD—c/o Gen. Del., Taos, New Mexico (505) 758-4288
• PORTLAND SWITCHBOARD—1216 SW Salmon, Portland, Oregon (503) 224-0313
• HOUSTON SWITCHBOARD—108 San Jacinto, Houston, Texas (713) 228-6072
• YOUTH EMERGENCY SERVICE—623 Cedar Ave. So., Minneapolis, Minn. (612) 338-7588 Eastern States
• POWELTON TROUBLE CENTER—222 N. 35th St., Phila., Penna.. (215) 382-6472
• WASHINGTON D.C. SWITCHBOARD—2201 P St. NW, Washington, D.C. (202) 667-4684
• MIAMI CENTER FOR DIALOG—2175 NW 26th St., Miami, Fla. (305) 634-7741
• CANTERBURY HOUSE—330 Maynard S, Ann Arbor, Michigan (313) 665-0606
• THE LISTENING EAR—547 E. Grand River, East Lansing, Michigan (517) 337-1717
• THE ECSTATIC UMBRELLA—3800 McGee Kansas City, Missouri (816) 561-4524
• OPEN CITY—4726 3rd St., Detroit, Michigan (313) 831-2770
• SWITCHBOARD INC.—1722 Summit St., Number 6, Columbus, Ohio (614) 294-6378
• HELP—c/o Marby Beil, 1708 E. Lafayette, Number 5, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (414) 273-5959
• UNITED CHURCH PRESBYTERIAN—181 Mount Horeb Rd., Warren, N.J. (201) 469-5044
• BOSTON SWITCHBOARD—45 Bowdoin St., Boston, Mass. (617) 246-4255
• PROJECT PLACE—37 Rutland St., Boston, Mass.(617)267-5280
• BEVERLY SWITCHBOARD—Beverly Hospital, Beverly, Mass. (617) 922-0000
• FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH OF ACTON—8 Concord Rd., Acton, Mass. (617) 263-3940
• HALF WAY HOUSE—20 Linwood Sq., Roxbury, Mass. (617) 442-7591
• ACID—13 Linden Ave., Malden, Mass. (617) 342-2218
• PROJECT ASSIST—945 Great Plain Ave., Needham, Mass. (617) 444-1902& 3
• LEXINGTON—ARLINGTON HOT LINE—1912 Mass. Ave., Lexington, Mass. (617) 862-8130&1
• COMMUNITY YOUTH COMMISSION—945 Great Plain Ave., Needham, Mass. (617) 444-1795
• HOT LINE—429 Cherry St., West Newton, Mass. (617) 969-5906
• BINARY INFORMATION TRANSFER—141 Westbourne Park Rd., London W2, England. Ask overseas operator for London 222-8219
• CANADIAN SWITCHBOARD—282 Rue Ste. Catherine, West, Montreal, Quebec, Canada (514) 866- 2672
For a complete and up-to-date list of switchboards and similar projects around the country, write to San Francisco Switchboard. They need 25 cents to cover postage costs.
2. GUERRILLA BROADCASTING
GUERRILLA RADIO
Under FCC Low Power Transmission Regulations, it is legal to broadcast on the AM band without even obtaining a license, if you transmit with 100 milliwatts of power or less on a free band space that doesn’t interfere with a licensed station.
You are further allowed up to a 12-foot antenna or the use of carrier-current transmission (regular electric wall outlets). Using this legal set-up, you can broadcast from a 2 to 20 block radius depending on how high up you can locate your antenna and the density of tall buildings in the area.
Carrier-current broadcasting consists of plugging the transmitter into a regular wall socket. It draws power in the same way as any other electrical appliance, and feeds its signal into the power line allowing the broadcast to be heard on any AM radio tuned into the operating frequency. The transmitter can be adjusted to different frequencies until a clear band is located. The signal will travel over the electrical wiring until it hits a transformer where it will be erased. The trouble with this method is that in large cities, almost every large office or apartment building has a transformer. You should experiment with this method first, but if you are in a city, chances are you’ll need an antenna rigged up on the roof. Anything over twelve feet is illegal, but practice has shown that the FCC won’t hassle you if you don’t have commercials and refrain from interfering with licensed broadcasts.
There are some cats in Connecticut broadcasting illegally with a 100-foot antenna over a thirty mile radius for hours on end and nobody gives them any trouble. Naturally if you insist upon using dirty language, issuing calls to revolution, broadcasting bombing information, interfering with above ground stations and becoming too well known, the FCC is going to try and knock you out. There are penalties that have never been handed out of up to a year in jail.
It’s possible you could get hit with a conspiracy rap, which could make it a felony, but the opinion of movement lawyers now is a warning if you’re caught once, and a possible fine with stiffer penalties possible for repeaters that are caught.
If it gets really heavy, you could still broadcast for up to 15 minutes without being pin-pointed by the FCC sleuths. By locating your equipment in a panel truck and broadcasting from a fixed roof antenna, you can make it almost impossible for them to catch you by changing positions.
There has been a variety of transmitting equipment used, and the most effective has been found to be an AM transmitter manufactured by Low Power Broadcasting Co., 520 Lincoln Highway, Frazer, Penn. 19355. Call Dick Crompton at (215 NI 4-4096. The right transmitter will run about $200. If you plan to use carrier-current transmission you’ll also need a capacitor that sells for $30.
An antenna can be made out of aluminum tubing and antenna wiring available at any TV radio supply store (see diagram). You’ll also need a good microphone that you can get for about $10. Naturally, equipment for heavier broadcasting is available if a member of your group has a license or good connections with someone who works in a large electronics supply house. Also with a good knowledge in the area you can build a transmitter for a fraction of the purchase price. You can always employ tape recorders, turntables and other broadcasting hardware depending on how much bread you have, how much stuff you have to hide (i.e., how legal your operation is) and the type of broadcasting you want to do.
It is possible to extend your range by sending a signal over the telephone lines to other transmitters which
