Fort Collins students find a voice through Internet radio

While other kids his age were playing football or performing with the drama club, Jake Wood was busy starting his own radio station. The idea first came to him in 2007 when he learned that the Federal Communications Commission was opening the application window for noncommercial radio stations, reports Fort Collins Now. "At the time, I was still trying to figure out how to hook my iPod into my car," he said. "I was still listening to regular radio, which was kind of redundant and played too many commercials. I started thinking what would it be like if high school students ran a radio station." He filed for a station in Red Feather, where he lives, but he wasn't the only one. He gave up the idea of an FM station, and re-examined his options. The more he thought about it, he realized that regular radio stations didn't make the most sense. "Most high school kids listen to iPods and get their music from the Internet," he said. "Regular radio is slowly disappearing from this particular demographic." And so, Klik Radio, an Internet ratio station at www.klikradio.org, was born. With some technical experience from running the sound system at school dances, Wood began recruiting friends to volunteer at the station. His parents gave him money to apply for non-profit status, and he has also received funding from the Bohemian Foundation and other donations. The station, which plays an eclectic mix of music, draws 400 listeners a month and has about 35 volunteers from Poudre High School, Fort Collins High School and some from Loveland...

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