In January 2003, Robert Short, Jr. testified before the U.S. Senate that he was forced to sell his Syracuse, NY radio station, WRDS-FM, after just five and a half years on the air. Short was the first African American owner of a broadcast radio station in central New York. He says that he was squeezed out of the market largely because of the overwhelming dominance of Clear Channel, in addition to ongoing racism in the advertising industry.

Why did you want to start a radio station?

Was it difficult to get a broadcasting license?

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