After the last Polish-language radio station, Polskie Radio New York 910, closed down unexpectedly over a month ago, Poles living in the New York metro area have been left without their own radio station. Now, however, there seems to be a chance the Polish community will be able to listen to Polish-language news and programs on air again.
The efforts to open a new radio station are lead by Ewa Strzałkowska, a former journalist with Radio 910.
"We have created a media corporation and have started talks with American radio stations regarding leasing air time," Ms Strzałkowska said at a meeting with the Polish community organized at the Polish Home, in Cracovia Manor, in Wallington, NJ.
Furthermore, she informed on being in touch with a radio station that is willing to allot the Polish radio program three hours (from 2 to 5 p.m.) five to six times a week. The station is 2.5 times stronger than the one that closed down in Pomona, so the programs would be available to residents in New Jersey and in Greenpoint, New York.
The radio station is located in Bergen County in New Jersey, close to Wallington, NJ [home to a sizable Polish community]. Weekly costs of maintaining a daily three-hour Polish-language program are estimated at $35,000.
The creators of the new Polish radio have decided to start broadcasting one hour a day. "The most important it is to get started," said Andrzej Krygowski, a known sports activist who is also involved in the project headed by his wife, Ewa Strzałkowska.
One hour of broadcasting from the radio station in Bergen County costs $250, but Strzałkowska and Krygowski say they need $100,000 for a security deposit. "Once we find an investor who is willing to be a main shareholder, the Polish radio station can launch in two to three weeks," Krygowski explained.
"At the moment, we are financially unable to launch a Polish-language program on a larger scale. But we will do it step by step. It's all in the hands of sponsors and advertisers," said Mr. Krygowski, who will take care of the technical side of the venture.
Krygowski and Strzałkowska added they have assurances from the owners of the American radio station, from which they want to lease airtime, that if they manage to secure more funds, more airtime will be available to stretch the Polish program airtime to cover more hours. Buying a radio station and a license remains a dream, as such license now cost $2 million.
Ewa Strzałkowska, who will take care of the programming part of the initiative, added that she had already been working hard on designing a program for the new station. She plans to focus on local issues of concern to the community.
"There are so many Polish people here who promote culture in the United States – scientists and businessmen – and all these people I would like to invite to our programs and talks. Naturally, we will also provide our listeners with news coverage from Poland and the most important news from the world," she said.
"We need a Polish-language radio, and PAC will do its best to support the initiative," said Bozena Urbankowska, president of the Polish American Congress (PAC), the Northern New Jersey Division, which hosted the meeting on the Polish radio project last Friday
When discussing ways of financing the venture, Jerzy Majcherczyk, head of the Polish American Travelers Club, suggested introducing a subscription fee for listeners, and have it collected through the Polish-Slavic Federal Credit Union. Stanislaw Jaglowski proposed opening up an account to which people willing to support the creation and operation of the Polish-language radio station could submit donations.
"It is said at there are 700,000 Polish Americans in New Jersey. If everybody chips in a dollar the radio will be able to function for a long while," he said.
Ewa Strzałkowska informed that she is planning a meeting with potential sponsors and advertisers in the near future. "We are working on establishing sponsorship and shareholder levels, as well as other rules, necessary for the existence and operation of the radio station."
