Roy Neset

Roy Neset, a North Dakota farmer wanted to listen to talk radio while cultivating his fields on his tractor, but the only radio station in the area plays country music and rejected Neset’s requests for a shift in programming. Stymied, he obtained a low-power radio transmitter, received written permission from a station in Colorado to carry its signal, then began transmitting that station via satellite. When the local station manager learned of Neset’s broadcasts, he complained to the Federal Communications Commission’s field office in Minneapolis. The FCC sent an agent to Tioga on at least two occasions to monitor the station. After ascertaining that Neset was broadcasting on 88.3 FM without a license, the FCC convinced the U.S. Attorney in North Dakota to file a lawsuit against Neset.