Two years after Arlington Independent Media’s implosion, the organization’s FM radio station is seeking a second life with a focus on education, news and the arts.
Despite AIM laying off its entire staff in March 2024 and losing its entire broadcast studio at a county auction following a blistering financial audit, the organization’s remaining legal and technical representatives have petitioned the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to transfer the license to WERA 96.7.
They’re seeking to establish Radio Arlington, a new nonprofit “committed to the principles of cultural diversity, community building, sustainability, and the creation of a more just and equitable world of creative expression and personal and social responsibility,” according to articles of incorporation approved by the State Corporation Commission on March 23.
“Our aim is to produce and disseminate relevant programming while educating the public in the broadcast arts: training volunteers, creating learning experiences in multimedia, opening opportunities for community promotion and outreach,” the articles state.
AIM is seeking the FCC’s permission to transfer use of its broadcasting tower, feedline and antenna to Radio Arlington in addition to its license. The new nonprofit proposes to broadcast the following.
- Debates, public affairs, independent news, and issues of concern to the community.
- Cultural programming featuring independent and grassroots voices.
- Freeform music and audio expression, bolstering creative arts and independent music in the community.
Per Radio Arlington’s articles of incorporation, the nonprofit will have no members but will be managed by a board of directors. The document stipulates that “no director shall have any right, title or interest in or to any property of the corporation.”
Edward Schneider, the initial registered agent for Radio Arlington, declined to comment on this story.
WERA hasn’t broadcast fresh content since at least late 2023, when the local radio station switched to a continuous loop of lo-fi beats. The station finally went dark in July 2025.
In a final email to AIM producers in April 2025, former Producers’ Representative Jeff Hoffman had said that leaders were working to find another entity to assume control of the radio station.
“Due to AIM’s financial challenges — no cash reserves, significant debt, and limited county and community support — [former AIM President Amanda MacKaye], Ted [Schneider], Don [Masters], and others have been working to identify an organization willing to take over WERA’s FCC license,” Hoffman wrote at the time. “I don’t have details on the status, timeline, or likelihood of a transfer, but discussions are ongoing, and nothing is imminent.”
Months of efforts to revive AIM lost most of their momentum after an audit in February 2025 revealed substantial gaps and errors in how the nonprofit handled some $2 million in county-provided funds.
Unpaid taxes and rent led the county to seize AIM’s assets, auctioning off hundreds of professional-grade items — including everything from camcorders and MacBooks to lighting kits and desks — last summer. The county recouped about $59,000 but was owed much more.
County Manager Mark Schwartz said in January that staff had exhausted all options to settle up to half a million dollars in debts from the nonprofit. County Board member Maureen Coffey, who serves as co-chair of the Audit Committee, suggested there was no more money to be found.
“They barely exist,” she said of AIM. “We explored all options available to us, and this is where we are.”
