Much of the legal and regulatory public policy discussion has centered around the model of the community broadcasting station, a station which is licensed to serve a particular community and which broadcasts a combination of Public Broadcasting System-supplied and locally produced programs. Typically, these stations are controlled by a single state-charted entity. This centralism of control violates the spirit of Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulations which call for local control and diversification. Though, in recent years, several court cases have touched on this sensitive issue, policy makers have not yet recognized the dichotomy between existing state operating structures and the principle of localism. The FCC should consider two alternatives: (1) a system of license priorities which encourages local funding and control; and (2) providing federal support to an alternative network of locally cnetered broadcasts. (EMH)