DX LISTENING DIGEST 11-30, July 28, 2011
Incorporating REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING
edited by Glenn Hauser, http://www.worldofradio.com
Items from DXLD may be reproduced and re-reproduced only if full
credit be maintained at all stages and we be provided exchange copies.
DXLD may not be reposted in its entirety without permission.
Materials taken from Arctic or originating from Olle Alm and not
having a commercial copyright are exempt from all restrictions of
noncommercial, noncopyrighted reusage except for full credits
For restrixions and searchable 2011 contents archive see
http://www.worldofradio.com/dxldmid.html
NOTE: If you are a regular reader of DXLD, and a source of DX news but
have not been sending it directly to us, please consider yourself
obligated to do so. Thanks, Glenn
WORLD OF RADIO 1575 HEADLINES:
*DX and station new from: Andaman Islands, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada,
China, Colombia, Denmark, Europe, Georgia, Germany, India,
International Vacuum, Morocco, Netherlands Antilles non, Pakistan,
Papua New Guinea, Peru, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia non, Somalia
non, Sudan South, UK, USA, Venezuela and non
SHORTWAVE AIRINGS OF WORLD OF RADIO 1575, July 28-August 3, 2011
Thu 0330 WRMI 9955 [confirmed on webcast]
Thu 1500 WRMI 9955
Thu 2100 WRMI 9955 [not jammed but JBA; confirmed on webcast]
Thu 2100 WTWW 9479 [confirmed and also webcast now working]
Thu 2130 WBCQ 7415 [JBA, confirmed]
Fri 0330 WWRB 5051
Fri 0500 WRMI 9955
Fri 1430 WRMI 9955
Sat 0800 WRMI 9955
Sat 1500 WRMI 9955
Sat 1730 WRMI 9955
Sun 0400 WTWW 5755
Sun 0800 WRMI 9955
Sun 1530 WRMI 9955
Sun 1730 WRMI 9955
Mon 0300 WBCQ 5110v-CUSB [time varies later]
Mon 1130 WRMI 9955
Mon 1530 WRMI 9955
Mon 2130 WRMI 9955
Tue 1530 WRMI 9955
Wed 1530 WRMI 9955
Latest edition of this schedule version, including AM, FM, satellite
and webcasts with hotlinks to station sites and audio, is at:
http://www.worldofradio.com/radioskd.html or
http://schedule.worldofradio.org or http://sked.worldofradio.org
For updates see our Anomaly Alert page:
http://www.worldofradio.com/anomaly.html
WRN ON DEMAND:
http://193.42.152.193/listeners/stations/station.php?StationID=24
WORLD OF RADIO PODCASTS VIA WRN:
http://www.wrn.org/wrn-listeners/world-of-radio/
http://www.wrn.org/listeners/world-of-radio/rss/09:00:00UTC/English/541
OUR ONDEMAND AUDIO:
http://www.worldofradio.com/audiomid.html
or http://wor.worldofradio.org
DXLD YAHOOGROUP: Why wait for DXLD? A lot more info, not all of it
appearing in DXLD later, is posted at our yg without delay.
When applying, please identify yourself with your real name and
location, and say something about why you want to join. Those who do
not, unless I recognize them, will be prompted once to do so and no
action will be taken otherwise. Here`s where to sign up:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dxld/
** ALBANIA. Radio Tirana, Shijak transmitter site, 9860 kHz, 0030 UT
July 21, 44434. Station ID an newscast by man in English at 0030.
"Press Review" - Talk about the May 8 local elections and European
Union at 0040. Music until end of program and interval signal at 0042.
Good signal, Bad modulation S-9.
Radio Tirana, Shijak transmitter site, 13735 kHz. 2000 UT July 23,
44334, Interval signal at 1959, followed by station ID and
transmission times and frequencies by woman in English at 2000. Talk
by woman about the Balkans at 2002. Albanian(?) March type song by
chorus at 2020. Good signal S-8.
Radio Tirana Shijak transmitter site 7245 [sic] kHz. 0345 July 24
45544 Woman with talk in English about the history of Albania at 0345.
Albanian National Anthem at 0350. Albanian music until 0357, then
station ID, interval signal and off the air at 0358. Good signal S-9
(Nick Rumple, Kannapolis, North Carolina, U.S.A., Yaesu FRG-100, 125
foot longwire - 40 feet high, shortwavelistening yg via DXLD)
** ANDAMAN & NICOBAR ISLANDS. Re 11-28: AIR Port Blair was noted with
good signals yesterday 22 July 2011 from tune in around 1405 UT on
4760. They were not heard for some days. 73 (Jose Jacob, VU2JOS,
National Institute of Amateur Radio, Hyderabad, dx_india yg via WORLD
OF RADIO 1575, DXLD)
** ANGUILLA. 11775, July 22 at 1352, noticed no signal from here; am
pretty sure Dead Gene Scott was audible earlier this morning as I
tuned across.
6090, July 28 at 0525, no signal, just T-storm noise (Glenn Hauser,
OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) See BRAZIL
** ANTARCTICA. 15476, I have been surreptitiously checking most
mornings sometime between 1230 and 1400 for even a trace of a carrier
from LRA36; still nothing July 22 at 1247 altho Turkey 15450 and China
15480 were audible. Last date heard by me, and I think by anyone, was
June 16, as in DXLD 11-24 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** ARGENTINA. 15344.05v, R. Nacional, 0109, July 25. In Spanish;
ID; presentation of a drama till 0220; mostly fair; eight minute MP3
audio at < http://www.box.net/shared/47szx8dm6ocv27kzz5p6 >;
very noticeable drifting (Ron Howard, Asilomar State Beach, CA,
Etón E1, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** AUSTRALIA. 2368.5, Radio Symban, 1241-1310, July 25. Without the
QRN would have been solid fair reception; 5 minute MP3 audio
http://www.box.net/shared/kauo0hznb8o0fc9sdkti
of their typical Greek music (Ron Howard, Asilomar State Beach, CA,
Etón E1, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
2368.5, Radio Symban, 1159 July 22. Man in Greek and Greek music at
1201. Good signal but a noisy band. Poor. (Sellers-BC)
2485, AUSTRALIA, VL8K Katherine, 1151 July 22. Sports play-by-play,
one team from Adelaide, continued through top of the hour. Fair, //
2325 poor, 2310 off the air or inaudible (Harold Sellers, Vernon,
British Columbia, Listening from my car with Eton E1 and Sony AN1
active antenna. Editor of World English Survey and Target Listening,
available at http://www.odxa.on.ca dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** AUSTRALIA [and non]. RA 9580 vs CRI 9570 --- Gentlemen, I want to
bring you up to date regarding the situation with RA 9580/9590 and CRI
via Cuba on 9570 [12-14 UT].
For about the last 4 months, things have been - - - perfect! 9570 was
transmitting within spec. No interference was encountered on 9580 or
9590 other that 10 kHz audio splash. Things were so good, 9560 was
also listenable. I was almost prepared to forgive CRI. I thought they
must have installed one of the new transmitters that were rumoured to
be shipped to Cuba. Is the problem over!?!?!?? or were they
transmitting from a different site?
But.... Things are now back to the way they were. A mountain of white
noise again surrounds 9570. 9560 is unusable and 9580 makes it through
because of its strength [it will suffer this winter]. I think there is
some noise under 9590 as well. Nigel, I don't know if you have a
channel open with CRI, but this problem is fix-able. Hopefully RA can
convince them of this. Regards (Andy Reid, Ont., July 24, to Nigel
Holmes, RA, and DX LISTENING DIGEST)
15240, 15160, 13690, 13630, July 28 at 0516, no signals from R.
Australia, usually well audible. Suspect Shep is off the air at the
moment. However, NZ on 11725 and DRM 11670-11680 were weaker than
usual, so maybe propagation. At 0600 UT, WWV reported by e-mail,
``Space weather for the past 24 hours has been minor. Radio blackouts
reaching the R1 level occurred`` and that was also announced at 1218
on 10000 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** AUSTRALIA. AUSTRALIAN STATES ON SHORTWAVE - 3: VICTORIA
In the Australian radio world, the initial number of the mediumwave
callsign indicates the state in which the station is located, and the
number 3 indicates Victoria. This pattern of identification for radio
stations followed the European pattern that was established in the
early days of radio broadcasting.
A total of three different commercial radio stations in Melbourne
experimented with the concept of shortwave broadcasting as an increase
in coverage area during the early years, and the first was 3LO in
1927. Even though the AWA shortwave station at Pennant Hills near
Sydney in New South Wales subsequently became more prominent, yet the
early 3LO broadcasts from their own transmitter at Braybrook were a
significant milestone in the Australian scene of international radio
broadcasting.
At the time, station 3LO was commercially operated during the era
before it was taken over by the federal government as a national
broadcasting station. The shortwave broadcasts from 3LO created an
interest both within Australia and in overseas countries, and their
international broadcasts were relayed to local listeners by radio
stations and networks in England and the United States, and
occasionally in other countries.
Initially the shortwave broadcasts from 3LO were radiated at night
from their own lower powered shortwave transmitter that was on the air
under the callsign VK3ME, but subsequently, relays were taken out via
the 10 kW AWA transmitter at Ballan. The 3LO shortwave broadcasts
ended in 1929 at the time when 3LO & 3AR were amalgamated and taken
over by the government for what became the nationwide ABC radio
service. However, at that stage, AWA continued producing their own
programming for broadcast over the same two shortwave transmitters at
Braybrook & Ballan.
Then it was that another commercial station in Melbourne, 3DB, took
out a relay via VK3ME five years later for the Melbourne Centenary
Celebrations, a relay that lasted for a period of three weeks. The
programming content in this shortwave relay to the world was taken
from the regular evening broadcasts of the mediumwave station 3DB.
The other commercial station in Melbourne that was heard on shortwave
during this era was 3UZ, the Oliver Nielsen station in the capital
city. Their chief engineer constructed a 150 watt shortwave
transmitter that was noted on air for two short periods of time, in
1930 and again in 1931.
We can remember also the ABC shortwave station located at Lyndhurst
out in the country, with its several transmitters and several program
streams. Experimental transmitter VK3LR began its life as a low power
PMG facility for experimental development in a galvanized iron shed
near Lyndhurst.
As time went by, the building was rebuilt, renovated, and re-
renovated; and transmitter VK3LR became VLR, and subsequently
additional transmitters were installed, and these took to the air
mainly under the callsigns VLG, VLH, & VNG. Programming was provided
by the ABC Home Service and also by Radio Australia; and VNG carried
the chronohertz time and frequency service. The Lyndhurst station,
with its bevy of 10 kW transmitters, was closed down at the end of the
year 1987 at the conclusion of around 60 years of international on air
service.
Then too, the other major shortwave station for Radio Australia in
Victoria is the facility near Shepparton which was inaugurated with a
50 kW RCA transmitter in mid 1944. Still on the air to this day,
Shepparton was on the air internationally with callsigns VLA VLB, etc
running down to VLF, all rated at either 50 kW or 100 kW. There was
also a 10 kW transmitter at Shepparton under the callsign VLY during
that era.
We can also remember that the studios for Radio Australia are located
in Melbourne, and this programming has been fed to their transmitter
sites located in five states, as well as in overseas countries.
Finally, we look at two program broadcasting stations that were on the
air carrying programming for army personnel. In 1955, Radio
Puckapunyal was noted in New Zealand and Australia with just one
broadcast of an hour duration each week. This station was located in
an army camp out from Melbourne, and it was active on shortwave for
just a few weeks.
The other army station was located at another army encampment, known
as Digger’s Rest, a little further out from Melbourne. This station
was on the air with live programming for army personnel under the
callsign VMA. It was noted at two different time periods, 1982 & 1987,
and the programs were intended for army personnel on service overseas.
Thus, in the Australian state of Victoria, we have seen that a total
of more than a dozen shortwave transmitters at more than half a dozen
locations have broadcast regular and special radio programming during
the past more than 80 years. Every one of these stations issued QSL
cards, some of which are now rare collector’s items.
The colorful QSL cards issued by Radio Australia for their broadcasts
over Shepparton & Lyndhurst are well known, and the ABC cards for
Lyndhurst are also well known, as are also the VNG double sized cards.
Occasionally, cards for VK3ME are offered on Ebay, and also for 3LO &
3UZ. The two army stations also issued QSL cards for their unique
broadcasts.
However, there are no known QSL cards issued by 3DB for the three week
period of broadcasts during the centenary celebrations in 1934.
However, it is known that 3DB issued a QSL card for their mediumwave
station during that era, and we would presume that they issued the
same card for their shortwave broadcasts also.
Next month, we will look at the shortwave scene in another state,
Queensland, with the initial number 4 (Adrian Peterson, IN, AWR
Wavescan script for April 10 via DXLD)
** BAHRAIN [and non]. 9745, 19/7 1854, Radio Bahrain, western songs
non stop, talks in Arabic on the hour, fair but some QRM from a co-
channel station in Chinese. Could be Voice of Hope? (Giampiero
Bernardini, Italy, in Tuscany (Pescia, 60 km west from Florence),
RFspace SDR-14; ant 30 m long wire, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** BELARUS. 7360, 19/7 2124, Radio Belarus, in English, language
lesson, web address, songs, fair // 7390 (Giampiero Bernardini, Italy,
in Tuscany (Pescia, 60 km west from Florence), RFspace SDR-14; ant 30
m long wire, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** BELGIUM. Re 11-29: Radio Vlaanderen Internationaal, of Belgium's
Dutch-speaking community, will close. Posted: 21 Jul 2011
The English service of RVI, which closed in 2005, included some of the
most talented and popular international radio broadcasters, such as
David Monson and Frans Vossen. RVI dropped shortwave in 2009,
continuing on internet and satellite since then. Flanders thus follows
the Netherlands in discontinuing a dedicated radio service for Dutch-
speaking countrypersons abroad (Kim Andrew Elliott,
kimandrewelliott.com via DXLD)
Jonathan Marks adds: "I think you'll find that RVI in Dutch has been
simply a relay of domestic channels for some years with very little of
their own production. What I find significant is that they will pull
out of BVN. RNW has grabbed quite a lot of material from domestic
radio sources but still hired presenters and newsreaders to put into a
different form. None of that is needed now." -- BVN is an
international Dutch-language television, a joint project of Dutch and
Flemish public broadcasters, including Radio Netherlands.
Flandersnews, 16 July 2011: "The Flemish public broadcaster [announced
a] new policy agreement for the VRT [Vlaamse Radio en Televisieomroep,
public broadcaster of the Dutch-speaking community in Belgium] which
will apply for a five-year period, from 2012 to 2016. ... The policy
agreement also contains a specific goal linked to foreigners living
and working in Flanders. The VRT wants to make sure that they are well
informed about what's happening in Flanders. The focus will be on news
and culture, but concrete plans still have to be worked out. The aim
is to have this ready by the end of next year. There will be talks
about the feasibility of such programmes on different channels:
online, TV and radio." (kimandrewelliott.com via DXLD)
-- Flandersnews is an English-language service of VRT, demonstrating
that English continues from VRT even six years after the demise of the
RVI English service (Kim Andrew Elliott, ibid.)
** BOLIVIA. 4865.01-.03v, tentatively Radio Logos, Santa Cruz de la
Sierra, with a fair signal and slightly wandering fqy many mornings,
lately. Heard as early as 0930 on 7/20 on 4865.01, but more often
showing up closer to 1000 GMT. Signal can hold up as late as 1030+
some days. Noted Jul 9, 12, 19, 20, 21, 22.
Programming fairly consistent: Mellow and nondescript canciones --
instrumentals but more frequently SS vocalists (possibly Christian
Spanish pops) with organ + bass or else other sparse instrumentation.
Many tunes seguéd. OM announcer occasionally between songs, mike is
very muffled and undermodulated, extremely difficult to read. Typical
snippets like OM mentioning of "la música . . . siempre por todos . .
. la Biblia . . . onda corta . . ."
Can't hear an actual s/on or NA which would really help, but
everything consistent with past profile for R Logos and propagation
seems to // performance of other E Bolivians like R. Santa Cruz on 49
mb (when one good, the others doing okay, also). Usually a het and
best heard in ECSS-LSB + notch (Ralph Perry, Wheaton, Illinois, Drake
R8B; Japan Radio NRD-545; Eton E1; Hallicrafters SX100; Knightkit Star
Roamer; Dentron Super Tuner + Ameco PT-2 + Palomar P-408 Quantum
Phaser Unit; Longwires (150' + 100'); Tuned Multi-Turn 20" Small Loop;
Single-Turn Coax Loop, dxldyg via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
** BOLIVIA [and non]. 4699.95, Radio San Miguel, Riberalta, 7/20 0920-
0940 tune/out, tropical rhythms and fair QSA above the noise. Deep
voiced OM at 0924, cranking up the modulation, "Muy buenos días . . .
las cinco de la mañana con 24 minutos . . .: Guitar strumming and OM
singing balada next. Frequent time/checks and more guitar vocals.
Also nice signal 7/21 at 1000 with SS OM IDing at ToH. Fair signal
7/22 past 1000. 60 meter band starting to come to life again in the
mornings, as the daylight comes later to the central USA --- starting
to note the familiar Andean transmitters like 4815 HC, 4790 and 4747
and 4825 OA, etc. New DX season on the way (Ralph Perry, Wheaton,
Illinois, Drake R8B; Japan Radio NRD-545; Eton E1; Hallicrafters
SX100; Knightkit Star Roamer; Dentron Super Tuner + Ameco PT-2 +
Palomar P-408 Quantum Phaser Unit; Longwires (150' + 100'); Tuned
Multi-Turn 20" Small Loop; Single-Turn Coax Loop, dxldyg via WORLD OF
RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST) see also UNIDENTIFIED 6025
4700, Radio San Miguel, Riberalta noted at 0930+ carrier on, no signal
several mornings, 1003 Latin pops with om dj, good signal 21 July
(Robert Wilkner, NRD 535D - Drake R8 - Icom 746Pro modified, Pompano
Beach, South Florida U S, HCDX via DXLD)
5952.39, Pio XII, Siglo Veinte, om yl with good signal 1100 to 1110,
22 July; 1050 to 1100 yl and om en español, good synchro lock on R8
and NRD 535D; on 18 July, 1045 cochannel murdering the signal (Robert
Wilkner, NRD 535D - Drake R8 - Icom 746Pro modified, Pompano Beach,
South Florida U S, HCDX via DXLD)
5955 [sic], 24/07 0230, Emisoras Pio XII - Encerramento da
transmissão, tendo ao fundo a música "Colonel Bogey March" (aquela
famosa música assoviada da "Ponte do rio que cai") 73 a todos!
(Fabricio Andrade Silva, PP5002SWL, Tubarão - SC Brazil,
Sony ICF sw 7600 GR, Antena Loop Blindada, radioescutas yg via DXLD)
Interesting to know the title of ``Bridge on the River Kwai`` in
Portuguese, so it rhymes, altho cai means ``falls`` (gh, DXLD)
** BOLIVIA. 6155, R. Fides? See UNIDENTIFIED
** BOTSWANA. OIG INSPECTS THE IBB BOTSWANA RELAY STATION AND
DETERMINES THAT IT IS "WELL RUN." Posted: 21 Jul 2011
Twitter, 20 July 2011, State OIG @StateOIG: "OIG posts @StateOIG
@BBGgov Inspection of International Broadcasting Bureau Botswana
Transmitting Station."
US Department of State and Broadcasting Board of Governors Office of
Inspector General, June 2011 (pdf),
http://oig.state.gov/documents/organization/169045.pdf
"The Botswana Transmitting Station (BTS) is well run. The station
manager has improved station operations and cut costs. He has
renovated and repaired station facilities, and implemented energy-
saving initiatives to offset increased energy costs."
(kimandrewelliott.com via DXLD)
This MW + SW relay station is an important facility for USIB,
transmitting to a large audience in Zimbabwe, and to still-large
shortwave audiences through Africa (Kim Andfrew Elliott, ibid.)
** BRAZIL. 4815, 18.7 2327, R Dif. Londrina med körsång. Var först
inne på att det var Equadorianen med tanke på det formatet, men
annonseringar på PP runt kl 0000 avgjorde saken. Q2. HR
4815, 18.07 2327, R Dif. Londrina with choral singing. At first I
thought it was Ecuadorian station due to the format, but the
advertisements in Portuguese at around 0000 settled it. Q2 (Hans
Östnell, Biri, Norway, SW Bulletin July 24, translated by editor
Thomas Nilsson for WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** BRAZIL. Recordando a Rádio Relógio
Enviado em 18 de Julho de 2011 Publicado por Romais
MilagreNaoRepete - MilagreNaoRepete [caption]
Os entusiastas das ondas curtas certamente lembram da Rádio Relógio
Federal, do Rio de Janeiro (RJ), transmitindo na freqüência de 4905
kHz, na faixa de 62 metros. A estação foi descontinuada na década de
1990 e vendida para uma seita religiosa. Entretanto, o sinal
característico, os anúncios comerciais e o tradicional “Você Sabia?”
jamais sairá de nossas mentes. É por isso que indicamos o documentário
do diretor Leonardo Souza, intitulado “O minuto é um milagre que não
se repete”. Veja o vídeo aqui e boas lembranças!
http://www.curtadoc.tv/curta/index.php?id=597
(Célio Romais blog via DXLD)
** BRAZIL. 4915 Brazilian blaring in 0922-0940, beautiful signal, best
in band, OM announcements interspersed with guitar+xylo music (cranked
up and down by announcer). Hymnlike selections next and at 0932, horn
version of "What A Friend We Have in Jesus" (like the old interval
signal for, what was it, Trans World Radio?) Stayed with it but
station refused to ID! Dunno if Macapá or Daqui? (Ralph Perry,
Wheaton, Illinois, Drake R8B; Japan Radio NRD-545; Eton E1;
Hallicrafters SX100; Knightkit Star Roamer; Dentron Super Tuner +
Ameco PT-2 + Palomar P-408 Quantum Phaser Unit; Longwires (150' +
100'); Tuned Multi-Turn 20" Small Loop; Single-Turn Coax Loop, dxldyg
via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** BRAZIL. A Rádio Guarujá Paulista, de Guarujá (SP), pretende voltar
a retransmitir em ondas curtas dentro em breve. A emissora pretende
reativar a freqüência de 5045 kHz, conforme informações de seu
diretor, jornalista Orivaldo Rampazo. (Sintonizando Ondas Curtas,
Célio Romais blog http://romais.jor.br/blog/ July 27 via WORLD OF
RADIO 1575, DXLD)
That will conflict with R. Cultura do Pará on 5045, making another
Brazilian SW frequency with two or more stations (gh, DXLD)
** BRAZIL. 5970, Radio Itatiaia, Belo Horizonte, channel clear at 0900
when noted with recorded ad string in progress and then live announcer
at 0905 in Portuguese, "Bom dia! Transmite Rádio Itatiaia . . .com a
música que você ama!" Long live announcement by OM in Portuguese.
Good opening to Brazil 7/21, also noting presumed Rádio Congonhas at
0915 with mellow orchestrals (Ralph Perry, Wheaton, Illinois, Drake
R8B; Japan Radio NRD-545; Eton E1; Hallicrafters SX100; Knightkit Star
Roamer; Dentron Super Tuner + Ameco PT-2 + Palomar P-408 Quantum
Phaser Unit; Longwires (150' + 100'); Tuned Multi-Turn 20" Small Loop;
Single-Turn Coax Loop, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** BRAZIL. ALGUEM SABE o endereço da RADIO SENADO? Hoje sintonizei de
manhã na freq. 5990 kHz 49m, e gostaria me mandar um informe de
recepção, mas não achei o endereço. Quero mandar por carta; é melhor
por email, nem tenho assim um formulário exemplo. Obrigado a todos (J.
C. do Limão, July 24, radioescutas yg via DXLD)
Caro, Segue:
Via N2 - Anexo II - Bloco B - Térreo
Senado Federal
Brasília DF
CEP 70.165-900
email: radio @ senado. gov.br
Eu mandei por carta, recebi QSL, material impresso sobre o Senado e
uma carta simpática. Não sei se eles respondem QSL por email, devem
responder. 73's (Arthur Antonio Raimundo, Goiânia GO Brasil, ibid.)
Caro J.C, Não encontrei o endereço físico da Rádio Senado no site da
emissora. De toda forma, já recebi QSLs de lá confirmando escuta em
5990 kHz; quem assinou foi a Srta. Marcela Diniz, Coordenadora da
rádio em OC. Acredito que se escrever para ela no e-mail ondascurtas @
senado.gov.br terá uma resposta. Só não deixe de colocar seu endereço
para correspondências. Eu enviei na época um informe eletrónicamente e
tive sucesso da mesma forma. Caso faça questão de enviar por carta,
então tente remeter ao Senado Federal / Rádio Senado. A Rádio Senado
seria administrada de forma independente da Empresa Brasil de
Comunicação - EBC? realmente não sei. O cartão deles é simples, mas
foi o primeiro que recebi desde que comecei a praticar o hobby, motivo
pelo qual tenho muito carinho. 73, (Rodrigo de Araujo, SWARL
PY4004SWL, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brasil, ibid.)
BRASIL, 5990, Rádio Senado, Brasília, 2150-2203*, 19-07, music, male
and female, comments, Portuguese, "6 y 52". 34433. Also 2130-2200*.
21-07, male, comments: "Rádio Senado, Senado Federal, female, music.
At 2159: "Rádio Senado, Brasília, ondas curtas 5990 kHz, faixa de 49
metros, finaliza as suas transmissões, voltaremos manhã às 7 horas".
At 2200: "Está no ar a Voz do Brasil, a sua voz" and a few minutes
later close down. 34433 (Manuel Méndez, Lugo, Spain, Logs in Reinante,
Lugo, Cantabrian Sea coast, Grundig Satellit 500 and Sony ICF SW 7600
G, Cable antenna, 10 meters, dxldyg via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
** BRAZIL. 6079.97, 0046-0108, R. Marumby, Curitiba, 21/07,
Portuguese, OM/YL religious talk, slow songs, tentative ID and
frequency ann at 0059'16 - fair and even better with local noise, //
http://radioevangelismo.com/radionline.htm with 45 seconds delay
(Mikhail Timofeyev, Saint-Petersburg, Russia, Drake R8A and 30 meters
long wire, HCDX via DXLD)
** BRAZIL. 6090, 0109-0116, R. Bandeirantes, São Paulo, 21/07,
Portuguese, OM live reportage about Paraguay-Venezuela game of Copa
América - poor-weak under Caribbean Beacon + slight het, also weak
carrier on 11925.23 [q.v.] at the same time (Mikhail Timofeyev, Saint-
Petersburg, Russia, Drake R8A and 30 meters long wire, HCDX via DXLD)
6089.95, Radio Bandeirantes, 0115-0130, July 28, audible with Anguilla
off the air. Futebol coverage. Jingles. Sound effects. Weak. Poor in
noisy conditions. // 9645.38 - fair to good. // 11925.22 - threshold
signal. Anguilla 6090 noted off the air the past several days (Brian
Alexander, PA, DX Listening Digest)
** BRAZIL. 9819.82, 2032-2043, R. 9 de Julho, São Paulo, 20/07,
Portuguese, OM cathedral sermon with short fragments of choral
singing, 2040'05 religious choral song - fair-poor with local noise
(very strong periodically) (Mikhail Timofeyev, Saint-Petersburg,
Russia, Drake R8A and 30 meters long wire, HCDX via DXLD)
QSLs: Brasile: RADIO 9 DE JULHO, São Paulo 9820 kHz, E-mail senza dati
con E-card allegata jpg in 7 giorni da radio @ radio9dejulho.com RP:
1$. QTH: Rua Manoel de Arzão 85 - São Paulo 02730-030. Inviato CD MP3.
(Luca Botto Fiora, Italy, bclnews.it yg via DXLD)
** BRAZIL. 11925.2, 2050-2058, R. Bandeirantes, São Paulo, 20/07,
Portuguese, OM/YL talks, music - poor due to heterodyne with CNR1 and
splashes from 11930 (ARS) (Mikhail Timofeyev, Saint-Petersburg,
Russia, Drake R8A and 30 meters long wire, HCDX via DXLD)
A Rádio Bandeirantes, de São Paulo (SP), também tem valorizado
bastante as ondas curtas. Suas três frequências sempre estão no ar 24
horas por dia. O que atrapalha a emissora, no entanto, são as
interferências. A partir do final de tarde no Brasil, tanto 9645
quanto 11925 kHz recebem uma carga muito grande de interferência da
Rádio Internacional da China. Em 26 de julho, o apresentador do
programa Manhã Bandeirantes, Paulo Galvão, leu e-mail deste blogueiro
abordando a importância das transmissões em ondas curtas (Sintonizando
Ondas Curtas, Célio Romais blog http://romais.jor.br/blog/ July 27 via
DXLD)
** BRAZIL. 15189.96, 2018-2042, R. Inconfidência, Belo Horizonte,
16/07, Portuguese, OM talks, Brazilian songs - fair with local noise
(Mikhail Timofeyev, Saint-Petersburg, Russia, Drake R8A and 30 meters
long wire, HCDX via DXLD)
15190, Rádio Inconfidência, Belo Horizonte, 1934-2100, 17-07, soccer,
match between Brazil and Paraguay, Copa América, identification:
"Rádio Inconfidência, 880 AM, a rádio do futebol". 24322.
Also 2112-2140, 22-07, male: "6 e 17, A Hora do Fazendeiro, 75 anos no
ar", "Integração de Estado Mineiros, Jornal Integração, de segunda a
sábado às 7 da manhã", "Inconfidência apresentando A Hora do
Fazendeiro, com Cristiano Batista", "Previsão do tempo". 24322 (Manuel
Méndez, Lugo, Spain, Logs in Reinante, Lugo, Cantabrian Sea coast,
Grundig Satellit 500 and Sony ICF SW 7600 G, Cable antenna, 10 meters,
dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Uma emissora que tem valorizado as ondas curtas nos últimos tempos é a
Rádio Inconfidência, de Belo Horizonte (MG). Sua freqüência de 15190
kHz, na faixa de 19 metros, tem sido captada, com bom sinal, durante
boa parte do dia, em todo o Brasil (Sintonizando Ondas Curtas, Célio
Romais blog http://romais.jor.br/blog/ July 27 via WORLD OF RADIO
1575, DXLD)
QSL: RÁDIO INCONFIDÊNCIA, Belo Horizonte, 15190v kHz, Cartolina QSL in
53 giorni. RP: 1$. QTH: Av. Raja Gabaglia 1666 - Luxemburgo - Belo
Horizonte - Minas Gerais 30441-194. V/s: Marcus Starling - Diretor
Tecnico. Inviato CD MP3 (arrivato rotto). (1700th stazione BC
confermata)
QSLs AM-FM (1983-2011)
Emittenti di Radiodiffusione
EUROPA: 674
AFRICA: 116
ASIA: 193
AMERICA: 122
OCEANIA: 32
CLANDESTINE: 65
PIRATA: 336
FM ITALIA: 171
---------- ---
TOTALE: 1709
(Luca Botto Fiora, Italy, bclnews.it yg via DXLD)
** BRAZIL. Identificação emissoras IPDA --- Caros, Com certeza a
maioria sofre quando tem de identificar emissoras ligadas à IPDA.
Segue a lista dessas emissoras:
http://www.ipda.com.br/nova/frequencia/index.html
Para informação e atualização das listas, seguem as emissoras da IPDA
em SW:
Vitória: Rádio Capixaba - OT 4935 kHz
Curitiba: Super Deus É Amor - OC 25 MT 11765 kHz
Curitiba: Super Deus É Amor - OC 31 MT 9565 kHz
Curitiba: Super Deus É Amor - OC 49 MT 6060 kHz
RJ: Rádio Capital - OC 49 MT 6070 KHz
RJ: Rádio Novo Milênio - OC 49 MT 6030 KHz
RJ: Rádio Novo Milênio - OC 25 MT 11805 KHz
São Paulo: Rádio 880 - OC 31 MT 9585 kHz
São Paulo: Rádio 880 - OC 49 MT 6120 kHz
73's (Arthur Antonio Raimundo, Goiânia GO Brasil, July 23,
radioescutas yg via DXLD)
Arthur, Note que a fonte informativa das denominações das emissoras
divulgadas pela IPDA é o nome de registro destas, e não o nome de
fantasia. É comum as emissoras terem estes dois registros
diferenciados. Exemplo (fictício): Nome de registro: Associação de
Radio e TV Planalto; nome de fantasia (o que é divulgado no ar): Radio
Brasil Novo. Podem coincidir as duas informações, mas a maioria não.
As freqüências não mudam.
Por isso as discrepâncias nos nomes de várias emissoras na tabela no
anexo. Mas foi um bom achado esse seu. Ouvimos sinais da IPDA e não
sabemos a sua procedência. Se não é de todo, mas a tabela serve de um
bom referencial. 73, (Rudolf Grimm, PY2-81502 SWL GG66rg, São
Bernardo, SP, BRASIL http://dxways-br.blogspot.com DX Clube do Brasil
http://www.ondascurtas.com ibid.)
Rudolf, É verdade. Não citei esse fato porque por tratar-se da
programação monotemática da IPDA, basta ouvir a voz de Davi Miranda,
checar a frequência com o local e pronto...
Essa informação consta do próprio site da Igreja. Verifiquei que
faltam algumas emissoras, como a Caraíba AM 930 kHz, de Aparecida de
Goiânia (GO). Sugiro a quem tiver registros de outras emissoras da
IPDA que não constem da lista, me informarem. Pelo menos para mim vai
ter muita utilidade. 73's (Arthur Antonio Raimundo, Goiânia GO Brasil,
ibid.)
Arthur, Está corretíssimo de sua parte. Eu ouço a IPDA em várias
emissoras de fora e qualquer emissora que a IPDA ou outras redes
chegam, sempre despertam à atenção. 73, (Rudolf Grimm, ibid.)
** CAMBODIA [and non]. CAMBODIAN PRIME MINISTER CRITICIZES VOA, RADIO
FREE ASIA
http://www.voanews.com/khmer-english/news/Cambodian-Prime-Minister-Criticizes-VOA-Radio-Free-Asia-126033973.html
http://www.newsday.com/news/cambodian-pm-denounces-us-funded-radio-as-unfair-1.3044494
http://www.chinapost.com.tw/asia/other/2011/07/24/310867/Cambodian-PM.htm
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on Friday sharply criticized Voice of
America and Radio Free Asia, saying their news reports are "very
inferior." He accused the two broadcasters, both funded by the U.S.
government under the Broadcasting Board of Governors, of distorting
information, or containing "zero" information.
The prime minister made the comments in response to a question by a
VOA Khmer Service journalist at a news conference in Cambodia. The
question was about the Khmer Rouge tribunal, and Mr. Hun Sen said it
was not among the topics to be covered by the news conference, which
followed a meeting of his cabinet and was chiefly dominated by
questions about Cambodia's border dispute with Thailand.
Mr. Hun Sen praised Radio France International and offered to hire
Cambodian staff at VOA and RFA to work at Cambodian news stations.
VOA responded to the prime minister's comments by saying, "VOA
journalists around the world, including those covering developments in
Cambodia, adhere to the highest journalistic standards of accuracy and
objectivity, standards mandated by U.S. law."
The Cambodian government has opposed increasing the number of cases
heard by the Khmer Rouge tribunal, a joint Cambodia and international
court that is trying leaders of the Khmer Rouge, which ruled the
country in the late 1970s. More than a million people died under the
Khmer Rouge - many of them starved or worked to death, and others
executed.
One person has been convicted by the tribunal and four others are
being prosecuted. The government says adding more cases could be
harmful to national stability (via Zacharias Liangas, Greece, DXLD)
VOA and RFA broadcast via domestic FM radio stations in Cambodia. RFI
has its own full-time FM transmitter in Phnom Penh (Kim Andrew
Elliott, kimandrewelliott.com via DXLD) So our relays endangered? (gh)
** CANADA [and non]. 6030, Calgary - CFVP relaying CKMX (AM 1060).
Monday (UT) with no R. Martí, but with strong Cuban jamming being
present and even noted by Glenn two hours later, so they just did not
bother to turn it off at all; also QRM from Radio Oromiya (Ethiopia)
at their *0322. July 25 from 0312 to 0348; radio western (The Lone
Ranger) till 0335; ID, ads and C&W songs; jamming made for poor
reception; much better last Monday of course without the jamming (Ron
Howard, Asilomar State Beach, CA, Etón E1, dxldyg via WORLD OF RADIO
1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Viz.:
6030, UT Monday July 25 at 0548, DentroCuban pulse jamming is still
going despite R. Martí silent period, but not being wall-of-noise,
another broadcaster is audible underneath. It and jam fade
independently, so I can tell the station is in an English adstring,
with that faux-sense of urgency we also hear on CFRX 6070, as if vital
info were being conveyed, so out-of-place on SW. Must be 100-watt CFVP
Calgary here; 0551 mentions rodeo, I think. Also has splash from 6020-
CRI via Sackville. Canadians should protect their private low-power
stations much better from ACI and CCI (Glenn Hauser, OK, WORLD OF
RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CANADA. The two proposed relayers of CKVR-DT are intended to insure
“simsub” protection of CKVR programs in the Hamilton/St. Catharines /
Niagara Falls area. Canadian TV stations are allowed to demand
“simsubbing” in areas where their over-the-air signal reaches. This is
the practice of requiring cable & satellite services to replace the
signal of a U.S. station with that of a Canadian station if both
stations are airing the same program at the same time. It greatly
increases viewership of the Canadian station, and as a result, greatly
increases advertising revenue.
Being licensed to – and having its transmitter located in – Barrie,
well north of Toronto, CKVR's signal doesn't reach the populous
“Golden Horseshoe” area south of Toronto. Thus, cable/satellite
operators are not required to simsub the CKVR signal for viewers in
these areas. Adding the two transmitters will change this situation.
It may be worth noting that simsubbing is rather unpopular among
viewers. The exotic special commercials aired during the Super Bowl
are generally not seen in Canada – as they're simsubbed with “regular”
commercials aired by the Canadian station carrying the game. Switching
errors and last-minute schedule changes also irk viewers (Doug Smith,
July WTFDA VHF-UHF Digest via DXLD)
** CANADA. The news from CANADA is all about brand extensions: Rogers
Media, owner of Toronto's CITY-TV (Channel 57) and all-news CFTR
(680), will launch a new "CityNews" TV channel in October, using
resources from both of its broadcast partners.
Over at competitor CTV, the "A" branding is finally disappearing from
the company's secondary TV network, which includes outlets in Barrie
(CKVR-TV), London (CFPL-TV) and Windsor/Wingham (CHWI-TV).
CTV says it will relaunch "A" this fall as "CTV2," retaining local
news in each of its markets and upgrading its signals to high-
definition. CTV says it's also applying to the CRTC to add a new over-
the-air relay of CKVR's signal to serve viewers in Toronto and
Hamilton, though we haven't seen any filings yet (Scott Fybush, NY,
Northeast [sic] Radio [sic] Watch June 6 via DXLD)
** CANADA. CBC/RADIO-CANADA BUNGLES TRANSITION TO DIGITAL OVER-THE-AIR
TV
In a little more than a month, television in Canada’s biggest cities
will be changing drastically. As you’ve heard in all those public
service announcements, your service may be affected if you use an
antenna to watch TV. Television is most of urban Canada will be
switching from analog service to digital service.
It will happen as late as Aug. 31, but some stations have stated they
are switching earlier. CFKM in Trois-Rivières, for example, has
already turned off analog service in favour of digital. Still others
have been running the digital TV services alongside their analog
service for some time.
In short, if you’ve got an older tube TV or a flat-screen TV with only
an analog tuner, you’ll need a converter box to keep getting a signal.
This isn’t your grandma’s antenna TV — the picture quality for digital
antenna TV is simply stunning compared with any kind of analog
service. It’s technically superior to any digital signal you get from
cable or satellite providers.
(To avoid clogging up this post with too much technical stuff, please
see more on the DTV transition on the discussion boards at Digital
Home Canada.) http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=41102
Although Canada’s private broadcasters are going ahead full-bore with
the DTV transition, CBC/Radio-Canada’s version of the DTV switch-over
can only be described as a disaster.
http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/info_sht/bdt14.htm
Here are the cities were the CRTC has mandated DTV transition for Aug.
31, 2011:
Victoria, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Lethbridge, Lloydminster,
Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Thunder Bay, Windsor, London, Kitchener,
Toronto/Hamilton/Barrie, Ottawa/Gatineau, Montreal, Quebec, Saguenay,
Sherbrooke, Rivière-du-Loup, Rouyn/Val-d’Or, Fredericton, Saint John,
Moncton, Charlottetown, Halifax and St. John’s.
But CBC/Radio-Canada is only doing a DTV transition for stations where
it makes original programming — a list that excludes repeater
stations, so it is much shorter than the CRTC’s list.
This means huge swaths of Quebec and New Brunswick (including Quebec,
Sherbrooke, Saguenay, Trois-Rivières, Moncton) will lose CBC service
and huge swathes of Canada outside Quebec (including Calgary, Windsor,
Fredericton, Saint John, Halifax, Charlottetown and St. John’s) will
lose Radio-Canada service. In the worst cases, in places such as
London and Saskatoon, people will lose both English and French
television altogether.
Management at CBC/Radio-Canada has been repeating a mantra about
Canadians migrating away from tradition television toward online /
mobile technologies and that no one uses antenna television anyway.
They constantly cite a meaningless statistic, that only 8% of
Canadians use antenna television, in hopes that repeating a lie will
somehow make it true.
You see, the 8% statistic only represents the number of Canadians who
use OTA exclusively as a means of capturing TV signals. If you use
cable or satellite in your family room but use antenna TV in the
kitchen and in your bedroom, you’re not being counted as an antenna TV
viewer.
And frankly, even if that statistic is true, 8% of 34 million
Canadians is still almost 3 million people. That’s a huge chunk of the
Canadian population who are paying taxes that subsidize CBC services
but will be soon unable to watch it.
Another curious part of the CBC/Radio-Canada’s transmission strategy
is that they are maintaining a huge analog TV broadcast network,
reaching sparsely populated, far-flung parts of Canada where satellite
services are arguably more efficient to deliver service. Meanwhile,
they are abandoning antenna TV in some of Canada’s densest areas. That
dichotomy doesn’t make sense.
More things to consider:
Canadians might not have embraced analog antenna television given
its relatively poor picture quality. That doesn’t mean we will do the
same with over-the-air DTV, which is superior to analog OTA in almost
every way.
Not all Canadians are able to afford a subscription to television
services via cable or satellite. CBC/Radio-Canada has been pushing
Canada’s cable and satellite systems to offer a low-cost “skinny
local” service — but cheap is not free.
CBC/Radio-Canada has been pushing their online/mobile services,
yet many parts of Canada are still without reliable high-speed
Internet. And in those places that do have good high-speed Internet,
most major service providers are generally a lot for bandwidth.
Some of Canada’s smallest broadcasters are doing their all to
convert to DTV. Consider eastern Quebec, where the transition is not
mandatory, yet local networks are switching to DTV anyway.
CBC/Radio-Canada, like every other broadcaster in the country, knew
years ahead of time the DTV transition was coming. Perhaps it was
unable to budget the money required to convert its transmitters as per
CRTC rules, so it chose to turn off a number of urban transmitters
instead. Perhaps it shifted its DTV strategy mid-stream, choosing
deliberately to eliminate antenna TV service to so many parts of the
country.
There are signs CBC/Radio-Canada has suddenly realized Canadians won’t
just accept the Mother Corp.’s DTV transition plan without asking
questions and pushing back. After the CRTC turned down CBC’s
application to turn off their transmitter serving Saint John and
Fredericton, to be replaced with service only to Fredericton, CBC came
back with a plan to retain analog service to Saint John, even after
the mandatory transition deadline. There are rumours surfacing about
the same sort of thing happening elsewhere.
All this reeks of poor planning and poor management at CBC/Radio-
Canada. Not only must the corporation correct the omissions from its
DTV transition plan by implementing DTV service in all urban areas as
mandated by the CRTC, it also must be taken to task for bungling the
transition in the first place (Ricky Leong, Yellow Journalist blog
July 15, 2011 via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD) Viz.:
It appears the CBC filed on the 14th for authority to maintain
*analog* transmitters in certain mandatory markets, where the CRTC had
indicated digital conversion would be required.
The transmitters in question:
- CBJET (58) Saguenay, Quebec (wishes to remain on channel 58 but
reduce ERP from 12,000 watts to 595 watts)
- CBEFT (54) Windsor, Ontario (wishes to move to channel 35 and reduce
power from 144 kilowatts to 36)
- CBLN-TV (40) London, Ontario (wishes to move to channel 23 and
reduce power from 1,678 kilowatts to 24)
Again, these transmitters wish to remain *analog*, even though they're
in mandatory markets. These are the ones that appeared on notice
today, I can't be sure we won't be seeing more.
Whether the CRTC will go for it is yet to be determined; and they
don't have a whole lot of time to think about it (Doug Smith W9WI,
Pleasant View, TN EM66, July 20, WTFDA via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD)
CBC/SRC change of mind!
Well it looks like CBC/SRC have listened to the many complaints from
the public about closing down second language transmitters, in
mandatory markets at least. They are asking the CRTC to let them
operate analog transmitters in those markets. Here's the example of
Quebec City:
July 21, 2011 --- Appended is an application by CBC/Radio-Canada to
amend the licence of television programming undertaking CBMT Montreal
in order to change the technical parameters of its transmitter CBVE-TV
in Quebec City. This technical amendment is being submitted subsequent
to the Corporation`s request filed on July 14, 2011, for authority to
maintain certain analogue transmitters in mandatory markets.
The application reflects a change of channel from 5 to 11, an increase
in average effective radiated power from 13,850 watts to 33,000 watts
(maximum effective radiated power from 13,850 to 84,000 watts), and an
increase in EHAAT from 140.2 to 500.1 metres.
It is proposed that the parameters for CBVE-TV will be modified from
the existing authorized parameters by changing the channel, increasing
the ERP, increasing the EHAAT and relocating to a different site.
CBVE-TV will operate at the existing CBVT?s broadcasting site at Mont
B?lair, and will use the existing transmitting facilities of CBVT. At
the DTV conversion date, CBVT will operate on channel 12 which is its
existing transition period digital channel.
-------------------------------------
There is also a request for Trois-Rivières, CBC would move from 28 to
13. In the Saguenay area, they would keep channel 58 but at a fraction
of the power they're using now. Another example is the SRC station in
Windsor ON, CBEFT that they wanna keep operating. Don't have the
details for this one yet though.
I'm glad they came to their senses, although I don't understand why
they don't use sub-channels for those markets. 73, (Charles Gauthier,
Brossard, QC, July 22, WTFDA via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD)
I just sent them an e-mail asking exactly that (using CBET-DT as an
example). wrh (Bill Hepburn, Grimsby Ont., ibid.)
My rather vague understanding of the matter is that they believe that
a DTV subchannel should be licensed as a completely separate "station"
or "transmitter" (which are *not* the same thing in the Canadian
regulatory scheme...right, Doug?) and that they're not ready to start
doing that yet.
There's certainly no technical reason why they couldn't, though, and
it seems to me it would be a very cost-efficient way to retain
alternate-language service in a lot of markets that stand to lose it
right now. s (Scott Fybush, Rochester NY, ibid.)
I believe Scott's understanding is correct, that the CRTC believes a
subchannel is a separate "station" or "transmitter" and would require
a separate licence.
I do have to wonder why we haven't seen that happen yet. The CRTC
themselves have suggested that "doubling up" -- transmitting two
different stations as separate subchannels on the same transmitter --
might be a solution to the expense of the digital conversion. And
certainly it would make sense for many licencees -- especially the CBC
-- who may have two analog transmitters with very similar coverage.
The situation would be a lot thornier if we were talking about
separately-owned stations sharing a transmitter (something the FCC is
still working on here in the States).
- Absolutely, there's no technical bar, beyond the possibly reduced
picture quality for HD broadcasts.
- My understanding is that a Canadian "station" can have one *or more*
"transmitters". For example, the often-DXed Global channel 2 in
Manitoba is NOT a TV station. It's a *transmitter* of CKND-TV Winnipeg
(the other "transmitter" of station CKND-TV being on channel 9 just
outside Winnipeg)
Actually, this is a place where U.S. practice has recently caught up
with the Canadians. South of the border, we call them "Digital
Replacement Translators" or "Distributed Transmission Systems"
(depending on whether the additional transmitters operate on the same
frequency or a different frequency). An example might be WUNC-TV in
North Carolina, which has three transmitters: channel 25 with
1,000,000 watts at Chapel Hill; channel 30 with 500 watts at Raleigh;
and channel 46 with 600 watts at Oxford.
They have in the last couple of days placed on file applications to
remain in analog in:
ON Kitchener (ch. 29, moving from 56 & reducing power to 60 kw)
ON London (ch. 23, moving from 40 & reducing power to 24 kw)
ON Windsor (ch. 35, moving from 54 & reducing power to 36 kw)
QC Chicoutimi (ch. 58, reducing power to 595 watts, making it a LPRT
not subject to mandatory evacuation of a channel above 51)
QC Quebec (ch. 11, taking over French-language station CBVT's
transmitter but reducing power to 84 kw. CBVT is going digital on 12.)
QC Trois-Riv. (ch. 13, taking over French-language station CKTM's
transmitter but reducing power to 90kw. CKTM is going digital on CBC
English's ch. 28. The English station was to go digital on ch. 40.)
Kitchener & London are majority-language stations (English in an
English-speaking province). The rest are minority-language (French in
Ontario, or English in Quebec). (Doug Smith W9WI, Pleasant View, TN
EM66, ibid.)
** CANADA. CKNDTV-2 ch 2 Canada, religious programming
Paid religious programming (Global via CKNDTV-2) as confirmed on peak
signal by VCR tuner's RDS-like data) on ch2 at 0931 CDT with
"crossroads.ca" url given during a DVD offer then a male presenter
seated with an email address in an on-screen bug LLC.
Radio-Canada en FF on unid 2 with lifestyle show in cooking segment,
letterboxed content fighting with CKNDTV-2 Minnedosa MB. Logged at
0943 CDT. – (Fritze H Prentice Jr, KC5KBV, Star City, AR, July 27,
WTFDA via DXLD)
** CANADA. Sporadic E analog video on channel 2 begins to show before
1530 UT July 27; antenna south and I wait for Spanish to develop, but
at 1537 it`s clearly English with WorldVision infomercial, sponsor-a-
child, so rotate to north, and signal is much stronger. Soon obviously
Canadian-orientated per mentions, website worldvision.ca and phone 1-
800-307-8183. Checking zap2it program listings, not Regina, but fits
for CKND in Manitoba, a full hour of World Vision at 10-11 am CDT. By
1547, also weaker signals up to channel 5; the rest to be in my next
report.
The sporadic-E TVDX opening from Manitoba to Alberta which was just
starting in my last report continued on July 27, UT:
1550 on 3, kidvid in English, animated, voices with Canadian accents.
Zap2it schedules show CBC (only) with kidvid on weekdays until local
noon. I never could match listed program titles or character names,
however. One of two in southern Saskatchewan.
1558 on 5, kidvid // 3 so CBC
1600 on 3, more animated kidvid in English (so not CBWFT Winnipeg)
1606 on 2, `Hospital for Sick Kids` show as listed for CKND2 Manitoba
1700 on 4, celebrity gossip show, captioned BERGERON --- it`s `The
View` from the NW, i.e. CTV net, i.e. CFCN Calgary AB, for which time
fits, not CTV in Manitoba, CKYB.
1723 on 6, soap opera? Close-ups of actors
1732 on 4, CBC kidvid; offset plus or minus due to narrow beat bars.
There are two CBC in Sask, offset plus and minus
1744 on 6, CTV program promo for a Dance show. There are two in Sask.
1756 on 3, French audio mixing with CCI; likely CBWFT but there are
others in Manitoba, Saskatchewan
1800 on 2, `The Talk`, CBS`s answer to ABC`s `The View`; 1824 ad/PSA
for Parks Canada in Manitoba. Again CKND2 as scheduled. Almost // to
KWTV-39 OKC; 1842 still `The Talk`
1825, still weak CCI up to channel 6, peaking NNW
1832 on 4, CBC news
1846 on 2, Global, PSA on big switch to digital August 31; consult
http://shaw.ca/dtv Likely CKND2 again rather than CICT in AB.
None of these signals were very strong, but since MUF kept reaching
channel 6, I started checking FM and got one good catch on 88.1; see
separate entry
1935, MUF has dropped to ch 3, and by 1940 below channel 2
(Glenn Hauser, Enid OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CANADA. Sporadic E TVDX had been incoming a few hours from prairie
provinces occasionally up to channel 6, so altho never very strong,
tried FM`s lowest channel 88.1, clear here except for ACI from YFR
translator on 88.3, and:
1912 UT, fade-in bits of talk neither in English nor French! But first
English word coming thru was a troubling one, heroin; then mentioned
Public Safety Commission, Canada Border Services Agency, SUVs; 1916
Jimmy`s Cultural Camp, jimmyscamp.com [but could not find it nor .ca
nor spelling variants]; 1917 played some rustic dance music, otherwise
hard to describe, [but like the intro music autolaunching on website];
1920 mentioned La Ronge, so now I know what it is. 88.1 in Sask is
CJLR-FM-3 in Prince Albert; FM Atlas says only 250 watts! Then country
music in English. Soon found website
http://www.mbcradio.com/index3.html
and also live stream
http://tunein.com/tuner/?StationId=7393&
which matched a few seconds apart.
MBC is Missinipi Broadcasting Corp. Website also has map of Sask and
separate list of frequencies by town, which do not all match. Map has
Prince Albert on 88.1, but not the list, outdated? Map even shows a
``99.8`` in Uranium City, which if true would be a standout DX catch
from the far north. But the community list has MBC there on 101.1. FM
Atlas does not have any MBC frequency in that town. Nor does W9WI.com,
where we see that the base station of MBC in La Ronge on 89.9, CJLR
itself, is only 216 watts. MBC must really be into lots of low-power
transmitters, all over the province except the south where only in
Saskatoon and Regina. Map does not show one in Yorkton, but community
list and streamer at top of homepage do, on 92.9.
Clicking on Languages at mbcradio.com gets to two separate pages; Does
this mean the rest of the schedule of MBC is fully in English? Despite
all the stuff on the website there is no complete program schedule
grid (that I can find).
``ACHIMOWIN PROGRAM 1 to 3 p.m. Weekdays on MBC
The "Achimowin" program is the first level of information services to
the Cree listeners of northern & central Saskatchewan. It covers
national, regional, and local news; in-depth discussions; phone-in-
shows; remote broadcasts; sports; weather; and special programs on the
environment, holistic healing, education, etc.
The "Achimowin" program reflects what the community is thinking,
saying and feeling. It covers issues that are totally relevant to
northern people. This is all done in the context of serving the Cree
speaking people of northern Saskatchewan. The Achimowin Show has been
a major part of MBC broadcasts since 1984.
It should be noted that the Achimowin Show compliments Cree language
retention endeavors that are undertaken by educational
institutions/bands/agencies. It goes as far as laying new ground in
terms of "inventing" new & contemporary terminology!
Contact: Harry Opikokew at harry@mbcradio.com
or Abel Charles at abel@mbcradio.com
Listen Monday to Friday from 1:00 to 3:00 for the
Missinipi Achimowin Program!``
And:
``DENE HONI PROGRAM
2 to 3 p.m. weekdays broadcasting live to 9 Saskatchewan Dene
Communities
3 to 4 p.m. weekdays on the full MBC Radio Network
The Dene Honi program focuses on happenings in and around the Dene
communities of northern Saskatchewan. We provide timely information
and tell stories in the Dene language covering topics as diverse as
current affairs, political issues, past stories, the history of
politics, and Dene peoples' traditions & customs.
The Honi program which has been a part of the airwaves at MBC since
1985 features international, national and local news, weather (long
term and current), the people of the North that we interview, native,
non-native country music, call-in Shows, elders' views and opinions,
etc.
The importance of this Dene Honi program is to keep our traditions and
culture alive for the future generations and to keep our listeners up
to date of what is happening around them in their very own language.
Contact Kevin Fontaine at kevin@mbcradio.com
Listen for the Dene Honi 2pm to 4pm Monday to Friday on MBC !``
Since I was listening between 1 and 2 pm CST, it must have been the
Cree ACHIMOWIN PROGRAM.
Opening lasted a little longer: at 1924, mentioned several events
August 8-12; 88.1 fading now, so I listen a bit longer to the
webstream:
1933 brief English ID mentioning one of their dozens of frequencies,
92.7 somewhere. 1934, Gold Eagle Casino ad with SFX of slot
machines(?); another GEC ad came over a few minutes later. OK: this is
not a non-commercial band in Canada.
Before 88.1 faded, I tried the other Prince Albert FM frequencies in
FM Atlas, but nothing made it: 90.1 and 92.5 collide with OK stations,
nor 99.1, 101.5. Seems the MUF barely entered the FM band.
I taped some of it off 88.1, and was prepared to ask the Real DXers if
they could ID the language, but unfortunately that is not necessary.
Clip of the DX here anyway: http://www.w4uvh.net/CJLR3.rm
It`s 1.1 MB, 7+ minutes combining 4 clips at fade-ins; ID as MBC and
mentioning Lac La Ronge is at 2:12.
I wanted to sign their guest book that I had picked up MBC direct thru
the ionosphere way off in OK, but it took a long time to load. Finally
used max 255 characters to say:
``Enjoyed listening to CJLR-3 88.1 in Prince Albert. You may find this
hard to believe but I heard it in Enid, Oklahoma, direct thru the
sporadic-E layer of the ionosphere, 1965 km away during an opening
from 1:12 to 1:25 pm July 27 during the Cree show.`` Clicked SEND tho
and nothing happened. Sure enough it doesn`t show when you go back and
look at the entries, last one in April. So I try sending it once more.
Listed at http://www.w9wi.com/fmchannels/201.html ---
Prince Albert, SK CJLR-FM-3 0.249/0.249 21.00/21.00 53-11-40.00N 105-
46-44.00W CA-OP CJLR (MBC aboriginal)
which means only 249 watts H&V (ERP or not?) at 21 meters above
average terrain. Looking thru the FM Atlas listings, it appears that
almost all entries have powers rounded off so they end in -0!
Geo coordinates make the distance to Enid 1965 km = 1220 statute
miles. Of course, the propagation path was somewhat longer, going up
to the E-layer and back; the midpoint over central South Dakota.
Surface miles per watt = 4.90 (Glenn Hauser, Enid OK, DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
** CHAD. 6165, 1923-1946, R. N'Djamena, 20/07, French, news program
with YL talk, then OM talks with two short musical pauses - very
strong signal, but not so good audio quality due to bad modulation
(Mikhail Timofeyev, Saint-Petersburg, Russia, Drake R8A and 30 meters
long wire, HCDX via DXLD)
Radio Nationale Chadienne, Ndjamena transmitter site, 6165 kHz. 0430
UT July 23, 33333, Interval signal after Radio Netherlands signed off
at 0427, then national anthem followed by man with talk in French.
African style drum and singing music at 0434. Weak but audible, S-4
(Been trying to ID this one for a couple of weeks, finally heard the
national anthem tonight). (Nick Rumple, Kannapolis, North Carolina,
U.S.A., Yaesu FRG-100, 125 foot longwire - 40 feet high,
shortwavelistening yg via DXLD)
** CHINA [and non]. Firedrake July 22; before 1200:
7990, JBA at 1142 in absence of bonker
11500, poor at 1153
12600, very poor at 1154
Only weak signals from anywhere propagating this early above 12 MHz
Before 1300:
11500, fair at 1242
12600, fair at 1242
13130, poor at 1239; none higher yet
15900, JBA at 1245
15785, good at 1246, 1253-1300*. Current Aoki has nothing on 15785 to
be targeted, but Sound of Hope has been on numerous frequencies above
and below 15.8 MHz
Before 1400:
9920, poor at 1355 barely detecting // 15900 while mixing with
another signal, Chinese, with vocal music. Uplooked later, to my
surprise, the victim is KNLS Alaska during this hour. I must not be
100% positive Firedrake was really here. See also GUAM [and non] 9910
11500, fair at 1352; none heard in the 10`s for a couple weeks
12600, very good with flutter after pause
15795, poor at 1311; this one is vs All India Radio in Chinese until
1315, usually with CNR1 jamming at least; 15785 FD before 1300 was
much stronger
15900, very good with flutter at 1350
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Hi Glenn, Multiple Full Band Sweeps for Firedrake July 22, 2011
between 1300-1400 GMT. Conditions good but not much heard-
11500, Fair 1327 Weak-Fair 1351
12600, Fair-Good 1328, Fair 1352
15565, Fair 1323
15900, Good 1325 and 1350
15970, Good 1325 JBA 1350
16100, Fair 1326
(S. Handler, IL, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Firedrake July 23:
11500, good at 1237
12980, fair at 1238
13130, very good at 1243
13920, fair-good at 1236; poor at 1258
14700, fair-good at 1244
14950, fair-good at 1244
15900, fair-good at 1244
CNR1 jamming (among many other usuals), July 23:
15330, poor at 1301. Blocking BBC Uzbek via Oman; standard remark
about China interfering in internal affairs of other countries, etc.
15230, poor at 1301, CNR1 mixing with RHC. No target known to Aoki,
EiBi, HFCC or me, but anyway, it`s Commies vs Commies!
13650, July 23 at 1240, CRI English via ALBANIA // 13790 via
Wulumuchi, EAST TURKISTAN, but 13650 is mixed with something producing
a rumbling SAH. In HFCC you would not find any collision, but you sure
would in Aoki: V. of Korea on here for many hours, including this hour
in Korean, to be followed at 1300 by --- Chinese! Commies vs Commies
again (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
15760.0, 2011-07-23 1315, Xi Wang Zhi Sheng, (Sound of Hope), via
Dushanbe, Tajikistan USA, Talk in Chinese, SIO 242. Buoni ascolti!
(Roberto Rizzardi, SWL I/0216/GR, Porto S. Stefano (GR) Italy, Lat
42N43 - Long 11E12 - Locator grid JN52NK. Receivers: ICOM IC-R71E,
Sangean ATS909 with 2x80kHz Murata filters in FM. Antennas: 15 meters
outdoor random wire with RF System; Magnetic Longwire Balun;
Loop Grahn ML-1-S with GS2 controller; Telescopic and 7 meters indoor
long wire antenna Website: http://diarioradio.blogspot.com/
Skype: robybenjy, playdx yg via DXLD)
** CHINA [and non]. More and more frequency changes of Radio Free Asia
Chinese
0300-0330 NF 15775 TIN 250 kW / 304 deg to EaAs, ex 21845, re-ex 21550
0330-0400 NF 15765 TIN 250 kW / 304 deg to EaAs, ex 21845, re-ex 21550
0400-0500 NF 15660 TIN 250 kW / 304 deg to EaAs, ex 21845, re-ex 21550
0500-0600 NF 15660 TIN 250 kW / 304 deg to EaAs, ex 21655, re-ex 21550
0600-0700 NF 15250 TIN 250 kW / 304 deg to EaAs, ex 21645, re-ex 21550
Tibetan
0100-0300 NF 7530 KWT 250 kW / 070 deg to CeAs, ex 9365
0600-0700 NF 17655 TIN 250 kW / 297 deg to CeAs, ex 21770, re-ex 21500
1000-1100 NF 13680 KWT 250 kW / 078 deg to CeAs, ex 13775, re-ex
15330, re-re 17840
1000-1100 NF 17495 TIN 250 kW / 295 deg to CeAs, ex 21530
1100-1200 NF 17495 DHA 250 kW / 075 deg to CeAs, ex 15670
1100-1200 NF 17675 KWT 250 kW / 078 deg to CeAs, ex 17850, re-ex
11640, re-re 17815
73! (Ivo Ivanov, Bulgaria, July 23, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
More changes of RFA in Tibetan July 23
1200-1300 NF 13795 KWT 250 kW / 070 deg to CeAs, ex 19000, re-ex
13840, re-re 17545
1300-1400 NF 13795 KWT 250 kW / 070 deg to CeAs, ex 15230, re-ex
11520, re-re 12025
(Ivo Ivanov, Bulgaria, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
ex? 12025 still being jammed July 24, as below. Perhaps RFA has
started making random changes to evade jamming, hard for us to keep up
with too (gh, DXLD)
Schwaecheln die Sonnenflecken mal wieder ? Die Amis nehmen wieder
niedere Frequenzen in Beschlag, oder ist das nur ein
Beschaeftigungsmanoever fuer die Chinesenjammer ? 73 wb (Wolfgang
Büschel, BC-DX July 25 via DXLD)
** CHINA. Firedrake July 24; before 1300:
10300, good at 1235. Had not heard this one since July 9, altho S.
Handler had it on July 10.
11500, good at 1235
12900, good at 1240
14700, very good at 1242; none in the 13s
14950, good at 1242; none in the 15`s
16100, poor-fair at 1245
16980, very poor at 1245
After 1300:
16980, very poor at 1323
16100, JBA at 1324
15670, poor at 1304 mixed with CNR1 jamming; no TOH break here!
15565, poor at 1325
15545, very poor at 1325; unusual to have two at once, nearby 15565
14700, very good at 1327
13920, very good at 1328
12025, poor at 1313, mixed with CNR1 jamming, probably // 15670; very
poor at 1328
11500, poor at 1328
10300, poor at 1329
See also CUBA [and non]
Firedrake July 25:
11500, good at 1313
12900, very good at 1315
14700, JBA at 1319
15565, fair at 1323
None higher or lower heard in full scan from below 8 MHz to above 17.
S. Handler also reports 12900 as a new frequency today, altho I also
had it on July 7 and 24 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Hi Glenn, July 25th Firedrake Log 1217-1359
10300, Fair 1252
11500, 1217 s/on Fair, 1253 Fair. 1353 Weak.
12900, Good 1318. New frequency for Firedrake. Not sure if they
punched up the wrong freq or Sound of Hope has a new freq. Also 1354
Good
13920, Good 1256
14700, Fair 1256 Weak 1326 and 1342
14950, Strong None higher at 1257-1259
15285, Fair 1346. Fair. Not seen this freq reported since 2010.
15565, Good 1327
(S. Handler, IL, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Hi Glenn, Some Firedrake monitoring for July 26th, 2011
10300, Weak JBA 1125, 1142-Weak. Nothing lower either time.
11500, Good 1124, 1143, 1223, 1250
12900, Good 1127, 1144, 1223 and 1251
13130, Fair 1127, 1145, 1224 and 1252
13920, Strong 1225, 1253
14700, JBA 1146 JBA nothing higher. Good 1226. Fair 1255
14950, Good-Strong 1226, 1249 and 1255
15550, Fair 1256
15800, Fair 1228 and 1257. Nothing higher
16980, JBA 1257. Nothing higher
(S. Handler, IL, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Firedrake, July 26: local noon-hour:
16980, very poor at 0455; no others found 19-12 MHz
Before 1300: all checked were // and if unchecked still sounded //.
16100, just barely audible at 1251
15800, very poor at 1248; meanwhile only CNR1 on 15795 vs India
15550, fair at 1248
14950, very good at 1255
14700, poor at 1255
13920, good at 1254
13130, fair at 1254
12900, good at 1254
11500, good at 1257; none in the 10`s
After 1300:
11500, poor at 1333; no 12`s except 12025 or 13`s at 1319 or later
12025, very poor at 1311 under CNR1 jamming which is // 11990, 12040.
12025 probably stayed on at hourtop as previously observed. The
question is whether RFA Tibetan via Kuwait was really there. As of
July 23, Ivo Ivanov had that on new 13795, frequency-hopping instead
of 15230, 11520, 12025 previously.
14400, good at 1314 and 1333
14700, very poor at 1314, 1333
15285, poor at 1345
15445, good at 1314, well over weak Turkey 15450, but off at 1330.
Same behaviour as previous appearances on 15430 tho not daily,
presumably vs V. of Tibet via UAE as in Aoki, which however used to
start rather than stop at 1330. VOT on 15445 today? Aoki dated July 26
at 0200 does not yet have FD or any target on 15445.
15525, fair at 1342; was not on at 1331 when checking the next two:
15545, poor at 1315; off at 1331 check
15565, good at 1315, off at 1331 check
Firedrake July 27: Sixteen! at once in axion before 1300; is something
extra-sensitive in the news currently?
7470, poor with flutter at 1242. Rarely heard here: I previously
logged last October 8 and Feb 28 around same time. Target must still
be RFA Tibetan via Mongolia per Aoki. Never in HFCC are RFA
transmissions via that confidential country! Might upset neighbors.
Being a `free` country already, Mongolian language itself would be
off-topic on RFA.
11500, poor at 1249 // 7470; none in between
11990, fair at 1254, mixing with CNR1 jamming, // 11500. 11990 is vs
VOA Chinese via Saipan, which is also on 12040 via Tinang, but only
CNR1 jamming audible there, plus RHC, Commies vs Commies!
12270, poor at 1255
13130, very good at 1257
13830, fair at 1257
13920, very good at 1257
14700, very good at 1257
14950, poor at 1257
15545, poor at 1258
15970, very good at 1258
16100, very good at 1258
16980, very good at 1258
17170, JBA at 1259
18180, JBA at 1259
After 1300:
7470, very poor at 1308; see above; suspect stayed on thru hourtop
11990, see above; now CNR1 echo-jamming only; VOA now via Novosibirsk
12025, poor at 1310 mixing with some talk; Tibetan via Kuwait?
13830, fair at 1312
15445, good at 1315, ruining much weaker neighbor Turkey 15450
15565, fair at 1315
Before 1400 (may have missed some weaker ones due to TVI on now):
15900, fair at 1352; none higher
15525, poor at 1352
14700, fair at 1354
13920, very good at 1354
13830, poor at 1354
13130, very good at 1354
11500, poor at 1357
(Glenn Hauser, OK, WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Today, July 27th was a great day for Firedrake reception. See my list
below.
11500, Good 1135, Fair 1252, 1347
11990, Good 1228 and 1253 along with CNR-1 Mandarin Targeting VOA
12900, Weak at 1136, Good at 1229, 1250
13130, Good 1255, Fair-Good 1349
13830, Good 1139 with CNR-1 jamming RFA but RFA not heard. At 1256 and
1349 fair and only Firedrake there no RFA or CNR-1.
13920, Good 1140, 1257, 1350
14700, Good 1141, Strong 1258, 1351, 1425, Good 1442
14950, Weak 1258, 1424, 1443
15525, Fair 1352
15545, JBA 1259
15550, Fair 1256.
15565, Good 1327
15670, Good 1142 along with CNR-1 Mandarin targeting RFA
15770, Fair 1445
15900, Fair 1353
15970, Weak 1144
16100, Weak 1144, 1227, 1354
17170, Weak-JBA 1355
(S. Handler, IL, July 27, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Firedrake July 28; before 1200:
10300, good at 1133
11500, fair at 1133
12600, good at 1136
14700, good at 1142
14970, fair at 1141
15670, poor at 1144 under CNR1 jamming
15800, fair at 1144
After 1200:
15670, at 1202 FD is off, only CNR1 heard with funny music, ID, kids
voices --- seems to be an 8 pm staple in China before kids` bedtime?
Even the children speak Chinese!
11500, fair at 1213
10300, good at 1215
After 1300:
15760, very good at 1328-1330*
15670, poor under CNR1 at 1328-1330*
15565, very poor at 1328-1330*
15545, fair at 1328-1330*
15445, very good at 1329-1330*
After 1330:
14700, very good at 1332
14950, good at 1332; none in the 12, 13s
16100, fair at 1333
16980, very good at 1333; none in the 17s or 18s
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Hi Glenn, Below are July 28th's loggings of the Firedrake musical
jammer. Thirteen of them today from 1100-1300 GMT. Today as well as
the last few days there has been a high amount of Firedrake activity.
I am uncertain as to the reason. Good DX, Steve Handler
10300, Weak 1124, 1158, 1218, 1237
11500, Good 1125, 1158, 1217, 1238
12500, Strong 1219, Good-Strong 1239
12600, Good 1127, Good-strong 1159
13850, Fair 1221
14700, Strong 1128, 1159, Fair 1240
14970, Good 1128, 1159
15545, Weak 1246
15670, Firedrake Strong 1154 apparently jamming RFA's Tibetan language
broadcast which I could not hear. However after 1200 only CNR-1 heard
on this frequency no more Firedrake at least through 1300 when I
stopped listening.
15800, Fair 1128
16100, Fair 1224, 1240
16500, Good-strong 1241
16980, Weak 1224, 1241
(S. Handler, IL, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CHINA [and non]. Speaking of jamming, once again VOA and RFA were
being jammed this morning by China's CNR-1 Mandarin program.
11605, CHINA CNR-1 in Mandarin 1225-1228 July 25 apparently jamming
RFA’s Tibetan language frequency (Via Tinian, N. Mariana Islds) very
faint signal underneath, unable to confirm if it was RFA. CNR-1’s
Mandarin program using to jam RFA was slightly less than a second
ahead of the CNR-1 program used to jam Radio Taiwan on 11665 Khz.
11665, CHINA CNR-1 1229 July 25 apparently jamming Radio Taiwan’s
unheard Mandarin broadcast. Interesting that CNR-1’s program was
slightly less than a second behind the CNR-1’s Mandarin broadcast
being used to jam RFA on 11605 KHz.
11785, PHILIPPINES/CHINA VOA 1244-1246 July 25 via Tinang in Mandarin
on top with CNR-1 in Mandarin apparently jamming underneath. Both
Fair.
11825, PHILIPPINES/CHINA VOA 1244-1250 July 25 via Tinang in Mandarin
underneath CNR-1 in Mandarin apparently jamming underneath. CNR-1
Good. VOA Fair.
11990, CHINA/RUSSIA 1309 July 25 CNR-1 in Mandarin on top apparently
jamming VOA in Mandarin underneath. VOA listed HFCC as via Novosibirsk
Russia. At 1309 via played an EE bound bite then back into Mandarin.
12040, PHILIPPINES/CHINA VOA 1315-1316 July 25 via Tinang in Mandarin
on top with CNR-1 in Mandarin apparently jamming underneath. Both
Fair.
13830, CHINA CNR-1 in Mandarin 1340-1341 July 25 apparently jamming
RFA’s unheard Tibetan language frequency. Het but no RFA audio heard.
15115, CHINA/THAILAND 1344-1345 July 25 CNR-1 in Mandarin on top
apparently jamming VOA in Mandarin underneath. VOA listed HFCC as via
Udorn.
15670, CHINA CNR-1 in Mandarin 1329-1330 July 25 apparently jamming
RFA’s unheard Tibetan language frequency (S. Handler, IL, DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
Other assorted CNR-1 jamming heard July 26th:
11625, CHINA CNR-1 in Mandarin 1106-1108 with M & F ancrs in Mandarin
apparently jamming Radio Taiwan’s Mandarin broadcast which was not
heard. Interesting that CNR-1 was a full second behind and out of sync
with CNR-1’s broadcast being used to jam the VOA on 11990 KHz. Fair.
// 11665
11785, THAILAND/CHINA VOA 1119-1121 via Udorn in Mandarin on top with
CNR-1 in Mandarin apparently jamming underneath. Both Fair.
12040, PHILIPPINES/CHINA VOA 1136-1138 via Tinang in Mandarin
underneath CNR-1 in Mandarin apparently jamming. Both Fair.
12040, CUBA/CHINA Radio Habana 1225 on top with M&F presenters in
Spanish. CNR-1 in Mandarin underneath, apparently jamming the VOA’s
Mandarin broadcast which could not be heard. Both Fair (S. Handler,
IL, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** COLOMBIA. Re 11-29: Dear Glenn, Regarding my log (COLOMBIA. 6070,
0134-0211, Voz de la Resistencia): July 20 was the Independence Day of
Colombia, that's why they were on air at this strange time, as I
suppose. Thanks and 73! (Mikhail Timofeyev, Saint Petersburg, Russia,
WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** COLOMBIA. La radio en Colombia --- Por JAIME GARCÍA CHADID
Según algunas informaciones, entre otras la del periodista Mike
Urueta, se atribuye a Barranquilla el haber sido la cuna de la
radiodifusión comercial en Colombia, ya que para 1949 el gobierno
presidido por Miguel Abadía Méndez y siendo su ministro de Correos y
Telégrafos el barranquillero Francisco Carbonell González se otorgó
licencia de funcionamiento a la emisora "La Voz de Barranquilla" (HKD)
propiedad de Elías Pellet Buitrago, ingeniero e hijo de un
norteamericano residenciado en "La Arenosa".
La trasmisión inicial fue casi toda en vivo, salvo la reproducción de
una pasta de 78 r.p.m. del sello Columbia, enviado desde Panamá con la
canción "Tóqueme el trigémino doctor", según afirmaciones del escritor
Julio Oñate.
En 1935, del mismo Pellet, y casi el mismo nombre y que a no dudar fue
el antecedente próximo de esa primera estación comercial existía las
"Estaciones Radiodifusoras La Voz de Barranquilla", trasmitían al
mismo tiempo con las siguientes características técnicas : HJ1ABB en
6447.2 kcs y con una potencia de 300 vatios, lo que garantizaba una
audiencia a miles de kilómetros y HJ1ABA en1330 kcs con150 vatios,
suficiente esa pequeña potencia para cubrir a la Barranquilla de
entonces.
Por otro lado y en la relacionado a Sincelejo se ha dicho y así lo
creo que la primera emisora comercial con licencia del Ministerio de
Comunicaciones fue "Radio Sincelejo" la que ha conservado tanto sus
indicativos como su frecuencia originales : HJAL y 1460 kilociclos.
Pero hace algún tiempo encontré una publicación hecha en 1935,
denominada "Short wave Station List", la que en sus páginas 226 y 227
relaciona una serie de emisoras en Colombia y el resto del mundo que
trasmitían en onda corta, pero que eran reconocidas oficialmente y con
base a convenios internacionales sobre la materia, que aún hoy rigen
sin mayores variaciones en cuanto a la asignación de indicativos se
refiere.
Para el caso de Sincelejo se registra la estación HJ1ABE, la que
trasmitía en 7100 kilociclos (kcs) y no sé si corresponda a la que se
conoció como "La Voz de Sincelejo" propiedad del señor Víctor Angulo.
En otra fuente también se menciona a otra del periodista Eugenio
Quintero Acosta. No preciso datos al respecto.
En la Costa Caribe funcionaban también la HJ1ABD de Cartagena (La Voz
de los Laboratorios Fuentes) con frecuencia de 7281 kcs, la HJ1ABJ de
Santa Marta en la frecuencia de 6006 kcs .
Aparte de Barranquilla, Cartagena, Santa Marta y Sincelejo solo figura
la ciudad de Ciénaga, la HJ1 ABH en 6225 kcs.
En el resto del territorio nacional también existían en Bogotá,( La
Voz de Colombia) HJ3ABX, Manizales (Ecos de Occidente), Cali, Tunja,
Medellín (Ecos de la Montaña, con un trasmisor Collins para onda corta
de 100 vatios) y otra en Cúcuta.
El haber estado en esa lista equivalía a una especie de cuadro de
honor pues en el mundo de esos tiempos no eran muy numerosas las
ciudades que poseían radiodifusoras entre las que menciono a Moscú,
New York, Montreal, Caracas, Nagasaki, Viena, El Vaticano.
Autor JAIME GARCÍA CHADID
FUENTE: La radio en Colombia http://bit.ly/qdYFqL
Cualquier comentario adicional, muy agradecido en
dxreport @ yahoo.com (Via Yimber Gaviria, Colombia, DXLD)
** CONGO DR. 5066.398v, 18/7 1845-1903* Radio Candip, nice slow music
and talks by woman in French, fair, low modulation while speaking.
Off at 1903 (Giampiero Bernardini, RFspace SDR-14; ant 30 m long wire,
Pescia, Tuscany, Italy, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** COSTA RICA. 5954.25, Radio República, 1045-1050 numerous IDs over
ineffective jamming, clear signal 21 July (Robert Wilkner, NRD 535D -
Drake R8 - Icom 746Pro modified, Pompano Beach, South Florida U S,
HCDX via DXLD) See also CUBA [non]
** CUBA. 990, Radio Guamá, San Luís, Pinar del Río. 1047 July 23,
2011. Very good with woman reading local events calendar, several IDs,
José Martí quote-of-the-day at 1103. It's worth noting that Radio
Guamá is in fact still active. I recently saw a report -- forget where
-- that all Radio Guamá channels migrated to Radio Artemisa with the
provincial split. This is simply incorrect.
1000 / 1020, Radio Artemisa, Artemisa. 1255 July 21, 2011. Cuban
vocals, ID, abruptly patched into Noticiero Nacional de Radio just
after 1300 mid-speak. A minor level CRFU.
1140, Radio Mayabeque, la Salud, Mayabeque. 1200 July 23, 2011. Male
ID over at least a couple of other Cubans on the channel, then into
open carrier only for several minutes at least. Recheck 1133, back up
with vocals. A medium level CRFU (Terry L Krueger, Clearwater,
Florida, USA, 27.55.83 N, 82.46.08 W, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CUBA. CUBAN "AIR DEFENSE" STRATEGIES
We have long noted that the Cubans are trying to block certain
unwanted signals from Florida, WRHC, WQBA and a few other stations run
by Cuban emigrés. This is why Radio Rebelde can be found on numerous
channels, including frequencies assigned to other stations.
It now appears that Rebelde is just one piece in a system where local,
provincial and national services are combined to keep as many channels
as possible alive 24/7 by sharing transmitter facilities.
Arguably the first example of this was noted two years ago on 1350,
where Radio Libertad, was relaying the provincial service of Radio
Victoria at night. Last winter, Arnstein Bue, in Norway, was surprised
to hear Radio Rebelde sign off on 980 at 1000. However, after the
playing of the National Anthem, the frequency was released to the
listed COCO El Periódico del Aire.
In November 2010, Arnstein noticed another anomaly, a Cuban on 1470
carrying Radio Victoria programming. In an interesting reply from this
station, one now learns that the transmitter site is Puerto Padre, Las
Tunas, the power 1 kW, and that the channel is actually assigned to
Radio Chaparra (hitherto listed only on 90.9 FM), a local station at
Jesús Menéndez. In the afternoon, the municipal station Radio Libertad
carries on, and at night, Radio Victoria. The schedule for the 1470
operation is given as 1100-1600 Radio Chaparra, 1600-0200 Radio
Libertad, and 0200-1100 Radio Victoria (Henrik Klemetz, July 8, Arctic
Radio Club blog http://arcticradioclub.blogspot.com/ via DXLD)
** CUBA [and non]. 9530, July 23 at 1231, RHC // 9550, apparent mix
with CRI Chinese relay on 9570. In such leapfrogs one normally hears
mostly audio from the further frequency, not the fulcrum, but 9570 is
as always very undermodulated altho strong in strength. 9530 remains
audible with max attenuation, aside weak Indonesia 9526-. See also
CHINA, jamming Cuba
15230, July 24 at 1307, mixing with CNR1 causing SAH, Commies vs
Commies; again no listing or reason for CNR1 to be here. During ``En
Contacto`` DX program from 1335, RHC briefly off the air at 1341-1343
clearing 15230 for China. Quick check of other RHC frequencies found
13680 and 13780 were still on but without modulation during this
disruption amid another opus in the series ``¿Qué le ha traído a Vd.
el Diexismo?`` -- What has DXing done for you? This one written but
not read by Luís Cristián Alonso, Córdoba, Argentina. See also
VENEZUELA [non]
One RHC transmitter must be down: July 25 at 0547, 6010 English is
missing, and not on 11760 either (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING
DIGEST) See also CANADA [and non]
** CUBA. RADIO HAVANA CUBA IS 50 --- A LOOK BACK AT ITS HISTORY
by Alan Pennington
Listeners to Radio Havana Cuba (RHC) will not have failed to realise
that the station has been celebrating its founding, fifty years ago on
1st May 1961. The anniversary has been marked with listener
competitions in RHC’s ‘Mailbag’, ‘World of Stamps’ and sports
programmes, a song was written to celebrate the anniversary and Cuba
issued a commemorative postage stamp to mark the occasion. There have
also been celebrations in Havana itself including an event at the Jose
Martí memorial attended by Radio Havana Cuba founders, and workers
past and present.
When Fidel Castro’s Revolutionary government gained power in Cuba in
January 1959, overthrowing the dictator Batista’s regime, they already
had a successful radio voice in Radio Rebelde which had started
transmitting from the Sierra Maestra mountains in the south east of
the island in February 1958.
However, the leaders of the Revolution, in particular Ernesto ‘Che’
Guevara and the Communications Minister, Enrique Oltaksi, saw the need
for an international voice to counter the broadcasts being
orchestrated by the USA and Cuban exile groups who were trying to
undermine the social and economic changes taking place on the island.
They also knew there would soon be attempts to overthrow their
Revolution and realised having an international shortwave radio
station on air could keep the world informed about what was really
happening on the island. So in 1959 a budget of 1.7 million pesos was
approved by the Revolutionary government for the establishment of a
shortwave station to carry its message to the Latin American region
and other parts of the world.
Later in 1959, Cuba was one of the 87 countries attending the ITU
Administrative Radio Conference in Geneva. Whilst in Switzerland the
Cuban delegation received a cable from Havana asking them to
investigate the possibilities of starting an international short wave
radio station. Realising that right there in Switzerland was the world
famous transmitter factory of Brown Boveri, they contacted the company
and learnt that four shortwave transmitters, originally destined for
an African country, had become available when that country refused
delivery. By the end of 1959, a deal to buy the two 100 kW and two 10
kW transmitters, together with antenna systems from Brown Boveri was
finalised.
During 1960, the war of words against the new regime in Cuba had
intensified. As well as broadcasts by Cuban exile groups on US medium
wave stations, shortwave station WRUL in Scituate, Massachusetts
(later to change calls to WNYW in 1966 then WYFR in 1973) had begun
broadcasting to Cuba, including programmes featuring Cuban-exile
“Havana Rose”. And on 17th May 1960, Radio Swan took to the air on
mediumwave and shortwave from Great Swan Island off the coast of
Honduras. Radio Swan had been set up by the CIA as part of US
President Eisenhower’s covert action programme for regime change in
Cuba.
By the end of 1960 the first Cuban transmitter site was under
construction. The place chosen for the site (Bauta, 30 km west of
Havana) “was practically a lake. So the first towers were installed
inside the water” according to Ignacio Canel who worked for Radio
Havana for 50 years, starting in 1959 at the age of 19. By early
January 1961, the first Brown Boveri 10 kW transmitter was installed
in a small temporary shed at Bauta along with a 1 kW American Gates
transmitter that had been used previously in Havana. The steel lattice
towers for the antennas had not arrived from Switzerland, so wooden
poles were obtained from the local ‘Empresa Eléctrica’ electricity
company to support antenna wires. There was also no link to the Radio
Progreso building in Havana where the new station had been given some
space for studios, so a tape recorder was installed next to the
transmitter.
Tests began in the first two weeks of February 1961 and on 24th
February “Onda Corta Experimental Cubana” (Cuban Experimental
Shortwave) went on the air with an hour long Spanish programme,
repeated several times during the evening. The station was soon on the
air on two frequencies (still used today): 6000 kHz (1 kW) and 11760
kHz (10 kW) using as its interval signal, the opening bars of “La
Marcha del 26 de Julio” (named after Fidel Castro’s revolutionary
group which in turn took its name from the date of the failed attack
on the Moncada Barracks in Santiago de Cuba on 26th July 1953). The
original interval signal was played on a xylophone in Studio 5 of
Radio Progreso. Radio Havana Cuba still uses a version of the same
tune as its interval signal today. All of those involved in putting
the station on air (including then 18 year old Arnie Coro, now
presenter of ‘DXers Unlimited’ on RHC) were delighted when reception
reports came in from Latin America, Canada and the United States.
Work continued apace to install a third transmitter at the Bauta site,
one of the 100 kW Brown Boveri units, quite a challenge for the team
of engineers and technicians who had not worked with such a high-
powered transmitter before. On 15th April 1961, CIA sponsored Cuban
exile bombers attacked three Cuban airfields. At the funeral the
following day of Cubans killed in the attacks, Fidel Castro denounced
the raids and proclaimed the socialist nature of the Cuban Revolution.
And at the same time he announced that Cuba now had an international
radio station:
“And do they think they can hide this from the world? No! Cuba has a
radio station that is already transmitting throughout Latin America
and is heard by countless brothers and sisters in Latin America and
the rest of the world. We are in the age of radio and the truth can
travel far & wide!”
On the 17th April, ‘Brigade 2506’ of CIA trained and supplied Cuban
exiles landed at Playa Giron (Bay of Pigs) in southern Cuba in an
attempt to invade the island and overthrow the Revolutionary
government. Throughout the attempted invasion, the new experimental
shortwave station was on the air 24 hours. The 100 kW transmitter at
Bauta was ready to operate just a few days before the invasion so was
able to help relay events in the Zapata swamp to the world. The
mercenary invaders were repelled and defeated within 72 hours. A few
days later, on 1st May 1961, as Cuba celebrated its victory at the Bay
of Pigs, the new shortwave station went on the air for the first time
using the name Radio Havana Cuba, broadcasting the victory parade.
Above: Cuban postage stamp issued in 1971 to mark the tenth
anniversary of Radio Havana Cuba. [caption]
Prior to the 1959 Revolution, Cuba had a well-established radio scene,
including shortwave. In 1958 one in five Cuban inhabitants had a set
and the island had 160 radio stations operating (source: A History of
Cuban Broadcasting – Manuel A. Álvarez). The 1947 1st edition of World
Radio Handbook lists nineteen shortwave stations (three of which were
inactive). By the 1958 edition, there were twenty shortwave stations
listed (though thirteen were now marked as inactive). All of these,
apart from two, were commercial, not government stations. During the
Revolution, ‘pirate’ Radio Rebelde broadcast on shortwave 20 and 40
metres. But before the 100 kW Brown Boveri transmitter went on air in
April 1959, the most powerful transmitters were 50 kW Westinghouse
units used by CMBC Radio Progreso and CMQ.
A few months following Fidel’s success at the Bay of Pigs, the
remaining two Brown Boveri transmitters were on air from the Bauta
site. Having failed to militarily overthrow the new regime, US
President John F. Kennedy ordered the economic, commercial and
financial blockade of Cuba in February 1962, a blockade that has
continued to this day. As a result, the Soviet Union stepped in to
support Cuba economically and militarily so the next two 100 kW
transmitters acquired by Cuba would be Soviet SNEG units.
The 1963 WRTH schedule for RHC as well as 18 hours of Spanish
(including 1.5 hours to Europe) shows half an hour of Arabic, 2 hours
40 minutes of English (with 20 minutes to Europe), 2 hours 20 minutes
of French and 45 minutes of Portuguese. Radio Havana Cuba was already
reaching out to the world, as well as to its surrounding region. By
1965, three additional languages had been added: Creole, Quechua and
Guarani, making eight languages in total. (A ninth language service,
Esperanto was added in 1988).
Havana also broadcast other programmes to the USA – Radio Free Dixie,
a weekly programme in support of Afro-Americans fighting segregation
in the southern USA was broadcast between 1962 and 1965. And during
the final years of the Vietnam War (1971-1975), Radio Havana Cuba
broadcast some English programmes from the Voice of Vietnam in Hanoi.
1962 QSL featuring “the glorious battle of Education, to the
elimination of illiteracy by the end of 1961” [caption]
A second transmitter site was built close to Bauta at Bejucal with
Soviet help and a reciprocal arrangement was made, with Radio Moscow
broadcasts to North America being relayed from Cuba (and in return
Radio Havana broadcasts to Europe being relayed from the Soviet
Union).
The World Radio TV Handbook lists this Radio Moscow relay for the
first time in its 1980 edition (under Cuba). As well as Radio Moscow
relays, the 1984 edition of the WRTH also lists relays of the USSR
Home Service ‘Mayak’ for Soviet citizens in Central America from the
Cuban site on 3345 or 4765 kHz (this latter relay listed as ‘All Union
Radio’ on 4765 kHz only in the 1986 to 1991 editions of WRTH). The end
of the Soviet Union at the end of 1991 resulted in a period of
economic depression in Cuba known as the “Special Period” as the
island had lost its main trading partner. Technical support and lack
of spares for Radio Havana Cuba’s Soviet transmitters became a
problem. [Moscow relay was on 11840 in daytime – gh]
In contrast Cuba’s relations with China improved and in 2003 credits
granted by China to Cuba allowed for the automation of six
transmitters at transmitter site No 1 (Bauta). A seventh 50 kW
transmitter was also installed for Radio Rebelde. Improvements were
also made at transmitter site No 2 (Bejucal) and at a third site, No 3
Titán (Quivicán). In October 2004, Arnie Coro announced on “DXers
Unlimited” that six new 100 kW transmitters were being tested at Bauta
and six new high curtain curtain antenna arrays plus three
omnidirectional would be completed within a few months.
RadioCuba technical director Justo Moreno García (Granma April 2004)
had described the situation in the transmission centres prior to these
improvements as critical. The equipment was “very old and
inefficient,” and the antenna systems and buildings were “very
deteriorated.” As well as deterioration with age, the transmitter
sites also suffered damage from Hurricanes.
As a result of the Sino-Cuban cooperation, some China Radio
International programmes in Spanish, Portuguese, Mandarin and English
to the Americas are now relayed from Cuba. You can watch a short video
from 2010 about Chinese-Cuban cooperation in TV & radio transmission,
including a shortwave site (Bauta according to the Spanish commentary)
on the Chinese CNTV Espanol site:
http://espanol.cntv.cn/program/BizChina/20101009/101947.shtml
Today, 50 years after it officially launched, Radio Havana Cuba still
has a major shortwave presence, broadcasting in eight languages:
Spanish, English, French, Portuguese, Arabic, Quechua, Creole &
Esperanto. (Its programme in Guarani was dropped last year). It also
broadcasts “Mesa Redonda” (“Round Table” TV & radio programme) and
“Aló Presidente” (Venezuelan leader Hugo Chávez’ radio & TV programme
- broadcast occasionally on Sundays) both in Spanish. It is also
possible to listen online via its recently redesigned website
http://www.radiohc.cu (where the ‘CH 2’ speaker icon carries English).
Shortwave transmissions from RHC primarily target Central, North and
South America and the Caribbean – there are a couple of evening UTC
hours targeting Europe, but not in English. Best frequencies currently
for English here in the UK are 6000 kHz (0100-0500 UTC) or 6060 kHz
(0500-0700 UTC). (The 5040 kHz English broadcast 2300-0000 UTC is
quite weak here at present). RHC’s studios are located in central
Havana in the Avenida Infanta in the same building as two other
national stations: Radio Progreso and CMBF Radio Musical Nacional (see
photo on right). Its Correspondence department (who seem to keep
copies of every letter sent to them!) occupies a different building
nearby. They receive enough correspondence to put out two ‘Mailbag’
programmes each week. RHC’s postal address is: PO Box 6240 Havana,
Cuba though the quickest way to contact RHC is via email:
radiohc@enet.cu
(Information for this article is from the RHC website
http://www.radiohc.cu (where there is a 50th anniversary section) and
scripts from various editions of Arnie Coro’s ‘DXers Unlimited’
programme on RHC) (July BDXC-UK Communication via Alan Pennington,
DXLD)
That explains why there was nothing critical in the article, tho there
is plenty to be negative about, such as the very dark side of Cuban
``broadcasting``, jamming; daily SNAFUs of an amazing variety of
sorts, harmonix, spurs, monomaniacal propaganda agendas; incompetent
and irresponsible SW frequency ``management``, etc. (gh)
** CUBA. [Tvfmdx] ES : CUB->ON --- weak 2 Havana in. Frequency
measurement amazingly matches my last measurement from last year,
55239.96. MUF 3 (William R Hepburn (VEM3ONT22), Grimsby ON CAN 43 10
59.4 -79 33 34.5, http://dxinfocentre.com/hepburn/ 1401 UT 23 July,
WTFDA via DXLD)
** CUBA [non]. DEATH OF ERNESTO BETANCOURT, CASTRO ALLY WHO LATER
BECAME DIRECTOR OF RADIO MARTÍ. Posted: 21 Jul 2011
Washington Post, 19 July 2011, T. Rees Shapiro: "Ernesto F.
Betancourt, 83, a Cuban-born former ally of Fidel Castro who quickly
became disenchanted with the autocratic leader and led a decades-long
publicity campaign against him, died June 20 at his home in Bethesda
after a heart attack. As a Castro opponent, Mr. Betancourt found his
greatest platform as director of Radio Marti, a federal government
station that broadcasts to Cuba and is named for Cuban independence
seeker Jose Marti. Mr. Betancourt joined the radio station in 1985,
shortly after its inception, and served as its director until 1990.
Later, he co-hosted a biweekly program on Radio Marti and wrote scores
of newspaper opinion essays assailing Castro’s leadership."
(kimandrewelliott.com via DXLD) obit
** CUBA [non]. 5954.22, R. República, 0958, July 24. In Spanish;
some songs; 1001 clear ID and back to chatting; perhaps very faint
jamming which was not a problem; MP3 audio with ID posted at
http://www.box.net/shared/5p7o0ympt84thylxzb0f
Website:
http://www.radiorepublica.org/Radio_Republica/La_voz_de_la_amistad_entre_los_cubanos%21.html
(Ron Howard, San Francisco at Ocean Beach, CA, Etón E1, dxldyg
via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CYPRUS. Limassol, Cyprus updated schedule
A11 - Summer 2011 - LIMASSOL, CYPRUS July 21, 2011
FREQ STA BTIM ETIM LANGUAGE DAYS TARGET PWR AZI
===== === ==== ==== ========== ======= ========== === ===
639 BBC 0300 0329 English s...... CYP 500 180
639 BBC 0300 0329 English .mtwtfs CYP 500 180
639 BBC 0329 0330 Arabic smtwtfs CYP 500 180
639 BBC 0330 2100 Arabic smtwtfs CYP 500 180
720 BBC 0300 2100 Arabic smtwtfs 720 CYP 500 110
1323 BBC 0200 0729 English .mtwtf. CYP 200 150
1323 BBC 0200 2300 English s.....s CYP 200 150
1323 BBC 0900 2300 English .mtwtf. CYP 200 150
5875 BBC 0030 0100 Dari smtwtfs WAs 300 077
5875 BBC 0100 0130 Pashto smtwtfs WAs 300 077
5875 BBC 0130 0200 Dari smtwtfs WAs 300 077
5875 BBC 1700 1800 Arabic smtwtfs Arabian Gu 300 101
5875 BBC 1800 1900 English smtwtfs Gulf 300 090
5875 BBC 1900 2000 English smtwtfs Gulf 300 090
5925 BBC 2215 2245 Greek s....fs W.Eur 250 314
6155 BBC 1700 1730 Dari smtwtfs WAs 300 077
6155 BBC 1730 1800 Pashto smtwtfs WAs 300 077
6195 BBC 0130 0200 Dari smtwtfs WAs 250 077
6195 BBC 0200 0300 English smtwtfs Gulf 250 090
7220 BBC 2215 2245 Greek s....fs W.Eur 300 314
7375 BBC 0500 0600 Arabic smtwtfs E.Med. 300 173
7375 BBC 0600 0700 Arabic smtwtfs E.Med. 300 173
7375 BBC 1700 1900 Arabic smtwtfs NE Af 300 173
7375 BBC 1900 2100 Arabic smtwtfs NE Af 300 173
7395 BBC 0000 0100 English smtwtfs SAs 300 090
7395 BBC 0100 0200 English smtwtfs CAs 300 064
7445 BBC 0030 0100 Dari smtwtfs WAs 300 081
7445 BBC 0100 0130 Pashto smtwtfs WAs 300 081
7445 BBC 0130 0200 Dari smtwtfs WAs 300 081
7445 BBC 0200 0230 Pashto smtwtfs WAs 300 081
7445 BBC 0230 0300 Dari smtwtfs WAs 300 081
9440 BBC 0300 0400 Arabic smtwtfs Arabian Gu 300 117
9480 BBC 0130 0200 Urdu smtwtfs WAs 250 077
9760 BBC 2215 2245 Greek s....fs W.Eur 300 317
9895 BBC 0200 0230 Pashto smtwtfs WAs 300 077
9895 BBC 0230 0300 Dari smtwtfs WAs 300 077
9895 BBC 0300 0330 Pashto smtwtfs WAs 300 077
9915 BBC 0300 0400 Arabic smtwtfs NE Af 300 173
9915 BBC 2000 2100 Arabic smtwtfs NAf 250 280
12035 BBC 0300 0400 English smtwtfs EAf 250 173
12035 BBC 0400 0500 English smtwtfs EAf 250 173
12095 BBC 0300 0400 English smtwtfs CAs 250 077
12095 BBC 0400 0500 English smtwtfs Gulf 250 077
12095 BBC 0500 0600 English smtwtfs Gulf 250 090
12095 BBC 0600 0700 English smtwtfs Gulf 250 090
12095 BBC 1900 2100 English smtwtfs SAf 250 177
13660 BBC 1500 1600 Pashto smtwtf. WAs 300 081
13820 BBC 1400 1500 English smtwtfs Gulf 300 090
13820 BBC 1500 1700 English smtwtfs Gulf 300 090
15180 BBC 0700 0800 Arabic smtwtfs NAf 250 280
15530 BBC 1100 1130 Somali smtwtfs EAf 300 160
17640 BBC 0700 0800 English .mtwtf. EAf 300 177
17680 BBC 1300 1400 Somali ......s EAf 300 160
17680 BBC 1400 1500 Somali ......s EAf 300 160
17680 BBC 1400 1500 Somali smtwtf. EAf 300 160
17680 BBC 1500 1600 Somali ......s EAf 300 160
17780 BBC 1100 1130 Somali smtwtfs EAf 300 160
21470 BBC 1400 1700 English smtwtfs EAf 250 175
21590 BBC 1300 1330 Uzbek smtwtfs CAs 300 057
(via Dan Ferguson, North American Shortwave Assn: http://www.naswa.net
Combined SWBC skeds .xls & TEXT - updated July 21 at 1500 GMT:
http://www.hfskeds.com/skeds/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/shortwave-radio
#swl on Starchat.net IRC, July 21, dxldyg via DXLD)
To grant more broadcast hours now from Zygi site again, as from July
18/19, wb. (Wolfgang Büschel, BC-DX July 25 via DXLD)
** CYPRUS. Found picture of Famagusta British military base, Eastern
Sovereign Base Area (UK) on UN Buffer Zone, close to the OHR receiving
station at CYP/GB Over Horizont_Radar RX stn; Ayios Nikolaos in
Famagusta District
35 04 57.43 N 33 54 03.21 E
<http://v5.cache5.c.bigcache.googleapis.com/static.panoramio.com/photos/original/51061261.jpg?redirect_counter=1>
<http://v7.cache4.c.bigcache.googleapis.com/static.panoramio.com/photos/original/51061206.jpg?redirect_counter=1>
<http://www.panoramio.com/photo/51061206?source=wapi&referrer=kh.google.com>
(Wolfgang Büschel, July 19, wwdxc BC-DX TopNews July 25 via DXLD)
16925-16950, July 28 at 0514, lo-pitched OTH radar pulses presumed
from here (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** DENMARK [and non?]. World Music Radio, Denmark/Albania?
Hello! This morning I received a QSL card from World Music Radio,
posted in Albania to acknowledge a report for a broadcast heard on
5815 kHz, October 17, 2004 or 2007 (handwritten date)! Has someone
news about this station once situated in Denmark? The address is still
in Denmark: PO Box 112, DK 8960 Randers SO but no e-mail. Best
regards, (Max Bénard (France), July 21, WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
It stopped a few years ago, when the owner of the land, where the
antenna was located, died. I'll ask the owner of ex-WMR about this.
73, (Erik Koie, Copenhagen, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
QSL arrivata dopo 2622 giorni! World Music R. 15810 KHz – P.O. Box 112
– 8960 Randers SO – Danimarca con QSL in 2622 (non è un errore di
battitura) giorni. Si 1 IRC. Roberto Pavanello (via Dario Monferini,
July 23, playdx yg via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD) = 7.18 anni (gh)
Here is the explanation: The owner of the former World Music Radio,
Stig Hartvig Nielsen, had some QSLs printed before he went on vacation
in Albania, and he wrote as many QSLs as time permitted, and sent them
from Albania, as the postage from there is only about 20 euro-cents,
while it here in Denmark costs € 1.45!
The station was active during week-ends in 2004. He is trying to get
his http://www.wmr.dk activated again. 73, (Erik Koie, Copenhagen,
July 25, dxldyg via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
WMR Denmark QSL after 6 years and 9 months!
Dear Friends, During 2004 and 2005 World Music Radio was broadcasting
from IIsok in Karup, Denmark. They used to broadcast on 5815 kHz (7
kW) and 15810 kHz (0.8 kW) on shortwave. I used to hear them on 5815
in early mornings of October 2004 with various type of Western music.
Subsequently I mailed a reception report during the same month. But
nothing heard from them in reply. I tried with email follow-up reports
to Stig Hartvig Nielsen directly and through Anker Petersen. But there
was no positive reply from the station regarding verification policy
and I forgot about them!
Yesterday I got a large size QSL in mail from WMR which took 6 years
and 9 months to verify! Indeed my longest awaited QSL from any
station. Further, this is my 35th European country and Denmark is 122nd
country to be verified (Radio Denmark used the transmitter facilities
of Radio Norway-Sveio and Kvitsoy). The Postal authorities handled
this treasure QSL without care and got damaged! Here's the scanned
copy of the QSL:
http://tinyurl.com/3enskgt
(T. R. Rajeesh, Kerala, India, via Alokesh Gupta, July 27, cumbredx yg
via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD)
Don't worry, I also received a week ago the Qsl card of WMR like
confirmation of my reception report of the emission of 2004. Bye
(Dario (North of Italy) Gabrielli, ibid.)
** DIEGO GARCIA. AFRTS 12579 / 4319 kHz --- I know it's very unlikely,
but has ANYONE logged AFRTS 12579/4319 from Diego Garcia, a British
Indian Ocean Territory? Anyone have any idea what kind of power
output, transmitter or transmitting mast they're using? (Paul Walker,
PA, 25 July, NRC-AM via DXLD)
Hi Paul, They are probably using SSB specifically upper sideband.
There are a few AFRTS stations that still relay the programming via hf
ssb. I am not sure about power levels or antennas. I've heard their
feeds but I am not sure if they were from the site you mentioned.
Individual sites don't seem to be identified on the SSB feeder
frequencies (Dave Marthouse, VA? July 26, ibid.)
The Diego Garcia AFN site tends to get logged most often on the West
Coast -- see Glenn Hauser's World of Radio website:
http://www.worldofradio.com/dxldmid.html.
Don't know how "very unlikely" I'd call it. I know not everybody here
prowls the SW bands, but a lot of folks do (Randy Stewart, Springfield
MO, ibid.)
Randy, Well, I figured that Diego Garcia's AFRTS wans't running
extremely high power or anything, therefore. .that's what would make
it not so likely heard :) (Paul Walker, ibid.)
I've logged and QSL'ed it from western NY (Jim Renfrew, Connected by
DROID on Verizon Wireless, ibid.)
According to the WRTH 2011 the power on both frequencies is 3 kW
(H?kan Sundman, Helsinki, Finland, ibid.)
Jim: How well can you hear it form your location? What kind of
programming is on the Shortwave outlets?
Hakan: Thanks for the information! I need to get me a Shortwave radio
one of these days, I keep talking about it, but haven't done it yet.
(Paul Walker, ibid.)
They are regularly heard in Finland. The programming is all AFN-
relays, no local programming (H?kan, ibid.)
Hakan: Is it news/talk type programming as one would expect on "AM" or
is it music? (Paul Walker, ibid.)
Paul, 4319U is quite easy to hear in the early morning on the west
coast. I personally haven't heard the 12 MHz (their daytime frequency)
for a few years now, but this might be due to the poor solar cycle,
and weak MUFs. During our winters, 4319 propagates quite well during
our late afternoon/early evening as well. Power, I'm not at home where
I'd have that info, but I suspect 1 kW? Certainly less than 10 kW.
Cheers, (Walt Salmaniw, Victoria, BC, IRCA via DXLD)
On the other hand, I heard 12759 a few times last spring and was able
to QSL it, but I have yet to hear 4319! I believe the power is 3 kW,
but not 100% sure (Bruce Portzer, WA, ibid.)
Bruce is correct. 3 kW listed in the sources I've checked. PS: Bruce,
when are you hearing 12 Megs? (Walt, ibid.)
More the type of programming you would expect for soldiers and
mariners serving in the Armed Forces, i.e. sports/news/music (H?kan
Sundman, NRC-AM via DXLD)
I have logged the AFRTS station on 4319 kHz here in Winnipeg MB. At
3,000 watts using USB they are not an easy catch but the frequency
does help due to less interference. They are supposedly on 42 hours a
day in English. 73 Best of DX (Shawn Axelrod, VE4DX1SMA, Winnipeg MB,
ibid.)
Don'tcha love typos?? Actually, they COULD theoretically be on 42
hours a day (or up to 48) on the same frequency if they did that VOA-
feeder thing and ran separate programming on LSB and USB! (Ducking as
shoes, portable radios, frying pans etc. come flying toward my head
from all directions...) (Randy Stewart, Springfield MO, ibid.)
They have been off for long periods in the past and then suddenly
back. Couldn't hear them yesterday on 4319 kHz and today they are off
also on 12579 kHz. 73, (Mauno Ritola, Finland, IRCA via DXLD)
Walt, I heard it a couple of times in late March around 0200-0300 UT.
I haven't checked lately to see if that's still a viable time frame
(Bruce, ibid.)
** DOMINICAN REPUBLIC. Pre 11-29] 6025.07, Radio Amanecer? 0150-0240,
July 23, tentative with Spanish religious music. Spanish
announcements. Weak. Poor with adjacent channel splatter. In the past
I have heard Amanecer anywhere between 6025.07-6025.11 (Brian
Alexander, PA, DX Listening Digest) See UNIDENTIFIED 6025
6025.64, Radio Amanecer, Santo Domingo. 2130 July 23, 2011. Noting
Ralph Perry's unidentified (he indicated Amanecer is on 6026.13 and
thus what he was hearing may be something else), but unlikely, as
Amanecer is measured here, clear and fair with Spanish gospel vocals,
rare Spanish male announcer at times. Wounded (even when switching to
LSB) from 2158 by splash from multiple Cuban jammers that came up
within seconds of each other on 6030, intended for Radio Martí (Terry
L Krueger, Clearwater, Florida, USA, 27.55.83 N, 82.46.08 W, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
** ECUADOR [and non]. 6050, July 22 at 1126, weak Spanish with fast
SAH, but no AH, i.e. MALAYSIA has just corrected its 6049.6v off-
frequency, says Ron Howard. 1129 I can make out an HCJB ID, and 6---
frequency; 1130 3+1 auto-timesignal, then a bit of Morse code
presumably HCJB introducing its morning newscast.
Note that the recalcitrant Arnie Coro still has RHC blocking HCJB in
the evenings on 6050 at 0100v-0700, until HCJB closes just after 0500
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) See also GERMANY; MALAYSIA
Well, I gave 6050 a check in the 1130 range today, only to find it
blocked by RHC in Spanish. Sweet (Terry L Krueger, Clearwater, Florida
USA, July 23, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Fluke? Not there when I checked around 1230 on July 24, or later dates
in 1100 hour (Glenn Hauser, DXLD)
** EGYPT. 9990, 18/7 1745, Radio Cairo, Egypt, Arabic songs, really
distorted audio with S 9+30 (Giampiero Bernardini, Italy, in Tuscany
(Pescia, 60 km west from Florence), RFspace SDR-14; ant 30 m long
wire, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Radio Cairo, Abu Zaabal transmitter site, 6270 kHz. 2315 UT July 21,
44444 Woman reading news stories in English. Station ID by woman in
English at 2321. Music program hosted by woman in English at 2324.
Severe QRM from tone or het S-9 (Nick Rumple, Kannapolis, North
Carolina, U.S.A., Yaesu FRG-100, 125 foot longwire - 40 feet high,
shortwavelistening yg via DXLD)
** ERITREA. Heard on:
July 3rd 1700, 7120, 7180 and jammers on 7110 & 7175 kHz
7th 1535, 7110, 7165
8th 0345, 7130, 7175 and another program 7205
9th 1756, 7110, 7175, 9730
10th 0254 s/on IS & ID in 4 languages (feat[ured?] in Arabic) on
7175, 7205, 9730 kHz and no other signal in range 7100-7200 (Rumen
Pankov, Bulgaria, July 19, wwdxc BC-DX TopNews July 25 via DXLD)
7179.99 NF, Voice of the Broad Masses of Eritrea, 0313-0345, July 23,
new frequency. ex-7175. Presumed with vernacular talk. Horn of Africa
music. Fair. No //s heard (Brian Alexander, PA, DX Listening Digest)
9730.03, Voice of the Broad Masses of Eritrea, 0325-0340, July 27,
vernacular talk. Horn of Africa music. Very weak. Fair signal on //
7174.99 (Brian Alexander, PA, DX Listening Digest)
** ERITREA [non]. via Ethiopia, 7235, Voice of Eritrea, *0358-0431*,
July 23, sign on with Horn of Africa music. Talk in listed Tigrinya at
0401. Horn of Africa music. Poor with adjacent channel splatter. Weak
// 9559.50v - drifting up to 9559.62. Tues, Thur, Sat only (Brian
Alexander, PA, DX Listening Digest)
** ETHIOPIA. 6030, Radio Oromiya, *0323-0329, July 25 (Monday). On
with repetitive xylophone sounding IS till 0329; very poor due to QRM
from both Calgary and Cuban jamming (Ron Howard, Asilomar State Beach,
CA, Etón E1, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** EUROPE. Laser Hot Hits Free Radio --- Last night Laser moved to
6940 kHz. The other 4015 kHz channel is still on air in the European
evening and night (Gary Drew, UK, July 21, dxldyg via WORLD OF RADIO
1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Martedì 26 luglio 2011, 2122 - 6940 kHz, pres. LASER HOT HITS,
Inglese, annuncio OM "six-nine-four-five"! Segnale sufficiente-buono.
Ex 6945? Errore? Test nuova frequenza? (Luca Botto Fiora, G.C. 09E13 -
44N21, Rapallo (Genova) - Italia, playdx yg via WORLD OF RADIO 1575,
DXLD)
English Pirate Laser Hot Hits now on 6940 --- Laser Hot Hits 6940
pretty nice at 0332 with pops, this was on 6946 until recently. They
are also on 4015, unheard here (Chris Lobdell, Tewksbury,
Massachusetts, UT July 27, NASWA yg via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD)
** FRANCE. Glenn: I don't think RFI is still transmitting on 15300
from 04 to 20 UT as you state (DXLD 11-29). I used to hear RFI on this
frequency fairly regularly, but now it is rare that I hear any signal.
No idea if tone was from Issoudun, however (Mike Cooper, GA, Jul 23,
DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Radio France International, Issoudun transmitter site, 15300 kHz. 1900
UT July 21, 33333. Station ID by woman in French, then newscast read
by man and woman in French. Faded below static from nearby
thunderstorm at 1925. Weak signal S-4 (Nick Rumple, Kannapolis, North
Carolina, U.S.A., Yaesu FRG-100, 125 foot longwire - 40 feet high,
shortwavelistening yg via DXLD)
** GABON [and non]. 9580, 19/7 1815, Radio Africa 1, Gabon, in French,
ID "Radio Africa 1, la Radio Africaine" and reports, good signal, some
QRM from Medì 1 9575 [MOROCCO], fair/good (Giampiero Bernardini,
Italy, in Tuscany (Pescia, 60 km west from Florence), RFspace SDR-14;
ant 30 m long wire, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Africa Number One, Moyabi transmitter site, 9580 kHz. 2200 UT July 21,
34433. Time pips and station ID (Africa Numero Une) at 2200, followed
by newscast by man in French. Another French ID at 2206. Weak signal
but in the clear and audible. S-5. Signal up to S- by 2245 (Nick
Rumple, Kannapolis, North Carolina, U.S.A., Yaesu FRG-100, 125 foot
longwire - 40 feet high, shortwavelistening yg via DXLD)
** GEORGIA. Apsua Radio / Abkhaz Radio observed on 8, 13 and 18 of
July at 0700-v0807 UT plus some minutes of Avto Radio in Russian:
0700-0800 UT in Abkhazian and some ?Georgian? and news in Russian from
0800 (they said it's noon time/polden in Russian). Also noted for some
minutes interfering with REE in Spanish from 0445-to close/down of REE
at 0456 UT and Abkhaz Radio cl/d at 0458 UT when starts Algeria on 17
July Sunday. All above on {even} 9535 kHz observed (Rumen Pankov,
Bulgaria, July 18, wwdxc BC-DX TopNews July 25 via WORLD OF RADIO
1575, DXLD)
** GERMANY. 21.07.2011 13:41 --- Test License. KBC has received a test
license for 531 kHz in Burg Germany. We keep you informed when we
start testing. We are also talking for a few options in other
countries. Also check http://www.kbcradio.eu
http://www.1395.eu/index.php?dir=news/detail&id=194
Does anyone know the current power of the 531 Burg transmitter please?
(Mike Barraclough, England, July 21, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
This site of course has a very interesting history, having been a key
site during the days of the GDR, but has been unused since 2008
following the closure of Truck Radio. It has a 10 kW transmitter which
can also transmit in DRM mode at 2.7 kW, and a 190 metre antenna mast.
(Media Network via Mike Barraclough, ibid.)
The one that has been used between 2006 and 2008 is or was a 10 kW,
cf.
http://www.waniewski.de/LW/Burg_I/id498.htm
(Kai Ludwig, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** GERMANY. TYSKLAND: I Ostfriesland planeras en ny station på
kortvåg. Den skall sända på 3995 kHz med 3 kW (kan senare möjligen
ökas till 10 kW. Kristna program från bl.a. HCJB. Planeras komma igång
med testsändningar i augusti. Allt enligt HCJBs tyska avdelning
(Christer Brunström)
GERMANY: In East Friesland, a new station on short wave is planned. It
will transmit on 3995 kHz 3 kW, maybe later possibly an increase to 10
kW. Christian programs from among others HCJB. Planned to get started
with test broadcasts in August. Everything according to HCJB`s German
department (Christer Brunström, Sweden, SW Bulletin July 24,
translated by editor Thomas Nilsson for WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
3995 HCA/HCJ - new from August 1.
HCA - ist das Stephan Schaa mit HCJB Deutsch / Englisch ?
HCA ist normalerweise KNX Kununurra WA AUS
3995 kHz 0400-2200 UT 18,27,28 BRE 10kW 700ant 0108-301011 HCA
BRE = Bremen, alter SFB/Radio Bremen Eintrag. Wenn keine Location
passt, nimmt man immer die naechst-passende, z.B. frueher JUL Juelich
fuer Kall, oder jetzt MUN Muenchen fuer 6150 Ingolstadt usw.
Antenne #700
Type 4: 700 - 749
Curtain antenna, arrays of horizontal half-wave dipoles, centre fed,
without reflector.
Designation: CH m/n/h
m = number of half-wave dipoles in each horizontal row
n = number of // rows spaced half a wavelength apart
h = height above the ground in wavelengths.
Possible slew and the design frequency are entered in separate
requirement fields.
Antenne #700
CH 1/1/0.3 (Wolfgang Büschel, July 16, wwdxc BC-DX TopNews July 25
via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD)
Re HCJ 3995 via Bremen/North Sea coastal area. Wow, das kam ja fix zur
Liste durch. Der Eintrag ist - fast - richtig, genaue Location wird
noch nachgereicht und aus dem HCA muss noch ein HCJ werden. :-)
Ist noch einiges an Arbeit zu machen in den kommenden Wochen, wuerden
das aber gerne zuegig in der Luft haben. 73, Stephan (Schaa-D, July
16, ibid.)
Re HCJ. Ab August sollen auch aus Ostfriesland Kurzwellensendungen von
der "Stimme der Anden" ausgestrahlt werden.
<http://www.dxaktuell.de/?p=1864>
(Douglas Kaehler-D, July 18, via wwdxc BC-DX TopNews July 25, via
DXLD)
More registrations
Rohrbach/Ingolstadt ist auch fuer den Winter gelistet:
6150 0715-1300 18,27,28 ROB 6kW non-dir 700 1234567 DEU D R48 FNA
ex MUC, now ROB R48 - 6150 kHz Rohrbach near Ingolstadt.
Euskirchen now
KLL = Kall 5980 6005 6085 kHz 20 kW.
but 6005 kHz maximum 100 kW
6005 0600 2200 18,19,27,28,29,37N KLL 100kW non-dir 975 RSH FNA
und 22-6 UT mit 5 kW
9480 0800-1600 18,19,27,28,29,37N GOH 1kW 230deg 700 MVB FNA
GOH Gohren near Schwerin MVB 9480 kHz 1 kW
(Wolfgang Büschel, July 16, ibid.)
There was an unID on 3990 in DRM, heard by the same guys, in DXLD 11-
29; unrelated? (gh, DXLD)
** GERMANY. 6005, Radio Gloria International via R 700 Kall-Krekel,
0857-0910, 24-07, at 0857 male comments in German, identification:
"Radio Sieben Hundert". At 0900 Radio Gloria International program:
male with identification and comments in English: "Radio Gloria
International", frequencies, pop music. 24322 (Manuel Méndez, Lugo,
Spain, Log in Reinante, Lugo, Cantabrian Sea coast. Grundig Satellit
500 and Sony ICF SW 7600 G, Cable antenna, 10 meters, dxldyg via DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
6005.00, 0925-1000* Sun 24.07, R Gloria International, via Kall-
Krekel. English/German ID, ann address, pop music 25232. Not heard on
9480, but on website radio700.eu which however was not synchronized
with 6005 (Anker Petersen, on my AOR AR7030PLUS with 28 metres of
longwire in Skovlunde, Denmark, via Dario Monferini, playdx yg via
DXLD)
** GERMANY. 17755, July 25 at 1328, rock music on defective
transmitter, pumping as carrier level also seems to shift, in very
deep fades not correlating with modulation peaks. 1330 3+1 timesignal,
ID, YL talking with presumed news in Persian, during which the pumping
is less noticeable. 1340 definite R. Farda ID and back to music, still
breaking up. HFCC says it`s 100 kW, 77 degrees from Lampertheim at 12-
14 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** GOA. India, 11775, All India Radio GOS. Panaji. 2011/07/17 sun
1305-1331. Tibetan music, OM singing with stringed instrument. OM's
talking from 1315, back to music at 1326 (Aoki says it should end at
1315*, but EiBi says it continues until change of language at 1330. ID
at 1330 "General Overseas Service of All India Radio". Poor. Jo'burg
sunset 1535 (Bill Bingham, RSA, July 23, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
``GOS`` refers only to English broadcasts, such as starting at 1330 on
three other frequencies. We have also heard the Tibetan(?) just before
1330 on 9690; sloppy switching (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** GREECE. 11645, July 22 at 0516, Greek(?) songs on R. Filia service.
They keep changing language segments and never heard any announcements
to ascertain now. Not // definitely Greek talk on main ERA5 service,
9420 and 15630, not 15650 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** GREECE [and non]. 3410, 21/7 2206, Greek Pirate in LSB, NOT 2x
harmonic from MW, Greek folk songs, fair;
3413, 21/7 2209, Shannon Volmet, usual meteo airports info, fair/good
Ciao (Giampiero Bernardini, Tuscany (Pescia, province of Pistoia)
Italy, RFSpace SDR-14, 30 meters long wire, dxldyg via DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
** GUAM. 5765-USB, July 22 at 1134, AFN interview about community
service, not // NPR displaced via KOSU. 5765 has splash from 5755 WTWW
but being on USB helps a little (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
** GUAM [and non]. 9910, July 22 at 1150, station in Chinese has
continuous het of less than 1 kHz from carrier on hi side. It`s KTWR
at 1100-1230. Are the ChiCom starting to jam Christian religious
broadcasters too? See also CHINA, 9920 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
** GUATEMALA. 4055, July 22 at 1126 I tried to hear R. Verdad`s
Chinese segment again, but no signal by 1132. Lots of noise on band,
but should have been able to detect it if on (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
Radio Verdad escuchada con señal regular hoy 26 de julio a las 1240 UT
en Mérida, Yucatán, con música religiosa. Envío enlace a archivo de
audio. http://www.megaupload.com/?d=5216IZFM
Atte.: (Ing. Civ. Israel González Ahumada, M.I., DX LISTENING DIGEST)
4055, July 28 at 1116, R. Truth is already on with English ID by OM,
contact info asking for reports; followed by YL in German, OM in
Italian, YL in ??, OM in Japanese, OM in vernacular; 1121 hymn (Glenn
Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** GUYANA. 3290, Voice of Guyana, 0930 to 0950, "Good Morning to You.
from... " eclectic programs of religion, subcontinent music, jazz,
etc. from Guyana losing .05% of population each year. 17 July - noted
mornings same time with the regular email net [Wilkner, SYT-
Plantation] (Robert Wilkner, NRD 535D - Drake R8 - Icom 746Pro
modified, Pompano Beach, South Florida U S, HCDX via DXLD) What`s SYT?
What e-mail net? .05%, so what? Did you mean 5%? (gh, DXLD)
** GUYANA. JUNGLE RADIO IN SOUTH AMERICA: THE TERRY-HOLDEN EXPEDITION
VP3THE
The South American country of Guyana is located at the top of the
continent. It is just a small tropical country, 400 miles long and
300 miles wide, with a total population of less than one million, half
of whom trace their origins back to India, over there in Asia. The
capital city is Georgetown, with its unique floating bridge more than
one mile long.
If only the noted Charles Darwin had visited this country now called
Guyana in South America, he would have discovered a multitude of
unique varieties there, more than he did in his famous expedition to
the Galapagos Islands during the 1830s. It is stated that Guyana has
4,000 plants that are not found anywhere else in the world, as well as
many unique animal species, including the Golden Frog.
In ancient times, Guyana was inhabited by Indians of three different
tribes; the Arawak, Carib & Warrau. It was Christopher Columbus who
sailed along the coast line of Guyana as the first European visitor to
the area in 1498. Almost a century later, the Dutch established the
first European settlement, but they ceded the area to England in 1814.
The British colony of British Guiana was formally established in 1831.
In 1966 British Guiana gained its independence as Guyana; and four
years later, this new country became a republic. Guyana became a
center of international interest in the terrible events associated
with what is known as the Jonestown Massacre when nearly 1,000 people
committed suicide.
Back in the year 1937, a group of six American explorers left the
United States for a season of exploration in the northern jungle areas
of South America on behalf of the American Museum of Natural History
in New York. This expedition, known as the Terry-Holden Expedition,
arrived at Georgetown; and they then departed from Bartica, at the
mouth of a confluence of local river systems on September 29, 1937 in
flat bottom boats for a 500 mile journey inland.
Three weeks later, the expedition established a base camp in the
foothills of the Sierra Akarai Mountains near the border with Brazil.
Here, they installed a 200 watt RCA shortwave transmitter in a grass
hut; this unit was allotted the callsign VP3THE, with the letters THE
in the callsign identifying the Terry-Holden Expedition.
An advance party travelled a further 200 miles on horse back, and they
took a small 50 watt Collins mobile transmitter with them for regular
contact with the base camp.
It was on October 13, 1937, that the expedition station VP3THE was
first heard in the United States, on 13900 kHz. On this occasion,
VP3THE was in contact with amateur station VP3BG in Georgetown; and
interestingly, as the years went by, VP3BG & neighboring VP3MR grew
into a commercial broadcasting station with a regularized callsign.
One month after the first test transmission, the expedition station
VP3THE was officially inaugurated with the broadcast of a weekly radio
report back to the United States for nationwide coverage in the NBC
Red & Blue networks. Sometimes the program relay was made via VP3BG &
VP3MR in Georgetown Guyana, and sometimes the relay was carried out
direct with the RCA station at Rocky Point on Long Island.
Three months after the initial test broadcast, the expedition station
VP3THE left the air, never to return again. The final broadcast was
made early in the new year, on January 15, 1938. The operator,
Orison Hungerford, arrived back in New York three months later, during
the month of April.
Two very different QSL cards were issued to verify reception reports
of the Terry-Holden Expedition. One was the familiar duplicated plain
text card with a hand drawn microphone issued by NBC in New York.
These cards were non-specific regarding the information in the QSL
text. The other card was a large folder card, containing three photos
of the station out in the jungle, and brief details of the expedition,
as well as full QSL details (Adrian Peterson, IN, AWR Wavescan script
for July 17 via DXLD)
** INDIA. MANDARMONI DXPEDITION II - Supratik Sanatani
This time our temp QTH was 'Samudra Bilas' which we had selected
during our 2008 visit. It is built around a large fishing pond which
is locally called "Bheri". Some 250 m away from the sea beach this
location offered us plenty of casuarina trees all around to string
antennas as we liked but the facilities were bare. The grounds were
sparkless clean and brightly painted for the winter season with well
groomed trees and plants. We had booked well in advance and had
planned the DXped on weekdays to avoid the weekend rush of winter
travelers. Even then we could not get the compact ten bedded
accommodation which we had targeted; we had to settle for two double
bedded rooms and one four bedded room with one long verandah and a
shade in front which allowed us to sit out and talk DX!
We managed to reach just before sunset on 15th Dec 2010 but soon we
had three beverages up and running. The rooms were rather crammed and
this time we were overflowing with gear. There were four ICOM R75, one
ICOM R71, one Drake R8, one SDR IQ & one Tentec 320D SDR besides a
number of portables including Pradip Kindu's brand new Anjan DTS. We
had set up one room as a shack for four DXers and the four other
members had to DX on the bed.
The DXers --- We had two newcomers to our DXpedition team, C. K.
Raman, VU3DJQ from New Delhi who is a professional radio monitor and a
radio amateur. He was there with all his professional as well as
amateur radio experience, from Tripura Pradip Kundu whose QSL
collection is envious was joining the DXped too. He was taking
delivery of his recently acquired receiver, an Anjan DTS. The
remaining others had been member in the past DXpeds: Babul Gupta,
Sudipta Ghose, Alokesh Gupta, Swopan Chakraborty, Partha Sarathi
Goswami and I (Supratik Sanatani).
Location --- Mandarmani, a small sleepy beach town on the east coast
of India is located some 180 km from Kolkata. [map: southwest of
Kolkata, so pirates were probably within West Bengal, not East --- gh]
Bengal Pirates on the MW !
This was undoubtedly the best find of this DXped. No far away DX
station but Bengal MW pirates in Bay of Bengal. After the first night
of DX just as we were relaxing after breakfast on 16th December
morning, around 0500 UTC Alokesh while checking the bands stumbled
upon a whole lot of Bengali pirate stations in the MW. The modulation
was rough and the tone suggested rural Bengali accent. The programming
was similar in all the pirates with announcement of local "Jatra"
program. "Jatra" is typical Bengali theater performance which is
held in open stage with audience seated on three sides.
The stations were also playing requests and announcing mobile contact
numbers. However, when tried to ring we drew blank. There were even
job advertisements. One station switched on to a radio play. The tone
of the announcements was like what you would hear in a village fair.
The only location which we could make out was "Nandigram" in East
Midnapore district. We tried direction finding using the ferrite
antenna of portables. It suggested the signals to be coming from the
sea, which suggested coastal locations around Sagar Island in the Bay
of Bengal.
In our forays to the local sea beach resort Digha we enquired about
how to get in touch with these MW pirates. We were directed to the
local market but we gave up the lead. Bengal pirates on FM have been
reported. But we fail to guess why will the pirates use the MW bands?
It needs bigger antenna and more power but probably the lower
frequency tuning is easier in the MW bands (DXERS GUIDE, Ardic DX
Club, January-March 2011, via Jaisakthivel via Drita Cico, DXLD)
All the pirate logs were made in the local mornings after sunrise,
circa 0300 UT, mid-December 2010, with songs and sometimes talk in
Bengali:
1044, 1116, 1130, 1137, 1147, 1152, 1167, 1188, 1215, 1224, 1251,
1254, 1269, 1278, 1305, 1413 kHz.
Note that many of these are on split frequencies, outside the 9-kHz
bandplan. It is unlikely they would all be on exact 1-kHz steps, but
despite receivers capable of exact measurement, no decimals were
published.
Searching on `pirate` in the long MW log list we find a few in other
languages, also heard in local daytime (times appear to be UT but not
specified as such):
Oriya on 1350, 1359
Hindi on 1548
(Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** INDIA. 4970, AIR Shillong, 1244-1303, July 21. YL DJ in English
playing pop songs (Joe Cocker “You Are So Beautiful To Me”, etc.);
local IDs; poor with the usual light hum.
5015, AIR Delhi (Kingsway) – presumed. 1312-1316, July 21. The hum is
again heard, but was cutting in and out; some audio heard with
subcontinent music underneath; hum seemed to vary in strength; nothing
like yesterday’s hum-free reception (Ron Howard, Asilomar State Beach,
CA, Etón E1, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** INDIA. All India Radio, Bangaluru transmitter site, 11670 kHz. 2130
UT July 23, 44434. Station ID by woman in English at 2130, followed by
discussion about National Institute of Fashion Technology [sic].
Another English station ID by woman at 2150, followed by Indian(?)
Pop music song by man singer. Good signal S-8 (Nick Rumple,
Kannapolis, North Carolina, U.S.A., Yaesu FRG-100, 125 foot longwire -
40 feet high, shortwavelistening yg via DXLD) See also GOA
** INDIA. RELAY HUNGER STRIKE BY AKASHVANI, DD STAFF --- By a Reporter
http://www.sentinelassam.com/meghalaya/story.php?sec=2&subsec=8&id=83084&dtP=2011-07-22&ppr=1
SHILLONG, July 21: Over 20,000 members of the Akashvani and
Doordarshan Administrative Staff Association today staged a relay
hunger protest in Shillong and sent e-mails and telegrams to all its
zonal offices as a part of its agitation in support of their eight-
point charter of demands. The association said that it would intensify
its agitation if the management failed to stop discrimination against
them.
Lary P Warjri, convener of Sanyukta Sanghrash Samiti (SSS), while
speaking to reporters said that the employees of AIR and DD, Shillong
unit, had been placed at an “inconvenient position” while elaborating
on their charter of demands. The SSS also threatened to boycott duty
across the country on August 9, 2011 onwards if the authorities did
not pay any heed to their demands, said Warjri. He alleged that the
management was adopting a divide-and-rule policy by granting higher
pay scales to certain categories of employees leaving others in the
lurch (via Alokesh Gupta, New Delhi, July 21, dx_india yg via DXLD)
** INDIA. Excerpts from Government of India, Ministry of Information &
Broadcasting, Strategic Plan 2011-2017:
All India Radio
All India Radio will embark upon a sweeping modernization programme
during 2011-16 that will see it broadcasting to the entire country
with State-of-the-Art technology. Having already covered 99% of the
population and area under the analogue mode, AIR has made detailed
plans of increasing the coverage to 100% under the digital mode. 100%
coverage would strengthen broadcasting to all strategic border areas
as well. Within this 100% coverage on the primary grade signal (MW &
SW), coverage by FM signal will increase from 37% to 90% of the
population. This would entail digital broadcast in FM band from 50
places in the country including all State capitals and major cities.
The digitalization of the entire network including studios,
transmission and connectivity would include replacement of
old/obsolete equipment. In addition, strengthening of related civil
infrastructure would also be taken up, particularly for imparting
training to staff in the field of digital technology and intensifying
related R & D programmes. Staff productivity will be further enhanced
through implementation of ACP scheme for existing staff and induction
of fresh talent. Investment in E-Governance will be made for ensuring
efficient management of the vast AIR network.
Digitalization will enable AIR make its broadcast available on
alternate platforms such as webcasting / Podcasting / SMS / Mobile
services. In respect of content, a 24 hour AIR news channel will be
introduced on a 2nd channel besides a speech quality programme. The
entertainment programme will be broadcast on the main channel to
compete with the best in the industry.
Introduction of Value added Services like Interactive Text
Transmission, Multimedia Object Transfer (MOT), disaster warning, etc
has also been planned.
In respect of content generation, AIR will be organizing Radio
workshops, Akashwani Sangeet Sammalen concerts, Akashwani Annual
Awards, Kisan Vani, Special poetic symposia and Spring Music Festival
Concerts. Further, special activities like music concerts will also be
organized and broadcast. Increased coverage of important International
and National events will be undertaken along with news activities like
production of flagship programmes.
ALL INDIA RADIO
(A) CURRENT SCENARIO
All India Radio has become one of the largest broadcasting networks in
the world. The Five Year Plans have given impetus to the growth of
broadcasting resulting in a phenomenal expansion. At the time of
independence, there were six radio stations located at Delhi, Mumbai,
Kolkata, Chennai, Lucknow and Tiruchirapalli with a total compliment
of 18 transmitters (6 Medium Wave & 12 Short Wave), which covered 11%
population and 2.5 % area of the country.
The network has now grown to 237 AIR stations with a total of 380
transmitters (149 MW, 54 SW & 177 FM). The primary grade total
coverage is 91.85% (by area) and 99.18% (by population) and coverage
by FM signal is about 37% by population and about 25% by area.
Therefore, in order to provide digital quality radio broadcasts in the
country, digitalization of complete network and services is the
primary aspiration and the following vision & purpose has been
identified as part of the strategy to be pursued for digitalization of
AIR network in the next five years (2011-16):
(B) OBJECTIVES
• Complete digitalization of studios, transmission and connectivity in
the next five years (by the year 2017).
• Expansion of FM coverage from existing 37% to about 90% of the
population mostly in semi-urban and rural areas in analogue mode since
while formulating XI Plan, digital technology in FM band was not
matured. Digital Technology in the FM band has now matured and
standards have been finalized.
Therefore, during the next five years, Digital broadcast in FM band is
proposed to be started from about 50 places including all State
capitals & major cities.
• Strengthening of coverage in strategic border areas.
• External Services will be strengthened so as to enhance the quality
of AIR External Services Broadcasts through digitalization of
Shortwave transmitters.
• To make available AIR broadcasts on alternate Platforms like
Webcasting / Podcasting /SMS/Mobile services including availability of
Content on request by SMS & email and also on i-phones etc. and to
provide more channels in the DTH service.
• Introduction of 24 hour AIR news Channel:
In addition to the main channel which has excellent audio quality , an
additional speech quality programme can be broadcast simultaneously on
the DRM Transmitters operating in digital mode. The reach of the
existing national channel is proposed to be extended to the whole of
the country and is also proposed to convert it in DRM mode, using SFN
(Single Frequency Network). The entertainment programme will be
broadcast on the main channel and the 2nd channel is proposed for 24
hour news broadcast.
• Consolidation of Network:
In order to ensure efficiency and quality of broadcasts, replacement
of old/obsolete equipment & improvement of facilities is necessary.
Schemes like Refurbishing of studios, replacement of AC plants,
provision of UPS systems & Diesel generators, strengthening of
infrastructure facilities like office accommodation, staff quarters,
community centres, holiday homes, etc. will be included. Old
equipment, which have served their life, will be replaced.
• Introduction of E-Governance to facilitate faster dissemination of
information to media units by providing network based on-line
management systems. ERP solutions are proposed to be provided for
efficient management of the vast network of AIR.
• Strengthening of infrastructure for training of staff and Research &
Development activities particularly in the field of digital
technology.
• Introduction of Value added Services like Interactive Text
Transmission, Multimedia Object Transfer (MOT), disaster warning, etc.
• Staff- Assured Career Progression for existing staff and induction
of fresh talent to meet the challenge posed by private broadcasters.
(C) IMPLEMENTATION PLAN:
(1) Digitalization of Production facilities-
(a) Studios
(i) Present state of Digitalization of Studios:
• NBH (New Broadcasting House) studio at Delhi is fully digital
• 137 studio centres have been partially digitalized by providing hard
disc based systems
(ii) Schemes under implementation & proposed :
• There are at present 215 studio centres in the AIR network.
• Digitalization of 98 Studios will be achieved in XI Plan.
• The remaining Studios are proposed to be digitalized during the next
five years & targeted to be achieved by 2017. These studios will have
provision for stereo recording, production & transmission, all in the
digital domain.
(b) RNUs (Regional News Units)
(i) Present state of Digitalization of RNUs: Nil
(ii) Schemes under implementation & proposed :
• Augmentation of 44 existing Regional News Units and creation of 7
new regional units.
(c) News -on -Phone Service (NOP Service)
(i) Present state of Digitalization of NOP Service.
• NOP Service already digitalized at Delhi
(ii) Schemes under implementation & proposed :
• Augmentation of existing 13 NOP Centres
• Introduction of NOP Service at 16 places
(d) Digitalization of Archives:
(i) Present state of Digitalization.
Most of the Central Archives at Delhi has been digitalized. However,
refurbishing is to be done. Content in Regional archives is to be
digitalized / refurbished.
(ii) Schemes under implementation & proposed :
• Digitalization of existing Archives and creation of digital Archival
facilities at 4 places.
**
*(2) Digitalization of Transmitters- There are 380 Transmitters in the
A.I.R. Network consisting of 149 Medium Wave, 54 Short Wave & 177 FM
Transmitters.
(i) Present state of Digitalization of Transmitters:
• One 250 KW Short Wave Transmitter at Delhi has been converted to
Digital mode and has been operational since January 2009.
(ii) Schemes under implementation & proposed :
• 78 MW (Medium Wave) Transmitters including 6 Mobile Transmitters are
being digitalized as part of the XI Plan Digitalization schemes.
Remaining MW 49 Transmitters in the network are proposed to be
digitalized during next five years & targeted to be achieved by 2017.
• 9 SW (Short Wave) Transmitters (4 in Delhi, 4 in Aligarh & 1 in
Bangalore) are being digitalized as a part of the Digitalization
Schemes inXI Plan. Remaining Shortwave Transmitters are proposed to be
digitalized during next five years & targeted to be achieved by 2017.
[WORLD OF RADIO 1575]
• As digital technology in the FM band has matured recently,
digitalization in the FM band was not proposed in XI plan. However,
digital compatible FM Transmitters are being provided in the network
during XI Plan. This includes 124 digital compatible FM Transmitters
(including 100 numbers of 100 Watt FM Transmitters) at existing
AIR/Doordarshan Sites & replacement of existing FM/MW Transmitters at
40 places.
During next five years, digital broadcast in FM band is proposed to be
started from about 50 places including all State capitals & major
cities.
*
(3) Digitalization of Networking & Connectivity –
(i) Present state of Digitalization of Networking & Connectivity:
• Digital Uplink facility at 32 Centres
• All the downlink facilities digitalized except at 44 places.
• Digital Studio Transmitter links at 20 places.
• 4 Nos. of DSNG Systems (Digital News Gathering Systems) are
available.
(ii) Schemes under implementation & proposed :
• 115 Studio Transmitter links are being digitalized.
• 5 new Digital Captive Earth Stations are being set up (32 are
already available),
• 44 down link facilities are being digitalized.
• 98 Studio Centres being digitalized in XI Plan are being networked
to a Central Data Server System for exchange of programme. Disaster
Management site is also envisaged in the XI Plan. The remaining
Studios, which are proposed to be digitalized by 2017 in XII Plan,
will be connected to the Central Server.
• 3 Nos. of DSNG systems (Digital News Gathering Systems) are being
procured. With this Complete digitalization of networking &
connectivity will be achieved.
(4) AIR broadcasts are also proposed to be made available on alternate
Platforms like Webcasting / Podcasting / SMS/Mobile services and to
provide more channels in the DTH service.
AIR Programmes are presently available through terrestrial mode and
DTH. As part of XI Plan, following schemes are under implementation:
• 20 AIR channels are proposed to be made available through
Webcasting/Podcasting with a view to use the internet platform to
serve listeners having internet connectivity.
• There are presently 21 Radio Channels available on the Ku band DTH
platform of Prasar Bharati (DD+). In XI Plan it is proposed to
consolidate the DTH service.
During Next five years, It is proposed to expand the reach and impact
of AIR broadcasts through alternate platforms including availability
of Content on request by SMS & email and also on i-phones etc.
Channels on DTH will also be increased.
(via Alokesh Gupta, VU3BSE, New Delhi, India, dx_india yg via DXLD)
** INDIA. FIRST TRIBAL COMMUNITY RADIO STATION TO GO ON AIR AT BHABHRA
ON JULY 23
World's first Tribal Community Radio Station will go on air at
Bhabhara (Alirajpur district) in Madhya Pradesh. The radio station set
up with the assistance of Vanya and Tribal Welfare Department will
broadcast programmes in 'Bhili' dialect by tribals. The function to
launch the radio station will be held on July 23, 2011 at 11 am at
Bhabhra, the birthplace of Amar Shaheed Chandrashekhar Azad. BJP
national president Nitin Gadkari will be the chief guest of the
function, which will be presided over by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh
Chouhan. The Guests of Honour will include former Union Minister and
MP Kantilal Bhuria, MP and State BJP president Prabhat Jha, SC, ST
Welfare Minister Kunwar Vijay Shah, Minister of State for Public
Health and Family Welfare and minister incharge of the district
Mahendra Hardia, Alirajpur MLA Nagar Singh Chauhan and Jobat MLA Smt.
Sulochna Rawat.
The Bhabhra Radio Station will broadcast programmes for two hours
daily, which can be heard at 90.4 megahertz frequency within 20 km
radius. The radio station will be run by the local tribal community.
The programmes prepared locally will be broadcast in their Bhili
dialect. The radio station will play an important role in
disseminating information about various welfare schemes on the one
hand and on the other hand will also serve as a bridge between the
people and the government. It is perhaps first occasion in the world
that a Community Radio Station is being launched in tribals' own
dialect in the wake of the State Government's efforts to ensure
tribals' participation in administration.
http://www.centralchronicle.com/viewnews.asp?articleID=64225
Related Links :
First Tribal Radio Centre Of World To Be Launched At Bhabra On July 23
http://www.mpinfo.org/mpinfonew/newsdetails.aspx?newsid=110719N24&flag1=1
First Tribal Community Radio Station to go on air at Bhabhra July 23
http://www.mpinfo.org/mpinfonew/newsdetails.aspx?newsid=110721N9&flag1=1
Madhya Pradesh tribals can now hear radio in their dialects
http://www.mpinfo.org/mpinfonew/newsdetails.aspx?newsid=110722N16&flag1=1
Vanya Radio Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=707Jn8o3-gQ
Sajan Venniyoor comments via cr-india list :
First things first: this is not, by any stretch of the imagination,
the "first tribal community radio station" in the world. It is
probably not even the first in India. There are literally hundreds of
tribal community radio stations in Latin America and North America, in
New Zealand, Australia, PNG and the Asia Pacific in general, and no
doubt dozens more in East Asia.
Secondly, this is not a community radio station. It is owned and run
by Vanya (a govt-run 'society') and the Tribal Welfare Dept. of Madhya
Pradesh. As one can see from the YouTube video, it seems to be run
entirely by non-tribals. The announcer speaks chaste Hindi. The
station starts the day's broadcast with 'Vande Mataram', that well
known tribal song.
It is commendable that at least some of the programmes broadcast by
Vanya Radio are in Bhili, a tribal dialect, but that does not make it
a tribal radio station. AIR broadcasts in dozens of tribal dialects in
central India and in the North East, where it also runs five
'community radio stations'. That does not make AIR a tribal or
community broadcaster.
According to the news story, "the radio station will play an important
role in disseminating information about various welfare schemes". That
is what state-run radio stations do. AIR has done that for nearly 65
years now, at immense expense, without any marked success (Sajan
Venniyoor via cr-india list, http://www.crforum.in )
Regards, (via Alokesh Gupta, VU3BSE, New Delhi,
http://alokeshgupta.blogspot.com/ dx_india yg via DXLD)
** INDONESIA. 3325, 2134-2146, RRI Palangkaraya (tentative), 16/07,
Indonesian, YL (mostly)/OM talks, short musical fragments - poor under
local noise, then weak due to propagation,
http://www.rripalangkaraya.co.id/index.php
(Mikhail Timofeyev, Saint-Petersburg, Russia, Drake R8A and 30 meters
long wire, HCDX via DXLD)
** INDONESIA. 9526-, July 26 at 1305, it`s Tuesday, so I struggle to
hear very poor VOI signal and whether they are still doing the RRI
Banjarmasin hookup. Dead air at first, then beeps as in phone busy
signal; 1306 a bit of music and talk, very poor and it`s either in
Indonesian or heavily-accented English. Not worth any further effort
to understand.
9526-, July 27 at 1245, VOI with improved signal to S9+18, such that
intermittent audio dropouts (IADs) during music could still be
observed, then Special Japanese announcement. By 1304 in English had
faded considerably, reading S9+15 but tough copy due to
undermodulation, fading, noise level, accent. Unseemed news but a
discourse on the Dutch colonial era, too long either to have been
`Today in History` segment normally appearing after the news (Glenn
Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** INTERNATIONAL INTERNET. South Herts Radio web update
Hi Everyone, Updated today - SHR listen again
http://www.southhertsradio.com/again.html
New programmes added. SHR is relaying Laser Hot Hits when we are off
air. The next intended live stream is on Sunday 31st July from 1100 to
1900 UT / 12.00-20.00 BST. 73 Gary. Join Gary Drew on a radio near
you!
http://www.laserhothits.co.uk - Europe`s hottest shortwave free radio
station.
http://www.southhertsradio.com - SHR: International Radio with
community programming for South Hertfordshire (Gary Drew, July 25, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
** INTERNATIONAL VACUUM. PCJ MEDIA LAUNCHES COMMUNICATIONS MAGAZINE ON
WRN
PCJ Media has announced that its weekly communications magazine is
coming to the World Radio Network from 30 July. The programme will be
broadcast at the following times:
Saturday to Africa & Asia at 1000-1030 UT
Saturday to Europe at 1300-1330 UT
Saturday to North America at 2100-2130 UT
Below is the satellite tuning information for each region:
North America
Galaxy 19 at 97º West
Transponder 27, 12.177 GHz
Vertical polarisation
Symbol Rate 23,000 Msym/s
FEC 3/4
DVB MPEG2, Choose Audio Channel: WRN1 (English), Service-ID: 13.
WRN is also available on channel 120 on both Sirius and XM. For
further information on subscribing to Sirius Satellite Radio in the
USA, please visit the website: http://siriusxm.com
Europe
Sky Digital, Channel 0122 (Eurobird 1, 28.5º East)
Transponder C2, 11.224 GHz
Vertical polarisation
Symbol Rate 27.500 Mbaud
FEC 2/3
MPEG2 DVB audio stream. Select WRN Europe from audio menu.
Eutelsat Hot Bird 6, 13º East
Transponder 94
12.597 GHz, Vertical
Symbol Rate 27.500 Mbaud
FEC 3/4
MPEG2 DVB audio stream. Select WRN English from audio menu.
Asia/Pacific
Intelsat 10 at 68.5 degrees east
Transponder: 14 (C band), downlink frequency: 3808 MHz
Vertical polarization
Symbol rate: 10.340 Msym/sec
FEC: 3/4.
Africa
Intelsat 10 at 68.5 degrees east
Transponder: 14 (C band), downlink frequency: 3805.5 MHz
Vertical polarization
Symbol rate: 6.670 Msym/sec
FEC: 3/4.
You can also receive WRN via DStv. For details contact DSTV on +27 11
289 2222, Fax +27 11 577 4901, E-mail: enquiries @ multichoice.co.za
or visit the DSTV website at http://www.dstv.com
(Source: PCJ Media)(July 26th, 2011 - 9:20 UT by Andy Sennitt, Media
Network blog via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD)
** INTERNATIONAL WATERS. The Thames Offshore Forts --- A superb video
completed last month, now posted to You Tube. Included are clips from
sixties offshore stations.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-p-MjmFTac&feature=share
(Mike Terry, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** ISRAEL. Yavne - Panoramio image. First photo seen of site:
http://static.panoramio.com/photos/original/35434780.jpg
Regards (Ian Baxter, NSW, July 24, shortwavesites yg via DXLD)
** ISRAEL. 9235 / 15850, Galei Zahal. 2317 July 21, 2011. As is often
the case, all over the place with Beyoncé, James Brown's "I Feel Good"
into a Jerry Lee Lewis song, then "The Shadow Of Your Smile" by Tony
Bennett, Hebrew vocal, unidentified Prog Rock and then an Echo and the
Bunneymen track. 15850 very good, 9235 fair (Terry L Krueger,
Clearwater, Florida, USA, 27.55.83 N, 82.46.08 W, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
9235, Galei Zahal, 2300-2350, July 27, Hebrew talk. Local pop music.
// 15850 - both frequencies fair (Brian Alexander, PA, DX Listening
Digest)
** ITALY [non]. SPECIAL PROGRAMME FROM THE ARCTIC RADIO CLUB
On Saturday, July 23 and Sunday, July 24 at 1100 UTC (1300 CET) a 15
minute special programme made by the Arctic Radio Club will be aired
by IRRS over a transmitter in Romania on 9510 kHz. The programme has
been produced by ARC members Ronny Forslund, a/k/a Ronny B Goode, and
Christer Brunström, chairman of the ARC. We are sitting in for Stephen
who usually runs his programme 39 Dover Street at this time but as he
is moving house he asked us to fill his airtime. A webstream is also
available on http://www.nexus.org/ Happy listening! (Ronny Forslund,
from Arctic Radio Club (ARC) blogspot via Alan Pennington, July 22,
BDXC-UK yg via DXLD) Heard it, but no QSL address was given? 73,
(Erik Koie, Copenhagen, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
ARC Arctic Radio Club - 9510 via Tiganesti 300 kW performance, 9.5 kHz
wide signal at 1130 UT July 24. 337 degrees noted at S=9+20 to +30 dB
level in Belgium, Holland, and England. Here is the SW schedule:
<http://arcticradioclub.blogspot.com/2011/07/update-arctic-radio-club-special.html>
(Wolfgang Büschel, July 24, wwdxc BC-DX TopNews July 25 via DXLD)
Update: Arctic Radio Club special programme over IRRS
According to current information the programme will go out at 1130 UT
(1330 CET) on Sunday, July 24 on 9510 kHz and it will be repeated the
following weekend at 0845 UT (1045 CET) on Saturday, July 30 and at
1130 UT (1330 CET) on Sunday, July 31. Regards, (Alokesh Gupta, VU3BSE
New Delhi, http://alokeshgupta.blogspot.com/ dxldyg via DXLD)
9510, 1058-1147, ROMANIA, Sunday 24.07, IRRS programmes via Tiganeshti
in English: 1058 religious talk, 1100 IRRS ID and Milano address, 1101
conversation about the late Billy Graham, song, 1130 IRRS ID and
Milano address, 1130 Special DX programme from Arctic R Club with
Ronny Forslund and Christer Brunström, 1145 IRRS ID and Milano
address, United Nations programme about Somalia and Congo; 45344. Best
73 (Anker Petersen, on my AOR AR7030PLUS with 28 metres of longwire in
Skovlunde, Denmark, via Dario Monferini, playdx yg via DXLD)
** JAPAN [and non]. 6120, July 28 at 1221, R. Japan, NHK World via
Sackville to NAm is JBA; yet 9695 direct to Asia is very good!
Something is amiss with RJ`s frequency planning. Item about instant
curry with voice-over clips from Portuguese, which apparently has
become the #3 language in Japan; then on whether to put ice in beer
like they do in Vietnam; 1228 outro as `Radio Japan Focus`, which is
the weekday magazine; 1230 Sakura, and opening in Thai (Glenn Hauser,
OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** KOREA SOUTH [non]. 9650, KBSWR in English via CANADA, July 24 at
1248 is about equal level with VOK direct in Japanese, producing SAH
of about 5 Hz. KBS doggedly stix to this frequency, unnecessarily
clashing with the other side. I daresay Sackville is no problem for
VOK reception in Japan (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** KUWAIT. Google Earth imagery. Some high resolution place. VE Update
- Google Earth historical image. Panoramio MW Umm Al-Rimam (New!)
New GE imagery of the new MW ant & tx building at the IBB site of Umm
Al-Rimam site in Kuwait. 29 31 16 N 47 41 16 E
(Ian Baxter, Australia, SW TXsite July 19 via BC-DX July 25 via DXLD)
Okay, this MW unit was expected on air in August 2008, but delayed of
2.5 years, due of financial crash by the antenna firm. Is this on MW
1386 kHz now?
KWT IBB MW Radio Farda Kuwait new 600 kW 3-mast.
But still miss the new Thales-Thomcast revolving SW antenna, which was
visible on the extended IBB Kuwait video a year ago:
KWT IBB KUWAIT Thomson rotatable 1 km feeder line, 2 x 250 kW
approx. 29 31 20.94 N 47 40 23.12 E
still old image of 29 Oct 2004 visible.
KWT Receiving and monitoring station; old destroyed Radio Kuwait
radio station
29 20 58.22 N 47 46 23.15 E
<http://static.panoramio.com/photos/original/32187336.jpg>
<http://v5.cache6.c.bigcache.googleapis.com/static.panoramio.com/photos/original/32486941.jpg?redirect_counter=1>
(Wolfgang Büschel, July 29, wwdxc BC-DX TopNews July 25 via DXLD)
** LUXEMBOURG. Installation of a 1500 kW LW Solid State Transmitter in
Luxemburg --- http://www.broadcast-transradio.com 11 July 2011
Since mid of June the new TRANSRADIO TRAM/P 1500 LS in Beidweiler,
Luxembourg, is in daily operation for RTL replacing an old tube-type
transmitter.
BCE, the network operator for RTL, upgraded this transmitter to the
latest solid-state technology from TRANSRADIO to reduce operational
costs and to increase the reliability of this important transmitter,
which is broadcasting the French RTL program towards Paris using a
directional antenna with three 290 m masts.
The TRANSRADIO TRAM/P 1500 LS consisting of two single TRAM 750 LS
transmitters and a paralleling unit (PU) for the loss-free coupling of
both transmitters, offers an efficiency of approx. 90%, the
outstanding redundancy of the TRAM-line transmitters with its small
power modules (576 identical modules in this transmitter!) and the
fall-back to operate with -3 dB in case of maintenance work or the
unlikely event of a serious problem with one of the transmitters.
The excellent performance and quality of the installed transmission
system resulted in a impressive DRM performance with a output spectrum
nearly 10 dB better than the ITU requirement and a MER of 36 dB at 400
kW DRM average output power.
More details about this very successful project can be found in an
artikel written from our senior engineer for AM transmitters, Harald
Zank, in the Radio World International 06/2011 in the "Buyers Guide"
section. A PDF version of the article can be downloaded here.
Some more pictures of the site can be found in our References section.
See:
http://www.broadcast-transradio.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=133%3A15-mw-lw-tube-to-solid-state-upgrade-in-luxembourg&catid=1%3Aaktuelle-nachrichten&Itemid=79&lang=en
(via Mike Terry, dxldyg via DXLD) Puff
** MACQUARIE ISLAND. WIRELESS HILL HF TRANSMITTER SITE 100TH
ANNIVERSARY --- Historical radio buffs in the group may be interested
in this story from ABC TV (Australia) on 'The 7.30 Report' regarding
the remote location of Wireless Hill, Macquarie Island once used for
HF transmissions. The broadcast was on Wednesday 13th of July.
http://www.abc.net.au/iview/?series=2186770#/index/0-9
Transcript here:
http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2011/s3268909.htm
Further info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wireless_Hill
& Google :-) I guess the site was somewhere around here: -54.494419
158.942221 (re GE coordinates). A couple of other masts are seen
faintly (different to above story) e.g. -54.496561 158.941899
ALSO: Plenty of photos & text here:
http://www.mawsonshuts.aq/macquarie-island/wireless-relay/contact.html
Enjoy. 73's (Ian Baxter, NSW, shortwavesites yg via DXLD)
ARRL considers this a DXCC radio country, entity #153. I knew it was
off Australia, but finding it in an atlas was a challenge. Some of
them mix in Mc and Mac alfabetically tho this unseems either prefix. I
had to go thru seven of them in random order from my collexion before
I found it in the index of the Readers Digest Bartholomew of 1983.
It`s way off toward Antarctica about 55 south, forming a triangle with
Tasmania and S New Zealand (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Due to the ABC's stupid "copyright" policy, the show can only be
viewed in Australia. I haven't tried the transcript yet, maybe the
same applies there (Colin Miller, Ont., VE3CMT, shortwavesites yg via
DXLD) I saw the transcript (gh, USA)
** MADAGASCAR. 5010, 1846-1907'10*, Radio Nasionaly Malagasy,
Antananarivo, 20/07, Malagasy, slow pop songs, 1858 news in brief with
short musical pauses, then OM talks including by phone and sudden
close down without any final ann - strong signal, but fair only due to
high level of local noise (Mikhail Timofeyev, Saint-Petersburg,
Russia, Drake R8A and 30 meters long wire, HCDX via DXLD) AM? SSB?
** MADAGASCAR. MADAGASCAR WORLD VOICE ON TRACK
by National Association of Shortwave Broadcasters on Saturday, June
25, 2011 at 12:55pm by Rob Scobey, World Christian Broadcasting
http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=237415482954905
The staff at Embassy Suites in Franklin/Cool Springs, Tennessee was
excited. It was the largest crowd to ever attend an event there.
The crowd of some 750 people attending the 2011 benefit dinner was
excited, because World Christian Broadcasting had that kind of news to
share. And they were excited to hear from Brad McCoy, father of 2009
Heisman runner-up and now Cleveland Browns quarterback, Colt McCoy.
This excitement has become typical over the years at World Christian
Broadcasting's annual dinners. Vice President Andy Baker came to the
podium and delivered the news. The funds for the final payment for the
transmitters for the new Madagascar radio station have been raised.
And the transmitters will soon be on their way from Texas to
Madagascar. If things continue to go as planned, the Madagascar
station will begin broadcasting by the end of the year. The crowd
stood and cheered the news.
The audience viewed "Hope in the Storms of Life," a video featuring
the six senior producers for programming. The Madagascar station will
double the number of language services. Currently, KNLS [in Alaska]
broadcasts in Chinese, English and Russian. The new Madagascar station
will add services for Africa, the Arabic Middle East and Latin
America. Each producer described the typical listeners in their area
of the world, and the storms of life faces by each.
Also on the video, World Christian Broadcasting's President/CEO
Charles Caudill noted especially the timing of the new Arabic language
broadcast, which comes as the young Middle East population is
demanding freedom and democracy.
[This video was also shown by WCB's Kok Hai Tan at the 2011 NASB
annual meeting.] (NASB Facebook via DXLD)
** MALAYSIA. 5964.87, RTM “Klasik Nasional”, 1238 July 22. Malaysian
pop music, 1244 Koran reading, 1245 man and woman followed by Islamic
call to prayer. Poor (Harold Sellers, Vernon, British Columbia,
Listening from my car with Eton E1 and Sony AN1 active antenna, dxldyg
via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** MALAYSIA. 6050.0, Asyik FM, 1320, July 21. Fair to good; in
vernacular; many IDs; reference to “central Kuala Lumpur”; YL DJ
playing heavy rock music; later checks after 1408 found no audio for
the R. Suara Islam segment; only strong open carrier. Perhaps it's my
imagination, but the audio now seems a little bit clearer than on ex-
6049.6. Evidence of a new transmitter? MP3 audio
http://www.box.net/shared/243cjhmji2kxa9yts5ir
What was said at 01:24? (Ron Howard, Asilomar State Beach, CA, Etón
E1, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
6050-, RTM must have resumed its off-frequency transmitter for I am
again hearing the het upon HCJB, and seems about the same pitch as
before, July 28 at 1123. On July 20 and 21, Ron Howard had them on
exactly 6050.0 instead of 6049.6. Apparently temporarily with a
different transmitter capable of better accuracy (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
Nice catch, Glenn, as Asyik FM via RTM was indeed via their old
transmitter on 6049.6v (ex-6050.0); heard from 1205 to 1242 on July
28, with YL DJ in vernacular playing pop songs; audio not as sharp and
crisp as heard via 6050.0 transmitter. Is difficult to keep up with
the latest Malaysian developments, as there seems to daily be some
changes. 5030 and 7270v continue to be absent as of July 28 and for at
least three days now 9835 has been off the air too. No change for
5964.7v, with nice "Radio Malaysia Klasik Nasional" ID at 1333, July
28. No change for 11665 (Wai FM). (Ron Howard, California, dxldyg via
DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** MALDIVE ISLANDS. AN EXOTIC BRITISH & AMERICAN RADIO BROADCASTING
STATION ON A LONELY ISLAND IN THE INDIAN OCEAN: THE STORY OF RADIO GAN
Some time back, the well known Victor Goonetilleke in Colombo, Sri
Lanka, asked a question. He queried: Do we happen to know when the
BFBS station on the island of Gan was closed? OK, Victor, after a
spate of interesting research; yes, we do have an approximate answer.
This is the story.
The island of Gan forms part of the most southerly atoll in the
Maldive Islands. If you take a look at a map showing the the land and
ocean areas of the Indian sub-continent, you will note a chain of
small islands running south, off the west coast of India. The northern
half of this chain of islands belong to India and are known as the
Lakshwadeep Islands, and the southern half of this chain of islands
form an independent country, the Maldives.
All of these islands are in fact the tops of an underwater range of
mountains, rising up from the floor of the Arabian Sea, and the
Maldive section of this island chain is more like a double chain of
coral atolls nearly 500 miles long. The Maldives is made up of nearly
2,000 islands, most very small, and only 200 are inhabited.
The total combined area of all of the islands is only 115 square
miles, the average height above sea level is less than 6 ft, and the
highest hill stands at just 80 ft. The total population in the Maldive
Islands is around 1/3rd million, and around 2/3rd million tourists
flock into the holiday islands each year.
The December 2004 tsunami from Indonesia washed over the islands,
devastating the entire nation. Only 9 islands escaped damage; 6
islands were destroyed, and a further 14 have been totally evacuated.
With the slowly rising ocean waters due to global warming, the Maldive
government has given consideration to buying a massive property in Sri
Lanka, or India or Australia, though nothing tangible has been
implemented thus far.
The first settlers in the Maldives came from Sri Lanka and India more
than 2000 years ago. They have been ruled by the Portuguese, Dutch &
English, and they achieved independence in 1968. The capital city is
Male which occupies all of one small island.
The island of Gan itself is situated in the most southerly atoll, it
is also the largest island in the Maldives, and it is linked by
roadways & bridges to other islands in the atoll. The population in
the area is around 25,000.
In 1941, the British Royal Navy established a base at Gan, and they
also constructed the nation’s first airstrip. Sixteen years later, the
British base was transferred from navy control to the air force. At
the height of its operations, there was a total of 600 air force
personnel on the island; and in 1972, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth of
Great Britain made a royal visit to the island.
In 1976, when the British no longer needed the base, it was handed
over to the Maldivian authorities, and it has now been developed into
an international tourist facility known as Equator Village.
In order to provide entertainment and information to the base
personnel, a small and apparently very low powered volunteer radio
station was installed on Gan Island in mid 1963. This station seemed
to escape the attention of international radio monitors who were
scanning the radio broadcasting bands at their locations in
surrounding countries for a period of some 7 years.
In 1970, BFBS the British Forces Broadcasting Service in London, took
a look at the entertainment needs of their personnel on Gan, and
recommended that they be provided with access to TV programming,
though nothing came of this recommendation. During the following year
though, an experienced radio broadcaster was transferred from
Singapore to Gan for the purpose of upgrading the volunteer station
into a fully fledged official BFBS radio broadcasting station.
Quite soon, BFBS Gan was morphed into a regular radio station, with
250 watts on 1215 kHz. According to monitoring entries in radio
magazines of that era, it was Victor Goonetilleke himself who first
drew international attention to this upgraded BFBS station.
Three years later, the station equipment was again upgraded, and it
was now on the air with 600 watts using a modified 2½ kW transmitter
on 1560 kHz, or as monitoring reports indicated 1561 kHz. BFBS Gan was
now heard more widely, throughout the Maldive Islands, and in Sri
Lanka & India, and occasionally further afield. An FM outlet on 88
MHz was added around the same time, though with the very low power of
just 24 watts.
However, with changes in political attitudes, and changes in the areas
of international diplomacy, the British no longer needed their base on
Gan, and the entire facility was transferred to the Maldivian
government on March 29, 1976. Around this same time, the exotic little
BFBS radio broadcasting station was also closed, and gone for ever, at
the end of its 16 year tenure as a radio broadcasting station; a
volunteer station at first and then an official BFBS station.
Over the years, a handful of QSLs were issued to listeners who were
actually able to hear the station. One lonely QSL card, a prepared
card, signed, rubber stamped and postmarked, is lodged in the
Indianapolis Collection. This card verifies the reception of BFBS Gan
as heard in Male in the Maldives itself in 1974, and also in Colombo
in 1975.
Though this radio broadcasting station is looked upon as an entirely
British operated station in its two phases of operation, volunteer &
then official BFBS, yet, this is not exactly the case. During the
three year period running from 1971 to 1973, the American Air Force
was also involved with the British Royal Air Force in the operation of
the air force base on Gan.
According to the entries in the World Radio TV Handbook, the BFBS
radio station on Gan island was actually a joint operation between
personnel from the air force of both countries, British & American,
during the three year period extending from 1971 through 1973. Thus
Radio Gan is seen as a joint AFRS & BFBS operation during this
specific time period.
As far as is known at the present time, only one other forces radio
broadcasting station was a joint operation between two countries, and
that was the mediumwave station 9PA in Port Moresby, New Guinea back
in the year 1944. At one stage, it was a joint operation between
Australian & American personnel (Adrian Peterson, IN, AWR Wavescan
script for July 24 via DXLD)
** MAURITANIA. 7245, 0607, Radio Mauritanie audible nightly since 6
June with Qur`an from around 0600 variable, good strength. Flute music
& ident 0700 27/6 then Arabic news. Audible as late as 0855 some days
(Bryan Clark at Mangawhai, New Zealand, with AOR7030+ and Alpha Delta
Sloper, EWEs to NE, E and SE, plus various 100 metre BOGs to the
Americas, July NZ DX Times via DXLD) ``Since``, but as of when? (gh)
7245, 1812-1844, 0010-0012* R. Mauritanie, Nouakchott, 20-21/07,
French, OM(mostly)/YL talks including tentative ID at 1834'42 and some
mentions of Mauritanie, local singing and fragments of tidinit[?]-like
music - poor with splashes from 7250 (CVA) at the beginning, then fair
(starting from 1835-1840), fair at 0010 in Arabic (Mikhail Timofeyev,
Saint-Petersburg, Russia, Drake R8A and 30 meters long wire, HCDX via
DXLD)
** MEXICO. 990, XET "La T Grande" Monterrey, Nuevo León. 1058 July 23,
2011. Faded up shortly after my local sunrise for a moment with local
signal over Radio Guamá, with slogan ID into choral anthem at 1059.
Faded down as fast as it appeared (Terry L Krueger, Clearwater,
Florida, USA, 27.55.83 N, 82.46.08 W, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** MEXICO. 6010, Radio Mil, México D. F., 0608-0620, 25-07, Latin
American songs, identification by male: "Radio Mil", song "Vuela,
vuela", singer, Kate Ryan. Very weak and slight interference from La
Voz de tu Conciencia. Best in LSB. Radio Habana Cuba seems to be out
of air today. 13321 (Manuel Méndez, Logs in Reinante, Lugo, Cantabrian
Sea coast, Grundig Satellit 500 and Sony ICF SW 7600 G, Cable antenna,
10 meters, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** MEXICO. MEXICO UNDERGOING MASSIVE PUBCASTING EXPANSION
Mexico is planning a $45.5 million boost to public broadcasting, to
rough triple national coverage from 2010 to 2012, Variety reports.
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118039955
That initial investment for 2011-2012 will mainly fund 19 new repeater
substations to help boost signals across the nation. An additional $3
million yearly will go to operations through 2020. The government
hopes to improve the coverage of Once (Spanish for 11) TV, the largest
educational broadcast network (owned by Instituto Politécnico
Nacional, or the National Polytechnic Institute),
http://oncetv-ipn.net/
from 50.7 percent to 76.8 percent of the country, an additional 26.9
million viewers. Its goal is to reach more than 91 million viewers by
2020. Some 79 percent of television sets in Mexico rely solely on
over-the-air broadcasting (Current July 18 via DXLD) Full Variety
story:
Posted: Sat., Jul. 16, 2011, 4:00am PT
MEXICO ADDS JUICE TO PUBLIC BROADCASTERS
NATION BOOSTS REACH AS ALTERNATIVE TO TELEVISA, TV AZTACA [sic]
By James Young
'Soy tu fan' [caption:]
Canana's 'Soy tu fan' (I'm Your Fan) preemed in April 2010 on Once TV.
Campeche state governor Fernando Ortega Bernes, second from left, and
Canana's Diego Luna, second from right, kick off production of 'Holy
Child.'
MEXICO CITY -- Mexico is planning a $45.5 million expansion of
pubcasters as a nationwide alternative to commercial giants Televisa
and TV Azteca.
Once TV, the largest public web, will see more upscale programming,
with "Holy Child" from Pablo Cruz's Canana, skedded to air this year
on the pubcaster, an example of the content it intends to support.
The move comes as Mexico takes steps to dramatically expand public
television, roughly tripling national coverage from 2010 to 2012.
The national pubcaster expansion began quietly in March 2010 with the
creation of a new department within the Interior Secretariat, dubbed
the OPMA, charged with planning and executing a plan to promote the
production and distribution of cultural programming via public media
outlets.
The project will be injected with an initial investment of $45.5
million for 2011-2012, mostly funding 19 new repeater substations
strategically placed to help boost signals across the nation; three
such stations that broke ground in 2010 will be completed. Investment
also includes an additional $3 million devoted to yearly operations
through 2020, according to the OPMA's recently approved expansion
plan.
Mexico hopes to improve Once TV's coverage from 50.7% to 76.8% of the
nation this year, which will enable it to reach an additional 26.9
million viewers, with a goal of reaching more than 91 million viewers
by 2020.
Once TV, operated by the National Polytechnic Institute, launched in
2010 with a reach of just 28% of the nation's population. Known also
as Canal 11 in Mexico City, the pubcaster will continue to be the
principal focus of the national growth plan; others that will benefit
include National Arts and Culture Channel Canal 22; and TV-UNAM, run
by Mexico City's massive public university UNAM.
According to the OPMA plan, the expansion has a mission to develop a
diverse and solid "industry of content" and to generate better
competition in the over-the-air television market, via increased
national coverage.
Unable to access customized content on cable or satellite, 79% of
television sets in Mexico rely solely on over-the-air broadcasting.
Commercial webs TV Azteca and Televisa command a whopping market share
of between 92% and 95%. A recent poll of TV viewers showed that 40%
indicate that commercial TV did not provide an acceptable range of
programming for young people. They also complained of unbalanced news
coverage, a lack of high-quality content and a plague of reality
talent competitions on the commercial broadcasters. OPMA stressed that
many rural areas lack access to the pubcasters.
This year, Once TV is launching "Holy Child," the first episode in a
short-run skein created by Canana prexy Cruz and penned by Mauricio
Katz (Cannes hit "Miss Bala") and Pedro Peirano (Sundance preem "The
Maid").
Now shooting on location in the jungles of Campeche, installments will
topline Mexican indie regulars, including Gabino Rodríguez ("Perpetuum
Mobile") and Dagoberto Gama ("Amores Perros").
"Child" is the second foray into broadcast TV for Gael García Bernal's
and Diego Luna's Canana, with "I'm Your Fan" (Soy tu fan) kicking off
in April 2010 on Once TV. Boosted by the star power of Ana Claudia
Talancon, the program was a critical success and fared relatively well
in its timeslot; however, given the web's limited reach, many of
Mexico's 110 million residents never even knew about it.
Beyond "Fan," the channel had already begun to win kudos for
provocative series like "XY" and "Bienes Raíces," both of which
broached socially taboo topics, with no fear of flashing flesh.
That said, the new wave of Once's skeins are going head-to-head with
the twin idols of Mexican TV -- soccer and telenovelas.
With soccer rights divided between Televisa and TV Azteca, and Once's
dedication to offer programming with substance, the success of the
expansion will depend on the pubcaster's ability to successfully tune
in to the demands of those viewers who crave more from their TV than
sports and skin.
An OPMA spokesperson confirmed that some money will flow to develop
original programming; however, she was unable to produce a specific
budget figure for production, and the budget outlay document obtained
by Variety was non-specific.
Now entering its second season, "Fan" will run along with "Child";
however, Canana promises that the new series will be a stark departure
from standard over-the-air fare, offering no-holds-barred
consideration of themes like faith and science with a level of
production not usually seen in Mexican TV production.
Time alone will tell if the avowed quality of these new programs --
and the massive expansion of coverage will truly give Televisa and TV
Azteca something to worry about, and result in a real shakeup in
Mexican broadcasting (via DXLD)
Glenn, Thank you for the link to the Variety article. Doug thought the
two low-band stations (in Mérida and Oaxaca) were supposed to be on
the air this year. Maybe they will be on next year. Unless plans have
changed, those stations would be DX targets, as the channel 2 in
Oaxaca is listed at 41 kW and channel 5 in Merida at 90 kW.
Unfortunately, channel 5 in Cancún already runs many programs from
Once, so the one in Merida will be a difficult ID if they continue in
the tradition of other non-local-IDing Once stastions. As you know,
the channels in Mexico are already saturated (Danny Oglethorpe,
Shreveport, LA, July 25, Mexico TV DX Tips http://www.tvdxtips.com DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
** MEXICO. Glenn, Your TV DX reports continue to hold my interest.
I think XHBC-3 has dropped the XHBC/Tu Canal logo and replaced it with
a "Televisa Mexicali" ID. That Televisa logo on the XEW programs
actually has Mexicali written in tiny letters below Televisa.
They were using the new logo upper right Monday, but the 60th
anniversary part of the XEW logo was not covered. Tuesday the new logo
had been moved upper left. Needless to say, this new logo is not DXer-
friendly. Pictures are attached (Danny Oglethorpe, Shreveport, LA,
Mexico TV DX Tips http://www.tvdxtips.com July 20, DX LISTENING
DIGEST) And presumably will update:
http://www.tvdxtips.com/mexlogosch3.html
** MEXICO. Bits of signals from south appeared now and then mostly on
channel 2, all evening July 22 from 2232 into UT July 23, but nothing
developed. The sporadic E season normally is starting to decline by
late July, but it has been plenty heavy earlier in July and June.
Turn-on and tune-in at 1437 UT July 23 found heavy Es CCI from south
on 2, 3, less so on 4; 1440 peaked to ch 5, net 5 with Smurfs, then
also on 3 but weakening; 1513 on 2, net-5 more Smurfs, but MUF drops
below 2 by 1530.
Not much Es TVDX but MUF briefly poked up to channel 2 around 0400 UT
July 24, Spanish from the south.
Some more sporadic-E analog TV DX, July 24, UT:
1832 on 4, fades in with soccer from SW, 10 kHz CCI; net-2. Also weak
signals on 2, 3, 5
1837 on 5, net-2 with soccer // 4
1912 on 2, scenes from a rodeo, I think, rather than a bullfight, with
soft-spoken narration; shortly see oval-2 bug UR with XHI-TV calls
beneath. Plus a streamer across screentop, maybe additional relay IDs?
Only a glimpse before faded. Ciudad Obregón, Sonora
1929 on 4, soccer from SSW, net-13. So two nets are running fútbol on
a Sunday afternoon, but the big one is on net-2. 4 still in at 1949
1949 on 6, béisbol, reminding me how seldom we see BB any more on the
air in USA rather than cable. Has an unfamiliar circular bug in UR;
still at 2002
2001 on 4, the net-2 fútbol is Copa América from Argentina, with
Uruguay one of the teams
2024 on 2, net-2 fútbol is dominating the QRM
2045 on 2, only this is left, net-2 FB from SW
2225 on 2-6, weak signals, mostly FB
2234 on 4, fútbol here much stronger than the other channels,
indicating there is not a 2 at same location
2242 on 4, some non-football, think I see an f bug = net-4
2354 on 3, game show, carrying people around studio; still at 2359
with round bug UR.
After big Canadian opening earlier July 27, just bits of Mexican TV DX
appeared UT July 28:
0105 on 2, some Spanish from the south
1405 on 2, tune-in to lite CCI, 1413 identifiable as net-2 bug UR
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** MOROCCO [and non]. 15341.14, 20/7 1340, SNRT Morocco, Arabic talks,
songs, weak/fair fading
15344.16, 19/7 1917, RAE, Argentina, in Italian, talks and songs, in
LSB to avoid QRM Morocco. Fair
15345.18, 18/7 1815, SNRT, Morocco, talks in Arabic, off channel as
usual, good signal but some QRM from RAE carrier. Have nice time
(Giampiero Bernardini, Pescia, Tuscany, SDR-14, 30 meters long wire,
dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
15345v, July 26 at 2059-2101* Arabic singing from IMM, modulation cut
at 2100 sharp, and carrier off at 2101*. Had het on lo side from
Argentina, then left in the clear with very weak signal.
As it precesses earlier and earlier by the Western calendar, Ramadan
is nigh. This will lead to schedule changes on some SW services.
Morocco`s SW broadcasts, being relays of domestic service, shift one
hour as DST comes and goes. This summer, 15345 has been closing around
2100 instead of 2200 UT, but we may soon find it lasting again until
2200:
``Morocco will probably end DST before the start of Ramadan in 2011.
Ramadan begins on August 1, 2011. Morocco’s daylight saving schedule
ended before the start of Ramadan in 2009 and 2010. timeanddate.com
will provide updates on DST in Morocco when information becomes
available.``
Says
http://www.timeanddate.com/news/time/morocco-start-dst-2011.html
Also listing July 31 as the last day of UT+1 there (Glenn Hauser,
WORLD OF RADIO 1575, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** MYANMAR [non?]. [see INDIA for details of DX-pedition in Dec 2010]
711 - 16-Dec-10 - 1200 - 43433 - BURMESE - PADAUK MYAY RADIO, MYANMAR
- ANTI GOVT TALK, QRM from AIR MW [times presumably UT, not specified]
711 - 16-Dec-10 - 1355 - 24422 - BURMESE - MYANMA RADIO - TALK BY YL
Babul Gupta gives insight into Myanmar 711 kHz. Through our antennas,
Myanmar unofficial radio 711 kHz was coming on loud and clear. Babul
Gupta who is fluent in Burmese because of his childhood days spent in
Burma took some time to listen to the station and came up with this
find: the Burmese rap songs on 711 kHz had lyrics based on pro
democracy issues. This means that 711 kHz is probably based in
neighboring Thailand and broadcasting to Myanmar. It is unlikely to be
a pro democracy station based in Myanmarese soil (DXERS GUIDE, Ardic
DX Club, January-March 2011, via Jaisakthivel via Drita Çiço, DXLD)
NOTE: WRTH shows a 400 kW outlet on 711 kHz, of the official MRTV, in
the new capital Nay Pyi Taw with the ``Padauk Myay`` music program in
Burmese, at 2300-0130, 0730-1000, 1130-1530. Possibly a pirate could
occupy the gaps, but logs above are during the 1130-1530 transmission.
So it would appear despite the seeming pro-democracy content of the
songs, it was really the hi-power government outlet (Glenn Hauser, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
** MYANMAR. 7185.75, Myanma Radio, 1220-1221:55*, July 21. Their
signature theme music (indigenous) with assume sign off announcement
in vernacular followed by EZL music till off (Ron Howard, Asilomar
State Beach, CA, Etón E1, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
7185.741, Myanma Radio noted July 20 at 12.10 UT, S=8 on SDR remote
unit in Australia. Light Asian singer music program. But little
disturbed by DRM digital like white noise outlet at S=7 level, peak at
7189.5 and bandwidth around 7188 to 7192 kHz, but could be rather also
a ham radio digital operation. 73 wb (wwdxc BC-DX TopNews via DXLD)
7185.75, Myanmar Radio, 1115 to 1130 fade out, very good signal at
first, YL in between music, 22 July Thanks Victor G.for correction fb
:-) (Robert Wilkner, NRD 535D - Drake R8 - Icom 746Pro modified,
Pompano Beach, South Florida U S, HCDX via DXLD)
7185.75, Myanma Radio, 1210-1239:27*, July 25. In vernacular; pop
indigenous songs; 1220 signature theme music (indigenous); more pop
songs; they seem to have no set sign off time (for a while was 1220*
and before that 1330*); now just very flexible timing; fair (Ron
Howard, Asilomar State Beach, CA, Etón E1, dxldyg via DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
** NETHERLANDS. [Re 11-29] CLEANUP AROUND COLLAPSED TOWER WILL TAKE
SEVERAL WEEKS
It is expected to take three or four weeks for all debris from the
collapsed transmission tower in Hoogersmilde to be cleared, according
to a spokesman for the contractor. Today the dismantling of the mast,
which partially collapsed on 15 July following a fire, commenced. The
cleanup is being carried out with cranes and from within the tower
itself. Because there are many cables and debris that could come down,
the operation is proceeding with great care.
It is still unclear what will happen to the mast at Hoogersmilde once
everything has been tidied up. Removing all the debris is the first
priority for now, said the spokesman.
Reception of the public radio stations in various locations in the
north of the country is still not satisfactory. The emergency mast in
Assen has gone into service, but at least for the the next few days it
will not provide an optimum signal. Meanwhile the tower in Lopik is
only providing a limited signal for safety reasons, say the public
broadcasters. Several other transmission sites are operating at
reduced power until the cause(s) of the fires at Lopik and
Hoogersmilde can be ascertained. (Source: RadioWereld.NL) (July 25th,
2011 - 14:19 UTC by Andy Sennitt, Media Network blog via DXLD)
RADIO 5 ON THE AIR ON 1251 KHZ FROM LIMBURG
Dutch public network Radio 5 is back on mediumwave via the 10 kW
transmitter at Hulsberg on 1251 kHz. This transmitter, which serves
the province of Limburg in the south of the Netherlands, had been
carrying Radio 1 in parallel with 747 kHz since the collapse of the
mast at Hoogersmilde in the north of the country two weeks ago. But
since FM reception of Radio 1 in Limburg is good, there is no need to
use mediumwave as well. However the main mediumwave transmitter on 747
kHz will continue to carry Radio 1 instead of Radio 5 for as long as
necessary to serve parts of the provinces of Gelderland, North Brabant
and South Holland where FM reception is patchy. It isn’t yet clear how
long this situation will last (July 28th, 2011 - 9:32 UTC by Andy
Sennitt, Media Network blog via DXLD)
** NETHERLANDS [non]. 9840, 9865, 9895, RNW in Dutch on three
frequencies within 55 kHz, July 21 at 0510, overkill?. 9865 was best,
followed by weaker 9840 delayed about 1 second, and equally weaker
9895 delayed about 4 seconds. At 0534, 9865 had gone away, and 9840,
9895 remained. But they are for quite diverse targets, not US.
Per
http://www.rnw.nl/english/article/rnw-frequency-schedule-summer-2011
9865 is 300 kW, 230 degrees from BONAIRE to New Zealand
9840 is 500 kW, 40 degrees from FRANCE to the Baltic
9895 is 500 kW, 120 degrees from Wertachtal, GERMANY to SE Europe
5955, 250 kW, 40 degrees from PORTUGAL to W/C/E Europe also detectable
as het to R. República 5954.3v under the DentroCuban Jamming Command.
That`s not all; RNW schedule also shows:
6165, 250 kW, 315 degrees from BONAIRE to W N America, until 0527
6125, 250 kW, 114 degrees from VATICAN to Greece and Turkey
6015, 300 kW, 245 degrees from AUSTRIA to France/Spain/Portugal
For a total of seven frequencies from six sites. Yet RNW can`t justify
one frequency from one site for English. {According to some estimates,
English is spoken by 72 times as many worldpeople as Dutch ---
including nearly everyone who speaks Dutch as a first language.}
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Venerdì 22 luglio 2011, 0110 - 6190 kHz, R. NEDERLAND - Greenville-NC
(USA), Olandese, commenti sportivi OMs. Segnale sufficiente-
insufficiente, Co-ch Deutschlandfunk (Luca Botto Fiora, G.C. 09E13 -
44N21, Rapallo (Genova) - Italia, playdx yg via DXLD) Per HFCC, this
is the only RNW relay currently via Greenville, 0100-0127 (gh, DXLD)
** NETHERLANDS [non]. Confirmação recebida_KBC, Sitkunai-Lituânia
6055 kHz - KBC the Mighty, Holanda (via Sitkunai, Lituânia)
Recebido Cartão QSL, 36 dias após 3º follow up. V/S: Eric W. IR
enviado por e-mail: info @ k-po.com Obs.: A escuta e o relatório são
de agosto de 2009. Nas vezes anteriores, o verificador diz ter me
enviado o cartão, que na verdade nunca havia chegado. Eu já estava
perdendo as esperanças. Hoje, felizmente, chegou. O DX tem dessas
coisas! Visualização estará disponível em breve no
http://pqslfabricio.blogspot.com/
73 (Fabricio Andrade Silva, PP5002SWL, Tubarão, SC, 26 July,
radioescutas yg via DXLD)
** NETHERLANDS ANTILLES [non!]. Some changes to the ITU country list
to reflect the new status of the islands of the former Netherlands
Antilles (no South Sudan yet). Curacao and St Maarten have gained an
autonomous status, just like Aruba has had since 1985/86, while
Bonaire, St Eustatius and Saba are now integral parts of the
Netherlands.
http://www.itu.int/cgi-bin/htsh/mm/scripts/generic.list?_n=COUNTRIES&_foto=y&_foto_del=y
ATN - Netherlands Antilles - DELETED
BES - Netherlands Caribbean (Bonaire - St Eustatius - Saba)
CUW - Curacao
SXM - Sint Maarten (Dutch part of the island)
in addition to
MAF - St Martin (French part of the island)
ABW - Aruba
73, (Eike Bierwirth, dxldyg via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
** NEW CALEDONIA. July 12-18 Oregon Beach MW DXpedition Logs
Hello All, The one-week trip to the Oregon beach this month was an
excellent opportunity to test the compact new Ferrite Sleeve Loop
antennas (8" diameter MW and 6.5" diameter LW) in weak-signal
international DXing for the first time. They had both been tested
prior to the trip (against 3' and 4' sided air-core tuned passive
loops in fringe daytime DX) and had demonstrated superior weak-signal
capability, so their excellent beach performance was no surprise. The
Longwave model provided an inductive coupling boost to a Tecsun PL-380
Ultralight radio to receive the Samoan 1,000 watt beacon 270-FA at
over 5,000 miles, providing the first Ultralight trans-equatorial NDB
DX. Despite spotty propagation, on medium wave the 8" FSL received
signals from more DU-DX countries than during any other summer
Ultralight DXpedition I've ever conducted, including the new country
of 666-New Caledonia.
The loggings are posted below, with the MP3 links showing the time and
date of reception for the recordings.
All the following receptions were made with a stock Tecsun PL-380
Ultralight radio with an inductive coupling boost provided by an 8?
diameter tuned Ferrite Sleeve Loop antenna composed of 63 Russian
surplus 200mm x 10mm ferrite bars wrapped by a single coil of 660/46
Litz wire. Times are in UT. Sincere thanks is given to Walt Salmaniw,
Chuck Hutton, Bruce Portzer, Patrick Martin, Nick Hall-Patch and Guy
Atkins for their suggestions on unknown station identities after the
past three DXpeditions.
666, Nouméa, New Caledonia --- Signals from this French-language
station were significantly stronger than during last July`s trip,
finally allowing the confirmation of parallel (France International)
programming with 738-Tahiti. Popular French vocal music was common, as
in this MP3 from 1257 on 7-13
http://www.mediafire.com/?5m5clydj88rql4c
The parallel check with 738 was made at 1233 on 7-13, matching
the French-speaking YL?s voice on 666
http://www.mediafire.com/?hp0jd6jpljcaxye
(headphones recommended) with the French-speaking YL`s voice on 738
(mixing with 2NR, headphones recommended)
http://www.mediafire.com/?cr54l2p3o3w9sn0
New Caledonia was an all-time new Ultralight DX country, never having
produced a trace for John Bryant or me at Grayland. 73 and Good DX,
(Gary DeBock (back in Puyallup, WA, USA), IRCA via DXLD)
Plus many other Pacific logs. IRCA has open archives at
http://www.mail-archive.com/irca@hard-core-dx.com/maillist.html
This post specifically at
http://www.mail-archive.com/irca@hard-core-dx.com/msg50942.html
(gh, DXLD)
** NEW ZEALAND. Radio New Zealand noted not switching to 9655 at 1100.
Remaining on 6170, and still there at 1215. 24 July (Steve Lare,
Holland, MI USA, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
6170, RNZI on July 24 at 1132 with a man hosting a program of 50's and
other oldies - Fair on my Alinco DX-R8T and a loaded inverted vee. The
problem here is that RNZI did not make the switch to 9655 at 1100.
Still on 6170 through 1200 but getting weaker. Their sked shows going
back to 6170 at 1258 (Mark Coady, Peterborough, ON K9J 6X3, cumbredx
via DXLD)
6170, July 24 at 1229, RNZI is on in program about the première of
Verdi`s Aïda in Egypt in 1871y; nothing on 9655 where RNZI is supposed
to be at this hour. 1231 on to interview with a film director and more
cultural items. 6170 is supposed to resume at 1300, so I monitored
closely before then: amid old movie music, 1257:30 cut to dead air for
a minute; unaware of reality in the studio, automation at 1258:30 ran
QSY announcement from ``this frequency`` to 6170! ``This is New
Zealand``, bell bird IS, no carrier breaks, and 1300 news. Must be
another case of misprogrammed automation. Some other monitors noted
that 6170 did not change to 9655 at 1100 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
** NIGER. 9704.99, LV du Sahel, 2237-2256*, July 27, rustic local
music. Indigenous vocal music. Qur`an at 2249. Short flute IS and
National Anthem at 2254. Five second test tone at 2256 and off. Good
signal. Best signal I have heard from these guys in quite a while
(Brian Alexander, PA, DX Listening Digest)
** NIGERIA [non]. via Wertachtal, Germany, 11945, Hamada Radio
International, *1930-2000*, July 28, sign on with local music and
opening announcements in listed Hausa. Talk and short breaks of local
music. ID. Fair (Brian Alexander, PA, DX Listening Digest)
** NORTH AMERICA. 6925, 0509, USA, HOBBY PIRATE, Radio Free Mars at
poor strength 24/6 with pops, ident with email address at 0522.
Measured freq 6924.65. Gone at 0600 recheck. BCM
6925, 0610, USA [sic], HOBBY PIRATE, Radio True North at poor to fair
level 26/6 with unusual music mix including ‘My Boomerang Won’t Come
Back’. Gave email address for reception reports. Measured freq 6924.7
so suspect same transmitter as Radio Free Mars heard 24/6. Audible
past 0700 (Bryan Clark at Mangawhai, New Zealand, with AOR7030+ and
Alpha Delta Sloper, EWEs to NE, E and SE, plus various 100 metre BOGs
to the Americas, July NZ DX Times via DXLD) see also CANADA
** NORTH AMERICA. [Pirate]. 6924.86, Captain Morgan Shortwave, 0129-
0145, July 22, blues music. Theme music from Mission Impossible TV
show. R&B mx. ID. Wild Cherry’s Play That Funky Music. Fair to good
but ID announcement distorted as usual. Everytime I hear these guys
their announcements are distorted. They really should fix their
transmitter (Brian Alexander, PA, DX Listening Digest)
** NORTH AMERICA. [Pirate]. 6930 USB, unidentified, 0215-0305*, July
22, country music. Fake ads. R-rated country mx. SSTV at 0301-0305*.
No ID heard. Fair to good (Brian Alexander, PA, DX Listening Digest)
** NORTH AMERICA. [Pirate]. 6930.12, Radio Ronin Shortwave, 0000-0015,
July 22, wide variety of country music, blues, oldies pop music and
Big Band music. Harry Belafonte’s Banana Boat song. ID. Fair (Brian
Alexander, Mechanicsburg, PA, USA, Equipment: Icom IC-7600, two 100
foot longwires, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
A SW pirate in Lansing MI busted by FCC, apparently The Crystal Ship:
see U S A, since North American ambiguity is no longer necessary
** OKLAHOMA. Oklahoma County Transmitter Update --- The plans to move
the KROU transmitter serving Oklahoma County are on schedule, and if
everything goes as planned, we'll begin the process in mid-August,
moving the 105.7 FM transmitter to a different site and installing a
new antenna on a differnet tower. Stay tuned for on-air and online
updates about brief signal outages related to this project -- we hope
to keep them to a minimum.
More info about this: http://kgou.org/index.php?moving-krou-105-7-fm
As far as funding for the move is concerned, donors have given about
$20,000 for the project, to go with the $75,000 previously set aside
for the move. The total cost will probably be close to $160,000 for
this project, and we'll need help from our listeners to pay for it. A
big "thank you" goes to those of you who have already contributed. Our
online pledge forms have a Capital Campaign designation so that you
can specify that your gift is for the KROU move (KGOU newsletter July
28 via DXLD)
Driving from Enid to OKC down US 81 and SH 3, the KROU 105.7 signal is
usually adequate beyond Hennessey, with a bit of dropping out around
Kingfisher-Okarche, but our latest voyage July 21 found lots of
picket-fencing all the way, so I was wondering if the site move had
already happened (altho coverage is supposed to be virtually identical
in that direxion). Maybe the old site was reduced power or somehow
degraded prior to dismantlement. See a previous DXLD about the real
story why the move is necessary (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** OKLAHOMA. VOICE TRACKING --- WHO DOES IT IN TULSA?
http://boards.radio-info.com/smf/index.php?topic=194446.0
(via DXLD)
** OKLAHOMA [and non]. Have been reading some of the radio-info.com
message boards this evening and found a few items of interest:
KNIT-1480 has been reported as silent for about 3-4 weeks while
upgrading to 50 kW. I can't vouch for the accuracy of these reports
but wanted to pass them along as points of interest (Bruce Winkelman
AA5CO, Tulsa, OK, July 26, NRC-AM via DXLD)
For KNIT to go 50 kW, AM 1470 in Pauls Valley OK had to be bought,
then taken silent and the license turned in (Paul B Walker, Jr., IL,
ibid.)
KVLH has been off for years. NRC AM Log 2010-2011 shows KNIT Dallas TX
with 24h NSP Spanish gospel format; God help us. Remember when it was
rocker KBOX? (Glenn Hauser, Enid, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
According to someone connected to KNIT:
" KNIT will be off for a while. Putting in the new ground system and
coax feeds first, project will take a while." (Paul Walker, PA, NRC-AM
via DXLD)
** PAKISTAN. 15725 minus 443 kHz, unID peak on 15282 kHz. Probably
from Islamabad area in Pakistan originate a distorted UTE signal like
in FM mode on super wide 15273 to 15299 kHz, modulated by R Pakistan
Urdu service program of // 15725 and 17830 kHz at very same time.
Noted on various remote SDR receivers all over Europe, from approx.
0520 till switch off at 0542 UT. Also the 17830 kHz noted on wide band
17816 to 17847 kHz. On 15725 plus 443 kHz = 16168 kHz another ute
service noted (Wolfgang Büschel, wwdxc BC-DX TopNews July 27, dxldyg
via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** PAKISTAN. Re 11-29: 1 Comment on “Radio Pakistan launches new
website”
#1 Sheldon Harvey on Jul 24th, 2011 at 12:21
I checked out the new Radio Pakistan webpage after reading this
article. It has a lot of information, no doubt. However, when I went
to the section on frequencies, the listings under the Shortwave, World
Service and External Service all show their broadcast schedules that
expired at the end of March 2011! Time for another update perhaps???
(Media Network blog comment via DXLD)
** PAKISTAN. RADIO PAKISTAN BEING REVAMPED ON MODERN LINES: Dr.
Firdous
http://ftpapp.app.com.pk/en_/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=145478&Itemid=1
LAHORE, July 20 (APP): Federal Minister for Information and
Broadcasting Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan said here on Wednesday that Radio
Pakistan is being revamped on modern lines to improve its performance.
Addressing the Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation (PBC) employees
during her first visit to Radio Pakistan Station , the minister said
that Radio Pakistan's website had also been launched to ensure its
easy access to information technology. The Minister said that PPP's
philosophy was the stability of institutions, citing, the present
government was taking effective measures for re-structuring and re-
building of institutions, while taking forward the mission and vision
of Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Shaheed.
She said that efforts were being put in order to improve financial
strength of the PBC through public-private partnership. The government
would provide Rs 700 million to the PBC, while the same amount would
be generated through partnership with private sector to run the annual
expenditures of Radio Pakistan, she added.
Dr. Firdous assured that PBC lands would be retrieved from the land
grabbers, which help further enhance its fiscal resources.Federal
Information Minister Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan said that PPP never resort
to snatch livelihood from the common man but always provided them with
jobs, adding the PPP-led government was taking steps for a residential
colony of the PBC employees; enhancing their salaries as well as
regularization of the service of contract employees.
The Minister directed the PBC Director General Ghulam Murtaza Solangi,
who was also present there, to review the problems of the employees,
while taking the PBC Union office-bearers on board so as to ensure
early rectification of those problems.
Dr. Firdous said that government would make every effort to restore
the importance and popularity of the Radio Pakistan, which can also
play a key role in taking forward the mission and vision of Shaheed
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Shaheed.
She advised the PBC employees to perform their official duties with
utmost devotion and hardwork. Lahore Station Director Khalid Waqar,
the PBC Union office-bearers and a large number of employees were
present on the arrival of the minister (via Alokesh Gupta, dx_sasia yg
via DXLD)
** PAKISTAN [non]. RADIO MASHAAL'S GUIDE TO HUMOR IN PAKISTAN'S
PASHTO-SPEAKING TRIBAL AREAS. Posted: 22 Jul 2011
RFE/RL, 19 July 2011: "On the face of it, there's nothing funny about
suicide bombings and the Taliban. But members of RFE/RL's Radio
Mashaal find humor in the daily realities of life in Pakistan's
Pashto-speaking tribal areas." With video produced by Margot Buff and
Daisy Sindelar. Part of RFE/RL's Inside Joke section.
http://www.rferl.org/archive/Inside_Joke/latest/3410/3410.html
(kimandrewelliott.com via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD) Plus IJ`s for
other target areas!
** PAPUA NEW GUINEA. 3205, NBC Sandaun (West Sepik) continues to be
off the air through July 25.
3290, NBC Central with relay of Radio Gadona 95.5 FM, 1312-1322, July
25. Almost fair; OM DJ in Tok Pisin with pop island songs; ID: “Radio
Gadona 95.5 FM”.
3275, NBC Southern Highlands, 1330-1344, July 25. DJ in English with
dedications for C&W songs (“Them Old Cottonfields Back Home”, etc.);
almost fair.
3365, NBC Milne Bay, 1345-1402*, July 25. OM DJ in English, but hard
to understand with mushy audio; pop island songs; 1400 ID “National
Broadcasting Corporation, Papua New Guinea”; schedule; National
Anthem; poor (Ron Howard, Asilomar State Beach, CA, Etón E1, dxldyg
via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** PAPUA NEW GUINEA. 5960, Radio Fly via Kiunga, 1007, July 24.
Several montages of brief audio bits from Beatles, etc. with the
“Radio Fly” ID; YL DJ in Tok Pisin playing pop island songs; 1044
tuned out; 3915 off the air.
Thanks to Walt Salmaniw, who has already reported that 3915 continues
to be off the air (DXLD 11-29). Received an explanation from James
Kaltobie: “Thanks Ron for your continual input. We have been
experiencing some technical problems in that regard after our
Radio Technician left and we are yet to find a replacement. Have
you received the QSL card that I sent you? [Not yet, but hope to
get it this week!] Let me know when you do. Best regards, James.”
So let us hope they are able to fill Roseanne (“Rosie”) Kulupi’s
position, which she left vacant about a month ago. Otherwise
there seems little likelihood of 3915 coming back on line.
Fortunately 5960 seems to be trouble free (Ron Howard, San Francisco
at Ocean Beach, CA, Etón E1, dxldyg via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
3915 and 5960, Radio Fly QSL card received after being mailed out by
Ok Tedi Mining Limited, P.O. Box 1, Tabubil, Western Province, PNG on
July 11; nice stamps on envelope; one for “China-PNG Diplomatic Ties -
25th Anniversary 1976-2001”; somewhat disappointed that no data was
filled in regarding my reception (a do-it-yourself card?); I need to
email James Kaltobie and gently explain that listeners would
appreciate having the reception data filled in. Pictures at dxldyg
“Photos”; “PNG Radio Fly” album; click on album, then click on
individual picture; best viewed as “Large”.
As nice as it is to now have their QSL card, I value much more the
insightful correspondence I have had with various members of the Radio
Fly staff during the past five months (Ron Howard, Monterey, CA, July
28, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** PERU. [sic] Sr.Thomas Nilsson.le saludo muy cordialmente alavez
quedo de ud .muy agradecido por haber sintonizado mi emisora radial
radiojpj halla en esas ciudades tan lejanas pero me siento muy
contento de su persona me gustaria conversar personalmente un dia aui
en peru yo le invito a que me visite esta emisora .a partir sera
tambien una emisora que ud .puede contar para la cualquier sintonia
.es una historia tan linda como se inicio para su transmision aqui en
peru en dificil sacr una resolucion para una emisora radial inverti
toda mi ahorrito pero aun me falta algunas cositas mas inclusive
microfonos me gustaria contar con equipos de generacion modernas e
exclusivas para una emisora conto con equipos nacionales casi
artesanales asi como dice en su pagina el sr. arrunategui pero gracias
a dios todo sera posible pero me siento muy orgulloso dela sintonia a
nivelinternacional ud me pida que musica lo transmitiremos pero sabe
estamos ya terminendo de instalar la antena y desde este lunes 25
estamos saliendo al aire a nivel internacional y contare con su
sintonia y de sus amigos no estav en el aire casi un mes y medio
porque estabamos dando los ultimos toques pero ya ahora estaremos al
aire.le agradesco muy personalmente a ud por esa preocupacion de
aberme enviado a buscarme con el sr.arrunategui muy gentil el y su
comitiva me encontraron y combersamos amenamente mimeta de esta radio
es ayudar en el peru comunicarse con pueblos donde no entra fluido
electrico ni emisosra radial pues asi al menos darles noticias com
cultura y musica amis paisanos de nuestra comunidad peruana asi
conocer ala comunidad que hay alguien se preocupa por ellos.yporque no
decir tendre amigos en el mundo como ud.que sintonicen radio jpj del
peru mi telefono es de oficina 4848379 celular 991903217. a ud y todos
sus amigos mis cordiales saludos y un agradecimiento a cada uno de
usd.ojala un dia me visiten al peru todos ustedes para el aniuversario
poder conversar muchas cosas e intercambiar nuestras culturas de
nuestro pais.y le felicito que ud habla espanol espero no cansarle
desde un saludo amical dr.jesus parraga jimenez.
[gh is not going to attempt to correct that stream of consciousness,
but Henrik Klemetz summarized it to Swedish, and Thomas Nilsson
translated to English:]
Mailade Henrik Klemetz och bad honom att översätta detta lite kort
till svenska och HK svarar så här: Hoppsan! Du världsetta!! Grattis!
Jag har delat upp brevet i bitar så det blir mera läsligt. Det är inte
första gången jag ser någon skriva så här. Det finns dom som bara
använder stora bokstäver i stället för små. Han borde kanske på
telegrafiskt manér skriva "stop" i stället för att slänga in en liten
punkt här och var.
Det som är nytt är att han läst Arrunáteguis artikel och sett att han
talat om att utrustningen inte var den mest moderna. Han bjuder dig
att komma å hälsa på. Och tackar dig för att du drivit på sr.
Arrunátegui att komma på besök(!) "Vi hade en mycket trevligt samtal",
säger han. Betr. önskemusiken så är det först den 25 som han sätter
igång sändaren igen, efter att ha varit off the air 1,5 månad. (Där
har du en nyhet att publicera i morgondagens bulle!). Då hoppas han du
lyssnar.
(=Den 26:e på morgonen?) Han är mycket glad över det internationella
intresset. Tanken är att låta folk som inte har el kunna nås av radion
(batteriapparater förstås) med nyheter och meddelanden. Sådana områden
i landet finns. Det var inte lätt att få licens och han har satsat
alla sina besparingar, men som sagt, ändå fattas en del saker i
utrustningsväg.
Ett stort tack till HK som gjorde denna verifikation möjlig, inte
minst via kompisen Pedro F. Arrunátegui, vars artikel jag bifogade i
rapporten (se längre fram). Det var ju också HK som såg till att Pedro
Arrunátegui kom på besök och inte jag!
Kolla in HK:s inlägg om denna station:
Så här var det med JPJ: Oid rapporteras av Karel H., ingen inspelning
läggs ut samma station fångas av Hasse M., som skickar mig en
inspelning där jag får fram "Radio JPJ, la fuerza de la música
peruana". Jag skickar bollen vidare till Alfredo Cañote i Lima och
föreslår att här har vi en station vars ägare har initialerna JPJ. Den
skulle kunna vara 2 x 1680, eftersom det nu finns ett antal X-band-
stationer i landet. Alfredo bekräftar inte utan viss förvåning att
stationsnamnet jag föreslår måste vara OK för det finns en alldeles ny
och legal station omnämnd i "El Peruano" (Perus motsvarighet till våra
Post- och Inrikes Tidningar) och licenstagaren heter Jesús Párraga
Jiménez > Juha Vehmas + två för mig okända och onämnda finnar hör
stationen på Åland, jag får höra en inspelning som Juha delvis har
koll på, i varje fall de båda "J" rapport till DXLD du själv hakar på
och plockar stationen något senare, efter två timmars Skype-samtal med
Paco Arrunátegui - vi har inte haft kontakt på 10 år nästan - kom idén
att Paco kanske kunde söka upp stationen. Hans bil var på reparation
så det tog en vecka extra innan han kom igång. Jag har sedan fått
inspelning från Karel. På den hade man inte kunnat få fram ID.
/Henrik Klemetz
Re 3360 Radio JPJ --- I sent a mail to Henrik Klemetz asking him to
translate the email from R JPJ to Swedish (in short) and HK responds
like this:
Oops! You are world number one! Congratulations! I have divided up the
letter into pieces so it will be more legible. It is not the first
time I see someone write like this. There are those who only use
capital letters instead of small. He ought perhaps to use the
telegraph style type "stop" instead of throwing in a little paragraph
here and there.
What is new is that he has read Arrunátegui’s article and found that
he had spoken about the equipment that was not the most modern. He
invites you to come and visit. And also thank you for pushing sr.
Arrunátegui to come and see (!).
"We had a very pleasant conversation, "he says. Regarding the request
music it is not until July 25 that he starts the transmitter again,
after having been off the air for 1,5 months. (There you have a news
to publish in tomorrow's bulletin!). Then, he hopes you're listening.
(= the 26th in the morning?) He is very happy about the international
interest. The idea is to let people who do not have electricity
receive his radio (battery sets of course) with news and
announcements. There are such areas in the country. It was not easy to
get a license and he has invested all his savings, but still some
equipment is missing.
Many thanks to HK that made this verification possible, not least
through his friend Pedro F. Arrunátegui’s article (Chasqui DX) I
enclosed in my report. It was also HK who made sure that Pedro
Arrunátegui came to visit and not me! /Thomas Nilsson
HK's post to TN:
This is what happened regarding JPJ: UNID station reported by Karel
Honzik, Czechia, no recording posted. The same station caught by Hasse
Mattisson Sweden, who sent me a recording where I get the "Radio JPJ,
la fuerza de la música Peruana".
I send the ball to Alfredo Cañote in Lima and suggests that here we
have a station whose owner has the initials JPJ. It would be possible
with 2 x 1680, because there are now a number of X-band stations in
the country. Alfredo confirms not without some surprise that the
station name I propose must be OK because there's a brand new and
legal station mentioned in "El Peruano" (Peruvian counterpart to our
Post and Domestic Newspapers) and the licensee named Jesús Jiménez
Párraga.
Juha Vehmas + two for me unknown and unnamed Finnish DX-ers hear the
station in Åland, I hear a recording that Juha only has partial check
on, at least the two "J". Report to DXLD. you receive the station a
little later, after two hours of Skype calls with Paco Arrunátegui -
we have not had contact in 10 years almost - got the idea that Paco
might look up the station. His car was on repair so it took an extra
week before he got started. I have later got the recording from Karel.
In that he had been unable to obtain an ID. / Henrik Klemetz (all:
Shortwave Bulletin July 24, translated by editor Thomas Nilsson for
WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** PERU. 3329.68, Ondas del Huallaga, Huánuco noted with variety of
programming after 1010 to fade out 1040, 18, 20, 21 July [Wilkner,
SYT-Plantation]
4824.40, La Voz de la Selva, Iquitos, 1050 +, excellent signal with OA
music 21 July and other days same time [Wilkner]
5039.21, Radio Libertad, Junín, 1030-1045, IDs by om en español,
armchair signal, 21 July (Robert Wilkner, NRD 535D - Drake R8 - Icom
746Pro modified, Pompano Beach, South Florida U S, HCDX via DXLD)
** PHILIPPINES [and non]. Glenn, the unidentified station on 12095
heard by Ullmar Qvick July 18th has been around for a few days at
weekends still. It is bad enough trying to follow the much emaciated
BBC World Service (They could not leave even a couple of 5/10 kW
transmitters on-air to serve Europe for us old fogies who like to
listen to ‘that terrible crackly unreliable short wave radio’ in the
garden, on the beach, in the mountains, even in the car; long may it
be so.
Well I did hear the other signal under BBC 12095 when I tuned in ca
2245z Sat night as a tape loop identifying as a transmission from
FEBC, the Philippines and going into an unidentified (Asian?) language
at 2300. Must listen out again in the next few days. Regards, (Des
Walsh, Dublin, Ireland, July 25 2011, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** PHILIPPINES. 15285, R. Pilipinas/VOP, 0303, July 25. “The
Philippines Today”; IDs; tourist information; on past 0307, but
// 17700 went off at 0307; both fair (Ron Howard, Asilomar State
Beach, CA, Etón E1, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** PHILIPPINES. 12150, July 28 at 1208, VOA news in English with
report from State Dept correspondent on what to do about North Korea;
accompanied by a pulsing buzz, one might have guessed was jamming, but
I think it was transmitter or modulation defect. Next item at 1211 on
train crash in China had less or no buzz. Site is Tinang, PHILIPPINES,
250 kW due west (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** PORTUGAL. Assunto: ARLA/CLUSTER: TRABALHADORES DA RTP QUEREM
REPOSIÇÃO IMEDIATA DE EMISSÕES EM ONDA CURTA
A comissão de trabalhadores da RTP pediu à administração da empresa
para repor de imediato as emissões em onda curta, argumentando que a
decisão impede o acesso à informação e à língua portuguesa de milhares
de portugueses.
O pedido foi anunciado hoje na sequência de uma reunião com o conselho
de administração realizado na terça-feira, na qual o presidente da
estação confirmou aos trabalhadores ter recebido autorização para
suspender a onda curta pelo anterior ministro dos Assuntos
Parlamentares, Jorge Lacão.
Considerando tratar-se de uma "atitude inconstitucional, ilegítima,
extemporânea e irresponsável" , a comissão de trabalhadores defende,
em comunicado hoje divulgado, que a onda curta é uma "opção
estratégica da difusão da língua portuguesa".
Fonte: Site RTP
http://tv1.rtp.pt/noticias/index.php?t=Trabalhadores-da-RTP-querem-reposicao-imediata-de-emissoes-em-onda-curta.rtp&article=462623&layout=10&visual=3&tm=8
via Pedro Ribeiro // Callsign: CR7ABP // GRID Locator: IM58mr QTH: São
Francisco, Alcochete, Portugal Homepage: http://www.qrz.com/db/CR7ABP
(via João Gonçalves Costa, Portugal, radioescutas yg via WORLD OF
RADIO 1575, DXLD)
** ROMANIA. 17507.3, 20/7 1130, Radio Romania International, in
English, culture & classical music, off frequency (nominal 17510),
good // 17670, Heard in Tuscany with a SDR-14 and 30 meters wire,
ciao, (Giampiero Bernardini; if you are interested you can also visit
my SW blog: http://radiodxsw.blogspot.com/ dxldyg via DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
Radio Romania International, Tiganesti [sic] transmitter site, 13798
kHz. 2030 UT July 21, 55444. Newscast by man and woman in English at
2030. Station ID by man in English at 2038. "Traveler's Guide" -
program about important places in Romania at 2044. Website info by man
in English, Interval signal, and transmitter off at 2056. Good Signal
S-9 (Nick Rumple, Kannapolis, North Carolina, U.S.A., Yaesu FRG-100,
125 foot longwire - 40 feet high, shortwavelistening yg via DXLD)
People keep spelling this site as above, but there is a sedilla under
the S making it an SH sound, which is how it should be respelt when
writing in English: Tiganeshti. Unless you can axually produce a
sedilla-S and that will not get garbled. I will keep changing it to
that, and people will keep ignoring me (gh, DXLD)
Hi Glenn, Just noticed the following: 23/7/11, 1745 gmt, Radio
Bucharest International [sic] with a full ID in English on 11733 kHz,
YES, 11733 kHz on my Perseus SDR fed by longwire and balun. Also heard
by my DX buddy Mark Davies in Anglesey, Wales using his 7030 rx. They
have just signed off at 1755 gmt with int sig (Steve Calver,
Hertfordshire UK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Radio Romania International, Tiganeshti transmitter site, 11950 kHz.
1630 UT, July 23, 44434. Right on frequency today. Station ID by woman
in French with jingle type music played on chimes at 1630 UTC. Unknown
show begins at 1635 with song on flute, then man and woman in French.
Fair signal S-6 (Nick Rumple, Kannapolis, North Carolina, U.S.A.,
Yaesu FRG-100, 125 foot longwire - 40 feet high, shortwavelistening yg
via DXLD)
ROU odd frequency failure rectificated now --- After complaint to
Radiocom via HFCC headquarters the odd frequency failure of one of
three Tiganeshti site 300 kW transmitter units seemingly to be
rectificated now on July 26. Odd frequency broadcasts observed from
RRI Bucharest up to minus 3 kHz. First reported by Ron Howard in CA on
July 9th.
> One of the Tiganesti transmitters has "an even crystal oscillator
> failure"... noted first on July 9th !
> [also copied to officials at Radiocom.ro authority] 73 wb (Wolfgang
Büschel, July 27, dxldyg via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
17510, July 28 at 1145, raucous Romanian folk music. Now I`m awake! //
weaker 15210; 1147 English announcement, introducing ``from Radio
Romania`s golden tape library, a wooing song`` on `The Skylark` weekly
show on Thursdays. Another short song before cut at 1152 to `Football
Flash`: Romania is ranked #53 by FIFA, congrats! Both frequencies are
300 kW, 307 degrees from TIG toward UK, and consequently USward (Glenn
Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** RUSSIA. MR. TITOV PASSED AWAY --- by National Association of
Shortwave Broadcasters on Tuesday, July 19, 2011 at 1:11am
Dear colleagues! With great regret we have to inform you that our
friend and colleague Mr. Anatoly Titov passed away on July 17, 2011 in
his 71st year. Sincerely yours, Anatoly Batyushkin, Radioagency-M
[For many years, Anatoly Titov was the head of Russian/CIS shortwave
frequency planning. It was always a pleasure to see his smile at the
High Frequency Coordination Conferences. His presence will be greatly
missed. In recent years, his son Alexey has been working with
Radioagency-M. Our sincere sympathies go to Mr. Titov's family and
colleagues.] (NASB Facebook via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD) obit
** RUSSIA. 12065, July 26 at 1252, weak station in English with a het
on the hi side; Aoki shows only V. of Russia on 12065, via Chita, but
supposed to be in Vietnamese at 12-13, English at 11-12 and 13-14
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** RUSSIA. Re 11-29: Changes in the DRM-broadcast "Voice of Russia"
[what is WGD? gh] --- Seems that this is google translated
abbreviation RGRK (Russian State Radio Company).
[what is MDI? gh] --- Multiplex Distribution Interface.
"The DRM Consortium has produced a very successful standard for the
distribution of DRM multiplex signals to transmitters. This is called
the DRM Multiplex Distribution Interface or MDI. The MDI carries the
separate components to be broadcast in their own parts of the message,
but integrated into a single message every DRM frame (400 ms) for
error protection and synchronization purposes".
http://tech.ebu.ch/docs/techreview/trev_306-drm_bbc.pdf
(Aleksandr Diadischev, Ukraine, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** SERBIA [non]. 9685, UT Wed July 27 at 0059, IRS IS variations, VG
signal, 0100 Serbian announcement mentioning three kHz-frequencies
(must be merging different times, as really only one at a time), and
unlike last week`s extended broadcast, continues modulating instead of
dead air, rechecked at 0112, 0123 (Glenn Hauser, OK, WORLD OF RADIO
1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** SINGAPORE. Keith Perron on Facebook: Media Network Plus will be
recording two shows from Singapore in the first week of August. We
will be visiting the BBC [sic] Far East Relay Station for one of them
(via Mike Terry, dxldyg via DXLD)
** SOLOMON ISLANDS. 5020, SIBC, 1153 July 22. Island music, man in
English, woman with devotional leading up to normal s/off just after
1200. Poor (Harold Sellers, Vernon, British Columbia, Listening from
my car with Eton E1 and Sony AN1 active antenna, dxldyg via DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
** SOMALIA [non]. IRIN RADIO FOR SOMALIA RELAUNCHED AS RADIO ERGO
The IRIN radio service for Somalia has taken on a new name – Radio
ERGO – as of 1 July 2011, as the service has been taken over by IMS
Productions Aps, a non-profit organization with headquarters in
Copenhagen, Denmark. A branch office of IMS Productions Aps has been
opened in Nairobi, Kenya, to support and administer Radio ERGO. The
radio will continue to broadcast daily humanitarian news and
information in Somali.
The word Ergo has great significance in the Somali language. It
carries the essential meaning of mediators or envoys in the interest
of people in need, and can also refer to those who mediate in
conflicts. Until Radio Ergo’s website is up and running, IRIN will
continue to host the programmes online.
A recent survey said the station is listened to by 70% of the Somalis,
and despite its difficult working conditions in a country without a
central government for two decades, project manager Louise Tunbridge
highlights how trusted the service has become: “Over the years the
radio service achieved a reputation of independence. We are
apolitical, and people trust us. Our service has a reputation of
credibility, balance and fairness in a very difficult context.”
The one-hour daily broadcasts of Radio ERGO are heard across Somalia
and the region, including the Kenyan refugee camps on shortwave [0830-
0930 UTC on 13685 kHz via Dhabayya], and are rebroadcast by seven
local FM stations. (Source: IRIN, IMS Productions Aps)(July 25th, 2011
- 12:08 UTC by Andy Sennitt, Media Network blog via WORLD OF RADIO
1575, DXLD)
** SOMALIA [non]. via Woofferton, England, 11740, Radio Damal, *1830-
1929*, July 28, sign on with about one minute of Qur`an followed by
some local instrumental music. Talk in listed Somali at 1831. More
Qur`an at 1833-1844. Talk at 1844. Local pop music. Local Arabic style
pop music. ID. Poor to fair (Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg, PA, USA,
Icom IC-7600, two 100 foot long wires, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** SOUTH AFRICA. 3185 and 3245, Adventist World Radio - spurs from
Meyerton. 2011/07/16 sat 1810-1828. Badly distorted spurs of AWR
(3215), 6 channels below and above, heard on Drake R8 and
Hallicrafters SX122. Same +/- 6 channel spacing as reported on May
15th for early morning (0609-0754*) Sonder Grense on 7285, also ex
Meyerton. Maybe the same transmitter? Very distorted.
3215, Adventist World Radio, Meyerton. 2011/07/16 sat 1815-1828, ID at
1827 "AWR Adventist World Radio". Very good, s9+20, but giving strong
spurs on 3185 and 3245. Jo'burg sunset 1534 (Bill Bingham, RSA, July
23, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** SPAIN [non]. [Cf 11-29]. La Pirenaica es la radio del exilio
español o, para ser precisos, la del PCE, que es el que impulsa y
gestiona la emisora. --- Javier Cervera Gil.
[PCE = Spanish Communist Party]
Desde los años treinta, la radio se considera un eficacísimo medio de
propaganda porque, entre otras cosas, no entiende de fronteras. Los
exiliados republicanos antifranquistas, muchos instalados en Francia,
lo saben. Cuando desde junio de 1941 la URSS cambia de bando, al
producirse la invasión nazi, los comunistas del mundo y, cómo no, los
españoles exiliados intensifican sus actitudes y acciones contra el
nazismo, el fascismo y sus aliados… como la España franquista. Así, un
mes después de la operación Barbarroja comienza sus emisiones Radio
España Independiente, conocida como La Pirenaica, al estar en el
entorno de esa cordillera.
Es la radio del exilio español o, para ser precisos, la del PCE, que
es el que impulsa y gestiona la emisora. Hasta el 14 de julio de 1977
habría 108.000 emisiones. Hubo otras emisoras – como La Voz de América
para España o Radio Moscú -, pero La Pirenaica es la que se mitificó
entre las emisoras antifranquistas.
Se constituyen en el medio de acceso al exterior de los opositores del
interior de España y referencia para los exiliados. Además, desde 1944
con la liberación de Francia, en la que tan importante papel,
especialmente en el área de los Pirineos, tiene el exilio, las
posibilidades de actuación e influencia de La Pirenaica se
incrementan. De hecho, las autoridades españolas lo saben y la
Delegación Nacional de Propaganda franquista encarga – y se reciben –
no pocos informes de sus delegados provinciales repartidos por la piel
de toro en los que se denuncia la escucha de estas emisiones. Es más,
el Gobierno franquista intenta detener los ataques de esas emisiones
con protestas ante la representación francesa en Madrid, que,
habitualmente, se ignoran. Y al final, se decide que RNE se encargue
de la propaganda hacia el exterior para contrarrestar la que hace la
radio del exilio: la emisora oficial franquista inicia unas emisiones
en lengua extranjera dirigidas hacia el extranjero.
FUENTE: http://bit.ly/mTfrtb
(Via Yimber Gaviria, Colombia, DXLD)
** SPRATLY ISLANDS. SPRATLY ISLANDERS FIGHT BOREDOM, NOT CHINA WORRIES
Thursday, July 21, 2011
PAG-ASA ISLAND, South China Sea -- This speck of a sun-splashed island
in the turquoise South China Sea has little sign of the tensions that
have consumed politicians and diplomats in distant Asian capitals.
Six different nations are pressing their stake to all or part of these
potentially oil- and gas-rich waters teeming with fish. Most recently,
the Philippines and Vietnam have been wrangling with China in a noisy
territorial dispute that is dominating this week's Asian security
forum in Bali.
And yet, here on Pag-asa, the only sounds are the waves slapping the
shore and the wind whistling in the ears. At high noon, fighting off
sleep is a struggle. . .
http://www.baynews9.com/article/news/ap/july/282872/Spratly-islanders-fight-boredom-not-China-worries
(via Terry L Krueger, Clearwater, Florida, DXLD)
Nothing about radio here, but we know Spratly has been the site of
some hazardous ham DXpeditions. AFAIK, there have never been any
broadcast stations here, let alone on SW (gh, DXLD)
** SRI LANKA. 12130, R. Mashaal-Iranawila, 1149 7/19/11, fair-poor
with songs in Pashto; talk at 1151 by two men with many mentions of
Pakistan; chant-like song at 1200 and into talk by woman; a report in
English and translated into Pashto at 1215. Checked live streaming on
website to be sure of identification (Jim Ronda, Tulsa OK, NASWA
Flashsheet via DXLD) see also PAKISTAN [non]
** SUDAN [and non]. 13620, July 22 at 0530*, the tone jammer goes off
clearing R. Dabanga via GERMANY, as al-Bashir`s blockers still haven`t
realized that since July 18, RD is staying on this frequency after
Madagascar relay finishes at 0527, which as usual was stronger here.
13620, July 24 at 0525, R. Dabanga via MADAGASCAR, and no tone-jamming
for a change; after jingle ID, off at 0527:30* leaving only weak
carrier and no modulation audible from next site, Nauen, GERMANY.
13620, July 26 at 0458, R. Dabanga via MADAGASCAR, again has the
continuous tone jammer underneath.
BTW, Ivo Ivanov reports that this week, July 25-29 there is a special
additional transmission, which he heard at 1651 July 25:
``1630-1725 on 11555 MDC 250 kW / 000 deg to EaAf Mon-Fri``
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Additional transmission of Radio Dabanga in Arabic July 25-29 only
1630-1725 on 11555 MDC 250 kW / 000 deg to EaAf Mon-Fri
73! (Ivo Ivanov, Bulgaria, July 26, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Radio Dabanga in Arabic 1630-1725 on 11555 only on July 25. From July
26 RNW in English. 73! (Ivo Ivanov, July 28, ibid.)
Website needs Update ...
http://www.rnw.nl/english/article/rnw-frequency-schedule-summer-2011
yes, was RNW English service today from 1630 UT, heard // on RNW
LiveRadio Internet streaming web, which was 13 seconds behind the
Madagascar SW 11555 outlet. Contained programs about sexuality, taken
from ABC Australia.
S=9+25dB signal strength. TX had a break OFF the air at 1650:17, but
just after 3 seconds came back on full service. 73 wb (Wolfgang
Büschel, ibid.) So was putting RNW on a feed error? (gh, DXLD)
GERMANY/MADAGASCAR/UAE: Radio Dabanga to Sudan report July 27. 13620
via Madgascar at 0505 UT on S=9+20dB level, accompanied by 1000 Hertz
tone jamming, originate on both 13619 and 13621 kHz. // 15550 from Al
Dhabbaya-UAE which is NOT disturbed by jamming. 13620 kHz in use from
M&B site Nauen in Germany at 0530 to 0557 UT.
13730 comes from Madagascar at 0430-0459 UT, followed by Wertachtal
Germany outlet of S=9+30dB at 0500-0557 UT. Station identification
sung by man at 0511 UT. This broadcast channel suffer by some klanking
"metal drum audio" like noise, July 27. 73 wb (Wolfgang Büschel,
Stuttgart, Germany, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES. 13730 Dhabbaya carrying Radio Dabanga in sorta-
Arabic to Darfur 0520-0600 on 7/28 (Chuck Albertson, Seattle, Wash.,
DX LISTENING DIGEST) i.e. Arabish. I also heard it a bit there (gh)
** SUDAN [non]. 9800, 19/7 1903, Afia Darfur Radio, via Vatican
transmitter, reports in Arabic, mentioning many times Darfur.
Fair/good (Giampiero Bernardini, Italy, in Tuscany (Pescia, 60 km west
from Florence), RFspace SDR-14; ant 30 m long wire, dxldyg via DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
** SUDAN [non]. Lunedì 25 luglio 2011, 0430 - 11560 kHz, MIRAYA FM -
Kopani (Ucraina), Arabo/Inglese, nxs OM e mx afropop. Segnale
sufficiente-insufficiente (Luca Botto Fiora, G.C. 09E13 - 44N21,
Rapallo (Genova) - Italia, playdx yg via DXLD)
** SUDAN SOUTH. SOUTH SUDAN ---> The Intrepid-DX Group/DX Friends
advance team was expected to arrive in Juba, South Sudan on 20 July
with a list of tasks to perform in advance of the main team. "As the
ITU has not yet issued a new prefix for South Sudan", N6PSE said on 19
July, "our license that was issued in March has the call-sign of ST0R
(Sierra Tango Zero Romeo). That will be our call for the DXpedition
unless the ITU issues a new prefix which will require that we amend
our license". According to the expedition website
http://www.dxfriends.com/SouthernSudan2011/
the team plans to be QRV on all bands and mode with at least five
stations between 25 July and 10 August. QSL via EA5RM (23 July 2011
A.R.I. DX Bulletin, No 1055, a.k.a. 425 DX News, via Dave Raycroft,
ODXA yg via DXLD)
ST0, SOUTH SUDAN (Update). Amateur radio is now active in the South
Sudan, the world's newest country, as well as the 193rd member of the
United Nations and new DXCC entity. First signals were heard on July
22nd. Co-leader Paul, N6PSE, reported on July 23rd, that the teams
arrived in Juba on July 22nd. He states (edited), "We have now been
QRV for 23 hours on CW and SSB. We are putting more antennas and
stations on the air today. Our hotel's internet is broken so it is
difficult to communicate to the outside world at this time other than
via radio. More information to follow. All stations should be QRV
tomorrow (July 24th) until August 10th. They hope to have five
stations on the air operating simultaneously in the coming days. They
announced on the 24th that the a new TX frequency for 20 meters is
14145 kHz, RX from 14200 kHz and up. For more details and updates
watch:
http://www.dxfriends.com/SouthernSudan2011
As this was being prepared, their logs showed (at 1112z, July 24th):
9695 QSOs with 4796 unique callsigns. QSL via EA5RM direct. Their
OQRS will be activated after the DXpedition. Online log is available
on the Web page. (The Ohio/Penn DX PacketCluster, DX Bulletin No.
1020, July 25, 2011, Editor Tedd Mirgliotta, KB8NW, Provided by
BARF80.ORG (Cleveland, Ohio), via Dave Raycroft, ODXA yg via WORLD OF
RADIO 1575, DXLD)
[non] 14204, 24/07 0200, USA, Radioamador K4KZZ (Raleigh, NC)
insistentemente chamando no pile-up de ST0R (Sudão do Sul), sem
sucesso no período ouvido. 73 a todos! (Fabricio Andrade Silva,
PP5002SWL, Tubarão - SC Brazil, Sony ICF sw 7600 GR, Antena Loop
Blindada, radioescutas yg via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD)
Glenn, please, find here a taste of how they're being received in
Europe in this very moment:
http://fromdctodaylight.splinder.com/post/25255041/voices-from-south-sudan
Ciao, (Chris Diemoz, IX1CKN, 2035 UT July 25, dxldyg via DX LISTENING
DIGEST) Viz::
lunedì, 25 luglio 2011, Voices from South Sudan
We don't know if we'll ever hear (again, as something did exist in the
past) a shortwave broadcasting station from South Sudan. However, ham
radio operators did want to celebrate, since the beginning, the
journey of the 193rd Country of the world, born on last 9th July. So,
a mixed team from the Intrepid-DX group and the DX-friends (including
Fabrizio, IN3NZR, from our land), after obtaining a license from the
governmental authorities, did embark for Juba (the capital of the new
State) and began HF operations from there, during the afternoon of
Friday 22nd July 2011, under the callsign ST0R.
Please, read here my first story on this subject for DXCoffee.com (in
Italian),
http://www.dxcoffee.com/ita/2011/07/15/sabato-9-luglio-il-primo-vagito-del-south-sudan/
and follow the DXpedition on its dedicated website.
http://www.dxfriends.com/SouthernSudan2011/
Most of all, however, witness, thanks to the video below (recorded a
while ago, on 14145 kHz, from my QTH), the operations. The guys there
are demonstrating once more radio is a wonderful way to mark history,
and they're putting out a wonderful signal to Italy (but, judging from
their QSOs, to a lot of other places too). Way to go, ST0R! [with 6
minute clip] (via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD)
** SWAN ISLAND. NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXPEDITION TO SWAN ISLAND RECALLS
THE RADIO STATION THAT BROADCAST FROM THERE TO CUBA.
National Geographic News Watch, 20 July 2011, Andrew Howley,
describing day three of an expedition to Swan Island: "Hiking along
the island’s air strip gave us perspective on the island’s history, as
we could see the foundations of cement buildings and the extended
runway gave us visions of an island bustling with activity during
World War II and for a brief time with the CIA’s Radio Free America
broadcasts. But now most of the island has fallen into disrepair and
decay, with only seven [Honduran] soldiers assigned to the island."
(Posted: 22 Jul 2011, kimandrewelliott.com via DXLD)
The station was called Radio Swan, later Radio Américas, and it
broadcast mainly to Cuba from 1960 to 1968. I remember hearing the
station on 6000 kHz shortwave and on the medium wave split channel of
1165 kHz (it was nominally on 1160 kHz). See the Swan Island DX
Association web page
http://www.qsl.net/sidxa/history.html
and the station's Wikipedia entry.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirate_radio_in_Central_America_and_Caribbean_Sea
(Kim Andrew Elliott, ibid.)
** SWITZERLAND. More transmitter masts are [to be] blown up. ... wird
gesprengt ... Weiterleitung einer Email von Hubert Kubiak aus dem
Muehlviertel.Servus, es geht ja munter weiter:
MW-Sender Beromuenster: Kleiner Turm wird gesprengt (am 19.August)
<http://forum.mysnip.de/list.php?11947> [Radioforum Schweiz]
<http://forum.mysnip.de/list.php?11947,919189> [WTFK?]
(Herbert Meixner-AUT, July 22, wwdxc BC-DX TopNews July 25 via DXLD)
** SYRIA. 9330, 19/7 1827, Radio Damascus, Siria, Arabic songs, very
strong signal 9+40 but low modulation (Giampiero Bernardini, Italy, in
Tuscany (Pescia, 60 km west from Florence), RFspace SDR-14; ant 30 m
long wire, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** TAIWAN. I'm informed that Radio Taiwan International's NEW website
should be up & running on August 1st. I think it's been several years
in the planning (Ian Baxter, NSW, July 26, dxldyg via DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
** UGANDA. Seems I have Uganda on 4976 kHz at 1940 gmt. Weaker tonight
but last night 23/7/11 a little later it was a very good sig. Could
not believe my ears!! (Steve Calver, UK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S S R. PCJ Media Archives --- Another program from the PCJ Media
Archives uploaded. This one is from Radio Moscow. A studio copy of
History Of The USSR. http://www.pcjmedia.com/archives
(Keith Perron) (via Mike Terry, dxldyg via DXLD)
** U K [non]. 17640, July 25 at 1343, BBCWS much better than usual and
sufficiently listenable with report on opposition to wind power in
NIMBY Wales. S9+15 signal, and occasional quick lite echo during deep
fades, presumably long-path from Ascension if Seychelles stopped at
1300 as scheduled. Also has lite generator(?) hum so typical of
ASCENSION. 1350 goes from `One Planet` to `From Our Own
Correspondent`, fascinating report about Berlin by Steve Evans.
Listened until 1430 with `World Briefing`. Thus was thwarted BBC`s sad
attempt to prevent us from listening on SW in North America.
Latest HFCC shows this BBCWS usage of 17640, all in English:
05-07, 300 kW, 135 degrees from Woofferton UK since 12 July
07-08, 300 kW, 177 degrees from Cyprus since 19 July
07-13, 250 kW, 270 degrees from Seychelles (note overlap if correct)
13-17, 250 kW, 114 degrees from Ascension (no second site overlap)
17760, July 28 at 1154, almost sufficient reception of BBCWS `From Our
Own Correspondent` with report from very remote Rodrigues Island, then
about the Hutterite sect on the prairies of Canada, originally from
Tyrol. Seems a lot of the women have bald spots they cover with buns.
Cut off the air at 1159:30*.
I certainly was not expecting the site to be THAILAND, as uplooked
later in HFCC: 250 kW, 25 degrees so it is also USward, at 09-12. Thus
the propagation gods thwart BBC`s attempts once again to remain
unlistenable in North America on SW. And, I cannot recommend `FOOC`
highly enough; now scattered thruout the schedule at :50 past certain
hours, as other programmmes have been cut to less than 20 minutes
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U K. SIX-DAY STRIKE AT BBC ARABIC SERVICE STARTS SATURDAY
National Union of Journalists (NUJ) members working at the BBC Arabic
service are to stage a six day strike starting on Saturday, the union
has announced. The strike is in addition to the BBC-wide action
happening on 1 August, which now includes an indefinite work to rule.
It will begin at midnight on Friday 29 July and end on midnight on
Thursday 4 August. A work to rule is also being applied.
The industrial action at the Arabic service comes as a result of a
dispute over working conditions and the implementation of a new rota
system. In a statement, the BBC said they were ‘disappointed’ with the
decision to strike and apologised for any disruption to services
caused. It continued: ‘Following significant cuts to the central
Government grants that support the World Service, all departments are
being asked to make changes and the BBC considers this strike action
to be unjustified.’
‘The BBC announced proposals for BBC Arabic in June 2010 with aim of
driving efficiencies to allow more investment on programming. The
proposals included changes to working conditions and rotas which are
comparable with staff working on other news outlets in the BBC.’
NUJ general secretary Michelle Stanistreet said: ‘No consideration has
been given to the need for adequate staffing levels balanced against
meet the needs of output, so that the number of anti-social and unsafe
shift times would be vastly increased. This will drastically disrupt
people’s lives and will lead to dramatically increased levels of work-
related stress and sickness.’ She added: ‘Journalists at the Arabic
service are particularly concerned at the vagueness of duties and how
management plans will leave staff vulnerable to exploitation and
favouritism.’
Both parties said they were open to further discussion. NUJ members at
the service previously went on strike for 48 hours in January over a
dispute involving rota changes. (Source: Ariel)(July 28th, 2011 -
14:21 UTC by Andy Sennitt, Media Network blog via DXLD)
** U K. NEXT BBC JOURNALISTS’ STRIKE ON MONDAY 1 AUGUST
The National Union of Journalists has re-scheduled a strike due to be
held by its BBC members on Friday. The action will now take place on
Monday, 1 August.
The union says it changed the date following representations from
members. BBC journalists are taking action over a number of compulsory
redundancies at World Service and Monitoring. News output was hit when
journalists struck on Friday, 15 July, with some news programmes off
air, and national and regional bulletins truncated to five minutes.
(Source: Ariel)
Further disruption is expected as journalists have been told in an
internal memo that “an indefinite work to rule will begin across the
BBC from 00.01 on Tuesday August 2nd immediately following the 24 hour
strike”.
Read more from The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jul/26/bbc-journalists-work-to-rule
(July 26th, 2011 - 10:54 UTC by Andy Sennitt, Media Network blog via
WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD)
** U K. Subject: [Knight Science Journalism Tracker Blog Archive ---
BBC: We asked a professor to see how we do at science. First, our
response.]
http://ksjtracker.mit.edu/2011/07/20/bbc-we-asked-a-professor-to-see-how-we-do-at-science-first-our-response/
This is kind of fun, although I've only skimmed through it at warp
speed (which is speed so fast it warps objectivity and reason).
The BBC, incessantly under scrutiny by its audience, by many critics,
and by the government that once held it in tight rein, recently
commissioned an academic team to review its science coverage and to
draw up some recommendations.
The leader of that project, Professor Steve Jones, an emeritus in
genetics at University College London, found much to admire and not a
lot of factual errors in the BBC's radio and TV handling of science,
it appears. But his review also found plenty to criticise - seeing for
example too little coordination between radio and TV, and a skewed
distribution of coverage compared to where the real action is in
science. Too much astronomy, anthropology, geosciences, ecology,
evolution, he said. Gad, one thinks, those are all fun ones. Yep,
let's ramp up coverage on mantle plumes in the Archaean, attosecond
imagery of metabolic catalysis, and cross-specific mimicry among lyre
birds!
It's a remarkable report, seriously done. Also remarkable is that the
BBC presents it upside down. Usually, at least in my impression of the
usual, when one releases the results of an independent report that one
has commissioned, the format is to release a preface that says thank
you, then the report, and the inhouse rejoinders and reactions added
at the end - as appendices perhaps. But the Beeb staples it so that
first one sees the rebuttal (and in many places to be sure,
concurrence), followed by the argument. So one gets the BBC Trust's
paraphrase and response to the report, then the BBC's executive
department paraphrase and markedly defensive response, and third the
report on which the paraphrases and responses turn.
Here it is: [18] BBC Trust review of impartiality and accuracy of the
BBC's coverage of science ;
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/assets/files/pdf/our_work/science_impartiality/science_impartiality.pdf
As I say, I just skimmed. But among other observations by the outside
reviewers are that two thirds of the stories concerned news in which
press releases were involved (implying a low level of enterprise),
that most of the stories concerned news in which a journal publication
was involved but unless they were Nature, Lancet, or the British
Medical Journal, they weren't named, and that it is particularly
striking how rarely the US journal Science gets mention. And how come
mental disorder in the UK is a far more common burden on people than
is cancer, but cancer gets so much more BBC attention?
It asks why so many reports are "cool and emotionless" whereas
"Science is as full of hope and despair as any other endeavour." Hmmm.
Maybe I'm wrong, but seems like scientists tend to think their
neighborhood's public scriveners are TOO heavy on hope and despair,
and way short of respect for the logic and statistical coolness of
science.
There is also, natch, lengthy discussion of due weight and balance
when it comes to science and controversial policy predicaments, as
with climate change, or genetically modified food. The section seemed
a bit murky as it blurred by, but one passage from the professor's
team regarding reporting of diverse points of view jumps out:
Even so, every scientist, perhaps without realising it, accepts
Cromwell's entreaty that "in the bowels of Christ, think it possible
you may be mistaken"; they are, when faced with evidence, and
however reluctantly, willing to change their minds. That ruling does
not apply to many other fields, from politics to the arts or to
sport where immovable and contradictory opinion is widespread and
even welcome. For science, in contrast, for most of the time, and in
most of the subject, there is a wide acceptance of a body of
scrutinised fact, interrupted by rare moments when ideas change.
Constantly to call in external voices unwilling to accept that
principle is not to engage in debate but in meaningless polemic.
That's on p. 56, should you want to see its context. Who cannot enjoy
invocation of Cromwell and the bowels of Christ?
On page 59 is a diverting passage on the propriety of a scientist
remarking, during a BBC program, that astrology is rubbish. Drum roll!
When complaints occurred the scientist was asked to respond to those
offended. He did:
"I apologize to the Astrology Community for not making myself clear.
I should have said that this new age drivel is undermining the very
fabric of our civilization."
Other than that fabric and undermining are not gracefully married in
metaphor, that's a winner.
Serious thinkers on the nature of news and its coverage should read
this a lot more carefully than I just did. I know I shall do so.
- Charlie Petit
This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 20th, 2011 at 2:21 pm and is
filed under About Journalism. You can follow any responses to this
entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a
response. Pinging is currently not allowed (via Dan Say, BC, DXLD)
** U K. BBC World Service audience figures
Hello Kim, Regarding your comment:
"After 35 years of international broadcasting audience research, I've
learned that it takes about a year before shifts in broadcasting
output are reflected in audience surveys."
which I had noted via DXLD 11-28.
This letter and response has been printed in the BBC Staff magazine
Ariel, I'll cut and paste it as the online latest letters page is
frequently changed:
When cuts count
Last week's article headed 'Tumultuous time at Bush' was simply
inaccurate. It opened with this statement: 'The World Service global
audience has fallen as big budget cuts begin to bite. The estimated
weekly global audience across all platforms is 14.1m down to 166m for
the last financial year.'
This is not true. The real position for the last financial year is
presented in the Annual Report. Audiences were up by a modest, but
still respectable 4 million from 180 to 184 million.This was
discounted in the Report with this explanation: 'Where services have
closed, wholly or in part, or it is planned that they will do so
shortly, their audiences have not been counted in this year's global
estimate.' No reason for this backdated discounting was given.
This sleight of hand was ignored in the article, so that cuts taking
place now are presented as if they took place in the previous
financial year. Why has this happened?
Martin Plaut, Africa editor, BBC World Service
Ann Barnsdale, head of audience insight, Global News, replies:
BBC World Service's Global Audience Estimate for this year was
announced as 166m. This is the estimated figure that reflects
distribution.
The cuts to World Service language services and platforms were
announced on 26 January this year and these changes were enacted
before the end of the financial year. In the interests of transparency
we published both the current figure and what the figure would have
been without the cuts, with an explanation of what each included.
However, it would have been odd to have claimed audiences for services
that had already stopped broadcasting, or whose reduction or closure
we'd already announced. So we felt on balance that the most
appropriate headline number was the one that most closely reflected
the estimated impact of the cuts that had been made.
Our aim has been to provide the most appropriate figures for audiences
and to be transparent in explaining them.
Presently online at:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/ariel/14291515
Ariel has only been online for a few months (Mike Barraclough, July
27, to kimandrewelliott, cc to DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U K. Re 11-29: Part 2 of BBC Radio 4 documentary Soft Power Hard
News discusses China, BBC World Service, etc. Posted: 21 Jul 2011
BBC Radio 4, 18 July 2011, Soft Power Hard News, Part 2: Includes
discussion of China's soft power, BBC World Service, etc. –
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b012l0cm
(kimandrewelliott.com via DXLD)
Recommended listening. Interesting discussion of the importance of
independence and credibility. See previous post about part 1 of the
series (Kim Andrew Elliott, ibid.)
** U K [and non]. BBC PROMPTS DEBATE ON AMERICANISMS, AND WHY?
Speaking of British English, the BBC recently invited its audience to
share "Americanisms" that get under their skin. Boy howdy, did they
respond! The BBC's list of 50 peeves about Americans' speech included
"alphabetize," "gotten," "and "train station."
http://wywd.us/happyjuly4
Lynne Murphy, an American linguist living in the UK, is not amused.
Read the takedown in her blog, "Separated by a Common Language."
http://wywd.us/takethatpeevers
Stay tuned for more responses to this linguistic shot across the pond!
(A Way With Words mailing list via DXLD)
** U S A [and non]. REP. ROHRABACHER AMENDMENT WOULD MAINTAIN FUNDING
FOR VOA CHINESE, KEEPING IT ON RADIO AND TV. Posted: 24 Jul 2011
http://kimelli.nfshost.com/index.php?id=11716
Taipei Times, 24 July 2011, J. Michael Cole: "The battle to keep Voice
of America’s (VOA) Mandarin and Cantonese radio and TV broadcasts to
China alive continued in the US House Committee on Foreign Affairs on
Wednesday with a unanimous vote for a proposal that would secure money
for the embattled China unit. The authorization bill, sponsored by US
Representative Dana Rohrabacher during a markup hearing, reserves
US$13.76 million from the total budget for government-sponsored
broadcasting next year to be strictly used for Mandarin and Cantonese
radio and TV broadcasts. That amount is equal to this year’s
operational budget for VOA’s China unit. ...
The BBG in February announced cost-cutting measures that would cancel
VOA radio and TV broadcasts to China from October next year, while
expanding other digital media efforts. That measure, which sparked
accusations that US President Barack Obama’s administration was
seeking to remove irritants to Beijing, is expected to cost about 40
jobs at the VOA China unit." See also the text of the amendment (pdf).
And another Rohrabacher amendment (pdf) that would issue Chinese media
no more US visas than the number China grants to reporters of US
international broadcasting. (kimandrewelliott.com via WORLD OF RADIO
1575, DXLD)
-- The House Appropriations Committee is next to decide on these
funding issues, with a State and foreign operations markup scheduled
for 27 July at 10:00 AM EDT (Kim Andrew Elliott, ibid.)
** U S A. ETHIOPIAN EXILE MEDIA KEEP UP HEAT ON VOA HORN OF AFRICA
CONTROVERSY. RALLY MONDAY IN FRONT OF VOA HQ. Posted: 24 Jul 2011
[five stories excerpted and linked:]
http://kimelli.nfshost.com/index.php?id=11715
(kimandrewelliott.com via DXLD)
It would be helpful for news organizations outside of the partisan
Ethiopian exile press to have a look at this controversy. Is VOA
really backing off of hard news to facilitate its growing NGO-type
activities? (Kim Andrew Elliott, ibid.) See also CAMBODIA [and non]
ETHIOPIAN-AMERICANS STAGE NOISY RALLY AT VOA, EXPRESSING THEIR
CONCERNS RE VOA HORN OF AFRICA CONTROVERSY.
Posted: 26 Jul 2011 http://kimelli.nfshost.com/index.php?id=11724
-- If VOA is a source of "good news" -- presumably meaning good-
quality news -- then it is very much a "force for change, freedom and
democracy." Advocacy for freedom and democracy is also a commendable
activity, but it and good journalism don't really mix. They should be
done by separate organizations from separate buildings (Kim Andrew
Elliott, ibid.)
** U S A. SHOCKER: SENATOR'S REPORT FINDS THAT THE NINE BBG MEMBERS
HAVE ACCESS TO 53 SUVS. Posted: 21 Jul 2011
Senator Tom Coburn website, 18 July 2011, "Back in Black: A Deficit
Reduction Plan": "Since 2006, the federal vehicle fleet has grown by
five percent. Meanwhile, the cost of maintaining and servicing those
vehicles has grown over 25 percent, to $4.6 billion.33 It is unclear
why some agencies need many of the vehicles they own. For example, the
National Science Foundation, which issues grants and does no outdoor
field research and the Broadcasting Board of Governors, which counts
only nine members, each have 53 SUVs." (kimandrewelliott.com via DXLD)
Somebody on Senator Coburn's staff apparently thinks the Broadcasting
Board of Governors consists only of the nine members of the board,
rather than five entities with 3,791 employees. As discussed in a
previous post,
http://www.kimandrewelliott.com/?id=11553
the SUVs are probably used mostly at transmitter sites.
Other than that, Senator Coburn's plan to save $9 trillion in federal
spending leaves US international broadcasting remarkably unscathed,
even though there are obvious opportunities
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/13/opinion/13elliott.html
for greater efficiency. On the other hand, his report takes particular
aim at every agency, entity, and facet of US domestic public
broadcasting (Kim Andrew Elliott, ibid.) See also BOTSWANA; PAKISTAN;
PHILIPPINES; SRI LANKA
** U S A [and non]. 17820, July 22 [not 20 as typoed in original
report!] at 1313, S9+12 open carrier, then at 1314 fading in tone,
after a few sex cut tone, and cut carrier, uncovering DW Hausa via
PORTUGAL. This is typical tune-up behavior for IBB Greenville.
Meanwhile I compared 17820 to 17800, DW Hausa via RWANDA, which was
much stronger than Portugal, but much weaker than the IBB signal.
17820 will not really be used by VOA until Portuguese to Africa at
1700-1830 (Sat/Sun -1800), 250 kW, 94 degrees from Greenville. Carrier
on for good already at 1650 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. Have been on holiday in Ardnamurchan, Scotland (one of these
wonderful remote places that has no mobile 'phone reception and so
difficult to access internet!). Excellent reception there of WoR on
5051 kHz at 0330 UT 15-July on my Sony 7600GR with its telescopic
though! 73s (Alan Pennington, UK, WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
WORLD OF RADIO 1574 monitoring: confirmed on ACB Radio Mainstream
webcast, UT Friday July 22 after 0300. Since there are normally 12
playbacks at 2-hour intervals UT Fridays, and since last week`s 1573
was pre-empted due to ACB convention coverage, I asked them to
alternate playbacks of 1573 and 1574 this week, but that is not yet
confirmed. Checking after 1500 UT, all the broadband webstreams were
malfunxioning, either not connecting or playing only occasional
snippets of noise. But modem-quality was OK with 1574; via
http://www.acbradio.org
WWRB: sole broadcast of WOR 1574, UT Friday July 22 at 0330, confirmed
on 5051, but corresponding webcast not funxioning.
WRMI 9955: UT Friday 0506 check, WOR 1574 audible mixed with pulsing
Cuban jamming and still the same at 0529 conclusion. Tnx a lot, Arnie!
Or am I supposed to be grateful it was not full-bore jamming? WOR was
mostly readable if one put up with the QRM. Numerous further playbacks
pending on WRMI + webcasts as previously enumerated.
Other SW times upcoming: UT Sunday 0400 on WTWW 5755; UT Monday 0300
on WBCQ Area 51 5110v-CUSB.
WORLD OF RADIO 1574 monitoring: reconfirmed on WTWW-1, 5755, UT Sunday
July 24 from 0400:42, VG reception here. Seems this is always preceded
by talk about sorcery on the streets of Washington DC, break for WTWW
ID, something from SFAW about gun control, then WOR. Standard
disclaimer!
Remaining airings this week: on 9955 WRMI, Sunday 1530, 1730 (also on
WRN via SiriusXM 120); Monday 1130, 1530, 2130; Tuesday & Wednesday
1530. On Area 51 via WBCQ 5110v-CUSB: UT Monday 0300.
WORLD OF RADIO 1574 monitoring: UT Monday July 25 at 0300, Area 51 on
WBCQ 5110v-CUSB and webcast, RNI gives way to Radio Jennifer, not on
schedule for this date, so WOR starts late about 0309. Please stay
tuned if you don`t hear WOR at the scheduled time! (Glenn Hauser, OK,
WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
5109.77, 0005-0015 Sun 24.07, WBCQ, Monticello. English ann, pop music
35333 (Anker Petersen, on my AOR AR7030PLUS with 28 metres of longwire
in Skovlunde, Denmark, via Dario Monferini, playdx yg via DXLD)
** U S A. WORLD OF RADIO 1575 monitoring: First airing confirmed on
WRMI 9955 webcast, 0330 UT Thursday July 28. Next ones: Thu 1500,
2100, Fri 0500, 1430, Sat 0800, 1500, 1730, Sun 0800, 1530, 1730.
On WTWW: Thu 2100 on 9479, UT Sun 0400 on 5755
On WBCQ: Thu 2130 on 7415, UT Mon 0300v on 5110v-CUSB
On WWRB: UT Fri 0330 on 5051
On WRN via SiriusXM 120: Sat & Sun 1730, Sun 0830
[The Wed 2130 on WBCQ 7415 was replaced July 27 by an unknown amateur
hymn-singing show, apparently].
Thursday July 28 at 21-22 UT: Confirmed at 2100 on WTWW 9479, and the
WTWW-1 webcast is also working now; JBA on 9955 WRMI even tho no
jamming; JBA on 7415 WBCQ at 2155 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
** U S A. Having caught up with Firedrake for the time being, July 22
at 1250 I turned attention to 12100 and when WTWW would come on the
air: nothing yet, between weak Asia-Pacific signals on 12095-FEBC,
12105-KSDA. At this time, WWCR was VG on 9980 but not 13845 so MUF
from TN somewhere in between.
Then WTWW-3 made multiple attempts to start up, with a couple
syllables of Arabic, but dumping right back off the air in a few
seconds, at these times noted to within a couple of seconds:
1254:12, 1254:42, 1301:29, 1301:44, 1301:58, 1302:45, 1303:34,
1306:03. After eight tries, gave up and nothing further heard; still
not on at 1347 or 1430 or 1650 chex.
The pause between 1255 and 1301 was when the operator was occupied
with changing frequency of WTWW-1: 5755 still on at 1255; 1259 QSY
announcement to ``9480``; off at 1259:34* and it took only nine
seconds to come back up on 9479 at *1259:43, right into IRN-USA Radio
``news`` without ID or sign-on announcement.
12100, after July 22`s problems getting WTWW-3 to stay on the air,
checked again July 23 at 1250: not yet on. But at next check 1254 it
had come on and stayed on, in Arabic. Recently has been missing after
0500, but July 24 still on at 0530, Bible in English. I think the
reader mispronounced learnèd as ``learned`` in the context. Off again
at 1239 check, but by 1254 it was going again, in Arabic.
12100, July 26 at 0459, good signal from WTWW-3 in Portuguese Bible
readings, declining to fair at 0515, poor at 0530 English ID and
switch to Bible in English.
Now there is something strange interfering: six rising tones,
repeating over and over, from carrier about 12102. With BFO tuned
slightly above it, I hear six descending tones. As I start to time how
many times per minute, they stop abruptly after three of them at
0533:10*. (Altho CODAR also infests the area, this was not that.)
And altho fade-down of WTWW signal during that semihour indicates it
might have stayed on all night but becoming inaudible, when 12100
checked next at 1251, not on. Kept a receiver on frequency and it cut
on at *1304 without sign-on, joining Arabic Bible in progress.
12100, July 27 at 1256 tuneby in Firedrake search, WTWW was on in
Arabic Bible, somewhat distorted, but at next pass 1310 it was off,
clearing frequency for CODAR pulses. Still or again off at 1356 check.
12100, WTWW missing, July 28 at 1325 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
** U S A. 5845, July 22 at 1139, very poor signal with mix of WWCR DGS
5935 and BS 5890, another 45 kHz lower. The fundamentals were very
strong, but 5845 would not go away even with maximum receiver
attenuation, so I think it`s a transmitted spur. Leapfrog the other
way on 5980 is blocked by the DentroCuban Jamming Command and R.
Martí, but at hours before those are on, have also heard the WWCR mix
on 5980.
15825, July 27 at 1314, WWCR-1 is VG with Es-enhancement, splattering
above and below, and weak modulation on 15810, 15840 spurs also
audible, but no distorted spur field further down or up the band.
Let`s hope those have been permanently fixed, as they interfered with
many other stations (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. WWCR Huckster Indicted in $194 million fraud
http://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/94085/former-financial-talker-indicted-in-ponzi-scheme-c
FORMER FINANCIAL TALKER INDICTED IN PONZI SCHEME CASE
July 21, 2011 at 5:02 AM (PT)
Charges have been filed against a financial talk show host whose
program aired on the shortwave WORLDWIDE CHRISTIAN RADIO network,
HUBBARD Talk (now Sports)KSTP-A/ST. PAUL-MINNEAPOLIS, and several
other stations in what federal authorities call a Ponzi scheme. The
MINNEAPOLIS STAR-TRIBUNE reports that PAT KILEY was one of three
associates of convicted money manager TREVOR COOK to be indicted as
part of the $194 million fraud that affected over 700 investors.
KILEY has said that when he said in sports [spots?] on his "FOLLOW THE
MONEY" show that he was a senior financial adviser to COOK, he was
reading from a script and was not in reality a manager; he said he
believed in COOK's investment program, but the grand jury charged him,
along with JASON BO BECKMAN and GERALD DURAND, with conspiracy, mail
fraud and money laundering counts (via Kevin Redding, July 21, ABDX
via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD)
Does ANYBODY actually believe the BS that is broadcast on that
station??? Or WWRB as far as that goes! At least WBCQ is fun to listen
to on the Weekends. 73 (Kevin Raper, KJ4HYD, CE WCKI WQIZ WLTQ, ibid.)
** U S A. 9370, after a spate of out-of-whackiness for several days,
WTJC is in whack again, July 22 at 0513, S9+22 on fundamental, good
modulation except for occasional crackles --- and NO spurs. But we
KNOW it won`t last.
9370, July 23 at 0550, WTJC out of whack again; respite as in last
report was far too brief. Not only is the S9+18 fundamental very
distorted, but spurs cover the 9340-9400 range.
Even worse at 1233 July 23: 9370 extremely distorted, and strong spurs
from 9335 to 9400; one peak around 9385 where WWRB has not yet signed
on. Apparently nobody at the FCC, let alone FBN, cares about this POS
polluting the SW spectrum (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
9330, 9350, and 9370 KHz. --- Getting interference up and down the
93xx band. Appears to be coming from 9370 WTJC. Sounds like they got a
bad tube in their TX (Lou KF4EON, Atlanta, GA, 1741 UT July 23, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
9370, WTJC continues to be a blight on the band: July 24 at 0540
check, distorted and spurring out to plus/minus 25 kHz.
1222 very distorted on fundamental and even bothering very strong WHRI
9410 which is on the air Sundays only; blocking WBCQ on 9330, QRMing
YFR Taiwan 9280, and spurs audible down to 9265 where there is no
WINB. Worse peaks around 9350 and 9390. Hurry up, Jesus! (Glenn
Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Exceptionally broad this morning, slop is audible down below 9330 to
9400+++. Audio on the carrier is quite distorted. 1039 UT 7-24-11
(Robert LaFore, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A [non]. 9635, July 23 at 1229, CVC La Voz, Miami via CHILE,
promoting some sort of contest for a $1000 prize based on guessing who
wins the Copa América sillyballgames. Seems the good Christians at
Vision have plenty of dough to regale and no qualms about games of
chance. But only if you listen in Spanish. In fact their homepage
http://cvclavoz.com has Copa América as wallpaper; what has that to do
with evangelism?? Details from http://cvclavoz.com/concursos/ ---
``Tema del Concurso --- Viviendo la emoción deportiva del fútbol, CVC
la voz presenta su concurso ¡Copa América en CVC! Mientras crece la
expectativa en cada juego, los oyentes tendrán la oportunidad de
participar apostando a su equipo favorito. Hay $1.000 de premio que se
dividirán en dos partes. El día 13 de julio se escogerá a una persona
de nuestra audiencia entre quienes hayan contestado la siguiente
pregunta: ¿Cuál será el primer equipo de cada grupo?
``¿Qué puedo ganar? El ganador recibirá $500 y podrá seguir
participando para responder a la siguiente pregunta: ¿Quién ganará “La
Copa América”?. El día 23 de julio se seleccionará un correo
electrónico entre los que hayan acertado con su respuesta y el oyente
recibirá $500.`` --- So it`s a drawing among correct answers (Glenn
Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. 13580, July 23 at 1241 as I tune in WEWN, nothing but loud
hum/squeal, apparently during pause in snail-paced live mass designed
for TV. Then cuts intermittently to OK modulation during sung
passages. As always, accompanied by constant squishy spurs plus and
minus 9 kHz which will disrupt any fellow broadcasters foolish enough
to schedule themselves only 10 kHz from this mess of a mass (Glenn
Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. 13570, July 23 at 1244, WINB escaped the spur from WEWN
13580 by not being on the air, nor on its only other frequency 9265.
WINB used to be active in mornings, especially Saturdays. Still
nothing on either at 1412.
WINB left its long-outdated March 13 program schedule up for 3+ months
at http://www.winb.com/schedule.htm claiming 24/7 which didn`t last
long after Rod Hembree discovered that all-night broadcasts on WBCQ
9330 were far more effective; but when I wasn`t looking, WINB has put
up a newer one dated July 3. Headed by reduced frequency schedule in
EDT:
13570 kHz, 1415 - 1659 [1815-2059 UT]
9265 kHz, 1700 - 2230 [2100-0230 UT]
So start at 2100 to look for 9265 x 2 on 18530.
Yet the program timings below would produce this UT schedule; length
of final programs never displayed, so we just add a plus to 0200.
Sun 1300-0200+
Mon-Thu 1815-0200+
Fri 1845-0200+
Sat 1900-0200+
No more relays of Fámily Radio, no surprise there, nor anything in
Spanish.
13570, July 24 at 1309, WINB is on in the mornings now Sundays only;
usual unstable carrier with BFO, and now also hit by WEWN 13580
squishy spur. WINB airing off-key hymn-singing with piano, ``What a
Friend`` (Glenn Hauser, OK, WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A [non]. ASCENSION: 12060, Family Radio; 2018-2030+, 27-July;
Post 5/21 and pre-stroke program, or is he back?! Laughing Stock
Camping on Open Forum. Caller asked about 10/21/11; H sed "There will
be a complete end to God's Earth". Next caller commented about
5/21/11, saying he spread the word, and was not mad -- H mumbled a
bit. OF/FR spots 2027-29 and back to OF. SIO=2+53- These folks are
stuck to this like a tick with superglue. Not // 15195 also via
Ascension with English Bible reading, SIO=2+53. Listed 9610 via
Germany not heard (Harold Frodge, MI, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. CARY GRANT SINGS FCC REGULATIONS
http://www.dinosaurgardens.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/06/Cary_Grant_-_FCC_Station_Identification_Regulations.mp3
http://www.dinosaurgardens.com/archives/175
Yes, this *is* exactly what the message subject says it is: a link to
a MP3 recording of Cary Grant singing the 1939 legal ID regulations
over the NBC network (Doug Smith W9WI, Pleasant View, TN EM66, NRC-AM
via DXLD)
I think I'll use it, along with the singing EBS test on the DX Audio
Service (Frederick R. Vobbe, OH, ibid.)
I did use the singing EBS test on CCBS a couple of years back...if
it's the same one...where the tone goes "Mary had a Little Lamb" (Mark
Durenberger, Mobile, ibid.)
The cut I would really like to find is the WGR pre-filing announcement
for license renewal where the guy read it, and sounded like Groucho
Marx. It was a CLASSIC! To my knowledge, there isn't anything in the
rules disallowing it. But I know of at least one station that ran the
singing test and received a call saying it was not in their "best
interest" to mess with EAS (Vobbe, ibid.)
If we're going to let this thread bunny-trail over to celebrity voice
impersonations, there is a spot for Adams Motor Company of Denison,
Iowa running right now on Fort Dodge's KWMT, and the guy reading it is
so much of a dead ringer for the late Paul Harvey, it's scary. I mean,
he has EVERY nuance of Harvey's voice nailed down. If you get lucky,
you might even run into it on KWMT's streaming audio. 73, (Rick Dau,
South Omaha, Nebraska, ibid.)
** U S A. EDITORIAL -- FCC ACKNOWLEDGES POLICE INVOLVEMENT
The case of alleged pirate broadcaster Christopher M. Myers of
Lauderhill, Florida is unusually interesting. As many of you know,
pirate broadcasting is a third degree felony in Florida and police can
incarcerate pirates without FCC intervention.
These facts notwithstanding, the FCC has traditionally been hesitant
to mention police involvement in Florida in order to propagate the
image that the FCC has exclusive jurisdiction to deal with pirates and
resolve interference. The Myers case is unusual in that the FCC openly
and repeatedly mentions police involvement, starting in paragraph 5
and spreading to the footnotes. This change, we believe, is healthy.
Florida is overrun with pirates and the FCC needs all the help it can
get. As soon as the FCC or police knock down one pirate, another one
pops up, sometimes openly selling advertising in competition with
licensed stations. Florida's felony law and police involvement
discourage pirates and help prevent them from obliterating the radio
dial.
FCC MO&O on the Christopher M. Myers case:
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-11-1217A1.doc
CGC #768 (Nov. 2006, see the first Letter to the Editor):
http://www.bext.com/_CGC/2006/cgc768.htm
CGC #857 (Sept. 2008, see the fourth story, "Another pirate
incarcerated in Florida"):
http://www.bext.com/_CGC/2008/cgc857.htm
(CGC Communicator July 25 via Kevin Redding, ABDX via DXLD)
Pirate squabbles:
Commander Bunny Says "POET IS FCC SNITCH" Over Anonymous Blog Comment,
And Other REALLY Crazy Stuff That We Won't Print Here... today...
http://www.tcsshortwave.com/2011/07/commander-bunny-says-poet-is-fcc-snitch.html
(via Artie Bigley, July 25, DXLD)
A Pirate Dxer sent this to me:
http://transition.fcc.gov/eb/FieldNotices/2003/DOC-308562A1.html
What call/slogan is this radio station using?
[Later:] Glenn, They are saying WBNY was busted:
http://shortwavepirate.info/WBNY/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/POETSBUST
(Artie Bigley, OH, July 26, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Both linx have same FCC notice, but the FCC does not condescend to
publish the *name* of the pirate station: (gh) Viz.:
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
ENFORCEMENT BUREAU
Northeast Region
Detroit Office
24897 Hathaway St.
Farmington Hills, MI 48335-1552
July 21, 2011
(Sent via Certified Return Receipt Requested and First Class US Mail)
Gregory D. Brown
Lansing, Michigan
NOTICE OF UNLICENSED OPERATION
Case Number: EB-10-DT-0327
Document Number: W201132360007
The Detroit Office received information that an unlicensed broadcast
radio station on 6815 kHz was allegedly operating in Lansing,
Michigan. On May 8, 2011 and May 22, 2011, an agent from this office
confirmed by direction finding techniques that radio signals on
frequency 6815 kHz and frequency 6960.6 kHz were emanating from your
residence in Lansing, Michigan. The Commission's records show that no
license was issued for operation of a broadcast station on 6815 kHz
or 6960.6 kHz at this location in Lansing, Michigan.
Radio stations must be licensed by the FCC pursuant to 47 U.S.C. S:
301. The only exception to this licensing requirement is for certain
transmitters using or operating at a power level or mode of operation
that complies with the standards established in Part 15 of the
Commission's rules, 47 C.F.R. S:S: 15.1 et seq. The field strength of
the signal on frequency 6815 kHz and 6960.6 kHz exceeds the maximum
permitted established in Section 15.209 of the Rules (See 47 C.F.R. S:
15.209(a)) given the distance the signal could be received in radio
direction finding vehicles and FCC fixed High Frequency receiving
sites. Thus, this station is operating in violation of 47 U.S.C. S:
301.
You are hereby warned that operation of radio transmitting equipment
without a valid radio station authorization constitutes a violation of
the Federal laws cited above and could subject the operator to severe
penalties, including, but not limited to, substantial monetary fines,
in rem arrest action against the offending radio equipment, and
criminal sanctions including imprisonment. (see 47 U.S.C. S:S: 401,
501, 503 and 510).
UNLICENSED OPERATION OF THIS RADIO STATION MUST BE DISCONTINUED
IMMEDIATELY.
You have ten (10) days from the date of this notice to respond with
any evidence that you have authority to operate granted by the FCC.
Your response should be sent to the address in the letterhead and
reference the listed case and document number. Under the Privacy Act
of 1974, 5 U.S.C. S: 552a(e)(3), we are informing you that the
Commission's staff will use all relevant material information before
it to determine what, if any, enforcement action is required to ensure
your compliance with FCC Rules. This will include any information that
you disclose in your reply.
You may contact this office if you have any questions.
James A. Bridgewater
District Director
Detroit Office
Attachments:
Excerpts from the Communications Act of 1934, As Amended
Enforcement Bureau, "Inspection Fact Sheet", March 2005
(FCC via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD)
I'm betting my DXing skills/reputation it was TCS busted. But some
people may not want to believe it because of the feud between
Commander Bunny and John the Poet. I QSLed them in early 83. On the
air for almost thirty years. Also, fond this:
http://www.hfunderpants.com/wiki/The_Crystal_Ship
So, you believe it's TCS?? (Artie Bigley to Chris Lobdell, July 26, cc
to DXLD)
Yes, I do. They were broadcasting on 6815 on May 8th (Chris Lobdell to
Artie, via DXLD)
I have heard TCS on a a number of occasions; here's a couple of
recordings I have:
http://www.archive.org/download/ShortwavePirateRadio/TheCrystalShip6854_2Am0001z-0219z08-06-07.mp3
http://www.archive.org/download/ShortwavePirateRadio/TheCrystalShip7575_1Am0316z-0346z05-29-08.mp3
Cheers, (Sealord, July 26, 2011 via Artie Bigley, DXLD)
Artie points out that Greg Majewski`s column in the August 2007 CIDX
Messenger carried this:
This month, I like to highlight a station, The Crystal Ship. John Poet
is the operator. The Crystal Ship plays good music, political
commentary and experiments with different frequencies. It is
one of the more frequently heard stations. I contacted the Poet by
electronic mail to ask him about his station. Here is what he had to
say:
THE HISTORY AND ORIGIN OF THE CRYSTAL SHIP BY JOHN “THE POET”
The partnership which would become The Crystal Ship was formed in June
1982. Three nineteen-year-olds were finishing up a term of college
when John ‘The Poet’ (that’s me) came up with the bright idea of
creating a pirate radio station. Of course my compatriots were all for
the idea. My partners, “The Radical” and “The Unknown Soldier” and I
shared an affinity for the music of The Doors, The Who, Blue Oyster
Cult and The Rolling Stones, among other things.
The station was eventually named ‘The Crystal Ship’ after the tune of
the same name from the first Doors album, which we would use to open
each broadcast. Later, our shows would close with ‘We want the
Airwaves’ by The Ramones (and still do).
I had been an SWL in the late 70s as a young teen, and was exposed to
pirate radio through articles about the ‘Voice of the Voyageur’
station which were published in NASWA’s FRENDX club bulletin. As such
I had a good general idea of how it could be done, but without any
knowledge of the specific problems which could crop up.
Locating an amateur shortwave transmitter was much more difficult in
those days, particularly to purchase one without having to answer a
lot of silly questions. I eventually located an aging Knight T-150
through a weekly ad paper, and purchased it with a story about how
‘It’s a gift for my father who collects older equipment.’ We also
managed to throw together a motley collection of consumer audio
equipment for the ‘studio.’ along with a very crude homemade mixer.
We first attempted to operate in a ‘fixed mobile’ mode out of a van,
but were unable to meet the power requirements of the equipment. We
eventually settled on operations out of two alternating fixed
locations about fifty miles apart, to help evade any authorities.
Interestingly, not yet being aware of the ‘standard pirate frequency’
which was 7425 kHz at that time, but knowing enough to stay out of the
amateur bands, we initially operated around 6965 kHz, which is within
the frequency range most often used now by North American pirate
stations.
About this time I became aware of the new Association of Clandestine
Enthusiasts pirate SWL club with their ACE bulletin. I formed a
friendship with the club founder, Darren Leno, and arranged to use
them as a mail drop at Box 452, Moorhead Minnesota.
Leno became the first listener to log the station in August 1982. He
convinced us to switch to the “pirate frequency” of 7425 kHz. Numerous
listeners began logging the station through the fall of 1982.
Being totally inexperienced with how our signal should sound through a
monitor, I mistakenly attributed distortion to receiver overload from
the proximity of the transmitter. It turned out that the transmitter
had severe problems, including but not limited to wiring mistakes by
the original builder, aging components, and severe RF feedback from
our studio. At times it was reported to be transmitting in the FM
mode, which is a problem for an AM transmitter. Through the use of
loop phone lines, we became acquainted with the operator of the AM
/shortwave pirate WART, in New York. (He called our loop line
announced during a show. Shortly after, I heard WART on shortwave,
called his announced loop line and recognized his voice as our
previous caller --- gave him quite a scare at first.) He convinced us
to suspend operations, and send our transmitter to him for an
overhaul; and explained how to modify our other equipment
to kill the RF feedback motor-boat.
We spent the downtime creating our format, writing a poetic call to
arms, recording various station promo spots and an interval signal (a
‘crowd’ of five yelling “We want the world and we want it now”
recorded inside the natural echo chamber of a parking ramp stairway).
We hit the airwaves again in April 1983, and were well-received with
our now-clean signal and more organized programming. Political content
consisted of much criticism of the Reagan administration, particularly
their policies in Central America and their prosecutions of draft
registration resisters. Soon we became characterized as a ‘socialist
station,’ probably because of ‘The Radical’s repetitive use of the
phrase “Socialism forever, Socialism for everyone” in our editorial
program ‘On Deck’. Relishing the reputation, we did what we could to
feed it --- although we were actually liberal Democratic Party
activists.
Regular operations continued for a number of months, until it became
clear by August 1983, through various grapevine sources who had actual
contacts with various F.C.C. employees, that the agency was hot on our
trail. “They are #1 on our ‘hit list’!” an agent at the Fort
Lauderdale monitoring station reportedly told one listener. Often
operating every weekend, often two days in a row, it’s a wonder that
we were not caught. I attribute their failure to our use of multiple
locations confusing their long-range triangulation. They were close
enough to each other to appear to be coming from the same general
area, but would have temporarily prevented a definitive “fix” on our
locales which would have allowed the mobile enforcement units to go to
work on the problem but informed sources soon told me they were ready
to spring the trap on The Crystal Ship.
As luck would have it, transmitter problems forced us off the air at
that very time in August 1983. At the same time, it was reported to me
that a “suspicious van” had been noted parking down the street from
our primary location. If the FCC had us tracked down to the very
street, we would have been easy to spot -- shortwave antennas were
visible from the street. We remained inactive for the remainder of
1983.
In early 1984, a relay was arranged and a number of programs were
anonymously broadcast by one of the former operators of the famous
‘Voice of the Voyager’. They had been shut down for the second time in
1982 and were paying fines on an installment plan, but one operator
was able to make these relays of taped programming from a new location
far from Minnesota.
One of these programs contained our endorsement of Jesse Jackson for
the 1984 presidential nomination, pushing the Democratic Party to do
“more than just giving lip service to Black Americans.”
In June of 1984, I managed to get our own transmitter back on the air
one last time, (or maybe a couple times), doing little more than
playing whole album sides. I only recall one report of it --
a taped report of ‘Yes’ from our furthest reporter ever, located in
Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada -- a distance of over 1300 miles.
Due to continued transmitter difficulties and other interests, The
Crystal Ship then drifted into pirate radio history, having operated
sporadically for almost two years, and having issued approximately 30
QSL cards. The problem equipment was sold off and that was that. We
all went on with our lives.
Twenty years later in 2004, I was doing some business research on
Google. Just for yucks, I was inspired to type in the name of the
station, not really expecting to find anything. Naturally I was
shocked to find several different references to our station on the
internet, including a missing QSL graphic, as we had been inactive for
twenty years, and our existence pre-dated the internet by a good
number of years. This knowledge began to eat at me. To realize that
what we had done as teenagers had not been totally forgotten by the
world after all this time, gave me a huge feeling of immortality,
history and Deja Vu. At the very same time, I was intensely
frustrated with the mechanizations [sic] of the Bush administration,
the GOP Congress and the war in Iraq and felt the need to strike back
in some way. In other words, the stars were in perfect alignment for
The Crystal Ship to arise from its ashes and rise from the dead.
The emergence of the internet and eBay made vintage equipment readily
available, and easy anonymous communication and information sharing
with other pirates as well as amateur radio operators possible. By
late September 2004, The Crystal Ship made its reappearance on the
airwaves, the voices of ‘The Poet’ and ‘The Radical’ being broadcast
through a fresh Knight T-150A acquired off of eBay... (I initially
chose to buy another T-150 as I was already familiar with its
operation and some of its likely failures from the first time around.
As luck would have it, I had managed to keep most of the audio
equipment, as well as original recorded spots and QSLs safe for all
those years in-between, though other equipment was lost. Thus the QSLs
we have been issuing are from the original printing run in 1983; they
are just a tad aged.) The reemergence of the station created quite a
stir in the pirate radio listener community, particularly among the
few still around who had previously logged us in the early 1980s.
The Crystal Ship has just entered its third year of operation since
its ‘second coming,’ now utilizing Johnson plate modulated
transmitters, Valiants and a Viking 2. Due to easier Email
communication with listeners we have now issued well over 100 QSL
packages. We have been reported from all four corners of the United
States, by numerous Canadians, as well as confirmed overseas reports
from Venezuela and France. We now maintain an Email list of about 150
potential listeners, whom we sometimes tip off to broadcasts and
frequencies. Potential listeners may join the list at
tcsshortwave@gmail.com (Free Radio Scene, August 2007 CIDX Messenger
via DXLD)
Email from the International Radio Report to me: "he answered and is
neither confirming or denying. He says to watch his blog for a
statement in the next few days. I`ll wait to see what he says on his
blog. Let me know when you see it" (Artie Bigley, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
I'm now 100% sure it was The Crystal Ship that was busted. Note this
email from my friend WEAK RADIO, who was shut down a few months ago:
(Artie Bigley, OH, July 28, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Viz.:
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi Artie, I'm just now catching up with emails. I really hate to see
another pirate bust has taken place. Going by the dates indicated on
the FCC link you sent and matching them to the FRN loggings, the
station would be The Crystal Ship and the DJ goes by John Poet.
FRN posts matching FCC dates & frequencies of the bust:
http://www.frn.net/vines/Forum4/HTML/020041.html
http://www.frn.net/vines/Forum4/HTML/020087.html
WEAK (via Bigley, DXLD)
** U S A. Just a reminder to those in earshot of Chicago that Q101
(101.1) flipped to AC earlier this week and Fresh 105.9 flipped to
WBBM 780 simulcast, which is probably one of the few smart moves
anyone in Chicago radio has managed to pull off, seeing as though it's
a #1 ranked station in the market on AM (still #1 when adding in FM
ratings). (Chris Kadlec, South Korea, WTFDA via DXLD)
Unless they move it ahead, the WCFS 105.9 flip to // 780 doesn't
happen until August 1. And by then, we may find out what the real
format on 101.1 will be - the current "FM New" hot AC thing that's
running on 101.1 and on 101.9 in NYC is just a stunt. There are new
calls on both those stations, too - WKQX 101.1 is now WWWN and WRXP
101.9 is now WEMP, as of last night. s (Scott Fybush, NY, July 22,
WTFDA via DXLD)
** U S A. WFAN and WCBS went silent --- About 2140 EDT Suddenly both
880 WCBS (Yankees baseball) and 660 WFAN (Mets baseball) went silent.
At 2145 EDT WCBS was on weakly, maybe running 10% power IMHO. Distance
to both sticks from my house is 62 mi/100 km. Both are usually quite
strong here. Recheck at 2200 EDT indicates resumption of broadcasting.
(Paul S. in CT at 41N 28' 20" by 72W 54' 47", using Tecsun PL-200 UL-
RX barefoot, July 22, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Sounds like a rolling blackout; we experienced our first one here in
the Buffalo area (though I suspect not our last) today (July 23) from
about 0220-0240--also 20 minutes. The roots of some of my basil plants
have been cauterized by the morning sun heating the metal planter,
which in turn heated the soil. Guess this is the shape of things to
come. 73 de (Anne Fanelli in sticky Elma NY, ibid.)
** U S A. I was pretty much DONE with Christian radio over 15 years
ago, when I was treated like scum by the owner - simply because I was
playing Christian rock instead of his bland praise and worship format.
It was Daytona Beach, not a retirement home - and it didn't matter to
him that I was reaching young people in droves. Christian rock was
frowned upon by him and his key investors (a bunch of old fogies on
church boards in the area). So - no matter how many young people were
getting saved and changing lives - we were wrong because we didn't fit
their concept of what Christian music should be.
They are still there, playing their bland praise and worship, and
dollar for holler tapes from local pastors of dubious spirituality.
And to no listeners. Waste of a frequency. Christian artists who play
anything creative like Christian rock - unheard. The tragedy of
Christians like Katy Perry - who had to go secular to have any chance
of making a living.
Our local station KSBJ plays to the church, and even rates in the top
five. But it reaches nobody who isn't a Christian. No kids (the future
of the church) listen to the thing. WPOZ Orlando - which plays
Christian CHR and DOES reach kids - just placed on the top of the
Orlando ratings, above every secular station. You play up tempo
Christian CHR and Christian rock, and you CAN make money while
reaching young people. WPOZ is proof of that (Bruce Carter, TX, July
21, ABDX via DXLD)
Tsk2. Splitting hairs; who wants to waste time with *any* genre of
Christian music [except great classical]? A hot-button topic for
Bruce. Item about Ponzi scheme on WWCR somehow set him off on this
rant (gh, DXLD)
I was burned BAD by Sira-Pack Radio WCKI and Antelope Broadcasting
WPJM in Greer and I was DONE with Christian Radio, but now I will have
to say that Mediatrix Radio WCKI, WQIZ, & WLTQ has treated me FAR
better than anybody I have ever worked for in and out of the Radio
Biz. It is truly wonderful to work for Christians who actually
practice what they Preach on the Radio. 73, (Kevin Raper, KJ4HYD,
CE, WCKI WQIZ WLTQ, ABDX via DXLD)
There is no limitation to the fidelity of AM radio. From a
mathematical standpoint, AM does better in frequency response than FM.
- Leonard Kahn (Raper`s tagline, ibid.)
** U S A. NEW INDIAN RADIO PROGRAM IN PHOENIX AREA
I see a lot of complaining on various lists about the dearth of music
on the MW/AM band, as well as a lack of community-based programming. I
feel very blessed to live in Arizona - uh - at least in one regard.
There are a number of stations with locally produced and oriented
programs such as "Trades and Sales" on 1420 KMOG, Payson; surely a
precursor to "Craig's List" and the like. A number of excellent
stations in Tucson play "oldies". Not just the usual stuff, mind you,
but "adult standards" from the 40s-60s. After all, many stations
across the band play Jerry Lee Lewis, Three Dog Night, or The Beach
Boys, for example, but not early Dean Martin, Keeley Smith, or
recording artists from before 1955.
Over the past year, "NBC 1260" in Phoenix/Apache Junction and 1440
KAZG (Scottsdale) have been mixing the network programming with
totally local (non-political) programs.
The latest edition to all this is "Khushi Radio", heard on KAZG, that
runs during the afternoon drive time (4-6 PM [2300-0100 UT). It is a
program for the local Indian community. not "Indian" as you might
expect in Arizona (i.e., Pima, Hopi, Navajo), but as in India!
I caught the show during a recent commute and was struck right away
that music that made me think I was getting A-I-R on MW. They give a
local phone number, take phone calls over the air, and play a lot of
requests.
I find this a very enjoyable broadcast to listen to, and feel this to
be a welcome change from the usual talk-radio drivel - ESPECIALLY at
that time of day - from other stations in this market.
I wanted to report this to the ABDX list 2 weeks ago, but I could not
figure out the spelling of "Khushi" until today. In fact, over the
air, it sounded to me like they were saying "pushy" .
below is a link to their website.
http://www.radiokhushi.com/phoenix/
[Telugu and Hindi, also in Dallas on 1110]
Regards from El Mirage, AZ (Rick Barton, July 21, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. Re 11-29: ex-KBSU 730 Boise, jazz:
Impact Radio Group launching NewsRadio AM730 KINF
Home | Radio News | RADIO PROGRAMMING
The Boise-based radio group will launch of “NewsRadio AM730 KINF” by
Friday 7/22. To do this, the company bought non-comm Idaho State Board
of Education’s (Boise State University) KBSU-AM (NPR, jazz and news).
An LMA kicked in 6/24. As part of the mix, Impact is using TRN’s
America’s Morning News America’s Radio News Network for long-form
news.
Impact Manager Darrell Calton commented, “We are ecstatic about the
launch of “NewsRadio AM730 KINF”. Our local team of reporters, anchors
and partners will create a true radio news station designed for the
Treasure Valley. We should be technically ready by Friday if not
before.”
Each weekday, NewsRadio AM730 KINF will deliver ten hours of prime
time coverage featuring Idaho’s NewsFirst Team, America’s Morning
News, America’s Radio News Network and the Associated Press. The
station is partnering with the Idaho Statesman for expanded coverage
in the news room, and (another example of a big trend we recently
mentioned) KTRV-TV Channel 12 for meteorological expertise and news
room muscle and Boise Traffic.
The station will also feature TRN talkers Laura Ingraham, Rusty
Humphries, and Phil Hendrie among others.
Idaho’s NewsFirst team will be headed by newly hired PD Rick
Worthington. Worthington’s 18 year career includes hard core news
experience with KFBK in Sacramento and a five year stint as News
Director for the News/Talk juggernaut 780 KKOH in Reno. Jay Howell has
been appointed News Director. Howell’s stops include WFLA/Tampa, WSM-
AM/Nashville, KARN/Little Rock, and KBOI here in Boise.
Rounding out anchor and reporter duties are Kimberly James and Mike
Sharp. James brings 25 years of journalism and Anchor skills with a
history of work at ABC News, ABC International, and in the markets of
Los Angeles, Dallas, San Diego, San Antonio and at KBOI-AM in Boise.
Impact also O&Os Adult Hits KSRV-FM (Bob-FM), Rhythmic Top 40 KWYD
(Wild 101), Alternative KQLZ (V99.1), Regional Mexican KPDA (La
Poderosa), Talk/Sports KSRV-AM/Ontario, OR and KMHI/Mountain Home, ID
AM 1240 (source? via Kevin Redding, ABDX via DXLD)
** U S A. BROWN STUDENT RADIO STATION BSR TO GO ONLINE-ONLY AUGUST 1
All of a sudden Providence, Rhode Island is ground zero for the latest
round of changes regarding terrestrial college radio stations. Earlier
this summer it was announced that Bryant University was taking its
student station, WJMF, off of the FM airwaves in order to allow WGBH
to use the frequency for a simulcast of its classical public radio
station WCRB 99.5 All Classical (I’ll have more on that story later
this week).
And now, Brown University’s student radio station BSR has announced
that it will be losing its FM home of 14 years on WELH 88.1 FM. Brown
Student and Community Radio (BSR), will go online-only as of August 1,
2011 after losing its contract with WELH’s license holder, The Wheeler
School. Interestingly, WELH recently boosted their power to 4000
watts, potentially making their frequency more attractive to potential
well-heeled radio suitors. . .
http://www.radiosurvivor.com/2011/07/25/brown-student-radio-station-bsr-to-go-online-only-august-1/
(via Kevin Redding, ABDX via DXLD)
** U S A. DR. DEMENTO CONNECTED THE LINK BETWEEN SILLY AND SERIOUS
http://houston.culturemap.com/newsdetail/07-23-11-rare-birds-column-fm-meets-dementia/
No static at all: On FM radio, Dr. Demento connected the link between
silly and serious
“I miss FM radio!” — Graffiti inside KTRU studio
“Me too!” — More graffiti inside KTRU studio
I’m always going to remember my adolescence as a period where I was
forever changed by FM radio. When MTV dropped in 1981, my family
didn’t have cable television. Yes, you read that correctly, no cable
television. I’ll wait if you need a moment to recover.
So in my teens instead of “music television,” FM radio was my primary
resource for an education in creative music.
My perception of what music even “was” was broadened considerably
during those teenage years, thanks in part to a “perfectly normal” yet
nearly hermetic lifestyle I embraced, armed only with a pair of
headphones clamped tightly to my skull. I spent a lot of time alone
listening to truly smart DJs like Dr. Demento, whose so-called novelty
music radio show, “The Dr. Demento Show,” broadcast weekly on Sunday
nights via QFM 96 (“WE ROCK COLUMBUS!”).
Yes, that’s right. The two-hour Dr. Demento Show came on at 9 p.m. on
a school night, and I tuned in religiously and, thanks to the
aforementioned headphones, surreptitiously. Needless to say, I spent
most of my daylight hours in junior high school trying hard not to
fall asleep.
As I’m typing, Microsoft Word’s “spell check” is dutifully flagging —
with a red squiggly underline — the word “Demento," which just goes to
show you how sick our society truly is. What is “wrong,” such as a
“wrong” note or a “wrong” use of grammar, is also quite often deemed
“silly.” And silly is suspect; a waste of time. Or at best, a
“novelty” that provides only temporary amusement before one grows up
and learns to take life seriously.
Dr. Demento instilled in me the belief that “silly” is good. The
medium of radio broadcasting presented “silly” as a transcendent
experience, while cluing me in to some tricks and techniques that
eventually found their way into my own musical output. Especially when
it came to creative recording and mixing.
As a budding electronic / experimental / avant-garde composer, was I
digging Stockhausen, Varèse and Boulez? Nope. I was taping and
analyzing “Fish Heads,” “Pencil Neck Geek,” and “They’re Coming To
Take Me Away – Ha Haaa!” songs I would not have heard otherwise if it
weren’t for Dr. Demento, one of our country’s great
ethnomusicologists.
In each of the good doctor’s broadcasts, there were so many profound
cultural signifiers running through what on the surface sounded like
two hours of lunatics raving on the radio. Great Jewish comedians
connected to instrumental virtuosos leading inevitably into polkas
only to be transformed into garage and punk rock (“Punk Polka” by The
Toons is a great example of what I’m describing).
But honestly, as a (sleepy) teenager, all of this heady subtext went
over my head. It would be years later, after I’d become a fan of great
musicologists like Alan Lomax, Ned Sublette, Robert Palmer, and Amiri
Baraka before I would understand the profundity of what I had listened
to alone in my bedroom.
As opposed to our current “on demand” age where most people are now
conditioned to expect anything and everything as a high-speed
download, there was a whole ritual that surrounded radio broadcasts
and the time and space one had to create to listen. You had to tune in
at a specific time in order to hear all of this weird music. Put on a
set of headphones in a darkened room, and the experience is intensely
transcendent. If you closed your eyes, you forgot you were in your
bedroom or on planet Earth.
Along with artists like Stan Freberg, Tom Lehrer, Allen Sherman and
Spike Jones, Dr. Demento played lo-fi to completely homemade cassette
recordings by his loyal “dementions and dementites,” including the
first ever parody songs by one “Weird Al” Yankovic whose accordion
fueled send up of The Knack’s hit “My Sharona,” retitled “My Bologna,”
was first aired on the show. (By the way, have you visited the Texas
Polka Museum?)
The leap from “silly” to so-called “serious” music, be it electronic
composition, musique concrète or whatever you call music that didn’t
extol the virtues of fish heads or dead puppies, isn’t a big one. And
in fact, Dr. Demento made this explicit by dedicating an entire show
to the music of American composer Frank Zappa shortly after his
passing. And once in a while, the doctor would even drop some of the
then new avant-pop music like “Pocket Calculator” by the ground
breaking German band Kraftwerk. That’s how I first heard of them.
Come to think of it, I also first heard avant-garde composer and
performance artist Laurie Anderson’s “O Superman” on the Dr. Demento
show. Years later, at my audition for the composition program at
Capital University’s Conservatory of Music, the man who would become
my composition professor told me after I’d mentioned I liked Laurie
Anderson, that he considered “O Superman” to be one of the great art
songs of the 20th century.
Ding! I knew I had found my people. Or at least a composition
professor who would have some patience for my unorthodox pre-
collegiate music education.
So what’s Dr. Demento up to now? Check out his lively website. He’s
still demented.
Here’s a track from my CD Saints & Devils that was created as a sort
of homage to the ritual and magic of radio listening. The voice you
hear is the mysterious Sister Leisha, “God’s healer and messenger,”
who ran her business out of a brown mobile home behind a correctional
facility (via Kevin Redding, ABDX via DXLD)
I have fond memories of Dr. Demento. In the mid 70's in Midland, TX, I
had to wait until an Odessa 97.9 shut down before I could get KZEW
from Dallas - and I think Dr. Demento was a staple on that, or perhaps
on another distant Dallas station KERA 90.1. Hard to remember after
this long which station it was. Both were tremendously good, a rock
import show was my introduction to Kraftwerk and other European
artists. It was KERA that had a heavy soul and mellow jazz show. As
word began to spread, and more people secured the necessary equipment
- a small but loyal following started for those and other Dallas
stations - with deep fringe antennas popping up in neighborhoods all
over town (Bruce Carter, TX, ibid.)
Two people in the past 48 hours who reminded me of Dr. Demento, who I
heard for years on 95X in Syracuse, and from Rochester during my
college years before that. First, on Facebook, British cultural
commentator Norman Lebrecht posted a link to a George Formby video;
Formby was often heard on Dr. D's shows, of course! And now, this
article...thanks so much! I'll be kind and give that video link, too--
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBms2hwK9n0&feature=related
(Marie Lamb, Syracuse NY, ibid.)
** U S A. Es question: Do LPFMs have commercial breaks? Need help
IDing a station --- During today's Es, I heard an ad on 96.7 FM for
Bullock Toyota, which is located in Louisville, MS (per search on
Toyota's website). The closest 96.7 to Louisville is WNNN-LP
Noxapater, MS, 73 watts at 8 miles from Louisville. Normally, I'd be
assured I logged WNNN due to the local ad, but the fact that it is an
LPFM has me wondering if they can, legally, run local advertisements
for companies (save for announcements from nonprofit
clubs/organizations)?
The closest 96.7 FM to Bullock Toyota is 78 miles away (in Pontotoc,
MS), and there are 5 Toyota dealerships within a 70-mile radius to
that station, 1 only 17 miles away. Therefore, the chances of that
station airing Bullock's advertisement is probably slim to none. There
seems to be enough dealerships in MS to a point where a station would
not air a very distant dealership's ad.
I think I'm going to log it as WNNN, unless someone says that there's
no chance WNNN could've aired a spot for a local car dealership 8
miles away per FCC rules or something! Something else to consider, I
got 107.1 WLSM from Louisville, MS in the same opening, from the same
market as WNNN is, so this almost solidifies the 'what ifs' in my mind
with logging WNNN. I just thought I'd ask in case this raises a red
flag with someone in regard to LPFMs and advertisements (David Pierce,
July 24, WTFDA via DXLD)
A LPFM (96.7 in Ashaway, RI) that is co-owned with a commercial AM
that gets bought by car dealerships my radio station does business
with, airs advertisements --- but without specific prices. I am
guessing that WNNN was what you heard (Adam Rivers, ibid.)
Thanks for the quick reply, Adam! That seals it -- I'm logging it as
WNNN. Pretty cool -- it's my 2nd LPFM via Es. I suspect that I also
nabbed a translator today, but I haven't gotten to going over the
recordings yet. The opening here (into MS/LA/TX) was pretty strong,
causing an LA station to obliterate my local blowtorch 50kw on 95.5
FM, the 2nd station to do so in 12 years of DXing. Log report/website
updates to come soon on the list (David Pierce, Woodbridge, VA FM18,
http://fmradiodx.wordpress.com/ ibid.)
I could send you a recording of a different portion of today's
reception of WTQT-LP-94.9-LA in which they ran 3. The only other LP I
have logged however didn't run any - it was strictly community and
public service (Russ Edmunds, WB2BJH, 15 mi NW of Philadelphia PA,
ibid.)
The rules say LPFMs are noncommercial and must therefore abide by the
same underwriting rules as other noncommercial stations - no mention
of prices, no comparatives ("we have the best Toyota lineup in town"),
no calls to action ("come on down to West 99th Street").
In practice, not all LPFMs (or all full-power noncomms, for that
matter) comply with the rules, which are vague at best. s (Scott
Fybush, NY, ibid.)
WCKK/Walnut Grove, MS? It's a C2, and I know it's on. I have heard
it while in Central Mississippi. Country. WNNN-LP has filed to move to
95.7 (Peter, N4LI, Baskind, TN, ibid.)
Drats! Found out on LPFMDatabase.com that WNNN-LP 96.7 has been silent
since 5/21/11. It probably was WCKK, a relog only 38 miles from the
aforementioned Toyota dealership, even though 2 are closer (but only
by a few miles in different directions). Even with this
disappointment, I can still revel in logging a new translator today
via Es. Thanks for your help Peter and everyone on the list (David
Pierce, Woodbridge, VA FM18, ibid.)
David, Yes, WCKK it is. 44 kW. Their transmitter is actually north of
Walnut Grove, and roughly 20 miles from Louisville, MS, and Louisville
is within the 60db (1 mv/m) contour. I logged WCKK (a.k.a. Kicks 96)
here in Poughkeepsie, NY June 25th (Chris, ibid.)
** U S A. 940, FLORIDA, WLQH, Chiefland. 1656 July 21, 2011. Surprised
to hear this one, barely squeaking through mostly nulled WINZ, Miami
with the Beatles "Things We Said Today" and slogan "The New WZCC" (the
1240 station simulcast here). Listed as 779 watts on day power (Terry
L Krueger, Clearwater, Florida, USA, 27.55.83 N, 82.46.08 W,
Florida DX News and "Florida Low Power Radio Stations" are at:
http://sites.google.com/site/floridadxn/ DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. BROADCASTERS BACK TO THE NEW WORLD TRADE CENTER?
Once upon a time in an earlier incarnation as WPIX-FM, 101.9 was among
the first FM stations to move its transmitter to the World Trade
Center - and later, as WQCD, 101.9 became the first FM to return from
the Trade Center to the Empire State Building to escape some of the
multipath problems that existed with FM from Manhattan's southern tip.
It has, of course, been almost a decade since the remaining FMs at the
Trade Center were so abruptly and tragically forced to move their
sites elsewhere, but now one of those FMs is at least talking about
coming back. In a New York Times article last week, managers at
Columbia University's WKCR (89.9) raised the possibility that they
might look at moving their transmitter from its current home at Four
Times Square down to the new 1 World Trade Center skyscraper when it's
completed soon.
We hadn't heard much talk about broadcast operations from the new 1WTC
since the early stages of planning, when it appeared that the city's
TV stations (working under the Metropolitan Television Alliance
banner) were planning to build a new master DTV site there to replace
the somewhat makeshift DTV facilities that were built at the Empire
State Building in the years after 9/11. But the MTVA's plans had
become hazy in more recent years; building a new master DTV site is an
expensive proposition, after all, in an era when most New Yorkers get
local TV from cable or satellite and when the Empire facilities, if
not perfect, seemed to be functioning well enough.
There had been little talk at all about a new master FM operation at
1WTC. Commercial broadcasters were well aware that the signals that
had been at WTC before 9/11 had experienced reception problems in
parts of midtown Manhattan, and the cost of building a new master FM
facility to replace or supplement the excellent facilities at Empire
(and backups at Four Times Square) would have been prohibitive.
The cost of a new standalone FM facility for WKCR would surely be
quite high, too, and WKCR's managers tell the Times they still haven't
done all the research to determine whether the move would be
financially possible. And so for now, we'll file away WKCR's talk of a
move as an interesting possibility that appears to be a long way from
reality (Scott Fybush, NE Radio Watch July 25 via DXLD)
** VANUATU. 3945, Radio Vanuatu, 1210 July 22. Presumed a devotional
ending with “God bless” at 1215, followed by music and announcements
til 1217 anthem to close. Poor, occasional QRM from weather ham net
(Harold Sellers, Vernon, British Columbia, Listening from my car with
Eton E1 and Sony AN1 active antenna. Editor of World English Survey
and Target Listening, available at http://www.odxa.on.ca dxldyg via DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
** VATICAN. *Novo** esquema de transmissões em ondas curtas da Rádio
Vaticano* *em**esperanto* [asterisked sic]
A Rádio Vaticano divulgou seu novo esquema de transmissões em
esperanto em ondas curtas. Os programas vão ao ar às quartas, quintas
e domingos, às 16:20 (Brasília) ou 1920 (UT).
Às quartas e quintas, as freqüências são 5980 e 7360 kHz.
Aos domingos as emissões são feitas em 4005, 5885, 7250, 9645 e 13765
kHz. A produção e a apresentação estão a cargo do esperantista
italiano Carlo Sarandrea. Informou: (Fabiano Henrique, Niterói - RJ,
25 July, radioescutas yg via DXLD)
I.e. Wed & Thu 1920 on 5980 and 7360;
Sunday 1920 on 4005, 5885, 7250, 9645, 13765
We compare this to the A-11 printed schedule of VR, which we are still
receiving direct in the P-mail with some delay: Deciphered, it says:
1920 until French at 1930 on same frequencies. These are all for
Europe and Mediterranean, altho the higher ones might make it to Rio.
Esperanto news on Sundays and Holy Days at 1920 on same as above plus
1530 and 93.3;
Esperanto non-news on Wed & Thu on same as above plus 1260, 1611. In
other words, the above schedule is NOT new (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
** VENEZUELA. Futuro Centro de Ondas Cortas Simón Bolívar (COCSB) de
Radio Nacional de Venezuela --- They are coming soon ---- Noticias más
concretas sobre el proyecto. Escucha los audios. 73
http://diexismovenezolano.blogspot.com/2011/07/venezuela-detalles-sobre-la.html
(via Horacio A. Nigro, Montevideo, Uruguay, dxldyg via DX LISTENING
DIGEST) Viz.:
VENEZUELA: Detalles sobre la programación de Centro Ondas Cortas Simón
Bolívar de Radio Nacional de Venezuela. sábado 23 de julio de 2011
IMAGEN: MAQUETA DE LO QUE SERA EL CENTRO DE ONDAS CORTAS SIMON BOLIVAR
(COCSB) DE RADIO NACIONAL DE VENEZUELA, QUE DIFUNDIRA EL CANAL
INTERNACIONAL. [caption of architect`s model]
Jean Carlos Pereira en su programa INNOVAMUNDO RADIO que se emite por
el canal RNV MUSICAL 880 kHz en Caracas, entrevistó a Daniel Peralta,
Jefe del Canal Internacional de Radio Nacional de Venezuela.
Entre los anuncios resalta: que para finales de Octubre o principios
de Noviembre debe estar listo el centro de transmisores y antenas
ubicado en el Estado Guárico, conocido como CENTRO DE ONDAS CORTAS
SIMON BOLIVAR (COCSB). Los programas serán producidos en Caracas y vía
satélite serán enviados a dicho centro.
Las transmisiones en ondas cortas tendrán: un programa diario en
español de 2 horas de duración que serán emitidos varias veces al día
y un programa en idioma inglés, el cual tendrá una duración de media
hora e igualmente se transmitiran en varios horarios. En una primera
etapa tendrán 6 ejes de transmision: 3 para Norteamérica y 3 para
Sudamérica. En un futuro se tienen planes de emitir en Portugués,
Francés y posiblemente en Quéchua y Guanari. [sic]
En la programación en español se emitirá diariamente una revista
informativa, 20 minutos con discurso del Presidente Chavéz y programas
musicales de media hora alternandos con música del caribe,
latinoamérica y venezolana.
Fuente: http://innovamundoradio.jimdo.com/
Este es el audio de la entrevista del programa Innovamundo. del
13/07/2011:
VENEZUELA: Imágenes captadas con Google Earth del Centro Simón Bolívar
de Ondas Cortas de Radio Nacional de Venezuela en Las Mercedes Estado
Guárico.
http://diexismovenezolano.blogspot.com/2010/06/venezuela-imagenes-captadas-con-google.html
(via Horacio Nigro, dxldyg via DXLD) Note: those are over a year old
The audio is very low on both clips via embedded players, so I had to
put on headset and turn the volume all the way up. My summary
translations:
First one is 10 minutes from 13 July 2011, interview with Daniel
Peralta, chief of RNV Canal Internacional;
The new station is in response to ``systematic attacks on our
country``. Model is RHC, which went 24 hours after the Honduran coup,
as the `only source` for the Honduran people on what was really
happening. Everything should be ready to go by the end of October or
beginning of November 2011. Programming will be fed live via satellite
from Caracas. There will be a 2-hour program in Spanish repeated
several times, including one hour of news, 20 minutes daily of
speeches by Chávez, and 30 minutes of music: 2 days a week from
Caribbean, 2 days from Venezuela, and 2 days from the rest of Latin
America.
Also half an hour daily in English, repeated several times. Later
Portuguese and French, and later still Quechua and Guarani like RHC.
[so at last English will no longer be mixed in with Spanish!]
Three antenna beams each toward the north and the south. Will cover
all of N, C and S America, and reach DXers everywhere else.
Earlier 18-minute interview of 28 June last year, 2010, with Jhon
[sic] Paez, in charge of the construxion:
Mostly explaining what SW is. There will be four 100 kW transmitters
covering 6-21 MHz. There is room for six. Antennas will cover 6-11 or
11-21 MHz. Plans to add tropical band too for closer coverage.
Mentions 3 x 50 kW for that. China supplied all the equipment; Cubans
are helping install it. There are 30 construxion workers and seven
maintenance personnel on site. Big building of 2,600 square
somethings. The site covers 100 hectares, needs lots of room for
antennas, whose towers are 100m tall and 100m apart. There will be 15
fixed antennas, aimed at such places as Los Ángeles, San Francisco,
New York, Brasília, Santiago, Buenos Aires. Frequencies will vary, not
selected yet. Project began in 2005 or 2006, should be all ready by
the beginning of 2012y (Glenn Hauser, WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
If this isn't just smoke, could it be the source of the carrier tests?
Or is it still believed to be from an ex-Yugo xmtr manufacturer?
(Terry Krueger, FL, July 27, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Propagationally, those didn`t ``feel`` to me like they were coming
from South America. I suspect RNV aren`t that far along yet (Glenn
Hauser, ibid.)
** VENEZUELA [non!]. 11705, July 24 at 1237, RNV via CUBA missing,
maybe because it`s Sunday? But not required due to transmitter usage.
RHC audible as usual on 6000, 6150, 9550, 11690, 11760, 11830, 12040,
15120, 15230, 15360. Latest news from Venezuela is that their own site
should be on the air by the end of this year, a couple years late.
11705, July 26 at 1257, RNV via CUBA again missing; might have just
signed off but normally runs late rather than early. How about the
next broadcast at 1500 on 11680? NO, not there either July 26 at 1504
--- just some North Korean operatic singing.
Now we need to confirm whether any of the other RNV transmissions are
still on the air. During its entire existence, RNV has NEVER been
willing or able to publish or announce its own schedule accurately!
Instead it was assembled by monitoring by yours truly, and
subsequently published by WRTH and other references, including the
WRTH A-11 update v.2; the nominal schedule has really not changed at
all in many years, and regardless of season:
``Summer Schedule 2011
Spanish/English Days Area kHz
1000-1100 daily Am 6180hab
1100-1200 daily Am 6060hab
1200-1300 daily Am 11705hab
1500-1600 daily Am 11680hab [this one was always missing on Sundays]
1900-2000 daily Am 15290hab
2000-2100 daily Am 17705hab
2200-2300 daily Am 11670hab
2300-2400 daily Am 13680hab, 15250hab``
Re my previous report, RNV via CUBA missing: we have checked most of
the scheduled broadcasts and they are all missing:
``Summer Schedule 2011
Spanish/English Days Area kHz
1000-1100 daily Am 6180hab – not on July 27 at 1043
1100-1200 daily Am 6060hab - not on July 27 at 1147
1200-1300 daily Am 11705hab - not on July 27 at 1250
1500-1600 daily Am 11680hab - not on July 26 at 1504, July 27 at 1524
1900-2000 daily Am 15290hab - not checked yet [see below: not either]
2000-2100 daily Am 17705hab - not on July 26 at 2054, tho RHC was on
17560, Arabic with squeal
2200-2300 daily Am 11670hab - not on July 26 at 2259
2300-2400 daily Am 13680hab, 15250hab`` -- not on July 26 at 2330, tho
RHC itself was on 13670, et al.
We can only speculate on the reason: agreement/contract expired? El
Hugazo applied cost instead to medical bills in Cuba? RHC
transmitter(s) down and this lowest-priority service is suspended?
(Even tho RHC runs half-a-dozen simultaneously for itself.) Installing
new transmitters/antennas so some old ones have to be turned off?
Program produxion in Caracas suspended for some reason? Just summer
vacations? Saving up for expenses of own new site under construxion in
Calabozo?
Will Arnie Coro explain what`s happening on DXers Unlimited? Of course
not! He finally posted a new script on his blog for July 19, having
missed every twice-a-week since November 28, except May 8, pleading
``require valuable time required for many other duties to be used for
updating it...`` --- http://dxersunlimited.blogspot.com/
Since he keeps writing (or recycling) scripts for all the broadcasts,
merely posting them should not be that time-consuming (Glenn Hauser,
OK, WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
RNV transmissions via CUBA still AWOL July 28: 6060 at 1138, just a
weak something else, in Indonesian? No, must be the `Filipino` service
of CRI as listed in Aoki. 11705 at 1231, zilch. Finally checked the
last remaining broadcast, 1900 on 15290, and it too was absent at 1920
July 28 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** WESTERN SAHARA [non]. ALGERIAS [sic], Polisario Front on 6297.15 at
1550 UTC in Arabic, heard parallel on 1550 AM kHz (Gayle Van Horn,
July NZ DX Times via DXLD) ??? Neither frequency possibly audible in
North Carolina at that hour. Such a log would most likely have
originated with Carlos Gonçalves in Portugal, DXLD (gh, DXLD)
** ZAMBIA. 5915, ZNBC/Radio 1, *0241-0254, July 25. 0239 open carrier;
on with African Fish Eagle IS; choral Anthem; Hi-Life music; almost
fair (Ron Howard, Asilomar State Beach, CA, Etón E1, dxldyg via DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
** ZIMBABWE [non]. 4895 16.7 1850 Zimbabwe Community Radio. Gick
starkt och fint. C/d 1856. WRTH säger att man sänder via Meyerton, och
i själv annonserar de "...from studios in the United Arab Emirates".
Bägge kan ju vara riktigt, förstås... HR
4895, 16.7 1850, Zimbabwe Community Radio. Strong and fine. close/down
1856. WRTH says they broadcast via Meyerton, and in their own
advertise they say "... from studios in the United Arab Emirates ".
Both may well be true, of course (Hans Östnell, Biri, Norway, SW
Bulletin July 24, translated by editor Thomas Nilsson for DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
UNIDENTIFIED. 6025.06, unid Latin. Noted 7/21 at 0045-0120 tune/out on
ECSS-LSB, very bad splatter from both side channels (6020/6030).
Mellow pops / baladas, romantic canciones seguéd to ToH. Splatter
crescendoed at 0056 thru 0100 and lost; back again 0102 with more
seguéd instrumentals. 0112 OM with muffled announcements in Spanish.
Don't believe R Amanecer as that one has held to a signature exact
frequency of 6025.13 and is usually much stronger. Suspected a
possible Radio Patria Nueva, La Paz, Bolivia, reported here, but this
station not // the CP's web streaming bcst, for whatever that's worth.
An interesting puzzle to work on (Ralph Perry, Wheaton, Illinois,
Drake R8B; Japan Radio NRD-545; Eton E1; Hallicrafters SX100;
Knightkit Star Roamer; Dentron Super Tuner + Ameco PT-2 + Palomar P-
408 Quantum Phaser Unit; Longwires (150' + 100'); Tuned Multi-Turn 20"
Small Loop; Single-Turn Coax Loop, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST) But
see DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
UNIDENTIFIED. 6154.92, 2357-0012, July 23 /24, carrier only, in the
clear between co-channel REE off and AIR on again. Was on the exact
same frequency as previously reported in DXLD 11-16. I am aware that R
Fides is listed on 6155 but still haven't come across any definite
proof this is really them. Anyone? 73, (Martien Groot, Schoorl,
Netherlands, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
UNIDENTIFIED. I'm picking up a distorted mess on 7660 at 2300 UT.
Sounds like Chinese (Gary Drew, South Herts., July 24, dxldyg via DX
LISTENING DIGEST)
UNIDENTIFIED. 15370, July 23 at 1301 station in French news, 1302 a
clip in English mentioning al-Shabab; poor with splash from Cuba
15360. Only thing scheduled here is BBC; HFCC and EiBi say Somali via
Cyprus; Aoki says English via South Africa. All agree it`s on
Saturdays only at 1300-1600. I think I can tell French from Somali!
BBC is not scheduled on any frequency for French at this hour.
Searching latest DXLD 11-29 on 15370 gets no hits, including the
drastic site and schedule changes prompted by the Iranian armsdump
explosion on Cyprus destroying the power station and curtailing the
BBC relays. Hmmm, maybe it was really English service and the French I
heard first was the clip. Should have listened longer (Glenn Hauser,
OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) {Or, since the subject at the moment was
Somalia, maybe it was the Somali language service, with clips in
French, and English; need to check another Saturday --gh}
UNIDENTIFIED. 17715, 1250-1437 July 23, 2011. Big open carrier the
entire time. No 1000 cycle tones, just a carrier. Recheck around 1900,
presumed REE in Spanish here, and with about the same signal. REE, or
was this mystery carrier/tones station? Not on the following day in
the same time range (Terry L Krueger, Clearwater, Florida, USA,
27.55.83 N, 82.46.08 W, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
UNSOLICITED TESTIMONIALS
++++++++++++++++++++++++
Thanks for the great work (Daniel VE4XWA Gillet, with a contribution
via PayPal to woradio at yahoo.com, WORLD OF RADIO 1575)
Good day Glen[n]; hope everything is OK on your side. You know, I
always say that if one day you decide to take a vacation to Puerto
Rico, I would like to have the honor to meet you and share our very
good Puerto Rico Coffee with you.
The work you do for our hobby is just amazing.
Down here is a very good or I rather say, very selected group of short
wave listeners that take pride on such things as vintage equipment
(the old Hallicrafters, the Hammarlunds, the Chinese Radios) you name
it, as well as folks that are always testing new antennas or modeling
new antennas. You be amazed. Thumbs up for you Glenn; keep the good
work. Best 73s (Hector NP4FW Pérez, PR, July 28)
PUBLICATIONS
++++++++++++
PRE-ORDERS FOR THE 32ND AM RADIO LOG
Hi all, I got the printing estimates and we are happy to not have to
increase prices on the NRC's 32nd Edition of the AM Radio Log! We are
now accepting pre-orders for on or about September 1 mailing: via Pay
Pal at nrcdxas.org or check or Money Order to PO Box 473251, Aurora,
CO 80047-3251. The prices are below...
NRC AM Radio Log to
Member USA $19.95
Non-Member USA $25.95
Member Canada $26.00
Non-Member Canada $30.00
Overseas airmail to Western Europe & Australia New Zealand and Japan,
$34.00. All others contact us for prices.
USA orders add $3.50 for Priority Mail. Canadian orders that use
Overseas ordering will be mailed International Priority Mail. 73
(Wayne Heinen, AM Radio Log Editor, July 22, NRC-AM via DXLD)
LEE FRESHWATER'S AM LOGBOOK
Until the new NRC AM Logbook comes out, try this website:
http://www.amlogbook.com/amlog.htm
(Mark Coady, July 23, ODXA yg via DXLD)
CALL HISTORY QUESTIONS
A quick note on these sites - whether it's FCC.gov (the official FCC
site) or FCCinfo.com (an unofficial front end to the official FCC
data), they're not perfect, either: the callsign records don't
generally go back earlier than the early 1980s, and there's a stretch
in the mid-80s where the call change data was evidently never
imported, so some call changes are missing from the "official"
records. s (Scott Fybush, WTFDA via DXLD)
CURRENT PUBLIC DIPLOMACY MAGAZINE
This issue contains several articles of interest to DXers. A number of
perspectives on International Broadcasting are offered.
http://publicdiplomacymagazine.com/
(Mike Gorniak, Braham, MN, July 28, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
RADIO ID'S ON PRÓXIMA ESTACIÓN: ESPERANZA?
It is perhaps an old topic, but I am wondering about the many radio
station sound bites on Manu Chao's Próxima Estación: Esperanza album.
This is an old favourite of mine and I am wondering if any SWLs
have "ID'd" the stations on the album? Perhaps they are studio
created, not air checks. On the PBS TV show Austin City Limits in
2008, even his live show had the radio checks.
Here are a few links to the album, the whole album has snippets of
radio.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mzhgPjXAlI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ko_cJIeEUAA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcwNkLSvbKA
For those that want the whole album, you can stream it via Spotify
(free)
Even earlier (2006) is the La Primavera & Radio Bemba (LIVE) in
Brooklyn, but other than the Radio Bemba reference there are no
actual air checks. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RoV-Dy1TRsg
(Andy O`Brien, K3UK, NY, July 26, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST)
LANGUAGE LESSONS See UK: BBC PROMPTS DEBATE ON AMERICANISMS
++++++++++++++++
WORLD OF HOROLOGY Ramadan: see MOROCCO
+++++++++++++++++
CONVENTIONS & CONFERENCES
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
"XVII ENCUENTRO DIEXISTA MEXICANO" - 30 y 31 de Julio - Jalpan,
Querétaro.
TERTULIAS DX CON EL ENCUENTRO DIEXISTA MEXICANO - SABADO: 30 JULIO
17.OO UTC VIA SKYPE
Que tal amigos del Club Diexista de la Amistad, El presente es para
poner a su disposición el contacto de Skype por el cual mantendremos
la Tertulia Diexista el próximo 30 de julio
La cuenta es:
encuentro.diexista.mexicano.2011
envien sus solicitudes para incorporarlos y poder dar seguimiento a
nuestra reunión. Esperamos comunicarnos y poder estrechar lazos de
amistad con todo el mundo. Gracias y muchos saludos, René Mendoza (via
Santiago San Gil G., Venezuela, July 23, DXLD)
DIGITAL BROADCASTING --- DTV See CANADA
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
DIGITAL BROADCASTING --- DRM See AUSTRALIA; GERMANY; INDIA;
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ LUXEMBOURG; MYUANMAR; RUSSIA
RADIO EQUIPMENT FORUM
+++++++++++++++++++++
WIDEBAND LOW LEVEL SLOW 5-PER-SECOND PULSES, 6.8 TO 26 MHZ
Still hearing after 5/6 years all the wideband low level slow pulses
right across HF from ca 6.8 to over 26 MHz, with the characteristic 5
pulse per second chuff-chuff-chuff. Sometimes more like a horse
trotting, suspect multi-path or RWE round-the world-echoes. Cannot get
local ham societies IRTS or RSGB to take me seriously, though I have
complained to their interference sections!
But I was at a friend’s house a few weeks ago helping him with
antennae and lo and behold there were the same pulses loud and clear.
In fact his reception of them went up to the receiver limit of 32 MHz
which surprised me as I hear them falling off at about 26/27 MHz, but
I guess he has a lower noise location than mine.
No one in the last 5/6 years has been able to explain to me anything
about these strange low level slow pulses. They are NOT HF radar, I
well know what those intermittent narrow band (20 to 100 kHz) signals
sound like. Exception was the multi-megawatt French NOSTRADAMUS 1 MHz+
wide thing that appeared briefly ca 9.8 and 13.9 MHz in June ’09.
Again, VERY few heard it or commented on it.
But the mystery of the slow rate wideband pulsed transmissions (with a
strange spectrum of peaks about 39.5 kHz apart with max/min variation
of about 6dB fascinates me, and I reckon from a SE direction DX,
probably China (Hainan?). Above might be some interest to you.
Regards, (Des Walsh, Dublin, Ireland, July 25 2011, DX LISTENING
DIGEST)
Quite a mystery, but China is not southeast from you. The question is
whether this could be of nearby origin around Dublin, hence not heard
elsewhere in Europe?? Have you looked for it further away? (Glenn
Hauser, DXLD)
MY ANTENNA REPLACEMENT DOCUMENTATION
I made up a small webpage describing my adventures with my fallen
antennas this spring/summer and their resurrection, along with some
pix and 1 video. Enjoy!
http://dxinfocentre.com/etc/antenna/AntennaProject.html
Bill Hepburn. (William R Hepburn (VEM3ONT22), Grimsby ON CAN 43 10
59.4 -79 33 34.5, http://dxinfocentre.com/hepburn/ July 20, WTFDA via
DXLD)
PIRATE RADIO TOWER MADE FROM A RECYCLED SHIPPING CONTAINER!
http://inhabitat.com By Lori Zimmer July 18, 2011
Even the radio world is taking to recycling! Take a look at this radio
tower made from a recycled shipping: http://fb.me/T1goYbVi
(via Mike Terry, dxldyg via DXLD) in Australia
WIRE THEFT
This is a news story from our website - pertains to theft of telephone
wire, but for those who have longwires or especially Beverages up, is
copper-wire theft as much of a problem in your part of the world as it
is in southern Missouri?
http://ksmu.org/article/phone-line-suddenly-dead-contact-authorities-asap
(Randy Stewart, Arts Producer, KSMU, 901 S. National, Springfield MO
65897, July 22, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
Yes, this has always been a concern of mine, but so far out here, no
problems with copper wire theft. The weight of the copper-clad stuff I
use after melting the insulation off the wire would not add up to much
money. The big heavier cables are worth so much more (Patrick Martin,
Seaside OR, ibid.)
Up here in Mid-Missouri, copper thieves have been taking down phone
lines 200 feet at a stretch. They're also targeting warehouses and
even agricultural irrigation systems for $15,000-$30,000 worth of pipe
and wire at a time (Tim Kridel, IRCA via DXLD)
METHOD OF MOMENTS? A question for the engineering gurus
AM STATION APPLICATIONS FOR MODIFICATION OF LICENSE GRANTED
P 680 KHZ MO, ST. JOSEPH MO BMML-20110511AHO KFEQ 34419 EAGLE
COMMUNICATIONS, INC. Method of Moments
Here KFEQ 680 is asking for an application to be granted to qualify
something called Method of Moments. I have never heard of this and
would love to have one of you radio engineers to explain it to me
(Kevin Redding, Crump. TN, ABDX via DXLD)
Very, very short-form answer: the classic way of putting a new
directional AM signal on the air involved a laborious process of
"proofing," requiring hundreds of measurements to be taken on the
signal to make sure it matches the designed parameters.
The new way of putting a directional AM signal on the air is to use
computer modeling. This has been possible at the design stage for
years, but it's only in the last couple of years that the FCC has
allowed stations to be built and certified according to computer
modeling, eliminating the need for the old "full proof."
You'll be seeing an increasing number of these "method of moments"
applications being filed, reflecting the relative ease of computer
modeling versus the laborious old way of doing things. (And as you can
see in the case of KFEQ, it's possible to model an existing array and
relicense it using computer modeling; it doesn't have to apply only to
new arrays.) s (Scott Fybush, WXXI NY, ibid.)
A GREAT GOOGLE EARTH FEATURE: SHOW ELEVATION PROFILE
Here's a great feature of Google Earth worthy of mentioning. And also
before I forget how to use it :-) It would be of interest to FM/TV
(VHF/UHF) dxers & probably SW DXers too, given that most intended long
distance SW transmissions arrive at a low angle of elevation.
The feature is called: 'Show Elevation Profile'. You'll find it under
the EDIT menu in GE. To use it you have to follow this procedure.
1. Using the Ruler Function. Draw a line between two points.
Preferably for test purposes, between a mountain range. Then Save that
Line.
2. Now click on: 'Show Elevation Profile' under the EDIT menu.
3. A new window opens within Google Earth showing elevation heights
across the marked line length.
4. Simply move the mouse across the Elevation Window to show the
height data across the marked line length.
Enjoy (Ian Baxter, NSW, July 27, shortwavesites yg via DXLD)
NOV 9 2011 - USA NATIONAL EAS TEST DAY 2 PM EST
November 9th might be an interesting radio day. According to this page
on the FCC site
http://www.fcc.gov/encyclopedia/emergency-alert-system-nationwide-test
...a nationwide test of the US "Emergency Alert System" will take
place on Wednesday, November 9th 2011. The test will issue a message
from the president through a combination of entry through a
combination of Primary Entry Point stations and a satellite feed
through NPR. A more technical explanation is located here...
http://radiomagonline.com/studio_audio/EAS/eas_national_test_details_0623/
Just posting this as something to mark in your calendars. 73 (Sean,
VE3OZL, ODXA yg via DXLD)
SHORTWAVE BECOMING OBSOLETE
Sorry, had to share this article as it mentions Shortwave (and a lot
of other technologies) becoming basically obsolete. A lot of Yahoo's
'news' is garbage anyway, but it confirms what I believe is what the
'average' person, at least in the US, sees as trends. Shortwave is
mostly dead here in the US, but I'm only 32 and am trying to pass it
on to my little girls also. I'm pretty sure most of my generation is
disinterested, and most of my children's generation will be too, but
hopefully we'll keep it alive anyway.
The interesting thing about shortwave 'dying' is that it's really
moreso in the more economically wealthy nations that this seems to be
the case. In my opinion, this shows the disconnect between us and
those who rely on long distance, over-the-air communications. I'd much
rather get news and programming from the source, rather than through
the lens of someone else. Though imperfect as a source, shortwave does
provide one less layer of someones opinion. Instead of hearing only
Yahoo's or Faux News, or Reuters interpretation of an international
event, with shortwave I get the opportunity to hear something closer
to the source of an event, or at least another point of view. As an
example, I like to hear N. Korea's propagandistic view or Voice of
Russia's on Libya (as of late), not because I agree, but because it's
different. I get a chance to hear what the opposition is saying from
them, as opposed to from the lens of some news agency.
Anyway, as everyone can tell, I could ramble on.... but if you've made
it this far, you deserve to have me at least share the link, FWIW
http://shopping.yahoo.com/articles/yshoppingarticles/648/100-things-your-kids-may-never-know-about/
(therealisttruest, dxldyg via DXLD)
I do share your point of view though my foreign listening is usually
ABC or RNZI at 3 to 6 AM EDT. Not much interesting let alone pertinent
media in the US at that time unless I go out for the local paper at 5
AM (sigh) (Paul S. in CT, ibid.)
NEW FORD AUTO RADIOS-THE FUTURE?
I just heard on the news that Ford will be dropping their CD players
for only internet radios, Ipods, etc. I wonder how long it will be
until AM or FM gets dropped? Things are changing. The cassette lasted
a long time in car radios, and now a shorter time for CDs. CDs aren't
selling all that well any longer either as most people download their
music off the internet. Even with AM & FM included in car radios, how
many people will continue to listen to regular radio? I know of
several people now that never listen to radio. They download
everything at home, in the car, and at the office (Patrick Martin,
Seaside OR, KGED QSL Manager, NRC-AM via DXLD)
I'm waiting for an auto radio with a USB port in it. Or is that
already available? (Mark Durenberger, ibid.)
I thought I saw one on a HD radio a few years back. If they're going
to leave the CD player out they'd darned well better provide a port
for a USB stick. Gas is expensive enough, if I have to pay $60/mo.
for a mobile broadband subscription for the car radio to work I'm
going to have to think about a second job<grin>! -- (Doug Smith W9WI,
Pleasant View, TN EM66, ibid.)
This could be a bonus if the buyer could convince them to knock some
money off the car for NO radio, and then install an aftermarket.
Speaking of aftermarket, a long time ago, when this list was first
started, there was a discussion about Blaupunkt Car Radios. In
specific, one that had LW, AM, and SW on it. I always regret not
getting one when they were available. I would have been cool to have
that in the dash. Oh well.
GM has an 1/8" stereo for connecting your iPod INTO the radio, so you
can listen to the iPod on the car speakers. They also have RCA jacks
on the back which are suppose to be used for feeding a large amp.
Since I don't like loud systems, I used mine for recording off the
radio.
But I agree, a USB would be cool. And you wonder with Onstar, when
they will feature internet connectivity in vehicles. Or is that why I
have to give up channels 34 to 51 next? :) (Fred Vobbe, Lima OH,
ibid.)
My Honda Odyssey has one of those 1/8th inch jacks also. I have my 2
meter radio plugged into it. Especially useful to tune into the
National WX Service when you can't wait for the local news channel.
73 de (Joe Miller KJ8O Troy Michigan, ibid.)
Yes, the new Fords will or do have that USB port. They showed it on TV
(Patrick Martin, Seaside OR, ibid.)
MUSEA
+++++
LAST CALL TO SAVE WORLD'S BEST RADIO QTH
Fellow Hams, We are in danger of losing perhaps the world's best radio
location QTH - old WOO Ocean Gate, NJ AT&T Long Lines transmitting
site.
Just brief outline. The site is on the mouth of Toms River flowing
into the Barnegat Bay, just below of town of Toms River. It is
peninsula about 175 acres, surrounded by another about 200 acres of
salty marshes. Channels supply salt water to flood the plain.
Absolutely quiet, no man made noise. See the photos at
http://www.teslaradio.org/site.htm
Two story building, like a fortress was housing 10 and 50 kW
transmitters that fed some 45 Rhombics, 5 Discones, two wire LP on
100' towers, with 1 5/8 heliax. Building has about 2 acre fenced off
area. Building and antenna fields were designated historical sites.
There will be no residential or industrial developments there.
The site was leased to Tesla Radio Foundation and Museum by the
township, for two years, and then extended for five years. More info
about the project is at www.TeslaRadio.org web site. We were trying
to have the AT&T and Tesla Museum, Club house and competitive M/M
station there. I was not able to devote planned time and resources
to get the project off the ground due to family and business
problems and commitments. There was some vandalism done to the site.
Township is getting concerned that not much was done to preserve the
site and is looking for more reassurances that project will be
progressing.
What I have done so far, we have registered NFP Foundation 501 (c)3,
have a bank account, PO Box 9, calls N2EE and NT1E. Now with my
involvement with MountainView Resort and getting up in the age, I
will not be able to devote as much time as I was hoping for
(retiring there). We are trying to solicit more members and work
with other Tesla groups, but more hands and heads are needed.
This is perhaps last call trying to save this magnificent and
historical site and build world best radioclub station.
I can see some possibilities:
1. Expand the club with active members, solicit donations.
2. Group or club take over, perhaps Curacao style (shares).
3. Someone purchase the building and site.
4. ???
I am willing to help in any way I can, especially in the technical
aspects, antenna and station design, logistics, etc. I have rigs and
hardware to equip MM.
We also have nice, historical beach house around the corner from the
site, which we would consider selling. Perfect place for contester
to retire and dominate the bands.
If you are interested and can help, please come to our Tesla
Radiofest BBQ this Saturday, July 23, at MountainView Resort in Glen
Spey, NY http://www.MVmanor.com and lets try to figure out how to save
this Radio Jewell.
Yuri Blanarovich, K3BU, President Tesla RC, cell 973 220 0087
(From Topband list, July 21, via Nick Hall-Patch, BC, IRCA via DXLD)
DAVENTRY ARTS FESTIVAL CELEBRATES THE HISTORY OF BBC WORLD SERVICE IN
THE TOWN --- A new exhibition about the World Service in Daventry is
at the iCon Environmental Innovation Centre.
Northampton Chronicle & Echo 24 July 2011
http://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/news/daventry_arts_festival_celebrates_the_history_of_bbc_world_service_in_the_town_1_2895913
“Radio gave us the power to get under a cell door and get to someone
who had literally disappeared for years,” says broadcaster John Waite,
discussing his historic broadcast on the World Service for his cousin
Terry Waite while he was held in captivity in Beirut.
John, Terry and Sir John Tusa, who was managing director of the BBC’s
World Service from (1986 to 1992), visited the iCon Centre in
Daventry, for a special event celebrating the history of the World
Service in town this week, as part of Daventry’s first Arts Festival
to celebrate the Cultural Olympiad.
The service has a long history in the town starting as the BBC Empire
Service (now the BBC World Service) in 1932, where broadcasts were
transmitted from Borough Hill until 1992, having been chosen for its
central location in the country.
The radio announcement of “Daventry calling” made Daventry familiar to
millions of listeners across the world, especially during the Second
World War, where crucial information was broadcast.
It was also visited by humanitarian Terry Waite, following his release
after years in captivity between 1987 and 1991, to thank staff working
for the World Service.
While spending 1,763 days captivity he was kept in solitary
confinement, tortured and endured mock executions, his only lifeline
to the outside world was the World Service.
“I got a radio in the last few weeks but I spent most of the time
prior to that in silence.
“You long to know what is happening,” he said.
“You learn to live from within, I wrote my first book in my head in
those years.
“But I was given information from the World Service before that, as we
[fellow hostages John McCarthy and Brian Keenan] used to communicate
by tapping on the wall in Morse Code and they used to tap news from
the World Service to me through the wall.
“The first time they spelled out their name and I spelled mine back,
at the time I regretted the first letters of my names were so far down
the alphabet.
“I heard about the end of apartheid and about the Berlin Wall coming
down through them.
“We need to remember never to get too depressed about situations
because enormous changes can take place, who would have thought the
Murdoch empire would be challenged in such a dramatic way?”
It was also through the World Service that Terry was able to hear a
special broadcast from his cousin John, bringing him news of his
family.
John Waite said: “When we learned from his fellow captives that he was
alive and could hear the World Service, we were able to get the
message his mother was fine and some information about his children
and played some of his favourite music.
“We couldn’t be too obvious in case his captors heard. I will never
forget it, it was the high point of my career.”
Terry said: “I didn’t want my mother to die while I was in captivity,
and it was important to me to hear my children had gone to university.
I didn’t want them to suffer because I was away and wanted them to go
to university and get their degrees.”
Radio also meant it was John’s voice that Terry heard when he was
freed. John said: “Apparently when the door opened and the guard came
to say you are going home he was listening to me, so that was amazing.
“The World Service is literally a life saver it saved Terry’s life and
it saved Aung San Suu Kyi. We tend to forget in this country that
there are millions of people in the world to which it provides a
lifeline of truth and reliable information. We can sometimes be blasè
about the amount information we can access but for some people that is
not the case.”
Terry also continues to hold the World Service in high regard. “We
looked to the World Service as the most reliable service to find out
what was going on in the world, “ he said. “The big tragedy today is
that the World Service is suffering enormous cuts.
“It is trusted and does important work around the world, both Nelson
Mandela and Aung San Suu Kyi listened to it while they were in
captivity.”
Sir John Tusa, said: “People need to know what is going on in the
world and the World Service does that correctly and fairly. Daventry
has an important part of the World Service’s history, and is one of
those historic names which will always be associated with it.”
The End
THE last broadcast from Borough Hill took place at 12.30 pm on Sunday,
March 29 in 1992 and now only one of the radio masts remains,
reminding many of the landmark historical events entwined with it.
Among these was the discovery of radar.
In February 1935 the radio station was used for the first-ever
practical demonstration of radar, by its inventor Robert Watson-Watt
and Arnold Frederic Wilkins, who used a radio receiver installed in a
trailer at Stowe Nine Churches south of Weedon Bec to receive signals
bounced off a metal-clad Handley Page Heyford bomber flying across the
radio transmissions.
It was from Daventry that George VI’s first speech to the nation, in
1932, was broadcast after it was recorded in Windsor, recently
remembered in film The King’s Speech.
It also formed part of the character of the town for many years.
Engineers David Adams and Rod Viveash, from 1960s to 1995, both aged
67 spent much of their careers working at Borough Hill.
Rod: “At the peak there were about 15 or so different transmitters all
being changed at different times. The transmitter never went down for
long because there were other stations in the country that could be
used if there was a problem. Over the years we had to extend our
knowledge base and the manual work changed.”
David said: “In the 30s, 40s, 50s there were probably around 200
people, including maintenance staff working there. There was a BBC
club in town and it was a training station as well so it had a big
turnover of people. There were enough staff to run a bus up and down
the hill for 24 hour shifts. It was a part of the town and a lot of
people who came to work there stayed in the town even after it had
closed.”
The former antenna field is now open grassland.
The Birth of Uwinese [sic]:
FORMER Long Buckby resident, Stanley Unwin achieved worldwide fame as
an entertainer; chiefly through his invention of a new comedy
language, known as Unwinese.
But it was at Borough Hill that where Mr Unwin, who died aged 90 and
would have been 100 in June, took his first steps into joining the
world of entertainment.
His daughters Marion Gilbert and Lois Johnston, both attended the
event to celebrate the site, which their father also visited when it
closed in 1992.
Marion said: “He joined the BBC at Borough Hill having moved from
Essex in 1939. He saw an advert in a newspaper advertising for
engineers looking for wireless operators and that was how he got into
the BBC and that’s what started his career. He stayed there until 1944
when he applied to be a BBC war correspondent.”
Lois said: “He came back when it closed in 1992 I think he was
nostalgic when it closed rather than sad, people in those born in that
time didn’t have time for sadness after living through two world wars.
The Unwinese started when he was a teenager and developed when he made
up stories for his children and he used it to entertain the troops
abroad.
“When he was a BBC engineer he would do Unwinese to entertain people.
That’s when started getting serious about it, before then it was just
for the family. He was brought up in a children’s home and started
talking nonsense to see if people actually listened to him. He had the
most wacky sense of humour.” (via Mike Terry, dxldyg via DXLD)
REPUBLICA DOMINICANA: CENTRO CULTURAL DE LAS TELECOMUNICACIONES
FUENTE: http://goo.gl/w6DnZ
(Via Yimber Gaviria, Colombia, July 24, noticiasdx yg via DXLD)
TINY TRAP
+++++++++
Now it`s NORWAY
``This tiny nation shaken to its core,`` asserts Miguel Márquez,
parachuted in to cover the story for ABC-TV, on World News Tonight,
2209 UT July 24. That`s what we get for not having any resident
correspondents abroad or even stringers (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENIG
DIGEST)
PROPAGATION
+++++++++++
Hi Glenn, Here is the BDXC propagation report for August 2011:
Propagation Summary --- According to the forecast at
http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/ftpdir/weekly/WKHF.txt
solar activity is expected to be very low. However, there is a chance
that new, rapidly emerging flux regions could increase activity to
moderate levels at any time during the outlook period. No proton
events are expected at geosynchronous orbit.
The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit is
expected to be at background or moderate levels for most of the
outlook interval. However, increases to high levels are expected for
6-9 August in response to recurrent high speed streams.
Geomagnetic field activity was unsettled on 20-22 July due to a
coronal hole. An increase to unsettled levels is expected on 27 July
to 2 August due to another recurrent coronal hole. Quiet levels are
expected for 3 August followed by another increase to unsettled levels
for 04-10 August due to recurrence. 11-13 August is expected to be
quiet and an increase to unsettled is expected for 14-15 August, again
due to recurrence.
The Sunspot trend chart at http://www.solarham.com/sunspots.htm
shows a sharp drop in sunspot activity which would suggest that the
estimated peak forecast for the first quarter of 2013 will be well
below the estimated number of 90.
Perseid Meteor Shower Peak August 12, 2011.
Good news for Meteor Shower DX'ers. The maximum of the Perseid
activity in 2011 is expected during the night of the 12th August. The
Perseids is the name of a prolific meteor shower. The shower is
visible from mid-July each year, with the peak in activity being
between August 9 and 14, depending on the particular location of the
stream. During the peak, the rate of meteors reaches 60 or more per
hour.
http://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/earthskys-meteor-shower-guide
Understanding Propagation.
Here is a very useful article about Propagation modes. "Hop length is
the ground distance covered by RF after it has been reflected once
from the Ionosphere and returned to Earth. Maximum hop length is set
by the height of the Ionosphere and curvature of the earth. The
maximum hop length shown assumes antenna radiation of 4 degrees and
the E and F layer heights as specified." It is in PDF format and can
be viewed, downloaded or printed from:
http://www.hamqsl.com/Understanding%20Propagation.pdf
Space Weather Forecasting at the UK Met. Office
The UK Meteorological Office is developing a Space Weather forecasting
system. The key aims are to produce near real-time space weather
'nowcasts' and short-range forecasts by developing existing empirical
analysis and modelling techniques as well as research with more
sophisticated space weather models and to build an upgraded
forecasting system. More details at: http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/
Direct links to these articles can be found at:
http://www.jameswelsh.org.uk
(James Welsh, UK, July 21, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
SUN SPOTS OR NOT?
There has been quite a bit of news about a predicted grand minima in
solar activity. We recently reported on a conference in which three
lines of evidence were presented which seemed to point to a future
disappearance of sunspots, perhaps like the dreaded Maunder Minimum.
I am not unbiased in this regard, and like most amateur radio
operators yearn for high solar activity. Alas, a return of cycle
19, the granddaddy of them all, seems elusive. But there is some
dissent regarding these predictions of no sunspots, which gives us
hope.
On Wednesday I spoke with Dr. Douglas Biesecker, an astrophysicist
at the NOAA Space Environment Center in Boulder. He was mentioned
in ARLP024. See http://www.arrl.org/w1aw-bulletins-archive/ARLP024/2011
as dissenting from the assertion that evidence points toward sunspots
disappearing or another Maunder Minimum in our future.
He mentioned something called a Gleissberg Cycle. What happens when
we do a really long smoothing of sunspot numbers? The smoothed
sunspot numbers we are familiar with, the data used in those nice
graphs of sunspot cycles, average data over 13 months. So every
place you look on the graph doesn't show the variation that occurred
during that month, but instead averages data over more than a year,
to smooth out all the noise of daily variations.
But what would happen if you smoothed the numbers over a much longer
period, say 11 years? Could you find some periodicity that would
suggest a cycle of cycles, or perhaps predict clusters of decades
with low or high solar activity?
Gleissberg cycles suggest a periodicity of about 87 years, and some
have studied these to try to predict general levels of solar
activity over multiple decades. But if a cycle is 87 years long,
and we only have about 256 years of directly observed solar data,
the most we could look at would be less than three cycles. That
isn't enough data to make even crude speculative projections.
Doug mentioned what he referred to as an "old NASA axiom", that goes
something like this: If you can't see something happen seven times,
it isn't real.
Doug said he is attending SHINE workshops, and SHINE is an acronym
for Solar Heliospheric and Interplanetary Environment --- see
http://shinecon.org/ At these meetings participants have been
hashing out the evidence for or against a "no cycle 25" scenario,
and discovering some problems with the three lines of evidence
pointing toward a disappearance of sunspots. They haven't reached a
consensus, but he believes that positions may be moving away from
predicting another Maunder Minimum.
On this topic, take a look at this website:
http://www.thesuntoday.org/current-observations/solar-hibernation-much-ado-about-nothing/
A new issue of WorldRadio is available on the twentieth of each
month, and on July 20 the August 2011 issue was out. You can get
one at http://www.worldradiomagazine.com/ and on page 20 you'll find
the monthly Propagation column by Carl Luetzelschwab, K9LA. This
time it is titled
"Here's Some Help to Explain Those Unusual QSOs". Carl looks at
propagation that doesn't seem to be supported by the MUF or general
level of solar activity at the time, and offers some interesting ideas
on what might really be going on (Propagation Forecast Bulletin 29
ARLP029, From Tad Cook, K7RA, Seattle, WA July 22, 2011, To all radio
amateurs, via Dave Raycroft, ODXA yg via DXLD)
GEOMAGNETIC ACTIVITY FORECAST FOR THE PERIOD OF ONE SOLAR RORATION
[new edition each Friday]:
http://www.asu.cas.cz/~sunwatch/forecasts.html
____________ _________ _________ _________ _________ _________ _
Solar-activity forecast for the period Jul 22 - 28, 2011
Activity level: very low to low
Radio flux (10.7 cm): a fluctuation in the range 90-110 f.u.
Flares: weak (4-15/day)
Relative sunspot number: in the range 55-90
Astronomical Institute, Solar Dept., Ondrejov, Czech Republic
e-mail: sunwatch(at) asu.cas.cz (RWC Prague)
____________ _________ _________ _________ _________ _________ _
Geomagnetic activity forecast for the period Jul 22 to Jul 28, 2011
quiet: Jul 24, 25 and 28
quiet to unsettled: Jul 23, 26 and 27
unsettled: Jul 22
active: 0
minor storm: 0
major storm: 0
severe storm: 0
Geomagnetic activity summary:
geomagnetic field was quiet on Jul 13
and from Jul 15 to 18, quiet to unsettled on Jul 14,
unsettled on Jul 11,12, 19 and 20.
RWC Prague, Geophysical Institute Prague, Geomagnetic Dept,
Czech Republic e-mail: geom(at)ig.cas. cz
____________ _________ _________ _________ _________ _________ _
Geomagnetic activity forecast for the period of one solar rotation
Geomagnetic field during the following solar rotation should be:
mostly quiet: July 24 - 26, Aug 11 - 13
quiet to unsettled: Aug 14 - 15
mostly unsettled: July 22 - 23, 27, Aug 2 - 4, 8 - 10
unsettled to active: July 28 - 31, Aug 1, 5 - 7, 16 - 17
Survey:
mostly quiet: July 16 - 17
quiet to unsettled: July 14 - 15, 18
unsettled to active: July 19 - 20
Notices:
High probability of changes in solar wind which may caused
changes in magnetosphere and ionosphere is expected about
July 28 - 31, Aug 1, 10 - 12
Petr Kolman OK1MGW, Czech Propagation Interested Group
e-mail: kolmanp(at)razdva. cz
(via Dario Monferini, 23 July, playdx yg via DXLD)
PROPAGATION ABOVE 22 MHZ
Very slow improvement in conditions at the higher HF above 22/23 MHz.
R. Maria in Italian [26000] around local noon some days, and CB
beginning to open up. Boy, are those CBers spreading out over the
frequencies now. Well into Amateur 28 MHz (usually up to 28.5) with AM
and FM from what sounds like major Russian cities, small Taxicab
operators by the sound of them, not hobbyists.
Below 27 MHz I hear all modes from CBers, even will into the 11m BC
band, down to about 25.7 MHz at times. Lots of digital/data in the
26.1 to 26.9 MHz region i.e. on 26200 and 26350 kHz, multitude of
tones/data transmissions, whatever they are. Regards, (Des Walsh,
Dublin, Ireland, July 25 2011, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
VOACAP/itshfbc latest version
I just noticed that a new version of the itshfbc propagation package
(VOACAP and ICEPAC) was posted earlier this month at
http://www.greg-hand.com/hfwin32.html
(Dan Ferguson, July 26, dxldyg via DX LISTENNG DIGEST)
Geomagnetic activity ranged during the period between quiet to minor
storm levels, with a few isolated major storms occuring at high
latitudes due to coronal hole high-speed stream effects. Early on 18
July, quiet to unsettled levels were observed due to a solar sector
boundary crossing (SSBC), as the Earth moved from a positive to a
negative polarity region of the IMF. On 19 July, measurements from
the ACE spacecraft indicated the onset of another CH HSS while
geomagnetic levels also increased to mostly active coniditions at
mid latitudes. On 20 July, quiet to active levels were again observed
with an isolated major storm period occuring at high latitudes between
0900-1200Z. Conditions on 21 and 22 July were also observed at quiet
to unsettled levels on both days. On 22 July, conditions included a
major storm period observed at high latitudes. A return to quiet to
unsettled levels was observed on 23-24 July, as effects of the CH HSS
finally diminished.
FORECAST OF SOLAR AND GEOMAGNETIC ACTIVITY 27 JULY - 22 AUGUST 2011
Solar activity is expected to be at very low to low levels during
the forecast period. However, there is a chance that new, rapidly
emerging flux regions could increase activity to moderate levels at
any time during the outlook period. No proton events are expected at
geosynchronous orbit. The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at
geosynchronous orbit is expected to start the period at moderate to
normal levels on 27 - 30 July, before increasing to high flux levels
on 31 July - 02 August, as the result of elevated solar winds from a
CH HSS. Moderate to normal levels are expected from 03-06 August after
solar winds subside. A return to moderate to high levels is expected
07-13 August and once again from 16- 22 August as the result of two
solar wind speed increases from two more coronal holes.
Geomagnetic activity is expected to be at quiet levels on 25 July.
Quiet to unsettled levels are expected from 26 - 27 July as another
CH HSS becomes geoeffective. A return to mostly quiet conditions is
expected on 28 July. Quiet to unsettled levels are forecast on 29-31
July as a northern polar CH HSS extension moves into a geoeffective
position. Afterwards, quiet levels are expected to prevail between
01 and 04 August. Conditions are expected to increase again, ranging
from quiet to active levels 04-11 August as another recurrent CH HSS
is expected. Mostly quiet conditions should return 12-14 August
before the next CH HSS is expected 15-19 August, when unsettled to
active conditions return. A brief retreat to mostly quiet levels is
expected on 20 August before the period finally ending with mostly
unsettled to active conditions as yet another recurrent CH HSS
becoming geoeffective 21-22 August.
:Product: 27-day Space Weather Outlook Table 27DO.txt
:Issued: 2011 Jul 26 1731 UTC
# Prepared by the US Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Weather Prediction
Center
# Product description and SWPC contact on the Web
# http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/wwire.html
#
# 27-day Space Weather Outlook Table
# Issued 2011-07-26
#
# UTC Radio Flux Planetary Largest
# Date 10.7 cm A Index Kp Index
2011 Jul 27 90 5 2
2011 Jul 28 90 12 3
2011 Jul 29 90 10 3
2011 Jul 30 90 10 3
2011 Jul 31 90 8 3
2011 Aug 01 90 5 2
2011 Aug 02 90 5 2
2011 Aug 03 95 5 2
2011 Aug 04 95 8 3
2011 Aug 05 95 12 3
2011 Aug 06 95 12 4
2011 Aug 07 95 12 3
2011 Aug 08 98 8 3
2011 Aug 09 100 8 3
2011 Aug 10 100 8 3
2011 Aug 11 100 8 3
2011 Aug 12 100 5 2
2011 Aug 13 100 5 2
2011 Aug 14 100 8 3
2011 Aug 15 100 10 3
2011 Aug 16 100 15 4
2011 Aug 17 98 12 4
2011 Aug 18 95 10 3
2011 Aug 19 92 8 3
2011 Aug 20 88 5 2
2011 Aug 21 88 12 3
2011 Aug 22 88 10 3
(SWPC via WORLD OF RADIO 1575, DXLD) ###