DX LISTENING DIGEST 2-136, August 31, 2002 edited by Glenn Hauser, wghauser@hotmail.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 HTML version of this issue will be posted afterwards at http://www.worldofradio.com/dxldtd02.html For restrixions and searchable 2002 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 1145: NEXT BROADCASTS ON WBCQ: Mon 0415 7415 NEXT BROADCASTS ON WWCR: Sun 0230 5070, 0630 3210, Wed 0930 9475 NEXT BROADCASTS ON RFPI: Sun 0000, 0600, Mon 0030?, 0630?, Wed 0100, 0700 on 7445, 15038.7; webcasts also Sun 1200, 1830, Mon 1230?, Wed 1300 NEXT BROADCAST ON WRN: North America Sun 1400 (ON DEMAND) http://www.wrn.org/ondemand/worldofradio.html (DOWNLOAD) http://www.k4cc.net/wor1145.rm (STREAM) http://www.k4cc.net/wor1145.ram (SUMMARY) http://www.worldofradio.com/wor1145.html ** ALASKA [and non]. The Federation of American Scientists has a couple of interesting articles on HAARP. http://www.fas.org/irp/program/collect/haarp.htm HAARP Detection and Imagine of Underground Structures Using ELF/VLF Radio Waves ELF/VLF radio waves penetrate deeply beneath the surface of the earth and interact with the geologic structure of the earth. This interaction induces secondary fields with measurable effect at and above the surface of the earth. Proper understanding of the physics of the generation and propagation of ELF/VLF waves and their interactions with earth materials will allow these waves to be used for applications such as sub-surface communications and exploration of the subsurface geological structure. The research called for under this effort is to assess the viability of exploiting the concept of electromagnetic induction to detect and image subterranean features such as tunnels, bunkers, and other potential military targets. Geophysical surveying using natural ELF/VLF sources, such as lightning or auroral generated signals, is an established procedure. In general, however, the procedure has been developed with the interest in locating areas of highly conductive material such as metal ore deposits. There are many significant issues that need to be resolved, however, before the concept can be evaluated for military applications such as detection of underground structures. These issues can be divided into six primary topics: (1) the physics of, and methods for modeling the generation of ELF/VLF waves from various sources; (2) methods for measuring ELF/VLF field components in a covert manner; (3) methods for modeling and characterizing ELF/VLF wave propagation including the effects of surface topography and subsurface terrestrial properties; (4) the physics of the propagation and attenuation of the secondary fields above the earth's surface; (5) procedures and algorithms for inverting measured electromagnetic field information to obtain subterranean conductivity structure particularly aimed at identifying and characterizing man-made structures or natural voids; and (6) algorithms for producing unambiguous detection and classification of underground voids or structures in the presence of geological noise and clutter. The Space Effects Division of the Phillips Laboratory Geophysics Directorate is interested in receiving proposals related to the theoretical understanding and practical development and demonstration of techniques for the detection of underground structures using ELF/VLF radio waves generated by natural and man-made sources. Issues to be examined by the proposers include: methods for measuring ELF/VLF field components by covert means; methods for characterizing, and interpreting ELF/VLF wave generation and propagation, including the effects of surface topography and subsurface geophysical properties; procedures for inverting the electromagnetic field properties to obtain realistic, depth-dependent geophysical parameters with particular interest in identifying man-made structures and natural voids within the surrounding geology; and algorithm development for the unambiguous detection of underground voids or man-made structures in the presence of real-world geophysical noise and clutter. This PRDA seeks proposals of original and innovative research dealing with the development, implementation, and demonstration of these concepts. The proposer will need to demonstrate a basic understanding of the principles of ELF/VLF wave generation, ELF/VLF guided-wave propagation, instruments and measurement procedures and problems for ELF/VLF, methods for inversion of ELF/VLF data into depth-dependent geophysical models and for detecting zones or targets of interest and for characterizing those targets. Highly original and innovative proposals dealing with one or more of these topics relevant to this progam will be considered for funding. Several distinct methods for ELF/VLF generation are available to support these efforts. Proposers are encouraged to consider including the controlled ELF/VLF sources provided by the 960 KW HF transmitter of the HAARP, presently under construction outside Gakona, Alaska and the HIPAS facility located near Fairbanks, Alaska. PL/GPS is the program manager for the HAARP facility. The Office of Naval Research controls the HIPAS facility. Both sites will be available to support the research efforts under this PRDA. Sources and Methods DETECTION AND IMAGING OF UNDERGROUND STRUCTURES BY EXPLOITING ELF/VLF RADIOWAVES, SOL PRDA PL/GPS 97-02 CBD ISSUE DATE: 06/02/97 SECTION: Procurements FSC The HAARP Home Page University of Alaska The HAARP Home Page Naval Research Laboratory (via M. Peraaho, DXLD) ** ASCENSION ISLAND. Those who want to verify Ascension Island: here is a Chance, Radio Japan's English Transmission from Ascension Island (BBC Merlin @ 250 KW) at 2100-2200 UT in 11855 is received here strong and fair. At the same time there is another transmission in English from Radio Japan's KDD Yamata Transmitting site (300 kW) at 11830 kHz also received but weak and disturbed (Partha Sarathi Goswami, Siliguri, West Bengal, India, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** AZERBAIJAN. Off frequency from 1296: Maybe old news to some, though new to me: Radio Azerbaijan noted on 1295 on Aug 29, 1840 UTC. Barely readable in LSB mode but definite ID. (From the world's northernmost DXer Bjarne Mjelde, Berlevag, Norway, receivers: AOR AR7030+, K+D KWZ30, Palstar R30, DXing.info via DXLD) Exactly 1295.00, or drift? ** BERMUDA. From http://www.bermuda-online.org/cabradtv.htm LOCAL TELEVISION (ALL COMMERCIAL) Currently, there are three local channels. Bermuda uses the North American NTSC television broadcasting standard. The first Bermudian television station, ZBM-TV, was introduced by the Bermuda Broadcasting Company Limited in 1958 on VHF Channel 10. (Now it uses Channel 9). Prior to that, there was a USA military television station at what was then Kindley Air Force Base at St. David's Island which could be accessed illegally by many families in the Eastern Parishes with television sets. Capital Broadcasting Company Limited operated ZFB-TV on Channel 8 from 1965 until 1984 with the amalgamation into the Bermuda Broadcasting Company Limited. Now it uses Channel 7. Since then, a license was also issued to the DeFontes Broadcasting Company which operated on Channel 13. Now it uses Channel 11. The three local commercial television stations in Bermuda shown below are all commercial - there are no public broadcasting stations of either the American or British licensed types. Reception is island wide and no special cabling or high antennae are necessary to get good reception island wide. ZFB TV, now Channel 7 (Channel 2 on cable) is owned and operated by the Bermuda Broadcasting Company Limited, the Bermuda affiliate of the ABC network in the USA. ZBM TV, Channel 9 (Channel 3 on cable), also owned and operated by the Bermuda Broadcasting Company Limited, is the Bermuda affiliate of the CBS network in the USA. For further information contact the Bermuda Broadcasting Company Limited at ZBM and ZFB Radio and Television Stations, Fort Hill Road, Devonshire, Bermuda. P. O. Box HM 452, Hamilton HM BX, Bermuda. Telephone (441) 295-2828. Fax (441) 295-4282. Or email zbm-@ibl.bm [truncated] VSB TV, Channel 11 (Channel 4 on cable), is operated by DeFontes Broadcasting Television Limited, a subsidiary of DeFontes Broadcasting Company Ltd. It is the Bermuda affiliate of the NBC network in the USA. For further information, contact Defontes Broadcasting Company Limited, 94 Reid Street, Hamilton, Bermuda. Telephone (441) 295-1450. Fax (441) 295-1658. Or email vsbn-@ibl.bm [truncated] There may a fourth channel in 2002, from freelance audiovisual company Fresh Creations. There may be a "minimum local content" law in 2002. (via Bill Hepburn, WTFDA via DXLD) Wonder why all the channel changes in this remote area? Interference from the mainland? That would explain not using the low band, for sure (gh, DXLD) ** BHUTAN. Sundays at 1100-1130 UT there is a very good programme in English on Internet using -"Internet on the Radio" from the house of Bhutan Broadcasting Service in 6035 kHz. This is an excellent programme and the best I ever heard over radio featuring Information Technology. Check it and learn many things about Internet. And BBS also got a homepage at http://www.bbs.com.bt (Partha Sarathi Goswami, Siliguri, West Bengal, India, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** BULGARIA. Christopher Lewis in England reported on the history of broadcasting in Bulgaria. The first Bulgarian radio broadcast took place in December of 1921, with the original Radio Sofia. Regular transmissions of the first program of Bulgarian National Radio began from Sofia in 1930. External broadcasts began in 1933. A new transmitter was inaugurated in 1934, and there was a special program with opera stars, journalists, artists and scientists, among others. State-run broadcasting in Bulgaria began in 1935, when a new law mandated that the government would build transmitters and control all broadcasting. Foreign-language broadcasts for listeners abroad began in 1936. In 1944, part of the Bulgarian National Radio headquarters was destroyed by bombings, so they moved to makeshift studios and kept broadcasting. The Second Program began in 1945. They have had four home services since 1974. The world service, Radio Bulgaria, broadcasts in 10 languages. Their postal address: Radio Bulgaria, Sofia, Bulgaria. [this info based on] The Bulgarian National Radio: http://www.nationalradio.bg/english/frameset.htm#about_.htm#bulgaria (HCJB DX Partyline Aug 24, notes by Marie Lamb for Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** BURUNDI. RADIO STATION'S SIGNAL JAMMED, INTERNET CENSORED: PRESS FREEDOM INCREASINGLY THREATENED Date: 2002-08-30 Country: BURUNDI Source: RSF http://www.ifex.org (RSF/IFEX) - RSF is concerned about the deteriorating press freedom situation in Burundi. "The authorities have taken several steps in the past month that seriously threaten independent media. The government has even started to closely monitor the Internet. Such measures are increasingly beginning to resemble harassment," stated RSF Secretary- General Robert Ménard. "Burundi's radio stations are undoubtedly the most dynamic and professional in the region. Their disappearance or weakening would represent a clear step backwards for the country. We trust that the authorities are conscious of this and will not take steps that could seriously threaten these radio stations," the secretary-general added. On 28 August 2002, the private station Radio publique africaine (RPA) announced the suspension of all its programming to protest the authorities' jamming of its signal. According to the radio station, the Telecommunications Regulation Agency (Agence de régulation et de contrôle des télécommunications, ARCT), which is under the Defence Ministry, has been jamming RPA programmes, notably its news reports. The ARCT's director admitted that this measure was taken, "in order to encourage the [station] owners to pay their licencing fees." Several radio stations, including the national station, have not paid their annual operating licence fees. The RPA director said "the payment is being used as an excuse." "All the radio stations owe the agency money but only RPA is being jammed," he noted. The amount requested - US$5,000 a year for private commercial radio stations - is widely viewed as excessive within the profession. Two days earlier, the National Communications Council (Conseil national de la communication, CNC) barred Burundian media organisations' websites from posting "documents or other press releases from political organisations that incite towards hatred and violence." This measure particularly targets the Net Press agency's Rugamba website, which posts opposition movements' press releases. The CNC threatened to close the Net Press agency unless the Rugamba website ceased "posting all documents or declarations (...) that threaten peace and public security." Moreover, on 30 July, the CNC banned the publication of the bi-monthly "Panafrika" following the "publication of an extremist and subversive issue." Issue 57 of the magazine featured an interview with the former minister of energy and mines, Mathias Hitimana, who was recently dismissed by the head of state. Entitled "Buyoya Wants To Bury Us Alive", the interview included harsh criticisms of the president's "arbitrary and dictatorial methods." The Burundian Journalists' Association (Association burundaise des journalistes, ABJ) denounced the ban on the magazine while remarking that jurisdiction for the suspension of a publication usually falls under the Communications Ministry rather than the CNC. Finally, on 22 July, the government banned the publication or broadcast of news about soldiers killed by rebels. The army's spokesperson stated that "this news can only assist the rebels." The home affairs minister added that journalists had to "make a choice between the rebels or the government and the army." More Information For further information, contact Jean-François Julliard at RSF, rue Geoffroy Marie, Paris 75009, France, tel: +33 1 44 83 84 84, fax: +33 1 45 23 11 51, e-mail: afrique@rsf.fr, Internet: http://www.rsf.fr (via Mike Terry, DXLD) ``jamming``, in exactly what way? (gh, DXLD) ** CANADA. 6030, CFVP had been off for a few weeks so I called them. They didn't realize they had been off as they hadn't been out to the transmitter site in a while. Heard them again since Aug 23 (Hans Johnson, WY, Aug 23-8, Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** CANADA. From globeandmail.com, Thursday, August 29, 2002 SPORTS RADIO NETWORK FAILED TO MAKE MOVES NECESSARY FOR SUCCESS [by] WILLIAM HOUSTON Instead of the fiasco it turned out to be, CHUM Radio's national sports network could have been a success if the company had made moves that seemed obvious to many in the business. On Tuesday, CHUM killed the 15-month-old network called The Team, when the Toronto station plus four others were reformatted with old rock and roll music. CHUM's biggest mistake was not so much that it bought into the idea of a national sports network, but that it was marred by inept decision- making, bad spending and weak hirings. After one year during which the sports network attracted virtually no audience and produced a small amount of revenue, it turned to Nelson Millman, the program director of The FAN 590 in Toronto. Millman had helped make The Fan a success after a shaky start by the all-sports format in 1992. In the spring of this year, The Fan was beating CHUM's Toronto sports station 5 to 1 in audiences. Millman said no to the job of turning around CHUM's network. Around that time, the company decided to shut it down. In the days and weeks that followed, when national afternoon-drive host Jim Van Horne pounded his desk and demanded to know why a co-host had not been hired for his show, when employees wondered about the future, when at least one staff member asked if the company was committed to sports and was told yes, CHUM had already made its decision to kill the operation. Not only are employees furious, but also advertisers. "These companies bought ad time at CHUM thinking they were marketing their products to a young male audience," a source said. "They weren't figuring on CHUM switching to an audience of senior citizens grooving to the Diamonds." Why did the sports network fail? CHUM spent big dollars on talent such as Van Horne, an excellent television announcer whose soft sell on radio didn't work. Radio sources say CHUM should have done everything possible to recruit The Fan's Bob McCown, the most successful sports host in the business. McCown is making about $300,000 a year and is locked into a multiyear deal, but, as one radio source said, radio contracts are easily broken. "You offer him $500,000 a year, or more," a source said. "If he accepted, The Fan would have made him sit for a while, but six months later he'd be back on the air and producing an audience for CHUM." The second mistake was CHUM's failure to bring TSN on board as a broadcasting partner. TSN has a talent-sharing agreement with The FAN, but the TV network knew a year ago that it would eventually end. Rogers Communications, which owns Rogers Sportsnet, had just bought The FAN and would at some point use Sportsnet people on the radio station instead of TSN talent. TSN seemed like a perfect fit for CHUM, but the deal was never done. The network failed to hire a single on-air personality to emerge as a star. Nor did CHUM finance a big-league promotional campaign to make its personalities known. Instead, money was thrown at marginal properties such as Formula One racing and PGA content, which did not move the ratings. Was the network concept flawed from the start? Some of the stations that were part of the network are still using the all-sports format, but with local and some U.S. syndicated content. So the answer at this point is inconclusive. The network is dead, but sports radio is alive and reasonably well in the relatively new markets of Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton, as well as in Ottawa, where Team 1200 has been in operation for four years. More later on the sports markets outside Toronto. Soccer v. baseball If you're looking for an example of why The Score highlights channel ended its television agreement with Major League Baseball prematurely, consider its ratings from last Sunday in prime time. The Score aired an attractive National League match-up -- the Atlanta Braves, first in the East, against wild-card contender Los Angeles Dodgers. The game drew 44,000 viewers. In the same time slot, Sportsnet carried the FIFA under-19 women's world soccer championship quarter-final game between Japan and Germany. It was hardly a marquee event, yet it outdrew baseball with an audience of 55,000. Given its abysmal ratings, baseball will have a tough time finding a network to pick up its major-league package for next season. Regular- season games are virtually worthless in the Canadian market and the games that do mean something -- the All-Star Game and World Series -- are available in Canada anyway on American television. Copyright 2002 | Bell Globemedia Interactive Inc. (via Artie Bigley, DXLD) ** COSTA RICA. 3350, Radio Exterior de España via Cariari de Pococí. Two full data PPC's, signed and stamped (one in English, other in Spanish) plus verie/information letter, with two postcards and large brochure showing the schedule and transmitter site in 48 days for a tape report. V/s thanked for the tape which shows just how well their log periodic antennas are working. v/s Carlos H. Jiménez U., Techanical Chief (Ed Kusalik, Alberta, Cumbre DX via DXLD) So did this verify from Madrid or direct? I wonder why people don`t give the address used, in their QSL reports (gh, DXLD) ** ECUADOR. R. Quito`s ``Cartas a los ecuatorianos ausentes`` program became a regular 6 years ago after an intermittent run; includes good editorials by the presenter, aimed at Ecuadorians abroad and the issues interesting them. Day in and day out at 0430-0500, 1000-1030 UT on 49[19]. Also includes folk music, discussions of issues of the day. Signal averages 7.5 [kW]. SW is not commercially viable but useful for the station`s and country`s image. Remote jungle and coastal areas of Ecuador depend on it for news. Does not have new QSL, but still using up old ones, 40,000 printed 50 years ago. Address: R. Quito, P O Box 17-21-1971, Quito. Xavier himself replies to E-mail reports to radioquito@elcomercio.com AM is 760 kHz; is acquiring two FM stations (Xavier Almeida, as interviewed on HCJB DXPL Aug 24, gh relistening to ondemand audio http://www.hcjb.org/english/audio/dxpl/dxpl0824.rm -- for some reason they don`t fix it to stream, just download. ``Day in and day out,`` I suppose, means Cartas... is on more than once a week, but is it weekdays, or 7 days? -- DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** GERMANY. RELIGIOUS BROADCASTING IN GERMANY: A SURVEY BY DR HANSJOERG BIENER Editor`s Note: Our newsletter`s status is enhanced by this feature by Dr. Hansjoerg Biener of Germany, whose expertise in religious broadcasting worldwide can be seen in his monthly journal Medien Aktuell: Kirche in Rundfunk (Media Today: The Church in Radio). He also maintains a website at http://www.asamnet.de/~bienerhj/, in his native German. The impeccable English of this article is his, for Dr. Biener is multilingual. After studying Evangelical Protestant theology, he pastored in the communities in Nürnberg and Amberg, and served as expert advisor to the Regional Conference of Evangelical Lutheran Bishops. Since then, he has served as coordinator for the Standing Commission for Peace Education and is a member of the Faculty of Education of the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg. For seven years he has been interested in radio, particularly international religious radio, as a method of promoting peace and brotherhood. You may correspond with him at the e-mail address below. My great appreciation to Dr. Biener for generously giving us this article. 1 Germany`s dual broadcasting system Based on the negative experience of state monopoly and propaganda broadcasting, after the Second World War broadcasting in West Germany was organised as public broadcasting largely following the example of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The pre-Nazi system which had a number of regional broadcasters serving only parts of Germany was re- instated in the Western zones. This means that most of the German federal states got their own broadcasting systems, similar in their allegiance to public broadcasting, but dissimilar in actual structures. Editorial independence was a goal of high priority. The establishment of a broadcasting fee was to ensure financial independence from government grants or private interest. Control mechanisms ensured the representation of (what we nowadays call) civil society. This includes a wide range of groups and interests, like women`s organisations, workers` movements and employers` organisations, majority religions, and many more. Starting in the 1980s private broadcasting was introduced, but, as required by the federal states` constitutions, under public umbrellas which still ensure that the whole of the society would benefit from the programming and no particular group would be discriminated against. Broadly speaking, broadcasting in Germany now follows a dual system of public broadcasting and private broadcasting overseen by public bodies. The actual landscape differs between the 16 German federal states, but balance of power both within the stations (editorial independence etc.) as well as balance in audience shares is still a remarkable feature in Germany`s broadcasting scene. Generally, there is a public broadcasting station providing several channels to the state concerned. In some states these channels face the competition of state wide private broadcasters, in other the public channels are challenged by a number of local or regional private stations. Some states have a mixture of both state wide and local private broadcasting. Looking at the presence of religious themes or the participation of Churches and religious groups in German broadcasting, one has to distinguish between public and private broadcasting as well as between the different states. To make things easier to understand, the following remarks apply to Bavaria (Southern Germany). 2. The broadcasting scene in Bavaria On the public broadcasting side, Bayerischer Rundfunk provides five main channels plus some additional programming e.g. at least 3 h daily for the immigrant communities. Besides, nation-wide DeutschlandRadio, a network set up by special agreement of all the German federal states, provides two additional channels to Bavarian listeners. On the private broadcasting side, there is a state wide broadcaster and a large number of private local and regional stations. State wide Antenne Bayern went on the air in 1988 as a 24 hours entertainment channel and now produces two programmes (Antenne Bayern state wide FM coverage, Rock Antenne state wide cable, digital audio broadcasting, one FM frequency). More recently, it got involved in the production of Megaradio which wants to establish a nation wide AM youth programme looking forward to the enormous potential of digital medium wave broadcasting. Private local and regional stations are a third factor in the broadcasting scene. Much of the programming is produced locally, but many stations use material from an umbrella programme (news, night time broadcasts). As to the details of ownership, programming and networking the situation changes from location to location. While some ownership is really held by local companies there are also companies that hold stakes in several markets. Some owners of local stations have also established a financial interest in a youth oriented cable, satellite and DAB station Radio Galaxy which has some regional FM outlets. Looking at recent audience figures in 2002, the mass networks of Bayerischer Rundfunk, Bayern-1 and -3, get 24.9 and 14.9 per cent of the audience while state wide private station Antenne Bayern has 23.5 per cent and the local private broadcasters have 23.1 per cent combined. 3 The presence of religious programming at the example of Bavaria At Bayerischer Rundfunk, the responsibility for explicitly religious content in the form of daily devotions and weekly services/meditations is mainly shared between the Roman-Catholic and the Lutheran Churches, to which the majority of the Bavarian population officially belongs. While the Lutheran devotions also include authors from the minority Reformed Church, there are independent time slots for six minority groups (e.g. Adventists, Methodist, Christian Science, Free Thinkers). There is also weekly Jewish programming. Muslim devotions are included in the foreign language programmes, because the Muslim population largely consists of Turkish and Bosnian immigrants. At DeutschlandRadio, religious broadcasting is along the same lines, with many more religions contributing to the daily devotionals included in one of the channels. Beside the explicitly religious programming, all the public networks have regular reporting about religious affairs in general which is independent from any official influence of a religious body. Christian churches and congregations have been involved with private local broadcasting right from the beginning in 1984. Obviously, participation of the mainline Protestant and Roman-Catholic churches varies from station to station. Although private stations would not broadcast services, some stations do carry daily devotionals and reserve some time on Sunday mornings for topics associated with religion, societal questions and ethics. Some of this is organised locally, as I have been involved with in several regions. Some of the content is provided by radio production agencies established by the Lutheran and the Roman-Catholic churches. These also take care of religious content on state wide Antenne Bayern. The ``Evangelische Funk-Agentur`` (protestant broadcasting agency) is involved with broadcasting on Antenne Bayern and some 25 local private stations throughout Bavaria. With seven Roman-Catholic dioceses in Bavaria, the Catholic broadcasting scene varies from region to region. For example, in the area of the archdiocesan München / Freising catholic radio work is carried out by St. Michaelsbund. They take care of the catholic contribution to Antenne Bayern as well as seven private local stations. All in all, there is quite close co-operation between the mainline Christian churches in broadcasting. Mainline church activities are far from having a monopoly on religion. Beside secular agencies, e.g. Radio M and Evangeliums-Rundfunk (an evangelical 24 h broadcaster affiliated with US-Trans World Radio) also offer programming to the private stations Information on each an every station can be obtained at http://www.blm.de/hoerfunk/sender/index.htm. Evangeliums-Rundfunk went on the air in 1961 on Radio Monte Carlo using international short wave and later also medium wave broadcasting to reach a German speaking audience in Central and Eastern Europe. Since 1985 ERF has been able to place programmes on local stations, in 1995 it acquired its own licence for a large medium wave transmitter in Germany. ERF currently produces two 24 h satellite programmes as well as tv and radio broadcasts placed on different private stations. Web site: http://www.erf.de In some regions mainline churches have taken a minority stake in the consortium owning the local radio station, while in other areas religious groups and independent churches have acquired regular licences for weekly broadcasting. In Nuremberg, there are four local licensees: Hit Radio Camillo 92.9 broadcasting six hours weekly, Radio AREF with two hours on Sundays and Christian Holidays, Meilensteine (Pentecostal) providing six hours weekly on separate channels and pray 92,9 (Seventh Day Adventist) providing one hour on Sundays and Holidays. All these programmes are heard on a 50 km radius on FM. According to 2002 audience figures Hit Radio N1, the station normally occupying the channel, takes 13,1 per cent of the local audience and thus is market leader. It should be mentioned that the local Roman- Catholic and Lutheran churches have traditionally shared in a Sunday morning programme on a different local station. In Munich there is an independent Catholic broadcaster. Radio Horeb, a 24 hour satellite and cable programme operating from Balderschwang, has at least 26 hours of FM time weekly sharing the frequency with a commercial producer. Radio Horeb is the German branch of the international family of Radio Maria. According to recent numbers the international network has pumped about 2 Million Euro into the operation which is seen as strategic for future expansion, because it is expected that donations from Horeb listeners might pay off the investment some time in the future. 4 Conclusion From a US perspective accustomed to the dominance of private broadcasting and religious free enterprise building private stations as they wish and buying airtime as they wish, the broadcasting scene of Germany is very often misunderstood. At times US religious groups even capitalise on the claim that there is no freedom of the air in Germany. As the debate on the feared invasion of the ``electronic church`` showed, many would not appreciate the influence of US style religion. Considering the unique structure of German broadcasting, it is wrong to speak of state broadcasting. It is not. Nor is it right to say that the Gospel is not present in German broadcasting. Compared to the narrowcasting system of the US with its highly fragmentised audiences one could even argue that Christianity is present in most radio segments. Actually, non-religious critics argue that no single group of the society has as much airtime to fill as the mainline Protestant and Roman-Catholic churches. Dr Hansjoerg Biener - Neulichtenhofstr. 7 - DE-90461 Nuernberg http://www.asamnet.de/~bienerhj Hansjoerg.Biener@asamnet.de (Catholic Radio Update Sept 2 via DXLD) [unfulfilled footnote numbers removed] ** INDONESIA. Both 2899, RDP Ngada and 2960, RPD Manggarai have been heard during the 1200 hour twice this week, Aug 27-28, with fair signals and // to other RRI outlets. 3438v UNID sounds like an Indo. 1240 Aug 29 only (Hans Johnson, WY, Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** INDONESIA. MEDIA BILL WILL PUT 'SPY' IN JAKARTA TV AND RADIO STATIONS An official inspector would be placed in broadcast companies, a requirement which operators say will curtail press freedom By Devi Asmarani, STRAITS TIMES INDONESIA BUREAU JAKARTA - A Bill that involves placing a government 'spy' in broadcasting agencies here is likely to be passed next month by parliament to regulate the electronic media. The Bill has been deliberated in the House for the past two years to regulate the rapidly growing broadcasting industry but is being opposed widely by operators of television and radio stations. They say the Bill will curtail press freedom and retard the industry's growth. Under the Bill the government will issue a 'frequency licence' to broadcast to radio and television stations. An independent regulatory body, the Indonesian Broadcast Commission, will recommend the stations to the government as well as set a code of conduct for electronic media and impose sanctions. Coordinator of the Indonesian Society of Press and Broadcasting (MPPI) Leo Batubara told The Straits Times: 'The Bill gives back the legal authority to the government, instead of the independent body, to decide on which broadcasting company will get licences. It also allows the government to interfere in the daily running of the broadcasting business. 'This is certainly not what we had in mind when we proposed the draft Bill to parliament - this is a return to the old paradigm that the government controls the press.' The MPPI proposed the first draft of the Bill to parliament three years ago to replace the 1997 broadcasting law, which it claimed to be repressive. The draft Bill was debated in parliament and over time its content has been altered drastically as the lawmakers thought too much freedom had encouraged irresponsible and provocative press. The MPPI said that at least a third of the 63 articles in the Bill carried the threat of imprisonment or fines if radio or television operators were found to have broken the law. One of the contentious articles requires all TV films and advertisements to undergo censorship by the government. Currently, only TV films are censored by the government, but TV operators had called for an end to all sorts of government censorship, arguing it should be done by the respective TV stations instead. The Bill also says that a 'government official inspector' would be placed in each broadcasting company. 'This is like having a government spy in our station,' said an executive in a private TV station. Established private television with nationwide reach such as the RCTI and SCTV, will also be forced to undergo major restructuring as the Bill requires all national TV stations to become local stations. This means the country's 10 private national TV stations have to set up a separate company with local partners and broadcast localised content in each of the regions. Parliament has argued that such a move would prevent the 'monopoly of information'. The Bill also limits media cross-ownership and requires electronic media to renew frequency distribution licences after 10 years of operations. Several media group such as Kompas Gramedia and Media Indonesia operate both print and broadcasting media organisations. 'What we fear is that under this system, the government can deny or lift the frequency licence of some company under the pretext that it broke some law, if its coverage is too critical,' said Mr Leo. Several publications were banned for their critical coverage during the 32 years of President Suharto. His fall in 1998 opened the door to the current press freedom (via Mike Terry, DXLD) ** IRAN [non]. LITHUANIA, 9710, Radio Avaye Ashena's address is Schwarzacker Strasse 2, Leipzig, D-04299, Germany. (Some classify this as a clandestine simply because it is to Iran and brokered. We'll hold off on this until we have someone who understands the programming report on what their program content is. Their website seems to be focuses on Iranian singers.) (Hans Johnson, Aug 28, Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** KAZAKHSTAN [non]. CLANDESTINE, 9775, Radio Dat, 1500 Aug 28 opposing Kazakhstan's [sic], comments on the part of a speaker, low signal without interference, brief musical notes, close at 1557, 25222 (Hugo López, Chile, Cumbre DX via DXLD) The group behind this is based in Brussels, Belgium, and is known as Société Pour la Democratie en Asie. They can be reached at Rue Jourdan 95, Brussels, Belgium 1060 (Hans Johnson, WY, Aug 25, Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** KOREA NORTH. Survey of their domestic outlets at 1230: KCBS 2350 untraced, 2850 strong, 3220 untraced, 3350 freq covered by buzzing, 3959.7 fair // 2850. 3970, 6100, and 9665 all untraced. 11679.6 fair // 2850. PBS 3249.5 weak, 3320 stronger, 6250 ute here but seems off, 6398.7 strongest of these (Hans Johnson, WY, Aug 28, Cumbre DX via DXLD) 15245.18, V. of Korea 1416-1428 Aug 28. Commentary in French by male announcer; typical vocal selection at 1426. Fair signal, // 11710.06, which was quite good. Both frequencies into EG at 1500; by then, the 19-meter frequency had drifted down to 15245.05 kHz (John Wilkins, CO, Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** LAOS. 4665.3, Xam Nua latest spot for this one, // to 6130 at 1224 Aug 28, and 1230*. (Hans Johnson, WY, Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** LIBERIA. 5100.00 R. Liberia Int`l 2213 Aug 25, het first heard at 2130 and finally audio appeared at 2214 with female singer. Very weak but no RTTY QRM heard. First time heard here in months. Most times even with noise floor and difficult to copy. Male announcer in English at 2230 with possible news items. Back to music at 2231. Better copy at this time. Non-English tunes. S7 level at 2240 with fades. Male announcer at 2245 with announcements and ID 25 Aug 02 (Bob Montgomery, PA, Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** LIBERIA. BACKGROUNDER: RADIO VERITAS LIBERIA RETURN TO SHORTWAVE -- - A LONG TIME COMING Monrovia, Aug 27 (CRU)— The report from Nicolás Eramo of the distinguished shortwave bulletin, Conexión-Digital of Buenos Area, is welcome news: the station has been a long time coming. For years now, ELCM Radio Veritas has been trying to return to shortwave radio, but its petitions were constantly denied by the administration of President Charles Taylor. The reason he gave in every instance was that ELCM fomented civil war in the nation because it called for peace and reported the news objectively. The West African country, founded by former African slaves in the United States, has been torn by internal turmoil and brutal civil war since 1980. Although the country has not quite 3 million people, it has lost well over 150,000 in the endless battles. This past winter, civil war broke out anew and the rebels began advancing towards Monrovia, where they were eventually halted. President Taylor had promised the Archbishop of Monrovia that he would restore the shortwave license to the station. Taylor made that surprise announcement in a talk to the Liberian National Bar Association meeting in late January in Monrovia (see Catholic Radio Update #161, February 11, 2002). President Taylor, a former warlord elected president in 1997, has been criticized by human rights institutions and other organizations for his heavy handedness in brooking no political or social opposition and criticism. National elections are to be held last year, and President Taylor has assured international human rights groups that these will be free and fair. Radio Veritas in particular has attracted international attention because of its fearless poise in front of the Taylor dictatorship. The station has been repeatedly harassed. ELCM Radio Veritas in fact was destroyed at least twice in the endless civil war, and at one point, after having been rebuilt a second time, operated from the safety of the French Embassy grounds. A furious Taylor administration ordered the station to return to Liberian soil, but the Archbishop replied that he had constructed the station twice and had no intention of doing so a third time, and that if the Liberian officials wanted the station back on Liberian soil, they had to guarantee the safety of the station and its personnel. The station was granted its FM license some years ago, but the shortwave license that would give it national coverage was withheld until this spring (Michael Dorner, Catholic Radio Update Sept 2 via DXLD) ** MOROCCO. KING CONSENTS TO END STATE MONOPOLY OVER BROADCASTING | Excerpt from report by Moroccan radio on 29 August His Majesty King Mohammed VI, who was accompanied by His Royal Highness Prince Moulay Rachid, chaired a working session devoted to the broadcasting sector. His majesty began the session by recalling the huge interest he takes in liberalizing the broadcasting sector and enabling it to play its part fully in building the project for a democratic and modern society spearheaded by his majesty, meeting the challenges of globalization and competition, providing guarantees for a pluralistic and free media and drawing up the procedural rules necessary for exercising this right. After stressing that the aim of this session is to examine the results achieved in reforming this sector, his majesty asked his adviser to present a report on the subject upon which Mohamed Moutassim pointed out that the government had urged his majesty to create an independent body which would be in charge of regulating and organizing the broadcasting sector once the state ended its monopoly over this sector. He also said that his majesty had responded favourably to this request... Afterwards, his majesty allowed the prime minister to speak and the latter expressed, in is own name and on behalf of the government, his deepest gratitude for this positive response from his majesty whose permission he asked in order to submit a draft decree which would end the state monopoly over this sector. His majesty gave his consent to this request and issued his instructions to refer a draft decree on this matter to the two specialized parliamentary committees... Source: Kingdom of Morocco Radio, Rabat, in Arabic 1600 gmt 29 Aug 02 (via BBCM via DXLD) ** MOZAMBIQUE. MAPUTO RADIO SERVICE DISRUPTED DUE TO THEFT OF EQUIPMENT | Text of report by Radio Mozambique on 29 August Short wave equipment used for the transmission of the Maputo provincial service was stolen from Radio Mozambique's transmitter site in the city of Matola [near Maputo] last night. This prevented the transmission of the service's medium wave programming last night and this morning. [sentence as heard] Luis Loforte, Radio Mozambique's chief engineer, said that the security services had been informed of the theft. [Loforte] At dawn today, all the pylons holding the transmission lines and short wave antennas were stolen. It is no longer a question of copper wiring that is [being] stolen. The copper wiring, transmission lines and insulators that we had at the Matola transmitter site have all been stolen. Last night they stole the pylons holding transmission lines for the short wave service. [Announcer] Nataniel Macamo, a spokesman for the police headquarters, said that the force had been informed of the situation and was investigating the matter. Source: Radio Mozambique Antena Nacional, Maputo, in Portuguese 1700 gmt 29 Aug 02 (via BBCM via DXLD) Again! ** NAMIBIA. NEW BROADCAST TIME FOR NBC LOCAL LANGUAGE NEWS | Text of report by Namibian newspaper The Namibian web site on 29 August Hot on the heels of President Sam Nujoma assuming responsibility for the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) last night started broadcasting its indigenous news bulletins immediately after the main English language bulletin at 2000 [1900 gmt]. Prior to last night, local language news was broadcast at 2200. The decision was announced after a meeting between the Board and the NBC management yesterday. It comes on the same day that President Sam Nujoma assumed responsibility for the Information and Broadcasting Ministry. "The indigenous language bulletins will be broadcast after the eight o'clock bulletin as of tonight (yesterday)," confirmed NBC spokesperson Umbi Karuaihe-Upi. Asked about the financial implications of the hasty decision, Karuaihe-Upi said: "Everything has been taken into consideration." A proponent of the local language news broadcasts, NBC Board Chairperson Uazuva Kaumbi, said the indigenous bulletins were originally broadcast as a "test run". The local language bulletins were introduced in December 2000. Among the languages in which the news is currently broadcast are Oshindonga, Silozi, Herero, Rukwangari, Setswana and Nama/Damara. Source: The Namibian web site, Windhoek, in English 29 Aug 02 (via BBCM via DXLD) ** NEPAL. Last week I reported on R. Nepal in 49-meter band in the evening (from 1030 to 1714 UT) - Mr. G. Victor A. Goonetilleke from Sri Lanka & Mr. Harjot S. Brar from Chandigarh, India confirmed that the frequency is 6100 kHz (Partha Sarathi Goswami, Siliguri, West Bengal, India, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** NEPAL. [continued from TANNU TUVA] At 2313 Aug 30 the interval signal of Radio Nepal was heard on 6100.0 kHz, parallel to 5005. Weak and better on lower sideband to avoid het from the Russian station, but then suffering splash from strong RFE/RL via Kavalla on 6095. Opening announcements in Nepali at 2315 and local songs etc. Much better on 5005 (Tony Rogers, Birmingham - UK, AOR 7030+/LW, BDXC-UK via DXLD) Entirely too many stations on 6100! (gh, DXLD) ** OKLAHOMA. Following up previous report about KTTL 105.7 Alva missing: it was back on by Tuesday Aug 27 in time for a stupid local ballgame (Glenn Hauser, Enid, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** POLAND. See SWEDEN [non] ** SOUTH AFRICA. RADIO VERITAS BEGINS 5th MONTH, ADDS DAILY HOUR Troyeville, Aug 26 (Acuarela Eclesial) -- It`s been a long road for Radio Veritas of South Africa to arrive on shortwave for the 3.5 million Catholics of South Africa. But it was launched on May 1st. The nighttime signal covers the entire national territory as well as parts of Namibia, Botswana, and Mozambique. In Namibia, the signal reaches Windhoek, the capital; in Zimbabwe as far as Harare; and in East Africa, as far north as Beira in Mozambique. Unfortunately, the signal weakens in Capetown during the day. Radio Veritas was created by the Conference of Bishops of South Africa in 1998. The mission of Radio Veritas is to inform and inspire socially and spiritually the people who assume the responsibility of personal and national development in accord with the values of the Gospel. Important contributions come from (among others) the Parliamentary Office of the Church, Catholic University, and the Lumko Pastoral Institute. Radio Veritas has access to the programs of Radio Vaticano and rights to rebroadcast the radio and television programs of EWTN. From noon until 1 p.m. in the afternoon, Radio Veritas is heard on the 41-meter band on 7240 kHz, and from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the 90-meter band on 3280 kHz. The times are local [UT+2]. For more information, visit the new website http://www.radioveritas.co.za. E-mail may be sent to info@radioveritas.co.za. Database Johannesburg: Radio Veritas on Meyerton shortwave transmitters: 7240 kHz from noon until 1 p.m., and 3280 kHz from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., local time. Bishops Conference of South Africa. Director Fr. Emil Blaser, O.P., Radio Veritas Productions, 36 Beelaerts St., 2139 Troyeville, South Africa. Tel.: +27 (11) 624-2516 or 624-2517; fax 614-7711. E- mail: info@radioveritas.co.za. Website: http://www.radioveritas.co.za Language: English (Michael Dorner, Catholic Radio Update Sept 2 via DXLD) ** SPAIN. See COSTA RICA ** SRI LANKA. SLBC very rare, but got audio on what seems to be two of their outlets during the 1200 hour twice this week, Aug 27-28. 4870 and 4902 (Hans Johnson, WY, Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** SWEDEN [non]. Subject : R Sweden on 6095 Dear friends, SWEDEN/POLONIA The participants at the HFCC Frequency Planning in Bangkok have also studied DX-Window no. 202 issued Aug 28. Erik Køie from the Danish delegation reports to me that Magnus Wiberg, TERACOM, from the Swedish delegation confirms that R Sweden in Horby just has three SW transmitters and that R Sweden does not have any relays from abroad. But now I think the Swedish delegation owE the Polish delegation some Carlsberg Beers (which are available in Bangkok), as I found out the following today (Sat Aug 31): 6095: No signal at 1520, but R Sweden was heard in Swedish on 6065 as scheduled. At 1545 a station signed on with an empty carrier on 6095 (which later appeared to be the Warsaw transmitter installed in 1969) and "Dagens Eko" was heard clearly in Swedish from R Sweden with SINPO 35444 in parallel to R Sweden, Hörby on 6065 (55555), 13580 (35434) and 17485 (35444) and the domestic service on 1178 MW also from Hörby (55555). Their main story was about the captured Swedish Arab who was a potential hijacker that might have intended to cause an airplane crash on a U.S. Embassy in Europe by the Ryan Air airplane, he tried to enter with a pistol a couple of days ago at Vesteraas airport, Sweden. If 6095 is a spurious signal from R Sweden, Hörby 6065 (+30 kHz), I tried 6065 - 30 kHz, i.e. 6035 where I found R. Polonia, Warsaw with their badly modulated transmitter broadcasting a programme in Polish at 1555-1625* with 44444. A very weak signal from R Sweden was heard underneath! At *1559 Modulation came on, but poorly modulated, on the Warsaw transmitter on 6095 and after the Interval signal, R. Polonia did broadcast a programme in Slovak until 1625* when the transmitter signed off. After 1600 R Sweden was still heard here underneath with a very weak signal, first in Swedish and later on in Latvian // 6065. At 1625 R Sweden disappeared together with R. Polonia on both 6035 and 6095 whereas 6065 continued their programme in Latvian until 1630 when it was succeeded by a programme in Estonian, as scheduled. My conclusion is that this mixing product is caused by the two unstable transmitters near Warsaw which happens at 1545-1625 to transmit their two programmes on 6065 kHz plus and minus 30 kHz. The programme on the strong transmitter on 6065 is therefore unintentionally broadcast also on 6035 and 6095, but covered while R Polonia broadcasts its own badly modulated programmes (Anker Petersen, Denmark, Aug 31, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ?? I am still confused, after reading through this several times. The Polish transmitters may well be mixing and putting out spurs, but how does this account for R. Sweden audio also being heard on an unlisted frequency?? Perhaps some further investigation is required, since R. Sweden *does* use foreign relays (at other times), e.g. Canada; and Poland is about to start using foreign relays. Perhaps some kind of interchange/test between the two countries is happening (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** TAIWAN. CLANDESTINE from TAIWAN to CHINA. 8300, New Star BC Station, 1401-1410+ Aug 28 with usual nice opening of traditional Chinese music; then usual YL numbers. Good signal; also noted on 9725, 11430, and 15388, all fair/poor. Frequencies either not in // or in // but with significant lag times from each other - hard to tell (John Wilkins, CO, Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** TAJIKISTAN. Foreign service of R. Tajikistan noted on Aug 29, 1645- 1700 UT with English on 1161 kHz. WRTH-2002 lists 1143 and 648 as MW frequencies for their FS. No signal noted on 648. Fair signal. Anyone know if this is a recent change, or is the WRTH inaccurate? (From the world's northernmost DXer Bjarne Mjelde, Norway, DXing.info via DXLD) ** TANNU TUVA. What was thought to be the Russian station GTRK "Tuva" from Kyzyl, capital of the Tuva Republic (bordering NW Mongolia) was heard on 6100.5 kHz at 2300 UT on 30th August, carrying Radio Rossii news in Russian. Weak but clear enough to match Radio Rossii news against parallel 5290-Krasnoyarsk. At 2310 a different programme was carried to that on 5290 (presumably a local programme?). Heard whilst waiting to see if Nepal showed up again on 6100... [continued under NEPAL] (Tony Rogers, Birmingham - UK, AOR 7030+/LW, BDXC-UK via DXLD) ** U K. A new series of Brain of Britain will begin on BBC Radio 4, Monday, Sept. 2 at 1230 GMT. (1:30 PM BST) Repeat on Saturday at 2200 GMT. Live Real Audio and listen on demand. Presumably it will show up soon on World Service. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/comedy/brain.shtml (Joel Rubin, NY, swprograms via DXLD) Brain will show up on the World Service on Saturday, September 21st, 0305 UT (Richard Cuff, ibid.) ** U K. BBC WITHDRAWS 'HOMOPHOBIC' REGGAE TRACKS Tania Branigan, Thursday August 29 2002, The Guardian The BBC was forced to remove material from its websites yesterday after gay campaigners attacked it for promoting homophobic songs by reggae artists that appear to encourage violence. A webpage promoting the BBC2 series The History of Reggae included the track Log On by Elephant Man, which describes stamping on and setting fire to a gay man, while the Radio 1 DJ Chris Goldfinger included Bun di Chi Chi ("Burn the queer") in his top 10 on that station's site. The list also includes three Elephant Man tracks. "Log on and step pon chi chi man," run the lyrics to Log On. "Dance wi a dance and a bun [burn] out a freaky [gay] man ... Step pon him like a old cloth. A dance wi a dance and a crush out dem ... Do di walk mi see the light and di torch dem fass." OutRage, the gay human rights group, said it was appalled that a publicly funded broadcaster could distribute Log On. A spokesman said: "It is a clear incitement to homophobic violence and murder." A spokeswoman for Greensleeves, which released Log On in the UK, declined to comment. After details of the lyrics emerged, both sites removed information on the songs. Peter Tatchell, of OutRage, said: "It's great that the BBC has recognised that this was a mistake and I hope that other radio stations will follow suit by not promoting these bigoted records." A spokesman for the Jamaican gay rights campaigners J-Flag added: "There are a number of these dancehall songs with homophobic lyrics now circulating and from our point of view they perpetuate a culture of hatred and violence against sexual minorities here. These songs often slip below the radar." There is a high level of hate crime - including murder - against gay and lesbian people in Jamaica, which gay rights campaigners claim is tacitly accepted by the police. Several artists have argued that fire is a metaphor for cleansing and purity. Capleton has reportedly said: "Is not really a physical fire. Is really a spiritual fire, and a wordical fire, and a musical fire ... But is people get it on the wrong term. People get confused." J-Flag's spokesman dismissed the idea that the lyrics were merely symbolic. "When these artists say it's just a metaphor I'm not so sure the average Jamaican interprets it that way ... It's pretty obvious what the message is," he said. A spokesman for Radio 1 said: "Bun di Chi Chi has never been played on Radio 1 and its appearance in the listings on Chris Goldfinger's website was a mistake. We are grateful to the Guardian for bringing it to our attention. "The Elephant Man songs in the Top 10 are not contentious. Log On has been played on 1Xtra [the digital station] but it was a radio edit which removed the contentious lyrics." A spokeswoman for Radio 2, which was responsible for the History of Reggae site, said: "We briefly made this song available on the website, but once we were aware of the nature of the lyrical content we removed it." Last year Radio 1 was criticised for playing the dancehall song Chi Chi Man, which similarly called for gay people to be burned. The station's head of specialist music defended its decision on the grounds that the track had "almost become an unofficial anthem for some people in Jamaica". Copyright Guardian Newspapers Limited (via Bill Westenhaver, DXLD) ** U K. BBC CLUB AIMS TO UNITE READERS ACROSS THE GLOBE World Service literary initiative likely to dwarf previous group efforts - and bump up sales of selected novels By Louise Jury Media Correspondent, 15 August 2002 Can this forum forge a neighbourhood across six continents? The World's biggest book club was launched by the American writer and broadcaster Garrison Keillor at the Edinburgh International Book Festival yesterday. The BBC World Service chose the author's best-selling novel Lake Wobegon Days as the inaugural book for its reading group, which will unite millions of readers around the world in monthly discussions. The club, which may well dwarf previous efforts at mass reading led by Oprah Winfrey in the US and James Naughtie on Radio 4, has been trailed on the World Service. Its 150 million listeners were encouraged to read the chosen work and submit questions and comments, which formed part of yesterday's discussion – to be broadcast on 25 September. Keillor said he was delighted to be taking part. "I'm very fond of the BBC World Service. It's a pillar of civilisation," he said. "My wife, who suffers from insomnia, is a regular late-night listener. The World Service's recommendation of a book is sure to carry considerable weight with her. And that's why I'm thrilled to be part of the book club. It isn't easy to impress my wife." The new forum, part of the World Service's strand of arts programmes called Meridian, could prove lucrative to chosen authors. Although Oprah Winfrey recently wound up her television book club, saying it was difficult to find a worthwhile book to talk about every month, it was responsible for millions of sales at its peak. Publishers estimated that the insignia "Oprah's Book Club" on the cover would typically inflate tenfold sales of any book and her recommendations routinely became enormous hits. The effect has been similar to that generated by literary prizes; even well-reviewed books have languished on book store shelves until they won the Booker, the Orange or the Whitbread prize. Bel Canto, written by Ann Patchett, had sold only 3,000 copies before it was shortlisted for the Orange prize for women's fiction. But it has notched up an extra 26,000 sales since winning the award in June. After Keillor, the World Service has lined up Martin Amis to discuss Money, his novel of 1980s excess, with Arundhati Roy next in line to talk about The God of Small Things, her Booker prize-winning novel. The format of a discussion chaired by Harriett Gilbert in front of a live audience restricts the choices to works by living authors. In its initial run, the programme's producers have opted for the best-known or most significant books by the chosen authors. Keillor's Lake Wobegon Days is a humorous portrait of small-town American life in a mythical Minnesota town called Lake Wobegon. The book began life as part of Keillor's live Saturday afternoon variety show on public radio. A World Service spokeswoman said the station hoped each month's discussion programme would prove entertaining even to those who had not read the book. http://www.independent.co.uk/story.jsp?story=324455 (via Tom McNiff, DXLD) ** U S A. VOICE OF AMERICA'S REILLY QUITS AS DIRECTOR ASSOCIATED PRESS August 30, 2002 WASHINGTON – The director of Voice of America, a worldwide U.S. government broadcasting service, resigned yesterday and was succeeded by a veteran Time magazine correspondent. Robert Reilly said in a statement he wanted to seek other ways of directly helping President Bush in his war against terrorism. David Jackson, a Time magazine correspondent for 23 years, was appointed by the board of governors to replace him. The 60-year-old service, which broadcasts in English and 52 other languages, is governed by a charter that assures balanced news coverage. But VOA journalists frequently have come in conflict with various administrations. Last year, for instance, Reilly was instrumental in trying to spike an interview that VOA had done with Mullah Mohammed Omar, the head of the Taliban in Afghanistan. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said the interviews with Omar should not be carried over U.S. government-owned facilities without considerable editing. It was broadcast balanced with comments by U.S. government spokesmen. In early August, Reilly announced five of the VOA's news bureaus would be closed to help pay for a special broadcast service in Farsi, the predominant language of Iran. The closings have not been revoked, but there have been appeals to not take the step. He was senior adviser for public diplomacy at the U.S. Embassy in Switzerland from 1985 to 1988, and from 1983 to 1985 he worked on foreign policy and national defense issues for President Reagan. He was director of private sector programs from 1981 to 1983 at the U.S. Information Agency, then the VOA's parent agency. Jackson, a reporter since 1974, retired from Time last year and became editor of the Pentagon's anti-terror Web site. "The board is delighted to have a journalist of Jackson's experience to lead VOA in a period when it must play an important role in presenting the truth about what is happening in the world," Kenneth Tomlinson, the board's chairman, said in a statement. Copyright 2002 Union-Tribune Publishing Co. (via Tom McNiff, DXLD) ** U S A. HAMFESTS AND CONVENTIONS: NRC TO WEBCAST The National Radio Club will hold its annual convention the Saturday and Sunday prior to Labor Day. N-R-C is a group made up of Medium Wave D-X radio listeners with the club founded back in 1933. And in past years the club has set up a carrier current radio station in the hotel where its conventions are held. Normally you cannot hear the broadcast outside the hotel grounds, but this year could be different. This is because the carrier current station will be helped by a broadcast remote pick-up channel that will be used to send the audio across town to a server that will distribute it as a webcast. The frequency to be used belongs to WLIO television in Lima Ohio. Fred Vobbe, W8HDU, explains what will happen. -- W8HDU: "At the hotel we're going to place a small walkman radio connected to an old remote pickup unit. The transmitter is on 26.410 in narrowband FM, and it will relay back to WLIO's studios where the club will have its server encoding the data stream. The transmitter runs about 40 watts into a CB type antenna, and it IDs every 10 minutes with the call WPLP549. The ID won't be heard on the webcast as it's filtered out at the receiver." -- If you hear this broadcast, you can get a QSL by sending an accurate report to Fred Vobbe, W8HDU, in care of WLIO Television, 1424 Rice Avenue, Lima Ohio 45805 (NRC, W8HDU, ARRL? Via John Thunder Chicken, DX-398 Users yahoogroup via DXLD) I listened to the ``WNRC, Convention City`` webcast for a while Friday night. Playing some great oldies, and various DJ pseudonyms, live timechecks, professional jingles, commercials, some real, some put-on, but no actual convention activities, speeches heard. More of the same Saturday afternoon, also announced as on 1710 kHz and 100.1 MHz (gh, DXLD) ** U S A. AROUND THE DIAL LOCAL RADIO REMEMBERS THE ATTACKS IN WORDS AND MUSIC By STEVE CARNEY, Special to The Times, August 30 2002 [times herein are local PDT = UT minus 7] From a few minutes of silence to a week's worth of in-depth reports, local radio stations are offering listeners a broad spectrum of programming to commemorate the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. "This day, more than any other, is a moment for reflection--not only on what we've lost and how we've changed, but where we're going," said National Public Radio's Neal Conan, who will co-anchor that network's coverage for the day. Starting at 5 a.m. on Sept. 11, NPR plans to supplement its lineup of news, analysis and call-in programs with live reports from ceremonies in New York City, at the Pentagon and at the Shanksville, Pa., crash site. In addition, Conan--who on weekdays is the host of NPR's midday call-in show "Talk of the Nation"--will host a four-hour program in which callers and guests can discuss the importance of public mourning, and remember what they had done a year earlier. Local public stations have much of their own special programming planned, as well, with KPCC-FM (89.3) featuring a week of in-depth reports, analyses and features. Starting Tuesday and running through Sept. 10, public radio stations nationwide will air the series "Understanding America After 9/11." In what they're billing as a groundbreaking collaboration, KPCC has joined to produce the series with 10 other public radio outlets around the country, including WNYC in New York, WAMU in Washington, D.C., KQED in San Francisco, WBUR in Boston and Minnesota Public Radio. In addition to the big-picture view of national remembrance, the series will include stories from communities and individuals. The series begins at 5 a.m. Tuesday with "American Muslims Organize," the story of Muslim leaders in Southern California helping members of their community become more politically active and media-savvy. They have felt besieged and had their patriotism questioned since Sept. 11. The program repeats at 5 p.m. Recounting Prejudice At 9 a.m., "A Portrait of Hedab" is the half-hour audio diary of Hedab El Tarifi, a Palestinian American in Los Angeles who sorts through the prejudice she and friends have faced in the past year, and the changing role of Muslims in U.S. society. At 9 p.m., an hourlong program titled "Defending the Future" will examine how America's military has changed since the terrorist attacks, with musings from a range of people including Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, fighter pilots' wives, a Navy doctor remembering the scene at the Pentagon fire, and green recruits anticipating combat. "Days of Infamy" at 9 p.m. Wednesday focuses on the two times Library of Congress field workers interviewed Americans about their reactions to surprise attacks: after Pearl Harbor and Sept. 11. Other programs in the days leading up to the anniversary--including a full schedule on Sept. 8--will examine the religious and moral questions raised by the 9/11 attacks and their aftermath, the views of a theologian and a business leader on how the nation and world have changed in the past year, the peace movement in post-Sept. 11 America, changing views of citizenship, as seen by diverse Californians, and the experiences of an L.A. bounty hunter who tracks down illegal aliens. The Sonic Memorial Project, a collaboration of NPR News and independent radio producers nationwide, will air remembrances, messages, poetry and music during NPR's afternoon newsmagazine "All Things Considered" on Sept. 9, 10 and 11. The show airs weekdays on KPCC at 3 p.m. and KCRW-FM (89.9) at 4 p.m. An hourlong special by the Sonic Memorial Project will also air Thursday at noon on KPCC, and Sept. 7, at 9 a.m. on KCRW. It will examine the little-known history of the World Trade Center, including stories about the Mohawk Indian steelworkers who built it, the "building stewardesses" who educated skeptical New Yorkers at the construction site as the huge towers went up, and of "Radio Row," the neighborhood of decades-old electronics stores displaced by the new buildings. KCRW and KPCC will both air a live call-in show at 10 a.m. on Sept. 7. "Living with Terror: The World Speaks a Year After 9/11" will allow callers from around the globe to discuss topics such as whether the war on terror can ever really be won, and how residents in Ireland and Israel have coped with terror. A companion show, "Living With Terror: America Speaks," at 10 a.m. the following day, will feature town-hall discussions from Los Angeles, Boston and Minneapolis-St. Paul on topics including whether heightened security measures undercut American freedoms, and why some people and governments elsewhere in the world hate the United States. On KCRW on Sept. 11, "Which Way L.A.?" and "To the Point" host Warren Olney will look at the national mood and how life has changed in Southern California. Even KCRW's music programs will join the commemoration, with Nic Harcourt on "Morning Becomes Eclectic" and Jason Bentley in the evening on "Metropolis" playing special music. Music stations are not leaving the memorials to the news and talk stations, by any means. Country station KZLA-FM (93.9) is slated to play versions of the national anthem at the top of each hour, and feature commentary by musicians and listeners alike, said Jimmy Steal, regional vice president for Emmis Communications, which owns KZLA. On its sister station KPWR-FM (105.9), morning host Big Boy will add his reflections to comments from listeners and hip-hop artists, Steal said. "The overall tone is positive, reflective," he said. Rather than revisit last year's horror, "give thanks we live in a society where we're free. The silver lining is, we live in the best country in the world." "It's really important that each station reflect the vibe of what their audience is feeling," no matter what the format, Steal said. All eight of the local stations owned by Clear Channel Communications -- ranging from Star 98.7 (KYSR-FM) to talk station KFI-AM (640) -- will air two minutes of silence at 8:45 a.m., followed by a four-minute program featuring an interview with President Bush, which will also be played on Clear Channel's 1,200 stations nationwide, according to company spokesman Bill Lewis. "Our whole emphasis is going to be looking forward, rather than a retrospective of what happened on 9/11," Lewis said, and will include specials from KFI reporter Laura Ingle from ground zero, and from KLAC-AM (570) morning man Gil Gross. Fewer Commercials KNX-AM (1070) will air the day's news stories, as it always does -- which on Sept. 11 will be heavy on memorials, speeches and other remembrances. "We're not changing the format of the station for the day," said KNX news director Ed Pyle, like blocking off huge segments of time for events such as the reading of the terror victims' names. But the station will have a bit more time to linger on presidential comments and other events. "We'll have a lighter commercial load than we usually do," Pyle said. "It hasn't been by our instigation. Some advertisers are shying away from the day." According to an Advertising Age magazine survey, 51% of consumers polled thought advertising would be inappropriate on Sept. 11, while only 34% thought it unnecessary for advertisers to back off. Pyle noted, however, that the fewer ads phenomenon seems more prevalent the farther east you go, closer to the scenes of the attacks. "It has to be a special day," said Jay Kernis, NPR's senior vice president for programming. "It has to be the right balance of information and reflection. "Radio may have an advantage on Sept. 11," he said. "People know what the pictures look like, and many people don't want to see the pictures again. This is providing an aural space where people can go remember if they want to remember, and connect with the rest of the country." Copyright 2002 Los Angeles Times (via Mike Cooper, DXLD) ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF SEPTEMBER 11 TRAGEDY APPROACHES American Atheists Urges Secular Memorials Across The Nation! On September 11, 2001, Islamic militants launched the ultimate "faith- based initiative" and attacked targets in Washington, DC and New York City. Thousands died in this religion-based terrorism, and the lives of many more were affected. The one year anniversary of that tragic occurrence approaches. Over the course of the past year, the September 11 tragedy has become an excuse to violate the separation of church and state. Clerics and political leaders, including President George Bush have exploited the events and the horrific imagery to rally the nation to prayer and religious faith. As with the cold war decades ago, religious belief is now promoted as a badge of patriotism and concern for fellow human beings. In the process, millions of Americans who profess no religion have been insulted, marginalized and excluded. It's time to take back and reclaim our share of the cultural landscape. One way to do this is for Atheist, Freethought, Humanist and other secularist groups to consider sponsoring Secular Memorials on or about September 11, 2002. If we demand "a seat at the table" in political affairs, we must claim participation in honoring the victims of this tragedy, and saluting the many heroes and heroines as well. American Atheists urges you to visit http://www.secularmemorials.org and consider organizing an appropriate event in your community. There are suggestions, along with resources and a discussion board so you and your group can join the conversation. America's diverse community of nonbelievers has every right to be heard on this important issue. If you are a member of an Atheist, Freethought, Humanist or other nonbeliever group, consider joining with us in this national event. Visit http://www.secularmemorials.org (AA Newsletter Aug 28 via DXLD) ** U S A. Glen[n], RE: ``I am incensed that KKSU`s demise hinged around rights to stupid ballgames.`` In hindsight, perhaps this was less about Morris Communications' rights to air football than it was about them utilizing an obvious KSU slip-up to get out of an antiquated time-share agreement. An agreement that I can only imagine each successive WIBW-AM owner has secretly tried to find a way out of, probably beginning with the first new owner after the 1969 amendment. Let's face facts: Until the last 10 or so years, KSU's football teams couldn't win football games to save their souls. Airing KSU football games could not have been that profitable to WIBW during KSU's bad football years. Regardless of how well KSU's football team does now, perhaps more advertising revenue can be generated off an additional 25 hrs/wk (year 'round) versus 3 or 4 hrs during the short football season. However, I don't even claim to be an expert in that area. Do that many people really listen to college football on the radio, anymore? If KSU had "done their homework" (pardon the school pun), perhaps this all could have been avoided. Frankly, it appears KSU's athletic department had serious egg on its face for awarding an "exclusive" contract to MAAN, when it obviously had no legal right to do so. Perhaps, as you say, KSU should have been doing something all along to replace KKSU with a full-time outlet. I sincerely wish KSU would have at least considered purchasing KFRM (550 kHz), a 50,000 watt, daytime- only license, when the opportunity came up, several years ago. At that time, KSU probably could have bought KFRM for a song and a dance. Too bad KSU alternatively didn't pursue a frequency in the "expanded" AM band, although their situation likely would not have qualified them for such a move. Given the predominantly agricultural nature of their locally produced programming, my guess is that the type of people who were listening to KKSU will not be willing to be tethered to their computers to listen to whatever programming KSU provides over an internet stream. If these people don't switch to an FM outlet for "public radio" in KKSU's absence, these people will likely be spinning the dials in their tractors and pickups to find commercial ag based stations, such as KFRM or KRVN. 73, (Ken Kopp, WØNXS, Aug 31, DX LISTENING DIGEST) KFRM 550 is `only` 5000 watts, but with trenemdous groundwave at that frequency. I suggested directly to KKSU at the time that they should buy it (tho nighttime 110 watts, at least more than 25 hpw), but the reply was that they preferred 580 in Manhattan since it put a better signal eastward into Kansas City (Glenn Hauser, Enid OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Thanks for your note, Glenn, and for your expression of support for KKSU. It's been a difficult situation for us here, but at least there is now some resolution, however costly, and we can begin to think about our future. We will be exploring a variety of options, both broadcast and network- based, to provide audio from K-State Research and Extension, including the acquisition of existing or new broadcast properties. The problem is that radio frequencies have been frozen for some years now, and won't be thawed until interference issues are explored with the advent of digital radio in the next couple of years. The only way to get a broadcast property is to buy an existing one (and they're not cheap -- - our 5 hours got $1.5 million!), or to buy an unused frequency from someone who owns it and hasn't constructed a facility (that happened recently when a Manhattan station bought an unused allocation in the Riley area --- for $450,000 --- just for the license!) --- but the problem with that is that FM frequencies usually serve a small geographical area, especially in comparison with a low-band AM frequency like KKSU currently has (which the FCC hasn't given out in decades). Anyway, your thoughts are most appreciated, and we'll keep them in mind as next week we begin to brainstorm the possibilities. We hope by year's end to have a service up and running which will give us new and better ways to serve Kansans, even if they're different from the methods we've used in the past. Hopefully our fans in Enid will be able to take advantage of whatever we create! Thanks again, Glenn. We value your support. Larry, KKSU * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Larry Jackson * * Station Manager * * KKSU-AM 580 voice (785) 532-5851 * * McCain Auditorium Room #20 fax (785) 532-5709 * * Kansas State University ljackson@oznet.ksu.edu * * Manhattan, KS 66506-4701 * * * * http://www.kksu.com * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Many thanks for your reply! Glad to hear KKSU may continue in some form. On FM, I don`t see why purchasing a (commercial) facility should be necessary. Surely there is some spot on the noncommercial band where KKSU could fit in, initially perhaps at lower power. A relay/translator network could then extend coverage (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. 25950, KPM556 [Portland OR] is off temporarily and perhaps forever, according to Mike Johnson, station engineer. Larry Holtz, the former chief engineer, has left the station. The new guy is using phone lines do to the feedback for the remotes instead. There was also a problem with the 25950 transmitter causing interference to other users. Although some low pass filtering was put on 25950, it was easier to turn it off rather than to try and deal with the issue. I will miss the reggae (Hans Johnson, WY, Aug 28, Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** U S A. MAN ORDERED TO GIVE UP RADIOS Hobbyist accused of misdemeanors in cop's death By Aamer Madhani, [Chicago] Tribune staff reporter, August 31, 2002 An Inverness man accused of misusing a police radio channel and then scuffling with an officer who then died of a heart attack was ordered Friday to surrender his radio equipment to authorities. Cook County Circuit Judge Joseph Urso ordered William Bily, 56, to turn over his transmitting equipment, including a treasure-trove of ham radio gear, to Barrington-Inverness police by Tuesday as a condition of his release while he awaits trial. Bily of the 2000 block of Bradwell Road was arrested this week on misdemeanor charges of resisting a peace officer and interfering with emergency communications. His trial is set for Oct. 2. Bily, an amateur radio enthusiast, was accused of disrupting police communications Sunday by transmitting over the Barrington-Inverness police radio channel. When Officer Steven Graham came to his home, Bily resisted arrest, and Graham suffered a fatal heart attack in the tussle, authorities said. The death of Graham, 53, a 29-year veteran of the department and son of the late state Sen. John Graham, was ruled a homicide by the medical examiner's office because the heart attack allegedly resulted from the scuffle. Assistant State's Atty. Steven Rosenblum said Friday his office does not intend to seek other charges. Bily's attorney, Frank Cece, argued against having all of his client's radio equipment confiscated. He said Bily, a Marine Corps veteran who saw combat during the Vietnam War, has many pieces of ham radio equipment that pose no risk to police radio frequencies. But the prosecutor said Sunday wasn't the first time police had gone to Bily's house to confront him about interrupting their frequency. Police also visited Bily on July 4, 2000, Rosenblum said. Copyright (c) 2002, Chicago Tribune (via Martin Gallas, Mike Cooper, DXLD) ** VIETNAM. 6380.3, Radio Lai Chau; Lai Chau, Aug. 30, 2258-2306, Tentative. Was checking Maarten van Delft's info as read at http://www.worldofradio.com/dxld2135.txt and came accross a weak signal here. Typical male vocals, couldn't hear any instrumental accompaniment. Comparable to the songs I use to hear on the Hmong service on 5035v kHz. Female announcer in unidentified language, short bridge of soft instrumental music (Mark Veldhuis, the Netherlands, Receiver: Icom IC-R75; Antenna: 24 mtr. longwire with MLB, DXing.info Aug 31 via DXLD) ** VIETNAM. 6379.9, Lai Chau BS (Presumed) hill tribes music, decent modulation at 1209 Aug 24. 6491.3v, Cao Bang BS (Presumed) constantly drifting, bad modulation but usual music at 1214 Aug 24 (Hans Johnson, WY, Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** VIETNAM. FREQUENCY GUIDE For Voice Of Vietnam English Program (from March 31/2002 to October 26, 2002) Areas of coverage UT Frequencies Europe 1700 9725 Europe 1800 13740 - 11640 Europe 1900 13740 - 11640 Europe 2030 13740 - 11640 Europe 2330 9840 - 12020 North East America 100 6175 North East America 230 6175 Central America 330 6175 Hanoi 1000 101.5 MHz South East Asia 1000 1242 – 9840 - 12020 South Asia 1100 1242 - 7285 Hanoi 1230 101.5 MHz South East Asia 1230 9840 - 12020 Europe 1330 13740 - 11640 Hanoi 1330 101.5 MHz Central Asia 1400 1242 South Western Asia 1500 1242 Central Asia 1600 13740 - 11640 Europe 1600 13740 - 11640 Hanoi 1600 105.5 MHz Central Asia 1630 13740 - 11640 - 1242 (via Partha Sarathi Goswami, Siliguri, West Bengal, India, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ZIMBABWE. Action Alert August 30, 2002 ZIMBABWE`S RADIO VOICE OF THE PEOPLE BOMBED -- ASSISTANCE REQUIRED The World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (Amarc) Africa condemns the bombing of Radio Voice of the People (VOP) offices in Harare, Zimbabwe on Thursday August 29, 2002. Zimbabwe Republic Police say that two armed men stormed the premises between 1 am and 2 am on Thursday morning, chased away the security guard and threw bombs into the offices which are housed in a low density residential suburb in Harare. Although no-one was injured in the attack, the organisation lost all its property including equipment. Voice of the People board member Sarah Chiumbu said today that the staff have agreed to continue working despite the circumstances. Voice of the People is appealing for assistance in fundraising for equipment. Voice of the People can be contacted through VOP director John Masuku on +263 (91) 308 052 or voxpop@zol.co.za The station is also considering the prospects of setting up outside the country. This bomb blast is the latest in the series of attacks on the privately-owned media. Neither the police nor the VOP board members could identify a motive for the attack. In April 2000, a bomb exploded near the offices of the country`s only privately owned daily, The Daily News. In January 2001, a bomb destroyed the Daily News` printing press. Two months ago, police raided VOP offices. Voice of the People is the first of only two privately owned radio stations in Zimbabwe and was established in 2000 as a non-profit organisation. Programmes are produced locally in the English and two local languages and sent to Radio Netherlands for broadcast on shortwave. The other privately-owned station Shortwave Radio operates wholly from London, for security and legal reasons. The government has branded both these stations as terrorist, pirate and illegal radio stations. Current broadcasting laws make it almost impossible for aspiring broadcasters to acquire licenses. In the Broadcasting Act, the Minister of Information has the absolute and discretionary power to grant and revoke broadcasting licences. The bombing of the VOP offices comes at a time when the private media is reeling under repressive government laws. Freedom of expression group, Article 19, reports that 36 journalists from the privately- owned media have been arrested and 13 charged since the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Bill was signed into law in March this year. At least two foreign correspondents have been expelled from the country within the year and government supporters have declared some rural areas as no-go areas for journalists from the private media. Zimbabwe`s Minister of Information has dismissed the latest bombing as a publicity stunt adding that VOP is a terrorist organisation working with the West and other local organisations to subvert and topple the government. ENDS For more information please contact Shingai Nyoka: AMARC Africa`s Communication Officer on 27 (11) 403 7913 or at comofficer@global.co.za _______________________________________________ Amarc-info mailing list Amarc-info@lists.amarc.org http://lists.amarc.org/mailman/listinfo/amarc-info (via Scott Gurian, DXLD) UNIDENTIFIED. On 30 Aug at 1750 a station on 4876.2 with distorted audio and wobbling carrier. Indian style music and talks in local language. Did not get the TOH ID. Poor modulation like Bangladesh. A bit late for Bangladesh Betar or did they have a public holiday too, like in India? 73 (Jari Savolainen, Kuusankoski, Finland, hard-core-dx via DXLD) ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ RECEIVER NEWS +++++++++++++ RADIO EMERGES FROM THE ELECTRONIC SOUP --- 19:00 28 August 02 Exclusive from New Scientist Print Edition A self-organising electronic circuit has stunned engineers by turning itself into a radio receiver. What should have been an oscillator became a radio This accidental reinvention of the radio followed an experiment to see if an automated design process, that uses an evolutionary computer program, could be used to "breed" an electronic circuit called an oscillator. An oscillator produces a repetitive electronic signal, usually in the form of a sine wave. Paul Layzell and Jon Bird at the University of Sussex in Brighton applied the program to a simple arrangement of transistors and found that an oscillating output did indeed evolve. But when they looked more closely they found that, despite producing an oscillating signal, the circuit itself was not actually an oscillator. Instead, it was behaving more like a radio receiver, picking up a signal from a nearby computer and delivering it as an output. In essence, the evolving circuit had cheated, relaying oscillations generated elsewhere, rather than generating its own. Layzell and Bird were using the software to control the connections between 10 transistors plugged into a circuit board that was fitted with programmable switches. The switches made it possible to connect the transistors differently. Treating each switch as analogous to a gene allowed new circuits to evolve. Those that oscillated best were allowed to survive to a next generation. These "fittest" candidates were then mated by mixing their genes together, or mutated by making random changes to them. After several thousand generations you end up with a clear winner, says Layzell. But precisely why the winner was a radio still mystifies them. To pick up a radio signal you need other elements such as an antenna. After exhaustive testing they found that a long track in the circuit board had functioned as the antenna. But how the circuit "figured out" that this would work is not known. "There's probably one sudden key mutation that enabled radio frequencies to be picked up," says Bird. Duncan Graham-Rowe (via Mike Terry, DXLD) SONY UPDATES LINE OF PLUG-AND-PLAY XM SATELLITE RADIO RECEIVERS http://www.smarttvandsound.com/menu_page.cfm?menu=bottom%20bar&page=stv_news_article.cfm&id=659 Reprinted from a Sony press release: PARK RIDGE, N.J., Aug. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Sony Electronics announced today its enhanced line of "plug-and-play" XM Satellite Radio receivers, the first line of these receivers that can be enjoyed in both the car and at home. The receiver's unique two-piece design allows listeners to transfer the main unit between multiple locations without having to disconnect cables. Sony's new line-up offers a re- designed antenna and LCD display, a direct channel selection through a new remote control, and 20 preset station tuning capabilities. "Our first line of XM receivers introduced transportability for XM listening. Responding to customer feedback, we have enhanced the line to incorporate four times as many preset stations, random access tuning and a smaller antenna," said Phil Petescia, vice president of marketing for portable audio products at Sony Electronics. "With just one subscription to XM Satellite Radio service, Sony's plug-and-play receivers allow listeners to enjoy satellite radio virtually anywhere." The new receiver's two-line LCD is white backlit for improved brightness and clearer contrast, displaying a 20-character summary of the current program choice. With the new direct access Remote Commander(R) control unit for direct channel selection, a faster Jog Dial(TM) navigator for quicker channel scrolling and 20-station presets, listeners can access their favorite channels with ease. The line also features a more streamlined antenna, which is available with each accessory kit, the DRN-XM01H2 home installation receiver package or sold separately. Three models of the XM receiver are now available from Sony including a self-installation unit for the car (DRN-XM01C2), a home installation system (DRN-XM01H2), and custom-RF installation package for the car (DRN-XM01R2). With the addition of the accessory kits and the smaller satellite radio antenna (AN-XM100), listeners can easily enjoy XM service between multiple vehicles and the home. Sony also offers the XT-XM01 XM satellite radio receiver, which allows consumers to enhance any Sony UniLink(TM) head unit with XM service. All models are currently available. Home Unit (DRN-XM01H2) Consumers can easily create a stand-alone XM stereo system using Sony's home package, which is bundled with everything needed to connect to a home audio system, including a receiver, direct access Remote Commander control, AN-XM100 antenna, audio cable, AC power adapter and home cradle stand. The package will be available for about $300. Self-Installation Car (DRN-XM01C2) For easy self-installation, on-the-go XM listeners can purchase the DRN-XM01C2 system. Equipped with a receiver, direct access Remote Commander control, cassette adapter, cigarette lighter power adapter, mounting accessories and car cradle stand, the self-installation car system will be available for about $250. Custom Installation Car (DRN-XM01R2) The RF modulator allows the satellite radio receiver to be custom installed with any car stereo system. Available for about $300, the car package with an RF modulator includes a receiver, direct access Remote Commander control, RF modulator with power supply, mounting accessories and car cradle stand. Home Accessory Kit (DRN-XM01HK2) Listeners can go from their car to the comfort of their homes without missing a beat with the home accessory kit, which includes a home cradle, AN-XM100 antenna, direct access Remote Commander control, audio cable and AC power adapter. The home accessory kit will be available for about $150. Car Accessory Kit (DRN-XM01CK2) The car accessory kit allows listeners to transport their receiver from the home to the car or between multiple cars, with a car cradle, AN-XM100 antenna, direct access Remote Commander control, cassette adapter, cigarette lighter power adapter and mounting accessories. The DRN-XM01CK2 kit will be available for about $150. Satellite Radio Antenna (AN-XM100) Sony's satellite radio antenna is universal, operating with all manufacturers' XM receivers. The new extremely compact design, magnetic or adhesive mounting options and 23-foot cable provides listeners with a variety of installation options. The new antenna will be available for about $70 (via Mike Terry, DXLD) ###