DX LISTENING DIGEST 4-041, March 5, 2004 edited by Glenn Hauser, http://www.worldofradio.com Items from DXLD may be reproduced and re-reproduced only if full credit be maintained at all stages and we be provided exchange copies. DXLD may not be reposted in its entirety without permission. Materials taken from Arctic or originating from Olle Alm and not having a commercial copyright are exempt from all restrictions of noncommercial, noncopyrighted reusage except for full credits For restrixions and searchable 2004 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 NEXT AIRINGS OF WORLD OF RADIO 1222: Sat 0900 on WRN1 to Europe, Africa, Asia, Australasia, webcast Sat 0955 on WNQM, Nashville, 1300 Sat 1130 on WWCR 5070 Sat 1930 on WPKN Bridgeport, 89.5, webcast http://www.wpkn.org Sat 2130 on WWCR 12160 Sat 2130 on WBCQ 17495-CUSB Sun 0030 on WBCQ 9330-CLSB [ex-0130!] Sun 0330 on WWCR 5070 Sun 0730 on WWCR 3210 Sun 1100 on WRN1 to North America, webcast; also KSFC 91.9 Spokane WA, and WDWN 89.1 Auburn NY; maybe KTRU 91.7 Houston TX, each with webcasts Sun 2000 on Studio X, Momigno, 1584 Sun 2100 on RNI webcast, http://www.11L-rni.com Mon 0430 on WSUI 910, webcast http://wsui.uiowa.edu [last week`s 1221] Mon 0515 on WBCQ 7415, webcast http://wbcq.us Tue 0400 on SIUE Web Radio http://www.siue.edu/WEBRADIO/ Wed 1030 on WWCR 9475 WRN ONDEMAND: http://new.wrn.org/listeners/stations/station.php?StationID=24 OUR ONDEMAND AUDIO [also for CONTINENT OF MEDIA, MUNDO RADIAL]: Check http://www.worldofradio.com/audiomid.html WORLD OF RADIO 1222 (high version): (stream) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1222h.ram (download) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1222h.rm (summary) http://www.worldofradio.com/wor1222.html WORLD OF RADIO 1222 (low version): (stream) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1222.ram (download) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1222.rm WORLD OF RADIO ON WBCQ: the Saturday evening airing on 9330-CLSB has suddenly shifted one hour earlier, to 0030 UT Sunday. See COSTA RICA ** ALASKA. KNLS Alaska revised schedule KNLS Alaska revised their schedule on 29th Feb according to their website. English at 1300-1400 UT is now on 9655 (ex 9780). (Their other English broadcast at 0800-0900 remains on 11765). For period Mar 28- April 25 English at 1300-1400 again changes - to 11870. KNLS schedule for 29 February - March 28: 0800-0900 11765 English 0900-1000 9795 Russian 1000-1100 9615 Mandarin 1100-1200 7365 Russian 1200-1300 9905 Mandarin 1300-1400 9655 English 1400-1600 9615 Mandarin 1600-1700 7355 Mandarin 1700-1800 9615 Russian KNLS schedule for March 28 - April 25: 0800-0900 11765 English 0900-1000 11765 Russian 1000-1100 11765 Mandarin 1100-1200 9795 Russian 1200-1300 11765 Mandarin 1300-1400 11870 English 1400-1700 9615 Mandarin 1700-1800 12105 Russian (from http://www.knls.org/ via Alan Pennington, UK, Mar 4, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ALBANIA. Frans Vossen of RVI`s Radio World reports on the Radio Tirana fan site at http://www.rtirana.8m.com It has been there for a while and apart from a schedule, and lots of `under construction` signs there is not much there (Chris Brand, Communication Webwatch, March BDXC-UK Communication via DXLD) see also CHINA [non] ** AUSTRALIA. QSL: 2310, Alice Springs VL8A, Nice package with brief, p/d (frequency and site) verification letter, bookmark, sticker and a fistful of program guides for various ABC services; NewsRadio, Classic FM, Radio National and "All about the ABC" in 22 days for 2 IRCs. V/S, Barbra Lilliebridge, Administration Officer (Scott R. Barbour Jr., Intervale, NH, R75, MLB-1, RS longwire with RBA balun, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** AUSTRALIA. Fair DU morning, but with a "twist", a new one, 8RN-639- Katherine, NT popped in briefly at 1430 with an ID! Into ABC News. Plus signs on 8RN on 657 and even 6WA-558. Not the best DU morning ever, but one of the more interesting ones in a long time. Nabbing my 2nd NT catch was a thrill! 8RN being a great birthday present. I'm 55 today. Drake R8, EWE antenna 639, Katherine, 8RN, was tuning by expecting to hear 2CS, but heard an ABC program instead. Quick to go over to 2325 kHz to check //, as 4MS- Mossman is also on 639, but there is was // to 639! Program ending at 1429 UT, into program ending jazzy music, then female announcer says "This is rural ABC, 105.7 Darwin" Into ABC News at 1430. Soon lost in the jumble though. This is my second NT ABC station. Darwin-657 was logged back in the 80s. I am very pleased with this! 657, Darwin, 8RN, seemed // to 639 at 1432 in quick checking // 3/4 with ABC News (Patrick Martin, Seaside OR, March 4, NRC-AM via DXLD) {I thought one callsign must be wrong, since 639 and 657 would not both be 8RN. Well, apparently they are, per WRTH 2004, and there are similar duplications elsewhere, e.g. WA} ** BELGIUM [non]. Radio Netherlands on 11730 kHz at 2200 UT on March 2 was noted here too. However, on March 3 at this hour RVI from Belgium was back as expected with usual good to excellent reception. A mistake at the relay site in Netherlands Antilles I imagine (Roger Chambers, Utica, New York, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** BOLIVIA. 4722.82v, Radio Uncía (presumed), Uncía, reportada entre las 0840 UT del dia de la fecha en adelante, con excelente recepción. Entre la hora del inicio de la escucha y hasta las 0900 transmite un programa de música bailable, con locución en español. A partir de las 0900, transmite un programa en aymara (tal cual se los señalaba dias anteriores). Estoy sorprendido por la excelente señal con la cual llega a Buenos Aires (Arnaldo Slaen, ARGENTINA, March 5, Conexión Digital via DXLD) ** BOLIVIA. 4722.78, Radio Uncía, Uncía, 4 March, 1012 to 1040 clearly running their own programming and not parallel with Pio XII. OM "...minutos en ...Uncía [?] en el corazón... en pasión..." The former parallel may have been for religious observation as we approach Easter? 5952.52, Em. Pio XII, Siglo XX, 4 March, 1014 to 1030, impressive signal, not running parallel to Radio Uncía (Bob Wilkner, NRD 535D - Icom R75 - Pómpano Beach, Flórida, U S, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** BOLIVIA. R. San Miguel, Riberalta, 4903.82, Feb 27 0925-0940+ lite instrumental music, local ballads, Spanish talk, ID, announcements, jingles, fair (Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** BOLIVIA. 6134.72, R. Santa Cruz, 0910-0918, March 4, Spanish, Marching band music at tune-in followed by two "Radio Santa Cruz" IDs, more music. Very poor, unsettled with het from presumed R. Aparecida, Brasil 6135 (Scott R. Barbour Jr., Intervale, NH, R75, MLB-1, RS longwire with RBA balun, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** BRAZIL. R. Aparecida, 6134.81, Feb 27 0915-0935+ local Brazilian music, Portuguese talk. Strong but slightly unstable, \\ 9630.04. R. Guaiba, 6000, Feb 29 0915-0945+ Brazilian ballads, Portuguese announcements. \\ 11785 --- both frequencies weak, but readable (Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** BULGARIA. R. Bulgaria say that for 2004y they have produced 24 new QSL cards and a 6-part e-mail QSL card series. Conditions for the e- mail cards are: EVERY 2 months 3 receptions reports per month, sent together. Thanks to Paul Gager for that info received in a letter from Radio Bulgaria (Roger Bixley, QSL Report, March BDXC-UK Communication via DXLD) ** CANADA. Hi Glenn, Re the comments under Canada, 4-040: The evening broadcast (0100 UT for A04) will have The World at Six instead of RCI's Canada Today, but the RCI weekly programs will be retained. Incidentally, we've had some severe server problems which have crippled the general RCI e-mail address since sometime on Tuesday, March 2nd. If people have had e-mails returned to them, they should try resending them. 73- (Bill Westenhaver, RCI Audience Relations, March 5, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** CANADA. An unsigned article in the January issue of The Channel, just received from the Association for International Broadcasting, should have them steaming at the RCI Action Committee. ``Radio Canada International: A Repositioning`` goes over the rationale we`ve already seen for RCI`s evolution (devolution?), and concludes with: ``The repositioning announced for March 2004 adds momentum to the process, moving further away from old recipes towards context oriented flexible formats, combining attractive radio with innovative web content and providing foreign audiences with lively, appealing and relevant programming. It is undoubtedly a tall order involving a significant change of culture for RCI`s staff who will have to change from survival mode to expansion: instead of defending the station identity, threatened no longer, they will have to learn to use the work already done by others in the organization and to spend the time gained on targeting and context of their original product. Difficult but feasible for people who through their professionalism and dedication brought RCI to the point where it is now.`` (via Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** CHINA [non]. USA [non] Falun Dafa Radio apparently cancelled the TDP-brokered transmission to Europe on 6035; it has not been heard during the last days. Both the website http://www.falundafaradio.org and the TDP website continue to list this broadcast so far (Bernd Trutenau, Lithuania, March 4, Cumbredx mailing list via DXLD) If past performance be any guide, TDP will keep listing it like lots of other cancelled services, at least until the next seasonal revision. Fortunately, that is not too far away. Altho there may be US connexions, I think it is more appropriate to list this as a service about and/or for China (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** CHINA [non]. CRI have a new broadcast in Italian started from March 2nd at 1800-1900 UT on 1458 kHz transmitter Fllakë; power 500 kW via Albania. 1458 CRI, Fllakë, Albania March, 02, 1857-1859 UT, male announcer in Italian, ID of the station mail/e-mail address; Chinese popular music at 1858 UT and then sign off. SINPO 42343 (Nino Marabello, Italy, Japan Premium via DXLD) Hi, just checked 1458 kHz for the Albanian Relay of CRI, before the 1800 UT Italian program I could hear CRI in an unID language (?) [Bulgarian per previous report here --- gh]. What was really interesting: the Italian program was mixed with the German FM ("UKW") (!!) program - 1 minute Italian / 1 minute German. It looks like they fed the link from China to Albania with a "wrong" program mix ...hi. Hope to get a QSL for the German VHF FM program, rare to monitor here. Looks like a German program on FM for Beijing area? 73, (Tom, DL8AAM, March 3, hard-core-dx via DXLD) 1969-1978 FEEDS FROM CHINA TO ALBANIA Albania / China: Recently, two questions arose about the closure date of Chinese transmissions via Albania in 1978 and about the way the re-transmissions were delivered from China to Albania. I have looked through my archive and found this item published by Sweden Calling DXers Bulletin 1492 (78-08-01): "Radio Tirana has now ceased relaying Radio Peking, as of July 15. Radio Tirana began relaying Radio Peking broadcasts in 1969 with transmissions totalling 49 hours a week in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Serbo-Corat and Hausa. The current Radio Peking schedule listed 91 hours a week relaying over Tirana. (BBC Monitoring Service)" Concerning the delivery of programmes from China to Albania, I believe this was done by SSB feeder transmissions with the tapes being played backwards in order to prevent people from listening to the feed transmission. Unfortunately, I was not able to find this piece in written form in SCDX (Dr. Hansjoerg Biener, listening to international broadcasts since the mid-seventies, via Kai Ludwig, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** COLOMBIA. R. Melodía, Bogotá, 6139.78, Feb 29 0950-1000+ nice romantic ballads, Spanish announcements, 0954 ID, ads, jingles; good (Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** CONGO. According to a letter from TDC, Radio Congo transmits on 5985 0430-0700, 1700-2300; 6115 0600-0830, 1700-2030; 9610 0700-1700 (Sergey Kolesov, Ukraine, World DX Club email list via Mike Barraclough, DXLD) ** COSTA RICA. RFPI Webcast: The schedule is set up in a four-hour block that of course is repeated throughout the day and night. The startup of the four-hour block is at 12 noon here in Costa Rica [1800 UT], with Democracy Now. The weekend broadcast consists of a single six-hour program rotation. We should have the schedule posted next week, including WORLD OF RADIO and CONTINENT OF MEDIA. Everything else is going well; should have some news for you regarding RFPI's return to shortwave in a few weeks. Take care, (James Latham, RFPI, March 4, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ECUADOR. La Voz del Upano, 4869.96, Feb 29 0240-0540+. Variety of music during this period. LA, some HC music; Spanish talk. 0300 IDs, 0301 classical piano music, lite instrumental music. After 0500, religious programming with recitations and talk. Also heard at 0910 check with LA music, 1000 ID, 1001 NA, 1003 Spanish talk and religious recitations. Fair signal but audio a little muddy. Not often heard on this frequency (Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST) This was the same night several others heard it relaying Radio María (gh) ** ETHIOPIA [non]. 9820, CLANDESTINE, V. of Oromo Liberation via DTK- Juelich, 1721-1735, March 2, Oromo, OM talks re "democrati" and "Oromo", Horn of Africa music into ID at 1730. Good until QRM splatter via BBC 9825 s/on, then fair at best (Scott R. Barbour Jr., Intervale, NH, R75, MLB-1, RS longwire with RBA balun, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** EUROPE. Who: SENSATION AM from WESTERN EUROPE Target: Pacific/down under WHEN: Saturday 6 th march 2004 Time: 0715 till 0815 UT NON stop dance, 100 mod level with frequent station ID's, E mail is open: sensat-@hotmail.com [truncated] GOOOOOD DX (via Johno Wright, March 5, ARDXC via DXLD) But what is the frequency? (Johno) Not sure , but normally uses 13865 (Jem Cullen, ibid.) ** FINLAND. SCANDINAVIAN WEEKEND RADIO Tässä on SWR:n ohjelma-aikataulu 6. Maaliskuuta 2004 lähetykseen. Muutokset mahdollisia. taajuudet samat vanhat: 5980, 5990, 6170, 11690 sekä 11720 kc. tehot 100/100w molemmilla bandeilla. Here is SWR's program-schedule for March 6th 2004 broadcast. Some changes might happen. Local-time/Ohjelmatietoja [UT +2] 00-01 Tricky Trev show: "Superhits of the 80's" A look at some of the hits that dominated the era including such people as, Kim Wilde, Nick Kershaw, Men at work, Spandau ballet and many more. 01-02 Night-shift SWR-crew 02-03 Night-shift SWR-crew 03-04 Night-shift SWR-crew 04-05 Morning glory 05-06 " 06-07 " 07-08 SoulTrain by Häkä 08-09 Science corner by Esa. Latest news from Nasa 09-10 Kantoaaltoa suomirokilla höytettynä. Esa 10-11 Progressive rock and other strange things by Esa 11-12 World Radio Roulette by Dj Madman 12-13 Pena-sedän puntari: Haastattelussa J. Rautaheimo Helsingin Poliisin väkivalta-toimistosta ! 13-14 Wanhaa Tawaraa (ja vähän nuorempaakin?) tarjolla Madmanin virttyneen vanhan musiikin ohjelmassa. Oldies but maybe not so Goldies music played in this programme. 14-15 Rariojaskalla on asiaa: Lajiesittelyssä radiosuunnistuksen ekstrememuoto: Piilomies ! Nuo hullut pohjanmaan radioaktiiviset KRH: laiset aloittelevat piakkoin Piilomies-cup 2004 osakilpailujaan. 15-16 Rush Hour : by Madman pläjäyttää ilmoille nopean rytmin, joka pistää takuulla liikkumaan. Can't stop the beat! 16-17 Tricky Trev show: "Party Time" a mixure of music to get you moving and in the mood before heading out for a Saturday night out. Studio quests include:- The Rasmus, Robbie Williams, Kylie Minogue, Scooter, Master Blaster, plus many. 17-18 SWR-crew 18-19 SWR Crew 19-20 Progressive rock and other strange things by Esa 20-21 SWR-crew 21-22 SWR-crew 22-23 Closing down before midnight with Rj + stuff Cannot build new, before you wreck the old... That why we play some old music first ! Talk about today's mission impossible, what we got left under the line ? When you hear me playing the FINLANDIA-hymn, it's too late to call- SWR-hotline : +358 (0)400 995 559 ! SWR on äänessä joka kuukauden ensimmäinen lauantai 24 h alkaen klo. 0:00 suomen aikaa. Puhelinnumero 0400-995 559 on käytössä lähetysviikonloppuina. Myös tekstiviestit ovat tervetulleita. Ole valmiina numeron kanssa ja osallistu kuuntelijakisaan! Palkintoina mitä uskomattomimpia tuotteita! SWR is on the air at every months first Saturday 24 hours, starting 0:00 local time. (+2 UTC) Phone number +358 400 995 559 is in use during transmission weekends. Also SMS -messages are welcome. Joko sinulla on SWR-QSL Vain raportoimalla SWR:ta on mahdollista saada tuo haluttu lappunen kokoelmiisi! Joten laitahan lankaa puutarhaan ja viritä salora jaksolle ! Rj (Alpo Heinonen, March 5, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** GOA. 9820, GOA/INDIA, AIR Panaji, *1258-1323, March 2, Sinhala (listed), IS, OM sign-on announcement, mention of "Akashvani", frequency schedule and "Phaswar Bharati", music at 1302, long talk from 1306-1316 re Pakistan then Hindi music until tune-out. Good at sign-on, choppy/fading at tune-out (Scott R. Barbour Jr., Intervale, NH, R75, MLB-1, RS longwire with RBA balun, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** GUYANA. V. of Guyana, 3291.07, Feb 28 0822-0840+, tune-in to Hindi vocals, 0830 English ID, into religious choral music. 0840 ID and TV, Kor`an. Quite a variety of programming. Strong, very good (Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** HAITI. Our 1958 QSL from 4VEH when it was 350 watts on 16 meters has been added to our QSL gallery at http://www.worldofradio.com/QSL.html (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** INDIA. TEST TRANSMISSION FROM ALL INDIA RADIO UPDATED 5 MARCH 2004 A tip from Jose Jacob of Hyderabad, India, that All India Radio is testing on different frequencies for their forthcoming launch of 24 hrs News channel expected to start on 2nd April 2003. The tests are follows as monitored in Calcutta: 0030-0430, 0700-1330, 1500-1740 UT: 7195 Mumbai 100 kW (ex-7220) 7270 Chennai 100 kW 7360 Delhi 50 kW 7420 Guwahati 50 kW These transmitters were used before for Vividh Bharati Service on 10330 kHz and are now available as 10330 kHz is used from Bangalore. Due to the usage of Chennai on 7270 kHz for testing, External Services from this Chennai transmitter on 4790, 7270, 7275 are now discontinued (dxasia.info via DXLD) ** INTERNATIONAL. LW-SCAN 1600-1630 UT --- Here´s my list of LW- stations heard here in pretty electric noisy suburb of Turku, Finland 153 R ROMANIA, Brasov with 1200 kW of power. 162 FRANCE INTER, Allouis 171 R ROSSII, Bolshakovo sounded like almost regional. 1608 UT ID "Murmanskiye Radio". Very strong, even S9 +10 dB. 180 This must be TRT-4, Polatli. Heard them closing down 2305 UT. 183 No signal at all 189 Absolutely nothing. In the morning hours around 07 UT it´s quite possible to hear RUV from Iceland on this frequency. 198 R MAYAK, S9 +10 dB 207 UR 1 Kyiv from UKRAINE with 250 kW of power. 216 RMC Info, Roumoules with awful electric noise. TNX to soap operas like Emmerdale and Bold and the Beautiful! 225 PR 1, (Poland), Solec Kujawski with excellent signal 234 Absolutely nothing 243 Danmarks Radio, Kalundborg S9 + 10 dB. 252 Absolutely nothing [soon to be occupied by RTE-1] 261 R ROSSII with 2500 kW. 270 Absolutely nothing but electric noise. 279 BR 1, Sasnovy, BELARUS. RX: AOR 7030+, ANT: Indoor ALA 1530P-active loop 73´s (Jouko Huuskonen, Turku, FINLAND, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ITALY [and non]. Re Big Red Mascot case, WKU vs Berlusconi, 4-040: Ciao! brevemente --- qualcuno che vive in USA, assicura che il "gabibbo" di striscia la notizia, demenziale programma di Canile 5 è stato copiato dalla mascotte ideata dall'Università del Kentucky [Occidentale]. Attendiamo gli sviluppi (Dario Monferini, Italy, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Ciao! il "vero" Gabibbo: the true Gabibbo story http://www.wku.edu/bigred/ ciao, (Gigi Nadali via Dario Monfeirni, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Wow, WKU is really, really serious about this; illustrated (gh, DXLD) ** ITALY. 5775, IRRS, 2034-2046, March 1, English, OM with fire and brimstone preaching, full IRRS ID and contact info at 2045 into new religious program, "Transformations" with Canadian QTH. Weak, best in LSB (Scott R. Barbour Jr., Intervale, NH, R75, MLB-1, RS longwire with RBA balun, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** JAPAN. 5006, JG2XA Tokyo, 3/3 1332-1348. "JG2XA" Code ID's heard weakly at various times; could not tell if there was any other text besides the call ID's; one long "pip" every minute at :00. Also noted a carrier on presumed parallel 8006, but have never heard any audio or Code on this frequency. Both re 200 watts (John Wilkins, Wheat Ridge, Colorado, Drake R-8, 100-foot RW, Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** JORDAN. 11690, R. Jordan, 1636-1703, March 3, English/Arabic, Relay of FM service with pop music program of dance, rap and Arabic pop music. IDs as "Dancing with Radio Jordan, your countries FM", "96.3 FM in Jordan" and "Dance to the beat of Radio Jordan's 96.3 FM". Cut- off at 1700 for pips, YL with TC (1700) and ID, "This is Radio Jordan, broadcasting from Amman", news re Arab League media campaign for PSA's regarding women`s issues; health, education, etc. Good signal strength but hampered by severe utility QRM, which was reduced by listening in LSB mode (Scott R. Barbour Jr., Intervale, NH, R75, MLB-1, RS longwire with RBA balun, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** MEXICO. Nicholas Vaughan Baker has been in contact with Deyanira Morán, a presenter at Radio Educación in México. She has now left that station and is working in Cancún at Radio Ayuntamiento, which also broadcasts on the Internet. You can hear Deyanira and her colleague Aldredo [sic --- Alfredo?] from 0700 to 1000, weekday mornings (Mexican time) [UT -6]. The programs consist of Mexican music and comment. Click on 105.9 FM Radio Ayuntamiento (on the right-hand side of the website) at http://www.cancun.gob.mx Or go direct to http://www.cancun.gob.mx/Html/Principal/radio.htm (Chris Brand, Communication Webwatch, March BDXC-UK Communication via DXLD) ** MEXICO. IMER has decided to close down XERMX, Radio México Internacional on shortwave, due to the high cost of replacing transmitters, three of the five (?) being in poor condition, and since SW is outmoded: look at the BBC which ceased SW to the US recently. However, IMER will be investing more in Internet broadcasting, making all of its stations available (very brief summary translation by Glenn Hauser of the following) Had been heard occasionally on 9705 in the past few weeks, and before that with horrendous blobs in highly variable spots between 9 and 11 MHz (gh) RADIO MÉXICO CIERRA TRANSMISIONES, 4-Mar-04 Ahora, a casi 25 años de haber sido creada, el Instituto Mexicano de la Radio ha anunciado su pronta y definitiva desaparición. El primero de septiembre de 1969 fue la fecha en que por primera vez el gobierno federal decidió difundir su informe anual a través del sistema radial de onda corta, el cual permite, entre otras cosas, una proyección internacional que puede ser captada por un receptor multibanda en cualquier parte del mundo. Con esto, quedaba prácticamente inaugurada la primera estación oficial de este tipo en nuestro país, a la que se le dio el nombre de Radio México Internacional (RMI), misma que hasta el momento comparte créditos en dicho sistema de transmisión con Radio France Internationale, Radio Praga y la Deutsche Welle, por mencionar sólo algunas. Ahora, a casi 25 años de haber sido creada, el Instituto Mexicano de la Radio (Imer) --- la misma institución que la cobijó durante todo este tiempo --- ha anunciado su pronta y definitiva desaparición debido a ``su anacronismo en tiempos de internet``, el mal estado en que se encuentran tres de sus cinco transmisores y el alto costo que significaría repararlos o, en su defecto, comprarlos nuevos. Próxima clausura Lo anterior se dio a conocer a los trabajadores de la radiodifusora por Rocío Micher, directora de radiodifusoras del Imer, el pasado 11 de febrero --- en una junta interna, en la cual no sólo se anunció la próxima clausura de la radiodifusora, sino también la reubicación del personal que ahí labora en cualquiera de las otras estaciones del instituto que operan desde el Distrito Federal --- y fue confirmado a este diario por la propia directora del complejo radiofónico, Dolores Béistegui. Hasta entonces, RMI había tenido como fundamento principal el de ``ser una ventana del acontecer cultural, científico, artístico y social del México contemporáneo hacia todo el mundo, especialmente a las comunidades de mexicanos en el extranjero, la cual podía escucharse en las frecuencias 9705 y 11770 de cualquier receptor apropiado para dicha tarea``, asegura un trabajador de la estación, el cual pidió no ser identificado pues, entre otros asuntos, asegura que la determinación tajante de desaparecer dicha emisora obedece a la ``incapacidad de sus dirigentes por lograr apoyos o bien vender el proyecto``, un proyecto comenzado desde 2002, a través del cual se pretendía ``subir los contenidos de la estación a internet con el único fin de hacerla más rentable y ponerse al parejo de las grandes radiodifusoras que transmiten por onda corta``, explica. ``Este fue uno de los planes más ambiciosos de Dolores Béistegui desde que tomó la dirección del Imer``, dice. Y es que en el proyecto corporativo de la directora general para el período que comprende hasta el año 2006 se establecía que, para operar una transmisión de onda corta aceptable, se necesitarían ``25 millones de pesos con tal de llevar a cabo una rehabilitación del equipo de transmisión que se encuentra en condiciones deplorables, pero la cantidad estipulada es una exageración. Incluso algunos ingenieros saben que en realidad no se necesitaba tanto dinero y que esto era sólo un pretexto para no llevar a cabo la reposición del equipo``, expresa la fuente. Interrogada al respecto, Béistegui aseguró desconocer la cifra real que se necesitaba para la compostura de tal infraestructura y sentenció: ``¿Por qué invertir uno, cien o un millón de pesos en un proyecto que no se escucha? Lo que queremos ahora es generar una oferta radiofónica de mucha calidad. Queremos invertir en un proyecto de difusión del futuro y ese es internet, no la onda corta que es un formato radiofónico, cuyo auge se dio en etapa de grandes conflictos bélicos internacionales, pero que ahora no se escucha más``. ¿Proyecto alterno? A pregunta expresa en torno a la existencia de un proyecto alterno que supla la presencia de RMI en el mundo, Béistegui aseguró que actualmente se trabaja en un servidor de internet que englobará todo el proyecto de informática del Imer, a través del cual se podrán escuchar las doce estaciones del instituto y al cual se le invertirán cerca de 90 millones de pesos tan sólo este año. Respecto de la medida definitiva de dejar de transmitir por onda corta y los antecedentes inmediatos en este tipo de determinaciones en el ámbito internacional, Béistegui expresó que ``todas`` las radiodifusoras importantes de este sistema habían ya llegado a la misma determinación y citó como ejemplo el caso de la BBC Radio en Estados Unidos, misma que recientemente interrumpió sus transmisiones de este tipo para entrar de lleno en la transmisión radial por internet. Sin embargo, sitios web como los de la Deutsche Welle, Radio Korea Internacional o Radio France Internationale demuestran lo contrario al dejar por sentado que seguirán llevando a cabo la transmisión convencional por onda corta al tiempo que pondrán a disposición de los escuchas su material vía la red. De hecho, en la portada del sitio de Radio Praga puede leerse fácilmente la leyenda de que ``la onda corta es la manera más común de escuchar radio extranjera en los cinco continentes``. Lo cierto es que mientras se materializa el nuevo proyecto de Internet --- aproximadamente seis meses, según Béistegui --- ``quedarán en entredicho los objetivos no sólo de RMI, sino del Imer en su totalidad``, asegura la fuente anónima, pues ``desde que la ex directora del Antiguo Colegio de San Ildelfonso llegó a ocupar la dirección del instituto los lineamientos han dejado meramente de ser los estipulados desde su creación para convertirse en uno más de los complejos radiales que buscan más la rentabilidad que la difusión cultural``. Es aquí que se torna preciso rescatar dos de los estatutos principales de la dependencia de la Secretaría de Educación Pública, los cuales obedecen precisamente a la necesidad de ``fortalecer y contribuir a la integración de la identidad nacional`` y a la de ``apoyar la difusión de la cultura general con un propósito informativo y educativo``. (Christian Obregón, Diario Milenio, March 4 via Héctor García Bojorge, DF, Conexión Digital via DXLD) Amigos... Esto demuestra una vez más (y será hasta la última emisora que maten del sistema de radiodifusión internacional por onda corta) la complicidad entre algunos empresarios y funcionarios de los medios con los siderales negocios que prodiga el Internet. Ya no importa ni la cultura, ni las tradiciones ni la dignidad de los pueblos al derecho de la libre comunicación e información, la globalización por Internet es un verso capitalista!, interesa la recaudación sistemática que las transmisiones por onda corta jamás podrían producir. Si no tienes una PC con conexión telefónica o con banda ancha, y la capacidad económica para soportar el servicio, fuiste mi amigo... Ahora, o te unes al negocio de los grandes oligopolios para convertirte en un eterno contribuyente o la información que te la de Magoya (seguramente conectado ya a Internet). La gratuidad de las emisiones internacionales se acaba, llega el gran cambio para asentuar las discriminaciones en un mundo cada vez más injusto. Eso es lo que siento al leer el mensaje de nuestro colega mexicano. Respiremos hondo, todavía el aire es gratis. Saludos! (Rubén Guillermo Margenet, Argentina, ibid.) Es lamentable lo que sucederá con Radio Mexico Internacional y es lamentable que existan personas trabajando en la radio que no aprecian lo que es una señal internacional llevando a su país por los aires de todo el mundo. Todavía recuerdo hace muchos años, cuando recibí el folleto de Radio Mexico Internacional, y lo que más me llamó la atención fue una parte del mismo donde se podía leer: RADIO MEXICO INTERNACIONAL, UNA EMISORA CON CAPACIDAD DE LLEGAR AL MUNDO ENTERO. Espero que recapaciten y que esta emisora siga en el aire por muchos años más. Por cierto, me pregunto y me preguntarán ustedes ¿José Elías y qué pasa con Radio Nacional de Venezuela y su señal internacional? Y yo tendré que responder: La verdad es que no sé (José Elías, Venezuela, ibid.) ** MONACO. Re 4-039: A station that calls itself MC 1 is to start broadcasting in the next days on 1467 kHz from the Col de la Madonne transmitter, which belongs to MCR, a subsidiary of TdF (Rémy Friess, France, March 4, MWC via DXLD) ** PAPUA NEW GUINEA. 3385, NEW BRITAIN, R. East New Britain, 1153- 1211, March 2, "Bouncy" island music at tune-in, talks at 1156 with (tentative) mention "PNG", then alternating music and talks until 1211 fade-out. Poor, possibly // 4890 after 1200 but too much fading on both frequencies to be absolutely certain. (Also noted weak carriers on 3305 and 3345 around these times, and 3365) (Scott R. Barbour Jr., Intervale, NH, R75, MLB-1, RS longwire with RBA balun, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** PARAGUAY. Last night at 0016-0038 UT (3/4) I heard something interesting on 9736.9 kHz: Two men with excited talk in Spanish, sounded like crowd noise in background and (maybe) player numbers being given. Frequent mentions "Paraguay" and "Venezuela" so maybe a fútbol match. The score may have been "cero-cero." There were also sound EFX and multiple mentions "en Guaraní." This is R. Nacional's (Paraguay) old frequency, but I thought they were off the air. (I am back into the hobby after nearly 7 year layoff so am somewhat out of touch). Might they have been on for some kind of special feed?? The signal was fair-good at peaks. Briefly off at 0026 (carrier) then back on until signal was gone completely/abruptly at 0038. Thanks again, take care (Jim Clar, Rochester, NY, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Per recent reports here, R. Nacional has been refurbishing the old SW transmitter site and was expected back on about now, and confirmed: (gh) REACTIVADA RADIO NACIONAL DEL PARAGUAY Hola Glenn, Saludos desde Catia La Mar. Reactivada el pasado 03/03, a las 2252 UT, en los 9736.88 kHz, con SINPO 3/3. Transmitía un partido de fútbol de Copa Libertadores, desde Bolivia. El locutor mencionaba la frecuencia de onda corta y le daba la bienvenida a la "nueva etapa de RNP". Ya fuera del aire a la 0107 UT. 73's y buen DX, (Adán González, Venezuela, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Thanks, Glenn. I appreciate your time --- and, as always, your hard work (Jim Clar, ibid.) Célio Romais reporta de Florianópolis que sintonizou a R N Paraguai em 9737 que reiniciou as transmissões recentemente com ótimo sinal, e na última quarta, estava transmitindo o jogo do Guarani (Sarmento F. Campos, DXCB, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil, March 5, radioescutas via DXLD) ** PERU. R. Santa Mónica, Cusco, 4965, Feb 29 0940-1030+ OA folk music, Spanish and echo announcements, 1021 ID. Weak at tune-in but slowly improving (Brian Alexander, Mechanicsburg PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** PERU. 4747.92, R. Huanta, 1040-1051, March 2, Spanish, OM with talks between music, passing mention "Radio Huanta" at 1043. Good at tune-in, then fading fast (Scott R. Barbour Jr., Intervale, NH, R75, MLB-1, RS longwire with RBA balun, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** PHILIPPINES. 15190, R. Pilipinas, 1745-1825, March 2, Vernacular/ English, 2 OM with international news re Al-Qa`eda, fiscal news re exchange rates and stocks, Solid IDs at 1813 in Filipino and English with frequency schedule, Program intro, "Welcome to ``PBS edition" repeated several times by OM with YL talks in between, (never did get full program name) continuing thru tune-out. Poor but improving, best in LSB. No //s noted (Scott R. Barbour Jr., Intervale, NH, R75, MLB-1, RS longwire with RBA balun, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** SOMALIA. I note that Radio Shabeelle has moved from 6961 to 6960. Regards, (Chris Greenway, Kenya, March 5, DX LISTENING DIGST) ** SYRIA. Has anyone logged Radio Damascus, Syria recently? Both 12085 and 13610 at 2100 are swamped by adjacent channel QRM at my location. Are they still on SW? (Scott R. Barbour Jr., Intervale, NH, R75, MLB- 1, RS longwire with RBA balun, DX LISTENING DIGEST) They are still around, just signed on at 1056 on 13610 kHz in Arabic. On 12087.3 kHz there is only hum, no audio. 73, (Mauno Ritola, Finland, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** UKRAINE. AUTHORITIES CLOSE DOWN RADIO KONTYNENT Radio Free Europe - Prague, Czech Republic ... It began using Radio Kontynent's FM channel on 28 February. Radio Liberty and the BBC are still broadcasting to Ukraine using AM and shortwave signals. ... http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2004/3/D1EDFC52-D138-4D0A-8A16-8F5C93859F18.html See all stories on this topic: http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&client=google&num=30&newsclusterurl=http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2004/3/D1EDFC52-D138-4D0A-8A16-8F5C93859F18.html RADIO LIBERTY BROADCASTS JAMMED IN UKRAINE Atlanta Journal Constitution - Atlanta, GA, USA ... FM rebroadcasts of shortwave Radio Liberty were canceled two weeks ago by a private radio station after it demanded format changes, a move that led to claims ... http://www.ajc.com/news/content/news/ap/ap_story.html/Intl/AP.V5914.AP-Ukraine-Radio-L.html (Google news alerts via Larry Nebron, DXLD) EMBATTLED RADIO STATION CHIEF FLEES UKRAINE TO AVOID ARREST The head of a Ukrainian rebroadcaster of several Western radio stations has said he fled Ukraine to avoid arrest. Speaking by phone from an undisclosed Western European country, Radio Kontynent director Serhiy Sholokh said in a live TV interview he had narrowly escaped an attempt to arrest him. Following this, he received threats from people close to a senior Ukrainian propresidential MP, who warned him against rebroadcasting US-funded Radio Liberty, Sholokh said. Earlier on 3 March, police confiscated Radio Kontynent's transmitter, and the station said its programmes had been jammed ever since it said it would rebroadcast Radio Liberty. Radio Kontynent rebroadcast programmes of the BBC, the Voice of America and Deutsche Welle. The following is an excerpt from a programme by the Ukrainian pro- opposition television TV 5 Kanal on 3 March: [Presenter] Radio Kontynent stopped its broadcasts at 1300 [1100 gmt] today. [Passage omitted: their radio transmitter was confiscated, see report "Police seize transmitter of Ukrainian rebroadcaster of BBC, Radio Liberty", Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Kiev, in Russian 1249 gmt 3 Mar 04.] The BBC hopes that Radio Kontynent will resume its broadcasts, the head of the BBC Ukrainian Service, Maciek Bernatt-Reszczynski, has said. [Radio Kontynent rebroadcast programmes of the BBC Ukrainian Service, Voice of America and Deutsche Welle.] I hope Radio Kontynent director Serhiy Sholokh, who is abroad at the moment, is on the line now. Good evening, Serhiy. [Sholokh] Good evening. [Presenter] Serhiy, there is a number of questions. As you are outside Ukraine now, the first question is why are you abroad rather than in Kiev when your radio station is in big trouble? [Sholokh] The thing is that on the Saturday before last [21 February], unidentified people attempted to arrest me. They introduced themselves as police officers and said they had a warrant to take me for questioning by force. It was in the dark at about 1930 [1730 gmt] on Saturday. I managed to escape then. After that, I was in hiding. I lived at my friends' and did not come home. Once, as a guerrilla fighter, as school teachers put it - constantly looking over my shoulder, I came home to see my children without switching the lights on and disappeared before dawn. On Wednesday [25 February], representatives from the United Social Democratic Party of Ukraine [USDPU, headed by presidential administration chief Viktor Medvedchuk], an aide to [USDPU] MP Nestor Shufrych and my former female defence lawyer who is now working for him, met me. The first thing they said was that if I decided to rebroadcast Radio Liberty programmes, that would be the end of me and of my radio station. Then they offered a solution - if I agree to work with that party all my problems and the problems of the radio station will be settled, I would become a rich man, and so on. [Presenter] Serhiy, is there anybody in Kiev who will fight for the radio's existence or resuming its broadcasts? [Sholokh] I will do it from here, from the West. There are more opportunities here. There is a team in Kiev that has already written complaints and a letter to the prosecutor-general [Henadiy Vasylyev], asking him to file a criminal case against the illegal actions. Nobody can seize a transmitter without a court ruling. [Presenter] Is there any hope that the radio will go back on air again before the presidential election [in October 2004]. [Sholokh] I am sure there is. That is why I am in the West. There are European bodies here - the European parliament and others. I will fight here every single day. [Presenter] Serhiy, a licence can be obtained only from the National Council for TV and Radio Broadcasting in Kiev. Do you have a problem with licensing? [Sholokh] Yes we have a licensing problem. I do not believe that anybody can give me a licence now. This is unrealistic. We can try, but this is a waste of time. I have a licence which is not recognized by the Ukrainian authorities. I am defending this license in the court in Brussels [presumably, the European Court of Human Rights]. I will defend the licence more actively here. [Presenter] It has been reported that you have not paid office rent for a year. Is it true or not? [Sholokh] This is untrue. We paid the office rent. But there is a technical nuance. The office was rented by another organization. We paid it. Basically, this is a violation of the law. But what else could we do? [Presenter] Serhiy, can you tell us in which country you are now? [Sholokh] No, I cannot tell you in which country I am now. I am in Western Europe. [Presenter] All right. Thank you for participating in our programme in this way. [Audio available. Please send queries to kiev.bbcm @ mon.bbc.co.uk] Source: TV 5 Kanal, Kiev, in Ukrainian 1900 gmt 3 Mar 04 (via BBCM via DXLD UKRAINIAN RADIO DIRECTOR DIES BEFORE TALKS WITH RADIO LIBERTY | Excerpt from report by Interfax-Ukraine news agency Kiev, 4 March: The director of the Poltava-based Yuta TV and radio company, Heorhiy Chechyk, was to hold talks on broadcasting the programmes of Radio Liberty [Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty] on the day when he died in a car accident, the Institute of Mass Information has reported, referring to Poltava Media Club president Lyudmyla Kucherenko. Kucherenko told the institute that Chechyk had been on business in Kiev and was returning to Poltava yesterday morning. He planned to return to Kiev in the afternoon on the same day. For her part, Radio Liberty producer Alla Luchaninova confirmed that Chechyk was to come to their office in Kiev for talks on rebroadcasting Radio Liberty. Kucherenko also said that Chechyk could feel unwell because of the situation around his company. [The local authorities refused to prolong the lending agreement on the company's office and accused it of document forgery and disrespect for business partners.] "I knew that Heorhiy liked to drive fast, but his health deteriorated after recent events and I can't rule out a stroke," she said. [Passage omitted: details of the car accident and attack on the company's office, see report "Ukrainian regional TV company chief killed in car accident", UNIAN news agency, Kiev, in Ukrainian 0822 gmt 3 Mar 04.] Source: Interfax-Ukraine news agency, Kiev, in Russian 0902 gmt 4 Mar 04 (via BBCM via DXLD) UKRAINIAN RADIO STATION DIRECTOR KILLED IN CAR CRASH By TIM VICKERY The Associated Press 3/4/04 3:58 PM http://wizzer.advance.net/cgi-free/getstory_ssf.cgi?a0703_BC_Ukraine-RadioLiberty&&news&newsflash-internationa KIEV, Ukraine (AP) -- The head of a Ukrainian radio station that was considering broadcasting U.S.-funded Radio Liberty programming died in a car crash, police said Thursday. The death came the same day that another station transmitting the programs was pulled off the air. The death Wednesday of Yuriy Chechyk -- combined with Radio Liberty's losing its second outlet in Ukraine in a month -- raised suspicions of foul play amid complaints that Ukrainian authorities are rolling back media freedoms. "Yesterday, we witnessed the killing of journalists again in Ukraine," Mykola Tomenko, the head of parliament's free press committee told lawmakers Thursday. He demanded that Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych appear before parliament Friday to explain what the government is doing to stop journalist deaths and "the closing of mass media every day." The prime minister's office said he would be out of the country. In Washington, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said the United States was concerned by Ukrainian authorities' attempts "to limit public access to independent news and information" and said the decision to shut down broadcasters was "an assault on democracy." Chechyk, the director of Radio Yuta in Poltava, was killed when the car he was driving collided head-on with another car, said police in the city 215 miles east of the capital, Kiev. Ukraine's roads are in poor condition and the country has a high number of crashes; but there were concerns this was not an accident. Ukraine's media environment has been tense since the 2000 death of Heorhiy Gongadze, an Internet journalist who crusaded against high-level corruption. His decapitated body was found in a forest outside Kiev. Opposition groups allege President Leonid Kuchma was involved in Gongadze's killing. He denied it. Chechyk was en route to Kiev to meet with executives from Radio Svoboda, Radio Liberty's Ukrainian service, about rebroadcasting Radio Liberty's shortwave programs on the more-accessible FM band, said Radio Svoboda chief editor Hanna German. A private FM station that had rebroadcast Radio Liberty programming for five years canceled the service last month after making vague demands -- possibly under pressure from the government -- for format changes. Radio Liberty programming then was picked up by private Radio Kontinent, but authorities pulled the station off the air Wednesday after just five days of airing the programs. Police said Chechyk's car made a U-turn just before the crash. The driver of the other car was hospitalized with multiple injuries and his passenger lost a leg, police said. "We were shocked. We were waiting for him ... He'd said it was very important to him to work with us," German told The Associated Press, adding that she did not rule out foul play but that she hoped such a thing was not possible. "If this were a democratic country, journalists could work freely ... but this is an authoritarian state. Every day you open the paper to read another journalist arrested, another station closed," said Volodymyr Boiko of the Institute for Mass Information, affiliated with the Paris-based media watchdog group Reporters Without Borders. "We're fighting for every city, for every village," the director of Radio Liberty's Ukrainian service, Aleksander Narodetsky, told AP. Radio Kontinent, which also ran programs by the Voice of America, the BBC, the Deutsche Welle and Polish Radio, was pulled off the air Wednesday by police who seized station equipment. Thomas Dine, the director of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, denounced the closure in a statement from Washington, calling it "a blatant act in suppressing factual news and information." President Kuchma's administration has come under criticism from Western governments, human rights groups and journalists who accuse him of muzzling the press. Numerous public figures have died in car accidents in recent years, leading to speculation of plots to eliminate government opponents or key sources of evidence that could incriminate corrupt officials. Last year, opposition lawmakers launched an investigation into the death of former lawmaker and anti-corruption activist Anatoliy Yermak in a car crash. Valeriy Malev, Ukraine's top arms export official, died in a collision in 2002. Ukrainian media speculated about foul play in the crash, which occurred at the same place and under similar circumstances as the death the previous year of the director of a Ukrainian arms trading company. Opposition leader Julia Timoshenko was injured in a car crash in Kiev in January 2002. One of the nation's most prominent nationalist opposition leaders, Viacheslav Chornovil, was killed in a crash in 1999; his supporters said it was not an accident (via Mike Cooper, DXLD) CLOSURE OF UKRAINIAN RADIO STATION DISMAYS INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTERS The Association for International Broadcasting (AIB) has expressed its concern at the decision by Ukrainian authorities to close Kiev-based broadcaster Radio Kontinent. Kontinent, an independent station, was closed by an order issued by Ukraine`s State Centre of Radio Frequencies (Ukrchastnotnaglyad) on 3rd March. As well as producing its own principally music-based programmes, Kontinent is a rebroadcasting partner of the Ukrainian-language services of BBC World Service, Deutsche Welle, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Polonia and the Voice of America, all members of the AIB. ``Radio Kontinent has been a vital source of impartial information for the people of Kiev,`` says Simon Spanswick, Chief Executive of the AIB. ``The station has worked in partnership with leading western broadcasters to bring world and regional news to its audiences in the Ukrainian capital. The AIB believes that this closure is not in the best interest of the Ukrainian people who want access to free speech as well as unbiased news and information. The AIB urges Ukrainian authorities to allow Kontinent to return to the air as a matter of urgency.`` Radio Kontinent has worked with international stations for several years, rebroadcasting news and current affairs programmes to listeners across the Ukrainian capital. Kontinent recently started to take the output of Prague-based Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) which until February 17 had been transmitted by the Radio Dovira network in Ukraine. However, following a management change, the station ceased its working arrangement with RFE/RL. ``Hundreds of radio stations around the world carry programming from many international broadcasters,`` continues Spanswick. ``Tens of millions of people in countries from Argentina to Zambia tune in to local broadcasters who relay news and current affairs programmes from stations abroad. International radio and television stations provide trusted, reliable information, to make sense of our complex, confusing and contradictory world, and provide a forum for the exchange of ideas. It is vital to democracy worldwide that these broadcasts are not interfered with by governments and politicians.`` The closure of Radio Kontinent has drawn criticism from broadcasters. Speaking in Bonn, Deutsche Welle`s Director of Programmes Joachim Lenz said that the closure ``was further proof that the Ukrainian state does not allow freedom of press and speech.`` From Prague, Tom Dine, President of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, said ``We at Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty are angry and outraged by this blatant act in suppressing factual news and information from a variety of high-quality journalists. Ukraine`s name and its people are badly damaged; the first freedom - free expression - is harmed.`` David Jackson, Director of the Voice of America, said: ``The Voice of America has a reputation around the world for providing balanced and reliable news. Silencing that Voice is not in Ukraine`s interests.`` And the BBC in London issued a statement in which it expressed its disappointment with the closure of Radio Kontinent and expressed hope the station will be given a chance to re-apply for a licence and be on air again. ``Many BBC listeners in Kiev have been tuning in to our programmes through Radio Kontinent, and we are sad that they will now be deprived of this option. We have enjoyed working with Radio Kontinent and hope they will be able to re-apply for the licence in the future in order to continue to enrich the choice of the Ukrainian listener with their mix of news, jazz and classical music.`` The AIB has written to Ukraine`s Prime Minister, Viktor Yanukovych and to Ukraine`s Ambassadors in Berlin, London, Prague, Warsaw and Washington concerning the closure of Radio Kontinent. The AIB has urged the return of its confiscated transmitting equipment and sought reassurance that stations in the Ukraine that broadcast programmes from abroad will not face censure or harassment. # posted by Andy @ 12:50 UT March 5 (Media Network blog via DXLD) ** U K. Hello from Hilversum, The phrase "end of an era" is overused, but I think that when the world's longest-running talk programme stops after 58 years, the term is justified. Alistair Cooke has been a part of the broadcasting scene since before I was born. I can't say I was a regular listener to Letter from America, but it was one of those programmes where you always knew what to expect, and were never disappointed. So no prizes for guessing the subject of this week's feature. Nobody does it better It is typical of Alistair Cooke's sometimes fractious relationship with the BBC that he is angry about the way his retirement, at the age of 95, has been handled by the Corporation. On doctor's advice, he has finally accepted that he can no longer write and present the weekly Letter from America that has been a fixture in the BBC's radio schedules for over half a century. He had written a short retirement notice which he intended to read himself, but the BBC decided to publish the news ahead of the broadcast... http://www.rnw.nl/realradio/features/html/cooke040305.html (Media Network newsletter March 4 via DXLD) No problem with Andy`s item, but in reading all the press about Cooke, I see his unusual name often misspelt; let`s render him the courtesy at least of spelling his name right! A L I S T A I R (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U K. LEGEND OF THE AIRWAVES COOKE RETIRES AGED 95 (From his hometown of birth local paper) Cooke was best known for his Radio 4 programme Letter From America. SALFORD-BORN broadcaster Alistair Cooke has finally decided to hang up his microphone at the age of 95. In a 1997 speech to television executives, Cooke said: "I discovered very early on that broadcasting is the control of suspense." "No matter what you're talking about - gardening, murder, you're telling a story. If you say a dull sentence, people have the right to switch off." Cooke was also a distinguished face on television. His "Alistair Cooke's America" was aired worldwide along with his show "Omnibus" in the 1950s. He was born in Salford in 1908 and lives with his second wife in Manhattan, New York. Alistair Cooke met many of the late, great statesmen and leading figures of the 20th Century and witnessed some of the world's most historic events, including the assassination of Robert Kennedy. He recalled the incident and said: "I heard somebody cry 'Kennedy! Shot!' I heard a girl moan 'No, no not again!" Biographer Nick Clarke commented: "Most people in this country knew about America from the films and it was one of the reasons why Alistair felt that he had this mission, almost, to explain America to the British." Cooke was such an institution, his broadcasts received the ultimate accolade of being parodied by the Cookie Monster on Sesame Street. http://www.salfordadvertiser.co.uk/news/index/articles/article_id=2708.html (via Mike Terry, DXLD; gh excerpted to avoid repetition from previous articles) ** U S A. AFGE LOCAL 1812 GETS A LOOK AT THE BBG'S 2005 BUDGET REQUEST DATELINE: WASHINGTON, 03/05/04. Although the reason we've been hearing for the cuts in English language broadcasts is due to "budget shortfalls" the BBG actually requested to cut English language broadcasts in its budget request. Quoting from the document: "In FY 2005, we propose to continue redirecting funds towards our highest priority areas. To fully fund high priority programs in the War on Terrorism, the request includes net base reductions of $15.7 million including a reduction in VOA English programming, the return of RFE/RL Belarussian hours to the number of hours broadcast prior to the presidential elections, and efficiencies achieved in transmission and central news operations. The request also includes the integration of Radio Free Iraq into the Middle East Television Network and Radio Sawa and the elimination of RFA's Cantonese Service. VOA will continue to broadcast in Cantonese. This reflects the BBG's continuing effort to achieve broadcast efficiencies in certain markets that are served by more than one BBG broadcast entity." Under the section titled Voice of America: Summary of Increases and Decreases FY-2004 - FY 2005: "Reflects the following reductions to base operations: a.) Downsize London and Hong Kong Correspondent Bureaus. b.) Reduce English from 19 to 14 hours daily." Here is a look at the budget requests for the past few years: VOA Budget Requests 2003 2004 2005 Actual Estimate Estimate 149,729 156,099 158,194 Enacted Request Level 2003 2004 2005 146,150 151,512 156,979 (AFGE Local 1812, March 5 via DXLD) ** U S A [non]. Below is a list of the 4 Radio Sawa streams that are carried on MW & SW (3 regular and one experimental); 2 other streams (R. Sawa Gulf and R. Sawa Jordan/West Bank) are carried via local relay transmitters on FM only. All streams are available also via satellite. The main difference between the streams is the choice of music (incorporating artists from the target region), other segments of the programme are identical. The names of the streams are the official BBG designations. 990 0000-2400 CYP R. Sawa Egypt-Levant 1260 0000-0800 RHO R. Sawa Egypt-Levant 1260 1500-2400 RHO R. Sawa Egypt-Levant 1431 1600-0400 DJI R. Sawa Sudan* 1548 0000-2400 KWT R. Sawa Iraq 6095 0300-0400 MOR R. Sawa Iraq 6185 0000-0300 KAV R. Sawa Iraq 6185 2300-2400 IRA R. Sawa Iraq 6160 0300-0500 KAV R. Sawa Iraq 7150 0400-0500 KAV R. Sawa Morocco 7150 0500-0700 WOF R. Sawa Morocco 7180 1800-1900 WOF R. Sawa Morocco 7185 0000-0300 MOR R. Sawa Iraq 7195 1900-2300 WOF R. Sawa Morocco 7280 1700-2100 KAV R. Sawa Iraq 7520 2100-2300 IRA R. Sawa Iraq 9530 1800-2300 WOF R. Sawa Morocco 9605 0500-0800 KAV R. Sawa Iraq 9615 1900-2000 KAV R. Sawa Morocco 9645 0000-0300 MOR R. Sawa Iraq 9650 2000-2300 KAV R. Sawa Morocco 9745 2100-2400 KAV R. Sawa Iraq 9805 0300-0600 MOR R. Sawa Iraq 11665 0400-0600 MOR R. Sawa Iraq 11765 2100-2400 MOR R. Sawa Iraq 11825 1800-2100 IRA R. Sawa Iraq 11850 1600-1700 MOR R. Sawa Iraq 11855 1700-1800 MOR R. Sawa Iraq 11905 1700-1900 KAV R. Sawa Iraq 11905 1900-2000 IRA R. Sawa Iraq 11905 2000-2100 KAV R. Sawa Iraq 11920 0500-0700 KAV R. Sawa Morocco 11995 1300-1600 MOR R. Sawa Iraq 15170 1500-1700 MOR R. Sawa Iraq 17695 1400-1500 MOR R. Sawa Iraq 17765 0800-1300 IRA R. Sawa Iraq 17780 0600-0800 MOR R. Sawa Iraq 21630 0600-0800 IRA R. Sawa Iraq 21630 0800-1100 MOR R. Sawa Iraq 21770 1100-1500 MOR R. Sawa Iraq *) experimental (not yet officially introduced), used for test transmissions only. Sites: CYP = Cape Greco-CYP, DJI = Djibouti-DJI, IRA = Iranawila-CLN, KAV = Kavalla-GRC, KWT = Kuwait-KWT, MOR = Briech-MRC, RHO = Rhodos-GRC, WOF = Woofferton-G. Source: IBB online schedule and additional information from BBG (Broadcasting Board of Governors). (Bernd Trutenau, Lithuania, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. WWCR`s printed schedule effective 1 March has arrived. We see that WWCR-4 is no longer Brother Scare 24/7. Still so on weekends, but on M-F certain hours have other programming: 1700-1900 and 2300- 2400. And the WWCR-4 frequency schedule has been modified, as we have observed: 1300-1600 7465, 1600-2100 9475, 2100-0400 7465, 0400-1300 5770. And WWCR-3 is now daily: 1300-1600 9985, 1600-2200 12160, 2200-1300 5070. At first glance, another notable change is that Ken Berryhill`s two music shows are found back to back on 3210, UT Mon 0400 Old Record Shop, 0430 Ken`s Country Classics. Plus Rock the Universe at 0505 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. WWRB is pleased to announce the commissioning of our fifth shortwave transmitter global - 5. Global - 5 is coupled to our 150 degree azimuth South and Central America antenna. WWRB is receiving solid LOUD and CLEAR reception reports from missionaries stationed on / in various Caribbean islands, Bahamas, Central and South American countries. WWRB is broadcasting using Global - 5 nightly on 5.050 MHz from 6:00 pm to 12:00 am Eastern time. [2300-0500 UT] WWRB is building a solid line up of quality Christian programming on all Transmitters, Frequencies and Antennas. WWRB will make application with the IRS to convert operations to a 501C3 Non Profit Ministry To be known As: South East Radio Church. Tax Savings will be passed on to WWRB Christian broadcasters Our Aircraft Communications Group will be 'spun' off into a separate company: Air Transport Communications, Inc (Dave Frantz, WWRB, March 4, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. KCRW FIRES LOH OVER OBSCENITY By Greg Braxton, Times Staff Writer, March 4 2004 Sandra Tsing Loh's commentaries on KCRW-FM (89.9) bear little resemblance to the overtly outrageous routines that led to Bubba the Love Sponge's firing last week. But after she uttered a four-letter obscenity on the air Sunday, Loh joined the Florida shock jock in the ranks of radio personalities who have had their shows yanked off the air... The complete article can be viewed at [registration required]: http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-loh4mar04,1,7665370.story?coll=la-headlines-california (via Jim Moats, OH, DXLD) L.A. PERFORMER THROWN OFF THE AIR OVER OBSCENITY Thu Mar 4, 2004 09:32 PM ET By Gina Keating http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=entertainmentNews&storyID=4502481 http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20040305/od_nm/media_loh_dc LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A popular Asian-American radio commentator has been thrown off a Los Angeles public radio station for using a four- letter word, becoming the latest casualty in the cultural war over obscenity on the airwaves. Commentator Sandra Tsing Loh said her use of the f-word in a prerecorded segment was an editing error but what KCRW-FM's general manager Ruth Seymour said on Thursday was that Loh made calculated use of obscenity in a politically charged time. "It is the equivalent of the Janet Jackson performance piece and there is not a radio or TV programmer today who does not understand the seriousness involved to the station," Seymour said, referring to the now infamous breast-baring halftime show for the Feb. 1 Super Bowl. She rejected Loh's contention that the station had been at fault. "It her responsibility to deliver a program that is ready for broadcast," Seymour said. Loh, 42, learned on Monday from Seymour that her six-year run on KCRW- FM had abruptly ended a day after the station aired her three-minute riff on a Bette Midler concert she attended and in which her musician husband played. "My husband, my soul mate, my ROOMMATE of 15 years -- he sleeps LATE, doesn't LISTEN, moves my STUFF around. But he DOES play guitar for Bette Midler on her MASSIVE new STAGE show. There are times he STANDS within five FEET of her!," the script read. "So I guess I have to f&*k him." Although the quirky, uneven cadence of Loh's delivery makes it appear that the segments materialize in her mind as she walks into the recording studio, they are carefully scripted, she told Reuters. "We discussed it and (the engineer) said, 'Say it and I'll bleep it out," Loh said. The irony of the incident is that she feared Midler would be angry about her commentary and fire her husband. She finds equal irony in being mentioned with shock jocks like Howard Stern, who recently lost several stations over obscenity claims. She noted that she just completed a five-part series on knitting. "It's shocking and I would never have toyed with saying that," Loh said. "Of course I shouldn't say that word on the air. It was never intended to be on the air." Loh will remain an occasional commentator on Minnesota Public Radio's Marketplace, syndicated to about 300 U.S. stations, and as a reviewer for Atlantic Monthly. "We don't see any reason why we would change our relationship with (Loh) because it wasn't on our air," Marketplace Executive Producer J.J. Yore said. "This is really an unfortunate situation and that it happened at a time of such heightened sensitivity." © Reuters 2004. All Rights Reserved (via gh, Don Thornton, DXLD) What a crock of ----- better not say it. Come on, Ruth! STL is a unique, quirky talent, who added a lot to KCRW with her little 5- minute pieces. Indeed LOH LIFE is now gone from the quick links at kcrw.com, but searching on ``LOH`` found many, many entries, where she has been involved in other KCRW programs. Maybe this will still work if you make sure it be pasted together; an audio archive back to 1996. Listen to some of her pieces, if you can, before they are purged? [Later:] Too late, I fear, as checked around 2300 UT March 5 several of the links were `not found`. She`s a nonentity suddenly at KCRW: http://www.kcrw.com/find/find_results.php3?words=Loh&exclude=%2Fpl%2F&restrict=&any_desc=Loh&search_keywords=Loh&AllOrAny=all&search_archives=on&show_code=&radiodate=button_fixed&past_shows=all&start_date=&end_date=&sort_order=AirDate&order_type=ReverseOrder&search_static=on&x=33&y=5 And as of March 4, 2004, they were still selling her audiobook! --- A YEAR IN VAN NUYS - AUDIOBOOK Via snail mail through KCRW. . . Send a check for $23 payable to "S.L.F.M." and mail it to: The Lohlife c/o KCRW 1900 Pico Blvd. Santa Monica, CA 90405. Cassettes will be available this summer -- watch this space. http://www.kcrw.com/about/pressreleases/020601A_Year_In_Van_Nuys.html 03/04/04, 4138 bytes (via Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. There`s a neat editorial cartoon in the NY Post Feb 27, apparently the gossip section, with Howard Stern, King of All Media, being crucified on a cross made out of radios, with a Jew(?) as the FCC, and a Roman as Clear Channel looking on. Unfortunately, could not find it online, so here it is: http://www.w4uvh.net/stern.jpg (gh, photocopy via Bob Thomas, CT, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. COMMITTEE VOTES FOR HEFTIER PENALTIES FOR INDECENT PROGRAMMING By SIOBHAN McDONOUGH The Associated Press 3/4/04 4:04 AM WASHINGTON (AP) -- A House committee has voted to increase from $27,500 to $500,000 the fines that could be imposed on broadcasters for airing indecent material. A House Energy and Commerce Committee subcommittee had approved a tenfold increase, to $275,000, in fines the Federal Communications Commission could impose for each indecency violation. But the full committee voted 49-1 Wednesday to nearly double that. "Personal responsibility is as important a freedom as free speech," said Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, the committee's chairman. "America's responsible parents seek to raise their children with a strong sense of responsibility for their actions -- why should performers be excluded from this expectation?" The measure now goes to the full House after Wednesday's committee vote. The Senate Commerce Committee is to consider its version of the legislation next week. "We are finally gaining ground in the fight to clean up the public airwaves," said Rep. Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph, Mich. "Just last week at our hearing, two out of three networks testifying -- NBC and ABC -- said that our bill to raise the fines for indecency tenfold would not be a deterrent to clean up the airwaves. We heard them loud and clear and now we raise the penalty to $500,000." National Association of Broadcasters President Edward Fritts said the group prefers voluntary industry initiatives to government regulation when dealing with programming issues. He pointed out that just recently, a number of broadcasters have taken steps to address concerns of parents and policy-makers. The measure comes at a time when broadcasters are responding to pressure from federal regulators and lawmakers who say too much of radio and TV programming has become unsuitable for children. Clear Channel recently fired a disc jockey for the "Bubba the Love Sponge" show. The program, which aired on stations in Florida, recently brought a $755,000 proposed fine from the FCC for sexually explicit content and other alleged indecency violations. Clear Channel then announced it would suspend any personality accused of airing indecent programming and would ask its DJs to share in any financial penalties. It also suspended broadcasts of the Howard Stern show on its six stations that carry it, citing sexually graphic content from a broadcast. Under FCC rules and federal law, radio stations and over-the-air television channels cannot air material that refers to sexual and excretory functions between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., when children may be tuning in. The rules do not apply to cable and satellite channels and satellite radio. ------ On the Net: House Energy and Commerce Committee: http://energycommerce.house.gov Federal Communications Commission indecency page: http://www.fcc.gov/parents/content.html (via Mike Cooper, DXLD) ** U S A. ENFORCEMENT: CONGRESSIONAL SUBCOMMITTEE RECOMMENDS HIGHER FINES FOR INDECENCY A congressional subcommittee has acted to substantially increase the fines assessed broadcasters who break indecency rules. Some legislators also say that repeat offenders should lose their licenses. FCC officials have maintained for years that the current maximum fine of $27,500 is too small to serve as a deterrent for large broadcasters who view the fines as a cost of doing business. Now, under a bill recently passed by the House Internet and Telecommunications subcommittee, monetary forfeitures issued by the FCC would be increased by a factor of ten to $275,000 per violation. The cap on the fines would go to a maximum of $3 million. There is yet another possibility being floated among legislators and one that could come up when and if the bill hits the House floor. That would be to hold performers and others appearing in the electronic media directly responsible for their own words, much the same way as is done in other radio services including ham radio. But one law maker has cautioned to enlarge the scope of the proposed legislation to far. Representative Fred Upton cautioned that lawmakers should be careful not to expand the bill to the point where it might run afoul of free-speech rights guaranteed by the Constitution. If that happens, Upton says that it could very well buckle under its own weight (Published news reports via ARNewsline March 5 via John Norfolk, DXLD) ** U S A. The Brooklyn pirate [Lubavitcher] on 1710 has been extremely weak here recently and I'm not sure it is still on the air. A few weeks ago it was coming in here at night like an X-bander. So maybe they were afraid of getting caught and reduced their power. Or maybe they just ceased broadcasting (Ben Dangerfield, Wallingford, PA [SE corner], March 3, NRC-AM via DXLD) Purim begins Saturday night, and runs through Sunday this year. I'd bet that the Lubavitcher pirate will have some special programming for the occasion. Some might say that their programming is always special (:^)> (Brian Leyton, Valley Village, CA, ibid.) They certainly will! And since the Lubavitchers follow Talmudic precepts to the letter, they'll be royally stinking drunk to boot! According to the Talmud, A person is obligated to drink on Purim until he does not know the difference between "cursed be Haman" and "blessed be Mordechai" http://www.chabad.org/magazine/article.asp?AID=39551 http://www.chabad.org/holidays/purim/article.asp?AID=1497 73 (Mike Brooker, Toronto, ON, ibid.) Purim is a real blast in my neighborhood - I live in an Orthodox community, and the Rabbi next door puts on a mini-carnival every year. It's supposed to be for his 2nd grade students, but open to anyone. Moon bounces, cotton candy & snow cones for all. He used to have pony rides & a petting zoo too, but he's scaled it back over the last couple of years. You should see my son when he comes down from the sugar high. Hmm. Now how do I make this radio related? Aw, I give up. Sorry... :-) Actually, I think I can make this radio related. I find it really interesting that here in Los Angeles, home of the 2nd largest Jewish community in the U.S., we have NO radio stations which cater to that demographic. Never have. There are a couple of shows on various stations at odd times, but nothing regular. Given the fact that so many ethnic groups ARE represented, I'd think there would be someone who would give this a shot. Maybe most Jews are so Americanized already that they just listen to whatever everyone else listens to. Even so, I think we may have more Israelis here than there are in Tel Aviv. A Hebrew language station might actually succeed. Maybe I should talk to my Lubavitch friends about starting a West Coast pirate on 1710 ;-) (Brian Leyton, Valley Village, CA, ibid.) As a medium-wave related aside to Mr. Leyton, locally CHIN-1540 (Toronto) has 90 minutes on Sunday of "Jewish" programming, right before they have "Irish/Scotish" programming (Niel Wolfish, ibid.) It's a heck of a holiday --- especially when it coincides with my birthday, as it does this year |ggg| Quite a contrast from the rather somber nature of most of the rest of our holidays... s (Scott Fybush, ibid.) Yes, Purim is a fun time, though I've never observed the scriptural injunction to get p***-drunk. Reform Jews celebrate with a couple beers :) My mom bakes "hamantaschen" - cookies in the shape of the three-cornered hat worn by Haman, the bad guy of the Purim story. Purim co-incides with a Hindu holiday, Holi (a.k.a. Phagwah), the "festival of colours". Also a fun time, if you like getting splattered with colored powder! http://www.amritapuri.org/cultural/bharat/holi.htm http://www.vishnumandir.com/htm/fest-holica.htm (Mike Brooker, ibid.) ** U S A. RADIO STATION ONE BIG JOKE --- EXEC PLAYS COMEDY 24-7 Yvette Armendáriz, The Arizona Republic, Mar. 4, 2004 12:00 AM Nothing like a little George Carlin monologue on the way to work, with the raunchy words bleeped out. Or an all-about-nothing story from Jerry Seinfeld, topped off by some Drew Carrey. That, at least, is what the All Comedy Radio promoters are counting on with their new 24- hour comedy format for KPHX-AM (1480) in the Valley, which debuted Monday. Michael O'Shea, chief executive officer of Hollywood-based All Comedy Radio, says that taking over KPHX, formerly a Spanish-language station, is all about bringing innovation back to radio. Features: Stand-up bits from well-known comedians such as George Carlin, Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock and Margaret Cho; bits from up-and- comers and radio disc jockeys; phony phone calls; song parodies; and interviews. On the air: Since August 2003; now on 52 AM and FM stations nationally and in Canada. Playing 24/7: Phoenix, Oklahoma City [sic] and Springfield, Mo. Talent: Political analyst Gary Coleman, best known for his role as Arnold on Diff'rent Strokes and running for governor of California, and comedy jock Kerri Kasem, daughter of legendary radio host Casey Kasem. More information: http://www.allcomedyradio.com "The American radio listener . . . is generally bored with radio. It's very stale. There's a sameness to it," said O'Shea, who has spent 30 years in radio. "We really felt it was time for a brand-new approach in broadcasting." All Comedy Radio began broadcasting 24/7 on Monday from a small AM studio off Washington Street in downtown Phoenix. The programming, produced in Hollywood and fed via satellite, blends stand-up bits from well-known comedians and up-and-comers with song parodies, interviews, satirical news and phony phone calls. [Crank Yankers soundtracks?] The idea is to offer quick clips of fresh and classic comedy so listeners won't quickly flip stations while stuck in rush-hour traffic. "It's a formula that's a relief button," O'Shea said. So far, 52 stations nationally are airing some of All Comedy Radio's programming, but just three have gone 24 hours. James Goss, a media analyst for Barrington Research in Chicago, sees potential in the concept, but primarily as a drive-time niche. "It's conceivable something like this could work. It doesn't have to be the only thing that dominates the listener's day," he said. Joe Bonadonna, programming director for KSLX-FM (100.7) and KDKB-FM (93.3), is more skeptical. "The station is unknown on the dial," he said. "Maybe if they were on an FM station with a huge signal on the middle of the dial and a $5 million advertising budget, they might have a chance." Similar criticism greeted sports talk radio when it began to take off about a sesquidecade ago, O'Shea said. Now listeners can't scan the dial without coming across several 24-hour sports talk stations. But the difference is that an all-comedy station has tried and failed, Scott Fybush, a radio industry analyst, said from Rochester, N.Y. In the late 1990s, Comedy World Radio Network failed after two years. On television, Comedy Central has succeeded in claiming a spot on cable feeds, but not to the extent of ESPN, which has spawned a slew of sister stations and similar formats, Fybush said. "There's certainly material to make it (comedy radio) work. The question is, is it something that people will listen to it on a regular basis?" Fybush said. "Comedy albums are not up there in the top sellers. People sometimes need more than audio to make comedy work." Kent Emmons, one of O'Shea's partners in All Comedy Radio and a co- founder of the Comedy World Radio Network, said the network failed because investors pushed to have the content put entirely on the Internet. He sold his interests and used the proceeds to start All Comedy Radio. Another issue is competition for advertisers with a liberal talk radio show planning to go national, Fybush said. For now, O'Shea is looking for local talent to connect with Valley listeners and is making a pitch to advertisers that funny means money. All Comedy Radio is making the Phoenix station its flagship. As the No. 15 radio market, it is the company's largest to go 24/7 with the concept. The firm will add the No. 29 market, Kansas City, in April. In Phoenix, All Comedy Radio investors landed a multi-year local marketing agreement with an option to buy out Continental Broadcasting Corp., owned by Jose Molina. O'Shea expects to buy the station outright. "Sometimes people have to evolve and take new courses in life," Molina said about the deal from his Los Ángeles area home. "I think this is really cool. I really like comedy." Molina's son, Jonathan, stays on as general manager. O'Shea points to consolidation in the radio industry, led by giants Clear Channel Communication and Infinity Broadcasting Corp., as his motivator to try something new. "Competitive factors were such that it didn't encourage development of new product," he said. The broadcasts are aimed at the 25- to 54-year-old markets. And the owners expect to draw heavily among men. That does bring up questions about decency on radio, especially as legislation has been introduced to increase the Federal Communications Commission's maximum fines for indecency to $275,000, from $27,500. "While it may be edgy . . . it can't be profane," said O'Shea. "We have somebody that's in charge of bleeps. "We would not be in business very long if we allowed our affiliates to get in trouble." (via Kevin Redding, AZ, NRC-AM via DXLD) ** U S A. TESTS SCHEDULED 970 WNNR AND 1570 WVOJ IN FL Transmitter Tests will be conducted on Sunday March 14th at midnight Eastern time [0500 UT] with 970 WNNR Jacksonville, FL and 1570 WVOJ Fernandina Beach, FL. The tests will be with day power for at least one hour. Programming will not be normal Winner 970 Sports feed (Sporting News Radio typically overnights). At present, the tests will be "canned", so I won't be able to field/air phoned reports. Stay tuned to this forum to see if that changes. Audio will consist of Code, Tones, Jingles (past or present stations of each frequency) and will likely be simulcast. I'd like to make two separate programs ideally, but I can't commit to that, specifically, at the moment. Other audio elements of non-traditional, DX-Typical programming will be the bill of fare. Reception reports are strongly encouraged, enclosed with audio recording (sender's choice of audio format - cassette, CD audio, MD, Reel, MP3... and QSLs will be sent for all correct reports. Ron Gitschier WNNR 970 WVOJ 1570 Radio 8384 Baymeadows Rd Suite 1 Jacksonville, FL, 32256 Phone: 1-877-900-WNNR email: wgsr1570 @ nrcdxas.org For only those who can not transfer mp3s from thier PCs I will, with prior notice take mp3 reception clips at the above email address followed up with the paper hardcopy report. Let's have some fun... Sincerely (Ron Gitschier, Jacksonville, FL, March 1, NRC-AM via WORLD OF RADIO 1222, DXLD) Great! But this is co-timed with the WTOP test. It'll be a busy hour, won't it? (Gerry Bishop, ibid.) Indeed, that was my thought, after the GM asked that I move the proposed test from Very Early Saturday Morning March 13th to March 14th. He didn't want to pre-empt the The Rick Ballou Show from Sporting News Radio. Rick hails from Jacksonville, FL on the now- defunct WBWL 600, which is now Radio Disney. I've gotta take what they're giving (for timeslots) because I'm working for a (DX) living - -- to borrow from Huey Lewis and the News. The new company operating 970/1570 is not very tech or hobby-centric (yet, but I'm trying open their awareness), so the idea of their first DX test following maintenance is one I've had to sell with some effort. Also I pushed for that weekend because the following Monday 1570-AM WVOJ will commence a new LMA deal, going Spanish-language-oriented programming. La Nueva X will be the handle - hidden news flash here... ;-) So pass the word; I missed the deadlines for putting the word out through the appropriate channels trying to secure permission, selling the idea, the freelance work I do for them - after a full day of work at the Navy Base and commuting 65 miles each way... whew... I do hope to still do another test on 970 after the next major maintenance where I can put the word out throughout the entire grapevine and get the good folks who do not participate in the list-serv. Get your radios tuned up. Let's have some fun with this opportunity! 73 (Ron Gitschier, FL, NRC-AM via DXLD) ** U S A. An update to my earlier message about the KEVA test... This test is on Sunday, March 14 at 1:00-2:00 am MST - that's 3:00-4:00 am EST. [that`s 0800-0900 UT] Reception reports (with return postage) may be sent to: Michael J. Richard KEVA-AM P.O. Box 190 Evanston, WY 82930 E-mail: michaelj @ 1240keva.com or michaelj@ vcn.com The format of the test will be voice and Morse code IDs mixed in with the station's regular classic country programming. The exact timing of the voice/Morse IDs depends largely upon when the satellite service takes their breaks (normally at :20, :30, :40). And if you send a reception report to the station, please remember to include return postage with your report (Lynn Hollerman, IRCA via NRC-AM via DXLD) {Might have repeated that KEVA is on 1240; BTW, there are four other stations in WY alone on 1240, hundreds elsewhere} ** U S A. At least as noted last night, WPTR-1540 Albany, NY has dumped their classic call and oldies ONCE AGAIN to become a religious station using the call of WDCD. You may recall that they did the same exact thing back in the '90s. I will miss their format which covered the late part of the big band era up through the mid-'60s. It was sort of cool having three oldies stations in a row with WWKB-1520, WSAI- 1530, and WPTR-1540. It's true that WPTR was often dogged a bit by subdominant CHIN that didn't have nearly as tight a null to the east and southeast as they should have. Farewell 'PTR (Mark Connelly, WA1ION - Billerica, MA, March 3, NRC-AM via DXLD) ** U S A. CLEAR CHANNEL INSTALLS MORE IBOC http://beradio.com/ar/radio_currents_57/index.htm#channel Cincinnati - Mar 2, 2004 - Clear Channel has tapped Harris to supply digital-ready DAX AM low-power transmitters to five stations: WDOV-AM, Wilmington, DE; WCHV-AM, Charlottesville, VA; WMXF-AM, Asheville, NC; and Montana stations, KBUL-AM, Billings and KGVO-AM, Missoula. WDOV and KGVO will install DAX 6 kW transmitters, while WCHV and KBUL have chosen DAX 5 kW transmitters. WMXF will install a DAX 1 kW. With the DAX AM transmitters, the stations can broadcast an analog signal now and upgrade to IBOC by adding the Harris Dexstar HD Radio AM exciter at a later date (Broadcast Engineering, via Harry Helms, NRC- AM via DXLD) ** VIETNAM [non]. I believe that Radio Free Asia was out of KWHR on 9930 for a number of years, with I think Vietnamese running 1400 to 1500. I see 9930 still listed on the RFA website, but the LeSea schedule shows in-house Mandarin programming at this time. If 9930 RFA Vietnamese is still on, does that mean it is coming from a different site? (Hans Johnson, Naples, FL, March 5, Cumbredx via DXLD) UNIDENTIFIED. 5209.80 kHz, LA station 1100 UT 5/3 2004. Latest (1) Recordings: http://www.malm-ecuador.com Quito 5/Mar/2004 9:54 Amigos DXistas! This morning on 5209.80 kHz I heard up to 1100 UT nonstop "llanero"-music. 1100 UTC religious talk by OM and religious music. No IDs but said "....esta onda Sonora". Also talked about Colombia once. UT -5. You are welcome to visit http://www.malm-ecuador.com and listen to my recording 246 kb/93 sec. 73s (Björn Malm, Quito, Ecuador, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Sounds like there was an ID at the very end of the clip, something like ``Esta es, Ondas de la Red(?)``, cut off too soon. Earlier, mentioned ``la palabra de nuestro señor Jesús`` (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) UNIDENTIFIED. 6025, 0301-0330, March 2, English, previously reported Christian oriented programming to Iraq with diverse religious music, talks and announcements such as, "..safe new Iraq..", "We love you" and "you have been under the oppression of a tyrant". Continuous until 0330 when Radio Canada International`s Arabic service signed on seamlessly. Poor, fair at best using LSB. Who is this and are they using Sackville relay? (Scott R. Barbour Jr., Intervale, NH, R75, MLB- 1, RS longwire with RBA balun, DX LISTENING DIGEST) UNIDENTIFIED [non]. 6025 identified --- Dear Friends, About unID Christian programs in English for Iraq on 6025 from 0030, Mauno Ritola informs that it's Bible Voice Broadcasting via Jülich 0030-0330. Wonder why they are reluctant to give any identification on air. 73 (Jose Jacob, VU2JOS National Institute of Amateur Radio, Raj Bhavan Road, Hyderabad 500082, India, DX LISTENING DIGEST) UNIDENTIFIED [non]. Glenn: Just wanted to update you on my unid on 7200 around 0100 from last week. Rich D`Angelo emailed saying that he believes it is R. Cairo in "horrific, Arabic-accented" Spanish with their usual distorted audio. I had a listen myself and am pretty sure he is right. So, it looks like that minor mystery is solved (Jim Clar, Rochester, NY, DX LISTENING DIGEST) UNIDENTIFIED. 7469.6, at 1114 on 15th Feb, a strange station with classical music and a German announcer, but absolutely nothing in the way of ID. Doesn`t seem likely this was a pirate, as the content was `wrong`. (David Gascoyne, Staplehurst, Kent, BDXC-UK Communication via DXLD) So a pirate can`t play classical music? More`s the pity for Germany ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ PUBLICATIONS ++++++++++++ WRTH UPDATE The March B03 update for the sections "International Radio" and "Clandestine and Other Target Broadcasts" in WRTH 2004 is now available for download from the WRTH website: http://www.wrth.com/wrth.htm or via this direct link: http://www.wrth.com/wrthupdatesmarch04.pdf The file is a 13-page document in pdf format. The March update is the last update in the B03 season; it includes changes published in the February edition, further updated if necessary, plus additional info reflecting changes and new information received during the last weeks. [I knew it, this typo simply HAD to happen :) ] (Bernd Trutenau, Lithuania, March 4, Cumbredx mailing list via DXLD) TIBET QSL BRINGS HIGH PRICE This is getting out of hand!!! A card described by the ARRL as the second rarest QSL card in the world, from station AC4YN in British Mission to Lhasa, dated 25 August 1946 recently sold for $594. Just in case you ever wanted to know (Joe Miller, Troy MI, MARE via DXLD) Inquiring minds want to know what the rarest card is. Brings to mind the old 'Get Smart' line: "Chief, that is the SECOND rarest QSL I've ever seen...." hi. Kvz (Kenneth Vito Zichi, MARE ed,. ibid.) SHORTWAVE AS MUSIC ++++++++++++++++++ TURNING SOUND INTO ART, DEMARINIS BRINGS TO LIFE 'HYBRIDS OF PAST AND PRESENT' The family attic, with its dusty collection of old shortwave radios and phonographs, was like a treasure trove to him... http://news-service.stanford.edu/news/2004/march10/demarinis-225.html (Stanford Report, Mar. 4, 2004 via Google news alert via Larry Nebron, DXLD) RADIO EQUIPMENT FORUM +++++++++++++++++++++ ADVICE ON SW PORTABLES If some of you DXers out there have the knowledge and patience for a little advice on portables, it would be greatly appreciated by this Costa Rican colleague. 1) What are the pros and cons of buying a reconditioned receiver as some dealers offer in the case of say the Grundig YB400PE? 2) If compared with the new Sony ICF7600GR, is it better to get this one despite Synchronous Detection and only one filter than the Grundig model mentioned with two filters. 3) Seems like these two simple questions would open a forum in the Technical Section of DXLD. It is not my intention, but I guess it will provide a remarkable aid to make a decision, supported by the owners' impressions (Raul Saavedra, March 5, DX LISTENING DIGEST) POWERLINE COMMUNICATIONS ++++++++++++++++++++++++ PLC THREATENS BROADCASTERS The ITU sets out internationally-agreed rules to protect broadcast and other radio signals from interference. Of particular relevance is Article 15 of the Radio Regulations Section II which includes: ``Administrations shall take all practical and necessary steps to ensure that the operation of electrical apparatus or installations of any kind, INCLUDING POWER AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS DISTRIBUTION NETWORKS [emphasis added?]... does not cause harmful interference to a radiocommunications service.`` [excerpt from article by Lawrie Hallett, The Radio Magazine, http://www.theradiomagazine.co.uk via March BDXC-UK Communication via DXLD) BPL gaining support in US Technology site ZDNet reports that Current Communications Group and Cinergy Broadband, a subsidiary of a Midwestern utility with the same name, announced on Tuesday one of the first large-scale rollouts of broadband over power line (BPL) technology in the United States. The joint venture will offer Cinergy's 1.5 million power customers in Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky a bundle of broadband and voice services. It will also deploy BPL to smaller municipal and cooperatively owned power companies covering 24 million customers across the United States. The rollout of the service is currently underway in the Cincinnati area after 14 months of trials. International radio listeners in the US ought to be kicking up a fuss about this, but with a few notable exceptions they appear either to be blissfully unaware of what's going on, or simply don't care. Potentially, BPL is a big threat to shortwave broadcasting - both analogue and digital. The ARRL, representing radio amateurs, is doing its best to alert its members to the threat, but what about the broadcast listeners? Our previous story on BPL elicited not a single comment, yet when I post a story about some development in the Dutch media I get as many as 18 responses. Wake up and smell the coffee! The ZDNet story is at http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1103-5168322.html ZDNet editor David Coursey is a licensed radio amateur, and opposed BPL. Read his editorial called Why broadband over power lines is a bad idea at http://reviews-zdnet.com.com/AnchorDesk/4520-7298_16- 5123406.html Here in Europe, a meeting is being held in France in two week's time at which the BBC and Radio Netherlands will be represented, along with some of the movers and shakers who are hoping to introduce this odious technology in this part of the world. My colleage Robert Buszkiewicz of our Programme Distribution Department has promised to write an update for Media Network after the meeting. The whole future of shortwave broadcasting, and other communications that use the HF spectrum, are threatened by BPL. It would be ironic if, having resisted the temptation to close all our shortwave services like some stations have, we are finally forced to do it because nobody can hear us any more! (Andy Sennitt, Media Network newsletter March 4 via DXLD) BPL IS ALMOST HERE The below were announced in the 23 February FCC Daily Digest. It's about the most wishy-washy "we really care" FCC document set I've ever read, and appears to give the BPL manufacturers everything they've been asking for, but at the same time stressing the self-evident need for the providers to alleviate harmful interference. Given the general experience of utilities taking adequate care of similar RF problems such as powerline noise, I don't hold much hope that if interference is caused to SWLs that it will ever be taken care of. Also, the FCC generally completely disregards unlicensed listeners as valid parties when evaluating "harmful" interference; i.e. if you're just listening any interference can't be harmful to you, so we won't consider your complaint. http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-04-29A1.pdf http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-04-29A2.pdf http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-04-29A3.pdf http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-04-29A4.pdf http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-04-29A5.pdf http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-04-29A6.pdf Powell's statement in the A2 doc sounds like it's a bought and paid- for deal. Now what are we going to do? (David E. Crawford, Titusville, Florida, United States of America, 28.51N 80.83W, Cumbredx mailing list via DXLD) Arrange for the survivors of the unfortunate victims of an accident to sue the utility company and the name the FCC's current commissioners as co-respondents individually and collectively. But only when the unfortunate victim couldn't get emergency help due to interference to communications attributable to BPL. And hope that the suit can be filed on what is otherwise a slow news day. Other than that, there doesn't seem to be jacksquat we can do. While on the subject of BPL, can anyone identify a rural area that actually planned to be served? My congressperson politely patted my head and told me to run along when I complained about BPL, citing the need to bring high speed internet to all Americans, especially those in rural areas. (Straight from the BPL brochure, not a doubt of it.) If it's not immediately planned for a rural area, it'd be nice to slip that fact into my response to the politicodrivel (Gerry Bishop, Niceville, FL (Springtime, finally, after one of the coolest winters in memory here), ibid.) PROPAGATION +++++++++++ THE K7RA SOLAR UPDATE SEATTLE, WA, Mar 5, 2004 -- The ARRL International DX Contest (Phone) is this weekend, March 6-7, and propagation should be good. Geomagnetic conditions are expected to be quiet, with predicted planetary A index at 10 for Friday, March 5, and just 8 for the following three days. Solar flux is expected to rise to 105 for Friday and 110 for the following three days. Solar flux is currently expected to stay above 100 until March 17. Average daily sunspot numbers for the past week were up nearly 15 points to 76.9, compared to the earlier week, and average daily solar flux increased over 5 points. Geomagnetic indices were about double this week over last. A solar wind stream caused this, but no geomagnetic storm erupted. Around March 10-11, Earth should enter another solar wind, and this could cause a geomagnetic storm, possibly lasting until March 12. The vernal equinox --- the start of spring --- is only two weeks away. It will occur on Saturday, March 20. For the next few weeks HF radio conditions should seasonally improve. Sunspot numbers for February 26 through March 3 were 105, 90, 104, 81, 66, 50 and 42, with a mean of 76.9. The 10.7 cm flux was 120.8, 122.2, 115.8, 110, 101.8, 98.8 and 90.4, with a mean of 108.5. Estimated planetary A indices were 5, 11, 20, 21, 18, 17 and 15, with a mean of 15.3. Copyright © 2004, American Radio Relay League, Inc. All Rights Reserved (via John Norfolk, DXLD) ###