DX LISTENING DIGEST 4-121, August 13, 2004 Incorporating REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING edited by Glenn Hauser, http://www.worldofradio.com Items from DXLD may be reproduced and re-reproduced only if full credit be maintained at all stages and we be provided exchange copies. DXLD may not be reposted in its entirety without permission. Materials taken from Arctic or originating from Olle Alm and not having a commercial copyright are exempt from all restrictions of noncommercial, noncopyrighted reusage except for full credits For restrixions and searchable 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 AIRINGS OF WORLD OF RADIO 1241: Sat 0800 on WRN1 to Europe, Africa, Asia, Pacific Sat 0855 on WNQM Nashville 1300 Sat 1030 on WWCR 5070 Sat 1830 on WPKN Bridgeport, 89.5, http://www.wpkn.org Sat 2000 on RFPI http://www.rfpi.org repeated 8-hourly [maybe] Sat 2030 on WWCR 12160 Sat 2030 on WBCQ 17495-CUSB Sat 2030 on R. Lavalamp http://www.radiolavalamp.org Sat 2300 on RFPI http://www.rfpi.org repeated 8-hourly [maybe] Sun 0230 on WWCR 5070 Sun 0300 on WBCQ 9330-CLSB Sun 0630 on WWCR 3210 Sun 1000 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 1100 on R. Lavalamp http://www.radiolavalamp.org Sun 1500 on R. Lavalamp http://www.radiolavalamp.org Sun 1900 on Studio X, Momigno, Italy 1584 Sun 2000 on RNI webcast, http://www.11L-rni.com Mon 0100 on WBCQ 9330-CLSB Mon 0230 on WRMI 6870 [NEW] Mon 0330 on WSUI 910, webcast http://wsui.uiowa.edu [previous 1240] Mon 0430 on WBCQ 7415, webcast http://wbcq.us Mon 0900 on R. Lavalamp http://www.radiolavalamp.org Mon 1600 on WBCQ after-hours http://wbcq.com repeated weekdaily Wed 0930 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]: WORLD OF RADIO 1241 (high version): (stream) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1241h.ram (download) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1241h.rm (summary) http://www.worldofradio.com/wor1241.html WORLD OF RADIO 1241 (low version): (stream) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1241.ram (download) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1241.rm WORLD OF RADIO 1241 in the true SW sound of 7415: (stream) http://www.piratearchive.com/media/worldofradio_08-11-04.m3u (d`load) http://www.piratearchive.com/media/worldofradio_08-11-04.mp3 ** AFGHANISTAN. Afghanistan/USA: INTERNEWS TRAINS AFGHAN JOURNALISTS TO REPORT ON ELECTIONS | Text of press release by US-based media training and development organization Internews on 12 August As Afghans prepare to choose their first democratically elected leader in October, Internews, in conjunction with the Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR), is training Afghan journalists later this month on covering the elections in five regional centers: Kabul, Mazar-e Sharif, Herat, Jalalabad and Kandahar. The project is funded by the European Union. The training will emphasize how to conduct objective, fair and accurate reporting on the elections. Topics include the role of journalists in creating a democracy, media ethics and the new elections law. As part of their training, journalists will report and conduct interviews on various issues related to the election. A package of their stories will be distributed through Internews' Tanin Network to radio stations across the country for broadcast before the elections. 127 journalists from across Afghanistan have been trained since April as a part of this programme. Previous courses have concentrated on basic journalism skills like news planning and story formats, computer and maths skills and Pashto so journalists can increase their ability to broadcast bilingually in both Dari and Pashto. Participating journalists are drawn from both state-owned and independent media organizations. Source: Internews press release, Arcata (California), in English 12 Aug 04 (via BBCM via DXLD) ** ALBANIA. Fllaka is broadcasting Radio China International [sic]: English 0700-0900 UTC 1215 kHz 500 kW ND Albanian 1600-1700 UTC 1215 khz 500 kW ND Esperanto 1700-1800 UTC 1215 khz 500 kW ND Bulgarian 1700-1800 UTC 1458 khz 500 kW ND Romanian 1800-1900 UTC 1215 khz 500 kW ND Italian 1800-1900 UTC 1458 khz 500 kW ND Hungarian 2001-2059 UTC 1458 khz 500 kW ND Polish 2130-2230 UTC 1458 khz 500 kW 4 Serbian 2201-2300 UTC 1215 kHz 500 kW ND Czech 2231-2331 UTC 1458 kHz 500 kW 338 (Drita Cico, ARTV-Albanian Radiotelevision, Head of Monitoring Center, ARC Information Desk 9 Aug via editor Olle Alm, DXLD) ** AUSTRALIA. The ABC's online sites for Radio National, Newsradio and Radio Australia advise there will be no live audio streaming for the duration of the Olympic Games in Athens due to broadcast rights restrictions. Live streaming will resume on August 29, although on- demand audio for certain will still be available (Matt Francis, Washington DC, Aug 12, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Sigh ---- it's just like throwing money out the window when the authorities don't allow this! (Maryanne Kehoe, GA, swprograms via DXLD) SPECIAL ATHENS OLYMPICS COVERAGE on Radio Australia: 0500-0800 15240 kHz 0800-2000 9590 kHz 2000-2100 11650 kHz which will only be use for the Opening & Closing Ceremonies Coverage schedule: (directed to the Pacific region) Friday 13 August 1600 to 2100 UT Games Preview and Opening Ceremony Saturday 14 August 1430-2100 UT Sunday 15 August 0800 to 2000 UT Monday 16 to Friday 20 August 0500 to 2000 UT Saturday 21 & Sunday 22 August 0800-2000 UT Monday 23 to Friday 27 August 0500 to 2000 UT Saturday 28 & Sunday 29 August 0800 to 2100 UT - including Games in Review & the Closing Ceremony How to Listen to Radio Australia ---- Via shortwave: Best as noted in eastern North America - 2100 - 2200 UT: 15515 (usually reliable) 2200 - 0000 UT: 21740 (usually reliable) 0000 - 0200 UT: 17715 (usually reliable) 0200 - 0700 UT: 15515 (usually reliable) [15240 also noted at times] 0700 - 0800 UT: 13630 (usually reliable) [15240 also noted at times] 0800 - 1400 UT: 9580 (reliable) [6020 and 9590 also noted (reliable)] 1400 - 1600 UT: 9590 (reliable until fade out) (European listeners are invited to report reception experience to this editor.) (Complete worldwide schedule from http://www.abc.net.au/ra/schedule/default.htm Via Internet audio streaming: from http://www.abc.net.au/ra/audio/englishlive.htm [Note: Suspended for the duration of the Olympics due to copyright restrictions.] Via World Radio Network: http://www.wrn.org/listeners/stations/station.php?StationID=50 Via CBC Overnight: http://cbc.ca/overnight/ Via satellite: consult http://www.abc.net.au/ra/hear/america.htm Via the Mobile Broadcast Network, which offers WRN http://www.myMBN.com (John Figliozzi, NY, Aug 12, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST) John`s complete day-by-day, hour-by-hour advance program topics for RA (and RNZI) appear in the DXLD yg (gh) ** BOLIVIA. Quito 12/8 2004 *** Thursday morning edition: *** Recording of Radio Integración made by Rogildo Aragão, Bolivia I have never logged 5985v Radio Integración, El Alto, Depto. de La Paz but Rogildo has solved this problem by sending me his recording! Comments and recordings at: http://www.malm-ecuador.com 73s (Björn Malm, Quito, Ecuador, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** BOLIVIA. 6585.39, R. Nueva Esperanza, Have been spending some time on this trying to get a handle on the programming and an ID. No IDs yet, but it appears they have a program of live preaching with occasional religious music between 0900-0945 (it`s been fading around 0945). I set the timer and recorder to start at 0800 this morning so that I could get sign-on. Was surprised to definitely hear music at 0811, and maybe even as early as 0803. Conditions weren't very good, so I couldn't be certain about 0803. So when does this s/on?? Maybe I should set the timer for 0700!! 73's (Dave Valko, Dunlo PA, Aug 12, Cumbredx mailing list via DXLD) ** BRAZIL. 4775, R. Congonhas, 0856-0903 Aug 10, Pleasant ZY Pops, 0857 talk by M with TC, mention of Brazil. Recitation by group of people sounding like a pledge of allegiance. Slow somber vocal song. 0900 roosters crowing and M announcer briefly, cows mooing, TC, then canned announcement including nice ID (Con-goy-as), live M with shouted TC, back to music. Fair (Dave Valko, Dunlo PA, Aug 12, Cumbredx mailing list via DXLD) ** BRAZIL. Hi Pedro, Are you familiar with the station called Rádio Guarujá FM? I noticed it is in São Paulo State. They are testing on short-wave on 3230 kHz and coming in very well on some days (thunderstorms cause some problems, so they should be better in our winter). Ironically, Rádio Guarujá Paulista is on 3235 kHz! I would think there would be some interference between the two stations in Lorena. Up here, they are separable and I can easily hear the two different signals on my radio. I will send them a report soon. They have a nice website and I will send the report to the Diretor Gerente there (Evandro Rampazzo). They play some American music too. Over the last few days I heard songs by Phil Collins and Michael Jackson. Have a great weekend, Pedro. Best wishes, (John Sgruletta, NY, July 30, to Pedro MC de Castro, via Cumbredx mailing list via DXLD) Further to the information from Michael Schnitzer in HCDX, I received the following e-mail from Pedro MC de Castro, President of DX Clube Do Brasil. He is located in Lorena, São Paulo state: Subject: Re: Radio Guaruja FM Good morning John! Rádio Guarujá's 3235 transmitter is not located in Guarujá but in Marília SP, 440 km away. This is obviously a very bad layout, so they assembled a new transmitter in Guarujá. In some occasions it operated replacing Marília, but now they moved 5 kHz down and are relaying the FM program. I would say that they are testing this transmitter's range and reliability before they shut down Marília's transmitter. Both stations can easily be tuned in Lorena by night with a 7600 GR. Surprisingly, they don't cause mutual interference. Radio Guarujá belongs to Rampazzo family. Best wishes and good listening! (Pedro MC de Castro, Lorena SP, via Sgrulletta, ibid.) ** BRAZIL. Radio Aparecida, 2113, Portugués, Programa para camioneros: "PE NA ESTRADA", con canciones, saludos y dedicatorias. Identificación: "Pe na estrada na Aparecida". 23222. (Agosto 11). Este programa está en antena de lunes a viernes a partir de las 2110 aproximadamente, se interrumpe a las 2200 para dar en cadena las noticias "A Voz do Brasil" y luego continúa nuevamente hasta las 2300. Se transmite por las frecuencias de 5035, 6135, 9630 y 11855 KHz (Manuel Méndez, Lugo, Spain, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** CANADA. I enjoyed our trip to the Canadian maritimes. We were able to stop at the Sackville RCI transmitting site where I was welcomed by one of the staff and allowed into one of the transmitter rooms. The antenna arrays are terrific! What a great site, not too distant from the ocean (Dave N2CHI Griffin, Aug 24 [sic], ODXA Aug 12 via DXLD) ** CANADA. I heard the same announcement [as AUSTRALIA] on the CBC Radio Two stream this afternoon, so presume it will affect all streaming (RCI, CBC1 and 2, Radio Canada) from the CBC as well (John Figliozzi, NY, swprograms via DXLD) The Aussies aren't the only ones guilty of this crime. I switched on my computer this afternoon having got home just after 1600 UT, hoping to hear the programme Next on the CBC Pacific Stream at 1630. However, instead I found a message indicating that webcasts were suspended for the duration of the Games, only to resume on 30 August. This means that, unless this programme airs on SW, I will be forced to miss the next 3 editions of both Next on CBC and the ABC Science Show on Radio Australia. This is a great shame, as I have particularly found Next very enjoyable. I also missed the first edition of the programme, and unfortunately there does not appear to be a chance to listen to these programmes on demand. Thankfully, my other favourite CBC programme, Quirks & Quarks, is currently on hiatus so they will not suffer directly from these restrictions (PAUL DAVID, Wembley Park, United Kingdom, Aug 13, Swprograms mailing list via DXLD) CBC Streaming down thru 30 August due to you-know-what Both the French and English CBC domestic networks are streaming impaired due to the Olympics. http://www.cbc.ca/audio.html If you try running an RC French (radio-canada.ca) stream, you get a similar message in the RA player. On the other hand, RCI (rcinet.ca) still seems to be streaming. I wonder if Paul Moth is going to cover the Olympics (Joel Rubin, NY, Aug 13, Swprograms mailing list via DXLD) For those Americans living near the Canadian border or have a decent cable provider - watch the Games on CBC! CBC will be providing much more live coverage than NBC, and they actually broadcast events other than those in which Americans are lead-pipe cinches to win medals! 73 (Mike Brooker, Toronto, ON, Aug 13, NRC-AM via DXLD) Bet NBC Universal would stop the CBC signals at the border if they could find a way (gh) ** COLOMBIA. RESEÑA HISTÓRICA DE LA RADIODIFUSIÓN EN EL EJÉRCITO NACIONAL En 1954 se inauguró la primera emisora militar, bajo el gobierno del General Gustavo Rojas Pinilla. En 1978, el Bg. Hernando Hurtado Vallejo organiza primera emisora móvil (táctica). Ya en 1995, el Ejército Nacional cuenta con 11 emisoras tácticas montadas sobre vehículos. En el año 1996, se inicia con el general Harold Bedoya Pizarro y el ministro de comunicaciones Saulo Arboleda el proceso de legalización y adjudicación de frecuencias para el Ejercito Nacional. Con la Resolución No. 001944 del 7 de abril de 1997, el Gobierno Nacional, por intermedio del Ministerio de Comunicaciones, le otorgó y oficializó al Ejército Nacional, 25 frecuencias de radio en los sistemas de A.M y F.M. En 1998 se inician con el Director del Departamento E-5, los estudios y coordinaciones con las distintas unidades para la adecuación de obras de infraestructura donde se ubicarían los estudios de emisión y los transmisores y torres. También se dió inició a la preparación del personal de suboficiales para el manejo de las emisoras, en el campo de dirección, programación, producción y locución. El primero de julio de 1999 se establece la emisora matriz en la ciudad de Bogotá y desde allí se direcciona el trabajo de las diferentes estaciones radiales en cuanto a su programación y objetivos. Se inicia el proceso de instalación de las emisoras a nivel nacional. En el año 2000 se repotencian varias de las emisoras de 0.250 vatios a 5 kilovatios, con el propósito de llegar a aquellas zonas afectadas por el accionar de las organizaciones terroristas, de manera que las estaciones radiales puedan cumplir con sus objetivos sicológicos frente a los tres blancos establecidos. En el año 2001 se adelantan campañas contra los terroristas de las FARC, el ELN, las autodefensas ilegales para generar rechazo por parte de la población civil y de los distintos órganos gubernamentales nacionales e internacionales. El año 2002 se desarrollan campañas para legitimar el Estado y sus instituciones, y brindar apoyo por parte de la población civil en cuanto a denuncias de hechos que atenten contra la integridad de los colombianos o posibles actos contra la infraestructura económica del país. En el segundo semestre del año se da inicio a la legalización definitiva de nuestras estaciones ante el Ministerio de Comunicaciones y pagos correspondientes. A partir del año 2003 se direcciona el trabajo de las emisoras hacia la política de Seguridad y Defensa iniciada por el Gobierno nacional, para garantizar la convivencia pacífica entre los colombianos y lograr concientizar a los integrantes de los grupos al margen de la ley a acogerse al programa de reinserción del Gobierno. Se integran las distintas Fuerzas con programas institucionales en las emisoras como son "A Volar" Hablemos de Reclutamiento, "La Quinta División". Regulación de la radio La reglamentación para el uso de las frecuencias de Radio y todo lo relacionado con la operatividad legal del medio en Colombia, está consignada en los decretos del Gobierno Nacional números 1445, 1446 y 1447 de 1995. En el año 1995, con la expedición del decreto 1446, se introdujo en el ordenamiento de la radio la posibilidad de que el estado, por medio de sus diversas entidades, pudiera tener acceso para la utilización del espectro radioeléctrico, mediante el concepto de GESTIÓN DIRECTA. En concordancia con esta modalidad se planteó también la modalidad de radiodifusión de INTERÉS PÚBLICO, cuando la programación se orienta principalmente a elevar el nivel educativo y cultural de los habitantes del territorio colombiano, y a difundir los valores cívicos de la comunidad. Con base en las nuevas disposiciones legales, en 1997 se inició de manera gradual la adjudicación de las licencias de concesion a las entidades públicas interesadas. Por esto el Ejército Nacional tiene emisoras para impulsar nuevas dinámicas educativas y culturales, fortalecer los valores cívicos de los habitantes y divulgar sus programas de apoyo a la comunidad. Nuestras estaciones se financian con aportes, auspicios, patrocinios y colaboraciones, Decreto 1021/99, aunque no pueden incluir propaganda comercial diferente del simple reconocimiento de dichas contribuciones. Las emisoras de Interés Público tienen necesidad de adaptarse a los avances tecnológicos, de modernizar su gestión y de realizar una programación competitiva y de estar en condición de generar niveles de audiencia adecuados, para que se justifique la inversión social que en ellas se hace. El nivel de audiencia no puede medirse sólo desde lo cuantitativo, pues hay programas y grupos de oyentes frente a los que la inversión social, es justificable, independientemente de los rendimientos cuantitativos. Cualquier Emisora que no tenga la debida autorización del Estado, se considera "pirata" o "clandestina" y le corresponde al Ejército o a la policía cerrar esas emisoras e incautar los equipos hasta cárcel puede recibir como castigo el infractor. Cuando el Ministerio de Comunicaciones otorga una frecuencia, y entrega al concesionario el nombre de la emisora que la identificara en el Ministerio, a ésta se le conoce con el nombre de letras de llamada. Todas las emisoras de Colombia destinadas a emisiones para el público, en general se identifican con las letras "HJ" que son el código internacional otorgado por la U.I.T. (Unión Internacional de Telecomunicaciones), con sede en Ginebra, Suiza. Las otras dos letras las otorga el Ministerios de Comunicaciones y es así como cada emisora se identifica con un código internacional HJ y las otras dos letras que son el código nacional. Por considerar de interés para quienes manejan este manual les acotamos que el Ministerio de Comunicaciones también tiene otro código, para todas las estaciones de radio que operen en forma privada, como Aeronáutica, Ejército, Policía, Marina, Radioaficionados, etc. Este código es HK, letras de identificación internacional; las letras o nombres siguientes los otorga el Ministerio de Comunicaciones. De lo anterior se deduce: a.- Ninguna emisora puede trabajar sin la licencia concedida por el Ministerio de Comunicaciones. b.- Cada emisora debe emitir permanentemente desde el sitio para el cual se le adjudicó la licencia. c.- Deber tener la potencia, frecuencia con base en su frecuencia, o la que el Ministerio le fijó. d.- Debe identificarse como de INTERÉS PÚBLICO cada hora con su nombre, las letras de llamada, sitio desde donde trasmite, la frecuencia y potencia con que opera. Es importante hacer énfasis en este sentido, porque bien se sabe que el desconocimiento de la ley no exonera de la responsabilidad o que por el hecho de ser Ejército y parte del Estado se está excepto del cumplimiento de la ley. (Tomado dela Página del Ejército Nacional de Colombia via Rafael Rodríguez, Colombia, lista ConDig, ago 5 via DXLD) ** CUBA. This evening I have been hearing a noise on 1620 that sounds a little like a jammer. It was quite strong earlier in the evening when some Cubans were coming in quite well but it is much weaker now - and all Cubans are also weak now. What I wonder is, have the Cuban jammers begun their attack on WDHP [VIUS] now that that station is carrying some Radio Martí broadcasts. Can any of our Florida members check this out? (Ben Dangerfield, Wallingford, Pa. [SE cor Pa], Aug 10, NRC-AM via DXLD) ** CUBA. Hurricane Charley has blown RHC and relays via Cuba off the air. Checked Aug 13 in the 1300 hour, no sign of RHC on 6000, 9550, 11760, 11800, 12000, no China relay on 9570. Ditto in the 1400 hour, with China relay missing from 13740 (scheduled until 1600). It will be interesting to note when these transmissions come back. RHC takes a mid-day break anyway. See if Venezuela relay is there today from 1900 on 13740. [no] Prof. Arnaldo Coro Antich, CO2KK, has been busy with hurricane watching on the ham bands. This Saturday`s DXers Unlimited might have some interesting info on what happened, tho he is usually reluctant to give any details about technical problems at the Cuban sites, and may not even have time to do a new show this week, even if station is back on air. We might try RHC`s audio streaming, which I have not had much luck with even during light breezes. There are text stories about the hurricane`s impact on Cuba, headed, of course, by Fidel`s version, at http://www.radiohc.cu [Later:] No sign of 13740 at 1900; no sign of RHC 9505 or 11760 after 2030; no sign of RNV via RHC at 2300 on 11760. But --- jammers against R. Martí bubbling away as usual at 2050 Aug 13 on 11930 and 13630 (13820 too strong to tell). This proves one or two things: jammers are higher priority than broadcasting in Cuba, and/or at least some of the SW jamming sites are in eastern Cuba, far from the Hurricane track near Habana, the better to `serve` western Cuba by skip. I have not checked every possible frequency thoroughly, but the following normally strong RHC signals are still missing Friday evening, UT Sat at 0217: 6000, 9820. Checked for Venezuela relay in the 2300 hour where it was heard a day or two ago, 11760, and nothing August 13. Cuban bubble jammers are still hitting Martí on 6030 and 7365 too, checked at 0218 UT Sat (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) In Cuba, International Amateur Radio Union Region 2 Area C Emergency Coordinator Arnie Coro, CO2KK, reports amateurs there already have activated emergency nets and have been in contact with the HWN. Emergency nets in Cuba are operating LSB between 7040 and 7090 kHz and also on 7110 kHz during daylight hours. Nighttime operations will shift to between 3710 and 3750 kHz. http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2004/08/12/100/?nc=1 (via Mike Terry, dxldyg via DXLD) see also INTERNATIONAL WATERS, USA ** DENMARK, World Music Radio. Según me comunican por mail de World Music Radio, esperan estar de nuevo en el aire este fin de semana en 5815 KHz. También esperan enviar pronto las tarjetas QSL de los informes de recepción que se han llegado durante las transmisiones de prueba. "Sorry for the delay with the QSL cards. I hope they will be printed and sent out soon. We are hoping to have 5815 kHz back on the air this weekend." (Manuel Méndez, Lugo, Spain, Aug 13, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** FINLAND. (Aland Islands) 603 kHz: Bengt Ericson on passing by Aland in the first days of August noted a weak signal with nonstop music on 603. The signal originated from a harbour some distance away from Mariehamn and was audible for only 3-4 km (ARC Information Desk 9 Aug via editor Olle Alm, DXLD) Pirate Radio 603 AM --- After finally conquering the reflective power problem we finally went on air with full power last Tuesday. In English with me kicking off with a dynamite morning show. In Aland, Finland. It was only for a day as I had to fly back to the UK that evening to look after my business there. It was enough. I had many calls from all over the island and though the signal was not to great due to the need for a soon to come audio processor it was great to be in front of a microphone again! The government here in Aland has finally realized that as the license for 300 kw is so massive and is an International license eventually reaching millions all over Scandinavia and much of Northern Europe and god knows how far East they have agreed that it would be acceptable to do my show, and I hope it means other presenters on Pirate Radio 603 AM, to present in English. In a way I am a touch sad as I was just beginning to get the hang of speaking in Swedish but maybe they were more afraid of me speaking "pigeon Swedish" than English and after announcing a new show called "Dra Min Banana", or "Pull My Banana" which is a wind up show presented by 2 cool kats from Aland, Yessu and Messa, they decided that it was safer to get me off the Swedish speaking trip. They also said that as listeners are not to be classified as "consumers" it was OK to broadcast in English. I thank them for their insight and welcome their change of mind. it shows a great flexability for the beautiful people of Aland I have taken to my heart as they have supported us so well up to now. I am grateful and can now apply myself to creating a fantastic new schedule with the most exciting new kinds of programs people of all ages and musical tastes have heard in many a year. The battle over the license will come to a head soon and hopefully it can be resolved peacefully. Nonetheless, I, or we, will carry on and under NO circumstances will we be stopped from making Pirate Radio 603 AM the next big thing in the radio orld. We are still not happy though with the signal due to ground net problems and have decided to go even further by erecting an antenna on the ship St Paul in Mariehamn which has been my home for past 5 months and where the broadcasting studios are and now we can truly say we will have a true radioship like the original pirate radio ships of yesteryear. The perfect grounding of the salt water here in the Baltic will increase the signal even more and god only knows how far we will be heard! We have begun to take in advertising with really cool adverts meant to make people smile and take notice and now the fun begins! And hard work as well.... Wish us luck! We will need it! Yours very truly, Mike Spenser --- once a Pirate, always a Pirate! http://www.earthradio.co.uk/radio_news.htm (via Mike Terry, DXLD) ** INDIA. AIR's Coverage of the 28th Summer Olympics in Athens [all times local, UT +5.5] PRASAR BHARATI, BROADCASTING CORPORATION OF INDIA, DIRECTORATE GENERAL: ALL INDIA RADIO, (SPORTS CELL) No.31/40/2004 - SC New Delhi, the 06.08.2004 The coverage plan for the 28th Summer Olympics in Athens scheduled from 13th to 29th August is as follows. 1. 13.8.2004 7.05 a.m. to 7.20 a.m. Curtain Raiser on the 28th Summer Olympics 2. 14.8.2004, 16.8.2004 to 30.8.2004 7.05 a.m. to 7.30 a.m. Daily highlights 3. 15.8.2004 10.05 a.m. to 10.30 a.m. Daily highlights *The above-mentioned programmes will be relayed by Multi-channel Stations on their main Primary Channel and FM Gold in the 4 Metros. *Capital stations will be required to record these programmes off broadcast and to prepare a Regional language Version of the programme and broadcast this version at a suitable time slot between 9.00 a.m. to 10.00 a.m. which will be relayed by other stations in their respective states. *On 15th August 2004, the Regional version may be broadcast as per their convenience, in the morning after the Flag hoisting ceremony & the special news bulletins are over. * Those Local Radio Stations which have morning transmission will relay the regional language version programme in their state between 9.00 a.m. and 10.00 a.m. 4. 14.8.2004 To 29.8.2004 11.10 p.m. to 11.20 p.m. Live Reports These may be broadcast by the Multi-channel stations on their main Primary channel , National Channel and FM Gold in the 4 Metros. 5. Live commentary alternately in Hindi and English of the Men's Hockey matches: 15.8.2004 2355 hrs. to 0135 hrs. 17.8.2004 2125 hrs. to 2305 hrs. 19.8.2004 2355 hrs. to 0135 hrs. 21.8.2004 1355 hrs. to 1535 hrs. 23.8.2004 2325 hrs. to 0105 hrs. 25.8.2004 2155 hrs.to 2335 hrs - Semi final 26.8.2004 0025 hrs.to 0205 hrs. - Semi final 27.8.2004 2355 hrs.to 0135 hrs. - Final *These will be relayed by Multi-channel Stations on one of their Primary channels. Stations are advised to note that on 21st, 23rd and 25th Aug. there will also be cricket commentary for which instructions will be issued separately. * NSD will also broadcast news updates during the Athens Olympics in the bulletins scheduled at 8.00 a.m./8.15 a.m./ 2.00p.m. /2.30 p.m./8.45 p.m./9.00 p.m. * NSD will also carry a special capsule in its Sports scan programme broadcast on FM Gold between 8.00 p.m. to 8.15 p.m. and will carry a 5 mts. capsule at 7.30 a.m. /8.30 a.m./8.30 p.m./ 9.00 p.m. on FM Gold, in its news magazine programmes. The exact schedule of the Tennis matches is to be received and the stations will be informed subsequently regarding the timings. RN Support will be advised to the stations by DP (Policy)/Director (SpM). (Noreen Naqvi) Dy. Director General (C). (From : AIR website via Alokesh Gupta, New Delhi, India, Aug 14, dx_india via DXLD) ** INDONESIA. Some MW changes compared to the list in WRTH 2004: 648 (add) Radio Suara Minangkabau, Tangerang BN (ex-630) 666 (add) Radio Sekuntum Bungah Yang Indah (Radio SBY, ID as heard), Jl Matraman 39, Jakarta JK 666 (del) Radio Swara Populer, Purwakarta JB (moved to FM) 675 (del) RSPDT2 Kotamadya Pekalongan, Pekalongan JH (moved to FM) 702 (del) Radio Rasika Ardaya Lilaswara Madyantara, Bantul YG (moved to FM) 702 (add) Radio Suara Konco Tani, Sidokarto-Sleman YG 774 (add) RRI Fak-Fak (not confirmed, but announced on their SW frequency), Fak-Fak, Papua 792 (del) Radio Duta Megantara, Bogor JB (apparently inactive) 792 (add) Radio Assyafi'iyah, Jl. Kebon Baru Utara F No. 19 Tebet - Jakarta 12830 828 (del) Radio Gita Segara, Bangkalan JT (inactive) 828 (add) Radio TASSA AM, Lubuk Alang, SB 837 unid station operating in Surakarta area, probably R. Immanuel ex-846 kHz 855 RSPDT2 Bekasi JB, IDs as 'Radio Patriot' 870 (del) RKPD Kotamadya Probolinggo JT (apparently inactive) 879 RSPD Sidoarjo JT (address: Wisma Sarinadi, Kawasan GOR, Sidoarjo) 900 (del) Radio Jelita Bahanswara, Bukittinggi SB (moved to FM) 900 Radio C.B.B., Surabaya JT (except for short tests with music in April '04, has been inactive recently) 972 (del) Radio Suara Adya Samudra (ADS), Bekasi JB (moved to FM) 1062 (add) Radio Erbe (Radio RB), Jl. Jagalan 36, Yogyakarta YG 1080 Radio Safari, Kebayoran Baru, JK (listed in WRTH '04 as R. AM 1080 Stereo) 1116 (add) Radio Barami, Cileunyi, Lembang-Bandung JB 1125 (del) RRI Palu (inactive) 1143 (del) RKPDT2 Jember, Jember JT (apparently inactive) 1152 (add) Radio Rama Sutra, Jl. A. Yani 56 Ciasem, Sukamandi-Subang JB 1170 Radio Gema Angkasa Swara Al Khairaat, Palu SH, mark as 1170v (last heard around 1166 kHz) 1224 (add) Radio Sonata 47, Bandung (re-activated) 1251 (del) RKPKDT2 Probolinggo, Probolinggo JT (inactive or moved to FM) 1260 (del) Radio RDA 45, Pasuruan JT (inactive) 1395 (add) Radio Deli Indah Swara Diah, Jl. Jenderal Sudirman, Tebing Tinggi 20615 SU 1485 (del) RRI Padang (inactive) 1485 (del) Radio Bimantara, Bukittinggi SB (moved to FM) 1557 (del) Radio Al Masilah, Jakarta JK (apparently inactive) 1602 (del) Radio Lintas Triaga Angkasa, Bukittinggi SB (moved to FM) (Alan Davies, ARC Information Desk 9 Aug via editor Olle Alm, DXLD) ** INTERNATIONAL. ANALYSIS: BROADCASTERS VERSUS NET IN OLYMPIC RACE Text of editorial analysis by BBC Monitoring's Media Services on 12 August The two-week Olympic spectacular opens on Friday 13 August with what could be an even grander opening ceremony than Sydney's four years ago. 3.7 billion people saw some of the last Olympics, and the Athens event should be seen by 10 per cent more. It is the broadcasting rights which effectively sustain the event. Ticket sales offset the cost of the organizing committee but the broadcasting rights, worth around 4.5 billion dollars, are split between the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the main organizing committee and the Olympic movements consisting of national committees and sports organizations. Many kilometres of video cable have been laid for the 16,000 broadcasting staff, who are outnumbered only by security personnel. TV stations from around the world will be there, some with full coverage rights and others sporting a presence of sorts; shots from outside the venues but not live pictures of sports events. Push for gold For some viewers this will be the most interactive Olympics yet. Digital TV provides more broadcasters the opportunity to re-run highlights and provide results and rankings across digital sub- channels at the push of a button. Japan has introduced expanded experimental digital broadcasts just in time for the major sporting event of 2004. In China, two new pay-TV digital channels will be launched carrying Olympic coverage from the Fengyun Communication Company. New digital services will boost sales of domestic digital equipment. In South Korea there will be high-definition pictures on the KBS, MBC, SBS and SkyLife channels from the games. Prices of integrated TV sets have been reduced and sales of Daewoo, Samsung and LG digital TV sets and flat screen displays have risen between 30 and 150 per cent in the last month. Samsung is one of the official "Olympic Partners", and as a main event sponsor it can promote its products globally. Online, no TV set, go Viewers in the USA and UK will be able to use a PC instead of a TV to watch the Athens Olympics. Most of the world will not, however. Web sites which carry the sports coverage from Greece will be ring-fenced, to prevent viewing beyond the countries for which they have negotiated Internet rights. For previous games the IOC appeared to be nervous of the Internet and so prohibited web sites from carrying video of events. This was in order to protect the existing TV rights, or about 2bn dollars worth of income. A change came with the 2002 Winter Olympics, however. A single TV rights holder in Switzerland was permitted to test the feasibility of limiting streaming sports coverage to just a single country. The IOC may well have a battle on its hands. Recordings provided by individuals via bit-torrent and peer-to-peer Internet connections will probably feed a distribution of Olympic video way beyond those who have actually paid for the privilege. The BBC has a deal which allows it to stream to broadband Internet anything which is on its TV coverage. The BBC will attempt to take up to 1,200 hours of live coverage of 26 simultaneous sports events and show them on the UK's BBC1 and BBC 2 channels, five interactive net and digital-only channels and 30 edited highlights streams. In the USA, NBC, its affiliates and associated sister channels will show 1,210 hours of programming, but only some 300 hours will be live, at a cost of 793m dollars. NBC's Internet offering, for the USA only, is not live at all, but a delayed video highlights service on NBCOlympics.com This may satisfy the US audience, which is between 7 and 10 hours behind local time in Athens. The losers Offering any TV coverage of the Olympics at all can be a problem for smaller countries. TV rights for one country can be bought by a provider from another. The Solomon Islands depend on New Zealand for their coverage. The Olympic spirit has been absent in terms of advertising revenue in some markets. America's NBC has sold 96 per cent of its advertising slots, but live events won't be seen at all on Indonesian TV, making it the only country out of 201 to have competing athletes but no live pictures. RCTI, which did show the last Olympics, just couldn't attract enough advertisers. North Korea, which has previously pirated the Olympics from South Korea, will have a legal relay for viewers in the North. They will be able to see the Korean team march under a "unification flag", with the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union providing coverage for free to North Korea via the Thaicom satellite. The IOC charges are being paid by the Korean Broadcasting Committee and the inter-Korean cooperation fund. State TV in the Philippines has owed the IOC 1.2m dollars in broadcast fees since the Sydney Olympics, but has formulated a payment plan which will ensure pictures for viewers and staged payments to the IOC. The Greek government's biggest concerns are power outages, a terrorist strike and profiteering. A patrolling airship, planes and troops are in place to answer a potential terrorist attack. Stories of transport problems, transport and power failures and unfinished venues appear to have faded as the opening ceremony approaches. As Olympic records are broken and medal ceremonies proceed, all eyes will be on Athens. Should anything untoward occur, the world's press couldn't be better placed to report that in depth, too. Source: BBC Monitoring research 12 Aug 04 (via DXLD) ** INTERNATIONAL WATERS. A new version, dated August 12, 2004, of Bill Snyder's Hurricane Frequencies list has just appeared. http://www.hurricanefrequencies.com Hugh Stegman's Hurricane frequencies list was also been updated August 12. http://www.ominous-valve.com/hurricne.txt [sic] (John Norfolk, dxldyahoogroup via DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** INTERNATIONAL WATERS [and non]. ARES EMERGENCY NETS READY AS FLORIDA BRACES FOR BONNIE AND CHARLEY http://www2.arrl.org/news/stories/2004/08/12/2/?nc=1 NEWINGTON, CT, Aug 12, 2004 --- Florida radio amateurs are arranging to have special HF nets on the air to support ARES activations as Hurricane Charley approaches the US coast. Southern Florida Section Emergency Coordinator Jim Goldsberry, KD4GR, says a special session of the South Florida ARES Net (SFAN) will follow the Florida Midday Traffic Net (FMTN) on 7242 kHz at approximately 1615 UTC. As Hurricane Charley threatens Cuba and South Florida after skirting the southern edge of Jamaica Wednesday, the Hurricane Watch Net resumed operation on 14.325 MHz at 1100 UTC today after securing the net at 0115 UTC. ``Our mission is to alert inhabitants of the western third of Cuba as the hurricane is forecast for landfall on that island late today, followed by close passage near the lower Florida Keys,`` said HWN Manager Mike Pilgrim, K5MP. The government of Cuba has issued a hurricane warning for several western provinces. Pilgrim says that given the storm`s possible path into Florida, the net may need to remain in continuous operation through August 14 ``at a minimum.`` In Cuba, International Amateur Radio Union Region 2 Area C Emergency Coordinator Arnie Coro, CO2KK, reports amateurs there already have activated emergency nets and have been in contact with the HWN. ``I expect that we can achieve the same degree of cooperation on this weather-related emergency as we have been able to achieve in the past,`` he said. Emergency nets in Cuba are operating LSB between 7040 and 7090 kHz and also on 7110 kHz during daylight hours. Nighttime operations will shift to between 3710 and 3750 kHz. Still a Category 1 storm, Charley has gained some strength and now packs sustained winds of 90 MPH with higher gusts. As of 1500 UTC, Hurricane Charley was 25 miles north of Grand Cayman moving northwesterly at around 17 MPH. Forecasters predict a turn to the north-northwest later today. A hurricane warning remains in effect for the Florida Keys from the Dry Tortugas to the Seven Mile Bridge and for the southwest Florida coast from East Cape Sable to Bonita Beach. National Hurricane Center (NHC) forecasters say the warning will likely be extended northward later today or tonight. The NHC says large, dangerous battering waves will accompany Charley into the Cayman Islands later today. Storm surges of 2 to 4 feet are expected in the Florida Keys and 6 to 10 feet along Florida`s southwestern coastline. In addition, the hurricane could generate 4 to 8 inches of rain, resulting in flash floods and mudslides. The HWN activated Wednesday afternoon and immediately began to gather ground-level weather data amateur stations in Jamaica for relay to WX4NHC, the Amateur Radio station at the National Hurricane Center (NHC) in Miami. WX4NHC activated operations Wednesday in concert with the HWN. Amateur Radio Coordinator John McHugh, K4AG, said the operation was expected to continue through August 13, as Charley approaches the US. During hurricane emergencies trained HWN members provide essential communication support to WX4NHC, which disseminates storm updates via the net. The HWN also collects observed or measured weather data and post-storm damage reports via Amateur Radio in the affected areas and relays that information to forecasters via WX4NHC, which also gathers similar data via the Internet from non-Amateur Radio sources. The ground-level weather data assists NHC forecasters in predicting a storm`s path and behavior. Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Bonnie was reported making landfall in Apalachicola, in the Florida Panhandle, and a tropical storm warning remains in effect from Destin to the mouth of the Suwannee River. With maximum sustained winds near 50 MPH, Bonnie is accelerating and moving northeasterly at near 28 MPH, but the storm is expected to weaken over the next 24 hours. Dangerous battering waves and coastal storm surge flooding of 2 to 5 feet above normal accompanied Bonnie`s arrival. Additional rainfall of 4 to 6 inches or more is forecast in association with the tropical storm, and isolated tornadoes are possible. North Carolina already is preparing for anticipated heavy rainfall from the two storms. ARRL North Carolina Section Manager John Covington, W4CC, said North Carolina Emergency Management was expected to activate its Eastern Branch Office emergency operations center today. ``The Amateur Radio station at the Eastern Branch Office will be staffed, but no word yet whether the Tar Heel Emergency Net will be activated beyond its regular schedule,`` Covington told ARRL. ``It`s too early to tell if it will be needed. We are alert, aware and preparing, just in case.`` The American Red Cross was expected to open five special-needs shelters in the Miami area. The Salvation Army has announced it`s preparing for both Bonnie and Charlie with a three-front disaster response in Florida. The Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network (SATERN) announced Wednesday that it would activate on 14.265 MHz when needed to assist in providing emergency communication into the affected area as well as to handle health-and-welfare inquiries. Copyright © 2004, American Radio Relay League, Inc. All Rights Reserved (via John Norfolk, dxldyahoogroup, DXLD) see also CUBA, USA ** INTERNATIONAL WATERS [non]. Radio Caroline komt hier net onder Arnhem zwak door op 1278 khz om 1420 UT. Zojuist een ID gehoord! 73 (Max Van Arnhem, Holland, Aug 8, BDXC via DXLD) 1 watt RSL at Tilbury, England (gh) Ook in Grou, midden Friesland. SINPO 11111. Vanavond weer gebeurd ivm France Bleu. en dat met 1 watt ermp (PD5NKH, ibid.) Caroline is hier ook redelijk goed te horen. Groeten, Ton (A. S. Timmermans, ibid.) Andere jaren waren Caroline RSL's hier beter te ontvangen. Signaal pendelt gans de dag tussen 1 en 3. En in de achtergrond hoor ik nog die andere RSL: BFBS Nepal service vanuit Folkstone. Groeten, (Hugo Matten - Veurne, Belgium (51 1' 56" N - 2 40' 36" E), RX: Kenwood R- 5000, Sony ICF- 6700W, Grundig Satellit 500. ANT: Dipool 22,8 m + 9,2 m, T2FD 17 m, 25 m MLB lw, MG loop 1m x 1m en afgeschemde loop, Wellbrook ALA - 1530 loop, ibid.) Op dit moment 1100 UT, komt Radio Caroline beter door dan de laatste dagen om dezelfde tijd. Om 0630 was ontvangst moeizaam als gevolg van Frankrijk op dezelfde frequentie (Max van Arnhem, Aug 11, ibid.) Voor de liefhebbers: Nu Caroline 1278 proberen: ze komen redelijk door (Max van Arnhem, Arnhem, 0828 UT Aug 12, ibid.) ** IRAN. At least some stations are interested in chatting directly to their listeners. Recently I had yet another call and interview with an announcer from the Voice of the Islamic Republic of Iran; this is the fourth time they`ve done that now. The questions were the usual ``what do you think of Iran``, ``what do you know about Islam``, and ``what message do you have for our listeners?`` Any more interviews with the Iranians, I think I`m going to tell them to send me a plane ticket (Sue Hickey, NF, CIDX Forum Aug Messenger via DXLD) Perhaps you are too polite; say something negative and they may leave you alone. Like, give up your nuclear missile program, or else! (gh) ** ISRAEL. At 0400 UT Aug 13, 17600 and 15640 were in Hebrew, not English; did the change go into effect? (Chris Hambly, Victoria, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** LAOS. 585, Savannakhet currently closes at 1305. (Alan Davies) 640, Vientiane City Radio Station has moved here, ex-702. 640 is now the announced frequency, and operates 2330-1000 (Alan Davies in Vientiane) 705, Luang Prabang 2200-0800, 1025-1500 on 705 kHz and 103.5 MHz (FM frequency evidently changed again for some reason - they announce 103) (Alan Davis in Luang Prabang, all: ARC Information Desk 9 Aug via editor Olle Alm, DXLD) ** MALAYSIA. Many of RTM's mediumwave transmitters in West Malaysia appear to have been closed down, specifically Ipoh 576, JB 576, Segamat 621, Kuala Lipis 648 and probably also Melaka 1008. However, RTM Perak via Gerik 657 kHz IS still active (Alan Davies, ARC Information Desk 9 Aug via editor Olle Alm, DXLD) ** PAKISTAN. Ongoing projects: Three 100 kW MW transmitters one each at Peshawar, Lahore & Quetta and 100 kW MW transmitter & broadcasting house at Turbat. The Turbat transmitter was originally purchased för Larkana (from http://www.pakistan.gov.pk/planninganddevelopment-division/infoservices/Monitoringprojects/Monitoringprojects/InformationBroadcasting.htm via ARC Information Desk 9 Aug via editor Olle Alm, DXLD) ** SOUTH AFRICA. 1269, Chinese community Radio - although the carrier remains on for 24 hours, there is no programming content broadcast except in prime morning time and early evenings. 729 & 1584, nothing heard on these frequencies (I monitor these often but have never heard a local station there) 729, R. Veritas - after a brief broadcast earlier in the year, they have not reappeared - nothing on this frequency 1404, on air but poor carrier and bad audio. Other stations as listed (John Plimmer, South Africa via Bengt Ericson, ARC Information Desk 9 Aug via editor Olle Alm, DXLD) ** THAILAND. R. Thailand Education Service now closes around 1655- 1700. (Alan Davies) Most stations outside the Bangkok area in the Army Signals Department's Wor. Por. Tho. and Kor. Wor. Sor. networks carry common news/current affairs programming from 1500-1700 and 2300- on the following frequencies: 585 Chumphon 1188 Sakon Nahkon 603 Khon Kaen 1215 Phrae 738 Chiang Mai, Songkhla (Hat Yai) 1233 Udon Thani 756 Surin 1287 Ubon Ratchathani 828 Nakhon Si Thammarat (Thung Song) 1350 Trang 1008 Nakhon Ratchasima 1512 Phayao 1044 Khon Kaen (Ban Phai) 1530 Uttaradit 1080 Chiang Rai, Nakhon Sawan, Yala (probably Alan Davies, ARC Information Desk 9 Aug via editor Olle Alm, DXLD) ** UGANDA [non]. Re 4-120: Radio Rhino International ..twtf. 1500-1530 17870 Juelich E (DTK T-systems) s.....s 1500-1600 17870 Juelich E (DTK T-systems) (DTK via BC-DX Aug 12 via DXLD) This look like the "old" 2003+ pattern published on http://www.radiorhino.org ? Bulgarian Observer reported a different schedule on 27 July: Radio Rhino International Africa: 1500-1530 17870 JUL 100 kW / 145 deg Mon-Fri to EaAf English again on air effective July 12 (Bernd Trutenau, Lithuania, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** UKRAINE [non]. USA/UKRAINE: RADIO KONTINENT DIRECTOR GAINS US REFUGEE STATUS | ext of press release by the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) on 12 August The director of the shuttered Kiev radio station Kontinent has arrived in Washington, D.C., after gaining refugee status from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. In a telephone interview with CPJ, Sergey Sholokh said he fled Ukraine five months ago and applied for refugee status through the U.S. Embassy in Poland. He arrived in Washington on 6 August. One human rights expert said asylum is not easily granted, and is based on demonstrable persecution in the applicant's homeland. The U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, who oversees immigration services, has discretion to admit any refugee who "is determined to be of special humanitarian concern," according to the services' web site. Sholokh told CPJ [Committee to Protect Journalists] he feared for his safety, in part because of what he considered to be an attempted abduction in February. He said he fears the attempt was related to his testimony in the investigation into the murder of independent journalist Georgy Gongadze four years ago. Source: Committee to Protect Journalists press release, New York, in English 12 Aug 04 (via BBCM via DXLD) ** U K. [Re AUSTRALIA, CANADA] Hubby tried to get something on one of the domestic BBC channels; he got the same message that "due to rights issues, this program is not available." What about Brits overseas? This isn't doing a service for them! (Maryanne Kehoe, GA, swprograms via DXLD) ** U K. BBC in licence trouble? Grade calls in accountants to check BBC --- Matt Wells Friday August 13, 2004 The Guardian Questions were raised about the strength of the BBC's finances last night when it was revealed that Michael Grade, the corporation's chairman, had called in an independent firm of accountants to conduct a review of its "financial controls". Mr Grade said he wanted to be sure that the corporation was properly handling the #3bn it spends every year, most of it raised by the licence fee. . . http://media.guardian.co.uk/broadcast/story/0,7493,1282369,00.html (via Dan Say, BC, DXLD) ** U S A. Nueva transmision en español de WRMI --- Amigos: Aquí en Radio Miami, estamos retransmitiendo una cadena nueva de Miami que se llama Radio Logos Network en español a las 1000-1100 UT de lunes a sábado, y también de 2200-2300 UT sábado y de 2200-2245 UT domingo -- todos en 9955 kHz. También tenemos un programa nuevo de música que se llama "Trova Libre" los domingos de 2245-2300 UT, después de Radio Logos Network. Agradeceríamos cualquier mensaje sobre la calidad de la recepción en esos horarios en tu localidad, o comentarios sobre los programas. Muchas gracias, y muchos saludos (Jeff White, Radio Miami International, E-mail: radiomiami9 @ cs.com http://www.wrmi.net Aug 12, Noticias DX via DXLD) That knocks out the DX-program fillers at 1000-1100, but still at the other previous times. As of Aug 12 a new schedule dated Aug 8 is posted at http://www.wrmi.net/pages/714011/index.htm showing 6870 at night, tho UT Aug 12 they were still on 7385. The WRN times are: Mon-Fri 1200-1600 15725 Tue-Sat 0400-0900 6870 Sat 1200-2200 15725 Sun-Mon 0330-0900 6870 Sun 1330-2000 15725 That`s a total of 72.5 hours per week of WRN via WRMI! Giving lots and lots of stations a free ride into North America on a SW relay. It would be nice if WRMI would include each station in its schedule. Instead, we must consult http://www.wrn.org/listeners/schedules/schedule.php?ScheduleID=2&Curre ntTZID=3&Show=week http://www.wrn.org/listeners/schedules/schedule.php?ScheduleID=2&Curre ntTZID=3&Show=weekend Beware: unless you use the direct linx above, the skeds default to ET, as if that zone were primary in NAm! And the time column headers are confusing. As we suspected, Radio Logos Network is just another gospel huxter, from the description now on the WRMI website; here`s the bit about the other new program: ``Trova Libre - A cargo del cantautor cubano Michael Méndez, el programa expondrá temas musicales de contenido social y político tanto del propio cantautor así como de otros artistas, e intentará promover canciones y trovadores que expresen su mensaje en descuerdo con el régimen dictatorial imperante en la isla de Cuba. Trovadores y cantautores podrán someter su material discográfico. El teléfono de contacto es +1-305-261-5947, o vía las oficinas de Radio Miami Internacional`` (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Glenn: We got the crystal, but we've been busy battening down the hatch here in case of hurricane problems. It now appears that the worst of it will miss us, although as I write this we're getting some very strong wind gusts and rain. Tonight is impossible, but I'm hoping we can get 6870 on air by tomorrow night, if the weather cooperates (Jeff White, WRMI, Aug 13, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. WFLA webcast icon launches a custom player that is un- friendly to Mac; workaround is to load this address into Windows player. http://ccdig.liquidviewer.com/wfla It will be interesting to see how the webcast hold up as the storm bears down tomorrow. Tonight [Thursday], all the usual Cuban stations are still on, none seem to have been knocked off. Good radar image at http://www.srh.noaa.gov/radar/latest/DS.p20-r/si.kbyx.shtml (Tom Roche, GA, 0155 UT Aug 13, DX LISTENING DIGEST) By 25 hours later, Melbourne was the one: http://weather.gov/radar/latest/DS.p19r0/si.kmlb.shtml (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. Hurricanes, etc in FL Reminders for DXers... Gang, listen for daytimers and stations using day rigs at night tonight on the AM band as we have two storms approach Florida. I'll try to note any Cubans knocked out from Hurricane Charlie. That should be fun to listen for. WNNR 970 and WVOJ 1570 don't have immediate plans to do wall to wall storm coverage, it'll be blustery and very rainy I'd expect in Jacksonville, FL at best. This should be a nice opportunity for us in the hobby to perhaps work a couple of stations we don't have in our logs if our cards are played right. Go get 'em (Ron Gitschier, Palm Coast, Flagler County, FL // Jacksonville, Duval County, FL, Aug 12, NRC-AM via DXLD) WFLA 970 and WHNZ 1250 use the same site. They should be able to stay on the air and have all the required backup equipment and staff to do just that. 620 WDAE will go off the air when the water rises about 6 feet as the site is in the middle of Tampa Bay built up on piers. There are probably no other Tampa AM stations that will do anything in the way of programming. Best bet is to try for 970, especially tomorrow nite as they will be on day power for sure (Paul Smith, Sarasota, FL, ibid.) Note: much of this was posted on a more timely basis in the dxldyg ** U S A. Tampa Bay & Hurricane Charlie It's about 2250 local time as I write this. I just drove back from a local Self Storage where I dropped another load of cartons of books and papers etc. and monitoring WFLA. Driving back home I pass through two null points on West Linebaugh Ave which are quite evident at night, with heavy carrier cancellation, one is the Louisville null. So I am certain that for _tonight_ WFLA is on Night power as the nulls are there. Tonight's program [Thursday] is Robert Pankow on until midnight at the WFLA Storm Center or something similar, fielding calls from listeners. Pankow is a veteran of flights in the P-3 Orions flown out of Keesler and MacDill, and is an entertaining listen (try streaming audio at 970wfla.com) There are 5 evacuation zones, I am on the border between C and D (A is the first to be invoked.) I am actually in C and Pat and I are heading out tomorrow morning for a site in Pasco where we probably will be for 2 days, depending on what happens here. There is a good chance of water in my place, the latest surge estimates are 13 to 16 feet, depending on where it hits exactly and the time of day, fortunately will be low tide. My fairly low res map of the entire Hillsborough county region seems to put the WFLA site in the B zone but that's just an estimate from the last time I actually sat down and tried to interpolate it. On the air, they speak of the "bunker" but the tower doghouses etc appear to be just normal on-ground construction. Maybe they have a single protected tower, it's a bit hard to tell from the road. They have been heavily running a promo with static-y buzzing and claiming that they will be on when all the other media is dark. Well, I hope they are right, as their news coverage is probably equal to all the other AM's in this area put together. WWBA was relaying network coverage earlier this evening. 1250 WHNZ is mainly talk-business/ health, they seem really weak on local news coverage. Pat and I will be about 20 miles north of here and WFLA is not terribly good up there at night. I am shutting everything down and pulling the main breaker tomorrow morning. They expect some action windwise about noonish and the main event about 6 to 9 tomorrow night. The 620 towers straddle the Gandy Boulevard which will probably be closed sometime as all the bridges close when the wind hits 40 or so. I was listening to Progreso 640 about 9.20 pm with music and telephone reports from various areas. c ya soon I hope, (Bob Foxworth, Tampa FL, 0312 UT Aug 13, NRC-AM via DXLD) Good luck to you and Pat, Bob! Remember how IBOC advocates repeatedly tell us that no one listens in AM fringe areas, and even if they do they don't count? Yet here is another case --- and several happen every year --- where people are counting on reliable AM reception for information vital to their safety and perhaps even survival. Such reception and coverage will be severely curtailed if IBOC is widely adopted, especially at night. Can you imagine trying to get storm information and getting QRM by IBOC digihash from stations via skywave?? XM is devoting one of its weather channels to coverage of Charlie, including reports directly from the National Hurricane Center. And that coverage won't be interrupted by a loss of power or a tower at the transmitter site (Harry Helms W7HLH/5, Wimberley, TX EL09, ibid.) Again, the only Tampa area AM station will be 970 WFLA. 820, 1010 are 50 kw stations daytime, but dont carry any local information and might be on day power rebroadcasting one of the local TV stations so you might look for those if you are looking for stations in this area (Paul Smith, W4KNX, Sarasota, FL, 0912 UT Aug 13, ibid.) For those wishing to follow what's going on in the Tampa Bay area regarding the upcoming hurricane, here's a link to WTSP CH 10 in St, Pete. They are streaming live video in case your are interested http://www.wtsp.com/news/live.asp (Paul Smith, W4KNX, Sarasota, FL, 1451 UT Aug 13, ibid.) Must be a lot of people watching it. I can't get a connection to the stream (Fred Vobbe, OH, 1505 UT Aug 13, ibid.) The stream has ended. They had to evacuate their studios by order of the police. The studios are in a primary flood zone. They are now attempting to transmit from their transmitter location and are having some real technical glitches. Amusing to watch, but I really feel sorry for them. My bet is that they will throw something together within a short time (Paul Smith, 1535 UT Aug 13, ibid.) It's back up and running live right now, albeit with a few buffer interruptions. The reporter just said "Everybody wants to have beachfront property, and you eventually pay the price for that..." (Randy Stewart, Springfield MO, 1549 UT Aug 13, ibid.) A great site to monitor progress of the storms, with links to local radio station audio feeds on-line, etc., plus live on-line broadcasts periodically from the webmaster, and occasional feeds of the amateur "Hurricane Watch Net" on 14325 khz USB is a site called "Hurricane City" Check it out at http://www.hurricanecity.com Here are two TV stations simulcasting live feed on their websites from the Fort Myers, FL area which is now the target area of the storm. [Note: 7 and 2 must be their cable channels, not their air channels! And from the layout the two stations are obviously co-owned] ABC-7 TV Fort Myers, Florida http://abc-7.com/ Click on ``Watch our live broadcast`` NBC-2 TV Fort Myers, Florida http://nbc-2.com/ Click on ``Watch our live broadcast`` WFLA is live streaming as well: http://www.970wfla.com (Sheldon Harvey, QC, ibid.) Hurricane Charley changes course and WOKV 690 info Well, Bob Foxworth, Paul Smith, and John Bowker's loss is my gain. Hurricane Charley is heading here for Flager Beach, FL according to current models broadcast over Orlando Television stations. Orlando is going to get it too. I heard Mike Dowart, the Program Director of WOKV 690 Jacksonville, FL say that Hurricane Charlie coverage will be simulcast over Cox Sister Station WKQL 96.9 FM Jacksonville, FL, "INSTEAD" of using the 50kw nondirectional daytime service on WOKV tonight 'so that those who are outside of our nighttime pattern can get important information. Drat! I was looking forward to saying 'hey guys, listen for WOKV, 50kw NDA stick tonight. Not so. There were fewer Cubans noted during the pre=sunrise commute in my car this morning. News to follow as things warrant. Expected worse weather about midnight, on to 2 AM here (Ron Gitschier, Palm Coast, FL, 2229 UT Aug 13, ibid.) Back in the old days, you could always count on WAPE 690 Jacksonville staying on at night with its 50 KW daytime non-directional blowtorch at even the hint of a storm. Not so tonight. As I write, the hurricane is headed for Daytona Beach/St. Augustine, just south of Jacksonville. No sign of 690 (now WOKV). All I hear, when I null out local WCNN on 680, is Birmingham and New Orleans. No Jacksonville, often heard here before pattern change. No Floridian, near, or in the path heard on day power/pattern. None from Orlando on 540, 580, or 990. All I hear on 740, in the WSB slop, is Tulsa. No Tampa 620, or 970. It's not conditions. All the usual Cubans heard on MW. Rebelde on 5025 is off. No carrier (Brock Whaley, Atlanta GA, Friday Aug 13, 9:30 PM EDT, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. STORM COULD FORCE TRIBUNE, 3 TV STATIONS TO EVACUATE By WALT BELCHER, Tampa Tribune Published: Aug 14, 2004 4:43 AM [postdated?] TAMPA - As media in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area scramble to track the approach of Hurricane Charley, three TV stations and The Tampa Tribune face possible evacuation today. Station and newspaper officials say they will continue to operate from backup locations if emergency officials mandate that they leave their facilities. WFLA, Channel 8, and the Tribune are on the Hillsborough River in downtown Tampa. WTSP, Channel 10, and WTOG, Channel 44, are off Gandy Boulevard on Tampa Bay. All four face threats of water damage in a storm surge. As of Friday night, all were making contingency plans. WFLA could relocate to WUSF, Channel 16, the PBS outlet at the University of South Florida, station spokesman Brad Moses said. The move will not interfere with WUSF's programming. WUSF has studios that Channel 8 can use, he said. The Tribune has plans to manage its news operations from a ballroom at the Embassy Suites on Fowler Avenue if necessary, said Frank M. Denton, editor of the Tribune. The newspaper has backup generators but they are not enough to run the presses, he said. If the presses at the downtown Tribune building are inoperable, arrangements will be made to print Saturday's edition at another Florida newspaper, possibly in Orlando, Vero Beach or Daytona. WTSP will set up shop at the Pinellas County Emergency Operations Center in Clearwater, station spokesman Pete Nikiel said. ``We're hoping and praying that if the hurricane hits here, our building won't be damaged,'' he said. WTOG will operate out of its transmission facility in Riverview, station spokeswoman Barbara Burley said. ``We've got a plan, and we expect to stay on the air,'' she said. When Hurricane Elena pelted the coast in 1985, WTSP went off the air for nearly eight hours and WTOG limped along for hours on reruns of a football game. ``We have a really strong backup plan with WUSF,'' said WFLA's Moses. ``We're going to stick with wall-to-wall coverage until its over.'' That means WFLA, an NBC affiliate, probably will pre-empt tonight's coverage of the opening ceremonies of the Summer Olympics. The station was working on an agreement Thursday night to show the ceremonies on an alternate carrier. ``We will offer it on our over- the-air HDTV broadcast,'' Moses said. Those with HDTV sets that have receivers will be able to see it. Officials at WTVT, Channel 13, and WFTS, Channel 28, did not return calls Thursday. WTVT is on higher ground on Kennedy Boulevard and WFTS is on Himes Avenue near Raymond James Stadium. News-talk radio station WFLA, 970 AM, plans to stay on the air no matter what, said Dan DiLoreto, station general manager. The WFLA radio studio, at 4002 W. Gandy Boulevard, sits in the C Flood Zone. DiLoreto said there are evacuation plans and a satellite studio ready for use if the station crew had to leave their home studio. He would not disclose the location. ``We do have a studio we can go to outside the flood zone,'' he said. Radio stations WTBN, 570 AM, and WTWD, 910 AM, are simulcasting Channel 8's weather coverage today. PBS station WEDU, Channel 3, plans to close its offices and studios on North Boulevard in Tampa but will stay on the air with scheduled programming plus weather updates from the Emergency Activation System. Bright House Network's Bay News 9 will ride out the storm at its Pinellas Park location, general manager Elliott Wiser said. ``We will put up our storm shutters. It might flood a little here, but we're on high ground,'' he said. (via Tom Roche, GA, DXLD) ** U S A. GAMES OF THE XXVIII OLYMPIAD - 2004 ATHENS OLYMPICS NEWS ACCESS GUIDELINES This is to advise you that NBC Universal, Inc. ("NBC Universal") has acquired the exclusive right in the United States and its territories and possessions, excluding Puerto Rico (the "Broadcast Territory"), to broadcast and otherwise exhibit the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (the "Games") in Athens, Greece. The Games are scheduled to begin on Friday, August 13, 2004, and conclude on Sunday, August 29, 2004.1 NBC Universal will broadcast the Games on NBC, USA, CNBC, MSNBC, Bravo, and Telemundo, and will also provide high definition television coverage of the Games. NBC Universal's exclusivity extends to all media, including but not limited to television, cable, radio, and the Internet, and to all aspects of the Games, including but not limited to: . The Opening Ceremony and the Closing Ceremony; . All athletic competitions and/or exhibitions (practice/ training, preliminary, qualifying and final rounds), including all non-athletic events or activities that occur at any venue (a "Venue") controlled by the Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games - Athens 2004 S.A. ("ATHOC"), including but not limited to all award and other official ceremonies held at any Venue and all athlete interviews taped inside Olympic Village; . All interviews in the OAKA and Helliniko areas in Athens with and athlete who has competed or will compete on the day such interview takes place; and . All other events, performances, exhibitions, demonstrations and activities staged at a Venue, including the Olympic Village. Recordings of any and all of the foregoing aspects of the Games are hereinafter referred to as "Olympic Material." NBC Universal's agreement with the International Olympic Committee ("IOC") and ATHOC provides that no one other than NBC Universal and/or NBC Universal's authorized sublicenses may broadcast or exhibit within the Broadcast Territory audio or video of any Olympic Material in any form whatsoever (including but not limited to over-the-air, cable, pay, satellite, or theatrical television, video on demand, the Internet, in-flight, or videocassette/videodisc), unless such broadcast or exhibition is permitted by these News Access Guidelines. Accordingly, use of excerpts of Olympic Material is permitted only if all of the following conditions are satisfied: 1. Use In News Programs Only: Excerpts of Olympic Material may be used only in regularly scheduled news programs of which the actual news elements constitute the main feature. This excludes programming such as news and sports magazines, news promos and updates, entertainment programs, entertainment news programs, magazines and features, sports features and other sports programs of special programs. In the case of an all-sports network, excerpts of Olympic Material may be used only as part of regularly scheduled general sports news programs and are subject to the other limitations of these News Access Guidelines. 2. Airing of Olympic Material Only After Prime Time Telecast Concludes: Excerpts of Olympic Material taped off-air on any given day from NBC, USA, CNBC, MSNBC, Bravo or Telemundo may not be telecast on such day in any time zone in the Broadcast Territory until NBC has completed its prime time telecast in such time zone on such day (and, even then, only subject to the other limitations of these News access Guidelines). Please note that NBC's prime time telecasts are scheduled to conclude at 12 midnight in the Eastern and Pacific time zones, and at 11 pm in the Central and Mountain time zones.2 A cable network with a single feed may not use excerpts of Olympic Material until after the conclusion of NBC's prime time telecast in all U.S. time zones where such feed can be viewed. 3. Internet: Under no circumstances may audio or video excerpts of Olympic Material be used on the internet or on any other interactive media (and/or wireless devices), including but not limited to within regularly scheduled news programs that are streamed on the internet. 4. Source of Olympic Material: With two exceptions (see paragraphs 12 and 13 below), the only permissible source of excerpts of Olympic Material for use in the Broadcast territory is footage that is taped off-air from NBC's, USA's, CNBC's, MSNBC's, Bravo's, and/or Telemundo's standard definition telecasts of the Games. Consequently, it is prohibited, among other things, to a) air Olympic material obtained from NBC's high definition telecasts of the games, or b) air Olympic Material obtained from any other IOC licensed Olympics rights holder. 5. Olympic material exclusions: Olympic Material, as that term is used herein, excludes announcer descriptions, any other audio elements, feature material, and interviews. These may not be used. 6. Number of newscasts/length of excerpts of Olympic material: Subject to paragraph seven below, excerpts of Olympic material may appear in a maximum of three (3) newscasts per day. Such excerpts in any single newscast may not exceed two (2) minutes total. All news networks are not subjects to this restriction, so long as the combined time of all excerpts (including repeat telecasts) does not exceed a total of six (6) minutes per day, and the other limitations of these News Access Guidelines are also satisfied. 7. Three Hour Separation: The newscasts in which the excerpts of Olympic Material appear must be separated by at least three (3) hours. All-news networks are not subject to this restriction. Stations that telecast both local news and network news programs from 5:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. and/or 4:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. may air reports containing eligible excerpts of Olympic Material so long as the combined time of such excerpts during these time periods does not exceed a total of two (2) minutes. 8. 24-Hour Window: Excerpts of Olympic Material may be used only during the 24-Hour period following the time that the use of such excerpts is first permitted under these guidelines. Any use after such 24-hour window requires the prior written approval of NBC Universal and the United states Olympic Committee ("USOC") 9. Post-Games Period: Any use of excerpts of Olympic Material in the Broadcast Territory after the conclusion of the Games requires the prior written approval of NBC Universal and the USOC. 10. Courtesy Credit: The following video credit must be displayed over any excerpts of Olympic Material for the duration of the clip: "Courtesy NBC Olympics". 11. Videoboards: Videoboards featuring Olympic Material placed at various locations in Athens and the surrounding areas may appear I the background of programming aired by broadcasters and cablecasters only if each of the limitations of these News Access Guidelines is satisfied. Any Olympic Material appearing in this manner will count against the time-related limitations set forth in paragraph 6 above. 12. Source of Olympic Material - Main Press Center Exception: Notwithstanding paragraph 3 above, footage of any official press conference held in the Main Press Center in Athens may be transmitted, provided that such material may only be transmitted on a 30-minute delay. 13. Source of Olympic Material - Olympic News Agency Exception: Excerpts of Olympic Material that are obtained from a source other than off-air NBC, USA, CNBC, MSNBC, Bravo or Telemundo telecasts cannot be used in the Broadcast Territory unless all of the following apply: (i) the footage is supplied by the Olympic News Agency, the footage clearinghouse of the Olympic Broadcasting Organization; (ii) NBC Universal has expressly consented to such use in advance in writing; (iii) 48 hours have elapsed since the occurrence of the event or activity shown in the footage; (iv) such event or activity was not aired on NBC, USA, CNBC, MSNBC, Bravo, or Telemundo; and (v) the other limitations of these News Access Guidelines are satisfied. * * * For copyright purposes, NBC Universal plans to record on videotape our standard definition and high definition Olympic programming simultaneously with its transmission. The owner of the resulting recorded audiovisual work will be the IOC, which intends to secure copyright in the programming following its fixation. The IOC has authorized NBC Universal to act as its party-in-interest with respect to copyright violations occurring within the Broadcast Territory. NBC Universal hereby grants United States-based broadcasters and cablecasters permission to record the NBC, USA, CNBC, MSNBC, Bravo and/or Telemundo broadcasts of the Games off-air for the sole purpose of obtaining excerpts of Olympic Material (excluding audio, announcer descriptions, feature material and interviews) for use by such broadcasters and cablecasters in regularly scheduled television newscasts that air in the Broadcast Territory prior to the conclusion of the Games, and otherwise in accordance with the limitations of these News Access Guidelines. NBC Universal's exclusive rights to the Games in the Broadcast Territory must be respected. Any use of Olympic Material other than as specifically provided herein will be considered a violation of NBC Universal's rights and may subject violators to legal liability under4 the laws of copyright, trademark, unfair competition, misappropriation and/or contract. In addition, the rebroadcast of any other broadcast station's program that includes Olympic Material may subject responsible parties to liability under 325(a) of the Communications Act of 1934. In addition, NBC Universal has acquired a number of original musical compositions which are under exclusive license to NBC Universal for commercial and promotional uses in television. Under the terms of those licenses, broadcasters and cablecasters are not permitted to use any of these compositions in any commercial, promotional or thematic manner whatsoever. We reserve the right at any time and at our sole discretion to vary the terms of these News Access Guidelines. We appreciate your cooperation. * The Olympic soccer tournament will actually begin on Wednesday, August 11, and games will ne televised on Telemundo that day as well as on Thursday, August 12. Those telecasts are included within the definition of Olympic Material as set forth herein, and the terms of these New Access Guidelines fully apply. *2 On August 11 and August 12, excerpts of Olympic Material may not be telecast in any time zone in the Broadcast Territory until Telemundo has completed its telecasts (and, even then, only subject to the other limitations of these News Access Guidelines), scheduled to conclude at 8pm in the Eastern and Pacific time zones, and 7 pm, in the Central and Mountain time zones (via Mike Cooper, DXLD) Whew! My first impressions of NBC`s coverage of Opening Ceremonies, with Katie Couric and Bob Costas (is that short for a polysyllabic?): Too many commercials in the first half hour. This time the entrance of the nations was again interrupted by less frequent commercials, but instead of ignoring the countries unfortunate enough to be in the spotlight when NBC commercials were running, they did a quick catch-up after each break, with video clips, but those countries, in the D`s, G`s and L`s, for instance, still got short shrift. There was NO need to do this since the whole thing was tape-delayed several hours. Too many of the glib scripted comments about the countries were trite, or totally political --- e.g., Sa`udi Arabia coming in for nothing but criticism for not including women. Katie & Bob remarked without a trace of embarrassment that they were ``learning names of many new countries`` -- I think they were talking about English rather than Greek. How could they not at least know the name of every country (if not radio country!) in the world, as high-profile multi-millionaire anchors??? An ex-OKC anchor, Devin Scillian (where is he based now?) did a report from Athens on KFOR-TV`s 11 pm news which followed, claiming that there are ``2002 nations`` in the games (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. Re High Plains Public Radio, 4-120: A ham friend of mine in Amarillo passed away last year and his whole estate went to High Plains radio, and used to purchase 105.7. Article in Amarillo Globe news (John Tudenham, Joplin MO, Aug 13, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. ST. OLAF RADIO STATION SOLD TO MPR --- Deborah Caulfield Rybak, Star Tribune August 11, 2004 WCAL0811 Last update: August 11, 2004 at 7:05 AM http://www.startribune.com/stories/462/4921343.html With two classical music stations, the Twin Cities area has long worn a cultural badge of honor that few metro areas can claim. That is likely to change with the news Tuesday that WCAL (89.3 FM), St. Olaf College's 82-year-old classical station, will be sold for an estimated $10.5 million to Minnesota Public Radio, which owns rival station KSJN (99.5 FM). WCAL will continue with its same format until the sale is finalized in December, but a change appears likely after that. "We will review other options, such as programming not currently available to the 2.6 million people within the range of this signal," MPR President Bill Kling said in a statement. "We will work with the community to develop the best plan." Tom Kigin, MPR executive vice president and general counsel, was more specific: "It's fair to say that it would be unusual to have two classical music stations in one town." Indeed, some major cities, including San Diego, Philadelphia and Detroit, no longer have even one full-time classical station. One scenario might be to keep WCAL's format and sell KSJN, a 100,000- watt station that would fetch a hefty price. But selling KSJN is "not part of the plan," Kigin said. St. Olaf was approached by MPR and the sale made sense, said Jan McDaniel, vice president for college relations. "WCAL is just a jewel, but when we asked what it's doing for the students today and in the future, that answer came up empty in all aspects of the operation." The proceeds will be added to St. Olaf's current $185 million endowment, allowing the college to invest more in academic programs. For listeners, however, the sale is bad news. Classical music aficionados regard WCAL as far more adventurous in its programming than KSJN. "They've been a great boost to the community," Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Dominick Argento said Tuesday. "The choice of what they played and the programs they've subsidized have been singularly brilliant. I can't think of anything on [KSJN that's] equal in the quantity." MPR and St. Olaf championed the sale because it would maintain WCAL as a public station rather than being acquired by "one of the many special-purpose entities currently in the market for such stations," Kling said. It will join MPR's 35-station regional network. WCAL was founded as a student physics experiment in 1918. It was licensed as an AM station in 1922 and received its FM license in 1968. The station has 80,000 listeners in the Twin Cities and Rochester, and enjoyed its highest member support ever during the fiscal year ended in May, when members contributed more than $860,000. Nationally, classical music has become something of an endangered species on radio. All but vanished from the commercial dial, it's also coming under pressure at public stations, as subsidies dry up from universities and other public institutions. This year, St. Olaf decided to halt its cash contribution to the station, which totaled $130,000 last year (via Artie Bigley, DXLD) ** U S A. Hello Glenn, Below is a link to an article berating talk radio for its total domination by neocons, aimed at a nonthinking audience. I find much to commend the author's rant. THE TROUBLE WITH TALK RADIO by Christopher Westley [Posted August 9, 2004] A recent article of mine on a public sector scandal, this one in Milwaukee, brought several e-mails from friends and strangers telling me that it was read and discussed on WTMJ-AM in that city by its weekday morning host, Charles Sykes. WTMJ is Milwaukee`s highest rated talk station, and while I appreciated the plug, I was not sure if that is the sort of station that friends of liberty need to be associated with. That`s because that station, like so many across the U.S., have adopted the pro-war, pro-Bush nationalist format that dominates AM radio today, robbing it of much of the diversity that once characterized it. It is a marketing model that appeases small government conservatives (who have always favored radio) by telling them that big government really isn`t all that bad --- as long as the right guys can control it... http://www.mises.org/fullstory.aspx?control=1574 (via John Wesley Smith, KC0HSB, Aug 12, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. OUTFOXED: RUPERT MURDOCH'S WAR ON JOURNALISM - This damaging new documentary examines how media empires, led by Rupert Murdoch's Fox News, have been running a "race to the bottom" in television news, providing an in-depth look at Fox News and the dangers of ever- enlarging corporations taking control of the public's right to know. The film explores Murdoch's burgeoning kingdom and the impact on society when a broad swath of media is controlled by one person. Media experts, including Walter Cronkite, Jeff Cohen (FAIR) Bob McChesney (Free Press), Chellie Pingree (Common Cause), Jeff Chester (Center for Digital Democracy) and David Brock (Media Matters) provide context and guidance for the story of Fox News and its effect on society. This documentary also reveals the secrets of Former Fox news producers, reporters, bookers and writers who expose what it's like to work for Fox News. These former Fox employees talk about how they were forced to push a "right-wing" point of view or risk their jobs. Some have even chosen to remain anonymous in order to protect their current livelihoods. As one employee said "There's no sense of integrity as far as having a line that can't be crossed." Director/Producer Robert Greenwald has produced and/or directed 53 television movies, miniseries and features. He is the director of Uncovered and the Executive Producer of the UN series - Unprecedented (showing at The Guild this fall), Uncovered and the soon to be released Unconstitutional. Dir. Robert Greenwald - USA - 2004 - 77 minutes (Guild Cinema previews, Albuquerque NM via DXLD) ** VENEZUELA. LOS GRANDES PERDEDORES DEL 15-A: LAS EMPRESAS PRIVADAS DE COMUNICACIÓN El próximo 15 de agosto, el pueblo venezolano será protagonista de una jornada histórica, tanto para nuestro país como para el mundo. El referendo revocatorio presidencial será la ocasión para ratificar el apoyo de la gran mayoría del país, al proyecto participativo y protagónico liderado por Hugo Chávez Frías. Luego de Austria e Islandia, Venezuela es el tercer país en disponer de una figura constitucional directa para revocar el mandato de un presidente de la república. Es un logro evidente de la Constitución de 1999, votada masivamente por referendo el 15 de diciembre de ese mismo año. Sin embargo, los grandes perdedores de este 15-A serán los sectores de oposición que se han valido de un golpe de Estado y del sabotaje petrolero, para intentar poner de rodillas la voluntad de las mayorías. Para este sector fascista y antidemocrático, las empresas privadas de comunicación han sido sus aliados más fieles. Salvo contadas excepciones, casi todos los medios de comunicación privados han conspirado abiertamente contra el Estado de Derecho y contra el presidente elegido democráticamente por todos los venezolanos. Sin duda, un caso único en la Historia Universal. ¿Y por qué? Pues, por primera vez en la historia las élites dominantes se han quedado sin el control directo de las Fuerzas Armadas, uno de los elementos clave de la superestructura. En las democracias burguesas formales y tradicionales, las élites controlan las Fuerzas Armadas (órgano represivo) y los medios de comunicación (órgano disuasivo). Las élites usan estos dos recursos para reprimir y neutralizar cualquier intento de reformar o derrumbar el Estado Burgués. En el peculiar caso venezolano, las élites han perdido el control de la Fuerza Armada, la cual es netamente de extracción popular. Ahora sólo les resta los medios de comunicación privados para manipular y hacer terrorismo en contra de un nuevo modelo de Estado que surge en el marco de la Revolución Bolivariana. De esta forma, los medios nos sometieron al "blackout" informativo del 11, 12 y 13 de abril de 2002, y nos bombardearon con propaganda de guerra durante los 63 días del sabotaje petrolero de diciembre de 2002 y enero-febrero de 2003. El gran drama de los medios privados en Venezuela, tanto radioeléctricos como escritos, es que ya nadie les cree. El pueblo ya les ha pasado la factura y sólo les hace falta un "empujoncito" para caer por el precipicio implacable de la historia. Ese "empujoncito" será este 15-A, cuando todos salgamos a votar masivamente por el NO y el mundo confirme una vez más la verdad de la Revolución Bolivariana. Indudablemente, una nueva era de la comunicación debe nacer a partir del próximo 15-A en Venezuela. Así como fueron sepultados los partidos políticos tradicionales, los medios privados tradicionales serán barridos por su incompetencia frente a este momento histórico de cambios. Una vergonzosa lápida de la cual jamás podrán zafarse (Adán González, Certificado de Locución 26.950, Catia La Mar, VENEZUELA, August 14, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** VENEZUELA [non]. Emisiones de Radio Nacional vía Cuba pronto serán un mal recuerdo. Estimado Don Guillermo, Se me olvidó incluir que dependiendo de lo que suceda el el domingo, es probable que las emisiones de Radio Nacional de Venezuela desde La Habana sean un mal recuerdo para la radiodifusión venezolana. Recomendamos a todos los diexistas del mundo captar sus emisiones y tenerlas grabadas para la historia, porque despues del 15 de Agosto las cosas puden cambiar. A lo sumo esas emisiones podrían durar un mes más hasta que se produzcan nuevas elecciones presidenciales después del 15 de Septiembre. Cordiales saludos. 73´s (Jorge García Rangel, Barinas, Venezuela, Aug 12, DX LISTENING DIGEST) They were already a memory, at least temporarily, as of August 13, with the passage of Huracán Charley over Cuba, q.v. (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** VIETNAM. Son La noted 1 Aug on 828 kHz, parallel 4740, sign-off 1400. I suspect 828 is from a new and reasonably powerful transmitter (Alan Davies, ARC Information Desk 9 Aug via editor Olle Alm, DXLD) ** VIETNAM [non]. Re 4-120 ** TAIWAN [and non]. Radio Chan Troi Moi(New Horizon Radio): VIETNAMESE 1330-1430 1503 //17595v (via Miller Liu, Taibei, Aug 11, dxing.info via DXLD) 17595 with unstable frequency? Via Taiwan or DTK Jülich? 17595 was via DTK-Jülich, but is no longer listed in the official DTK schedule since June, though included in the DTK schedule distributed by Bulgarian Observer on 20 July: Radio Chan Troi Moi/Radio New Horizon: 1330-1430 17595 JUL 100 kW / 075 deg to Vietnam Vietnamese A drift in Jülich is not very likely though? (Bernd Trutenau, Lithuania, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ POWERLINE COMMUNICATIONS ++++++++++++++++++++++++ SALEM [Virginia] TESTS BROADBAND OVER POWER LINES By Andrew Kantor, The Roanoke Times, Thursday, August 12, 2004 The City of Salem and Roanoke College are taking part in a pilot project to use power lines to deliver broadband Internet service to remote areas. The system will use existing medium-voltage power lines to connect wireless access points — often referred to as "hotspots" — to Roanoke College’s backbone connection to the Internet. The hotspots are located in four places: near city hall on Mt. Vernon Avenue, and along Hawthorn Road near the corners of Mt. Vernon., Red Lane and High Street. The pilot project, which has no scheduled end date, was the brainchild of Salem-based D-Tel, a provider of communications equipment and services. The company approached the city and asked to test the new technology. The fact that the city owns its own electric company made establishing the pilot easier. (D-Tel also pointed out that it could be good for Salem if the city was able to sell not only electricity, but broadband Internet access.) Roanoke College was the last piece of the puzzle. The school offers connections to the Internet for not only the campus, but for Salem city offices and public schools as well, making it the natural jumping-off point to the Internet. "Roanoke College, for a liberal arts college, is very into new technologies, and their computer science department is very strong," said Jerry Brittain, D-Tel’s sales and marketing manager. When D-Tel approached the college, the administration was intrigued by the idea. "Between the relationships with Salem and with D-Tel, and the fact that D-Tel has been working with the city as a test bed for various wireless network options, Roanoke College fit right in to this," said James Dalton, the college’s executive director of IT. The test will also allow it to give its new president, Dr. Sabine O’Hara, wireless Internet access in her home on the campus. And the city was happy to let D-Tel use its power lines as part of the pilot. "We’re curious to see how it works, of course," said assistant city manager Jay Taliaferro. "It’s a very interesting technology." But he said Salem’s role at this point was simply to give D-Tel access to the power lines for the test, while keeping an interested eye on the results (via Peter Vieth, KB4FVJ, Roanoke, VA, Aug 12, DXLD) OUR TAKE --- Danger: Power Lines Overhead? By Ben McClure August 12, 2004 Motley Fool http://www.fool.com/News/mft/2004/mft04081208.htm Are the Baby Bells and the cable providers in for a shock from the utility industry? In this week's issue of Barron's, columnist Bill Alpert raises the alarm over "broadband over power line," technology that delivers broadband Internet service via customers' power outlets. Alpert names Sanford C. Bernstein analyst Tom Wolzien, who thinks broadband over power line, or BPL, is the next big danger facing the cable companies' high-speed Internet franchises, and has cut his rating on Cablevision Systems (NYSE: CVC) and Time Warner (NYSE: TWX). A handful of electric utilities are betting on the technology. Progress Energy (NYSE: PGN) is teaming up with Earthlink (Nasdaq: ELNK) to offer broadband Internet to about 500 homes in North Carolina neighborhoods. Progress plans to charge customers about $40 a month for the service. Cincinnati-based Cinergy (NYSE: CIN) has started to market BPL technology to other utilities and electricity companies. Even so, cable and phone company shareholders need not get worked up about power networks eroding their investment returns anytime soon. Like a lot of other disruptive technologies, there is the tendency for the initial hype to exceed realistic expectations. For starters, the technology isn't without problems. Reports show that BPL can be noisy and can interfere with radio signals and household appliances. Sorting out that glitch means BPL vendors will need the FCC to work out network "emission" standards. That will take time and political will, and without regulatory certainty, mass-market penetration is unlikely. The utility companies are latecomers to the broadband arena where they face a tough battle against DSL and cable providers that offer cheaper, bundled services to customers. Traditionally, new technologies need to enter the marketplace with a price advantage or superior service, or both. Right now, BPL doesn't appear to have either. Besides, after getting hammered by Wall Street for disastrous investments in unregulated businesses, utilities are adopting a back-to-basics strategy that, for most, probably doesn't include full-scale ventures into the broadband service arena. Sure, BPL might one day be a threat, but don't hold your breath. Fool contributor Ben McClure hails from the Great White North. He doesn't own any companies mentioned here (via Kenneth Kopp, dxldyg via DXLD) THE BPL FIGHT: ZS AMATEURS SHOULD REPORT BPL TESTING TO THE SARL South Africa AMSAT President Hans van de Groenendaal, ZS6AKV, has now spoken out. He is urging amateurs and short-wave listeners in that nation to report any unusual but consistent interference to the South African Radio League as the rollout of Broadband over Powerline continues in that country. ZS6AKV says that South African hams must continue to be vigilant about any BPL testing taking place in their neighborhoods. Hans says that following Pretoria`s example several other metropolitan areas have shown an interest and may soon be starting trials (SARL via ARNewsline(tm) August 13 via John Norfolk, dxldlyahoogroup via DXLD) THE BPL FIGHT: FOLLOW-UP ON SAN DIEGO GAS AND ELECTRIC San Diego Gas & Electric has confirmed that it is considering entering the Broadband Over Powerline business, but for now that`s about all the utility will say. As reported last week, San Diego Gas & Electric planners are reported to be seriously considering endorsing and sponsoring Broadband Over Powerline data transmissions on the company`s power distribution system. The story went on to state that San Diego Gas & Electric is also considering entertaining proposals to partner with vendors for one or more field demonstrations of BPL. This, this despite being advised that BPL will cause considerable interference. Bob Gonsett, W6VR, whose CGC Communicator newsletter was first to break the story put in a call to the utility to try and get a bit more information. San Diego Gas & Electric response was brief and far from insightful. All that the utility would tell Bob is --- and we quote: ``Like many utilities, San Diego Gas & Electric is assessing BPL technologies.`` W6VR says that while we are all temporarily left in the dark as to San Diego Gas & Electric plans, those plans will eventually surface. As soon as they do, we will let you know (CGC via ARNewsline(tm) August 13 via John Norfolk, dxldlyahoogroup via DXLD) THE BPL FIGHT: NORTH CAROLINA UTILITY ENDING BPL FIELD TRIAL Meantime, North Carolina`s Progress Energy Corporation says it has completed Phase II of its BPL field trial in the Raleigh, and will be closing down the experiment. In an August 4th internal memorandum reported by the ARRL Letter, the company said its program to test the viability of providing broadband service to communities it serves will wrap up by the end of August. The company reportedly will shut down the system once it`s able to move its BPL customers to other broadband providers. Progress Energy`s decision comes on the heels of announced shutdowns of BPL field trials in Penn Yan, New York, and Cedar Rapids, Iowa (ARRL via ARNewsline(tm) August 13 via John Norfolk, dxldlyahoogroup via DXLD) ###