DX LISTENING DIGEST 5-080, May 12, 2005 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 2005 contents archive see http://www.worldofradio.com/dxldmid.html NOTE: If you are a regular reader of DXLD, and a source of DX news but have not been sending it directly to us, please consider yourself obligated to do so. Thanks, Glenn NEXT AIRINGS OF WORLD OF RADIO Extra 56: Thu 2030 WOR WWCR 15825 Thu 2300 WOR World FM, Tawa, Wellington, New Zealand 88.2 Fri 0000 WOR WTND-LP 106.3 Macomb IL Fri 0200 WOR ACBRadio Mainstream [repeated 2-hourly thru 2400] Fri 1600 WOR WBCQ after hours Fri 2105 WOR World FM, Tawa, Wellington, New Zealand 88.2 Fri 2300 WOR Studio X, Momigno, Italy 1584 87.35 96.55 105.55 Sat 0800 WOR WRN1 to Eu, Au, NZ, WorldSpace AfriStar, AsiaStar, Telstar 12 SAm Sat 0855 WOR WNQM Nashville TN 1300 Sat 1030 WOR WWCR 5070 Sun 0230 WOR WWCR 5070 Sun 0300 WOR WBCQ 9330-CLSB Sun 0330 WOR WRMI 7385 Sun 0630 WOR WWCR 3210 Sun 0730 WOR World FM, Tawa, Wellington, New Zealand 88.2 Sun 0830 WOR WRN1 to North America, also WLIO-TV Lima OH SAP Sun 0830 WOR KSFC Spokane WA 91.9 Sun 0830 WOR WXPR Rhinelander WI 91.7 91.9 100.9 Sun 0830 WOR WDWN Auburn NY 89.1 [unconfirmed] Sun 0830 WOR KTRU Houston TX 91.7 [occasional] Sun 1200 WOR WRMI 7385 Sun 1300 WOR KRFP-LP Moscow ID 92.5 Sun 1730 WOR WRMI 7385 [from WRN] Sun 1730 WOR WRN1 to North America Sun 1900 WOR Studio X, Momigno, Italy 1584 87.35 96.55 105.55 Sun 2000 WOR RNI Mon 0230 WOR WRMI 7385 Mon 0300 WOR WBCQ 9330-CLSB Mon 0330 WOR WSUI Iowa City IA 910 [1273] Mon 0430 WOR WBCQ 7415 Mon 1600 WOR WBCQ after hours Tue 0600 WOR WPKN Bridgeport CT 89.5 [also WPKM Montauk LINY 88.7] Tue 1600 WOR WBCQ after hours Wed 0930 WOR WWCR 9985 Wed 1600 WOR WBCQ after hours MORE info including audio links: http://worldofradio.com/radioskd.html WRN ON DEMAND [from Fri]: http://new.wrn.org/listeners/stations/station.php?StationID=24 OUR ONDEMAND AUDIO [also for CONTINENT OF MEDIA, MUNDO RADIAL] WORLD OF RADIO Extra 56 (high version): (stream) http://www.w4uvh.net/worx56h.ram (download) http://www.w4uvh.net/worx56h.rm [WOR Extra 56 is the same as COM 05-02] WORLD OF RADIO Extra 56 (low version): (stream) http://www.w4uvh.net/com0502.ram (download) http://www.w4uvh.net/com0502.rm (summary) http://www.worldofradio.com/com0502.html WORLD OF RADIO Extra 56 in true shortwave sound of Alex`s mp3: (stream) http://www.dxprograms.net/worldofradio_05-11-05.m3u (download) http://www.dxprograms.net/worldofradio_05-11-05.mp3 WORLD OF RADIO ON WORLDFM, NEW ZEALAND Hi Glenn, As from this weekend WorldFM will be airing two extra repeats of WOR --- 9:05 am Saturday (2105 UT Fri), and 7:30 pm Sunday (0730 UT). These will be in addition to the two existing broadcasts on Thursday evening and late Friday morning local time. [+ webcasts!] 73, (Chris Mackerell, -- World FM, P.O. Box 2241, Wellington 6015, New Zealand Telephone: +64 (4) 232-4216 Fax: +64 (4) 232-4218 http://www.worldfm.co.nz Mobile & SMS: +64 (21) 238-9861 Email: chris @ worldfm.co.nz ICQ# 91488073 DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ALASKA. KNLS doubled its broadcast hours from 10 to 20 per day by adding a second transmitter. You might wonder, why didn`t they use the other 14 hours per day on the first transmitter??? Apparently, the prime-time concept (in Asia) rules. You`d think services in the local mornings would be useful. But this still leaves two transmitters otherwise idle between 1800 and 0800 UT ---- suspect KNLS if you hear some clandestine or Radio Free Asia broadcast on a new frequency you can`t correlate with some other site (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ANDAMAN & NICOBAR ISLANDS. CNN INTERNATIONAL HAM RADIO TSUNAMI RESPONSE VIDEO CLIP AVAILABLE (May 11, 2005) --- - Readers of the article ```Zulu Stations` a Mainstay in Hard-Hit Indonesia,`` by Wyn Purwinto, AB2QV, and Charles Harpole, K4VUD, in the May 2005 issue of QST may be interested in viewing a CNN International video depicting the role of Amateur Radio following the December 2004 earthquake and tsunami in South Asia that claimed upward of 275,000 lives and left many thousands homeless. The video, part of the network`s ``Global Challenges`` series, was televised overseas but not in the US. It focuses on how the Andaman and Nicobar Islands VU4RBI/VU4NRO DXpedition led by Bharathi Prasad, VU2RBI, quickly became an Amateur Radio emergency communication operation for the region. The video segment also discusses the social aspects of ham radio. The clip, which contains video and photos taken by Harpole and an interview with Prasad, runs 7:25 and is 77 MB, so a high-speed connection is highly recommended. John Harper, AE5X, has made the video clip available for downloading --- approximately 5 minutes over a broadband connection -- - via his ``AE5X QRP & Other Wireless Pursuits`` Web site http://www.ae5x.com/Misc.html (ARRL main page via John Norfolk, dxldyg, via DXLD) ** ANGOLA. Re 5-079: Permitam-me que corrija um erro que cometi: a província do Cuando-Cubango não fica no sudoeste, mas sim no sudeste de Angola. Pela grande distância a que se encontra dos principais centros urbanos e pela sua imensidão, esta província é frequentemente chamada Terras do Fim do Mundo. 73 (Fernando de Sousa Ribeiro, Portugal, May 10, radioescutas via DXLD) ** ARGENTINA. 5100: AM1710, Buenos Aires, la nueva Xband argentina que realmente sale por los 1700 kHz, fue reportada hoy, Mayo 12, entre las 1040-1100 UT, en su triple armónico (1700 x 3 ) con una selección de música romántica en español, en paralelo con su frecuencia nominal. ID y anuncio a 1059: "mande sus mensajes a través del sitio de nuestra emisora en http://www.am1710.com.ar ", 34443 (Arnaldo Slaen, Argentina, Noticias DX via DXLD) ** BANGLADESH. Bangladesh Betar FM Workshop: Bangladesh Betar arranged a day long workshop on 28th April, 2005 about the possibility of establishing country wide FM network for Bangladesh Betar. The chief guest was the honorable Secretary of Ministry of Information and special guest was the Director General of Bangladesh Television. Also several resource persons from different organization and retired experts of Bangladesh Betar in that field were invited for their valuable comments and suggestions on the issue. A key note paper on it was presented by the Chief Engineer of Bangladesh Betar. All the participants of the workshop were unanimous on the assertion that FM broadcasting is the necessity of the time and Bangladesh Betar should go ahead with the idea for the sake of maintaining high quality programs. The day long workshop dealt with aspects of the issue in its different perspectives. Also a guideline of future steps and planning were discussed. The workshop was presided over by the Director General of Bangladesh Betar. (Source: Bangladesh Betar Website) BANGLADESH BETAR`S BRAND NEW WEBSITE On May 5, 2005 Bangladesh Betar has launched its own website http://www.betar.org.bd You can find more about Bangladesh Betar, its activities, program and frequency guide etc. Best regards, (MD. AZIZUL ALAM AL-AMIN, RAJSHAHI-6100, BANGLADESH, DXLD) Here is the external service page, presenting in English programme titles for transmissions in English and the other languages on 7185: http://www.betar.org.bd/ExterSch.htm Listen to our programme --- You can enjoy listening music, programme & weekly roundup news here. You will need a real audio player only. http://www.betar.org.bd/Listen.htm Includes nine musical files, starting with choral national anthem, ``Amar Sonar Bangla``, which I listened to; and two spoken programmes, ``Mandirang`` and ``Water crisis in the water land`` (but both get ``this metafile contains invalid syntax``). Nothing in the ``Week Round News`` category at the moment. None of the other music files played properly: invalid syntax, silent, or went silent after 25-50 seconds! This site needs some work (gh) ** BHUTAN. NATIONAL RADIO FILLS GAPS IN FM SERVICE | Text of report by Bishal Rai in English by Bhutanese official newspaper Kuensel web site on 11 May 10 May: Since yesterday, urban Dagana and the surrounding villages have been able to tune into the Bhutan Broadcasting Service Corporation's clear FM signal with the establishment of a solar powered transposer [as published] in the dzongkhag [district]. A week ago, urban Lhuentse and 20 other neighbouring villages also received the FM radio broadcast for the first time in what the corporation describes as "pocket filling" for the nationwide coverage of the national radio's FM service. Next week work will begin to cover urban Haa. Engineer Rajesh Kafley of [the] corporation said although some areas in these dzongkhags had been receiving the FM signal, most did not. He said this exercise was being carried out under phase two of the project, which is expected to be completed by June this year. The project will come to an end with the installation of a solar- powered transposer in Samdrup Jongkhar after which the FM signal should be received, except for few geographically remote locations, in all the populated settlements throughout the country. The FM broadcast is carried by four transmitters of one kilowatt each installed in Dopchula in Thimphu, Takti in Chhukha, Yotonla in Trongsa, and in Yonphula, Trashigang. The Yonphula transmitter was established during phase two of the project, while the earlier three were done during the first phase. The first phase of the project began in 2000 covering most of the western, southern and central parts of the country. Phase two of the project was aimed at covering other dzongkhags like Lhuentse and Zhemgang. Source: Kuensel web site, Thimphu, in English 11 May 05 (via BBCM via DXLD) ** COLOMBIA. 3479.51, Ondas del Orteguaza, Florencia. Must be a harmonic, but from where? Is listed on 1160 and 4975 kHz. I heard the station early in the morning. 73s (Björn Malm, Quito, Ecuador, May 11, DX LISTENING DIGEST) 3 X 1160 (gh) ** CUBA. It`s just too easy these days, thanks to Google. May 11 at 1426 about the only signal on 15m was CO8LY calling CQ in CW on 21006. Google got 1180 hits in 0.51 seconds; he is Eduardo Somoano Cremati in Santiago, including his QSL card: http://www.hb9dhg.ch/View_qsl.cfm?ID=1925&Callsign=CO8LY (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** CUBA. For youRR listening pleasure (R Reloj outlets): Location kHz kw Villa Clara 570 30 Trinidad 610 1 Caney de las Mercedes, Granma 760 10 Ciudad de La Habana (Emergente*) 760 1 Pinar del Río 790 30 Isla de la Juventud 850 1 Baracoa, Guantánamo 860 1 Sancti Spíritus 870 1 Bolondrón, Matanzas 910 5 Moa, Holguín 920 1 Ciego de Ávila 930 10 La Jaiba, Matanzas 930 1 Santiago de Cuba 930 1 Central España, Matanzas 940 10 Holguín 940 10 Ciudad de La Habana 950 10 Mayarí Arriba, Santiago de Cuba 950 1 Cienfuegos 960 1 Guantánamo 960 10 Bayamo, Granma 980 1 Las Tunas 1010 5 Camagüey 1270 10 *Emergency (stand-by, probably) (Mike Hardester, Jacksonville, NC (34.47 N - 77.23 W), IRCA Soft DX Monitor May 14 via DXLD) Source?? ** DENMARK [non]. Dear Sir, Here is the reception Report to you. Date: SAT 7 May 2005 Time: 0000-2400 UT Frequency: 15810 kHz Programme: Music SINPO: 22122 We are the new listeners of your radio. Today`s program was not in clear. That were come little bit loudly in the mean time Jamming were also there. You gave wonderful music to us, tahnk you for that. Please verify this report and send the QSL Card or Letter with the DX Magazine and the Stickers, Pennants and the Badges with the Programme guides to our club. Thank you, 73`s, Yours Sincerely, T. Jaisakthivel, President of Ardic DX Club, Postal Address: T. Jaisakthivel, No:3, First Floor, 23, Nathens Arcade, Malaviya Avenue, L.B Road, Chennai-600041. India (via Stig Hartvig Nielsen, DXLD) Dear Mr. Jaisakthivel, We are off the air at present. Actually we haven't been using 15810 kHz for several months, so it is rather "interesting" to learn that you pretend to have received our station during a period of no less than 24 hours on Saturday May 7th. I also find it rather remarkable that you ask for a QSL card - which is a verification of the reception of a given station - without giving any programme details or description of the programmes. How would you imagine a radio station should be able to actually verify that it was his station that you were listening to? My friend - you are giving the DX hobby a very bad name by sending false reception reports with the apparent sole purpose of getting QSL- cards, stickers, badges, pennants etc. What especially made me sit up is the fact that you are the president of a DX club. Then you - of all - should be well aware of the principles of sending out reception reports and requests for QSLs. I send you my best regards - hoping that you will refrain from sending out similar QSL requests in the future (Stig Hartvig Nielsen, World Music Radio (WMR), cc to DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ETHIOPIA [non]. RE: [crwatch] First *QSL-letter* from Tensae- Ethiopia Voice of Unity Hi Friends, I also got the following "reply" to my reception report to Tensae Ethiopia Voice of Unity. It is an automatic answer from a machine! There seemed to be something attached to the message, but there was nothing to open attached. Best wishes and 73 from Björn Fransson, DX-ing on the island of Gotland, Sweden From : ethio@unitedethiopia.org Sent : Tuesday, May 10, 2005 7:27 PM To : bjornfransson Subject : Re: Reception!  This is an acknowledgement of receipt of your message. Thank you for your interest (via Björn Fransson, May 11, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** GAMBIA [non]. Glenn: "Voices from the Diaspora," an opposition radio service to Gambia from the Save the Gambia Development Project, will begin a weekly half-hour program Saturday, June 4, 2005 at 2000- 2030 UT on 9405 kHz with 100 kW from Juelich, brokered by RMI (Jeff White, May 11, DX LISTENING DIGEST) tests had been on 9430 ** GERMANY. A broadcast not included in the WRTH A05 schedules is by the Free People's Mission (Freie Volksmission Krefeld) via Wertachtal. It has been heard in English to Middle East at 1630-1700 on 11865 kHz. According to the latest T-Systems schedule a broadcast (probably in German) to Europe at 1100-1130 on 5945 kHz was added last week. Both are on Saturdays only. The mission has a web page at http://www.freie-volksmission.de e-mail postmaster @ freie- volksmission.de and mailing address: P. O. Box 100707, D-47707 Krefeld, Germany. 73, Mauno Ritola, Finland, HCDX via DXLD) ** GERMANY. BERLIN: NPR vs VOA --- Summary of this article, published today by the Tagesspiegel newspaper http://archiv.tagesspiegel.de/archiv/10.05.2005/1796143.asp The current license for FM 87.9 at Berlin, used by VOA in coöperation with the commercial station Star FM, expires in April 2006. The media authority MABB will kick off the licensing procedure before this year is over. In 1992 it had been laid down that the former frequencies of the Allied Forces stations at Berlin should still ensure a presence of the respective countries. There is no debate about a suitable user of these frequencies in the case of the French (RFI) and the Englishman (BBC WS), but not so in the case of the USA. Here obviously both the VOA and NPR think that they are the best ones to represent their country. It is the opinion of Helmut Drück, the license holder of Star FM [actually IBB's trustee -kl], that it would be the best solution if VOA and NPR could reach an agreement and make a common offer. Apparently it had been already suggested that NPR uses 80 percent of the airtime while VOA delivers only the news on the hour, as they do now anyway, and an additional magazine on weekends. However, it appears that it will not be possible to achieve this solution. NPR has already a lot of supporters in Berlin. Many engaged Americans fear that VOA is harmful for the USA's reputation in Europe. Gary Smith, the head of the renowned American Academy, says: "VOA had a chance and did not use it." They should not participate in the competition if they are not willing and unable to produce reasonable programming. ---------- Comment: Other sources fully confirm VOA's terrible image described in this article. This also extends to the technical field. It was a real shock for me as well as a friend of mine when we heard for the first time VOA Music Mix on 87.9, since we had to found that it is not only smashed by excessive audioprocessing but also accompanied by heavy MPEG artifacts. To our ears this foolish quality is simply unlistenable (Kai Ludwig, Germany, May 10, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** HAWAII. FACILITY AND PARAMETER GRANTS 1570 KUAU Haiku, HI 1000/500 to 50000/20000 Pat Martin sends along the following from Dale Park of Honolulu, HI: And in local news, 620 KIPA-HI Hilo returned to the air late night on 4/15, using the ABC Stardust format of adult standards, oldies and big band mx, with some Hawaiian oldies mixed in. (The network slogan is "Timeless Classics.") Per station manager, all three transmitters are on the air, though I can confirm only two, in Kalaoa-Kona and Hilo. As you know, KIPA is unique in operating three synchronous transmitters on the same frequency in order to serve the Big Island (Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa block Hilo MW signals from reaching the Kona side in the daytime). (PM-OR) Dale Park passes along the following: 620 KIPA-HI Hilo * WAS Silent * NOW ABC Stardust adult standards/oldies/big band plus Hawaiian oldies * AS OF 4/15 1110 KAOI-HI Kihei * WAS News-talk * NOW Talk * AS OF 2003! (around then when they dropped CNN Headline News) (IRCA via MWC via DXLD) ** INDIA. See DENMARK [non] ** INDONESIA. 15150, RRI at 1300 7 May with songs followed and past 1400 33433 (Zacharias Liangas, Greece, DX LISTENING DIGEST) So they are also running two transmitters at this hour, when I have not yet checked for 15150. I have better things to do than monitor an open carrier all day, but May 11 at 1511, the 9525 carrier was still on the air, presumably but not 100% certainly VOI, which normally programs the frequency until 1400 and again from 1600 (? When Arabic starts, on 15150 at least). Could be they never turn the transmitter off, just to keep it dehumidified. But if this is the case, burning all that juice, why not play back a couple hours of external service, such as ENGLISH, adding some modulation to the carrier at little additional cost? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** INTERNATIONAL VACUUM. Congratulations on another fantastic Winterfest. Each year it continues to amaze me the expertise that fellow DXers bring the to the conference. Perhaps I am a heretic for bringing the satellite gear to the Fest. For me, satellite is just another form of international broadcasting, right along with Internet streaming audio. As major international broadcasters continue to exit the shortwave spectrum and the electrical local noise floor increases (ADSL harmonics, BPL, etc.) I seek refuge in the 12 Gigahertz range with my "Ku" band satellite dish. Sure, I would like to hear all my favorite broadcasters back on HF but the promise just is not there. This year, I brought my typical three foot satellite dish. (Many thanks to Ed Mauger and Nolan Stephany for helping me position the dish/roofmount on the Inn roof - next year we'll have it on the ground.) New to the display was a Pansat 2500 receiver with Smart Search/Blind Scan features. You find a candidate satellite in the sky - launch a scan sequence and 10-20 minutes later you have the channels maps loaded with multiple signals. This year I verified, that the Telstar-12 Ku satellite is not viewable from the rooftop in Kulpsville due to trees on the horizon. What makes this satellite interesting is that it supports three channels of RNW (Nederland) and one channel of Radio Canada Int'l. (It's the same bird used to beam Radio Farda into Iran albeit on a different beam). After misaligning to some corporate video session on an adjacent satellite I finally got the dish locked into Hispasat at 30W. We enjoyed audio feeds from RFI, Spain (several channels including REE) as well as Middle Eastern stations such as Radio Aden. (DX Tip - there's a regular English half-hour at 1800Z, ID'ing as "Radio Yemen Second Program Aden". This is perhaps some of the most bizarre radio you will hear... Arabic love poems followed by Madonna tunes.) Also on Hispasat you will find Radio/TV Martí, beamed to the few viewers in Cuba with an authorized dish. It's a great way to see old reruns of the PBS comedy classic "¿Qué Pasa, USA?" Late in the afternoon I climbed the roof to re-point the dish for some snippets of Chuck Harder and his eBay auction-bound uplink in Florida. (See! They're all exiles from shortwave.). Eventually we settled on the International packages on Intelsat Americas 5 and the CCTV 4/9 signals on an adjacent satellite. Romania, Turkey (including VoT), Holland, Iran, Thailand, etc. They were all there in living color. RVI was just added on 4/1 to the IA-5 lineup, perhaps funded by the monies cut from the English service.) While Eric Cotrell's spectrum analyzer was a helpful tool, the newer ``smart scan`` receivers make that fancy gear much less necessary. For further information, please check out http://www.lyngsat.com and http://www.global-cm.net for programming and technical tips on the satellite hobby. The frequencies are in Gigahertz, not megahertz or kilohertz but it's still good old RF. A final point, the satellite folks get fading too just like shortwave. It's called rain fade and during the Spring/ Autumn equinox we also get hit will solar outages too. It's all DX to me (Tracy K7UO Wood, Northern Virginia, Musings, May NASWA Journal via Rich D`Angelo, DXLD) Glenn, you really should check out Ku FTA satellite. A cheap alternative to the fading shortwave bands. Best receiver: PANSAT 2700A at http://www.global-cm.net That plus a 36" dish and you´re in business (Tracy K. Wood, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** IRELAND. MIDWEST RADIO LAUNCHES IRISH RADIO ONLINE Mid West Radio, which was established in 1989 and is one of Ireland's most popular and best-loved local radio stations, has launched an Internet service called "Mid West Irish Radio" exclusively for Internet listeners. The station says its Internet service provides a very specialised style of broadcasting, something that is so different from all other internet radio services. It promises a unique brand of entertainment, music, fun and chat and the best of Irish all day long. The service is aimed especially at Irish expatriates around the world. Midwest Irish Radio http://www.midwestirishradio.com/ # posted by Andy @ 16:36 UT May 11 (Media Network blog via DXLD) ** KOREA SOUTH. KBS New Appointments: Korean Broadcasting System has undertaken a reshuffle in its senior management in mid April, 2005. Some notable changes include new appointments of Executive Vice President, Managing Director of Global Affairs Division and Head of International Relations Team. Mr. Kim Hong, former Managing Director of News & Sports Division, has become Executive Vice President of KBS. Ms. Choi Choon-ae has been promoted to Managing Director of Global Affairs Division from Head of International Relations Team. Ms. Min Eun-Kyung serves as International Relations Team’s Head. (Source : What’s on KBS, April 2005, Vol. 16) Best regards, (via MD. AZIZUL ALAM AL-AMIN, RAJSHAHI-6100, BANGLADESH, DXLD) ** LATVIA. I received an EMR (European Music Radio) E- QSL for a report on, 24 April 2005, 9290 kHz, 1600-1615 UT in English with broadcast to Europe, EMR 29th Birthday SINPO 45344 in 11 days for an email report. Information sheet included in a file doc. Personal web page of EMR QSLS [3] at: http://web.tiscali.it/ondecorte/emr.html Station address is: EMR c/o A TAYLOR 32 SHEARING DRIVE, CARSHALTON, SURREY, SM5 1BL, ENGLAND. 73s (Nino Marabello, Treviso, Italy, May 11, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** MALDIVE ISLANDS. CABLE AND WIRELESS EMPLOYEE DETAINED, ACCUSED OF "TERRORISM" - WATCHDOG | Text of press release by Paris-based organization Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF) on 10 May System engineer Ismail Faiz of the country's [Maldives] sole Internet service provider, Dhiraagu - of which British firm Cable and Wireless holds 45 per cent of the capital - was arrested and detained on 1 May 2005. Although he is officially accused of "terrorism", "incitement to violence" and "attempting to overthrow the government", he is reportedly really being held for working with the London-based opposition web site Dhivehi Observer. Reporters Without Borders urged Cable and Wireless to contact the Maldives authorities to investigate what has happened to their employee. "Accusations of terrorism are often used in the Maldives to punish dissidents" said the organization "This engineer is paying the price for President Gayoom's paranoia in connection with the Internet, a media he cannot manage to control and on which he is widely criticized." "It seems to us that the management of Cable and Wireless should be concerned about the plight of its employee." Local sources said he had apparently been accused of working with Dhivehi Observer http://www.dhivehiobserver.com/ --- a web site that is banned in the Maldives. Its editor, known under the pen-name Sappe, however denied having any contact with Faiz. But he said, "The president is afraid of the Internet because now, whatever he does, we make him face up to his responsibilities." "That is the reason he attacks a service provider. It has nothing to do with any struggle against terrorism." Sappe said he believed that the engineer had fallen foul of the authorities because he refused to carry out technical tasks he was given, such as filtering foreign- based web sites. Ismail Faiz, 29, is system engineer and administrator of Dhiraagu, whose two main shareholders are the Maldives government and British telecoms giant Cable and Wireless. Reporters Without Borders wrote to Cable and Wireless's CEO, Francesco Caio, to question him about the ethical problems raised by his company's investment in the Internet in the Maldives, a country that censors the web and has imprisoned several cyber-dissidents See : http://www.rsf.org/article.php3 ?id_article=10996 Ismail Faiz is being held in solitary confinement. His family was only allowed to visit him eight days after his arrest. Local sources said that another Dhiraagu employee, Mohamed Zahid, who was working for a branch of the firm on Feydhoo Island, in the south of the country, was reportedly imprisoned on the same day as Faiz, perhaps for the same reasons. No additional information about his case has been forthcoming from the authorities. Source: Reporters Sans Frontieres press release, Paris, in English 11 May 05 (via BBCM via DXLD) ** MEXICO. XEMVS 820 Mexicali vs KUTR: See U S A ** NETHERLANDS [non]. This morning during the 1100 UT hour, there appeared to be no R. Netherlands transmission to the US on 11675. I had listened to part of the 1000 UT hour from RN on 9790 just before, and switched up the memory channel for the next hour, as I usually do when awake then. When it never came on, I went over to R. Australia and heard the first of those "Sustainable Cities" programs mentioned in DXLD 5-079, on 9580. (At least some of it, until I managed to get a little more sleep! :-) (Will Martin, MO, May 11, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Hi Glenn: I guess I must be that "Stubborn Kind of Fellow" (remember Marvin Gaye) about that lack of respect (pardon me if I'm wrong) from Radio Nederland Spanish Service that keep announcing when closing 7325 and 9895 around 0256, that they invite listeners to tune 6190 at 0300, and frankly there´s nothing there, and no one seems to be noticing this, specially Latin American visitors to this site. Everybody is just aware of the new 5995 and not the way they're teasing us with something they're not fulfilling (Raúl Saavedra, Costa Rica, May 11, Shortwave-SWL-Antenna yg via DXLD) Sad but true, most stations are running on autopilot, especially during the local overnight hours. There is no real human being listening to the output, aware of such changes, capable of making adjustments, even live announcements, to reflect reality (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** NICARAGUA. RURAL RADIO TRANSMITS HOPE By Tim Rogers, Tico Times Nicaragua Correspondent SAN JOSÉ DE BOCAY – Frederman Palacios was only 13 years old when the Contra guerrillas recruited him to work as a field-radio operator in the northern mountains of Jinotega. He remembers the U.S.-supplied radio equipment he used was ``very modern,`` able to transmit as far away as Honduras, and ``better than the radios used by the Nicaraguan army.`` Now, 20 years later, Palacios is the vice-mayor of his hometown, San José de Bocay, and the concept of ``field radio`` has taken on a completely new meaning in this rural region of the country. SEVERAL years ago, José Santos, a campesino with no formal schooling and some apprentice work in electronics repair, got the idea of building a local radio station to service the surrounding communities. Using an old microphone, a secondhand radio, a busted VCR, a makeshift antenna, and a full wattage of ingenuity, Santos invented the area's first radio station, transmittingon a pirate frequency somewhere close to 104.5 FM. . . http://www.ticotimes.net/cent_amer.htm (via radiointel.com via DXLD) An URL like that may not last (gh) ** OKLAHOMA [non]. KBKH-FM Update: Just a quick note for those who are interested: Our renewal application was filed on March 31 and, sure enough, a few days ago I received a note leading me to the discovery at http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/comment.pl?Application_id=1053854&File_number=BRH-20050401AAA which is something that I was expecting... (Keep in mind that this is an ongoing harassment and, although many numerous "complaints" have been filed again and again by this "person", they have all proven to be frivolous in nature - although very EXPENSIVE to fight.) I have not a clue as to what the "complaint" is as (against the commission's ex-parte rules - for the FOURTH consecutive time) no copy was served on me and it is very difficult to reply to a complaint when one is not allowed a copy of said complaint. I begin to feel that this (in my opinion) "mentally deficient individual" is in bad need of a bit of a talk from "behind the woodshed". Problem is, he lacks the required "round objects" to show up as he's made this more than clear in the past. It would be sooooo nice to be able to put money into the STATION and not into lawyers who only want more and more and more. Any ideas? (Privately, please.) (MonsterFM, April 30, radio-info Oklahoma board via DXLD) This is the Shamrock TX station which has a long-standing run-in with local wackos (gh, DXLD) ** OMAN. Re 5-076: I asked again about the Thumrait transmitter and the modulation transformer has been sent for repair and the transmitter is now expected to be on the air already by the end of this month. 73, (Mauno Ritola, Finland, May 12, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** SCOTLAND. The new head of radio at BBC Scotland is an SWL! Sleepless in Easterhouse, Jeff Zycinski surrendered happily to insomnia's embrace, a teenager on a world adventure, turning the radio dial in the dark to short-wave stations where he could "eavesdrop" on unfamiliar territories. "There's nothing like that thrill of listening to the radio on your own in the dead of night," he says. "I would move the dial along and there would be Radio Moscow, Voice of America, Radio Prague, whatever. It was intoxicating. A lot of my generation came to love radio that way." That obsession of more than 30 years ago has not harmed Zycinski. In January, he was appointed head of radio for BBC Scotland... http://www.theherald.co.uk/features/38971.html (via Andy Sennitt, dxldyg via DXLD) ** SOMALIA. 6960, R. Shabelle, May 10 at 2013 with folk song followed by talks. Tested also with satellite radio program but seems either not // or delayed by at least 20 seconds! Marginal signal (Zacharias Liangas, Thessaloniki, Greece, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U A E. I had Radio Farda-1575 with quite a good signal this evening from around 2000 EDST until just after 2135 EDST [UT May 12 0000-0135] when the station faded. Pop music Mid East style with vocals and announcements by both a man and woman, presumably in Farsi. Could not find the SW parallel on 9585 as on my prior receptions so they may have switched to another SW frequency (Ben Dangerfield, Wallingford, [SE corner PA], NRC-AM via DXLD) There are no SW frequencies between 2130 and 0030, just 1170 and 1575; 0030-0200 on 9615, 9805, 9865; 0200-0400 on 9775, 9805, 9865 (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U K. HAROLD EVANS POISED TO TAKE OVER COOKE'S LETTER FROM AMERICA Owen Gibson and Colin Blackstock Thursday May 12, 2005 Guardian The BBC has chosen former Sunday Times editor Sir Harold Evans to take over its Radio 4 slot vacated by the late Alistair Cooke. Since Cooke died in March last year at the age of 95, there has been uncertainty about whether the Letter from America programme, which the legendary broadcaster presented for 50 years, would continue. But the BBC confirmed yesterday it had approached Sir Harold to take over. A spokeswoman said the corporation was in talks with Sir Harold and that it was "hopeful" of striking a deal, while stressing no contracts had yet been signed. After Cooke's death Helen Boaden, then the controller of Radio 4, said the BBC had decided against finding a replacement on the basis that "Alistair was unique". The feeling was echoed by Sir Harold last night who said Cooke was irreplaceable and he was aware the BBC didn't want some "pseudo clone". Speaking from Ohio, where he is on a tour promoting his latest book, he said: "I think Alistair Cooke, well he is sui generis. There's a possibility that I might do it, but it's no more than that at the moment. The question has been raised and I'd be very happy to do something if we could." The BBC has replaced Letter from America with a 10-minute slot called A Point of View. It has not had a regular presenter but Brian Walden has taken the microphone for the past two months. Sir Harold said he thought the BBC wanted him to take over from Walden, but that no time period had been organised and nothing finalised. Like Cooke's celebrated Letter from America, which he wrote and presented for 58 years, making it the longest running show in radio in history, Sir Harold will ruminate on life in New York, in particular, and the US in general. Lancashire-born Sir Harold, one half of a celebrated New York power couple with wife, Tina Brown, has received widespread praise for a series of books on recent US history. Before moving to the US in 1984, Sir Harold edited the Sunday Times from 1967 to 1981 and then the Times for two years. Under his editorship, the Sunday Times Insight team set new standards for investigative journalism. Long before Cooke's death the BBC had thought about a candidate to replace him. One BBC executive is said to have flown out to New York to ask him to reduce his contributions to fortnightly rather than weekly, but lost his nerve. The first Letter from America aired in 1946 and by the time worsening health forced Cooke to stop a month before his death, he had filed 2,869. Also the Guardian's New York correspondent from 1947-1972, Cooke was revered as the unsurpassed master of the radio essay. On his death, Tony Blair revealed himself as "a big fan". The then acting BBC director general Mark Byford called him "one of the greatest broadcasters" in BBC history. Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005 (via Dan Say, DXLD) ** U K. With regard to Richard Cuff's comments about Discovery on the BBC in 5-079: He should add a reference to the effect that it is hearable here in the central US at 1406 UT Wednesdays on either 17640 or 15565; you have to bounce between those two frequencies as the quality and interference varies from one to the other. Usually 17640 is best by the end of the program. I listened to that this morning, too. 73, (Will Martin, St Louis MO, May 11, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U K. Broadcasting workers and journalists at the BBC have voted to strike in protest at plans to cut 3,780 jobs. Members of broadcasting union Bectu and NUJ unions have voted in favour of a walk-out - expected to be a 12 or 24 hour stoppage between mid-May and early June. The BBC is expected to try to minimise disruption but unions said they want "black screens and dead air". Bectu added it would "do everything we can to make sure any programmes that are going out are badly affected". The corporation said it was "disappointed" at the result and "would prefer to continue constructive discussions" with the unions. The corporation said: "Given the scale of the changes that the BBC needs to make, and that the unions have not allowed us to talk to them in order to address their concerns, we are not surprised by the ballot result." Half of Bectu's 5,000 members at the BBC voted, with 77.6 per cent in favour of striking. Among NUJ members, 83.9 per cent were in favour after almost two thirds of the union's 3,500 BBC staff members cast their ballots (Waveguide via Mike Terry, May 11, dxldyg via DXLD) BBC WORKERS TO STRIKE ON FOUR DATES OVER JOB CUTS BBC journalists and technical workers today authorised strike action over four days in the coming weeks to disrupt popular programmes, but have avoided big events like the Wimbledon tennis tournament. Members of the National Union of Journalists, BECTU and Amicus are planning to strike over job cuts for 24 hours on May 23 and for 48 hours over May 31 and June 1. A fourth strike day was authorised but the date has yet to be set. Officials from technical workers union BECTU said the fourth date would be within a week of the third date, and that they would meet during the first week of June to decide whether any further strike dates were necessary. "We've not sought to target particular events like the Chelsea Flower Show or other programmes, but to have the biggest effect across the BBC," said NUJ General Secretary Jeremy Dear. Soccer's FA Cup Final is scheduled for May 21, the Chelsea Flower Show May 24-28 and the Wimbledon Championships June 20-July 3. Popular breakfast programmes and nightly news broadcasts are likely to be affected, but the BBC has not yet finalised its TV and radio schedules for the strike days. "By threatening the BBC's output, the unions put at risk the BBC's relationship with the public, which is not in anyone's interest," BBC officials said in a statement. "We will, of course, do everything we can to bring the best possible service to viewers and listeners during any industrial action," they added. On Wednesday, union members voted to authorize strike action to protest the publicly funded broadcaster's plans to cut about 15 percent of its workforce, or about 4,000 jobs, under Director General Mark Thompson. "We have absolutely no doubt that BBC staff will act with their feet and walk out in huge numbers, causing major disruption to programme output," Dear said. The unions said they would call off the strike if the BBC granted a 90-day moratorium to the planned staff cuts, guaranteed that any redundancies be voluntary and protected conditions of jobs set to be outsourced. "These are the opening shots in a campaign to force the BBC to negotiate with the trade unions," said BECTU's lead BBC official Luke Crawley. "We cannot waste time 'consulting,' we need to discuss how to stop the cuts." # posted by Andy @ 14:05 UT May 12 (Media Network blog via DXLD) ** U K [non]. PIRATE RADIO STATION BACK ON AIR -- BIG L Julia Day, radio correspondent, Guardian Unlimited Thursday May 12, 2005 One of the original pirate radio stations where John Peel, Kenny Everett and Tommy Vance kicked off their careers is making a comeback this weekend, 38 years after it was closed down. Radio London, which broadcast from a rusting minesweeper moored in the North Sea off Essex in the late 60s, will be back on air this Saturday. To bypass British broadcasting regulations it is being beamed from the Netherlands. Programmes for the station will be recorded live in studios in Essex town of Frinton-on-Sea and sent to the Netherlands where a transmitter will broadcast them back to the east of England on the AM wavelength. It is a similar method used by the first pirate station, Radio Luxembourg, which broadcast to pop-starved British teenagers from the European principality in the 1960s, and more recently Atlantic 252, which broadcast to the UK from Dublin. The Big L, as Radio London was nicknamed, will also be available on Sky channel 940 and streamed on the internet. The station will be aimed resolutely at over-30s with music from the 1950s onwards plus new tunes from the likes of Elton John and Sir Cliff Richard, who is helping to launch the station. Mike Read, the former BBC Radio 1 DJ, TV's Pop Quiz presenter and recent I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here! intern, will broadcast a weekday show and hosts the station's inaugural programme. The man behind the relaunch, Ray Anderson, was still at school when Radio London was last on air. For him this week's launch is the culmination of eight years of trying, and failing, to get a permanent licence for the station in the UK. "I have been very disillusioned with the Radio Authority and now Ofcom. They don't allow competition in to the market and protect exiting [ sic- moderator] franchises. I have applied for licences before for other projects and it's an exclusive club," he said. So Radio London's self-confessed "number one fan" set about finding a way to relaunch the station bypassing the media regulator, eventually securing the Dutch transmission site. Mr Anderson is pitching the station as a commercial alternative to BBC Radio 2, playing the best old and new music, but leaving the garage, jungle and techno to younger stations. "There is a little niche there. A lot of radio has been dumbed down and has lost the quality and the fun. We feel there's room for a more intellectual approach with personality DJs, not people who just read from cards. "John Peel and Kenny Everett started here and because of that the standard is set very high," he added. Radio London was one of a clutch of radio stations - like Radio Caroline - that broadcast from ships in the North Sea. It was not until 1973 that the country's first commercial stations, Capital Radio and LBC, were born. British law only prohibited commercial radio broadcasting on land, so pirate stations took to the seas to exploit the legal loophole allowing broadcasters to transmit from offshore waters. However, the loophole was closed in 1967 and the pirates were closed down. A fortnight later [ Er no, not quite- more like six weeks surely- moderator] BBC Radio 1 was launched to cater for the teenagers who had become addicted to the pirate stations and many of the pirate DJs, like Tony Blackburn, joined Radio 1 instead. These days pirate radio is synonymous with underground dance and black music stations, especially in the London area. Many new stars such as rapper Dizzee Rascal have attributed their success to the play they first received on pirate stations. Ofcom is attempting to turn the stations legitimate by offering new community licences for stations run for and by local people. [BDXC Moderator. A generally well written piece apart from the boo boo about the dates in 1967. But why has Ms Day failed to mention the excellent previous efforts by Big L and others with RSLs? Mark Savage] (via Mark Savage, BDXC-UK via DXLD) WTFK!?!?! See next story (gh) Some 38 years after being forced off the airwaves by Marine Offences Act - Wonderful Radio London - Big L is to return this weekend. In those days it was a pirate station broadcasting in International Waters - now however the station is fully licensed with an AM licence in Holland and via digital technology to a world wide audience. Based offshore outside national waters, seasickness and near collision were never far away for the crews on these little boats, heaving with their bulky broadcast equipment but to them it was all worth it. Pirate Radio was the Internet of the 1960's - the one place where people had a vehicle to express opinions normally gagged by the extremely restrictive broadcast licensing conditions of the day. Famed for its mix of upbeat fun-packed, wacky shows, often irreverent swipes at authority and its unerring ability to pick the chart-toppers before any other station, Radio London was also the spawning ground for many of the next decades top Radio Artists including: Kenny Everett, Tony Blackburn, John Peel & Ed Stewart to name but a few. Radio London will be broadcasting from Holland reaching most of the East of England on MW frequency 1395 kHz, the rest of the UK on SKY channel 940 and the whole of the world online web streaming. Long overdue in their return, the Radio London team intend to resurrect the spirit of 60's radio and plan to run a fun and frisky program of entertainment aimed to encourage and air new talent whilst keeping the 'best-bits' rockin' through the airwaves. The new talent program kicks off with a competition aimed at unknown songwriters 'Star Songs' where young hopefuls will submit their work to the station for selection, and the finalists will have their tune performed on air by a chart topping artist for judging by an industry panel. What's more, later in the year, the lucky winner will see their song recorded by a star and available as an MP3 download from Radio London's own website. Sir Cliff Richard will officially open the station on Saturday 14/05. As his 1964 recording of "I could easily fall in Love with You" was the first ever song played on the station, originally spun by veteran DJ Pete Brady, the New BIG L will be repeating history by kicking off with a Cliff song, so his latest release "What Car" will be the first played. The first show will be hosted by Mike Read who joins BIG L to head up the team of presenters. Mike's career spans Radio Luxembourg, BBC Radio One and many TV shows including 'POP QUIZ' and more recently he will be remembered for his short stint in "I'm a Celebrity... Get me out of here". The new team at BIG L also includes, Michele Stephens, Mike Ahern, Randall Lee Rose, Ray Anderson and many others. Celebrating the opening of the station during their first week with guest spots and interviews will be an eclectic mix of celebrities and artists from the likes of Dr Hook, who can remember when the Big L first aired to the Cheeky Girls who's mum can! The girls have even recorded a cover version of the 1960's song "We Love the Pirate Stations" to celebrate the stations comeback! Weblink: http://www.bigl.co.uk (via Dave, BDXC-UK via DXLD) ** U S A. I served 32 years inside the bowels of the federal government, last 16 at Voice of America. At least at the transmission end of the chain of broadcast, the US government has been very inefficient and wasteful of money. The old continental US VOA plants were owned and staffed by Crosley (WLWO, Bethany) and CBS (KCBR, Delano) and some others. Coming into VOA long after the privately- owned transmitter plants were federalized, I'd have to say they did the job efficiently and with the proper increase in contract cost to make a profit, still would have beat the government at doing it well. The lore of the old KCBR still figures big around the Delano Transmitting Station in terms of photos of that era, and in records kept, and stories told of the personnel (all the original personnel were "federalized" and also have passed away or retired). As an alumnus of Greenville Transmitting Station who served out at Delano for two years, I cannot possibly deny that the old networks did the job much more efficiently than the Federal government (Charles A. Taylor, NC, IRCA via DXLD) ** U S A. VOA, JOHNS HOPKINS HOSPITAL LAUNCH IN-DEPTH MEDICAL SERIES The Voice of America (VOA) and The Johns Hopkins Hospital are teaming up to bring worldwide listeners a new monthly series of special programs examining the fight against AIDS, avian flu, tuberculosis, malaria and other diseases in the developing world. Beginning May 10, Talk to America (TTA), VOA`s weekday international radio call-in show, will broadcast live from The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland. Listeners in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Europe will have the opportunity to call in and ask their questions directly to medical experts and researchers about life- threatening diseases they face each day. The series will begin with a discussion of the avian flu with Dr. Trish Perl, an Infectious disease specialist and epidemiologist at The Johns Hopkins Hospital and Professor of Medicine and Pathology at the university`s School of Medicine. For a complete listing of program dates and topics in the series, please visit TTA`s web page at http://www.voanews.com/english/NewsAnalysis/Talk-To-America-and-Johns-Hopkins-Series.cfm (Source: VOA PRESS RELEASE- Washington, D.C., May 9, 2005 via MD. AZIZUL ALAM AL-AMIN, RAJSHAHI-6100, BANGLADESH, DXLD) On 2nd Tues?? ** U S A. DOES A TINY STATION IN NASHVILLE SIGNAL THE FUTURE OF COMMUNITY RADIO? By Danielle Maestretti May 5, 2005 In recent years, consolidation of the airwaves (think Clear Channel, which owns and operates more than 1,200 stations) has proved a sizable threat to community radio. Locally run stations are shut down when larger broadcasters cry "interference," and to cut costs, corporate- owned "local stations" are often run hundreds of miles away from the communities they serve. That means citizens hear less local news and less about local happenings – ultimately cutting people off from ways to get involved in their communities. Jim Ridley, writing for Nashville Scene, documents a hard-won victory for community radio -- the launch of Radio Free Nashville. Now one month old, it is Nashville's only community-owned and -operated radio station. Much of its programming is decidedly liberal (the "Democracy Now" broadcaster is the state's only Pacifica Radio affiliate). But its programs range from the political to the musical ("pulp country" on Wednesdays, funk on Thursdays, hoedown on Fridays) to the entirely apolitical (including Will Reynolds' weekly NASCAR report and fire department lieutenant Walter Bell's Monday morning multicharacter radio plays about fire safety). The success of Radio Free Nashville, a low-power FM station (LPFM) broadcasting on a 100-watt signal, may soon be echoed by others. While current Federal Communications Commission regulations make it difficult to acquire LPFM licenses -- largely because of bullying by the National Association of Broadcasters -- several pro-independent media organizations are drawing attention to LPFM's potential. Prometheus Radio Project, a Philadelphia-based organization whose volunteers helped get Radio Free Nashville up and running, provides detailed information about LPFM, including how to apply for a license and how to wrangle with the FCC. There's hope on the legislative front as well. In February, Senators John McCain (R-Ariz.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Maria Cantwell (D- Wash.) introduced the Local Community Radio Act of 2005. The bill would expand LPFM service nationwide, easing the burden on would-be LPFM stations to prove noninterference with commercial broadcasters. Radio Free Nashville's slogan, "Low power for the people," may indeed hail the future of community radio. http://www.utne.com/webwatch/2005_197/news/11655-1.html (via Mike Terry, dxldyg via DXLD) ** U S A. RADIO FREE MINTURN [Colorado] Vail Daily, by Shauna Farnell, May 11, 2005 http://www.vaildaily.com/article/20050511/AE/105110028 Radio Free Minturn, a station slated to broadcast on 107.9 FM in September, is trying to secure its lease with a radio tower on Upper Dowd Junction and is also trying to raise $40,000 to begin operation. About 100 individuals turned up to an informational gathering last weekend to show their support and interest in being involved with the project. If there were any doubts that the airwaves of the once-pirate Radio Free Minturn weren't going to take flight, the sudden involvement of about 100 interested locals quelled them for those spearheading the project. A group of organizers for Radio Free Minturn, a new community station scheduled to air on 107.9-FM in September, launched a recruitment gathering Saturday in Minturn, and to their surprise, yielded a number of passionate individuals; not just Minturn locals, but residents from throughout the valley and even from outside of Eagle County. "That's what it takes - there's no community radio station without community involvement," said Scott Willoughby, one of the masterminds behind Radio Free Minturn during its short-lived pirate existence from his living room between 1998 and 2000. "That's what we were hoping we'd achieve with this, just to spread the word," he said. "There's still a lot of work to be done, but it certainly relieved some doubts." The "doubts" were centered around the group's goal of raising $40,000 and having all of the pieces in place - equipment, radio tower, personnel - to broadcast in September. While the $40,000 hasn't rolled in as quickly as the names, and while the technicalities haven't been ironed out for a lease on the radio tower, the personnel appears to be plentiful. "I'm overly optimistic that this is definitely going to happen," said Liz Campbell, who was also among the original contingent for Radio Free Minturn. "Not only people who think it's a good idea showed up, but people who had 35 years of experience in the broadcast industry. We're getting calls and e-mails all the time from people who want to be involved." The allure of having a radio station centered around the community, local events, personalities and, most importantly, hours upon hours of commercial-free music, is obviously one that enchants many, each of whom were given pledge forms and fund-raising tools as well as assigned a particular category of responsibility per his or her respective skills and talents. Some signed up to spin music, some signed up to help glean sponsorship, some are Web site builders and some just want badly to dial up a station they can depend on for noncommercial tunes. "I like radio for the music," said Minturn resident and musician Terry Armistead. "I love the arts, and I love culture. I've known about this (Radio Free Minturn) for a long time. I would love to see this happen. I feel like radio today is just a corporate entity. All I know is that when I listen, I don't like what I hear. Hearing what's in the pop charts isn't appealing, especially in this mountain lifestyle. It seems to me there is music we would rather hear. I love everything - jazz, rock 'n'roll, some pop ... I listen to NPR for the news, and even though NPR is liberal radio, it's got sponsorship. That kind of dictates where it goes. It would just be nice to listen to unbiased radio." Radio Free Minturn has a contract [sic] with the Federal Communications Commission to begin broadcasting in September using the telecommunications tower on Upper Dowd Junction. A lease with the tower, however, has not come into fruition as of yet, nor has the $40,000 necessary to buy equipment, pay rent and procure the necessary materials. Although, without even intending for last Saturday's gathering to be a fund-raiser, Radio Free reps found themselves more than $750 out of the hole after the event. A few different fund-raisers including a silent auction and party are on the calendar for June and July, and the crew feels that what they have already - interest and involvement - are the two key ingredients to making the radio dream a reality. "The sort of momentum we've already generated is enough to carry us a long way, certainly to September," Willoughby said. "This is an unprecedented opportunity. People really understand the concept of community radio, the opportunity that it presents. They get it. They want to be a part of it. They feel this is something that's good for the Vail Valley. There are so many different elements of it, from basic freedom of speech opportunities and bridging the gap to community educational platforms and alternative activities." (via Mike Terry, dxldyg via DXLD) ** U S A. "CALLING AIR AMERICA" --- by Nicholas von Hoffman http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20050523&s=vonhoffman 73 (via Mike Brooker, Toronto, ON, NRC-AM via DXLD) ** U S A. PROBE OF SCRUTINY ON PBS IS URGED --- By Matea Gold, Times Staff Writer http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/politics/la-na-publictv12may12,1,1214518.story?coll=la-news-politics-national&ctrack=1&cset=true NEW YORK — Two Democratic congressmen called Wednesday for an investigation into recent activities by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, suggesting that efforts by the Republican chairman of the private nonprofit to put more conservative programs on PBS might violate federal law. In a letter released Wednesday evening, Reps. David Obey of Wisconsin and John D. Dingell of Michigan asked CPB Inspector General Kenneth A. Konz to investigate the contracting, hiring and policies of the corporation, which distributes federal funds to public television stations. Both are ranking Democrats on committees that have oversight of public television. They called recent actions taken by CPB Chairman Kenneth Tomlinson disturbing and "extremely troubling." A CPB spokesman could not be reached for comment. But in a recent interview with The Times, Tomlinson defended his efforts to expand conservative perspectives on PBS, saying he wanted to increase the network's audience. The request for an investigation into CPB came as public television officials were growing increasingly anxious that Republicans were trying to remake PBS in their image. In their letter, the congressmen said Tomlinson had hired an outside consultant last year to monitor the political leanings of the guests that appeared on "Now with Bill Moyers" in order to bolster his case that the program had a liberal bias. Obey, the ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, and Dingell, the ranking Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, expressed concern that Tomlinson had tapped a former White House official to help draft the guidelines for two new ombudsmen for public broadcasting. "If CPB is moving in the direction of censorship of public affairs content based on partisanship and political views," they wrote, "this will severely erode the public trust that public broadcasting heretofore has enjoyed." (via Current via DXLD) CPB Plot Thickens --- From the DrudgeReport web site: DEM CONGRESSMEN: CONSERVATIVE VOICES ON PBS MAY BE ILLEGAL http://www.drudgereport.com/flash3pbs.htm ~*-.,_,.-*~'^'~*-.,_,.-*~'^'~*-., (via Joe Buch, Swprograms mailing list via DXLD) -*~'^'~*-.,_,.-*~'^'~*-.,_,.-*~'^ BUSH PACKS THE CPB. BIG DEAL --- WHY THE RUCKUS OVER PUBLIC BROADCASTING IS OVERBLOWN. By Aaron Barnhart May 8, 2005 08:42 PM CT http://www.tvbarn.com/archives/029069.php (via Current via DXLD) ** U S A. BOB EDWARDS LEARNS NPR ISN'T DONE HITTING THE OFF BUTTON By Richard Leiby, Washington Post Staff Writer Tuesday, May 3, 2005; Page C3 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/02/AR2005050201503.html Bob Edwards, the longtime "Morning Edition" host who was booted amid much controversy last year from National Public Radio, says he's still getting static from his former employer. Edwards is furious because NPR barred his old colleague Scott Simon , host of "Weekend Morning Edition," from appearing on his XM Satellite Radio show last week to promote a book. "This is clearly just pettiness directed at me," Edwards told us yesterday. "It baffles me that they are going to these petty extremes, especially when I am still an outspoken supporter of public radio and NPR specifically." NPR cites a policy against its talent appearing on "competitive" shows. "This is not as dramatic as Bob Edwards would have you believe," network spokeswoman Andi Sporkin told us yesterday. "We see as competitive any host or anchor getting on any other talk show." Edwards was set to interview Simon on April 25 when NPR execs abruptly informed Simon that he had to cancel. "Mine is the only program that Scott is banned from being on," Edwards said. "He can do all other media outlets." Reached in Los Angeles, on the early leg of a tour promoting his novel "Pretty Birds," Simon was loath to enter the fray. "NPR can approve or disapprove any outside appearances," he said. "All I can say is that the appearance was set up and then it was canceled or maybe postponed -- maybe it will be considered at another time." That seems unlikely, given that NPR considers Edwards's show a head- to-head competitor with "Morning Edition." But NPR's Susan Stamberg gave an hour-long interview with Edwards that will be aired today. Stamberg was on to reminisce about her years in public radio and "All Things Considered," which she hosted with Edwards for five years. Sporkin said Stamberg's appearance was well before the more restrictive policy was adopted. Confused? So are some NPR veterans. "I was surprised to hear that they said no to Scott but at the same time they said yes to Susan Stamberg," commentator Daniel Schorr told us yesterday. "I find it all a little weird. . . . After they let Bob go, anything is possible. I shrug my shoulders and say, 'What's going to happen next?' " (via radiointel.com via DXLD) ** U S A. THE NEXT GREAT INDECENCY THREAT --- THE RELIGIOUS RIGHT (AND A FEW LIBERALS) ALREADY HAVE BROADCASTERS ON THE RUN. COMING UP: CABLE, SATELLITE, AND — JUST POSSIBLY — THE INTERNET. BY DAN KENNEDY . . . government officials --- members of Congress and the Federal Communications Commission, which oversees the broadcast industry --- are threatening to sink their fangs into cable and satellite. And though such efforts would almost certainly amount to an unconstitutional violation of the First Amendment (see "Indecent Proposal," in News & Features), these would-be censors may well succeed in intimidating media conglomerates — which depend for their very existence on government favors ranging from relaxed ownership restrictions to the free use of the broadcast spectrum — into diluting their content, lest those favors be taken away. Indeed, the paradigm that pits over-the-air broadcasters against cable channels is itself an artificial one, given that the Big Four broadcast networks — CBS, ABC, NBC, and Fox — are part of media behemoths that control nearly all the most popular cable channels. Performers who thought they’d gotten one step ahead of the censors by switching to cable and satellite services may be in for a rude surprise. Howard Stern, who will jump from broadcast radio to the Sirius satellite network next year, may find his old nemesis, the FCC, waiting for him before he can even unveil his new show. . . http://www.bostonphoenix.com/boston/news_features/dont_quote_me/multi-page/documents/04687191.asp (via Sheldon Harvey, radioalternatives yg via DXLD) ** U S A. You know, I understand the dismay with which many of us are greeting the increase of IBOC operation on both the AM and FM dials. But I wonder if I could make one little plea for civility here: Whether we like it or not, the Ibiquity "HD Radio" standard has been authorized by the FCC for operation in the U.S. It's legal, it's here, and it's now up to the marketplace to decide whether it grows or withers. If the reports in the industry trades and the buzz that I heard on the NAB show floor in Las Vegas is any indication, there will probably be somewhere north of 3,000 stations on the air with it a year from now, in markets both large and small. Those of us who haven't had any IBOC FM in their markets yet (like here in Rochester) certainly will, and sooner rather than later. I know that at least two of my local FMs plan to install it this summer, and neither is a Clear Channel station. Which brings me to the real point of this post: While I'm sure it feels good to have a "cheap" outlet at which to target your dislike of IBOC, it might not hurt to keep in mind that several of us in the club and on this list are employed by Clear Channel, including the proprietor of one of the hobby's finest websites. As I've noted several times, when 100000watts.com was on the verge of going dark a few years ago, it was a division of Clear Channel that stepped forward to buy the site and keep it running. As the guy they hired to do it, it's been a priority of mine to make sure that access to that data remains freely accessible to the DX community. No other broadcast company is doing anything even remotely like this, and I can tell you that it doesn't come, as you say, "cheap." I don't speak for Clear Channel Radio and wouldn't presume to, but I know that the company employs some of the finest engineering talent in the business. They know some of the flaws with the Ibiquity standards, especially where nighttime AM is concerned, and they've been at the forefront of real-world testing to determine what might be done to mitigate some of the interference. Some of the very top people in the company are, believe it or not, DXers, at least on occasion. I'm sure they're not delighted about installing IBOC at some of these signals, but they're a business, and they're doing what they have to do right now to be competitive. (And by the way, installing IBOC, if you were wondering, is anything but "cheap." At the minimum, it requires a new exciter and a new transmitter. In many cases, it requires new antennas, new transmission lines, all sorts of filtering, and even upgrades to studios and STL systems to improve the audio quality. For a company like Clear Channel to install IBOC at hundreds of facilities is a very expensive project and potentially a risky one, since there's no guarantee that the system will achieve any kind of widespread acceptance.) And now that you know some of the background, perhaps you can understand why I (and, I suspect, my Clear Channel colleagues on the list and in the club) find it more than a little bit offensive when the company's reflexively tagged as "Cheap Channel." It's not only inaccurate, it's ignorant and it ceased long ago to be amusing. s (Scott Fybush, NY, May 10, WTFDA via DXLD) A slightly different variation of what Scott's message is my slant on things that sees the GOVERNMENT as the culprit in almost all situations where broadcasting has gone haywire --- be it technical, financial, or in the programming sector. For many years I've been saying that lobbyists and special interest groups have pretty much bought out congress (and consequently rendered the FCC powerless). I don't believe there's any reason now to believe otherwise. The things that many of us dislike are LEGAL, and the companies that make use of technologies and practices that some of us dislike are doing so because they choose to. If you have a beef, take it to your congressmen --- not the big ownership conglomerates (Tom Bryant / Nashville, TN, ibid.) Sorry to all those I offended. Mike, Keith, Tom, or whoever, you can kick me off the list if you want. A very good friend of mine was one of the many people eliminated by Clear Channel's use of voicetracking. I shouldn't have brought that up on the list. I guess it's just a natural reaction to use that word in place of the first word of that company's name (Jeff Lehmann, Hanson, MA, ibid.) I have absolutely no desire to see Jeff kicked off the list --- and I certainly have no desire to see him leave! My post wasn't even specifically directed at him (and in fact never mentioned him by name) - it's just that I've seen "Cheap Channel" a few times too often in the last few days. Jeff, I'm sorry about your friend. The use of VT'ing to replace live talent is one of the things that I like least about the way radio has changed in the last few years, and if it's any consolation (not that it likely will be), I'm seeing CC stations in at least some markets pulling away from it. Here in Rochester, WKGS 106.7 (our local "Kiss") recently replaced the LA-based "Valentine in the Morning" tracks with a local morning show. I hope that's a good sign, and I hope your friend finds work soon, if he hasn't already. Any of us who have worked in the business for any length of time have, odds are, been fired at least once (I know I have), and it's never a good thing when it happens (Scott Fybush, ibid.) Just to add to that, the Fort Collins CO 'Kiss' (KSME 96.1) some months ago dumped Rick Dees and put in young local talent, because the morning drive was doing terrible in the sweeps. Their ratings are starting to come back up now. Sometimes the big exec's just have to learn through trial and error (Jim Thomas wdx0fbu, Milliken CO, ibid.) I think I overreacted there a little. It's just frustrating seeing these things pop up all over the place. And my friend did find work, out of radio (Jeff Lehmann, Hanson, MA, ibid.) ** U S A [and non]. Upon hearing the news that a new station in the Salt Lake City area was on Sunday, I waited until sunset but all I heard was XEMVS in Mexicali throughout the night. However, this morning at 0626 local [1226 UT] I tuned in again and KUTR was on with "Waking up with Rebecca & Kurt on Utah's new AM 8-20". At 0630 a full ID was heard as: "AM 8-20, KUTR, Taylorsville-Sandy-Salt Lake City" and then a KSL-1160 news update. Sounded a full 50 kw to me and was as strong as KSL-1160. Found website: http://www.utaham820.com/ (Terry Palmersheim, KC7LDP Helena, Montana, May 10, HCDX via DXLD) Why does KUTR have such a big null in this direction? 820 has to be one of the quietest channels we have here in L.A. WBAP is in only occasionally, and Mexicali is not in very well here either. Who are they protecting? Certainly not the Hollywood Bowl TIS :-) (Brian Leyton, Valley Village, CA, DX-398 / RS Loop / 18" Box Loop, ABDX via DXLD) Correction - 820 USED to be one of the quietest channels in this area. I still have my other C-QuAM LPAM unit crystalled for 820, but got IBOC'ed off of that channel last year by our friends at KMXE 830. NO channels now exist in LA with a quiet noise floor- everyone's got a carrier or IBOC splatter now. Hollywood Bowl TIS is STILL on even under the IBOC hash- surprised they haven't changed it to another freq as you can't even hear their audio until you're within a mile of their transmitter anymore (Darwin, ibid.) I'll try to dig up their engineering studies, which aren't hard to find and should explain. I've read them but can't remember the reason. When I said bagging the 50 KW ND near their local sunset should be a piece of cake I forgot about one thing. KMXE's IBOC. Doesn't it mess things up for you on 820? It sure does here. As for Mexicali there's an interesting note tacked on to KMXE's data on the FCC web site: 2/25/2004: DAYTIME ACCEPTED BY MEXICAN PER LETTER 11/14/2001 IN AGREEMENT: US ACCEPTED XEVMS, 820 KHZ DAYTIME INCREASE POWER TO 5.0 KW. Here's a link to a night pattern for KUTR: http://www.fccinfo.com/CMDProEngine.php?sCurrentService=AM&tabSearchType=Appl&sAppIDNumber=998855&sHours=N The engineering studies should have one too. I may not get to that tonight (Dennis Gibson, ABDX via DXLD) Hey guys, KMXE's IBOC hashes ME out here! And I'm several hundred miles away from them! I haven't listened for KUTR at sunset or post sunset yet. I imagine at sunset KMXE's iboc crap will probably hiss them right out of the water. That's why I always say what a sad situation it is in that neighborhood of the dial. Just before sunset here, both KMXE at 830 and KOA at 850 are both hashing away with iboc crap --- it's quite interesting. Now KOAL has it at 750 (splattering over to about 770, especially around presunset). So right now 730 to 770 are hashed. 800 to 880 are all hashed out or at least have interference hash. Look out if XEROK ever goes iboc crap. Talk about the whole dial from 730 to 880 being rendered damn near useless during pre-sunset times! Will be looking for Mexicali. Haven't heard them in a while either. I remember getting good signal from them sometimes wiping out WBAP. I doubt I can hear KUTR here at night, despite me being only 70 or 80 miles from the transmitter. The N-S null is quite tight from what I understand (Michael in WYO Richard, May 10, ABDX via DXLD) Someone wondered about this station's nulls...and I think the answer lies in where their primary lobe goes (both day and night...same pattern). It's pretty obvious that they want to lay as much signal as possible over Salt Lake City metro...and to get that extra punch they didn't really care WHERE there were nulls. Also, there isn't much in the way of potential audience to the SSW. So...they're apparently non directional day (and with 50 kw they don't need to be) and directional at night with the patterns formerly displayed for 24/7 operation (Tom Bryant / Nashville, ibid.) ** U S A. 740 Avalon (formerly KBIG) --- A week ago today I was privileged to see something that not many DXers have eyeballed --- the transmitter site and towers of KBRT 740 on Santa Catalina Island. Retirement has meant a lot of travel for me, and the visit to Catalina fulfilled yet another personal goal. Like International Falls, MN, the KTHI-TV tower near Fargo, ND, Ashwabenon, WI, and Alaska (which was state #50). It's a place I've always wanted to go. The city of Avalon is relatively small, only about 4000 full time residents, and only a handful more are scattered across the island. I first heard about this station in 1953 (it was KBIG back then) from my 7th grade teacher...who knew that I was a radio buff. He had a brother in North Hollywood and vacationed in CA every summer. He'd always talk about his favorite California station which broadcast from Avalon and played a lot of easy listening and big band music. What made it unique was that (according to what I remember him saying) they played a short version of the song "Avalon" every hour on the hour along with their legal station ID. As I rattled along in the tour bus about 5 miles north of civilization, the three towers came into view --- and I couldn't help but hear the strains of that famous Jan Garber song wafting through the airwaves of my mind. I didn't actually get to hear KBIG until a 1961 visit to California, and didn't really listen to it much on that trip. But while riding past those towers at that isolated location the nostalgia bug bit big-time --- and I really wished that I was back in the 1950s again. Heck, I could even hear the Four Preps harmonizing on another famous Catalina song, "26 miles". KBIG (AM) is long gone, owners and formats have changed, but those triple towers still pump out 10 kilowatts of signal that pound into Los Angeles. There's a great web site at http://sakrison.com/radio/KBRT.html Pardon my reminiscing, but I'll bet I'm not the only one with fond memories of an unusual station in a unique place (Tom Bryant / Nashville, TN, May 11, ABDX via DXLD) And still in clean, clear stereo to this day, too! I've been out there before as well. Really nice site they have (Darwin, CA, ibid.) I have been to Catalina a few times over the years, but I can't actually recall seeing the KBRT/KBIG towers. To tell you the truth, the last time we went would have been the most likely time I would have seen them. My wife & I took an anniversary trip (without the kids). We arrived, and went on the bus tour of the interior of the island. For those of you who haven't been there, this is really a neat trip. You get to see wild buffalo roaming the hills (they were brought to the island for the shooting of a movie many decades ago, and now are another part of the island's charm). Anyhow, I guess we were exhausted from the boat ride over, and the 3 hour bouncing trek over dirt roads, because not only do I not remember seeing the towers, but when we got back to the hotel, we both laid back on the bed "just for a couple of minutes", only to wake up 3 hours later. Indeed, KBIG-FM still uses those calls, though they're now AC. But KBRT is now religion, still effectively a daytimer (Brian Leyton, Valley Village, CA, ibid.) Did you read the note on the website that when the signal was sent to Avalon from the mainland via 950 MHz STL it was "subject to fading"? LOL. This brings up a good question I've been wanting to ask, how is reception of LA (and other) AMs in Catalina?? I was actually thinking about going there on a trip (Tony, Miami FL, ibid.) Well, Avalon Bay pretty much faces south, with the town spread out around it, surrounded by mountains. So I suspect that there would be a fair amount of terrain blockage. Probably not a bad place to DX Mexico from, but for anything else, you'd want to get to the top of the hills or to another part of the island. The west coast of the island might be a good place for TP DX, but I imagine you'd have to be camping - there's not much civilization outside of Avalon (Brian Leyton, Valley Village, CA, ibid.) Rock solid, and so are the BCN, San Diego, Ventura, and other AM stations beyond. FM is really good, too. If you are on the west side of the island, it's all San Diego and BCN FM, on the east --- L.A. FM, and on the northwest --- Ventura/Santa Bárbara/beyond FM. Avalon used to have an FM station on 92.7 at 100 watts. They got out really good when the Thousand Oaks station on 92.7 was off. I was able to pull in the Avalon FM here in Thousand Oaks one time when KMLT was off - they were playing big band music. Don't seem to find them listed anywhere now, but they did for a while simulcast with KLIT/KMLT to act as a "fill-in" where the coastal mountain range blocks both the Thousand Oaks and Orange stations from Santa Mónica and Malibu up to Pt. Mugu (Darwin, CA, ibid.) ** U S A. Link for all Infinity Stations to see if a station is an affiliate: http://www.infinitybroadcasting.com/station/ (Art Blair, CA, IRCA Soft DX Monitor May 14 via DXLD) ** U S A. ABC Radio for sale? The rumors about DISNEY jettisoning its radio properties have resurfaced with a report in the NEW YORK POST [registration required] http://www.nypost.com/business/46326.htm saying that a possible sale of ABC RADIO "tops the to-do list of incoming-CEO BOB IGER." The paper speculates that DISNEY could get over a billion dollars for the division. A source tells the POST that DISNEY is "deciding whether [radio] fits with their core businesses... but it's still in the early stages." Rumors of a possible sale of ABC RADIO have appeared at times over the past few years as the company dealt with the troubled reign of MICHAEL EISNER (allaccess.com via Brock Whaley, DXLD) ** U S A. RADIO CHANGES ITS TUNE TO RECAPTURE LISTENERS 11 May 2005 By Gary Strauss, USA Today As more consumers turn a deaf ear to traditional radio, stations increasingly are switching formats. . . [sidebar] Favorite formats: News/talk: 2,179 stations Country: 2,066 stations Religious: 2,014 stations Adult contemporary: 1,556 stations Adult standards: 1,196 stations Oldies: 1,060 stations Rock: 869 stations Source: Arbitron http://www.usatoday.com/life/music/news/2005-05-11-radio_x.htm (via Mike Terry, dxldyg via DXLD) ** U S A. KOMJ 590 Omaha NE and KOSR 1490 Omaha NE will swap calls and formats later this month. Fox sports will move to 590, while "Magic" standards will go to 1490. (Journal Broadcasting is selling a third Omaha station, advice talk KHLP 1420 Omaha NE, to Salem.) (IRCA via MWC via DXLD) WOW! (gh) ** U S A. JIM CONRAD --- I`ve been feeling a need to put down a few words about my friend Jim Conrad who passed away in March. I first met Jim at an ANARC convention in the late 70s. We quickly discovered some unusual (today we`d say ``incredible``) connections: we were both from Iowa, both from the same town (Waterloo) and had attended the same high school (West) 12 years apart. (``Was the evil Mrs. Fowler still teaching English?``) In the following years we ran into each other several times at various conventions and get togethers, including the annual ``Conrad Family Reunion`` he hosted each May. We met more and more frequently as my parental situation changed, calling for more frequent trips back to Hawkeye land. In the process my friendship with Jim grew and I became very close to his delightful mother Leonora (Lee - another West High grad). She began calling me her ``youngest son,`` never mind that Jim was an only child and I had a dozen of years on him. Jim was born with spinabifida, and had to deal with a number of other health problems as time passed. (Lee said once ``if it weren`t for doctors we wouldn`t have any social life!) He had a brief career in radio, ending at KWMT-Ft. Dodge (540) when he was in his mid-20s, just as he was beginning to take off as a radio personality. His unusual sense of humor soon had the station up from the bottom to Number 2 in the market. More than one PD told him he was destined for the networks. But, sadly, that was not to be. An infection in his leg led to amputation and life at home in a wheel chair. When his doctor and an intern walked into his hospital room after the operation Jim, in his big voice demanded: ``What kind of hospital are you people running here? You took the wrong leg!`` The intern paled and nearly fainted. A second later the doctor and Jim were howling with laughter. It turned out that over the several preparatory meetings Jim had with the doctor the two had ended up as drinking buddies. He had the enviable ability to initiate conversations with total strangers. One weekend we had a new waitress at the hotel restaurant and by our second encounter she and Jim were whispering risqué jokes to each other! Jim was not a hot shot DXer. I`m sure he never logged an RRI regional and could not have named even 3 Peruvians, but he certainly knew his way around the subject of SW broadcasting. For a number of years was a paid monitor for BRT in Belgium. He was a regular and prolific contributor to PWBR`s ``Blue Pages.`` Besides radio he was active in the church choir and the Proud Image men`s chorus and was often asked to sing at weddings and funerals. He was also active in the Handicapped Aid Program and even after HAP folded continued to buy two shortwave portables every year, which he then donated to local agencies to give to someone that might enjoy them. After his father, Wendell`s death in 2002, he spent less time at his NRD-515 and devoted himself to keeping his mother company as her health began to decline. He suffered a massive heart attack in June 2003 (on his birthday, no less), which left him with the use of only 40% of his heart. He could still whip that wheel chair over the 4th Street Bridge, though. (Now and then I`d try pushing and soon find myself gasping for breath.). Lee, at 82, had to be hospitalized around Thanksgiving and then early this year entered a nursing home. Jim was out there visiting her every day and the stress got to be too much for him. He had another heart attack on March 5th as he was getting into a cab to go home. Lee was too ill even to attend the funeral of her son and just ``gave up`` as they say. And so, we lost ``mom`` on Good Friday, less than three weeks after Jim. R.I.P my dear friends! (Gerry Dexter, Lake Geneva, WI, Musings, May NASWA Journal via Rich D`Angelo, DXLD) ** U S A. Re ch 6 LPTV in NYC, 5-078: Ah, that [map location] would definitely explain why they're so strong. According to http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Mass_Media/Public_Notices/Brdcst_Applications/ap990818.txt the same company has a transmitter on Channel 35 at One Court Sq. in Long Island City, NY. So the signal on Channel 6 is undoubtedly coming from the top of the Citigroup (formerly Citicorp formerly Citibank) Building, in Queens opposite 53rd St. in Manhattan. (At 40 stories, it's the tallest building in NYC outside Manhattan) I'm about 1 1/4 miles north, in Queens, opposite 78th St. By the way, across the street from this skyscraper named after the biggest bank in New York is the court room where Willie "The Actor" Sutton answered the judge's question as to why he robbed banks: "Because that's where the money is." (Joel Rubin, Queens, DX LISTENING DIGEST) This just missed 5-078, and I meant to get it in 5-079 along with the other items on this subject (gh) Now they have an ID of "WNYZ - NY" across the top of the color bars which they didn't have last night (Joel Rubin, NY, 0238 UT May 11, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** YEMEN. See INTERNATIONAL VACUUM ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ PUBLICATIONS ++++++++++++ ILGRADIO I am surprised to read that some are having problems accessing the ILGRADIO databases. Yes, the old passwords were no longer usable from January 1 but that is not surprising given that the information collated so laboriously by Bernd was being used commercially and for profit by some who had accessed his work. I suggest that anyone interested should read the rules on the ilgradio website. If you don't like them and are not prepared to accept them, go find the information somewhere else. I emailed Bernd in January requesting politely a new username and password and quoted the ones I had used previously. I received new ones within 2 or 3 days. I note that the new username is in the same format as a tcpip address. In fact the first two groups of three digits are the same as those of my DHCP server but don't let me encourage anyone to try to fake a username which is useless without a password in any case. The May 7 issue of the database has a few incorrect entries. My favourite listening around the 0500-0700 period is Radio Havana Cuba which today included Arnie Coro's segment for DXers. I do not hear them on 9820 as listed but they are on 11760 which is not listed. 9550 and 6060 can be heard here near Melbourne Australia as well (Morrison Hoyle, VK3BCY, May 11, DX LISTENING DIGEST) RADIO EQUIPMENT FORUM +++++++++++++++++++++ UPGRADING RADIOS -- EXPERIENCE AT UNIVERSAL RADIO I wrote a couple of days ago to this group asking for advice about my desire to swap my Satt 800 for a new IC-R75. Most of those who replied (thanks to all of you!) suggested I stay with what I have and put up a long-wire antenna. Well... I really wanted a new radio, so -- against your better judgment, I set out on a three-hour drive from Indianapolis to Reynoldsburg, Ohio, to do the deal at Universal Radio, whose website I visit regularly. It was my first time visiting the store, though they sold me my Satt 800 a couple of years ago online. I spoke to Brett, and after explaining to him what I wanted to do, he (sigh) gave me the same advice you guys did: Don't upgrade. He took the time to talk to me about antennas, the radios, reception, etc. When it was over, I bought an antenna, but not the radio. So now I have an EMF antenna from RF Systems hooked up to my 800, and it's beautiful. So I'm grateful to you guys (and gals) for your advice, and I'm really grateful to the guys at Universal for not taking advantage of me and selling me a new radio. My wife, who went along for the ride (what a woman, huh?) was very impressed. Just thought I share the experience. Thanks again for your advice (Ed Metzler, May 7, shortwavelistening yg via DXLD) RADIO SHACK, CANADA Greetings Glenn, Regarding the item on Radio Shack's Canadian adventures in the latest DXLD, I noticed that a few Radio Shack shopping-mall locations in Calgary have strung up a huge banner at the front of the store (vertical, almost the full height of the store, taking up no less than 25% of the storefront) loudly proclaiming an imminent name change. Also of note, Radio Shack-branded items (batteries, for example) are being sold at clearance prices, as per an advertisement in the newspaper. 73s, (Ricky Leong. Calgary, Alta, May 11, DX LISTENING DIGEST) CONTINENTAL ELECTRONICS CORPORATION IS BACK! Dear friends, I am happy to inform you that as of March 14, we officially got our old name Continental Electronics Corporation back. As most of you recall, Continental was part of IDT which was owned by Veritas Capital till Nov. 2003. At that time a merger acquisition took place between IDT and DRS and we became part of DRS. Veritas Capital, our old owner, always liked our potential and the business we are in. They acquired us back on March 13 and immediately told us that we can go back to our original name, Continental Electronics Corporation. We are very excited about going back to our old owners. We know them well, and they know us even better. They understand our business very well, and are keen on having us grow in the broadcast market. So, it is business as usual for us with less paperwork and fewer corporate meetings. Regards, (Adil Mina, Vice president, Business Development, Continental Electronics Corporation, April NASB Newsletter via DXLD) WINDFARMS - THREAT TO AMATEUR OPERATIONS Amateurs in Wales and elsewhere in the country have been concerned about the effect of proposed Windfarms on their Amateur Radio operation. The fact that Windfarms are unsightly and generate objectionable levels of noise are well known but what is not so well known is they they can impact on the reception of Amateur Signals as well as TV and Radio. This BBC document which also covers Windfarms is well worth reading: http://www.bbc.co.uk/reception/factsheets/pdfs/buildings_factsheet.pdf 73 (Trevor M5AKA, swmagazine yg via DXLD) Actual title of this: ``The Impact of Large Buildings and Structures (including Wind Farms) on Terrestrial Television Reception`` --- mainly dealing with shadowing, ghosting, reflection, not mentioning ham radio (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) HUMAX OTA DTV TUNER I was curious if anyone in this group has tested this OTA DTV tuner? Over the past few months I've read pro and con reports about this unit. This morning I just read a new post at AVS Forum http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=536410 from a guy in Dayton, OH, who states, "Humax's tuner does a great job at locking in stations. Channel switching is fast as well. It easily beats my DTC100 and the Walmart usdigital (it's going back to wally world). It has a nicer menu system, EPG, smaller form factor, HDMI video (seems it doesn't pass audio) and you can have it for the same price as the usdigital." (Steve Rich, May 11, WTFDA via DXLD) We'll find out in a few days, as I just ordered one from J&R. It's about $1 more expensive than the Wal-Mart USDTV unit |grin| --- but with the VGA output it should be possible to watch 4x3 HDTV on it, among other possible advantages. I note on the advertising flyer, it says "While in standby mode, the HFA100 looks for newly available digital channels automatically." This raises the interesting possibility of automatic unattended DTV DX -- if there's a tropo opening while you're out, might the box contain some DX channels when you get home? (Doug Smith, W9WI, Pleasant View (Nashville), TN EM66 http://www.w9wi.com ibid.) DRM +++ Re 5-079: I thought the item looked familiar, about FCC adopting DRM, but didn`t want to hunt thru previous DXLDs. Now I have run across essentially the same item in 5-067 of April 23 (gh) The FCC recently amended its rules to officially permit DRM broadcasting on shortwave in the United States with a minimum power level of 10 kilowatts. At the USA DRM Meeting in Washington, we want to get sincere indications of interest from stations in the USA with appropriate equipment who would like to begin DRM transmissions, and to "match them up" with manufacturers who may be able to provide DRM equipment and technical expertise for long-term tests. There are at least five DRM transmitter sites in the Americas now, but none yet in the United States. Hopefully this will change during 2005 as a result of our efforts (April NASB Newsletter via DXLD) Hmmm, those would be: Sackville, Bonaire, Montsinéry, Pifo, Calera de Tango (gh, DXLD) PROPAGATION +++++++++++ The geomagnetic field ranged from quiet to severe storm levels. On 02 May, activity was at quiet to unsettled levels and remained at these levels through late on the 7th. At 06/1306 UTC, the Boulder magnetometer observed a weak SI of 8 nT. The suspected cause of the SI was believed to be from the CME/C8.0 event late on 02 May. By 2000 UTC on 07 May, solar wind speed, temperature, and density all increased, while the IMF Bz oscillated through +11 and – 20 nT. The structure of the solar wind during this time appeared to be the onset of a coronal hole high speed stream which had been modified by transient flow. These conditions persisted until late on the 8th. The geomagnetic field responded with a minor storm period late on 07 May and mostly active to severe storming periods till late on the 8th. Conditions started to settle down to unsettled to active late on 08 May. FORECAST OF SOLAR AND GEOMAGNETIC ACTIVITY 11 MAY - 06 JUNE 2005 Solar activity is expected be at very low to moderate levels. Further M-class activity is expected from Region 758 until it departs the visible disk late on 14 May. Otherwise expect very low to low levels. There is a slight chance for a greater than 10 MeV proton event from Region 758 until 14 May. The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit is expected to be at high levels 11 – 16 May, and 28 May – 02 June. The geomagnetic field is expected to range from quiet to minor storm levels. Recurrent coronal hole high speed wind streams are expected to produce active to minor storm levels on 11 May, 17 May, 27 – 28 May, and 04 – 05 June. Otherwise, expect quiet to unsettled conditions. :Product: 27-day Space Weather Outlook Table 27DO.txt :Issued: 2005 May 10 2215 UTC # Prepared by the US Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Environment Center # Product description and SEC contact on the Web # http://www.sec.noaa.gov/wwire.html # # 27-day Space Weather Outlook Table # Issued 2005 May 10 # # UTC Radio Flux Planetary Largest # Date 10.7 cm A Index Kp Index 2005 May 11 110 12 3 2005 May 12 110 10 3 2005 May 13 110 8 3 2005 May 14 105 8 3 2005 May 15 100 5 2 2005 May 16 100 8 3 2005 May 17 100 15 3 2005 May 18 100 10 3 2005 May 19 100 10 3 2005 May 20 100 10 3 2005 May 21 100 10 3 2005 May 22 100 10 3 2005 May 23 100 10 3 2005 May 24 100 5 2 2005 May 25 100 5 2 2005 May 26 100 5 2 2005 May 27 100 20 4 2005 May 28 105 25 5 2005 May 29 105 7 2 2005 May 30 105 10 3 2005 May 31 105 8 3 2005 Jun 01 105 5 2 2005 Jun 02 105 5 2 2005 Jun 03 100 8 3 2005 Jun 04 100 15 3 2005 Jun 05 100 15 3 2005 Jun 06 100 15 3 (http://www.sec.noaa.gov/radio via DXLD) ###