DX LISTENING DIGEST 4-103, July 8, 2004 edited by Glenn Hauser, http://www.worldofradio.com Items from DXLD may be reproduced and re-reproduced only if full credit be maintained at all stages and we be provided exchange copies. DXLD may not be reposted in its entirety without permission. Materials taken from Arctic or originating from Olle Alm and not having a commercial copyright are exempt from all restrictions of noncommercial, noncopyrighted reusage except for full credits For restrixions and searchable 2004 contents archive see http://www.worldofradio.com/dxldmid.html NOTE: If you are a regular reader of DXLD, and a source of DX news but have not been sending it directly to us, please consider yourself obligated to do so. Thanks, Glenn NEXT AIRINGS OF WORLD OF RADIO 1237: Fri 0400 on RFPI http://www.rfpi.org repeated 4-hourly [maybe] Fri 2300 on Studio X, Momigno, Italy 1584 Sat 0800 on WRN1 to Europe, Africa, Asia, Pacific Sat 0855 on WNQM Nashville 1300 Sat 1030 on WWCR 5070 Sat 1830 on WPKN Bridgeport, 89.5, webcast http://www.wpkn.org Sat 2030 on WWCR 12160 Sat 2030 on WBCQ 17495-CUSB [maybe] Sat 2030 on R. Lavalamp http://www.radiolavalamp.org Sat 2130 on RFPI http://www.rfpi.org repeated 8-hourly [maybe] Sat 2300 on RFPI http://www.rfpi.org repeated 8-hourly [maybe] Sun 0230 on WWCR 5070 Sun 0300 on WBCQ 9330-CLSB Sun 0630 on WWCR 3210 Sun 1000 on WRN1 to North America, webcast; also KSFC 91.9 Spokane WA, and WDWN 89.1 Auburn NY; maybe KTRU 91.7 Houston TX, each with webcasts Sun 1100 on R. Lavalamp http://www.radiolavalamp.org Sun 1500 on R. Lavalamp http://www.radiolavalamp.org Sun 1900 on Studio X, Momigno, Italy 1584 Sun 2000 on RNI webcast, http://www.11L-rni.com Mon 0100 on WBCQ 9330-CLSB Mon 0330 on WSUI 910, webcast http://wsui.uiowa.edu [previous 1236] Mon 0430 on WBCQ 7415, webcast http://wbcq.us Mon 0900 on R. Lavalamp http://www.radiolavalamp.org Mon 1600 on WBCQ after-hours http://wbcq.com repeated weekdaily Wed 0930 on WWCR 9475 WRN ONDEMAND [from Fri]: http://new.wrn.org/listeners/stations/station.php?StationID=24 OUR ONDEMAND AUDIO [also for CONTINENT OF MEDIA, MUNDO RADIAL]: Check http://www.worldofradio.com/audiomid.html WORLD OF RADIO 1237 (high version): (stream) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1237h.ram (download) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1237h.rm (summary) http://www.worldofradio.com/wor1237.html WORLD OF RADIO 1237 (low version): (stream) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1237.ram (download) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1237.rm DXLD YAHOOGROUP: Why wait for DXLD? A lot more info, not all of it appearing in DXLD later, is posted at our new yg. Here`s where to sign up. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dxld/ (Glenn Hauser, May 13, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** AFGHANISTAN [non]. New station Internews Radio/"Salaam Watandar" heard in Pashto/Dari, today July 8 1330-1500 UT on 17700. First 30 minutes under heavy co-channel QRM by the BBC (QTH?) News Hour. They went off the air at 14 UTC. After that strong, steady and good signal. The programme was divided into three segments and after each segment, there was a break of several minutes. Many fine "Salaam Watander"- ID´s. My wild guess is, this must come from DTK Germany or Norway? 73´s (Jouko Huuskonen, Turku, FINLAND, July 8, DX LISTENING DIGEST) We had previous item from BBCM that it`s a Merlin transmitter, which would rule out Germany and, I think, Norway; probably UK, tho not necessarily. If it is Merlin, they really screwed up with BBC colliding (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Probably Skelton or Woofferton (Wolfgang Bueschel, BC-DX via DXLD) ** ANTARCTICA. After a long time without listening this station, I can pick up it yesterday with poor signal here in Spain. 15476, Radio Nacional Arcángel San Gabriel, 1953, Female voice, Id. "Base Esperanza, Antártida Argentina". Comments and songs. Poor signal, 24222 (Manuel Méndez, Lugo, Spain, July 8, EDXP via DXLD) ANTÁRTIDA ARGENTINA, 15476, Radio Nacional Arcángel San Gabriel, 1953. Hacía bastantes meses que no escuchaba esta emisora, no se si por mala propagación o porqué estuvo inactiva. Ayer, día 6 de Julio pude escucharla con señal débil y por momentos a penas audible. A las 1954 pude escuchar "Base Esperanza, Antártida Argentina" y varios comentarios por una locutora. A las 1957 canción interpretada por una mujer. SINPO 24212. (Julio 6). (Manuel Méndez, Lugo, España, Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** AUSTRALIA. BPL ideal for apartment buildings: see POWERLINE COMMUNICATIONS below ** BELARUS. Radio Minsk. 5970 at 0200. Good reception in English on this frequency but parallel 7210 kHz very noisy (Ian Cattermole, New Zealand, July 9, Cumbre DX via DXLD) ** BERMUDA. ZFB-FM 94.9 Audio online --- I`ve posted a couple of bits of audio from what we recorded of our reception of ZFB-FM 94.9 Bermuda. You can find 'em here: http://www.capitalgold.org/dxaudio/ZFB-FM.htm Audio stinks; apparently they don`t have either an AGC or peak limiter on that rig. Just click the links and your mp3 player will open and start streaming (or that's the way it's supposed to work :) (Andrew MacKenzie, Greenville NY July 5, WTFDA via DXLD) This is triple schweet! I just listened to a couple of minutes (near bedtime and I must work tomorrow --- not getting any younger, hi!) and was struck by the fact that the speakers sound almost continental North American, but with just a little different twist to the accent. It's something you'd almost have to be looking for. FWIW, Bermuda is the only place I'm aware of that has terrestrial broadcast affiliates of US TV networks, yet lies outside the US (excepting Mexican border stations, XETV-6 et al.). Oddly enough, just this afternoon my wife and I were touring Sullivan's Island and Isle of Palms, SC (a couple of hours from our home; we took a quick overnight getaway) and I remarked to her how Sullivan's Island, especially, would remind you of some kind of British Isles-tinged, slow-paced, slightly anachronistic bit of the Caribbean (yes, I know, Bermuda ISN'T Caribbean!) --- then we come home and hear about all of this in DX land. It would have been surreal to turn on the radio this afternoon and hear ZFB-FM coming through loud and clear! Incidentally, it was 96 degrees and Marta remarked that it was like breathing water vapor! We toured Fort Moultrie (don't pass this jewel by!) but didn't go to the beach, too darned hot! More Bermuda broadcasting: Check out the online stream of VBS-11 (NBC affiliate) on their Web site: http://www.vsb.bm/ http://www.vsb.bm:8080/ramgen/encoder/vsb11.rm Between "Who Wants To Marry My Dad" on NBC and the 11 pm (or 12 midnight?) local news, I thought I heard a snippet about a fire in Brooklyn, then this was abruptly cut off and the VBS ID and local news open came on. Perhaps they get the NBC feed from WNBC-4 via satellite and insert local content? Enjoy! (David Austin, Columbia SC, WTFDA via DXLD) http://www.vsb.bm/ (VSB web site) http://www.bermudabroadcasting.com/ (ZBM/ZFB website) 73, (Charles Gauthier, St-Lambert, QC, WTFDA via DXLD) ** CUBA. Hi all; Just tuned in to Radio Havana Cuba with a program about Radio Swan. (0215 UT tune in). I suspect you can catch this again during the 0400 and 0600 RHC broadcasts in English (Mick Delmage, Sherwood Park, Alberta, Canada, UT July 8, DX LISTENING DIGEST) I missed the 0400, but tried at 0600, when none of the 9 or 11 MHz frequencies were audible. It was not until 0625 that I thought to check 6000, and that was on with RHC in English voiceovers, mixed with Spanish, about rhythmic gymnastics. Did anyone else hear or record the Swan item? (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** CUBA. Re RHC Cuba - The Observer report on the 0500-0700 English transmission is not correct as I have reported four channels operating on 11760 9820 9655 and 9550 simultaneously - but NOT daily. As Wolfie reports, 9820 was off today, and was off yesterday too. I could hear 9550 in massive splash from 9545 and 9655 under ROU, while 11760 was mixing with the ditter in splash from 11755. Also BBC bells from c0655 on 11760. When I saw Wolfie`s report about Reloj I tried myself and found 9550 still audible c0825. The station seems to operate in a very haphazard manner. Hopefully - for them - its listeners know which four channels it might be using, and that Spanish speaking listeners might get to hear Reloj at 0700 - or then again, they might not! (Noel R. Green-UK, BC-DX July 7 via DXLD) ** DOMINICAN REPUBLIC. 1640.00, New station, Santo Domingo, 114 kb. 0100 UTC 7/7 2004. I have just finished listening to a new station on 1640 kHz from Santo Domingo, República Dominicana. Listen to my recording and tell me your opinion! Recordings and comments at: http://www.malm-ecuador.com 73s (Björn Malm, Quito, Ecuador, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Altho Björn does not mention it here, the unID 1640 Dominican was first reported by Barry Davies, UK, in DX LISTENING DIGEST 4-098 of June 28 (also Medium Wave Circle); he had heard it June 25 at 0255- 0303, sounded like ``Radio Bufay``. I could not make any ID out of Björn`s recording; when they give the address I don`t think it starts with the station name, but the street name. I went to the INDOTEL website where Resolutions are published authorizing new radio stations, http://www.indotel.org.do/Site/Marco_Legal/consejo/Resoluciones_2003/ and bingo, there it was under 2003 12 de mayo: Resolución 053-03 Que asigna de manera provisional a la Sociedad Salesiana de la Iglesia Católica la frecuencia 1640 KHZ para la operación de la estación Radio Juventus - Don Bosco, en la ciudad de Santo Somingo. This links to a 5-page PDF will all the details; power is 1 kW day, 500 watts night; they had 3 months from the date of the resolution to build the station, and the license period was only one year from the same date, but we are past that now. Strangely enough, I find no mention of an HI- callsign in any of this documentation; in any event, I won`t be hearing Juventus any time soon with my NSP local on 1640. http://www.indotel.org.do/Site/Marco_Legal/consejo/Resoluciones_2003/Resolucion_053-03.pdf INSTITUTO DOMINICANO DE LAS TELECOMUNICACIONES (INDOTEL) RESOLUCIÓN NO. 053-03 QUE ASIGNA DE MANERA PROVISIONAL A LA SOCIEDAD SALESIANA DE LA IGLESIA CATOLICA LA FRECUENCIA 1640 KHZ PARA LA OPERACIÓN DE LA ESTACIÓN RADIO JUVENTUS - DON BOSCO, EN LA CIUDAD DE SANTO DOMINGO. El Consejo Directivo del Instituto Dominicano de las Telecomunicaciones (INDOTEL), en ejercicio de las atribuciones que le confiere la Ley General de Telecomunicaciones, número 153-98, del 27 de mayo de 1998, reunido válidamente previa convocatoria, dicta la siguiente RESOLUCIÓN: CONSIDERANDO: Que en fecha quince (15) de enero del año dos mil tres (2003), mediante el Oficio No. 29.216/2003, el Arzobispo Metropolitano de Santo Domingo, Nicolás de Jesús Cardenal López Rodríguez, autorizó a la SOCIEDAD SALESIANA a realizar los trámites de lugar para la obtención de una frecuencia para la operación de una estación de nombre Radio Juventus - Don Bosco; CONSIDERANDO: Que una vez obtenida la indicada autorización de la máxima autoridad nacional de la Iglesia Católica, en fecha treinta y uno (31) de enero del año dos mil tres (2003), el padre Luis E. Rosario Peña, actuando en calidad de representante de la SOCIEDAD SALESIANA DE LA IGLESIA CATOLICA, dirigió una comunicación al INDOTEL, mediante la cual le solicitó a esta institución una Concesión y una Licencia, para operar una estación radial bajo el nombre Radio Juventus - Don Bosco, en la ciudad de Santo Domingo, en la banda de Amplitud Modulada (A.M.); CONSIDERANDO: Que la SOCIEDAD SALESIANA DE LA IGLESIA CATOLICA es una organización religiosa adscrita a la Iglesia Católica, cuya misión es transmitir el evangelio y la Eucaristía, estando al servicio de la juventud a fin de contribuir positivamente a su formación integral; CONSIDERANDO: Que con motivo de la indicada solicitud de Concesión y Licencia, la SOCIEDAD SALESIANA DE LA IGLESIA CATOLICA cumplió con los requisitos establecidos al efecto por el Reglamento de Concesiones, Inscripciones en Registros Especiales y Licencias para prestar Servicios de Telecomunicaciones en la República Dominicana; CONSIDERANDO: Que en tal virtud, este órgano regulador procedió a realizar los estudios y comprobaciones técnicas necesarias para determinar la factibilidad de la solicitud de Concesión y Licencia presentada por la SOCIEDAD SALESIANA DE LA IGLESIA CATOLICA; CONSIDERANDO: Que de acuerdo con la letra ``g`` del Artículo 3 de la Ley General de Telecomunicaciones No. 153-98, son objetivos de la misma, entre otros, ``garantizar la administración y el uso eficiente del dominio público del espectro radioeléctrico``; CONSIDERANDO: Que según el Artículo 66.1 de dicho texto legal, ``el órgano regulador tiene la facultad de gestión, administración y control del espectro radioeléctrico, incluyendo las facultades de atribuir a determinados usos, bandas específicas, asignar frecuencias a usuarios determinados y controlar su correcto uso``; CONSIDERANDO: Que la referida Ley establece en su Artículo 24.1, que ``el órgano regulador deberá llamar a concurso público para el otorgamiento de concesiones o licencias cuando se requiera utilizar el espectro radioeléctrico atribuido a servicios públicos de radiocomunicaciones, salvo en los casos de emergencia justificada ante el órgano regulador; exceptuando de este procedimiento las instituciones del Estado y aquellas autorizadas a operar sin fines de lucro, así como las instituciones religiosas reconocidas por el Estado y que actúan en virtud a lo establecido por el artículo 8 de la Constitución de la República``, como es el caso de la especie; CONSIDERANDO: Que el Artículo 19.1 del Reglamento de Concesiones, Inscripciones en Registros Especiales y Licencias para prestar Servicios de Telecomunicaciones en la República Dominicana dispone que ``cualquier persona jurídica interesada en prestar u operar un servicio público de telecomunicaciones, ya sean estos servicios portadores, finales o de difusión, deberá obtener una Concesión``; CONSIDERANDO: Que de acuerdo a lo establecido en el artículo 40 del supraindicado Reglamento, las instituciones religiosas reconocidas por el Estado que deseen operar o prestar servicios de radiocomunicaciones que involucren el uso de espectro radioeléctrico, deberán obtener una Licencia sin necesidad de concurso público; CONSIDERANDO: Que el INDOTEL se encuentra en estos momentos realizando una serie de trabajos de índole normativo y reglamentario, en lo concerniente al otorgamiento de Concesiones y Licencias, uso del espectro radioeléctrico y asignación de frecuencias, razón por la cual el otorgamiento definitivo de una Concesión y/o Licencia para la operación de frecuencias no será efectuado hasta tanto culminen dichas labores y los solicitantes cumplan con los requisitos o disposiciones que les sean aplicables; VISTA: La Ley General de Telecomunicaciones No. 153-98, del 27 de mayo del 1998, en sus disposiciones citadas; VISTO: El Reglamento de Concesiones, Inscripciones en Registros Especiales y Licencias para prestar Servicios de Telecomunicaciones en la República Dominicana, en sus disposiciones citadas; VISTA: La solicitud de Concesión y Licencia presentada al INDOTEL por la SOCIEDAD SALESIANA DE LA IGLESIA CATÓLICA en fecha treinta y uno (31) de enero del año dos mil tres (2003); VISTO: El informe técnico presentado por la Gerencia de Radiodifusión, de fecha cuatro (4) de abril del presente año dos mil tres (2003); VISTAS: Las demás piezas que conforman el expediente; EL CONSEJO DIRECTIVO DEL INSTITUTO DOMINICANO DE LAS TELECOMUNICACIONES, EN EJERCICIO DE SUS FACULTADES LEGALES Y REGLAMENTARIAS RESUELVE: PRIMERO: OTORGAR un permiso provisional, en favor de LA SOCIEDAD SALESIANA DE LA IGLESIA CATOLICA por un período de un (1) año, contado a partir de la notificación de la presente Resolución, para que opere la estación radiodifusora RADIO JUVENTUS - DON BOSCO en la frecuencia 1640 KHz, en la ciudad de Santo Domingo. SEGUNDO: OTORGAR un plazo de tres (3) meses calendario, contados a partir de la fecha de la notificación de la presente Resolución, para la instalación del transmisor de RADIO JUVENTUS - DON BOSCO, en la ciudad de Santo Domingo, con una potencia de 1 KW durante el día, y 500 W durante la noche. PÁRRAFO: Para la instalación del transmisor de la citada estación, deberán limitarse las radiaciones a niveles no perjudiciales a las personas y el medio ambiente, entendiéndose que el lugar de ubicación del mismo deberá ser aprobado previamente por el INDOTEL. TERCERO: DISPONER que una vez se encuentren instalados los equipos de RADIO JUVENTUS - DON BOSCO, la SOCIEDAD SALESIANA DE LA IGLESIA CATOLICA deberá, dentro del plazo previamente indicado, solicitar al INDOTEL una inspección técnica, con carácter de condición previa y necesaria para poder iniciar sus transmisiones. CUARTO: DISPONER que una vez el INDOTEL culmine con los trabajos de índole normativo y reglamentario en lo referente al otorgamiento de Concesiones y Licencias, uso del espectro radioeléctrico y asignación de frecuencias a instituciones religiosas y sin fines de lucro, se deberá cumplir con cualquier requisito o disposición aplicable para el otorgamiento definitivo de la Concesión y Licencia necesarias para la operación de la estación Radio Juventus – Don Bosco. CUARTO: ORDENAR la notificación de esta Resolución a la solicitante y su publicación en el Boletín Oficial del INDOTEL y en la página Web que esta institución mantiene en la red de Internet. Así ha sido aprobada y firmada la presente Resolución por el Consejo Directivo del Instituto Dominicano de las Telecomunicaciones (INDOTEL), hoy día doce (12) del mes de mayo del año dos mil tres (2003). FIRMADO: Lic. Orlando Jorge Mera Secretario de Estado Presidente del Consejo Directivo Lic. Carlos Despradel Margarita Cordero Secretario Técnico de la Presidencia Miembro del Consejo Directivo Miembro del Consejo Directivo Licda. Sabrina de la Cruz Vargas Miembro del Consejo Directivo Ing. José Delio Ares Guzmán Director Ejecutivo Secretario del Consejo Directivo (via Glenn Hauser, DXLD) Nice job, Glenn. I found additional info by googling their slogan, which was quite clear on Malm`s clip: "una voz para la civilización del amor" which led me to the following newspaper article http://www.listin.com.do/antes/junio04/250604/cuerpos/espectaculos/esp2.htm The street address is not listed anywhere, but it sounds like Calle Juan Evangelista something, número 49, Urbanización María Auxiliadora, in Santo Domingo de Guzmán (Henrik Klemetz, Sweden, DX LISTENING DIGEST) [Later:] address for Dominican: Calle Juan Evangelista Jiménez, 49, Urbanización María Auxiliadora, Santo Domingo, D.N. Info is verified (Henrik Klemetz, July 8, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Tal como se puede oír en la grabación consignada por Malm, la Radio Juventus Don Bosco pide que se les envíe informes. La dirección postal que dan es la de la Calle Juan Evangelista Jiménez, 49, Urbanización María Auxiliadora, Santo Domingo de Guzmán, Distrito Nacional, República Dominicana. El dato me pareció inverosímil y por eso en mis anteriores informes puse la dirección como Juan Evangelista "y algo", pero ahora, hechos los estudios pertinentes, puedo adelantar a los atentos lectores de esta lista que sí existió un Juan Evangelista Jiménez quien se ha hecho acreedor de más de una calle en la República Dominicana. Sobre su participación en lo que se ha venido a denominar "el manifiesto de agravios", en 1844, hay más detalles en http://www.jmarcano.com/mipais/historia/enero16.html (Henrik Klemetz, Conexión Digital via DXLD) [Earlier:] Re DXLD 4-098: Noisy recording posted July 7 on http://www.malm-ecuador.com reveals that this is Radio Juventus Don Bosco, "una voz para la civilización del amor", a 1 kW outlet in the testing stage. The station is intended for young listeners (hence the name Juventus, in Latin) and it is being operated by the Catholic Church and is located in the María Auxiliadora neighborhood of Santo Domingo de Guzmán which is the name of the capital city of the Dominican Republic (Henrik Klemetz, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Nice job, too, Henrik, tracking it down by the slogan! (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) My recording and hard work by Henrik Klemetz and Glenn Hauser solved the problem. Thanks Henrik and Glenn; for me this is something "special" - my first logging here in Quito of República Dominicana on mediumwave (Björn Malm, Ecuador, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Here`s the Listin Diario article, Henrik linked above illustrated with a shot in the studio (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) LA COMUNIDAD SALESIANA OPERA UNA EMISORA PARA LOS JÓVENES RADIO JUVENTUS DON BOSCO transmite en los 1640 de amplitud modulada Ramón Almánzar SANTO DOMINGO. Luis Rosario, a la izquierda, junto a cercanos colabores del proyecto radial que opera desde el barrio María Auxiliadora en la Capital. San Juan Bosco, fundador de la Sociedad Salesiana de la Iglesia Católica, tenía la juventud y los medios de comunicación como sus prioridades pastorales. [caption] Ya en su tiempo (1815-1888), Don Bosco se dedicó a los medios de comunicación que en ese momento existían, que eran los escritos. La Congregación Salesiana de las Antillas ha continuado esa filosofía de vida y ha centrado su trabajo pastoral en los jóvenes. Para ellos ha creado decenas de programas y acciones. La más reciente es una emisora de radio dirigida para este sector juvenil, tan importante en la sociedad. Juventus Don Bosco es el nombre de la estación radial que operará con un kilo de potencia desde la capital dominicana en los 1640 de la amplitud modulada. ``La Sociedad Salesiana tiene emisoras de radio y televisión en otros países, pero aquí será la primera vez que asumamos un proyecto de este tipo``, dijo el sacerdote Luis Rosario, coordinador de la Pastoral Juvenil. Viejo sueño Rosario contó que ellos venían sopesando la idea desde hace años. En el 1985 el padre Ton Lluberes le sugirió a Rosario que su comunidad se atreviera a asumir un proyecto de radio. Sin un centavo, sólo con la idea, los salesianos aceptaron el reto y desde el año pasado empezaron a convertir en realidad su viejo sueño. El edificio lo comenzaron a levantar con colaboraciones y ``gracias a Dios que encontramos al ingeniero Héctor Andújar, quien nos dio toda su ayuda para la construcción``. La Embajada de Japón donó casi 80 mil dólares. ``Ellos fueron claves en este esfuerzo, porque luego de una solicitud que le hicimos la aceptaron y firmaron un contrato de donación no reembolsable``, sostuvo Rosario. ``Sin ese aporte de Japón --- agregó --- los equipos que son muy sofisticados, todos nuevos, no se hubieran podido conseguir con tanta facilidad``. Resaltó, además, el apoyo de la comunidad Hijos de María, de la Parroquia Jesucristo Sumo y Eterno Sacerdote. Insistió en que Radio Juventus Don Bosco es un proyecto de la sociedad salesiana para la juventud. ``Queremos aportar a la educacion de la niñez, la juventud y la familia; la línea es educativo-pastoral``, afirmó. El eslogan es ``Radio Juventus Don Bosco, una voz para la civilización del amor``, indicó, siguiendo los lineamientos de la Pastoral Juvenil que ha asumido la propuesta que en sentido sugirió el Papa Pablo VI. Responsables El ingeniero Antonio Vargas será el director ejecutivo de la emisora, mientras Pedro Pérez Méndez es el ingeniero técnico. Lo principal ahora es estructurar una programación atractiva y entrar a la Internet. ``La idea es que la emisora tenga programas educativos en vivo, tenemos varios seleccionados para cuando esté en la próxima semana la transmisión regular``. Con la estación, los salesianos no buscan competir con otras estaciones. ``Sólo queremos aportar a que el mundo cambie, nuestra línea va en ese sentido, de crear una civilizacion de amor``. Comerciales corporativos Sobre cómo se autofinanciará, Rosario señaló que en la Iglesia Católica todos los proyectos deben ser autofinanciables. ``Todo lo que se consuma dentro de la emisora tendrá que producirlo la misma emisora, ya sea en forma de colaboración o de promoción, pero no se transmitirán comerciales como tales``, dijo Antonio Vargas. ``La parte comercial no la vamos a explotar con el concepto tradicional, sino con un marketing corporativo``, añadió Vargas. Rosario habló de que la juventud necesita alternativa ``y nosotros le estamos ofreciendo una que quizás es la que más le va a llenar``. Para los oyentes interesados en comunicarse con el personal, el teléfono es el 538-4647 (via DXLD) OM Glenn Hauser (DX Listening Digest) has solved my UN ID Dominican Republic log on 26 June 2004.(Oops should read 6/25 not 26. Sorry) The station is "Radio Juventus Don Bosco" in Santo Domingo. This is a new Catholic religious station. The station is currently testing 1 kW days, 500 watts nights. I had a weak to fair signal so I suspect they were on 1kW? I kept the tape and the actual ID slots in nicely. I guess the light songs would be of a religious nature but did not sound choral. 73's (Barry Davies, UK, IRCA via DXLD) ** DOMINICAN REPUBLIC. While I was at the Indotel site researching 1640 above, I searched all the 2003 and 2004 resolutions for each and every X-band frequency, 1610 thru 1710 (for good measure), and found one more in the 2004 file, for 23 April, not on air yet: Resolución 061-04 Que otorga concesión y licencia a favor de la institución sin fines de lucro Ministerio Religioso Senda de Vida, Inc., para operar servicios de radiodifusión sonora en la provincia de San Pedro de Macoris a traves de la frecuencia 1680 KHZ en Amplitud Modulada. http://www.indotel.org.do/Site/Marco_Legal/consejo/Resoluciones_2004/Resolucion_061-04.pdf We may more or less fill in the blanks as in the above formulary, but this time the power specified is 5 kW day, 3 kW night, subject to change if there are interference problems. It had three months from the date of issue to construct the transmitter at which time it would be inspected, i.e. 23 July, but the license term is 20 years in this case. The Indotel website is a goldmine of info about new Dominican radio and TV stations, if anyone has the inclination to go through all the resolutions. I may include the 1680 complete Resolution in next issue (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ERITREA. 7100, Voice of the Broad Masses of Eritrea verified with a full data card and short personal letter in 256 days from v/s Berhane Gerzgiher who is listed as Director of Radio Engineering in the WRTH. Address on reply was Ministry of Information, Radio Department, Radio Engineering Division, P.O.Box 242, Asmara, Eritrea (Rich D`Angelo, PA, DXplorer July 4 via BC-DX via DXLD) ** ETHIOPIA. AU Radio - good reception tonight 7165, 9561 kHz African Union Radio is currently audible here with excellent signals from 1730 UT tune-in on 8 July via Radio Ethiopia on 9561.44 and also fair on parallel 7165.4 kHz. Currently in presumed Amharic with the odd item in English about the African Union summit. There appears to have been some confusion over the dates of the special AU Radio broadcasts, but the African Union web site at http://www.africa-union.org confirms that the radio broadcasts commenced on 4 July and are aired at 1700-2100 UT --- see http://www.africa-union.org/AU%20summit%202004/live%20Radio.htm The summit is scheduled to end today so I wonder if this will be the last day of these special broadcasts. 73s (Dave Kenny, Caversham UK, AOR 7030+ long wire, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST) Trying to lift some of the confusion about the schedules or adding some new with my little special personal Ethiopia record of today, July 8: 7165: 1730 R. Ethiopia in French as usual, 1758 Nat. Anthem, then on in Arabic until long after 1800. New broadcast or African Union? 9560: // 7165 all the time, het+QRM Ankara, but Ethiopia stronger! 7110: 1800: gong, internal service, as usual 9705: 1715-1800+ internal service., gong exactly // 7110 5500 // 6350: 1750-1800, Voice of Tigray revolution, both freq. audible but weak today 6210: fair signal 1715-1810+, presumed R. Fana 6940 (Fana): nothing but utility, 9410 BBC, no het or anything pointing for Ethiopia, 11802 + 5990 also blocked by strong stations (Thorsten Hallmann, Münster, Germany, July 8, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** GEORGIA. 11805 has gone off again, and I assume this is due to power shortages rather than a fault with the transmitter. It sounds reasonably good when on air, although I think 11 MHz is too low for optimum results, and signal strength suffers as a result. Especially when on 11910 (Noel R. Green, UK, BC-DX, July 4 via DXLD) at 0600- 0730? (gh, DXLD) R Georgia in English on air today July 7, at 0830 and 0930 on 11910.05 kHz, S=3-4 fading, very, very low modulation level, only 3-5 %. Between 0900 and 0930 UT the carrier keeps still on air. Georgian 11910 should start at 1000- 1029 UT then (Wolfgang Büschel, BC-DX via DXLD) 11910.05 - A sched I have lists 0800-0900 in French & English "in direction towards Munich" and 0930-1030 in English & Georgian "in direction towards Tel-Aviv", as listed in the WRTH. I wonder if the site does operate directional antennas or is it simply saying where their broadcast is intended to be heard? At 0600-0730 11805 is shown in Russian, English & German "in direction towards Oslo". And the next bcasts on 25m should be at 1800-1900 on 11910 in German & English "to Munich" and 1930-2100 on 11760 in English, German & Russian "to Oslo". 6180 is listed 1630-1730 "to Tel-Aviv" in English & Georgian but I don't hear it. Probably too low anyway (Noel R. Green-UK, BC-DX July 7 via DXLD) It is very quaint that some broadcasters, Cuba and Venezuela too, designate their SW broadcasts for certain cities as if they only had a pipeline (gh, DXLD) ** ICELAND. 13865, Útvarp Reykjavík, 2322, July 8, I noted the RUV channel 1 SW relay with a nice s9 signal. Usual news and weather program in Icelandic with temperatures 12-25 c. Off at 2328 (David Hodgson, TN, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** INTERNATIONAL VACUUM. SIRIUS Talk Radio Lineup Now Features Two Left-Liberal Channels and Two Right-Conservative Channels NEW YORK, July 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- SIRIUS (Nasdaq: SIRI), the premium satellite radio provider known for delivering the very best in commercial-free music and sports programming to cars and homes across the country, today announced the debut of SIRIUS Patriot, a call-in talk radio channel dedicated to conservative American values. SIRIUS Patriot brings to 12 the number of SIRIUS channels that feature call- in talk radio programming, far more than what a listener could hear on any other radio service. SIRIUS Patriot is also the second channel dedicated to conservative viewpoints on SIRIUS. (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19991118/NYTH125 ) "SIRIUS is all about variety, selection and choice," said Jeremy Coleman, SIRIUS Vice President of Talk, Information and Entertainment Programming. "Earlier this year, SIRIUS added a second liberal channel with Air America Radio. We felt it was not only fair, but essential that in this crucial election year we add a second conservative channel for our subscribers. Our offering the greatest number of talk radio viewpoints is key to the SIRIUS promise of unique and compelling programming that listeners cannot get anywhere else." Among the unique offerings of the SIRIUS Patriot lineup is an overnight feed of The Pentagon Channel. This program, produced by the Department of Defense, broadcasts military news and information for the 2.6 million members of the U.S. Armed Forces, including Defense Department news briefings, military news, interviews with top defense officials and short stories about the work of the U.S. military. The SIRIUS Patriot lineup features (weekdays): 6am-9am -- Geoff Metcalf 9am-Noon -- Laura Ingraham Noon-2pm -- Bob Dornan 2pm-5pm -- Cam & Company from NRA News 5pm-6pm -- Joseph Farah's Worldnet Daily 6pm-10pm -- Michael Reagan 10pm-1am -- Joseph Farah's Worldnet Daily 1am-6am -- The Pentagon Channel (all times Eastern) Also, SIRIUS Right, the original satellite radio channel devoted exclusively to conservative talk, will add Jerry Doyle to its lineup from 10 pm to 1 am ET weeknights. [ergo, who will they subtract???] SOURCE SIRIUS Web Site: http://www.sirius.com (PRN Newswire via Don Thornton, DXLD) We are deeply offended by Sirius` choice of name for the new rightwing channel, implying that the left ARE NOT PATRIOTS!!!!!!!!!!! (gh, DXLD) ** INTERNATIONAL WATERS! Radio One 15500U again audible July 4 around 1700. Intermittent, not continuous, transmissions on that date. Two emails from the MARLO hq reveal that the power is 250 W and that the transmissions are from ships at sea. ``We`re broadcasting from our ships at sea. The broadcast duties rotate among ships any given day/week/month and can be located anywhere near the Horn of Africa, North Arabian Sea, or Persian Gulf - -- transmitting at 250 watts``, it says in one of the mails. The following is an excerpt from yet another email from Marlo: ``Our shipboard broadcasts will soon be augmented with a land-based broadcast from the UAE, adding an hour to each our 5 hour morning broadcast and 5 hour afternoon/evening broadcast times, for a total of 12 hours/day. Most of our messages implore citizens to notify Coalition authorities if they have information about terrorist operations. We also provide other information deemed useful to ordinary mariners.`` (Henrik Klemetz, July 8, 2004, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ITALY. So let's try to get some benefit from what's left of Italian medium wave and look at what we can still hear. Let's start with the region of Friuli Venezia Giulia which broadcasts three kind of local programmes (all times local, that is UTC +2 hrs summer, UTC +1 h winter). 1 - regional opt-outs from Trieste on 819 kHz at 0720 (local news), 1105, 1130, 1230 (local news), 1334, 1403, 1500 (local news), 1830 (local news). 2 - programme for Italian speaking minorities in Slovenia and Croatia, broadcast from Venice on 936 kHz (was on 1368 kHz until May 15th), with news at 1530 and various programmes of local interest at 1545-1630 LT. 3 - programme in Slovenian from Trieste on 981 kHz daily at 0700- 1935 LT with news at 0700, 0800, 1000, 1300, 1400, 1700, and 1900 (Stefano Valianti, Italy, Southern European Report in BDXC-UK Communication July via BC-DX via DXLD) ** KOREA NORTH. Nachfolgend der Wortlaut der Meldung in der "Pyongyang Times": KCC LAUNCHES HOME PAGE "NAENARA". The Korea Computer Centre (KCC), the nation's software hub and local network centre, launched home page Naenara from June Juche 93 (2004). The site provides information on the DPRK's politics, tourism, foreign trade, the arts, publications (reading and sce to order), history and customs, Korea's reunification, information industry and so on (some of information in Korean, Russian, Chinese, English, French, Spanish, Arabic, German and Japanese). Users will get access to various pieces of information on Korea, a beautiful country in the Orient and receive information on order and answers to all the questions in an instant. Tel: + 850-2-18111 (8456) Fax: + 850-2-381-4598 E-mail: info@kcckp.net URL: http://www.kcckp.net (via Arnulf Piontek, Germany, A-DX July 2 via BC-DX via DXLD) ** LATVIA. Rechecking the website http://www.kiss9290.net July 8, a streamer says the Kiss Radio 9290 now hope to begin on Latvia Sunday July 11 at 0800-0900. Did the July 4 broadcast not come off? (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** MADAGASCAR. MADAGASCAN OPPOSITION RADIO FORCED OFF AIR, SAYS MEDIA WATCHDOG | Excerpt from press release by Paris-based organization Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF) on 7 July On 28 June 2004, via decision no. 002/2004-MTPC, Madagascan Communications Minister Clermont Gervais Mahazaka ordered the closure of Radio Say for "broadcasting false news; defaming, insulting and slandering the National Assembly Speaker and a member of the government; and failure to respect the terms of reference". "These accusations are not based on any specific facts and are merely an excuse to silence a radio station which has been quite critical of the government. This action, which is tantamount to censorship, comes at a time when attitudes towards the freedom of the press are hardening, which is astonishing in a state which has a reputation in this area of being open and tolerant," Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said. "We are concerned about this situation and call on the authorities to revoke this arbitrary closure," RSF added. Radio Say, which is situated in Tulear, a town on the country's southern coast, was forbidden to broadcast after a government delegation visited the town. The delegation came to inquire into a grenade attack on 25 June during festivities marking the 44th anniversary of Madagascar's independence. One person died and around 30 people were injured in the attack. Although there is no link between this incident and the activities of the radio station, Clermont Gervais Mahazaka demanded that the station remain closed until further notice. Radio Say is an independent radio station known for its free tone. It belongs to a former minister close to [President] Didier Ratsiraka, who ruled Madagascar from 1975 to 1993 and from 1995 to 2002, before being defeated in the elections by the current head of state, Marc Ravalomanana, after several months of unrest and violence in the country. [passage omitted] Source: Reporters Sans Frontieres press release, Paris, in French 7 Jul 04 (via BBCM via DXLD) I suppose it was on FM (gh, DXLD) ** NETHERLANDS. See http://www.radio10.nl website, and click to the Flevo picture about the history of the v1000 kHz channel from 1932 up to 2004, was used during German occupation as "Radio Calais" program on 1000 kHz with 120 kW in 1940 to 1945 wartime (Wolfgang Büschel, July 4, BC-DX via DXLD) And now on 1008 as Radio Ten Gold (gh) ** NEW ZEALAND. CANADIAN OWNED THE BREEZE EXPANDS TO THREE NEW NZ MARKETS ON AM/FM CanWest radio brand expands to three new markets on AM/FM according to the prospectus for the CanWest MediaWorks share issue. From September 1, Palmerston North's Magic FM 98.5 flips to The Breeze brand, taking 828 AM along for the ride. The same in Christchurch, where Lite FM and 1260 AM join the flow. Dunedin's 4XO FM and 1206 AM are likely to do the same. I'm not sure where Radio Dunedin 1305 fits in their plans - I don't think RadioWorks are either, as they don't actually specify which Dunedin station they plan to flip to The Breeze. I wonder if they're brave enough to create a new format on 1305 AM just for the 54+ demographic or simply let The Breeze cannibalize the existing market share. However, Magic, Lite and 4XO plus Wellington's and Waikato's Breeze are all defined as Easylistening adult contemporary stations, targeting female 35-54 demographics. The new Breeze stations will continue to originate their own local programs, as Wellington and Waikato already do. However, I guess networking will be just a matter of time once these five key markets are all rebranded, and once The Breeze blows into Auckland on FM. The new network can be managed the same as the other five: The Edge, The Rock, Channel Z, Solid Gold and Radio Pacific - all from one studio in Auckland. You can expect about to be newly listed CanWest MediaWorks will be out to push down costs to deliver attractive dividends, and axing local announcers and studios from the The Breeze stations outside Auckland would have to save millions in overheads. Or, at least recover most of the cost of an expensive FM licence for Auckland recently purchased at auction. Majority shareholder CanWest Global Group in Winnipeg will be watching with interest. Note: 1305 AM Radio Dunedin carries the heritage call-sign 4XD, said to be the longest continuously running radio station in the (British) Commonwealth, on air since 1922. It's no longer privately owned or operated by the Otago Radio Association. Warm regards (David Ricquish, Wellington, July 6, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** NIGERIA. Re: WRTH. They aren't totally wrong regarding the period from roundabout June 15th till 25th, when there was only one transmitter in use. Additional broadcast in English was 0500-0600. Then the 2nd transmitter reappeared and broadcasts had been extended step by step to full "old" schedule new (Thorsten Hallmann, Münster, Germany, July 8, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** OKLAHOMA. Looking up Enid market info: see USA ** PORTUGAL. 43660 kHz, RDP International, (2 x 21830 kHz), 0916 UT 03/07 (Via E skip). (Tim Bucknall-UK, harmonics July 3 via BC-DX via DXLD) ** SWEDEN. RADIO TRANSMITTER ON HERITAGE LIST Sunday, July 4, 2004 By Tommy Grandell, Associated Press Writer, STOCKHOLM, Sweden A broadcasting relic and new entry on the UNESCO World Heritage list transmitted its annual message from southwestern Sweden to amateur radio enthusiasts worldwide Sunday. The transmitter is part of the Grimeton radio station, which was built between 1922-1924 by the Radio Corp. of America - more famously known as RCA - to boost communication between this Scandinavian country and the United States some 3,730 miles across the Atlantic Ocean. The station includes an aerial system of six 419 foot-high steel towers. Dubbed "the great radio station" by Swedes, it was part of a then- global network of wireless telegraph communication links. It was overtaken first by long-distance telephone and trans-Atlantic phone cables, then satellites and wireless communications and the Internet. The "great radio" is just a relic, albeit a working one. The transmitter, the heart of which is an alternating-current generator, was developed by the Swedish-born engineer Fredrik Werner Alexandersson, a pioneer in radio engineering. Educated in Europe, and employed by General Electric in Schenectady, N.Y., he emigrated to the United States in 1901 and lived there until he died in 1975. While working in the United States, he became the chief engineer at RCA. Of the 20 or so 200-kilowatt Alexandersson transmitters that were built in the United States by General Electric and installed worldwide, only Grimeton remains. The transmitter has been kept intact and in working condition since it started operating on Dec. 1, 1924. It was originally used to relay messages from Halland in southwestern Sweden to the United States, a purpose that continued until after World War II, when it was converted for use by the Swedish navy and used to communicate with its submarines. It was finally closed in 1955. But interest in preserving the station increased and in 1996, Grimeton Radio, known among radio amateurs as SAQ, was listed as a national industrial monument in Sweden, ensuring its conservation. The annual broadcast had nothing to do with July 4 being the U.S. Independence Day, said Bo Johansson, president in the Alexander Association, which oversees the station. "It's the Sunday closest to the dedication date, July 2," he said. He refused to say what the short message contained. "The message is for our listeners, who will report to us if they've heard it," he explained. UNESCO said that the radio station at Grimeton "is an outstanding monument representing the process of development of communication technology in the period following the First World War" and "an exceptionally well preserved monument to early wireless trans-Atlantic communication." http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040704/APF/407040685 (via Mike Terry, dxldyg; and via Mike Cooper, DXLD) Nice article, but it is not known just to amateurs as SAQ --- it is known to everyone that way, since that is its official callsign. And WTFK???? 17.2 kHz VLF should have been worth mentioning (gh, DXLD) ** SWITZERLAND. SUÍÇA --- O colunista contactou o último jornalista brasileiro que ainda labuta na Rádio Suíça Internacional: Claudinê Gonçalves, que há 16 anos bate ponto no edifício localizado na Giacomettistrasse 1, em Berna. Ele enviou algumas considerações sobre o encerramento das emissões em ondas curtas, previsto para outubro. Conforme Gonçalves, ``a crise econômica e o déficit público levou a uma mudança de estratégia da Rádio Suíça Internacional``. Segundo ele, contribuiu para a extinção ``a escassa audiência em ondas curtas e os custos de manutenção das antenas``. Revela que a emissora fez um censo com os suíços que moram no estrangeiro: são cerca de oitocentas mil pessoas, a maioria conectada na Internet. Ponto para o brasileiro quando diz: ``pessoalmente, não concordo com a maneira como a reconversão foi feita, mas simples jornalistas não são consultados antes que decisões estratégicas sejam tomadas, em nenhum lugar do mundo, que eu saiba``. Gonçalves não acredita que a decisão da extinção das emissões em ondas curtas seja revertida. Acrescenta, ainda, que os números contabilizados revelam que a razão está ao lado de quem optou em trabalhar apenas na Internet: nas nove línguas em que a Swissinfo produz material em MP3, a audiência já chegou a oito milhões de páginas lidas por mês (Célio Romais, Panorama, @tividade DX July 5 via DXLD) ** SYRIA [non]. Hi Glenn, Sorry about that, the transmitter went on at 1759 UT, not 1859! and I was away for some time, didn't get the chance to keep up with the latest news about R. Free Syria. Program started with two IDs, one by an OM and another one by YL, "Sout Souyria Alhurra", with musical break in the background of a famous song by the Egyptian/French singer Dalida "Salma Ya Slama" which means we got back again. Followed by an OM with the frequency and time of transmission. 1805, Announcement "the Reform Party of Syria will grant a 100000 USD for any Syrian citizen who would help in locating the mass Weapon destruction locations in Syria; all the details will be dealt with in confidentiality! ID by YL 1810, a program called Urgent Message - reading what supposed to be a message by a Syrian citizen to the Syrian President Dr. Bashaar Al Assad critisizing the current situation in Syria. 1821, ID by a YL followed by a very famous song by a Syrian singer Sabah Fakhry. 1823, ID by an OM followed by a Report about the role of the opposition parties in Syria time being, critisizing the Ba'ath party and its leaders, also mentioning the opposition group The Islamic brotherhood, and the dictatorship of the Syrian regime. 1827, a Musical break, followed by another ID by an OM. 1830, a man shouting "a very famous man" and a lady asking "who" --- it turned out to be a program talking about the profile of "Jameel Al- Assad", the brother of the late Syrian president Hafez Al-Assad and his role in the corruption taking place now in Syria. 1840, an OM introducing an Assyrian language song 1845, an OM with the mail bag program called ``Menkom wa Lakom``, that's from/to you welcoming the listeners and all their Q about the radio station and he promised to increase the time of this within the coming weeks. The listeners` Q were answered by Mr. Malek Assaf, the director of Radio Free Syria, i.e., where is the HQ of the Reform party; a fax from a Syrian who wants to work as a reporter for Radio Free Syria, a fax by a listener who's criticizing the station and its goals and programs, and at last a fax by a Syrian living in Berlin asking about the slogan of the station, ``Syria is only for the Syrians``. By the end of the program the man gave the fax and telephone numbers of the station and the e mail. 1850, ID by a YL followed by a song by the Lebanese singer Fayrouz. 1853, a repeat of the announcement of the 100000 USD reward to reveal the places of the MWD in Syria. 1855, a man reading Poem with Musical breaks 1857, an OM with thanks to all those who participated in editing and directing this program mentioning the names of the editors of the program. 1859, a YL "with this we have come to the end of our transmission"; OM "we hope you enjoyed it and looking forward to meeting you again" with music in the back ground. The transmitter went off the air. Well, it sounded like the other Syrian opposition radio "Arabic radio" when it comes to the directing of the programs and the usage of all these musical breaks. They had the programs of this week`s transmission and the previous ones on http://www.radiofreesyria.org/Programs/rfs_friends.htm I checked the first transmission as I was away and couldn't hear it and I found that they announced the assassination of the Syrian President; also they had a coded message "to the people, the meeting will be in the 7 floors building, main entrance is ONLY from the fourth gate. End" !!!! More observations to come later on. All the best (Tarek Zeidan, Cairo, Egypt, July 8, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U K. Here`s the answer to the query a while back about Olympic coverage on SW. BBC On Air for August says that BBCWS will have a daily Olympic Sportsworld thruout the games, August 13 to 29. The magazine itself says the time will be 1800-2000 UT, except to Africa, 1800-1930; however, the foldout grids show 1800-1930 for all targets! Which to believe? Naturally, this is exactly when there are no SW frequencies on the air to the Americas. Our best bet will probably be some off-the-back frequencies from Ascension to Africa, such as 17830, or various beams to Europe, Africa, Mideast from UK. The vague frequency info has now been moved to the poster, claiming that ``17995`` is an evening channel to WEu/NAf! I seriously doubt that, in an aero band, but am not sure a typo for what. Other evenings look more familiar: 15485, 12095, 9410, 6195. EAf 21470/21660, 15420, 11860, 9630, 6005; SAf 21470, 12095, 6005/6190, 3255; W/C Af 17830/17995 [there it is again!], 15400. ME evening channels are 12095, 15565/15310 --- the slant meaning one or the other, but not both at the same time? FSU: 17640, 15565, 12095, 9410, 6195. C/E/SE Eu, 15565, 12095, 9410, 6195. There are quite a number of other shows on an Olympic theme, which will no doubt be publicised when the time come (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U K. Re: Analogue radio switch-off raised by minister Hi Glenn, I saw your report [from BBC News] about the UK Government considering a date for the shut-down off all analogue radio broadcasting at sometime in the future. This decision is being pushed for by those in the DAB broadcasting and transmission business so as to maximise their profits as a handful of companies own the entire UK digital network. The benefits to the listener have been very much overstated and in many respects defy belief. This switch off idea is just another marketing 'Pie in the sky' with a perceived attempt to persuade people that if they want to continue listening to their favourite station, or sample new ones, the ONLY option is to get DAB. If the UK production or the import of AM/FM radio had been banned or restricted 5 years ago when DAB first started I could understand the gradual work towards using DAB, and as radios became older and cars were replaced DAB would have just appeared as the analogue alternative. Most production cars have a life little more than 10 years, so in that period vehicle owners would have had at least one DAB radio. But no, we are still selling brand new analogue radio sets and audio combinations some which are not exactly cheap and will offer at least 20 years of faithful analogue service. So under this backdrop the launch of DAB with its expensive distribution system and the need for new rooftop antennas in many areas does not represent an attractive purchase, for what is not really a staggering improvement on FM. The only market is for people like us who are interested radio and seeking alternative stations; Joe Mc Average, despite all the advertising of DAB given by the BBC and others is barely scratching the surface when it comes to market penetration. Even their own figures say it represents just 4% of total UK radio listening and that's after 5 years of DAB operation. They can't sell DAB on its own merit, so they endeavour to arrange a "switch off" to force business their way. I am happy to see DAB develop at its own speed dependent on the take-up of the service, but don't like the thought of the public being blackmailed into buying DAB equipment, when the benefits to the listener are barely significant. The thought of over 100 million serviceable analogue radios suddenly becoming obsolete seems just as daft as the money required to buy a further 100,000,000 DAB radios to replace them: A nice earner for someone, as they cost an average of $150 each? There are of course sceptics that say that DAB will in a few years become obsolete due to rapidly advancing electronic audio and video technology making an upgrade to a new generation of equipment necessary (Andy Cadier, July 8, http://www.offshoremusicradio.com DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. Re: [Swprograms] More Crisis at VOA News See another reference here: http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2004/7/7/130350.shtml The Newsmax agenda is decidedly right-wing --- so for them to express concern at the muzzling of VOA is interesting (Richard Cuff / Allentown, PA USA, swprograms via DXLD) Yes, but.... :-) Newsmax also was heavily critical of the VOA's decision to broadcast an interview with Mullah Omar, among other things, and has repeatedly come down on the side of VOA being a propaganda mouthpiece rather than a credible news source. Indeed, it includes a link to what it calls "Radio Sawa and VOA's Other Blunders". The cited report itself is surprisingly "down the middle", though, for a "news" service that tends to hyperventilate a lot. But, IMHO, calling Newsmax "decidedly right wing" is decidedly too polite. :-)) (John Figliozzi, ibid.) ** U S A. STAFFERS: VOICE OF AMERICA INDEPENDENCE IN PERIL Almost half of the employees of the government news service the Voice of America have petitioned Congress. They are protesting what they say are cuts in the amount and variety of VOA news programming, and pressure from the Bush administration to politicize and slant coverage in favor of U.S. policies. NPR's Andrea Seabrook reports. [3:48] http://www.npr.org/rundowns/segment.php?wfId=3205005 From Morning Edition, Thursday, July 08, 2004. Please click on the headline or the audio icon to listen to the story using a RealAudio or WindowsMedia player (via DXLD) ** U S A. VOA STAFF PETITION TO CONGRESS JULY 6 2004 WHO`S KILLING AMERICA`S VOICE? At a time when the ability of the United States to speak to the world in a clear, effective, credible voice is more crucial than ever, *the United States is broadcasting less news, information and analysis to fewer countries for fewer hours in fewer languages.* The presidentially appointed Broadcasting Board of Governors is dismantling the nation`s radio beacon - the Voice of America – piece by piece. The BBG is creating radio and television entities that circumvent a Congressional Charter (Public Law 94-350) – designed to shield VOA from political interference and to ensure accurate, objective and comprehensive broadcasts. No such editorial protections apply to the new broadcast entities. The Board says listeners perceive VOA as a tool of the U.S. government. But like VOA, the newly established ventures are government funded, and hiding that fact undermines journalistic credibility. VOA has a solid journalistic reputation and a widespread audience. It should be revitalized, not weakened. BBG`s most aggressive efforts have focused on new radio and television services to the Middle East – services whose slick, entertainment- driven program formats have generated sharp criticism in both Western and Arab news media. Further, the BBG is now in the process of crippling VOA English – the world`s only international broadcaster charged with comprehensive and balanced coverage of the United States. We, the undersigned VOA managers, staff writers, editors, producers, engineers and technicians, are deeply concerned by these developments. As broadcast professionals, supporters of VOA`s global mission and U-S taxpayers, we call on the U-S Congress to conduct an immediate inquiry into the actions of the Broadcasting Board of Governors. Some of the Board`s most serious attacks on the Voice of America are listed on the following pages. (SOME 450 SIGNATURES) HOW THE BROADCASTING BOARD OF GOVERNORS IS KILLING VOA: Following the lead of its most influential governor -- Norman Pattiz, the founder and CEO of the giant Westwood One radio network – the Broadcasting Board of Governors has: Closed VOA`s Arabic Service and replaced it with Radio Sawa, a slick, pop-music-driven radio service that has no editorial accountability. Refused VOA Arabic Service requests for more staff, upgraded transmitters, local AM and FM frequencies and marketing support, then determined the Service didn`t have an audience and closed it. However, the BBG then gave those resources to the newly created Radio Sawa, replacing the $4 million/year VOA Service (news analysis, context and information) with Radio Sawa`s $36 million/year pop music and news- brief format. Claimed to Congress that Radio Sawa has up to 90% listenership. In fact, Radio Sawa is heard on FM in only 16 cities in 10 of the 22 Arab League countries. It is broadcast widely on AM, though listeners rarely tune to AM for music. Approved a format that does not report breaking news, including the capture of Saddam Hussein. At best, Radio Sawa`s news coverage is cursory, providing little to no context or analysis. Shielded Radio Sawa from program reviews, a requirement of any credible media service. Committed nearly 100 million U.S. taxpayer dollars to launch a satellite-fed Arabic television Service, al-Hurra (`the Free One`), which has no editorial accountability. Refused to bolster well-established though understaffed and under funded VOA television services Dismissed widespread criticism of the content, presentation and premise of al-Hurra in Arab and Western news media Approved a format that does not report breaking news, including the assassination of Hamas leader Sheikh Yassin (it continued airing a French cooking show), a major bomb attack in Baghdad (it stayed with a Jim Carrey documentary) and U-S attacks on insurgents in Fallujah, (again, it stayed with pre-recorded programming). Reduced VOA broadcasts to Iran and launched a new autonomous broadcast entity, which has no editorial accountability. Replaced VOA Persian and English broadcasts on the most critical transmitter to Iran with a new, sometimes redundant Radio Farda that is heavy on music and light on substance. Slashed broadcasts in VOA English, the United States` mother tongue, which is the only international broadcaster bringing broad and balanced news and information about the United States to 15 million people worldwide (1/5 of VOA`s total audience). Determined English to be strategically unimportant, despite the fact that 1.3 billion non-Americans speak English, and it is the internationally recognized language of diplomacy, commerce, culture and science Reduced broadcasts in English from 24 hours a day to 19, and will reduce it to 14 hours per day by the end of this year. Closed and proposed closing several critical domestic and overseas news bureaus Forced sharp reductions in writing, editorial and technical staff for English programs. Halted English broadcasts to Central and South America and the Caribbean. Sharply reduced key frequencies and weekend broadcasts of English programs to Africa. Halted broadcasts to 10 East European countries, still struggling with political and economic instability. Eliminated Latvian, Estonian, Polish, Bulgarian, Czech, Hungarian, Romanian, Lithuanian, Slovak and Slovene language services. IN CONCLUSION . . . The Voice of America is a vital component of U.S. public diplomacy and national security. We urge the Board to work with Congress and dedicated VOA professionals to reach out to today`s worldwide audiences with a *responsible* mix of news and features, more and stronger broadcast signals, and vigorous marketing of VOA programming. We seek only this: to restore the Voice of America to its historical role as an authoritative, reliable and respected source of news and information about the United States and the world (via DXLD) A COMMENTARY --- BLACK THURSDAY, JULY 1, 2004 July 6, 2004 We`ve all seen the posters. You know, the ones with the slogan about being a ``team.`` This agency is anything but a team. The fact that agency management exhorts the professional staff through sloganeering is a clear sign of an organization in trouble. VOA has become a constant, internal hemorrhage. The latest manifestation of the bleeding is the involuntary reassignment of Andre de Nesnera, now the former chief of the News Division. Leadership is an elusive quality. Few are born to it. Most have to learn it. One associates Andre de Nesnera with impeccable credentials, personal and professional integrity, high principles and standards, advocacy for the VOA Charter and the ability to rally a diverse staff around these qualities and get things done. That is leadership, by any definition. Removing Andre de Nesnera from his position (and that is what this is) represents a bad day for the agency and an even darker moment in the agency`s leadership morass, in which we see far too much opportunistic sycophancy. Ditto on the removal of Jim Malone from his assignment to cover the national political conventions. It`s time to put something else on the table: We have no confidence in the Board and its actions. The Board, initially presumed to be a firewall against politicizing the mission of the agency, has become, to all appearances, the instrument of that which we loathe the most --- the tooling of the Voice of America into a shill for special interests, or worse, ideologically-driven prattle. We hear a lot about ``winning hearts and minds`` in events of the day. The actions of the Board and senior VOA management are perfect examples of how we can become abysmal failures in this regard, perhaps our own worst enemy. You can`t expect to win hearts and minds abroad when you lose them right on your own doorstep. Titles don`t mean much around here, either. Nor do one`s past experiences. We take the full measure of a person by what he or she does here. We don`t judge by the resume alone. We judge by what people do --- for or against the staff --- for or against the institution. The view is growing that the Board and senior VOA management have become increasingly anti-staff and anti-institution. You don`t remove a top quality professional and put someone else into that leadership position under a cloud of suspicion and distrust…someone who barely registers on an organizational chart or a staffing pattern. In referring to Andre, a colleague said it best: ``These are monster shoes to fill.`` We heartily agree. And if past experience is any guide, one bad decision in this regard will probably be compounded by others, particularly if the decisions are based on partisan political retaliation. Gary A. Marco, President, AFSCME Local 1418 (via DXLD) It appears that VOA has made a decision not to cover its own internal controversy. Recent VOA news items, as well as reports from VOA correspondents, do not contain a single story on the removal of the organization's news director, Andre DeNesnera. Also absent from the VOA's own newsfile was any mention of the statement by the International Press Institute condemning the move by VOA Director David Jackson (DX LISTENING DIGEST) Dissenting voices --- The Chairman of the US Broadcasting Board of Governors has issued a strong response to a petition sent to members of Congress on Tuesday of this week, accusing the Board of "dismantling the nation's radio beacon" and calling on Congress to investigate the Board. The petition was signed by 465 of the 1000 or so staff who work for VOA. It was partly a response to the demotion of VOA news director Andre DeNesnera in a staff reshuffle announced last Thursday. But the issues raised in the petition go way beyond that, and it's clear that there's a great deal of unrest in the corridors of VOA. http://www.rnw.nl/realradio/features/html/voa040708.html (Andy Sennitt, Media Network Newsletter July 8 via DXLD) Tomlinson says the charge about Sawa missing Saddam capture is wrong, etc. ** U S A. Wednesday, July 7, 2004 4:33PM WBCQ's 7415 transmitter has suffered a fault and is currently offline. Programming normally heard on 7415 will be on 5105 until the problems can be addressed. We may be able to get the console webcast online before too long, but it's offline now as well. We'll keep you posted. – Lw (wbcq.com via John Norfolk) O o, that was when WORLD OF RADIO 1237 was to debut; no 7415, and apparently no 17495 either, and could not hear 5105 here (gh, OK, DXLD) [Later:] Wednesday, July 7, 2004 9:06PM ET --- WBCQ 7415 is back up and broadcasting. We should have the webcast available shortly (wbcq.com via John Norfolk) Annotated WBCQ Program Guide --- Anomalies and Recent Observations This page contains the latest observations and other unexplained or otherwise unscheduled things observed coming out of Monticello or related to WBCQ. Wednesday, July 7, 2004 7415 off air after a transmitter failure during startup earlier today. All programming transferred over to 5105 around 6PM or so. Heard bits and pieces of World of Radio at 2200 on 5105 under lousy conditions. Noted Allan Weiner visiting the Rabbi, live on the Rabbi's show at 0015 UTC on 5105. Conditions still cruddy but improving. Is this the first official radio stop on Allan's tour across America? Noted 7415 back on at 0106. 5105 remains on simulcasting 7415 (via John Norfolk, DXLD) ** U S A [non]. Official info received from Family Stations Inc. is showing the use of the following relay transmitters for "Family Radio" broadcasts in Russia and member states of the CIS: 1700-1900 9495 Russian to RUS via Tashkent-UZB 1900-2000 7350 Spanish to Eu via Minsk-BLR 1900-2000 7360 German to Eu via Gavar-ARM* 1900-2000 9490 Italian to Eu via Moscow-RUS 2000-2200 7350 English to Eu via Grigoriopol-MDA Family Radio in Russian is also carried by Radio Centr in Moscow on 1503 at the following times: 0300-0500, 1400-1530, 1700-2030. *) listed as "Yerevan", but altered to "Gavar" by BT since this is the actual site (Bernd Trutenau, Lithuania, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST) Today July 7th the WYFR program service feed via the satellite feeder circuits was a little bit confusing. 7350 WYFR English only 1900-2000, and a reference to Croatian program section at 1902 UT, but the program til 2000 UT was totally in USAmerican accented English. Sinpo 55555, some +30 dB stronger than 7360 at my post. At 1952 to 1954 UT some tone pips of the Grigoriopol-MDA opening procedure could be noted co-channel ahead, see below. At about 1959-2003 two programs overlapped each other on 7350 kHz, a short Croatian? portion via Minsk?, and \\ another sermon in American English ahead of the Minsk signal, probably from the stronger signal via Grigoriopol site. At about 2003 UT the - probably - Minsk tx switched off. 7360 WYFR German service 1900-2000 UT. Started with WYFR fanfare around 1859 UT some 10 seconds earlier than 7350 sce. Sinpo 55555, but audio more scratchy. 9490 WYFR Italian sce 1900-2000 UT. Sinpo 55555, splendid audio. From 2000-2002 UT the WYFR English sermon of \\ 7350 was broadcast, but a third of a second faster. From 2003 UT onwards only open carrier on air, still observed around 2033 UT check. 7360 channel started Russian sce with Kremlin chimes around 1759-1800 UT, but was covered by co-channel service of Vatican Radio SMG, scheduled in Romanian at 1800 UT, and Bulgarian 1820-1840 UT. Missed Spanish service. No WYFR Spanish today July 7th on these RUS/CIS bc series (Wolfgang Büschel, July 7, Germany, BC-DX via DXLD) Nowadays, such program feeds are done directly by satellite to each transmitting site, not via Moscow. Apparently, the local technicians had problems to select the right satellite channel, we have seen similar initial errors with many CRI relays in Europe (Bernd Trutenau, Lithuania, BC-DX July 8 via DXLD) ** U S A. Glenn; One should not just use REC.NET's lookup --- there`s an even better lookup that I use fairly frequently: http://www.publicintegrity.org/telecom/ Simply go to the advanced section of the clickon link at the right hand side of the website and it will provide a MUCH more detailed listing than with REC.NET! This is from the center of Public Integrity "Well Connected" website. There are other sites mentioned for good info on just exactly who owns what media holdings indeed. Again you have a great website and appreciate all of the radio related info!! Sincerely Yours (Randall B. Clark, DX LISTENING DIGEST) CPI looks like a very useful service. For this, you just enter a zip code or location and out it comes, complete with a pie chart. Fairly accurate for Enid, tho it came up with some strange stuff based on mileages, in this case way off, ``17.33`` instead of something like 60, an LPTV in Glencoe OK (NE of Stillwater) KOKQ on ch 50 which I have never seen and was not aware of; and KAYE 90.7 in Tonkawa, which due to its low power and co-channel to Wichita is inaudible in Enid. KBVV 91.1 gets classified as ``educational``, even tho it`s nothing but gospel-huxtering (Moody network, etc.), because the owner is filed as ``Enid Educational Broadcasting Foundation``. What a crock! Furthermore, translators and LPFM are ignored, altho there are several of them with a considerable signal impact in the local area, incomparably more than KAYE or KOKQ! O, KFNY 1640 is missing tho it has been on the air for two thirds of a year. Of course, this info is generated by some program from FCC data, rather than processed by a *human being* who is familiar with the actual situation --- but by apparently ignoring power levels, a very distorted picture can emerge. Further2more, on the press side, CPI failed to turn up the fact that the Enid News & Eagle is part of a major newspaper chain, CNHI Inc. Or maybe not, if it falls below the top 250 --- but they have papers all over Oklahoma and several other states (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. REGULATOR MAY REQUIRE OUTPUT RECORDINGS TO MEET DECENCY RULES The Federal Communications Commission (FCC, the US broadcast licensing and regulatory body) has issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that will require broadcasters to maintain recordings of their output for a period of 60-90 days "in order to increase the effectiveness of the Commission's process for enforcing restrictions on obscene, indecent, and profane broadcast programming." Following Supreme Court rulings, obscene material is not protected by First Amendment rights and may not be broadcast on radio or television. However, certain indecent material is allowed between the hours of 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. when minors are less likely to be listening or watching. Accordingly, the FCC is seeking comment on its proposals to require broadcasters to retain recordings of all material they air between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., to ensure that the Commission has a complete record before initiating indecency proceedings. The consultation will end on 30 July. In support of the initiative, Commissioner Michael J Copps said that the new rules will remove the need for complaining citizens to provide proof of indecency in order for an investigation to proceed, where stations have previously told the FCC that they do not possess a tape or transcript of a broadcast in order that an inquiry be dismissed. Source: Federal Communications Commission press release, Washington, in English 7 Jul 04 (via BBCM via DXLD) FCC may tell broadcasters to keep recordings for indecency probes By JENNIFER C. KERR The Associated Press 7/7/04 7:40 PM http://wizzer.advance.net/cgi-free/getstory_ssf.cgi?a0748_BC_FCC-Indecency&&news&newsflash-washington WASHINGTON (AP) -- Federal regulators may require broadcasters to keep a recording of their programs for up to three months to aid in investigations of indecency complaints. The rules the Federal Communications Commission proposed Wednesday would apply to television stations and AM/FM radio stations. Broadcasters would have to keep a recording of all material aired from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., when children are most apt to be watching or listening. According to the proposal, the recordings would be retained for 60 or 90 days "to increase the effectiveness of the commission's process for enforcing restrictions on obscene, indecent, and profane broadcast programming." The FCC stepped up enforcement of indecency standards after Janet Jackson's breast-baring performance during the Super Bowl halftime show in February. The two chambers of Congress have gone on record seeking different penalties for indecency. The Senate voted recently to increase the top fine per incident from $27,500 to $275,000, while the House separately backed a far greater increase, to $500,000. Federal law bars radio stations and over-the-air television channels from broadcasting references to sexual and excretory functions between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. The FCC begins an indecency investigation only if a member of the public files a complaint. To do so, the person must record the objectionable material and submit it to the FCC for review. FCC Commissioner Michael Copps, one of two Democrats on the five-member panel, has been pressing the agency to make it easier for citizens to seek an investigation, saying the current process "has for too long placed inordinate responsibility upon the complaining citizen." Current policy "ignores that it is the commission's responsibility to investigate complaints that the law has been violated, not the citizen's responsibility to prove the violations," he said. Requiring broadcasters to record and save all their programming may not present an extraordinary burden for larger stations, but it could be a problem for smaller ones. Jeffrey Yorke, a spokesman for the National Association of Broadcasters, said officials are reviewing the proposal. He declined further comment. The FCC will take comments from the public on the proposal over the next two months (via Mike Cooper, DXLD) ** U S A. MEGA MEDIASAURUS --- THE DINOSAUR THAT DEVOURED DEMOCRACY by Jack Bradigan Spula Cover page: http://www.metropulse.com/dir_zine/dir_2004/1428/c_coverbig.jpg To grasp bigness, sometimes you have to take out the magnifying glass. That`s what media observers are doing retrospectively with a story that came out of Minot, N.D., in January 2002. The small town was hit with a rail-car leak of anhydrous ammonia, an irritant that can cause serious injuries. The story had a special media hook: When emergency officials contacted the town`s radio stations to get warnings aired, they reportedly found five of six stations were running on taped feeds and couldn`t take the call. The five stations were properties of mammoth Clear Channel Communications, which now owns 1,200-plus radio stations nationwide (and much else). Later, Clear Channel said Minot staffers did respond ``beyond their professional responsibilities.`` The company put the blame on ``local authorities` failure to install their Emergency Alert System equipment.`` Either way, the assumption is that if Minot had more locally owned stations, the public would have been better warned. And beneath this assumption is a rock-bottom belief that federal policy has grown too friendly to media empires. And that belief explains why we`re seeing moves everywhere --- across the whole political spectrum --- to put the reins on media ownership. The best indication of this trend came a year after Minot, when organizations and ordinary people across the country took a hard look at Washington, DC. Specifically, they put their magnifying glass to some business before the Federal Communications Commission, which oversees radio, television, wire, satellite and cable. What they found was something like a new species of dinosaur. By way of background, the five-member FCC is bipartisan by definition --- no more than three members can be from the same political party. But as you`d expect, the commission has its own internal dynamics. The most-often heard voice is that of Michael Powell, a conservative who was appointed by Bill Clinton and made FCC chair by George Bush. Commissioners Kathleen Abernathy and Kevin Martin gravitate to Powell`s side. Commissioners Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein are often a minority of two. Normally a quiet presence, the FCC made headlines in June 2003. Following provisions of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the commission had been debating whether to relax federal limits on media ownership. On the other hand, pressure was building to keep the old rules in place. But on June 2, the commissioners voted 3-2 to adopt new rules that partially deregulated big chunks of the media industry. The proposed rules were overruled by a federal judge last month, saying the FCC failed to justify its decision. Here`s what the FCC had in mind, as summarized by the Poynter Institute: • The decision okayed ``cross-ownership`` of broadcast and print media in markets with more than three TV stations. Cross-ownership was previously banned. • It said the four national TV networks could buy enough stations to reach 45 percent of the US audience. The old cutoff was 35 percent. (The big companies failed to get a total repeal of the limit.) • It boosted the number of TV stations a single broadcaster can own in a single market. (The number varies with the size of the market.) Even before the full impact of this was felt, an outraged public turned up the volume. The FCC received around 2.5 million responses, 99 percent of them opposing the changes. Advocacy groups sprang into action, too. The Washington-based Media Access Project, a not-for-profit public-interest law firm, succeeded in getting a Philadelphia federal appeals court to issue a stay. Public outrage at media policy is still high-pitched. But as the months go by, this outrage is being channeled into a national debate about ``indecency,`` ``values`` and moral policing. You don`t need more details here on l`affaire Janet Jackson, or l`affront Howard Stern. (Well, two relevant details: Stern got stomped by his boss, Infinity Broadcasting, another mega-radio corporation that`s a Viacom subsidiary. Also, Clear Channel announced it was cutting him off.) Suffice it to say, we`re now watching the FCC, which so recently gave away the store, going after big media corporations on a morals charge. The talk revolves around penalties: a ten-fold increase in the fine for each on-air indecency, for example. (One proposal in the House of Representatives would increase it twenty-fold.) What will this amount to? ``It`s still a drop in a bucket,`` says Russell Newman, research director with the Media Reform/Free Press Network, a not-for-profit based in Northampton, Mass. ``Whether it`s $27,500 or $275,000, it`s just another business expense`` for the big companies, he says. Newman adds the obvious: Large fines will burden small independents disproportionately—and thus tilt the playing field even more to mega- corporate advantage. A more well-founded fear is stalking the land, though. The fear that monster media will put democracy itself at risk. ``A core value in a free society is that control over media should be widespread and diverse,`` says a statement from the Media Reform/Free Press Network. ``In a capitalist society, this value is constantly challenged by the strong desire of businesses to dominate their markets as much as possible.`` We the people must understand our controlling interest, so to speak. ``Nearly all media markets are based on government-granted and - enforced monopoly privileges and subsidies,`` says Media Reform, citing ``copyright, postal subsidies, monopoly radio and TV licenses, cable TV and satellite TV franchises.`` ``One can say the media is big business, but one can say truly that media is the biggest business,`` Newman says. ``Ownership of the media has become incredibly consolidated. We`re entering an age when a media giant owns not just channels but controls the distribution of those channels.`` He points to Comcast`s recent $50-billion-plus bid to take over the Walt Disney Company --- a move he believes has ``dire implications.`` Even though that bid eventually failed, the top corporate players are thunder lizards indeed. According to a Media Reform chart, based on information from the Columbia Journalism Review, these are some of the dominant corporations: Disney, with $25 billion in revenues in 2002; Viacom, with $25 billion that year; Time-Warner, with $41 billion; and Vivendi Universal, with more than $57 billion. Champ of the revenuers: General Electric, with $132 billion in 2002. General Electric is a special case, of course. It has immense holdings in energy, transportation, weapons production, and much more besides media. But look at the holdings of even a company like Comcast, which folds a mere sports team or two into its corporate pie. According to Media Reform, Comcast, ``the nation`s largest cable television company`` with ``a presence in 22 of the 25 largest markets,`` also owns the Golf Channel, the Style Network, E! Entertainment Television, and more. The scale of things hasn`t paralyzed Newman and his group. For one thing, they sponsored a National Conference on Media Reform last November in Madison, Wis. The conference drew unexpectedly large numbers of activists --- and some members of Congress, as well. Conservatives have been hopping on this train, too. Last year, for example, New York Times columnist William Safire decried the FCC rules changes. He amplified his worries this February, asking: ``If one huge corporation controlled both the production and the dissemination of most of our news and entertainment, couldn`t it rule the world?`` Wayne LaPierre, the National Rifle Association`s top gun, said last year that the changes would harm ``diversity of political opinion.`` NRA spokespeople didn`t follow through on a promise to comment for this article, however. An energetic populism --- under the buzzword ``localism`` --- has hit the road, too. It blossomed, for example, at a March 8 public forum in Rochester, N.Y., convened by Congresswoman Louise Slaughter, who`d attended the Madison conference. The medium-sized upstate city is famous for homegrown photo giant Eastman Kodak and less well-known as the old hometown of the now Virginia-based Gannett Company (101 daily newspapers, 22 TV stations, etc.) On the Rochester stage was a panel including owners and directors of independent Rochester media. (Disclosure: One panelist was Mary Anna Towler, editor-publisher of City Newspaper, a member of the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. Spula is a City Newspaper staff writer.) The main attraction, though, was FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein, who last June cast one of the two dissenting votes against relaxing the ownership rules. Outside the forum, Adelstein parses the issues. Last year`s national response, he says, ``was unprecedented in the 70-plus years of the agency.`` Moreover, he says, opponents of the new rules included ``huge numbers of people from the right and left, the National Rifle Association, the Catholic Conference of Bishops. Everybody thought this was a bad idea.`` He also names some Congress members who have taken up the cause: Representatives Slaughter and Maurice Hinchey (D`s from New York), Ed Markey (D-MA), David Price (D-NC), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), and Richard Burr (R-NC); and Senators Byron Dorgan (D-ND), Fritz Hollings (D-SC), Ted Stevens (R-AK), Trent Lott (R-MS), and John McCain (R-AZ). Adelstein says growing concentration will bring ``ever less diversity at ever higher prices.`` He makes some quality judgments, too. ``We`re concerned about the homogenization of radio,`` he says. Individual stations ``don`t have their own news, their own reporters. Very little in-depth coverage. There used to be a lot more of that, but it`s expensive.`` He turns to many small newspapers` prime domestic competitor, Gannett. ``They`ve supported cross-ownership,`` he says. They got what they wanted, he says. (At the Rochester forum, City Newspaper`s Towler and some participants criticized the recent launching of a free Gannett weekly in the local market. The next morning, the Gannett-owned Democrat and Chronicle --- Rochester`s sole remaining daily --- quoted a company spokesperson. ``Covering the community is our number one priority,`` he said, after noting Gannett wasn`t invited to the forum.) Significant cases keep coming before the FCC. Adelstein mentions a recent decision: the commission`s nod this January to the merger of Newscorp and DirecTV. ``I dissented,`` he says. ``Certainly [the deal] is in the shareholders` interest, but we have a broad responsibility to serve the public interest.`` Yet the FCC today is construing the public interest more narrowly. It seems the commission is more concerned about Janet Jackson`s breast exposure or Bono`s f-wording than almost anything else. Part of this is the law. Adelstein explains that the commission`s statutory authority over content extends only to what`s considered indecent, profane, or obscene. ``I think the FCC is getting serious about enforcing rules that are on the books, to be sure they don`t step over the line,`` he says. But is this just a distraction, or even a move backward? ``It`s a good development,`` Adelstein says --- a proper response to ``increasing coarseness over the airwaves.`` Some observers take strong exception. For example, liberal commentator and cartoonist Ted Rall recently charged the decency crusade is merely ``a new version of the Red Scare.`` He said ``new McCarthyites`` have resorted to ``censoring their opponents.`` He also slammed the New York Times for dumping his editorial cartoons from its website. In regard to media monsters, the decency crusade may end up demonstrating the old Nietzschean principle dear to radio host G. Gordon Liddy: Whatever doesn`t kill them makes them stronger. But dinosaurs of any sort co-exist with pesky critters in the underbrush - -- and eventually the more adaptable life forms have their day. Certainly the Internet and web-based populist efforts like indymedia.org are carving out space for themselves. The FCC is looking at such a critter: low-power FM radio. In 2000, the commission gave the go-ahead to noncommercial stations of 100 watts or less. Then broadcasters complained LPFM would cause too much interference with their signals. ``We were forced by Congress to ratchet back,`` Adelstein says. He adds the FCC studied the potential for interference and found there wasn`t much. Of course, that`s no comment on the political interference that could hamper LPFM for some time. But here again, a mobilized public, aware the airwaves legally belong to everyone, could make the difference. July 8, 2004 • Vol. 14, No. 28 © 2004 Metro Pulse [Knoxville TN] (via Artie Bigley, DXLD) ** U S A. Unprecedented high-band sporadic E TV DX: see PROPAGATION UNIDENTIFIED. The mysterious R. Marti on 1710 appeared on my Grundig YB-305 portable late last night. I check 1710 fairly regularly for new TIS stations, but this is the first incident noted here. Looped NE/SW, which is interesting in itself. No stupendous cx to the east was noted, either. Signal was slightly fadey, weak but readable about 80% of the time, occasional strong peaks. I listened between 0145-0210 EDT, 2245-2310 PDT [0545-0610 UT]. If this is a mixing product, is Martí frequency hopping on SW? (Rich Toebe, Vacaville CA, IRCA July 8 via DXLD) No, as I have explained several times before, if the receiver IF is 450 kHz, here`s how the image works: 1710 x 3 = 5130. 5130 + (2 x 450) = 6030, a regular R. Martí frequency (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) UNIDENTIFIED [non]. Re 6950 at 2000: This would seem to be CNR1 via the SZG site per HFCC listing. Well heard here and the audio is in synchronism with other listed SZG CNR1 outlets (Olle Alm, Sweden, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ POWERLINE COMMUNICATIONS ++++++++++++++++++++++++ LARGE IN-BUILDING BPL NETWORKS GET ACA APPROVAL It was reported in `Communications Day' that SkyNetGlobal claim to have gained approval from the ACA for their in-building powerline communications networks. The company currently has exclusive powerline access agreements with 51 buildings covering more than 10,000 residences. With the ACA permission, their plan is to achieve national coverage of 500 buildings over the next 24 months covering approximately 100,000 apartments. With subscriber uptake of about 20% per building SkyNetGlobal expects to sign up 200,000 subscribers by 2006. Additionally they plan to offer VoIP and Video on demand services over the powerline. Following the announcement SkyNetGlobal shares jumped 12.8%, ("Communications Day" Friday, 2nd July). Large high rise applications are seen as a prime market for BPL technology as the cost of cabling to individual apartments in these buildings can be very high, and a BPL system can be extremely cost effective (Phil Wait - Director, "WIA Federal News via Harwood, DXLD) So much for our hobby ): (Robin L. Harwood VK7RH, Norwood TAS 7250, DX LISTENING DIGEST) PROPAGATION +++++++++++ ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME HIGH-BAND TELEVISION SPORADIC-E OPENING I'm curious if the scanner types noted anything in Tuesday night's unprecedented sporadic-E opening. TV DXers reported an unbelievable amount of high-band skip in channels 7-13 - more in a few hours than I've seen reported in fifteen years in the WTFDA! I believe this is the first time in 15 years I've seen someone identify a skip signal on channel 13. (WLOX Biloxi, Mississippi, seen in NY State) Skip was also reported in the 222 MHz ham band, which has happened fewer than ten times in recorded history. And one WTFDA member reported working six sporadic-E QSOs on 146.52 simplex. Of course, I was at work during Tuesday's Es fireworks! -- (Doug Smith W9WI, Pleasant View (Nashville), TN EM66, Monitoring Times, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Es-nuts!! Into channel 7 into Cape Cod FM too intense to ID anything. Killing locals!! Even 96-3 The Rose. can't monitor my own station. Noticed on Channel 7: "Stuckeys on Hwy 49" HELP! (Steve Solomon, Jul 06, 2004 15:09 PDT, Cape Cod, MA Equipment: Yamaha T-85, Antennacraft APS-13 at 20feet Website: http://www.stevemcvie.com/DXing.asp WTFDA topica list via DXLD) My guess would be WDAM-7 Laurel, Mississippi. Might call 'em and ask. (Matt Sittel, NE, ibid.) It's WDAM 7 Laurel/Hattiesburg, MS. US 49 runs through Hattiesburg, and there's a Stuckey's right there. Once in a lifetime catch! (Chris Carter, Hermitage, TN, EM66 600' ASL, http://cpc-dx.us ibid.) KATV-7 and PBS on channel 9 --- At 1900 [EDT] Little Rock on ch 7 and PBS on ch 9 and I HAVE PHOTOS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Three words: OMG! (Mike Bugaj, ul 06, 2004 16:11 PDT, Enfield, CT, ibid.) KETC, the PBS station on 9 in Saint Louis puts out a nice strong signal. They've got a unique bug in the lower right hand corner --- look for it. Or it could be the PBS on 9 in Arkadelphia, Arkansas (Curtis Sadowski, IL, ibid.) Skip from NC to NE, MUF ch 10 / 1820 CDT --- Yes, you read it right, very obvious skip on 8 and 10, hard to see. Seinfeld noted on 9, which matches WNCT... I'm not sure if I can rule every other 9 in the world out but the PTA [probable target area] sure fits what I've had on FM, which has been abandoned in favor of high band TV and NWS (Matthew C. Sittel, Bellevue NE, July 6, ibid.) Since I'm bored here.... Checked the Seinfeld site. WOTV-9 has it at 5:30 ET. Other than WNCT, that's it for anywhere east of you! (Dave Williams, ibid.) Or west for that matter. No one else on channel 9 runs it then except for WNCT! And the PTA is darn near perfect, since I had WRAL on 5 at the same time, and central NC on FM (Matt, ibid.) July 6, EDT: 1846-1900 digressed [from FM] to High Band Ch 7/8 Es QRM --- first time ever seen. Audio heard: NBC News, zero offset (on Pro- 2006)(WDAM-MS?) at 1854 on 7; however no IDs. This amazing 3 day Es opening was quite a retirement present! Totals now at 1899 (Stats updated & posted in Statistics Web page). There are currently very few high band Es records in the files (Fred Nordquist - Clay NY (near Syracuse, ibid.) Fox-8 to the south with Family Feud (Bob Timmerman, Fort Wayne, IN, Jul 06, 2004 16:31 PDT, ibid.) at 1815 CDT it's WVUE-8 from New Orleans! Plus unIDs on 9 and 10 (Bob Timmerman, Fort Wayne, IN, ibid.) !!TODAY'S HUGE CHANNEL 13 MUF!! What a wild day up here in New York! Shortly before 6:15 pm [EDT], I had some CCI on channel 7, but at 6:55 pm, the MUF sat above VHF channel 7 for the next 25 minutes!! It's advantageous that there are no local television stations up here! This stuff was quite strong too! Luckily, I had my digital camera, and set it to movie mode to record everything. 6 Logs on channels 7-13, and two more tentative! I have some great digital videos of channel 7 WDAM Hattiesburg, MS, channel 8 WVUE New Orleans, LA, and channel 12 WJTV Jackson, MS, and yes, a rougher one, in color at times of channel 13 WLOX Biloxi!! I'll have to upload them next week when I get home. WDAM was literally a PERFECT signal. Everything happened so fast, and I couldn't believe it. By the way, I was using a 6-element FM antenna for all this. 7 WDAM Hattiesburg, MS, great video of calls 8 WVUE New Orleans, LA, "Fox 8" Newscast 8 WAKA Montgomery, AL, briefly in, logo w/ CBS lower right t9 WTPA Tupelo, MS, newscast audio under WIXT t10 WALA Mobile, AL, newscast, mentions of Florida, I need to review video 11 WTOK Meridien, MS, newcast 12 WJTV Jackson, MS, newcast, many logos visible, "News Channel 12", weather 13 WLOX Biloxi, MS, newscast, logo & calls, lower right Overall: I woke up to E-Skip at 9:30 am which lasted until 12:30 pm, went on a bike ride, and came back to find FM action building again at 4:30 pm. It didn`t stop until 10 pm - 9 1/2 hours of full intense FM skip. I scribbled out about 14 pages of notes, the vast, vast majority are relogs. The Es clouds barely seemed to move at all, but I was 4 stations deep at times. The past 3 days have sure made up for this season! WOW. Congratulations to everyone (~~~Tim Katlic~~~Rochester, NY, Jul 06, 2004 20:18 PDT, ibid.) OMG !! It has been ages if not longer since someone IDed something on 13! A shame I got home and to the set too late for this since I could have had a pipeline to Florida on hi-band. I hope Jeff or other area DXers caught something !! 73 KAZ Barrington IL (Neil Kazaross, Jul 06, 2004 20:33 PDT, ibid.) Incredible! This belongs in the DXing Hall of Fame! (Bob Timmerman, IN, ibid.) Es channel 8 IDed at Burnt River ON (WAKA AL) and MUF may have been up to 13. Even had a picture ghost over strongest semi local 7 --- absolutely unprecedented here. Maybe this is when I quit DXing ;-) Incredible stuff, Tim. Savour this. You did as good as it gets, and I wonder if you broke any records with your sheer volume. I managed 8 in AL, that's it, but it made my day. Talk about famine to feast. Had strong CCI on semilocal 7, with pics coming in, but hard to ID. Had signals and CCI up to 13, too, on all channels. I was using a Goldstar 5-inch portable TV, and a weird rabbit ears contraption that can be optimized with the turn of a knob. Advantage to a dipole is I can lift and move the thing. Perfect for going mobile. And good enough at BR. A very kind donation from Niel Wolfish. Anyhow, this AL was the only TV logged yesterday. Got so busy on FM, it didn't occur to me to check TV until I was getting DX atop my strongest FM pests. I'd never had Es on 105.9 until yesterday. So far, three IDs there, and sorting through relogs. The Maritimes was neat on Monday, unfortunately I took a nap when Bermuda was in for you folks (Saul Chernos, Burnt River, Ont., July 7, ibid.) Unprecedented high-band Es Congratulations (and envy |grin|) to everyone who logged high-band skip today! I count no fewer than *eight* identified high-band Es catches today. *One* DXer logged six. Most years we're lucky to see *one* high-band Es catch, and usually when any channel above 11 is involved, all that's seen is CCI. I'm impressed! -- (Doug Smith W9WI Pleasant View (Nashville), TN EM66, July 7, ibid.) ###