DX LISTENING DIGEST 5-068, April 25, 2005 Incorporating REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING edited by Glenn Hauser, http://www.worldofradio.com Items from DXLD may be reproduced and re-reproduced only if full credit be maintained at all stages and we be provided exchange copies. DXLD may not be reposted in its entirety without permission. Materials taken from Arctic or originating from Olle Alm and not having a commercial copyright are exempt from all restrictions of noncommercial, noncopyrighted reusage except for full credits For restrixions and searchable 2005 contents archive see http://www.worldofradio.com/dxldmid.html NOTE: If you are a regular reader of DXLD, and a source of DX news but have not been sending it directly to us, please consider yourself obligated to do so. Thanks, Glenn NEXT AIRINGS OF WORLD OF RADIO 1271: Tue 0600 WOR WPKN Bridgeport CT 89.5, WPKM Montauk NY 88.7 Tue 1600 WOR WBCQ after hours Wed 0930 WOR WWCR 9985 Wed 1600 WOR WBCQ after hours Mon 0330 WOR WSUI Iowa City IA 910 MORE info including audio links: http://worldofradio.com/radioskd.html WRN ON DEMAND: http://new.wrn.org/listeners/stations/station.php?StationID=24 OUR ONDEMAND AUDIO [also for CONTINENT OF MEDIA, MUNDO RADIAL] WORLD OF RADIO 1271 (high version): (stream) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1271h.ram (download) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1271h.rm WORLD OF RADIO 1271 (low version): (stream) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1271.ram (download) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1271.rm (summary) http://www.worldofradio.com/wor1271.html WORLD OF RADIO 1271 in true shortwave sound of Alex`s mp3: (stream) http://www.dxprograms.net/worldofradio_04-20-05.m3u (download) http://www.dxprograms.net/worldofradio_04-20-05.mp3 ** ALAND ISLANDS. Excerpt quote from Radio Nord International's bulletin board dated 25 April 2005 http://1.myfreebulletinboard.com/?mforum=radionord --- Start Quote --- Radio Nord International withdraws from Åland Discussions between all directors of RTI Digital Ltd, the operating company of Radio Nord International, came to an undivided decision at the weekend to withdraw all concession and license applications from the Åland authorities. Originally, RTI we’re going to wait a week before this decision would have been taken but in deliberation regarding the events over the last six months and the lack of knowledge or commitment during Friday’s meeting with the Government, it was decided that is was not worth pursuing any licenses. RTI Digital Ltd had assessed they have suffered enough huge financial losses and prefer to concentrate their efforts in a location with less complications and indecisiveness. --- End Quote --- History of the application process see http://www.radionord.fi/progress.htm --- Start Quote --- License Applications: 10Kw 756 KHz medium wave ND Mariehamn AM Stereo Modulation. 50Kw freq TBA short wave ND Mariehamn AM Modulation. 300Kw medium wave ND Baltic's area - Location & Frequency TBA. --- End Quote --- More pages are linked via http://www.radionord.fi/index1.htm (via Bernd Trutenau-LTU) ** ALASKA. KNLS English Homepage Updated --- Hi all, Now on the page http://www.knls.org/English/ksched.htm I see a completely different A05 schedule from KNLS' Chinese and Russian homepage. KNLS Broadcast Schedule Starting March 27, 2005 Time Frequency Azimuth Language 0800-0900 11870 270 English 0900-1000 11870 300 Russian 1000-1100 11765 300 Chinese 1100-1200 9655 300 Russian 1200-1300 9615 285 Chinese 1300-1400 9615 270 English 1400-1500 9615 300 Chinese 1500-1600 9615 285 Chinese 1600-1700 9615 300 Chinese 1700-1800 7355 315 Russian It appears that KNLS' English homepage gives accurate information. What confused me is why its Chinese and Russian sites posted mistaken schedules marked "March 27, 2005 to October 2005". These two sites obviously have different webmasters and they do not make updating along with KNLS' English homepage. Regards, (Eric Zhou, China, April 24, dxldyg via DXLD) We already had the above version in DXLD. Did not hear anything on 9615 before 1400 when it may have been in English, but at 1404 April 25, Chinese talk with that evangelical accent; 1407 a bit of jazz, ``Guanbo Dientai`` went by but any specific ID before it did not register; I guess they don`t use ``KNLS`` in Chinese, tho they do convert that to Cyrillic in their Russian broadcasts; website in Chinese is http://www.smzg.org of which smzg is presumably the Chinese version of ``NLS`` = New Life Station, but I wish they would display the Chinese ID in transliteration. After a bit more talk, ``Wind Beneath My Wings`` tune, which tho secular is suitably ambiguous. This still doesn`t confirm whether the one- or two-transmitter schedule is really in use, as this time, frequency, and language are the same on both (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ANTARCTICA. I received now an e-mail from LRA 36 Radio Nacional Arcángel San Gabriel, Base Esperanza, Antarctica in reply one of mine about the interference of Voz Cristiana on 15475 with Portuguese program to Brazil, interfering the LRA 36 transmission on 15476 kHz. I copy the LRA 36 mail because I think it is interesting, saying that this station will increase power shortly. "Estimado Manuel, te cuento que lamentablemente nada podemos hacer al respecto desde aqui, ya que esta frecuencia es asignada desde Buenos Aires, supongo, a través de nuestra secretaría de comunicaciones, y algún otro organismo con incidencias en las comunicaciones radiales, que a su vez puede estar regido por tratados internacionales y demás. Esto debería gestionarlo nuestra cabecera LRA 1 Radio Nacional, quienes ya están puestos en tema. Desde ya te agradecemos el interés por nuestra emisora, como buena nueva puedo contarte que en breve aumentaremos nuestra potencia de transmisión, estamos trabajando en ello, aunque obviamente nunca a la par de los 100 Kw que tu manifiestas, tiene la radio chilena. Te mandamos un fuerte abrazo, desde esta tan remota región del planeta LOCUTORAS, OPERADOR Y RESTO DEL PERSONAL. Jorge Omar Villagra." (via Manuel Méndez, Lugo, España, April 15, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Raising power might help a little, but the real solution is not to be on the same frequency as a 100 kW station nearby. LRA-36 used to have a little website with some photos, http://www.fcapital.com.ar/esperanza/pagina_otras.htm but that seems to be gone; wonder if there is one anywhere else? (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Hi Glenn, I spent quite a while looking for a possible new URL for the website, but I can't find one and can only conclude that they don't currently have one. The URL of the old one suggested it was hosted privately, and was probably maintained by someone who is no longer at the base. So I have deleted the link [from the Media Network hitlist]. 73, (Andy Sennitt, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ARGENTINA. 2539.8, R. Provincia, Buenos Aires (1270 x 2), SIO 353, 0030, "Provincia noticias..", anunciando duplex con FM 97.1 10/4. 3810.0, R. Provincia, Buenos Aires (1270 x 3), SIO 453, 0938, recomendaciones sanitarias para manejo del rodeo. 10/4 (Hernández / Uruguay, Conexión Digital via DXLD) So La Rosa de Tokio is a SW DX program after all, Sundays 1600-1700 (gh, DXLD) ** ARMENIA. Re Public Radio of Armenia was 1500-1530 on 11930 kHz. Language?? Powerhouse in Stuttgart: 11930, 1505 23 Apr, V. of Armenia, Gavar, Armenian, Orthodox chimes 44555 (Wolfgang Büschel, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** BOLIVIA. 9216, 9235 R Virgen de los Milagros, Tupiza, 1240 español, misa en directo, retransmisión de noticias de la CNN Tv. Se la escucha prácticamente durante todo el día. la frecuencia de transmisión continua variando entre 9207 / 9235 (Alfredo Locatelli / Uruguay, Conexión Digital via DXLD) You mean Virgen de Remedios, as previously reported? (gh, DXLD) 9221.12, unID at 1017-1031, very weak signal, religious music, fading in and out (Bob Wilkner, FL, DXplorer via DXLD) ** BRAZIL. Yes, R Guarujá is still heard on both frequencies, 3235 and 3385 in 90 meters, also on 5045 and 5930. But the official frequency in 90 meters is 3385 now. I will write to R Guarujá owner (Samuel Cássio for DX-Window, Apr 18 via DXLD) BRASIL – Em 21 de abril, Rudolf Walter Grimm notou, em São Bernardo do Campo (SP), que a Rádio Guarujá Paulista, de Guarujá (SP), havia trocado 5930 por 5940 kHz, em 49 metros. Em monitoria feita pelo colunista, em Porto Alegre (RS), em 24 de abril, a Rádio Guarujá Paulista estava, no ar, nas seguintes freqüências: 3235, 3385, 5045 e 5940 kHz, por volta de 0630. BRASIL – Ao que tudo indica, a Rádio Clube Paranaense, de Curitiba (PR), está enfrentando alguns problemas técnicos pela freqüência de 11935 kHz. O sinal possui má modulação. Foi ouvida, em 23 de abril, às 1801, iniciando a jornada esportiva, com Alfredo Ribeiro ao microfone. BRASIL – A Rádio Canção Nova foi sintonizada, em 23 de abril, às 1749, em Porto Alegre (RS), pela freqüência de 15325 kHz, em 19 metros, via Rádio Gazeta, de São Paulo (SP). Irradiava o programa De Bem com a Vida (Célio Romais, Panorama, @tividade DX April 24 via DXLD) EiBi says Brasil runs 24 hours; but at 1730-1800 RFE via Morocco is also on 15325; better windows here would be before 1500; 1530-1600 and 1630-1730 when RCI is not using it via Europe, and 1800-1900 and 2100- 0100 when RCI is not using it via Canada. Japan on 15325 after 0100 (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** BULGÁRIA. Após 41 anos de trabalhos em frente aos microfones da Rádio Bulgária pediu a aposentadoria um das vozes mais perfeitas das ondas curtas: Venceslav Nikolov. Recentemente, a Rádio Bulgária apresentou mensagens emocionadas de ouvintes comentando a performance de Venceslav. Afinal de contas, 41 anos não são 40 semanas. É uma vida dedicada ao rádio. Conforme informação de Ludmila Petra, Venceslav continua atuando esporadicamente na emissora. Para saber um pouco mais sobre Venceslav, leia entrevista dada ao colunista, no ano de 2003, em: http://paginas.terra.com.br/artesarmentocamposHistoriaOndasCurtas.htm#Radio%20Bulgária%20-%20Entrevista:%20Venceslav (Célio Romais, Panorama, @tividade DX April 24 via DXLD) ** CANADA. GUILD FINDS HOLES IN CONTRACTING-OUT PLAN The CBC`s plan to contract out the work of publicity for English TV, radio and internet services is seriously flawed and would end up costing more for fewer results. This is the message the Guild has sent to the CBC board of directors, senior managers, politicians and journalists in a bid to force a sober second look at the proposal. The CBC`s plan means cutting 34 Guild jobs nation-wide in the Communications department, hiring at least five extra managers and paying $1 million to an outside agency for pared-down publicity work. All of this is supposed to take place by the end of June. The communications department believes it will save $864,000 per year with the move. The Guild estimates that the person-hours available to do the work would be reduced by 90 per cent. To continue, click here http://www.cmg.ca/newsresults.asp?ID=583&SubjectID=14&BranchID=1 Canadian Media Guild --- La Guilde canadienne des médias 144 Front Street West, Suite 300, Toronto, ON M5J 2L7 144, rue Front ouest, bureau 300, Toronto, ON, M5J 2L7 1-800-465-4149 http://www.cmg.ca http://www.laguilde.ca (via GEORGE LESSARD, Information & Media Specialist, 60 00'N, 111 58' W, P.O. Box 456, Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, CAJ-list via Ricky Leong, DXLD) ** CHINA. 6090, Central People's Broadcasting Station, Ge'ermu verified through China R International in Beijing with a full data Endangered Rare Animals QSL-card (Pygmy Loris) indicating I heard their "national radio program" in 43 days. Also, nice note on Dazu Stone Carving, Chongging [sic] card thanking me for my reception report of the China National radio program from "Ying Lian" [collective name] of the English Service (Rich D'Angelo, PA, DSWCI DX Window April 20 via DXLD) ** COLOMBIA. 6139.83, 0553, R. Líder, Apr 9, Romantic music "Radio Líder --- amore" ID (David Norrie, Heard on AOR 7030, Whitford Forest Auckland NZ, fence post antenna, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** COSTA RICA [non]. U.N. PROBING MAURICE STRONG'S TIES TO BUSINESSMAN NICK WADHAMS, ASSOCIATED PRESS Apr. 20, 2005. 12:25 AM http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1113947414224&call_pageid=968332188854&col=968350060724&DPL=IvsNDS%2f7ChAX&tacodalogin=yes UNITED NATIONS --- The U.N. is studying whether it was appropriate for its envoy for North Korea to maintain business ties with a South Korean businessman accused of wrongdoing in the oil-for-food scandal, officials said yesterday. U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan said he had not known about the ties between Canadian businessman Maurice Strong and Tongsun Park, a native of North Korea and citizen of South Korea who was also accused in the 1970s of trying to buy influence in Congress. Strong is the U.N. pointman on stalled talks aimed at persuading North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons programs. "The allegations have just come out, and he has no plans to go to the region tomorrow," Annan said yesterday. He noted Strong was not a full-time staff member, but did not elaborate. U.N. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said senior U.N. staff have recommended that Strong be suspended. Strong denies any involvement with the $64 billion (U.S.) humanitarian program in Iraq and has pledged to co-operate with an oil-for-food investigation led by former U.S. Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker. Volcker's committee is investigating whether Strong had any ties to the program. But his admitted ties with Park are raising questions about a possible conflict of interest with his U.N. role. Strong acknowledged Monday that Park invested in an energy company he was associated with in 1997. Stephane Dujarric, a U.N. spokesman, said the world body was studying whether it was appropriate for Strong to have ties with Park given that Strong, a well-known businessman with a long-time association with the U.N., was an envoy to the region. "It's a decision by the U.N. administration to decide whether or not that is appropriate," Dujarric said. Park was thrust back into the spotlight Thursday, when the U.S. Attorney's Office accused him of accepting millions of dollars from the Iraqi government while he allegedly operated in the United States as an unregistered agent for Baghdad, lobbying for oil-for-food. The program was created to help Iraqis cope with U.N. sanctions imposed after Saddam Hussein's 1990 invasion of Kuwait. In a bid to end the sanctions, Saddam allegedly gave former government officials, activists, journalists and U.N. officials vouchers for oil to be resold at a profit. The U.S. complaint calls for the arrest of Park, who was reported to be hiding in Tokyo and considering a U.S. plea bargain offer (via Carlos Coimbra, Canada, DXLD) See also SPAIN [non] ** CZECH REPUBLIC. RADIO PRAGUE WANTS YOUR VIEWS ON INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING We were interested to see this item from the editor-in-chief of Radio Prague's English service, David Vaughan, as broadcast on this week's Mailbox programme: "I was recently listening to a programme on the BBC World Service, discussing listeners' letters. A programme manager was explaining why the World Service had decided to discontinue light entertainment. He took the example of the legendary comedy panel show "Just a Minute", saying words to the effect that: "someone talking about rice pudding for 60 seconds could hardly be considered serious radio." As a lifelong radio fan, I have to admit that I was rather surprised. Are we really inexorably moving towards a world where international broadcasting is synonymous with 24-hour news? "I thought it would be interesting to launch a debate involving our own listeners - and to ask you what you think makes good radio, and where should international broadcasting - especially a small station like Radio Prague - be heading? We'd be delighted to read your contributions, to broadcast them and pin them up on our website. So please do get in touch on english @ radio.cz or write to our usual postal address (Radio Prague, Vinohradska 12, 12099, Prague 2, Czech Republic). I'll try to make sure that all contributors are sent something in return. So once again, please do send in some of your opinions on what you think is the recipe for good international broadcasting - and hopefully it will also give us some inspiration!" Radio Prague http://www.radio.cz/en/ # posted by Andy @ 15:49 UT April 25 (Media Network blog via DXLD) ** ECUADOR. 'OUTLAW' RADIO HELPED GALVANIZE ECUADOR PROTESTS http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Features/2005/04/22/1008690.html QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Applause fills the radio studio when the host mentions the tens of thousands of Ecuadoreans who poured into the streets in protest, withstood clouds of tear gas and eventually forced President Lucio Gutiérrez from office. ``A minute of applause. For whom? For you,`` program chief Luis Pozo told listeners Thursday, holding the microphone close. ``In eight days of protests, we`ve been able to get rid of Lucio Gutiérrez!`` His alternative radio station, La Luna 99.3 FM, played a key role in crystallizing public disillusionment with Gutiérrez and galvanizing protests that brought down his government Wednesday. Gutiérrez was still in Ecuador on Friday and was believed to be stranded inside the Brazilian ambassador`s residence waiting to leave for Brazil, which has granted him asylum. Dozens of protesters blocked the compound`s two main gates. While the protesters chanted ``Lucio, turn yourself in!,`` La Luna listeners called in to congratulate the radio station for coordinating a triumphant protest movement. The station had backed Gutierrez when the ex-army colonel was elected in 2002 on pledges of doing away with corruption and helping the poor. But its left-leaning directors, along with many in Ecuador, grew to revile Gutiérrez as they perceived him to be taking on dictatorial powers while turning a blind eye to corruption and not fulfilling his promises. In recent weeks, commentators on La Luna --- which means ``The Moon`` --- began demanding Gutiérrez`s ouster and opened the phone lines to angry callers, who said street protests were the only solution. The station promoted protests with nightly themes: marchers banged on pots and pans one night, popped balloons in the streets the next and then hurled toilet paper. The protests received strong backing from La Luna director Paco Velasco, who called Gutierrez a ``traitor`` and ``dictator,`` predicting his government would soon fall. The cause resonated with a wide range of people, from retirees to housewives with children, who all took to the streets. Past uprisings in the South American country usually have been led by unionists, students or indigenous groups. ``For the first time in Ecuador, there were protests without leaders,`` Pozo said. ``It was people`s indignation against all of the politicians, against traditional politics.`` Protesters drew their main slogan from Gutierrez`s own words. After opponents shouted insults outside his home last week, he called them ``forajidos,`` or ``outlaws.`` The radio station embraced the term on the air, and T-shirts began to appear with the slogan ``I`m an outlaw.`` A banner on the studio wall reads, ``We are outlaws.`` Velasco, a 46-year-old former university professor, said he has paid a high personal price, as he and his family received repeated death threats. He sent his family into hiding, and he began sleeping at the station or with friends. ``These last eight days have been bitter,`` Velasco said. ``I haven`t been able to sleep.`` Dozens of government supporters descended on the station with torches April 15, shouting insults that led to a scuffle. No one was injured. But as anti-government protests persisted, station employees noticed interference in the signal. Pozo said it seemed the military was trying to jam broadcasts. The transmitter`s power also mysteriously went out, but the station kept broadcasting. Government supporters accused La Luna of fomenting violence, while its defenders insisted peaceful protests promoted by the station were vital to ousting Gutiérrez. ``It wouldn`t have been possible without this radio station,`` said José Manjarrez, a 63-year-old sign-maker who joined the marches with his wife and children. ``This station is like the voice of the people,`` said Ataulfo Tobar, 51, the station manager who also wrote many of its protest songs. La Luna`s managers say the station is funded through advertising and has maintained its independence. Years ago, Velasco used the station to help lead opposition to another president, Abdala Bucaram, who was accused of corruption and removed from office by Congress in 1997 for ``mental incapacity.`` When Wednesday`s news came that Congress voted to remove Gutierrez from office, hundreds of revelers crowded outside the radio station waving flags, witnesses said. Inside, people hugged and broke into singing the national anthem. ``I cried when Lucio was overthrown,`` Pozo said. ``I usually don`t cry, but the tears just fell as I sang the national anthem.`` (via Ricky Leong, DXLD) ** ECUADOR. O programa DX HCJB, irradiado em 23 de abril, foi histórico, conforme entendimento de Sarmento Campos, do Rio de Janeiro (RJ). Segundo ele, no início do espaço, a apresentadora Eunice Carvajal leu um editorial, de oito minutos, refletindo posição clara em relação aos imbróglios políticos no Equador, que culminaram com a destituição do presidente Lúcio Gutiérrez. Está disponível, a la carte, na Internet. Pode ser buscado, em ``áudios da semana`` e ``DX HCJB``, em http://www.hcjb-brasil.org (Célio Romais, Panorama, @tividade DX April 24 via DXLD) ** ECUADOR. 4909.3, R. Chaskis (Presumed), Apr 24, 0710-0747, non-stop songs, some possibly in English but mostly in Spanish, no announcements heard, weak (Ron Howard, Monterey, CA, NRD545, with T2FD antenna, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** EGYPT. 7260, R. Cairo good at 0200-0228 with English ID, frequency list, and special program on the Prophet Muhammad. This frequency usually covered here by ARO traffic; for the first 28 minutes of the broadcast the hams were not present; then blasted Cairo at 0228 4/21 (Jim Ronda, Tulsa OK, NASWA Flashsheet via DXLD) ** EQUATORIAL GUINEA. 15190, R. Africa No. 2 or R. East Africa (?), Apr 24, 0617-0648, English religious program, poor, best by 0640 but lost them about 0648. Noted them under a strong religious station (0700*) which carried a non-stop religious service (Catholic), in language (Ron Howard, Monterey, CA, NRD545, with T2FD antenna, DX LISTENING DIGEST) 15190, R. Africa, an E-mail report with a RealAudio clip to radioafrica@myway.com brought a nice looking card with photo of transmitter and an unknown person on front, full-data and stamp of Pierce International Communications, Inc. on back. Also skeds and letter (no V/S), all sent from Pan American Broadcasting, 2021 The Alameda (Suite 240), San José, CA 95126-1145. Card shows that address and also P. O. Box 851, Malabo. Sked on card is: R. Africa, 7190 & 15190, daily 1700-2300; R. Africa #2, 15190, Mon-Fri 0800-1300; and R. East Africa, 15190, Sat & Sun 0700-1600. Also sent current printed skeds showing individual programs. In 2 months (no E-mail reply received). (Jerry Berg, MA, DX-plorer via DXLD) 5005, 0537, R. Bata, Apr 23, lovely tribal music, fair to good, unmistakably African but gone by 0553 (David Norrie, Heard on AOR 7030, Whitford Forest Auckland NZ, fence post antenna, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ERITREA [non]. NEW ERITREAN OPPOSITION COALITION LAUNCHES RADIO STATION | Text of report by Eritrean opposition web site Nharnet on 19 April We would like to inform our listeners that Voice of Democratic Alliance [of the recently-formed opposition coalition Eritrean Democratic Alliance] will from next Thursday, 21 April 2005, begin broadcasting to Africa, Asia and Europe in the 25, 31 and 41 metre band or 18000 [sic] kHz, 9560 kHz and 7165 kHz; and to the Horn of Africa and Middle East in the 303 and 989 metre band middle wave. [NOTE: 18000 maybe means 11800? See below. 7165 and 9560 are regular frequencies of R. Ethiopia`s external service --- gh] We would also like to inform our listeners that while the broadcasting from Thursday, 21 April, to Saturday, 23 April 2005, will carry introductory programmes, the radio will start broadcasting its regular programmes on Sunday, 24 April 2005. Broadcasting hours are as follows: Mondays: From 6 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. [1500-1530 gmt] in Arabic; from 6.30 p.m. to 7 p.m. in Kunama. Tuesdays: From 6 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. in Tigrinya; from 6.30 p.m. to 7 p.m. in Afar. Wednesdays: From 6 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. in Arabic; from 6.30 p.m. to 7 p.m. in Kunama. Thursdays: From 6 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. in Tigrinya; from 6.30 p.m. to 7 p.m. in Afar. Fridays: From 6 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. in Arabic; from 6.30 p.m. to 7 p.m. in Kunama. Saturdays: From 6 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. in Tigrinya; from 6.30 p.m. to 7 p.m. in Afar. Sundays: From 6 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. in Arabic; from 6.30 p.m. to 7 p.m. in Tigrinya. [Issued by] The office of Information. Eritrean Democratic Alliance. Source: Nharnet web site in Tigrinya 19 Apr 05 (via BBCM via DXLD) Radio V. of Ethiopia used 11800.3 kHz at 1058-1800 UT a decade ago. Now replaced by 7165 (Wolfgang Büschel, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ETHIOPIA [non]. CLANDESTINE (Ethiopia). 12120, R. Voice of ENUF (sked Fri & Sun 1700-1800 via Armavir), Fri Apr 22, transmitter opened with test tones at *1657-1658, and then an open carrier was heard with QSA5 1700-1800*, but no audio! Were the producers sleeping? But on Sun Apr 24 at *1700-1758*, the station was heard after some test tones, beginning with two minutes of reading numbers in English: "171 171 171 000 171 171 171 000 171 171 171 000 171 171 171 171 171 171 171 000 171 171 171 000 171 171 171 000 171 171 171 000" with an Ethiopian song weak in the background. At 1702-1758 followed some talks in Amharic with a few mentions of Ethiopia and frequently with a flute in the background. SINPO 45444 (Anker Petersen, Denmark, DXplorer via DXLD) ** ETHIOPIA [non]. 15660, Tensae Ethiopia Voice of Unity, via Samara (250 kW, 199 degrees), fine reception when I tuned in on Bernd’s tip Apr 17 just before close 1600* "Tansae" and "Demokrasi" mentioned, as well as "meter band" etc (Finn Krone, Denmark, DSWCI DX Window April 20 via DXLD) ** INDIA. 9425, AIR Bangalore, April 23, 1547-1612, end of ``Spotlight`` program and into BBCWS science program, ID ``This is the National Channel of A.I.R.`` (Ron Howard, Monterey, CA, NRD545, with T2FD antenna, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** INTERNATIONAL. Hi Guys, Here is an mp3 file you might want to listen to and maybe download. http://www.jingles.com/audio/jamsong.mp3 It is a promotional mp3 that includes a song called jamsong that was put out with an assortment of station IDs that the company produced jingles for. You will recognise many of the US/Canadian ones plus I heard 2XS and 2ZM (Mark Nicholls, greylinedx via DXLD) Fun; even includes VOA and chances are, a station near you (gh, DXLD) ** INTERNATIONAL VACUUM. Worldspace has started the test transmission of uplink from Peking to NE beam of Asiastar Satellite on TDM44 (transponder#1 44R 1473 MHz) BCID=1485, naming `DEMO 128K`. The announcement of the Peking uplink and the introduction of `UPOP` program is repeated in English. Announcement of the Peking link is as follows: ``Welcome to China! Mike Speesdach and I welcome Noah, our board members, and all the members of the duty regimes teams. We saw that the most important experience we could have in this trip was to actually hear a live broadcast uplink from Beiching to our Asiasat Satellite, and the down to the Worldspace receiver which you are actually listening to right now. Also we would like you to hear what the music sounds like. China from our Asiasat Satellite by playing a symbol of the most popular worldwide music channels UPOP. Enjoy! Worldspace seems to prepare to broadcast pay-radio in China. Their pay-radio was unsuccessful in Japan and Korea, and they withdrew from Japan in 2002. China Radio International has been testing also on TDM44 BCID=1490 since May 2003. For NE beam they are originally using Singapore uplink (transponder #2 49L 1476 MHz), in which most broadcasting including WRN have been encrypted since April 2005 (Takahito Akabayashi, Japan, April 23, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** IRAN. Re 5-067, IRIB announcing wrong frequencies: Problem - No internal link in IRIB radio depts. Hi Glenn, reactions via e-mail correspondence with their journalists: the program departments of various IRIB language sections are not aware of the whole 'valid' IRIB frequency schedule. Some two weeks ago, we at German DXclubs sent the whole V. of IRI A-05 frequency schedule to some IRIB journalists attention - instead -, three weeks after A-05 season started already !!! There are no links [at least no flow of information] between IRIB's frequency management of Mr. Mahmood Kamany kamany @ irib.com and their language sections. 73 (Wolfgang Büschel, Germany, dxldyg via DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ITALY. 3360.0, UNID Italian pirate, 2315-2340, Apr 07, Italian pop songs and men talking above in Italian at times. 44444. What is that? (Anker Petersen, Denmark, DSWCI DX Window April 20 via DXLD) Ciao Anker, as I told also Dario, on this frequency there are often Italian pirates making QSO in LSB, sometimes some of them send also some music or songs. And sometimes someone send songs without ID... one time at the end the operator said a few word in Tuscan Vernacular like " I wonder if someone is listening to me in the middle of the night..." Then he went off... Also yesterday I could hear them in LSB. So I have no usefull info... sorry (Bernardini, Apr 09, ibid.) No ideas ....often in 90 meters here in Itally operates some pirate HAM, military .... and they even relay FM stations ... just for fun ... Or may be some sub harmonic product .... we will check it. Nothing heard recently (Cerveglieri, Groppazzi and Monferini, ibid.) ** KURDISTAN [and non]. The Parliament and the new leadership of Iraq finally has been settled. For DX-ers, it is interesting to note the background of the new President and the new Prime Minister. Mr Jalal Talabani, a Kurdish lawyer, was elected by the Parliament as President of Iraq on Apr 06. Since 1975 he has been the leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) with Headquarter's in the North Eastern city of Sulaymaniyah from where the Voice of the People of Kurdistan has been broadcasting since 1988. Nowadays it is heard on 4025 kHz and is regarded as a domestic broadcasting station in that region of Iraq. PUK wants continued autonomy of Iraqi Kurdistan, but not independence for the time being. In contrary to this, the rival Kurdish party in North Western Iraq is the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) which fights for immediate independence from Baghdad. At present their station - the Voice of Iraqi Kurdistan - can be heard on 6335 kHz. Mr. Ibrahim al-Jaafari, an Arab doctor and Chairman of the Shiitic Party Hezb al-Dawa al-Islamiya, was appointed Prime Minister on Apr 07. In 1980 he had to leave Iraq because Saddam Hussein crushed the leaders of that Party. He first stayed in Iran, and during 1989-2003 in London from where he was active in the opposition against Saddam Hussein. "His" clandestine radio station probably was the Voice of the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, with programmes produced by the Shii Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI) at 27a Old Gloucester Street in London WC1N, and broadcast from SW-transmitters of the VOIRI in Iran. These broadcasts ceased with the fall of Saddam Hussein in April 2003 (Anker Petersen, DSWCI DX Window April 20 via DXLD) ** MALAYSIA. 5030, RM Sarawak (Presumed), Apr 23, 1442-1541, indigenous singing and music, several phone calls taken on air, ToH news for 10 minutes, mixing with China, but at a decent level and at times almost level with China. 7296, RM - Radio 4, Apr 24, 1431-1448, program in English of oldies County & Western songs and yodeling (``I Fought the Law and the Law Won,``, etc.), acknowledged an e-mail from Jean, a listener in San Diego, Calif., TC ``10:42 in Malaysia,`` fair (Ron Howard, Monterey, CA, NRD545, with T2FD antenna, DX LISTENING DIGEST) 7295? ** MARSHALL ISLANDS. V7AD, Majuro, 1098 kHz, in again this AM 1049- 1054 UT. Peaked at 1053 with same soft voiced woman. Better than APR 20 reception but still can't make out language. I'm sure someone with better hearing than mine could make it out. My ears have been battered by too many years of static and sideband splatter. I listened to the tape repeatedly this AM but still can't make it out. When Neil Kazaross visited in March he was able to pick out things from my old tapes that I had missed. Has anyone tried the MFJ-616 Intelligibility Enhancer? I have a whole shelf full of audio filters - DSP, Switched Capacitor, active, passive and not one has ever helped me so I'm a little leery of buying another one. It sounds good, though. What's another $170? [Later:] Willis WB5KHD inquires about a het on 1098 at 0530 EDT. This is almost certainly Majuro V7AD which is the most consistent TP here. Neil Kazaross tells me that is also the case in IL. Typically it should improve closer to your LSR. However, it usually signs off about 1130Z. One caveat - make sure the station is on 1098 as I have a loud carrier on 1099 here from Latin America, probably Cuba. From here it is easy to spot as it loops half way between the down under stations and the Far East stations (Ray Moore, Fort Myers, FL, April 24, NRC-AM via DXLD) Out here in the Pacific north-west, 1098 is audible from time to time. At Grayland, WA, the local mecca for MW DXers, we've heard them at very nice levels. The language is usually Marshallese, and can be quite difficult to make heads or tails of the content. Listen for typical south Pacific music, though. That's a clincher. Guy Atkins has a good ear for that type of thing, so an audio clip might be helpful. Great catch, by the way. Sometimes the more audio is processed, the less useful content you can ascertain, so try turning some of them off. Personally I use a Timewave 599 zx, but when I really want to enjoy the program and get every last hz of audio, I'll turn all of them off and just listen to the unfiltered stream (Walt Salmaniw, Victoria, BC, dxldyg via DXLD) ** MEXICO. FM tropo to YUCATAN --- 4/24 tropo 1846 93.7 XHMRI Mérida, Yucatán, 589-miles "Sólo éxitos, 93.7 Súper Estéreo" música romántica en español; full ID 1859, ``XHMRI 93.7 con 100mil watts de potencia, desde Mérida, Yucatán, MEXICO"; 2125 promo "zona-R es la revista de Juvenil 9-2-1 FM" 73 de Steve/AB5GP (Steven Wiseblood, Boca Chica Beach, Texas, TECHNICS SA-200 $Receiver, Antennacraft FM-6 yagi @ 40', CM #9537 antenna rotator. Times are CDT; distances in miles (as the Grackle flies), DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** NEW ZEALAND. Don`t give up if you don`t hear RNZI Mailbox at scheduled times such as 1330 UT alternate Mondays. April 25 on 6095, it did not actually start until 1334. With external antenna only, reception held up to 1400, but I went back and listened to the website file to catch the words of the ANZAC/Gallipoli song which opened the show, details of the DX news with John Durham --- up to date, including Ecuador`s new Chaskis, R. Tatras. His segment on the file was MUCH softer than the rest of the programmme. Then Adrian Sainsbury talked about DRM. Besides the imminent MW tests by RNZ, he mentioned that RNZI would be commissioning its DRM SW transmitter later this year. So unseems they will start the test schedule already May 1 as published (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** PORTUGAL. O RÁDIO CLUBE PORTUGUÊS ESTÁ DE VOLTA ÀS ONDAS MÉDIAS Substituindo uma estação que enganadoramente se chamava Rádio Nacional, o Rádio Clube Português voltou às frequências de ondas médias que foram uas até ao ano de 1976: a frequência de 1035 kHz, que é usada pelo emissor do Porto Alto, situado a poucas dezenas de quilómetros de Lisboa, e a frequência de 783 kHz, que é usada pelo emissor da Afurada, também chamado emissor do Canidelo (o WRTH, erradamente, localiza-o em Miramar; o que se encontra em Miramar é um emissor de ondas médias da RDP que transmite a Antena1), situado a menos de 1 quilómetro da cidade do Porto, na margem esquerda do Rio Douro. Quem sintonizar agora uma das duas frequências referidas, ouvirá uma emissão muito diferente da que era transmitida pela chamada Rádio Nacional. Enquanto nesta praticamente não havia intervenção humana, pois era um computador que ``atirava para o ar`` a música, os anúncios e a identificações da estação (excepto quando transmitia um programa da Igreja Pentecostal Deus É Amor), o Rádio Clube Português mantém sempre um ou mais locutores falando em directo ao microfone, transmite noticiários, informações de trânsito, diálogos com ouvintes pelo telefone e também muita música dos anos 60, 70 e 80 (os chamados ``oldies``) e ainda alguma música mais recente, de Simon e Garfunkel, Tina Turner, Pink Floyd, Bee Gees, Rui Veloso, Madredeus, Luís Represas, Chico Buarque, Ney Matogrosso, etc. etc. O sítio do Rádio Clube Português na Web ainda não faz qualquer referência às ondas médias. A lista de emissores que apresenta tem apenas os emissores de FM. O link da estação é o seguinte: http://www.rcp.iol.pt/ (Fernando de Sousa Ribeiro, Portugal, @tividade DX April 24 via DXLD) ** SERBIA & MONTENEGRO [non]. 9580, BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA, International Radio of Serbia & Montenegro fair-good at 2358-0027 with English program for NAm; news, features, several IDs, and music breaks; infrequently heard here (Jim Ronda, Tulsa OK, 4/18, NASWA Flashsheet via DXLD) ** SLOVAKIA [and non]. Getting the basics wrong --- But a lot of people still go about setting up a new radio station in the wrong way. One recent example is a station that claimed before it launched that it would be a pan-European operation, operating on a number of different platforms. The station launched when it said it would, but several of the transmission platforms failed to materialise. People who asked questions about what was going on received rude answers. The website has not been updated, and still claims these nonexistent outlets. The main motivation for attempting to set up the station on multiple platforms seems to have been technical - doing it because it's possible. The key component - content - was not clearly defined, and as a result the station's launch received practically no press coverage. 99 percent of the station's potential listeners don't know it exists. I don't doubt the motives of the people who set it up, but clearly they got the basics wrong... http://www2.rnw.nl/rnw/en/features/media/cr050422.html?view=Standard (Andy Sennitt, Media Network via DXLD) In welcoming you to RTI, may I take this opportunity to quote US President George Bush when he recently visited Slovakia: "You are showing that a small nation, built on a big idea, can spread liberty throughout the world." US President George Bush. Equally, the notion that the President would have been speaking in Bratislava, just a few years ago, was unthinkable. The President added: "The road to liberty and prosperity has not been straight or easy``. He added ``we respect your patience, your courage and your determination to secure a better future in Europe.`` RTI has already demonstrated that a small group with a big idea can achieve the unthinkable. Using the latest technology and innovation, RTI has become a pan-European station which empowers both large and small business‚ alike to share messages with major market audiences. The team’s patience, courage and determination has resulted in a fantastic future for radio audiences both now, in the analogue world, and in the future as RTI embraces the 21st century digital age. Thank you for your support and interest. Best regards, Jan Telensky Bc.h.c., Managing Director (RTI website Apr 11, via Petersen, DSWCI DX Window April 20 via DXLD) ** SOUTH CAROLINA [non]. Brother Scare`s departure from WWCR-4 has begun: Monday April 25 at 1327, The Power Hour from GCN was running on 7465, despite already being available on two other stations, tho not synchronized, WHRA on 15310 and WHRI on 9840 (tho the latter was not up to strength at this hour). After 1400, GCN instead of BS continued on WWCR-4 after switch to 9985. Must be a recent change as not reflected in the April 12 version of WWCR`s online schedule, still showing BS during these hours on 4 (and also 3, with a break for PPP at 1300, not checked, with the time conversions still wrong). The Overcomer SW sked page http://www.overcomerministry.org/SW/ was not coming up (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** SPAIN. Glenn, as you said a while ago: That's the way to do it ... Back in last year REE's German programmes disappeared and were replaced by some Spanish stuff. On enquiry REE told that the editors are on vacation. Now Douglas Kähler says that REE in fact fired them: -----Original Message----- Date: Sun, 24 Apr 2005 12:17:35 +0200 Subject: [A-DX] Mit REE ist's Essig From: Douglas Kähler Oder anders: Vergesst Botschaften einer Wiederaufnahme der Programme in D. Dt. Mitarbeiter entlassen -sniff-. Grüße, (Douglas Kähler, Kiel, A-DX via Ludwig via DXLD) ** SPAIN. ``Desde Baleares al Mundo`` é um espaço da Rádio Exterior de Espanha que apresenta informações sobre os cinco arquipélagos que foram o antigo enclave de Maré Nostrum: Mallorca, Menorca, Cabrera, Ibiza e Formentera. Armando Pomar fala da cultura, belezas naturais e da hospitalidade do povo que habita Baleares. É imperdível. Você pode ouvir, nos sábados, às 1130, em 9765, 11815, 15170, 21570 e 21700 kHz (Célio Romais, Panorama, @tividade DX April 24 via DXLD) ** SPAIN [non]. I visited REE site in Cariari, Cantón de Pococí in my native province of Limón, just once more than a decade ago. They were running three 100 kW Continental transmitters by then, and I haven´t seen such behemoths and those big antenna curtains, except in pictures from major broadcasters. I´m wondering the same as gh does, being Cariari so close to the North American continent, they only have an hour in English on 15385 at 0000. That leads me to the idea that goes on and on with all broadcasters: if they don't get enough input of feedback with the listeners, they end with the impression of a scarce audience. At least in my case, I am not used to be writing or calling a station all the time to let them know I'm a faithful listener. I could love their programs like many of us do: lonely wolves. Broadcasters should know (and I know they know) there are thousands of quiet listeners out there in the globe, whose only reaction towards them comes when they threaten program cuts. The bad thing to convince the managers to step back, is that decisions have been taken before going on the air (Raúl Saavedra, Costa Rica, April 25, dxldyg via DXLD) The English hour at 0000 is not via Costa Rica, and never has been; only direct from Spain (gh, DXLD) ** SUDAN. 5895, R. Peace, Also heard *1659-1726*, Apr 13, English opening ID, into English religious talk interspersed with brief fragments of music, continued in Arabic (?) 1715-1726 carrier off, best day so far, missing Apr 14 and 15, but back again Apr 16, generally poor (Martien Groot, Holland, DSWCI DX Window April 20 via DXLD) ** SWITZERLAND. CUTBACKS AT SWISSINFO OUTRAGE SWISS IN FRANCE Sunday 24 April 2005 swissinfo Swiss living in France, the largest community of the Swiss abroad, have unanimously rejected plans to drastically reduce swissinfo's content and staff. Speaking at their annual congress, participants were firmly opposed to the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation's (SBC) proposals to economise at Switzerland's news and information platform. The SBC announced in March that it would axe up to 80 jobs and eight language services at swissinfo, leaving only a reduced English department. Representatives of the nearly 167,000 Swiss nationals residing in France took part in the conference in the French town of Agen, where the future of swissinfo was placed high on the agenda. They voted unanimously to support a resolution on swissinfo, which stressed that they were "scandalised to learn of the SBC's proposals". They also called on the Swiss authorities to "find the means to secure the indispensable tool that swissinfo constitutes, particularly for the 30,000 citizens", residing in France who continue to exercise their right to vote in Swiss elections. The driving force behind the resolution was Jean-Paul Aeschlimann, vice-president of the Organisation of the Swiss Abroad and president of the Swiss Association of Montpellier. He has lived outside Switzerland for more than 30 years. He admitted that, while there was a wealth of information available elsewhere to the Swiss abroad, none matched swissinfo's take on events. "The advantage of swissinfo is its neutral approach to information, which puts forward balanced points of view with speed; there is a need for something which stands apart from political parties and lobbyists," Aeschlimann said. Lending his support to the resolution was the Swiss ambassador to France, François Nordmann. "The position taken by the Swiss in France conforms to the position we have taken ourselves in the Foreign Ministry," he said. "I remember the time when swissinfo was conceived to replace Swiss Radio International...with the argument that the BBC was going to put all its content on the internet. Today the BBC still has its shortwave service and we do not!" said Nordmann. While the SBC might be pushing ahead with its plan for swissinfo for economic and strategic reasons, one could not ignore the fact that the Swiss government had announced it was cutting its subsidy to swissinfo, ahead of the SBC. Could Nordmann imagine a return to the days of state-funding for swissinfo? "It is true that we are living in an era of draconian budgetary constraints but it has also happened that jobs that were supposed to be lost were saved [in other areas]" Nordmann explained. However, he added: "[Here] we have to measure the [potential] impact on the presence of Switzerland abroad and one should be careful not to take political decisions, which contradict one another." swissinfo, Bernard Léchot in Agen http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=111&sid=5715527&cKey=1114337368000 (via Mike Terry, dxldyg via DXLD) Same: http://www.nzz.ch/2005/04/24/eng/article5715527.html (via Artie Bigley, DXLD) ** SYRIA. Amigo Riad, siempre he querido que vuestra emisora emitiera más temprano es español, para tener un buen horario de escucha en España. Seria esto posible alguna vez (Vicent Marí, 46290 Alcàsser (Valencia) España, via Noticias DX via DXLD) SIRIA DISPUESTA A ADELANTAR EN UNA HORA SUS EMISIONES EN ESPAÑOL. SEGÚN SE DESPRENDE DEL CORREO ADJUNTO. TENDRÍAMOS QUE HACER UN POCO DE FUERZA DESDE ESPAÑA (Vicent Marí, ibid.) Viz.: Hola amigo Vicent, espero que te encuentres muy bien de salud y de todo. Primero pido disculpas por haberme tardado en contestarte, pero de ahora en adelante, voy a contestar al siguiente día si Dios quiere. Bueno nosotros tenemos la posibilidad de adelantar la transmisión una hora qué te parece? si conviene esto pues lo podemos hacer pronto. Tienes razón amigo pues España sólo tiene dos horas de diferencia con Siria, y como en un principio se pensó más en Hispanoamérica, se hizo el horario de las transmisiones así en detrimento de nuestros amigos los españoles que no tienen la culpa de la existencia del océano Atlántico. Estamos a la disposición de nuestros radiooyentes, y esta queja nos ha llegado de varios en la península ibérica. Bueno amigo Vicent, esto por hoy y hasta pronto (Riad Sharaf Al-Din, R. Damascus April 24, via Mari, ibid.) So may move Spanish to 2215-2330? (gh) ** TAIWAN. 15250, Fu Hsing Broadcasting Station, Taipei, 0400-0416, Apr 07, Taiwan pops music and talk program. ID: ``Fu Hsing Guan po dien tai`` 2 times (0400). Fair reception (Masato Ishii, Shibata-shi, Japan, DSWCI DX Window April 20 via DXLD) Nice full data Crocus Flower QSL Card with accompany information letter in English and Chinese. This for my report of Mar 13. The only error is that for the Date and Time they have listed 94.03.13 for both... somewhat of error for the year? Sent in a large brown envelope with this address: Fu Hsing Broadcasting Station, 5, Lane 280, Section 5, Chungshan North Road, Taipei 111, Republic of China (Taiwan) E- mail: fushinge @ ms63.hinet.net web site: http://www.fhbs.com.tw Reply in 27 days. v/s nil (Ed Kusalik, Alberta, Dxplorer, Apr 13 via DSWCI DX Window April 20 via DXLD) Year 94 is the 94th year according to the calendar of the Republic of China, hence not an error, just a different calendar being used (Richard Lam, Singapore, via Kusalik in Dxplorer, ibid.) ** U K [and non]. RECEPTION OF BBC WORLD SERVICE IN NEW ZEALAND --- Compiled by Ken Baird, Christchurch As a result of the frequency changes at the end of March (A05), I have been monitoring the BBC to get a revised list of ``good`` frequencies to listen to their World Service. I hope the frequency list below, received on a Kenwood R5000 using an 18m wire antenna, will help. You should remember that the BBC no longer broadcast directly to New Zealand and any reception is a result of receiving broadcasts targeted to other areas of the World. Also, the BBC have greatly reduced their frequencies and transmission hours world wide, thus limiting reception in NZ. UTC 1800 6195(G), 12095(G) 1900 6195(G), 9410(CY) 2000 6195(G), 9410(CY) 2100 6195(G)(LSB) 2200 7105(SG), 9740(SG) 2300 11955(T) 0000 15310(T) 0100 15310(T) 0200 15310(T), 17790(SG) 0300 15360(T), 17790(T)) 0400 6195(G), 9410(CY/G), 12095(CY), 15360(T), 17790(T) 0500 6195(G), 9410(CY), 12095(G), 15360(SG), 21660(SG) 0600 9410(G), 12095(G)), 15360(SG), 17760(T), 17790(T), 21660(SG) 0700 15360(SG), 17640(G), 17760(SG/T), 17790(OM), 21660(SG) 0800 11955, 15360(SG), 15485(G) 0900 9740(SG), 15310(T), 15360(SG), 15485(G) 1000 6195(T & SG), 9740(SG), 15310(T), 15360(SG), 17640(G), 17760(T), 21660(T) Countries of origin are : CY = Cyprus, G = UK, OM = Oman, SG = Singapore, T = Thailand. Good listening, (Ken Baird, NZ, April NZ DX Times via DXLD) ** U K [non]. SOUTH AFRICA -- 9555 kHz, Christian Voice via Meyerton. Recently, I read some reports mentioning that program on 9555 was different from Zambia. On Apr. 16, Christian Voice was heard at 1442 on 9555 with SINPO 24332; then I tried to compare with the program on 15205 from Darwin, Australia. I found that the signal on 9555 was 1 second later than Darwin's signal, but both programs were in parallel. They carried music program "Planet 30" produced by The Voice (CVC International). (Iwao Nagatani, Japan, Japan Premium via DXLD) ** U S A. NITELITES OF CINCINNATI LIGHTS UP THE NIGHT AT BETHANY STATION, THE HISTORIC VOICE OF AMERICA IN WEST CHESTER, OHIO http://www.pr.com/press-release/1195 Cincinnati, OH, April 19, 2005 --(PR.COM)-- Months after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1942 the Crosley Corporation was commissioned by the federal government to engineer a radio station powerful enough to reach a worldwide audience. In 1944, Bethany Station became the first Voice of America station capable of reaching out to a global audience. Bethany Station operated for fifty years before being decommissioned and presented to the residents of West Chester for public use. The 330 acres surrounding Bethany Station were turned into the Voice of America Park and Bethany Station into the Voice of America Museum. Throughout the renovation and development of the surrounding areas, Bethany Station has set in the dark. Now, after several years, the Voice of America Bethany Station in West Chester, Ohio, radiates once again. The lights came on Tuesday (April 19th) at 8 p.m. The lighting system, which created an elegant glow on the 1940’s art-deco building, was donated and installed by Jim Landsiedel and his staff at NiteLites of Cincinnati. [even more blatant commercial promotion than below, snipped] For more information on NiteLites architectural and landscape lighting visit their web site at http://www.nitelites.com. If you are interested in outdoor lighting and would like a free night time demo contact Jim Landsiedel and his staff at (513) 665-4100 in Cincinnati, (937) 886-1420 in Dayton, and (859) 578-0777 in Northern Kentucky. For more information on a NiteLites Franchise, contact Tom Frederick at NiteLites Franchise Systems, Inc., (866) NITELITES. (via Kim Elliott, DXLD) ** U S A. Will shortwave ever be embraced by the under-40 crowd? Forget the mode of delivery debate (analog vs. DRM vs. Internet streaming). Also forget the demographic debate. Give people something they want to hear and they might actively SEEKING it, no matter how old they are. If I had begun my SWL hobby now rather than in the mid 1990s, I might not have stuck around. The vast majority of what you hear on the dial now, in English, is coming from Bible-thumping private U.S. outlets, something I wouldn't normally tune into, no matter how you deliver it to me (Ricky Leong, Calgary, Alta., April 24, swprograms via DXLD) ** U S A. Brother Scare`s departure from WWCR-4 has begun: See SOUTH CAROLINA [non] ** U S A. I know you aren't listing WBCQ "Radio Weather" broadcasts but just for your info there was one 2100 UT Thursday on 7415. Strangely, every time I hear a RW program these days, about half of it sounds like it is new to me and half sounds familiar or has old-dated references in it. I wonder if Hembree is re-editing chunks of RWs into new programs? One recent one ended with the note that it was "program number 7". If he was producing new ones consistently, he should be up to "50" or so by now! But few of them seem to contain such a label. Have either of you ever actually heard him discuss that "B12" receiver he keeps mentioning at the start of RW programs and then never gets around to actually discussing or describing? I must have heard 3 or more RW programs in which he said he'd talk about it and then didn't and ended with "he'll get to it next program". Whatever "next" might mean in the RW universe. Re: Late-night special on WBCQ --- My apologies for a mis-reference in my posting on this topic. That'll teach me to post when I don't have my notes (made at the actual time) in front of me! Also, my memory of what happens just around the time I go to sleep is somewhat flaky these days, I guess. Too many brain cells have slipped into the great Beyond. It was UT 4/20 (Tuesday night Central, Wednesday UT) that WBCQ had the music & talk with references to being from a ship as I described, on 7415 after the schedule ended. It was UT 4/22 (Thursday night Central, Friday UT) when WBCQ stayed on 7415 late and transmitted a Ken Nordine "Word Jazz" program. When I posted the original note, I had the program from one and the date from the other mixed. Sorry, 73, (Will Martin, MO, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. [USA_Skywarn] BILL PROPOSES ENDING FREE WEATHER DATA From: Weather Incidents wny120@yahoo.com Date: Sun, 24 Apr 2005 17:04:32 -0400 The Internet has made weather data more freely accessible to those who want it. Thanks to new policies instituted by the National Weather Service, users can obtain free access to such things as live radar, weather forecasts, and even receive weather on their cell phones. However, a bill introduced last week by Senator Rick Santorum (R-PA) may end all that. "NOAA's actions threaten the continued success of the commercial weather industry," Santorum said in a Senate session last week. "It's not an easy prospect for a business to attract advertisers, subscribers, or investors when the government is providing similar products and services for free." Initial reactions to the legislation have been mixed. Supporters say that the bill will let the National Weather Service focus on its core mission - forecasts and warnings. However, some have criticized the bill as a pander to the commercial weather industry. Others warn that the bill is unclear as to exactly what would be allowed and what would not, possibly opening the door to abuses of the law. Larry Cosgrove, former television meteorologist and publisher of the WEATHERAmerica Newsletter, says that the law aims to restrict what the weather service can do. "In essence, [the law is] setting a line in the sand as to what NOAA (the weather services’ parent agency) can and cannot do, so as to not to interfere with private forecast services." Counted among the bill's supporters are private weather firms such as AccuWeather, which claim the NWS does not ensure the integrity of its data and plays favorites. However, AccuWeather has a financial interest in seeing the weather service's Internet reach shrink. Up until the end of the 1990s it was the only way to receive real-time weather online data such as radars, for which it charged a fee for access. Some independent meteorologists like Cosgrove are against a return to this policy. Online data access is seen by the weather service as an extension of its duty to serve the public. Last year, it eliminated a 13-year-old policy that prevented it from offering services that the private sector provided. Thus, new products including mobile weather services and raw weather data appeared, allowing anyone with the right software to decode and use it for free, making a pay service unnecessary to most. Dr. Joel Myers, AccuWeather's president, and Barry Myers, the company's vice president, have argued in public that the actions of the National Weather Service are hurting their business. Critics of the plan, however, point to the fact that AccuWeather, the nation's largest private weather firm, is located in Senator Santorum's home state of Pennsylvania. ***Also, BetaNews has learned that throughout 2003 and 2004, both Joel and Barry Myers have donated nearly $2,750 to Santorum's 2006 re- election efforts. Public records also showed that since 1999, the Senator received nearly $5,000 in contributions from AccuWeather executives, raising questions of whether the company attempted to court favor with the Senator through campaign contributions.*** AccuWeather did not respond to requests for comment on the situation. Regardless of the origins of the legislation, at least one official with the National Weather Service called the bill dangerous. If the weather service was required to ensure everyone has "simultaneous and equal access" to its information, it could bar the weather service from talking to the press, something it has done at no cost. "We are not interested in turning off our telephones," Ed Johnson, the NWS policy director, told the Palm Beach Post. "I would be concerned that that would actually be dangerous." Cosgrove adds that any kind of curtailment of what the National Weather Service does is wrong. "An apt analogy would be this: the National Weather Service should be much like the PBS in the broadcast industry, a reliable alternative that sometimes works with the commercial stations and networks, but does not attempt to profit from its activities." Join the NINN Dispatch Team *** National Incident Notification Network *** http://ninn.net (via Michael K8WTR, DXLD) REPUBLICAN WANTS TO END NOAA WX BROADCASTS Sorry to let politics get into this but sometimes politicians get so stupid that its rediculous. Remember Rick Santorum [R-PA] when election time comes. It seems like if it helps working people, the Republicans and Bush Administration want to get rid of it. Stupid things like this from any party need to be quashed. The NWS / NOAA are one of the few parts of the government besides NIST that don't disgust me (Kevin Redding, ABDX via DXLD) FEDS' WEATHER INFORMATION COULD GO DARK --- By Robert P. King, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer, Thursday, April 21, 2005 http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/content/news/epaper/2005/04/21/m1a_wx_0421.html Do you want a seven-day weather forecast for your ZIP code? Or hour- by-hour predictions of the temperature, wind speed, humidity and chance of rain? Or weather data beamed to your cellphone? That information is available for free from the National Weather Service. But under a bill pending in the U.S. Senate, it might all disappear. The bill, introduced last week by Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., would prohibit federal meteorologists from competing with companies such as AccuWeather and The Weather Channel, which offer their own forecasts through paid services and free ad-supported Web sites. Supporters say the bill wouldn't hamper the weather service or the National Hurricane Center from alerting the public to hazards — in fact, it exempts forecasts meant to protect "life and property." But critics say the bill's wording is so vague they can't tell exactly what it would ban. "I believe I've paid for that data once. ... I don't want to have to pay for it again," said Scott Bradner, a technical consultant at Harvard University. He says that as he reads the bill, a vast amount of federal weather data would be forced offline. "The National Weather Service Web site would have to go away," Bradner said. "What would be permitted under this bill is not clear — it doesn't say. Even including hurricanes." Nelson questions intention The decision of what information to remove would be up to Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez — possibly followed, in the event of legal challenges, by a federal judge. A spokesman for Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., said the bill threatens to push the weather service back to a "pre-Internet era" — a questionable move in light of the four hurricanes that struck the state last year. Nelson serves on the Senate Commerce Committee, which has been assigned to consider the bill. "The weather service proved so instrumental and popular and helpful in the wake of the hurricanes. How can you make an argument that we should pull it off the Net now?" said Nelson's spokesman, Dan McLaughlin. "What are you going to do, charge hurricane victims to go online, or give them a pop-up ad?" But Barry Myers, AccuWeather's executive vice president, said the bill would improve public safety by making the weather service devote its efforts to hurricanes, tsunamis and other dangers, rather than duplicating products already available from the private sector. "The National Weather Service has not focused on what its core mission should be, which is protecting other people's lives and property," said Myers, whose company is based in State College, Pa. Instead, he said, "It spends hundreds of millions of dollars a year, every day, producing forecasts of 'warm and sunny.'" Santorum made similar arguments April 14 when introducing his bill. He also said expanded federal services threaten the livelihoods of private weather companies. "It is not an easy prospect for a business to attract advertisers, subscribers or investors when the government is providing similar products and services for free," Santorum said. AccuWeather has been an especially vocal critic of the weather service and its parent agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The company has accused the federal agencies of withholding data on hurricanes and other hazards, and failing to ensure that employees don't feed upcoming forecasts to favored investors in farming and energy markets. Weather service expands data The rivalry intensified last year, when NOAA shelved a 1991 policy that had barred the weather agency from offering services that private industry could provide. Also last year, the weather service began offering much of its raw data on the Internet in an easily digestible format, allowing entrepreneurs and hobbyists to write simple programs to retrieve the information. At the same time, the weather service's own Web pages have become increasingly sophisticated. Combined, the trends threaten AccuWeather's business of providing detailed weather reports based on an array of government and private data. AccuWeather's 15,000 customers include The Palm Beach Post, which uses the company's hurricane forecast maps on its Web site, PalmBeachPost.com. NOAA has taken no position on the bill. But Ed Johnson, the weather service's director of strategic planning and policy, said his agency is expanding its online offerings to serve the public. "If someone claims that our core mission is just warning the public of hazardous conditions, that's really impossible unless we forecast the weather all the time," Johnson said. "You don't just plug in your clock when you want to know what time it is." Myers argued that nearly all consumers get their weather information for free through commercial providers, including the news media, so there's little reason for the federal agency to duplicate their efforts. "Do you really need that from the NOAA Web site?" he asked. But some weather fans, such as Bradner, say they prefer the federal site's ad-free format. Another supporter of the weather service's efforts, Tallahassee database analyst John Simpson, said the plethora of free data becoming available could eventually fuel a new industry of small and emerging companies that would repackage the information for public consumption. He said a similar explosion occurred in the 1990s, when corporations' federal securities filings became freely available on the Web. Shutting off the information flow would stifle that innovation and solidify the major weather companies' hold on the market, Simpson said. Santorum's bill also would require the weather service to provide "simultaneous and equal access" to its information. That would prevent weather service employees from favoring some news outlets over others, which Santorum and Myers said has happened in some markets. But it also could end the common practice of giving one- on-one interviews to individual reporters who have questions about storms, droughts or other weather patterns. "What we want is to make sure that whatever information is provided to one source is provided to all," Myers said. But Johnson said it's importanst to answer reporters' questions so the public receives accurate information — especially when lives are at stake. "We are not interested in turning off our telephones," Johnson said. "I would be concerned that that would actually be dangerous." (via Kevin Redding, ABDX via DXLD) But AccuWeather and others don't give detailed marine forcasts that I can get from NOAA weather radio. Besides, I can't see an AccuWeather or WeatherChannel weather radio station going on the air in place of NOAA --- they'll make you use your cellphone or email instead --- which is more INCONVENIENT than clicking your weatherradio on while you are out and about - heck, even many car radios, portables, and boomboxes have that as standard equipment now. If NOAA weather disappears, you'll be perusing stations that just give the weather every hour, and at that, it will be "Today-Tonight-Tomorrow", and not 7-days out and with pressure, wind DIRECTION and VELOCITY, tides, synoptic conditions, trends, etc). This lame administration has done so much damage to our nation now --- First, it was ANWAR --- drilling there will only reduce prices at the pump by 4 cents. It will be exactly that much higher tomorrow when I get up for work. INSTEAD of increasing energy efficiency, the REDS want to increase the demand artificially to keep an old antiquated market strong. Then Bush wants to kill rail service in this country, while keeping energy subsidies strong. BTW, the Administration would LOVE to cut the EPA, Fish and Wildlife Service, Endangered Species Act entirely (so every Tom, Dick, and Harry can develop habitats without question), and so on and so forth. Protect those 19th Century mercury-belching coal-fired powerplants, while not giving ANY attention to newer, cheaper, longer-lasting energy production. Leave it to some Texas oil-fiend. Don't raise automotive fuel-efficiency, just drill more first, and then ask questions later. Then, this administration supportd BPL - who cares about radio interference?? The marketplace is more important. Then another one of the President's closest chums takes the FCC's reins, instead of letting the American public ELECT that official. Then you have to save your retirement at the whim of a public company (let the government wash its hands of caring for the elderly that can't pay their medical bills --- let them live on the street in a cardboard box or hope for a spot in a shelter if they have no family). The last I checked, the government doesn't go out of business, but banks can and do, and they can and WILL MAKE MONEY OFF OF YOU (charge you fees). Your taxes won't disappear when you go to a private account. I don't want every darn aspect of my life to be of-and-from a commercial entity. I pay taxes, so I should GET in return! Then, you can't stream commercials on a radio station - we are the ONLY country where this can't be done. This has cut the number of US- based net stations that can't afford automated commercial replacement systems. Tuition and school - I don't EVEN want to go there because I am paying and getting less. Forget the grants - they're declining under this guy's watch, too. Then --- well, I am getting ticked listing all this, so I am going to have to stop. BUT radio, and everything else, including good-quality, free NOAA weather information - is now threatened by these uneducated everything-for-a-$ right-wing idiots (DJL4LOONS, ABDX via DXLD) Rick Santorum is not a very good Republican. Most PA Republicans don't care for him, but the other choices were worse. Unfortunately a large commercial weather company may have him in their pocket as others have alluded on the WX-Chase list (Powell E. Way III, ibid.) ** U S A. BIG pirate in Nashville on 92.5. Variety of rock, no announcements, in stereo. Some cuts include certain words that would cost them their license if they had one. Others are reporting what seems to be the same station with hardcore rap (same language warning). Easily listenable on the car radio throughout all of Nashville -- and clearly audible in spots up here in PV 30 miles away! (when WBKR fades deeply enough). If we have a skip opening before they get busted, someone might be able to DX it (Doug Smith, W9WI, Pleasant View (Nashville), TN EM66, April 23, WTFDA via DXLD) I'm getting it too with great sound quality here in town; it doesn't fade much at all. They must have some good equipment. They're playing anything and everything; Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, Poison, and some new rock with those "certain words" (Chris Carter, April 24, ibid.) They were on again this afternoon when I left on a bike ride, but gone two hours later when I finished. The "100 watts" estimate may be a bit much. Their coverage seems pretty similar to that of the CSN translator on 90.7, which is running 10 watts. (but at 700 feet - it seems unlikely a pirate could land an antenna site that high...) Except for the language this thing sounds a lot like WNRQ 105.9. You'd think a pirate would come up with something original (Doug Smith W9WI Pleasant View (Nashville), TN EM66, April 24, ibid.) ** U S A. DEBUNKING THE 87.7 MHZ PIRATE Last week, a CGC Communicator reader reported hearing a pirate station operating on 87.7 MHz in the greater Los Angeles area. Research and monitoring suggest that the pirate does not exist. If you are in the L.A. area and hear Spanish language audio with your receiver tuned to 87.7, chances are you are hearing the aural carrier of KSFV-LP, Channel 6 on Mt. Harvard. Many radios that can be tuned to 87.7 will pick up the KSFV signal even though the aural carrier is centered on 87.74 MHz. Over-the-air monitoring shows that KSFV-LP has added a 19 kHz FM stereo pilot tone and has turned up its aural modulation level to simulate the operation of an FM broadcast station. (Thanks to the many CGC Communicator readers who responded to last week's story and helped put the pieces of the puzzle together. One reader even reported seeing "a car ahead that had his back hatch covered in 87.7 stickers.") (CGC Communicator via Kevin Redding, ABDX via DXLD) ** U S A. FARALLON ISLANDS --- POMBO DROPS BACKING OF HAM RADIO BILL - -- ENVIRONMENTALISTS FOUGHT MEASURE THAT WOULD ALLOW ACCESS TO PROTECTED HABITAT Jane Kay, SF Chronicle Environment Writer Tuesday, April 19, 2005 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/04/19/BAGKJCATU01.DTL Tracy Republican Rep. Richard Pombo has withdrawn his support for a controversial bill that would have let ham radio operators use the rocky Farallón Islands, an undisturbed haven for wildlife. Pombo recently removed his name as a co-sponsor of the bill because "the bill wasn't going anywhere," spokesman Brian Kennedy said Monday. Pombo, chairman of the House Resources Committee, didn't see why he should keep his name on the bill after its chief sponsor, Rep. Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., had withdrawn support, Kennedy said. Rahall, the top Democrat on the House Resources Committee, declared he would no longer back the proposal to issue special use permits to amateur radio-operator organizations in February after Rep. Tom Lantos, D-San Mateo, had told him that even limited public access would disturb seabirds and marine mammals. Rahall continues to support a bill that would open up two refuges in the Caribbean. At the time of Rahall's decision, Pombo had indicated that he still planned to push the measure. In the intervening two months, the Farallones Marine Sanctuary Association, a citizen support group, mounted a letter-writing campaign urging him to change his mind. Pombo is often at odds with environmentalists over protection of wildlife and natural resources. The group called the proposal devastating to the Farallones, and characterized Pombo as "an out-of-step Republican from Tracy." Kennedy acknowledged that "there was a lot of opposition voiced, and some in from the environmental community." Pombo also has "a very full plate working on the Endangered Species Act and the energy bill. This was barely on the radar screen as a piece of legislation. It's no skin off his back to remove his name from the bill," Kennedy said. The Farallón Islands, 27 miles from the Golden Gate, can be seen on clear days from the coast. Access is now limited to a handful of scientists who can stay overnight but are restricted to certain areas to conduct bird counts and other monitoring. Great white sharks, orcas and humpback and blue whales swim around the islands. Elephant and harbor seals, harbor porpoises and Pacific white-sided dolphins use it as a nursery, and half the world's population of the ashy storm-petrel seabird breeds there. The news of Pombo's withdrawal surfaced Monday at a meeting of the eight-member Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council, made up of representatives of conservation groups and maritime interests including sport and commercial fishing. The council was going to discuss the proposal. But after it received the new information, Maria Brown, sanctuary manager, said the council decided not to take any action on the proposed bill to open up public access to Farallón Islands. "It looked like the bill had lost support from the two congressmen who had originally introduced the legislation," Brown said. "We'll still be tracking the legislation," Brown said. "If it arises again as an issue, it will be brought back to the advisory council." Copyright 2005 SF Chronicle (via Ed Gardner, Sactown, DXLD) ** ZIMBABWE. 6045, R Zimbabwe, Gweru. As far as I can establish, the 6045 channel is used (or meant to be used) 24 hours a day, but lately somewhat irregular and weaker. E.g. Zambia on 6165 is generally quite a bit stronger. When 6045 is off, I cannot find any other Zimbabwean channel. 3306 certainly appears to be inactive (Vaclav Korinek, RSA, Apr 10, DSWCI DX Window April 20 via DXLD) Also heard on 6045 at 0050-0257, Apr 05 and 16, mostly non-stop Afropop, very few announcements in Vernacular, 34433, splashes from 6055, but from *0257 covered by RFI, Issoudun on 6045 (Ron Howard, CA and Anker Petersen, Denmark, DSWCI DX Window April 20 via DXLD) ** ZIMBABWE [non]. 4880, SW Radio Africa. Web now shows this frequency at 1600-1900 // 3300 and 12145, 1600-1800 15145, 1800-1900 11770. 4880 also audible in Denmark (Finn Krone, Denmark, DSWCI DX Window April 20 via DXLD) Transmitter on 4880 seems to be at Mahé, Seychelles! Cf. 15145 below (Finn Krone and/or Anker Petersen, ibid.) 15145, SW Radio Africa, 1725-1759*, Apr 10, fine signal (44444), then moved to 11770 (32222) 12145 (12221) and 3300 (12121), till tune out 1812 (Soehartono (Tony) Ashar, Depok, West Java, Indonesia, DSWCI DX Window via DXLD) Transmitters seem to be: 11770 and 15145 Pinheira and 12145 Tbilisskaya! (Finn Krone and/or Anker Petersen, Denmark, DSWCI DX Window April 20 via DXLD) ?? What is your basis for assuming sites such as Seychelles and São Tomé? 11770 and 15145 had been reported as UK sites; HFCC A-05 does show 4880 and 6145 as Meyerton, South Africa (gh, DXLD) UNIDENTIFIED. 9313.3, 1115+, April 17, Korean, not listed in PWBR 2005 and WRTH 2005 and HFCC A-05, ¿New frequency for Radio Pyongyang??? 25432 (Arnaldo Slaen, Chascomus, Argentina, playdx via DXLD) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ COMMENTARY ++++++++++ APATHY ENDS ANARC Press Release from Harold Cones, Acting Executive Director the Association of North American Radio Clubs (ANARC). On 15 April, ANARC Acting Executive Director Harold Cones announced that responding clubs had voted unanimously to dissolve the Association of North American Radio Clubs. The vote was the result of a meeting of ANARC board and club representatives on Saturday 12 March at the Winter SWL Festival in Kulpsville, PA. As reported by Dr. Cones: "After an extended period of discussion, the group, in a unanimous vote, felt that the time had come for the dissolution of ANARC. Originally conceived to promote information between the clubs and to curb verbal wars between SWLers and Dxers, it has now become only the operator of a club promotional web site. Individuals and clubs have taken up issues such as BPL and the Winterfest and other such club gatherings have solved the problem of non-interaction between the clubs. Further, ANARC now serves only 2324 members (over half of them NASWA members), about 10% of the number it served in 1964, further diluting the need for such an organization. A review of the written history revealed an organization always bogged down in apathy, from the first day of its inception, and that same apathy has plagued the operation of ANARC through the last two ANARC Executive Directors. Emails from the current Acting Executive Director receive very little or no response from club reps and the call for nominations for the Don Jensen Award resulted in minimal response. The dual problem of apathy and ANARC non-mission prompted the call for dissolution of the organization. The web site is a valuable tool for North American radio clubs and it will continue to operate with funding from NASWA and the Winter Fest. In addition, all radio clubs, not just ex-ANARC dues paying clubs, will be encouraged to list on the web site and there will be no charge to any club, in many ways furthering the best communication between clubs. The ANARC treasury presently has about $2,200. The group present at the meeting felt that $500 of that money should be put in escrow with NASWA for future Don Jensen Distinguished Service Awards (which will now be called The North American Radio Clubs Distinguished Service Award). A group of radio club reps will be asked to work out the details of nomination and selection to be sure that all wavelengths have input. The remainder of the money will be parceled out to current dues paying member clubs on a prorated basis." ANARC member clubs were given several weeks to vote. Dr. Cones also requested that, "If there is a strong feeling that ANARC should remain viable, I would appreciate a plan to discourage the apathy that has plagued the organization for 40 years." (Harold Cones, VA, via Rich D`Angelo, NASWA Flashsheet April 24 via DXLD) RIP PUBLICATIONS ++++++++++++ MEDIUMWAVE.INFO Hello Glenn, Today my website for MW has officially moved from http://www.ydunritz.com to http://mediumwave.info I got this domain name two years ago (as a Christmas gift from my son), have spent a lot of time to create/design the site and now I think - and hope - it suitable for the world wide web. 73s (Ydun Ritz, Denmark, April 24, DX LISTENING DIGEST) If you`re not familiar with it, for this site, she extracts most of the MW info from DXLD issues, and some other sources (gh, DXLD) DOMESTIC BROADCASTING SURVEY 7 Dear DX-friends, The brand new Domestic Broadcasting Survey 7 from the Danish Shortwave Club International is now available. More details at http://www.dswci.org/dbs Best 73, (Anker Petersen, DX LISTENING DIGEST) CONVENTIONS & CONFERENCES ++++++++++++++++++++++++++ RADIO NETHERLANDS ORGANISES INTERNATIONAL RADIO CONGRESS IN MEXICO Radio Netherlands' Latin American department is organising an international radio conference in Mexico, together with the Mexican network of public broadcasters. The theme of the congress is regional integration, the influence of the media on this process and national identity. The congress is taking place from 4th-7th May 2005 in the Anthropological Museum in Mexico City, and is primarily intended for media representatives in Latin America. Over four days, media specialists and politicians will hold readings and seminars in Spanish. The speakers will include Cees Hamelink (Professor of Communications and Media at the Free University in Amsterdam), Armand Mattelart (Professor of Communication Studies at the University of Paris), Sergio Ramirez Mercado (Nicaraguan foreign minister during the Sandinist years) Dante Caputo (former Argentinian foreign minister and main author of the UNDP's most important report on democracy in Latin America) and Monsignor Gregorio Rosa Chavez (Suffragan Bishop of San Salvador and former assistant to Bishop Oscar Romero) At the same time, eight workshops will be given on a variety of themes, including the influence of integration processes, corruption in the region and the media's ethical responsibilities. The congress can be followed through video footage on the conference website: http://www.informarn.nl Countries support integration processes in order to strengthen regional ties and also to increase their influence on the international community. José Zepeda, head of Radio Netherlands' Latin American department, explains: "Regional integration processes can have a positive influence in developing countries, at least if they apply the right politics. Regional integration can help promote democratisation. Encouraging integration processes is definitely a task the media should be involved in." Another important topic at the conference is the dialogue between different integration processes, for example the dialogue between the European Union and Latin America. Radio Netherlands' Latin American department is collaborating with the "Red Nacional de Radiofusoras y Televisoras Educativas y Culturales de Mexico", the network of Mexican public broadcasting organisations (Media Network newsletter via DXLD) RADIO EQUIPMENT FORUM +++++++++++++++++++++ FREE FM RADIOS FOR TURNING OFF TV THIS WEEK http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/05113/493230.stm http://www.achd.net/phpblog/notvprize.php (via Kim Elliott, DXLD) Do you have to be in Allegheny County? No SW?! TV TURN-OFF WEEK 2005 TAKES ON AN INTERNATIONAL FLAVOUR | Text of press release by TV-Turnoff Network on 18 April Washington, DC: TV-Turnoff Week 2005 will have its largest international participation yet, TV-Turnoff Network announced today. In fact, activists in at least 10 countries outside the United States are promoting TV-Turnoff events this year. "This growing movement to turn off TV and turn on life has not only taken root here in the United States," commented TV-Turnoff Network Executive Director Frank Vespe, "but it is also catching fire around the world." Among the countries where Turnoff events will occur are Australia, Brazil, Great Britain, Canada, Japan, Taiwan, Italy, Mexico and others. These add to an effort that is expected to inspire more than 7.6 million Americans to break free of TV this 25 April - 1 May. While the United States likely leads the world in hours of television watched, the medium's growth in other countries is resulting in increasing concerns among parents, teachers, doctors, and others that too much screen time displaces a wide variety of other healthy activities, including reading, exercise, and interaction with friends and family. On average, American children watch about three hours of daily television and spend more than two hours each day in other screen time - videos, video games, computer games, etc. All told, American school children spend more time each year in front of the television set than in the classroom. "TV-Turnoff Week 2005 presents an ideal way for kids and adults to take back time from the tube," said Vespe. "What's more, for many people, participation in the Week becomes the springboard to lasting change: to reducing their screen time, to choosing what they do watch more selectively, and to making sure to make time for screen-free activities." This year marks the eleventh annual TV-Turnoff Week celebration. In 2004, an estimated 7.6 million children and adults participated in over 19,000 organized Turnoffs in every state in the US. TV-Turnoff Network is the organization which organizes TV-Turnoff Week. Its mission is to encourage children and adults to watch much less television in order to promote healthier lives and communities. Its website is http://www.tvturnoff.org Source: TV-Turnoff Network, Washington, in English 18 Apr 05 (via BBCM via DXLD) YET ANOTHER CRANK-UP ANALOG SW RADIO Saw this one in the new Sportsman's Guide specials e-mail. Looks like a knock-off of the Grundig under the Bell+Howell name. Wonder why that name is getting such use these days? I see tons of different electronic junk advertised as "Bell+Howell" these days, in many ads and catalogs. Here's the link: http://www.sportsmansguide.com/cb/cb.asp?a=196024&pn=2 73, (Will Martin, MO, April 25, DX LISTENING DIGEST) DRM +++ DRM RECEIVER 2010 This receiver is distributed by MAYAH Communications GmbH and there are full technical details at http://www.mayah.com/index.php?id=8 The cost is not quoted, I'm told its around 800 Euro! "This DRM Receiver is the 2nd generation receiver for the Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) standard. It is the result of a joint development effort of MAYAH, Coding Technologies, AFG and Himalaya. The receiver is based on standard components and different to the first generation, it is smaller and lower cost. A DSP module performs all the DRM specific decoding functions. The software of the DSP module can be updated via the USB interface. In the future, the USB interface also provides the data from data application for further processing with a PC. The receiver can decode mono and stereo audio signals. The full stereo signal is available at the headphone outputs. The display indicates station name, used frequency, field strength and the number of service components of the received DRM signal. Additional information transmitted will be displayed if available. The station can be selected by directly entering the frequency using the numeric keypad. Beside the DRM standard the receiver also supports reception of analogue AM programs in the MW, LW and SW bands as well as FM programs". Has anyone got or know of anyone who has a DRM receiver? Are there any affordable ones to recommend? (Mike Terry, dxldyg via DXLD) No - there are no affordable "consumer grade" ones yet. I have an AOR AR-7030, FRG-100/DRM, Coding Technologies "Digital World Traveller", plus a couple of old steam powered receivers that I've fitted with Sat-Service Schneider DRM modules. Now I have a DRM station 10km away from me on 657 kHz, all these receivers fail to decode the current DRM simulcast tests that RNZ are doing, except for the '7030 and even that has a hard time. DRM simulcasting sucks this close to the transmitter. On the plus side, the DRM signal doesn't interfere with the AM signal. Cheers, (Chris Mackerell, NZ, HCDX via DXLD) I have one of the first Mayah receivers. I'd give it a 6 out of 10 --- great when it works --- less great when there is too much electrical noise. I monitor the Radio Luxembourg tests, as well as those out of Rampisham UK. It is certainly not a DX receiver. But to be fair, DRM is not busy with a commercial launch yet. I believe that will be at the Funkausstellung in Berlin. In the meantime you can join those who are experimenting with the system as one of the pioneers --- a bit like the way DAB worked in the UK. The first DAB tuners were 800 pounds sterling (Jonathan Marks, Director Critical Distance, Former programme director Radio Netherlands and host of Media Network, ibid.) The best way to see what people are saying and using is to go to http://www.drmrx.org and have a look at the forum on receiver modifications (877 posts in 174 threads as I type this). There are no affordable off-the-shelf DRM radios yet, and I suspect it may be a while. A few weeks ago the DRM consortium launched its licensing program meaning any receiver manufacturer, regardless of whether they are members of the consortium or have even done any development work on DRM, can purchase the right to all the patents etc. that are needed. This was a significant milestone in the development of DRM, but has gone largely unreported, probably because the press release was issued not by DRM but by the company that handles the licensing. Even so, design and development takes a while, so don't expect to see any new DRM receivers on the market for some time (Andy Sennitt, dxldyg via DXLD) See also NEW ZEALAND PROPAGATION +++++++++++ OUR EXCLUSIVE AND NOT COPYRIGHTED HF PLUS LOW BAND VHF PROPAGATION UPDATE AND FORECAST Solar flux is very low indeed, with the flux index barely above the baseline activity of the Sun. There are chances of increased solar activity during the next few days, but don't expect sunspot number much about 70 or so, as the cycle is keeping its downward trend following its path towards the 2006 to 2007 minimum. My advice is to make keep monitoring the 10 meters band beacons during your local daylight hours, and concentrate on the frequency range between 1.8 and 12 megaHertz during the local nighttime at your QTH amigos (Arnie Coro, CO2KK, RHC DXers Unlimited April 23 via ODXA via DXLD) MORE LONG-HAUL TRANS-EQUATORIAL FM DX, CARIBBEAN TO SOUTHERN BRAZIL ESCUTAS DE RUBENS FERRAZ PEDROSO, BANDEIRANTES, PARANÁ RECEPTOR: SONY ICF SW 7600G E 7600GR. ANTENA: TELESCÓPICA. 91.1 22/04 0201 ATG Observer FM, St. John’s, OM/OM, talks, EE 44344. 97.3 22/04 0209 LCA R. St. Lucia, Castries, OM, EE 33333 . 97.00 22/04 0228 GDL RFO Guadeloupe, Basse-Terre, OM/YL, talks, FF 23332. 92.1 22/04 0230 ?? Unid, mx caribenha, YL, EE 44333. 94.00 22/04 0256 MRT R. Martinica, Trinité, mx FF em rítmo caribenho, FF 23332. 90.1 22/04 0259 ?? (Life Radio - DMA ou Joy FM), OM, relg, EE ????? . 97.3 23/04 0305 LCA R. St. Lucia, Castries, OM, retx do programa `VOA News`, mx, EE 44344. Comentário do Rubens: ``Não estava muito esperançoso de fazer boas escutas nessa faixa, pois, como vocês bem sabem, a propagação transequatorial já acabou (ela vai de setembro a março). Digitei no meu Sony ICF SW 7600G, a freqüência de 91.1 MHz, freqüência essa que costumava ouvir a Observer FM, Antigua e Barbuda (ilha do Caribe). Havia nessa freqüência a Yara FM (aqui de Bandeirantes), 88.7 MHz, isso por seu transmissor talvez estar desregulado, permitindo que seu sinal cause interferência alguns megahertz abaixo e acima da freqüência que ela usa. Percebi que havia um sinal em inglês por debaixo do sinal da Yara FM. Pensei em se tratar de uma emissora brasileira transmitindo algum anúncio em inglês, mas acontece que não era não. Tratava-se da dita Observer FM. Depois ouvi a Rádio Santa Lúcia, 97.3 MHz (ficou poucos segundos no ar, mas mais tarde ela voltou com força total). Enfim amigos, pude ouvir um total de 6 FM`s caribenhas. Como isso pode estar acontecendo se a propagação transequatorial já acabou? A propagação em FM estava diferente e não havia aquele ruído característico que sempre ouvia por aqui quando da presença da propagação transequatorial. Pelas tantas FM’s caribenhas que ouvi por aqui e por estar novamente ouvindo algumas delas, isso prova de maneira insofismável que Bandeirantes é um verdadeiro paraíso para se ouvir FM`s do Caribe. Ainda quero ter a alegria de ver realizada aqui em Bandeirantes, uma DX Camp, para ouvir-mos dentre outras faixas, a de FM. Terei o maior prazer em recebê-los de braços abertos. Seguem as escutas de ontém e hoje de madrugada. Um forte 73 a todos (Rubens Ferraz Pedroso, @tividade DX April 24 via DXLD) ###