DX LISTENING DIGEST 5-197, November 16, 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 For latest updates see our Anomaly Alert page: http://www.worldofradio.com/anomaly.html NEXT AIRING OF WORLD OF RADIO 1293: Wed 1030 WOR WWCR 9985 Latest edition of this schedule version, with hotlinks to station sites and audio, is at: http://www.worldofradio.com/radioskd.html AIRINGS OF WORLD OF RADIO 1294: Wed 2300 WOR WBCQ 7415 [first airing of each edition] Thu 0000 WOR WBCQ 18910-CLSB Thu 0900 WOR World FM, Tawa, Wellington, New Zealand 88.2 Thu 1900 WOR KLC Thu 2130 WOR WWCR 15825 [Dec-Feb: 7465] Thu 2200 WOR World FM, Tawa, Wellington, New Zealand 88.2 Fri 0030 WOR R. Veronica 106.5 Fri 0100 WOR WTND-LP 106.3 Macomb IL Fri 0200 WOR ACBRadio Mainstream [repeated 2-hourly thru 2400] Fri 2000 WOR World FM, Tawa, Wellington, New Zealand 88.2 Fri 2100 WOR RFPI [repeated 4-hourly thru Sat 1700] Sat 0500 WOR VoiceCorps Reading Service, WOSU-FM subcarrier, cable Sat 0900 WOR WRN to Eu, Au, NZ, WorldSpace AfriStar, AsiaStar Sat 0955 WOR WNQM Nashville TN 1300 Sat 1100 WOR WPKN Bridgeport CT 89.5 & WPKM Montauk LINY 88.7 Sat 1700 WOR R. Veronica 106.5 Sat 1830 WOR WRN to North America [including Sirius Satellite Radio channel 140] Sat 2200 WOR WRMI 7385 [if back on air] Sun 0000 WOR Radio Studio X 1584 http://www.radiostudiox.it/ Sun 0330 WOR WWCR 5070 Sun 0400 WOR WBCQ 9330-CLSB Sun 0600 WOR World FM, Tawa, Wellington, New Zealand 88.2 Sun 0730 WOR WWCR 3215 Sun 0930 WOR WRMI 7385 [from WRN] [if back on air] Sun 0930 WOR WRN to North America, also WLIO-TV Lima OH SAP [including Sirius Satellite Radio channel 140] Sun 0930 WOR KSFC Spokane WA 91.9 Sun 0930 WOR WXPR Rhinelander WI 91.7 91.9 100.9 Sun 0930 WOR WDWN Auburn NY 89.1 [unconfirmed] Sun 0930 WOR KTRU Houston TX 91.7 [occasional] Sun 1400 WOR KRFP-LP Moscow ID 92.5 Sun 1500 WOR WRMI 7385 [if back on air] Sun 1830 WOR WRN1 to North America [including Sirius Satellite Radio channel 140] Sun 2000 WOR RNI Mon 0400 WOR WBCQ 9330-CLSB Mon 0430 WOR WSUI Iowa City IA 910 Mon 0515 WOR WBCQ 7415 Mon 1900 WOR RFPI [repeated 4-hourly thru Tue 1500] Wed 0030 WOR WBCQ 7415 [usually but temporary] Wed 0100 WOR CJOY INTERNET RADIO plug-in required Wed 1030 WOR WWCR 9985 WRN ON DEMAND [from Fri]: http://new.wrn.org/listeners/stations/station.php?StationID=24 OUR ONDEMAND AUDIO [also CONTINENT OF MEDIA, MUNDO RADIAL]: http://www.worldofradio.com/audiomid.html or http://wor.worldofradio.org [from early UT Thursday] WORLD OF RADIO 1294 (high version): (stream) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1294h.ram (download) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1294h.rm WORLD OF RADIO 1294 (low version): (stream) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1294.ram (download) http://www.w4uvh.net/wor1294.rm (summary) http://www.worldofradio.com/wor1294.html WORLD OF RADIO 1294 downloads in studio-quality mp3: (high) http://www.obriensweb.com/wor1294h.mp3 (low) http://www.obriensweb.com/wor1294.mp3 WORLD OF RADIO PODCAST: www.obriensweb.com/wor.xml (currently: 1288, Extra 61, 1289, Extra 62, 1290, 1291, 1292, 1293, soon 1294) ** ASIA [non]. Radio Free Asia currently broadcasts at 1100-0700 UT; there are no transmissions between 0700 and 1100 UT. Daily programming includes Mandarin for 12 hrs, Cantonese for two hrs, Uyghur for two hrs, and Tibetan for eight hrs. Via US belonging transmission facilities at KHBN Palau, Kuwait-KWT, Lampertheim-GER, Saipan-MRA, Tinian-SoMRA, WHR Hawaii-HWA as well as via foreign relays at Al Dhabayya-UAE, Almaty-KAZ, Dushanbe-TJK, Iranawila-CLN, Irkutsk-RUS, Taiwan-TWN, Ulaanbaatar-MNG, Vladivostok- RUS, Wertachtal-GER. RFA schedule in B-05, valid from Oct 30th 2005 til March 26th, 2006. RFA uses US belonging and IBB txs at HBN/P=KHBN Palau Isl, IRA/I=Iranawila Sri Lanka, KWT/K=Kuwait, LAM/L Lampertheim-GER, SAI/S=Saipan, TIN/T=Tinian NoMariana Isls, WHR/H Hawaii-HWA. And foreign relays at ALM/A=Almaty-KAZ, DUS/D=Dushanbe-TJK, IRK=Irkutsk-RUS, TWN/N=Taiwan, UAE=Al Dhabayya-UAE, ULA/U=UlaanBataar Mongolia, VLD/V=Vladivostok-RUS, WER=Wertachtal Germany. 0000-0100 LAO 11830I 15545T 15590V 0030-0130 BURMESE 11535D 13710S 13815I 15700T 0100-0200 UYGHUR 7480D 9365D 9645UAE 9690UAE 15270T 17570T 0100-0300 TIBETAN 7470D(D-05 season til Mar 4) 7560K 9670WER 11695UAE 15220T 17730U 15660D(M-06 season from Mar 5) 0300-0600 MANDARIN 11980IRK 13625T 13760T 15150T 15665T 17495D 17525D 17615S 17880S 21540T 0600-0700 MANDARIN 11980IRK 13625T 13760T 15150T 15665T 17495D 17525D 17615S 17880S 0600-0700 TIBETAN 17515D 17715K 17720U 21570T 21715UAE break 1100-1200 LAO 9355S 9775T 15565I 1100-1200 TIBETAN 7470U 11540D 11590K 13625T 15435UAE 1200-1400 TIBETAN 7470U 11540D 11590K 13625T 15185S 15435UAE 1230-1330 CAMBODIAN 5910V 13725I 15395T 1230-1330 BURMESE 9365D 11795T 12105I 15700T 1400-1500 CANTONESE 9825T 11950S 15255T 1400-1500 VIETNAMESE 7380U(?5855U) 9365D 9455S 9930WHR 11605T 13725P 13865I 15470T 21625I 1500-1600 TIBETAN 7470U 7495D 11500K 15385UAE 1500-1600 MANDARIN 7540D 9905P 11945T 13670T 13745T 15510T 17565T (1530- 6095T) 1500-1700 KOREAN 7210IRK 11870S 13625T 1600-1700 UYGHUR 7515D 7530D 9625UAE 11720T 13725I 1600-1700 MANDARIN 6095T 7540D 9455S 9905P 11945T 13670T 13745T 15510T 17565T 1700-1800 MANDARIN 7540D 9355S 9455S 9905P 11945T 13670T 13745T 15510T 17565T 1800-1900 MANDARIN 6095T 7455D 7540D 9355S 9455S 11790T 11945T 13670T 13745T 15510T 1900-2000 MANDARIN 1098N 5990T 6095T 7455D 7540D 9355S 9455S 9875P 11790T 11945T 11970T 13670T 13745T 15510T 2000-2100 MANDARIN 1098N 5990T 6095T 7455D 7540D 9355S 9455S 9875P 9885T 11900T 11950T 11970T 13745T 15510T 2100-2200 MANDARIN 1098N 6095T 7455D 7540D 9355S 9455S 9875P 9885T 9920N 11950T 11970T 13745T 15510T 2100-2300 KOREAN 7460U 9385T 11785S 13625T 2200-2300 CANTONESE 9570S 9845P 11740T 11775T 2230-2330 CAMBODIAN 7185I 9930P 15485T 2300-2359 MANDARIN 7540D 9905P 11775T 13745S 13800T 15430T 15550T 2300-2359 TIBETAN 6010UAE 7415D 7470U 7550K 9875LAM 2330-0029 VIETNAMESE 7515D 9930P 11580U 11605N 11965T 13720S 13865I 15565V (from http://www2.starcat.ne.jp/~ndxc/ and other sources, wwdxc BC-DX Nov 15 via DXLD) ** AUSTRALIA. ABC registrations: 2310 0830 2130 55,58,59 ALI 50 0 0 2325 0830 2130 55,58,59 TEN 50 0 0 2485 0830 2130 55,58,59 KTH 50 0 0 4835 2130 0830 55,58,59 ALI 50 0 0 4910 2130 0830 55,58,59 TEN 50 0 0 5025 2130 0830 55,58,59 KTH 50 0 0 5995 0800 1400 51,56,61,64,65 BRN 10 10 0 5995 1400 1800 2,6,7,51,55,56,61,64,65,76,77SHP 100 30 0 6020 0900 1100 51,55,56,64,65 SHP 100 30 0 6020 1100 1400 2,6,7,51,55,56,61,76,77 SHP 100 30 0 6035 1100 1300 45,51,54E,55,56,64,65 SHP 100 5 13 6080 1400 1800 44,45,50,51,54E,55,59N,64 SHP 100 334 -13 6080 1800 2100 45,50,51,54E,56W,64 SHP 100 5 13 6120 0000 0030 54 SNG 250 140 -20 7220 1600 2130 2-4,6-10,56,60-63,76,77 SHP 100 70 0 7240 1400 1700 2,6-8,56,60-63,76,77 SHP 100 50 -20 7240 1800 2000 2,6,7,51,55,56,61,64,65,76,77SHP 100 30 0 7240 2000 2100 51,55,56,61,64,65 SHP 100 30 0 7260 1400 1600 2,6-8,56,60-63,76,77 SHP 100 50 -20 7260 1600 1900 2,6,51,55,56,61,64,65,76,77 SHP 100 30 0 9475 1100 1900 27,28,43,44,50,51,54,55,58N SHP 100 329 -13 9500 1900 2130 27,28,43,44,50,51,54,55,58N SHP 100 329 -13 9560 1100 1400 45,51,54E,55,56,64,65 SHP 100 5 13 9580 0800 1400 2-4,6-10,56,60-63 SHP 100 70 0 9580 1700 2000 2-4,6-10,56,60-63 SHP 100 70 0 9590 0800 1600 2,6-8,51,55,56,60-65 SHP 100 30 0 9630 0000 0030 54 DRW 250 290 -13 Indonesian 9630 2130 2330 54 DRW 250 290 -13 Indonesian 9660 0000 0800 51,56,61,64,65 BRN 10 10 0 9660 2100 2200 51,56,61,64,65 BRN 10 10 0 9660 2200 2300 51,56,61,64,65 BRN 10 10 0 BBC WS 9660 2300 2400 51,56,61,64,65 BRN 10 10 0 9690 2130 2330 54 TAI 250 205 0 9710 0700 0800 45,51,54E,55,56W,64,65W SHP 100 353 0 9710 0800 1100 45,51,54E,55,56W,64,65W SHP 100 353 0 9710 1600 2000 2,6,51,55,56,61,64,65,76,77 SHP 100 30 0 9730 2300 2330 49SE SNG 100 13 -12 9750 1430 1500 27SE,28W RMP 35 95 -10 Sat only N=DRM via VT-Merlin 11550 0900 0930 54 TAI 250 205 0 11650 2000 2200 2,6,51,55,56,61,64,65,76,77 SHP 100 30 0 11660 1300 1700 27,28,44,49-51,54,55,58N SHP 100 329 -13 11660 2000 2200 6-8,10,56,60-63,76,77 SHP 100 70 0 11695 2130 2400 50,51,54,55,58N SHP 100 329 -13 11750 1400 1600 49S,54 DRW 250 290 -13 English 11820 2330 2400 49E DRW 250 316 13 Vietnamese 11880 0600 0800 45,51,54E,55,64 SHP 100 355 13 11880 0900 1300 44,49-51,54,55,58N SHP 100 329 -13 11880 1700 2130 6,56,60-63,65 SHP 100 50 0 11880 2130 2300 51,55,56,61,64,65 SHP 100 30 -20 12010 1300 1430 43E,44 SNG 100 13 -12 12010 2200 2400 49,50,54 DRW 250 317 -23 English 12080 0000 1200 51,56,60-62 BRN 10 80 0 12080 2000 2200 51,56,60-62 BRN 10 80 0 12080 2200 2300 51,56,60-62 BRN 10 80 0 BBC WS 12080 2300 2400 51,56,60-62 BRN 10 80 0 13605 0600 0700 45,50,51,54W,55,56,64,65 SHP 100 353 0 13630 0700 0900 2,6-8,56,60-63,76,77 SHP 100 50 -20 13630 2100 2300 51,56,61,64,65 SHP 100 65 0 13630 2300 0800 45,51,54E,55,64 SHP 100 353 0 13670 2300 0800 45,51,54E,55,64 SHP 100 353 0 15110 2330 2400 49E TAI 250 225 0 15160 0500 0800 6-8,10,11,56,60-63 SHP 100 65 0 15230 2200 2400 51,55,56,61,64,65,76,77 SHP 100 30 0 15240 0000 0800 51,55,56,61,64,65 SHP 100 30 0 15360 2200 2400 51,55,56,61,64,65,76,77 SHP 100 30 0 15415 0000 1100 50,51,54,55,58N SHP 100 329 -13 15415 2130 2400 51,54,55,58N SHP 100 329 -13 15470 0500 0600 49E SNG 250 13 -12 15515 0200 0700 2,6-8,61-63 SHP 100 70 20 15515 0700 0900 6-8,10,61-63,77 SHP 100 70 20 15515 2100 2300 51,55,56,61,64,65,76,77 SHP 100 30 0 17585 2130 2400 2,6-8,56,60-63,76,77 SHP 100 50 -20 17715 2100 0200 6-8,10,56,60-63,76,77 SHP 100 70 0 17750 0000 0900 44,49-51,54,55,58N SHP 100 329 -13 17750 2330 2400 50,51,54,55,58N SHP 100 329 -13 17775 0000 0130 49,50,54 DRW 250 317 -23 English 17795 2300 0200 6-8,10,51E,56,61-65 SHP 100 50 0 17855 0400 0430 54 DRW 250 290 -13 Indonesian 17855 0500 0530 54 DRW 250 290 -13 Indonesian 17855 0530 0600 49E DRW 250 317 -23 Vietnamese 21725 0000 0300 45,50,51,54W,55,56,64,65 SHP 100 355 13 21725 0300 0600 43-45,49-51,54,55,64 SHP 100 329 -13 21740 2100 2400 6-8,10,11,56,60-63 SHP 100 70 0 21780 0400 0430 54 DHA 250 120 30 (via BCDX Nov 16 via DXLD) {Is this outdated too? Still shows 21740 instead of 17785} ** BELGIUM [and non]. RTBF: 13590 1400 1900 47,48,52,53 JUL 100 160 RTB DTK 13720 0600 0700 47,48,52,53 JUL 100 160 RTB DTK Tentat 17545 1100 1400 47,48,52,53 JUL 100 160 RTB DTK Tentat 17570 1400 1900 47,48,52,53 JUL 100 160 RTB DTK Tentat 17580 0600 1000 47,48,52,53 JUL 100 160 RTB DTK 21565 1000 1400 47,48,52,53 JUL 100 160 RTB DTK And RTBF Brussels via Wavre-BEL: 5940 0600-0800 27,28,37-39 WAV 100 167 BEL VRT (not 5965) 9970 0600-2300 27,28,37-39 WAV 250 167 BEL VRT Latter transmitter owned by RTB, but served by VRT Flemish section at Wavre (Wolfgang Büschel, BCDX Nov 16 via DXLD) ** CANADA. LESSONS FROM A STRIKE WILL HELP THE CBC Byline: Lise Lareau Date: 11/14/2005 Click here to read this story online: http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1114/p09s01-coop.html (TORONTO) Canadians experienced a historic event this summer, when their national public broadcaster was effectively silenced from mid- August to mid-October after managers locked out 5,500 on-air, production, technical, and administrative employees. The lockout was a tactic aimed at weakening the employees' union and extracting deep concessions that would have allowed the hiring of most new employees on temporary contracts. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) management framed the denial of service to the Canadian public as collateral damage in the war for "a much more flexible, agile, nimble corporation." It turned out to be a hard sell, and one that loyal CBC audiences were unwilling to accept. They lamented the absence of their public broadcaster during the devastation of hurricane Katrina, during the removal of Israeli settlers from Palestinian territories, and during the return of their parliament after the summer break. They missed the everyday connection that CBC programming provides to their communities, their country, and their world. So they signed petitions and wrote letters to the president of the CBC, Prime Minister Paul Martin, and members of parliament, to demand the return of the CBC. At the same time, locked-out CBC workers in all parts of the country responded to their circumstances with creativity and commitment to their calling. They organized public events; produced alternative broadcasts and podcasts; and developed websites, blogs, and advertisements. In innovative ways CBC workers maintained everyday contact with each other and the Canadian public. After nearly two decades of budget and program cuts, the lockout of 2005 could have dealt a death blow to the CBC. Instead, the lockout unleashed an outpouring of support for independent and high-quality programming that is free of commercial constraints. In fact, there was such an outcry against the actions by senior management that the team at the top was called before the parliamentary committee responsible for the CBC at the end of October and condemned by members of all four political parties. The CBC's relationship to the government is complex. It relies upon a set amount of federal funding each year, and its president and board of directors are named by the government. The CBC, however, maintains an arm's-length relationship from the government as a public, and not a state, broadcaster. Prior to the lockout, the CBC had been low on the country's political radar for many years. That is perhaps why CBC senior managers wrongly assumed that no one would much care when they turned off programming during the "low-ratings" summer season. Employees and CBC audiences managed to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear: They showed that they have more imagination and commitment when it comes to public broadcasting than the CBC's current stewards. And their enthusiasm has caught on among politicians of every political stripe, including a conservative member of Parliament who unexpectedly proclaimed his party's commitment to public broadcasting while holding up a bundle of petitions from his rural Ontario district. The lockout ended without CBC management winning the major concession it sought. Employees held firm on the principle that a permanent workforce, where ongoing jobs are performed by ongoing employees, is the way to ensure high- quality public broadcasting. Near the end of the lockout, Canada's labour minister, Joe Fontana, told reporters that his Liberal government wants "long-term, permanent jobs for all of our citizens." CBC employees are back to making programs with a renewed sense of unity. Many are seeking a change to the bottom-line culture that has made the CBC a difficult place to work. They want their commitment to public service respected. For that to happen, the federal government will have to stop pretending that its arm's-length relationship with the CBC justifies malignant neglect of Canada's largest public cultural institution. Ottawa will need to send out the message that it wants an independent broadcaster that is relevant and responsive to the diversity that is Canada. It will need to devote some additional ongoing funding to undo the damage created by the cuts of the past decade and to make more local programming possible. And it will need to make sure its appointed leaders are up to - and committed to - those tasks. * Lise Lareau is national president of the Canadian Media Guild, the union that represents 5,500 employees at the CBC. (c) Copyright 2005 The Christian Science Monitor. All rights reserved (via Jim Moats, DXLD) ** CANADA. CKDO nighttime power increase from http://www.crtc.gc.ca/archive/ENG/Decisions/2005/db2005-542.htm (...) 1. The Commission approves the application by Durham Radio Inc. (Durham) to amend the broadcasting licence for the radio programming undertaking CKDO Oshawa, in order to change the frequency from 1350 kHz to 1580 kHz. 2. The Commission also approves Durham’s request to change CKDO’s authorized contours by increasing the night-time transmitter power from 5,000 watts to 10,000 watts. 3. The licensee advised that the proposed changes will allow the station to operate with 10,000 watts at all times and provide a more consistent coverage, particularly to communities east of Oshawa. (...) (Ricky Leong, Calgary, Alta., Nov 15, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** CHINA. The abbreviation name of Hulun Buir Peoples Broadcasting Station is "HNR", which may be from the Russian translation "Hulun Buir Narodnii Radiostantsia". Hulun Buir region is bordered on the north by Russia (Takahito Akabayashi, Japan, wwdxc BC-DX Nov 3 via DXLD) ** CHINA [non]. What have become of the CRI relays via Voz Cristiana, Chile? Here they are, from a Merlin schedule for B-05, all 100 kW at 45 degrees across Brazil: 12-13 15540 Chinese 13-14 15540 English 21-22 17645 Portuguese (via WWDXC, Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** CHINA [non]. 7310, Sound of Hope, via Tan Shui, Taiwan, *1300-1340, Nov 06 and 08, Chinese talk mentioning Taiwan, many jingles, ID's: "Xiwang Zhi Sheng Guiji Guan po dien tai", 44444. From *1325 QRM R Rossii (Anker Petersen, Denmark, DSWCI DX Window Nov 11 via DXLD) ** ECUADOR. Doug Weber, station manager at HCJB was interviewed by Ralph Kurtenbach on DXPL Nov 12: new language Kulina is spoken by fairly small group of people in Brazil and Perú along the border; in conjunction with Portuguese language service and another mission agency, working with these people; produced at HCJB World office in Curitiba [far away in southern Brazil] and sent to HCJB by ftp. Was requested by them to add a few minutes onto front of Portuguese programming which they can listen to afterwards. Don`t expect letters from Kulina speakers, but may get some verbal feedback. A 5-minute program. Making an effort to get into more indigenous languages; this is the shortest one we have ever done. Basically a bible-reading program. Less than a year ago added Cofán for people in remote areas of Ecuador and Colombia, and for several years in Huarani language. Some others are in process to be added, all of those working with other mission groups. Cofán has more preaching programs, but also some indigenous music, recorded from people out of the jungle. Huarani similar to that. They like to hear their own music on the radio. Monotonous- sounding Huarani singing is actually worship; formerly known as Aucas. HCJB`s future? Still trying to figure that out. Working with airport authorities affecting our Pifo transmitter site, and hope to get some definition in the next few weeks. Got word today that results of one of the studies has come in. But still more questions than answers on this situation. Need Lord`s wisdom to decide what to do. Are DX publications asking about what is the situation in Pifo? Not much; they may feel handwriting is already on the wall, but that is not true. Get more questions about this internally. Radio team here desires to continue a SW ministry, but will it be all from here, with as many transmissions, or refocus, concentrate on indigenous languages? Question is how to do that (HCJB DX Partyline Nov 12, notes by Glenn Hauser, for DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** FALKLAND ISLANDS [non]. re BBC 11680 - the path to the Falklands from the UK must be a difficult one at 2130. A relay via Meyerton or Ascension would surely work better. But, if VT can get the signal past the first reflection point then maybe it will work better than I think! (Noel R. Green-UK, wwdxc BC-DX Nov 10 via DXLD) The fact that BBCWS insists on using UK site for this when much closer sites are available, obviously Ascension, is, I think, merely to reinforce the low priority the Falkland service enjoys (gh, DXLD) ** FINLAND. 5980, Scandinavian Weekend R, Virrat, 1155-1552, Sa 05 Nov, Finnish/English talks, Finnish pop music, also heard weak at 0650, 23222 improving to 44444 until QRM began 1552! No other frequencies audible. Nextt broadcast Dec 2-3 (Anker Petersen, Denmark, DSWCI DX Window Nov 11 via DXLD) ** GERMANY. Berlin 567 to go dark by yearend --- I just received word that Berlin 567 will be shut down on December 31. Error excepted for the moment, but actually the only news here is this deadline. Herewith the mediumwave operations from the Stallupöner Allee site are to cease after 59 years. The last fittings there consisted of two 5 kW transmitters from 1972/1973 (replaced the original rigs from 1946) for 810/1449 and a 100 kW PDM transmitter (Telefunken, so should be an S4002) from 1980 (replaced the old 100 kW from 1960) for 567. 1449 was the second mediumwave outlet of Sender Freies Berlin and shut down in 1994. 810 was the Berlin frequency of the BBC who abandoned it by the end of 1988; afterwards a relay of Deutschlandfunk on this frequency started in spring 1989 and was kept until Deutschlandfunk came on FM in Berlin in the early nineties. Last 810 activity from Stallupöner Allee were DRM demonstrations during the IFA 2001. And the story of 567: In the early nineties the output was reduced from 100 to 50 kW and in a second much more dramatic step to a mere ca. 2 kW in spring 1997, reportedly first from a 5 kW running at reduced power but later from a new transmitter. The Radio B2 program carried on 567 was discontinued in August 1997, since then Radio Multikulti is used as modulation on 567. I assume it went by widely unnoticed that between Christmas and New Years Eve 1996 the Ostdeutscher Rundfunk Brandenburg program Radio Brandenburg was carried for one night on 567 for a very special program. The 50 kW still in use then were sufficient to produce a feedback on air from near Cottbus. I bet this was the first and last time a telephone on a railway signal tower went on air live. It was a really ancient one, with a carbon microphone of course, and unfortunately it was gone when I three years ago visited this signal tower again. That's my personal 567 story (Kai Ludwig, Germany, Nov 14, DX LISTENING DIGEST) see also LANGUAGE LESSONS ** INTERNATIONAL. Re: OPEN SOURCE CENTER ESTABLISHED I think there is already something like this, and it's called "Google." ;-) (Harry Helms W5HLH, ABDX via DXLD) Oh good, finally some feedback on my posting. Of course there is Google, we unwashed heathen rabble, milling noisily in the streets, already know this. But somehow the info passing through Google does/may not have the imprimatur of having been collected in a controlled, documentable way, even if the original source is the same, or worse, can't be determined. I'd think that this way, somehow, the information is more "credible" (even if it is the provincial peoples' daily from Hefei province that initially provides the information). That's MHO, anyhow. And then someone needs to grind all this info together and reduce it to some sort of trend predictor, and filter out the noise. Yes, I know it may not make sense. But it will provide a nice living for a few hundred more citizens, if nothing else. And I would not be surprised to learn that those working here will need to have a TS [top secret] maybe with SCI LifeStyle Poly to even read all this unclassified information. (Remember that aggregated information can be classified, even if assembled all from originally open sources). From what I hear the turnaround time to get a TS clearance is running 18+ months and cost > $50k. But I could be wrong and perhaps that is not needed to do this type work. I just think generally, it is. I'd think they will be archiving a great deal of Arabic language material. Interesting stuff (Bob K2EUH Foxworth, Tampa FL, ibid.) ** ISRAEL. Re 5-196: To address what you were listening to: November 13th was the 10th anniversary of Yitzchak Rabin's assassination. President Clinton was the keynote speaker at the official ceremony. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArtVty.jhtml?sw=rabin&itemNo=644535 (Doni Rosenzweig, Nov 15, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** KASHMIR. Pakistan/Kashmir: MUZAFFARABAD RADIO RESUMES REGULAR FM BROADCASTS | Text of report by Pakistani newspaper Dawn website on 13 November Peshawar: Muzaffarabad radio station, which went off the air after the 8 October earthquake, has resumed regular transmission from a tent studio, the radio station's director Sardar Ali said here. "Since 25 October we have started 14-hour FM transmissions. As the studios of our radio station were badly affected by the earthquake, we were forced to discontinue transmission," said Mr Ali, who was a deputy controller at the Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation prior to his present assignment. Four of its studios had developed huge cracks. Some 26 of the 70 employees of the radio station were killed in the calamity, making it harder for it to resume routine transmission. The radio station is currently airing programmes aimed at boosting the morale of the people. "We transmit programmes that offer a ray of hope to the homeless survivors of the quake," he said. "We are trying our level best to avoid panic. We want people to resume their normal lives now," he added. With the aim of helping quake victims, Mr Ali said, the radio station has established a helpline to act as a bridge between relief organisations and victims. Since 19 October, a 2-kW FM transmitter received programmes via satellite which were then relayed within a 45-km radius in Muzaffarabad. For these transmissions, artistes and staff had to be shifted from Muzaffarabad to Islamabad. On 21 October, the PCB's director-general, Tariq Imam, rushed to the station along with a team of engineers to install a transmitter allowing the station to air one-hour and seven-and-a-half-hour transmissions on 23 and 24 October, respectively. "Lack of electricity was the main problem. Initially, we ran the transmission through generator, but shortage of diesel hampered the transmission efforts," Mr Ali said. Until 8 October, Muzaffarabad radio station used to air programmes for 16-17 hours. The quake played havoc with the radio station's infrastructure and rendered two of its AM transmitters ineffective. Despite being an asthmatic patient, Mr Ali accepted the challenge to proceed to Muzaffarabad and bring life to the radio station there. Radio has a clear edge over television, which shared the same compound with the former and had suffered total destruction but is yet to resume its transmission. Mr Ali said that they had received applause from the president and prime minister of the AJK [Pakistani-administered Kashmir], both of whom had visited the tented radio station. But very few people had access to TV and most of the people were dependent on radio, because it can be kept in one's pocket and run through battery cells. "Due to our perseverance, Muslim Hands, an international NGO, has donated 1,000 radio sets to the people, which would enable them to listen to the programmes," he said and added: "Now we have focused on community broadcasts." According to him, they received telephone calls from listeners which mainly contained their problems. Such calls were then recorded on the register and forwarded to the PM and President Houses in Islamabad. He said that they had been planning to install AM radio in a few months, but the FM radio would continue to act as a backup. Mr Ali said that the reconstruction of the radio station would take at least two years, but said that the government was planning to install digitalized studios there. He said the PCB director in Islamabad would bring further improvements in the programmes which were aired from a cabin-like tent. Mr Ali, a former programme manager of FM radio in Peshawar, said that radio had an important part to play as far as psychological and infrastructural rehabilitation in the area was concerned. Radio transmission runs from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. [local time]. Source: Dawn website, Karachi, in English 13 Nov 05 (via BBCM via DXLD) WTFK?? ** KURDISTAN. CLANDESTINES --- 3970.3, Voice of Iranian Kurdistan, Al- Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, *0247-0310, Nov 06, *0244 Carrier s/on, 0247 non- stop Kurdish songs, 0300 Kurdish ID: "Aira dangi Kurdistan Irana", 35343, martial song - and jamming began! then 33342, recitations from the Qur'an. The // was not heard on 4860v, but jamming began on 4861.6 at *0302 and it jumped to 4885.9 at 0318. 4615.1, R Voice of Komala, *0327-0340, Nov 06, Ouverture followed by six (!) ID's in Kurdish: "Eira dengi Komala", talk, 35333 - jammed from *0335, then 33333. // 3930 not heard, but open carrier on 3939.56 at *0314-0335 (Anker Petersen, Denmark, DSWCI DX Window Nov 11 via DXLD) ** LITHUANIA. Radio 390 to return on 1386. Paul Francis of Radio 390 posted the following on Anorak Nation November 13th: Hi, Paul Francis here. Just to let you know, we are going on 1386 kHz between 10.00pm to 03.00am. Our first fulltime programmes will be on Christmas Eve, but before then, we will be doing a 15 min test on 1386 on a Wednesday night which I will let you know the date in the next few days. Their website is now: http://radio390.cjb.net/ I checked the Listen Live stream this morning and it was playing a webstream from MOR memories: http://www.mormemories.com/ (Mike Barraclough-UK, BrDXC-UK Nov 14 via BCDX via DXLD) Radio Baltic Waves International (RBWI) resumed the lease of the 7 kW transmitter in Bubiai (near Siauliai) in Northern Lithuania on 1386 kHz, and is providing the following relay services: - Relay of RFE/RL in Russian daily from 1300-1600 with 3.5 kW - Relay of Pipeline Radio 1386 AM every Wednesday 2200-2400 for 5 weeks, starting 30 November, with 7 kW Pipeline Radio 1386AM is produced by the UK net station Pipeline Radio http://www.pipelineradio.org --- their transmission block may also include programming produced by other broadcasters (Bernd Trutenau, Lithuania, Nov 15, MWDX via DXLD) ** MONGOLIA. CHANGING THE VOICE IN THE WILDERNESS It may have taken 15 years, but Mongolia now has the possibility of a national radio and television service that will provide a genuinely public service. The change is deservedly winning plaudits – but how deep and long-lasting the change will be may rest on problem that is hard to resolve in a small, poor country: finance. Marius Dragomir is a Prague-based media consultant invited as a foreign expert to the conference on the future of Mongolian National Radio and Television. Read his article here http://www.tol.cz/look/TOL/article.tpl?IdLanguage=1&IdPublication=4&NrIssue=141&NrSection=4&NrArticle=15233 # posted by Andy @ 10:38 UT Nov 15 (Media Network blog via DXLD) ** PAKISTAN. Domestic service of R. Pakistan via their Rewat transmitters near Islamabad in B05 are via API-2 100 kW 0045-0200 Haya Allal Falah & 0200-0215 Urdu nx on 5095 0600-1115 on 5860 this has Urdu nx 0600, Rawalpindi pgm 0604-0700, Urdu nx 0700, Punjabi news 0703, Rawalpindi pgm 0707-0755, Sindhi nx 0755, ENGLISH news 0800-0810, 0810-0900 Rawalpindi pgm, 0900-0903 Islamabad pgm, 0903 Pushto news, 0907-1000 Islamabad pgm, 1000 Urdu news, 1005-1100 Islamabad pgm, 1100 ENGLISH news, 1104-1115 Islamabad pgm. 1230-1330 Kashmiri Service Pindi-I on 5095 1350-1400 Balti nx & 1420-1428 Sheena nx on 5095 1615-1700 Islamabad Programme (AAINA) on 5095 via API-4 100 kW 0200-0400 Current Affairs on 5080 0800-1200 Rawalpindi-II Programme on 5925 (this directional via 68 degrees) 1300-1800 Current Affairs on 5080 I have no updates for Rewat API-8 (Azad Kashmir/Pindi-III) or the regional transmitters at Quetta, Peshawar and Rawlpindi. Note that 5095 is also used for External Services at 1500-1530 Pushto to AFG, 1715-1800 Irani and 1800-1900 Islamabad Program to Gulf & M.E. (Noel R. Green-UK, wwdxc BC-DX Nov 9 via DXLD) ** PAPUA NEW GUINEA. 7120, Wantok R Light, Port Moresby (presumed), 0750-0800, Nov 06, 09 and 10, gospel songs sung in English. There was an ann before this program began and "talk" during it, but the signal is yet too weak to be sure of the language. Best signal yet heard in Blackpool - but still only around S-1 on my meter. Except on Sundays, the RNW blowtorch signal on 7125 makes reception more or less impossible before it goes off 0757* (Noel Green, England, DSWCI DX Window Nov 11 via DXLD) ** PARAGUAY. Re 5-196, has anyone heard it since this? 9736.95, R. Nac. del Paraguay on Oct 25 at *0833-0842 UT. 35433 Spanish, at 0833 UT sign on with IS, Opening announce, Paraguay music (Kouji Hashimoto-JPN, Japan Premium Nov 4 via BCDX via DXLD) ** PERU. Address given on Malm`s recording of 4299.66: Radio Bella, Jirón Monzón, Cuadra 1, Tingo Maria, Perú (Alfredo Cañote, Perú, DSWCI DX Window Nov 11 via DXLD) ** SOUTH AFRICA. Channel Africa and other Shortwave Transmissions B05 over Sentech Ltd. facilities: Time UTC kHz kW Target Area Language CHANNEL AFRICA 0300-0355 6120 250 East & Central Africa Swahili 0300-0355 7390 500 East & Central Africa English 0300-0500 3345 100 Southern Africa English 0400-0455 7390 500 Central Africa French 0500-0555 11875 500 West Africa English 0500-0700 7240 100 Southern Africa English 0600-0655 15255 250 Far West Africa English 0700-0800 11825 100 Southern Africa English 0800-0900 11825 100 Southern Africa Nyanja 0900-1000 11825 100 Southern Africa Lozi 1000-1200 11825 100 Southern Africa English 1200-1300 11825 100 Southern Africa Nyanja 1300-1400 11825 100 Southern Africa Lozi 1400-1600 11825 100 Southern Africa English 1500-1555 17770 500 East & Central Africa English 1500-1555 17780 250 East & Central Africa Swahili 1600-1655 15285 500 West Africa French 1700-1755 15285 500 West Africa English 1900-2000 3345 100 Southern Africa Portuguese 2000-2200 3345 100 Southern Africa English RADIO SONDER GRENSE 0500-0700 7185 100 Northern Cape, RSA Afrikaans 0700-1700 9650 100 Northern Cape, RSA Afrikaans 1700-0500 3320 100 Northern Cape, RSA Afrikaans SOUTH AFRICAN RADIO LEAGUE 0800-0900* 7205 100 Southern Africa English 0800-0900* 17700 250 East & Central Africa English 1900-2000** 3215 100 SouthernAfrica English * Sunday, ** Monday Relay transmissions of other stations: BBC 0300-0330 9610 500 East & Central Africa Swahili 0300-0500 3255 100 Southern Africa English 0300-0500 6190 100 Southern Africa English 0300-0700 11765 250 West Africa English 0400-0430 15400 250 East Africa Swahili 0430-0500 3390 100 S. Mozambique Portuguese 0430-0500 6135 250 N. Mozambique Portuguese 0430-0500 7205 500 Angola Portuguese 0500-1700 6190 100 Southern Africa English 0500-1700 11940 100 Southern Africa English 0530-0600 15400 250 East & Central Africa Kirundi ** 0700-0730 17695 500 Central Africa French 1500-1530 21490 500 East & Central Africa English 1530-1615 21490 500 East & Central Africa Swahili ** 1530-1700 21490 500 East & Central Africa Swahili/Kirundi* 1615-1700 21490 500 East & Central Africa English ** 1700-1900 15420 250 East & Central Africa English 1700-2200 3255 100 Southern Africa English 1700-2200 6190 100 Southern Africa English 1730-1745 3390 100 Southern Africa English teaching 1730-1745 7230 500 East & Central Africa English teaching 1730-1745 9620 500 Angola & West Africa English teaching 1745-1800 7230 500 East & Central Africa Swahili 1800-1830 7230 250 Indian Ocean Isles French 2030-2100 3390 100 S. Mozambique Portuguese 2030-2100 6135 250 N. Mozambique Portuguese 2030-2100 7260 500 Angola Portuguese * Monday to Friday, ** Saturday and Sunda FAMILY RADIO 1900-2100 3230 100 Southern Africa English 1902-2002 9660 250 East Africa Swahili 2100-2200 11655 250 East Africa English UNITED NATIONS RADIO 1700-1715 7170 100 Madagascar French* 1700-1715 21535 500 Central Africa French* 1730-1745 7170 100 Southern Africa English* * Monday to Friday FEBA RADIO 1500-1545 12125 250 Sudan Nuer/Dinka 1545-1600 12125 250 Mozambique/Tanzania Makonde 1600-1700 12125 250 Ethiopia Amharic RADIO FRANCE INTERNATIONAL 0300-0400 7135 250 Central & East Africa French 0700-0800 15170 250 Central & West Africa French 1100-1200 17850 250 Central Africa French 1200-1400 17850 250 Central & West Africa French 1230-1300 21760 250 Central & West Africa French 1600-1700 15160 250 Central & West Africa English 1600-1700 9730 100 Southern Africa English 1900-2200 7160 250 Central Africa French ADVENTIST WORLD RADIO 1700-1730 11915 250 East Africa Swahili 1730-1800 11915 250 East Africa Masai 1800-1830 3215 100 Botswana, Namibia English 1800-1830 3345 100 Zimbabwe, Zambia English 1800-1830 11925 250 East Africa English 1900-1930 15140 250 Nigeria Fulfulde 1930-2000 11885 500 Nigeria Ibo 1930-2000 11750 250 Nigeria Hausa 2000-2030 11845 250 Congo, Gabon French 2000-2030 9805 500 Central Africa French 2000-2030 9655 250 Central Africa English 2030-2100 11845 250 Nigeria Yoruba CHINA RADIO INTERNATIONAL 1500-1800 6100 100 Southern Africa English 1800-1900 6100 100 Southern Africa Chinese HIRONDELLE FOUNDATION [R. Okapi] 0400-0600 11690 250 DR Congo French 1600-1700 11890 250 DR Congo French CHRISTIAN VOICE 0515-1545 9555 100 Southern Africa English TRANS WORLD RADIO 0330-0345 7215 250 Ethiopia 34 Sidamo 0330-0345 7215 250 Ethiopia 12 567 Amharic 0345-0357 7215 250 Ethiopia 7 Oromo 0600-0645 11640 500 Nigeria 12345 English 0600-0615 11640 500 Nigeria 67 English 1600-1630 9675 250 Burundi 1234567 Kirundi 1625-1655 9660 500 Somalia 1234567 Somali 1645-1700 9930 250 Ethiopia 12 7 Oromo/Borana 1645-1700 9930 250 Ethiopia 34 Kambaata 1645-1700 9930 250 Ethiopia 56 Hadiya 1657-1712 9660 500 Southern Sudan 23456 Juba 1657-1727 9660 500 Southern Sudan 1 7 Juba 1700-1715 9930 250 Ethiopia 7 Amharic 1700-1730 9930 250 Ethiopia 123456 Amharic 1703-1718 7265 250 Mozambique 1234567 Sena 1715-1745 9930 250 Ethiopia 7 Oromo 1718-1733 7265 250 Mozambique 1234567 Yao 1730-1800 9930 250 Ethiopia 12345 Oromo 1730-1800 9930 250 Ethiopia 6 Amharic 1733-1748 7265 250 Mozambique 2 5 7 Yao 1745-1800 9930 250 Ethiopia 7 Amharic 1755-1825 9620 500 Southern Mali 12345 Pulaar 1755-1825 9620 500 Southern Mali 67 French 1810-1840 9720 250 Ivory Coast 1234567 Bambara 1830-1900 9510 500 Sahel 1234567 Fulfulde 1830-1900 9745 500 Nigeria 1234567 Hausa 1840-1910 9720 250 Ivory Coast 1234 67 French 1840-1910 9720 250 Burkina Faso 5 Songhai 1900-1930 9510 500 Nigeria 1234567 Yoruba 1900-1915 9745 500 Nigeria 1234567 Kanuri 1910-1925 9720 250 Ivory Coast 1234 7 French 1910-1925 9720 250 Mali 5 Moore 1910-1940 9720 250 Mali 6 Moore 1925-1940 9720 250 Mali 12345 Moore 1925-1940 9720 250 Burkina Faso 7 Songhai 1930-1945 9510 500 Ghana 12 Twi 1930-1945 9510 500 Ghana 67 Ewe 1945-2000 9510 500 Nigeria 6 Igbo 1945-2015 9510 500 Nigeria 7 Igbo Day: 1 = Monday .. 7 = Sunday (Sentech at the web via JKB; 13 Nov 2005, WWDXC via DXLD) ** SRI LANKA. Can anyone help confirm the current B05 schedule for Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corp external services in English? Are there still SLBC English transmissions at 0030-0430 and 1230-1530 on 6005, 9770, and 15748 kHz? (Dave Kenny-UK, BrDXC-UK Nov 12 via BCDX via DXLD) English o n l y during the 0030-0400 slot. There is a bilingual Hindi transmission English and Hindi 11905, 7275 1330-1530 UT (Victor Goonetilleke, Sri Lanka, 4S7VK, BDXC-UK Nov 14 via BCDX via DXLD) I believe Dave added that the weekly SLBC relay via UK on 6010 at 19 was gone (gh, DXLD) 11715: see also SUDAN [non] just below ** SUDAN [non]. U.K. 11705 (not 11715) Sudan Radio Service via Woofferton, UK laut und klar, S=9 +20 dB heute auf 11705 kHz. Typische EaAF Musik etc., die Signalqualitaet leidet nicht unter dem Aussendungspfad von WOF nach Stuttgart, sondern eher aus typischer ISDN?/Internet Flutter Qualitaet der Uebertragung, wie sie auch in Juelich oder Grigoriopol, oder via dem Merlin/VT Schaltraum manchmal zu beobachten ist. Nur ein ganz, ganz schwaches Signal auf 11715 kHz, S=1, gerade noch Musikrichtung verstaendlich, muesste Colombo Ekala 100 kW in Sinhala fuer den Nahen Osten sein (wb, wwdxc BC-DX Nov 9 + 10 via DXLD) 11705 (not 11715 in B-05) Sudan Radio Service at present loud and clear, light BUZZ tone ?from ISDN feeder?, S=9 +20 dB. Mo-Fr only at 1700-1800 UT. Typical E African music. On formerly registered 11715, S=1, but seemingly Colombo Ekala 100 kW in Sinhala to Near East workers (Wolfgang Büschel, BCDX via DXLD) Buzz on 11705 could be Zim jammer vs VOP (gh) ** SUDAN [non]. Sudan Radio Service has conducted publicity events in Maridi, Yei, Rumbek, and many other communities across southern Sudan, since Sep 2004. Pictures taken of SRS-sponsored activities in Maridi at http://www.sudanradio.org/announcements.htm http://www.sudanradio.org/maridipub.jpg (BCDX Nov 16 via DXLD) ** UKRAINE. 5910, Radio Ukraine International, on Oct 30, Nov 6 and Nov 13 at 0400 UT from Nikolayev/Mykolaiv. There is something wrong with their English service. Heard "DX club" at 0420 UT and "Greetings from Kyiv" (Mailbag) at 0430 UT, but both programs had the same content on every Sunday morning on these three weeks. Strike or no money to change their programs? (Klaus Nindel-D, wwdxc BC-DX Nov 13 via DXLD) This is the rule, not the exception with RUI. One new program every month or so, repeated following weeks (gh, DXLD) ** U K. BBCWS Previews from week of November 17: ONE PLANET - A WORLD WITHOUT WASTE The world’s consumers are producing an ever-increasing mountain of rubbish and we are running out of places to put it. In a new four part series, co-produced with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, One Planet – A World without Waste, Lynn Malcolm explores the international drive by governments, scientists, environmentalists and communities towards to the goal of ‘zero waste’ from Thursday 17 November. Lynne says: "‘zero waste’ is all about reducing waste while at the same time taking a new approach to managing our planet’s dwindling natural resources. The aim is to build-in sound ecological principles from the outset into every area of manufacturing, design, industry, energy and domestic life and to do this across all cultures. It’s a vast challenge, some may say impossible, but one which some countries are trying to tackle head-on." Reducing Waste is a big issue for many cities but nowhere more so than San Francisco. California is the US state leading the way in waste management and recycling and San Francisco, the designated city for World Environment Day 2005, is out in front with an ambitious target of zero waste by 2020. On Thursday 17 November Lynne learns that even food scraps from over 3000 restaurants are collected each day, composted and then sold onto farms and many of the state’s 8000 vineyards whose produce is then sold back to the restaurants. The city has state of the art recycling facilities and has even banned things like the sale of disposable batteries and leaded paint to ensure that nothing gets dumped. Incineration, burning everything down to ashes, is how a large amount of the world’s waste is still dealt with. It’s dirty and a serious health risk, but profitable for waste companies will little conscience. On Thursday 24 November Lynne discovers how The Philippines took the brave step of banning incineration. Manila’s record on waste dumping and landfill is not good – with tens of thousands of people living in garbage-ridden slums on the edges of the big cities. But one community has taken a stand and taken control of their own waste management situation. On the edge of Quezon City, a part of Metro Manila, Lynne meets members of the Baranguay Bagumbuhay, a settlement of around 10,000 people. In 2001 they created their own ecological solid waste management company, which collects sorts and recycles the waste of the whole community. Until recently Japan had one solution to waste: burn it. Over 1800 incinerators burnt the countries 50 million tonnes of solid waste each year. Recycling exists but even some of that ends up in the incinerators and only now is the government waking up to the fact that waste can be a resource if treated in the right way. On every street corner there are separate rubbish bins for paper, plastics and glass, and people generally do observe these rules. But the statistics across a decade show some depressing figures: nearly every year, recycling rates have remained level. On Thursday 1 December Lynne visits the site of Japan’s largest incinerator on the edge of Tokyo and finds out if the non-stop urban buzz of Tokyo’s 24-hour consumer culture can ever learn to slow down. China is the industrial success story of the last decade and looks set to continue for years to come. Unfortunately it’s also likely to be the global villain in environmental terms, unless its scientists can find a solution to waste and pollution. Greener, cleaner technology is what the government has pinned its hopes on, having made a Kyoto-style energy research pact with countries such as Australia and the United States. On Thursday 8 December Lynne learns that China is one the few countries in the world where bicycle use is declining, whilst car ownership increases rapidly along with mobile phones, computers and household gadgets. This year, Beijing hosts the worlds largest zero waste technologies conference, involving hundred of researchers from around the world, all seeking to find ways of making sustainability a reality. With China hosting what they claim with be the greenest Olympic Games ever, in 2008, the world is watching. Presenter/Lynne Malcolm, Producer/Rami Tzabar --- A World Without Waste is a co-production with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Broadcast Times: One Planet: 4 programmes x 25 minutes Thursdays from 17 November, [European stream & webcast] 1006, 1506, 2006, Fri 0206 [Americam stream & webcast] 1506, 2206, Fri 0206 Listen online http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/programmes/index.shtml (BBCWS Press Office via Rich Cuff, via gh, DXLD) ** U K. DRG DAB BACK IN NORTHWOOD MIDDX You may remember me reporting the loss of good reception of the DRG 11B network here in Middx on the 29th October. The thing that amazed me was that after contacting the multiplex manager for DRG and looking at web sites I could not identify the location of the transmitter or one that was likely the be off air or under maintenance. Today at 11:50 am approx., my radio which had been unsuccessfully tuned into Virgin Classic Rock jumped back into action with an error rate of 10 but no glitching, and that is with the pc on. I have to wait until it is off to see if it now rises above the usual error rate of 8 on my evoke 1 dab receiver. It is all well and good encouraging us to have dab radio but they could give us better information about transmitters - surely a message could have been put out on the streaming info - that seems to work with a weak signal strangely enough. One thing I did learn is that it does not matter if a station is mono or stereo on dab it should come in the same - however where there is a lack of power from the broadcaster the receiver manifests a whole range of phenomena. For example with an error rate of 80 the only place downstairs the station came in with some glitching was in our kitchen - now it still comes in but with an error rate of 40. The set is now giving adequate signal in its original location - and that got hardly any signal at all since 29th October. I realise we are lucky in London - I have sampled what it must be like elsewhere in the UK. Find out who runs your multiplexes and complain if reception is poor. We have our own Switch 1 multiplex locally at Mount Vernon (near the hospital of same name strangely). You do not need the aerial up far to receive it. I checked up that information in the excellent Radio Listeners Guide, a new edition coming out in December. By the way as you may guess Virgin Classic Rock is one of my favourites; my wife likes Chill. K (Keith Knight, BDXC-UK via DXLD) Here in Caversham, Berks the DRG London III multiplex has been missing completely for the past few weeks; I've had no reception of it at all, even though the other London MPXs have been fine. Like Keith, my reception has mysteriously returned today. So it appears that we must be receiving the same transmitter here as Keith is in Ruislip. I emailed DRG last week (received no reply) and also enquired though Ofcom, but nobody seemed to be aware of any transmitter outage. Anyhow, it`s been fixed now and reception restored, apparently across a very wide area to the west of London. Like Keith, I find it puzzling that nobody seemed to be aware of (or would admit to) a transmitter fault which has affected this multiplex these past few weeks. 73s (Dave Kenny, using an Evoke 1 with a 4-element roof-mounted DAB aerial, Nov 12, ibid.) It's long been my experience that embarrassing errors are not so likely to be owned up to. With BBC transmitters, faults are communicated to a central control as soon as they happen, and transmitters are "polled" every now and then to check that everything is OK. This, as far as I'm aware, even on the smallest of relays. Whether the private providers bother quite so much I do not know (Andrew Tett, ibid.) RE: Drg dab back in Northwood Middx - and Caversham, Berks !! I spoke to the DRG multiplex manager on Thursday 10 Nov about the widespread problems on DRG multiplex 11B. They were aware of a problem with DRG reception in the west of London but the cause still wasn't quite clear. One suspect was the multiplex 11D Digital One tests / trial carrying TV to mobiles under the BT Livetime banner. 11C was not affected as I heard both Swindon and Hants multiplexes on Thursday. No other multiplexes appear affected I note that there are new fillers for Digital One around west London e.g. Uxbridge TQ062841 And Southall, Westel House TQ172806 Sometime on Friday 11 Nov the interference had clearly reduced and certainly in Reading the improvement was marked. However on Sunday I noticed DRG reception was still quite choppy around Heathrow M4 J4 as per my previous msg. The coverage map http://www.now-digital.co.uk/London%203%2010%20sites%2C%20all%20full%20ERP.jpg shows that the area should have good reception. Suggest you send any reports to: nicky.mcpherson @ now-digital.com the multiplex manager. I forwarded a few, but won't do so now (CHRIS McWhinnie, Nov 14, BDXC-UK via DXLD) ** U S A. Dan Ferguson Retires. Just a note to let all know that Dan Ferguson at IBB (VOA) who started this list will be retiring on Nov 10th. I know we all wish him a wonderful retirement and that he will still continue to monitor the VOACAP list from South Carolina. Dan, welcome to the land of the retirees --- nearly 10 for me now. It was a real pleasure working with you for 13 years. By the way I think you even beat my record of counting down the days to retirement, so I have been told!!! Best wishes, (George Lane-USA, via VOACAP Nov 8 via BCDX via DXLD) ** U S A [and non]. FIRM HELPS U.S. MOLD NEWS ABROAD PENTAGON ALSO WAGES WAR OF IMAGES, WORDS By Stephen J. Hedges Washington Bureau November 13, 2005 http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0511130330nov13,1,7127484,print.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed WASHINGTON -- In an effort to fight what it sees as an insidious propaganda war waged by terrorists, from incendiary Web sites to one-sided television images of the Iraq war, the Pentagon has been quietly waging its own information battle throughout the Middle East and Central Asia. One of its primary weapons is a controversial, secretive firm that has been criticized as ineffective and too expensive. The Rendon Group, directed by former Democratic Party political operative John Rendon, has garnered more than $56 million in Pentagon work since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Those contracts list such activities as tracking foreign reporters; "pushing" news favorable to U.S. forces; planting television news segments that promote U.S. positions; and creating a grass-roots voting effort in Puerto Rico on behalf of the Navy, Pentagon records show. The contracts, some of which were obtained by the watchdog group Judicial Watch through a Freedom of Information Act request, reveal that the Bush administration is engaged in a war of images and words with Al Qaeda and other radical groups. Civilian and military leaders say the contracts are necessary to fight the media wars waged by Islamic fundamentalists who control images on television, radio and the Internet in some Arab countries. But proponents of open government question the role of firms like The Rendon Group, suggesting their work blurs the line between legitimate news and propaganda. And Americans have long been nervous about the notion of the government managing information. To the extent that the Pentagon is attentively studying media publications, there is nothing wrong with that, said Steven Aftergood, a secrecy expert at the Federation of American Scientists. "Where it gets questionable is when they start engaging in media-based operations," Aftergood said, meaning actually distributing news items. "And that's something that needs to be carefully circumscribed and defined in policy, because there is no clear line between the foreign media and U.S. media." The Rendon Group is perhaps best-known for its part in the controversy that surrounded the Pentagon's short-lived Office of Strategic Influence nearly four years ago. A February 2002 New York Times article disclosed the office's existence and reported that the company was part of the effort, which possibly included attempts to plant false news stories abroad. `That was never us' After public and congressional outcry, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld shut down the office. But John Rendon, who until now had declined to discuss the episode, said in an interview last week that the news stories were wrong and that his company never worked for the office. "That wasn't us," Rendon said. "The whole notion of putting false news stories abroad, that was never us." Retired Air Force Brig. Gen. S. Pete Worden, who directed the Office of Strategic Influence during its short life, confirmed by e-mail that The Rendon Group did not work for him. "He [Rendon] is correct that he didn't work directly for my office," Worden wrote. "Most of the actual work we did was through SAIC," or Science Applications International Corp., a large defense contractor. Rendon has, however, played a substantial role in the Pentagon's efforts to track and shape media coverage of the Iraq and Afghan conflicts and the war on terrorism. Rendon has at least five current contracts with the Defense Department, according to the newly obtained records. A full list of the contracts, provided to Judicial Watch, totals about $45million. The work began in 2000 and continues, the contracts show. They include work, supervised by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, for the Air Force, Army, Navy and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Most recently, Rendon was awarded a $6.4 million contract in September to track media coverage in Iraq. Rendon also won a $1.4 million contract in 2004 to advise the staff of Afghan President Hamid Karzai, and a $3.9 million contract to work on a counternarcotics campaign in the Afghan Interior Ministry. The Rendon Group's costs were an issue among CIA staff members during the group's earlier work with the CIA and Pentagon. Rendon once received a CIA contract of $20 million to $40 million, according to former employees, to advise the then-London-based Iraqi National Congress and its leader, Ahmad Chalabi. The Pentagon offices that work with Rendon -- the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Office of Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict -- declined to comment. Rendon's previous experience positioned him well for the Pentagon's new war needs. Rendon worked in the political world until 1989, when he took a job advising the Panamanian opposition on how to handle the media during the U.S. invasion to oust dictator Manuel Noriega. He took similar jobs after that, including advising the Kuwaiti government after Iraqi troops invaded in August 1990. When the Sept. 11 attacks occurred, Rendon already had an active Pentagon contract. "This is really probably the 10th or 9th time we've done this kind of work, going all the way back to Panama," Rendon said. "Nobody else has done this." Though Rendon declined to discuss some of his Pentagon work because it is classified, he compared his Pentagon contracts to menus. They contain a variety of potential tasks, he said, but the Pentagon does not necessarily ask for all of them to be performed. An Oct. 3, 2001, contract for $16.7 million describes Rendon's initial work as testing public opinion and "media mapping"--tracking and analyzing news reports in such places as Cairo; Istanbul; Tashkent, Uzbekistan; Islamabad, Pakistan; and Jakarta, Indonesia. Monitoring Al Jazeera The contract called for Rendon to track "the location and use of Al Jazeera news bureaus, reporters and stringers, both regionally and globally. The . . . effort will provide a detailed content analysis of the station's daily broadcast. TRG [The Rendon Group] will also chart event-related regional media coverage to identify the biases of specific journalists and potentially obtain an understanding of their allegiances." In the interview, Rendon was wary of saying his group tracked reporters' biases. "Bias is a tough term," he said. "I know that we don't look at U.S. journalists. I know that in conducting operational media analysis, we track the nature of stories." The contracts also raised the possibility of Rendon establishing a radio program in Peshawar, Pakistan, to broadcast "timely, truthful and accurate information to the people of Afghanistan." That work, Rendon said, was not done. While tracking media coverage is Rendon's self-described specialty -- the firm is under government contract to do it in 34 countries -- The Rendon Group also is paid by the Pentagon to advise foreign governments on handling the media. Rendon said his firm has not "pushed" news favorable to the U.S. The main advisory work, he said, "has been helping foreign governments to correct things that are bad or wrong in the news cycle, and amplify those things that are not bad." Mission on Puerto Rico Rendon became involved in shaping the relationship between the U.S. military and local communities in 2001, when it was given a $1.6 million Navy contract to help win over residents of Puerto Rico's Vieques island. The Navy had used the island for aerial bombing practice for 60 years, and residents objected to the danger and noise. When the Navy's continued use of Vieques was scheduled for a vote in 2001, the Navy turned to Rendon to "conduct public outreach and build grass-roots support" for the Navy's position. Questions were raised about the role of the Navy in trying to influence residents, and Judicial Watch noted that political activity by the Navy may violate U.S. law. Rear Adm. T. L. McCreary, the Navy's chief spokesman, said senior Navy officers noticed the contract language in August 2001 and ordered the activities halted. The contract was formally corrected, McCreary said, in October 2001. A senior Defense Department official who asked not to be named said the Navy amended its contract when it learned that Rendon personnel were promising Vieques residents that backing the Navy's position would mean future U.S. development dollars. The Navy, the official said, did not have authority to make such pledges. Rendon denied that his staff promised anything like that. Instead, he said, the contract changed when the Navy decided that an island referendum on the issue was not a good idea. The Navy, he said, was trying to "open a dialogue . . . into the community so that people would know what was going on from the Navy, and not necessarily have to depend on outside parties to characterize the Navy's intentions." Under a 2001 decision by President Bush, the Navy quit using Vieques as a bombing range in 2003. Copyright (c) 2005, Chicago Tribune (via Mike Cooper, DXLD) ** U S A. REPORT SAYS EX-CHIEF OF PUBLIC TV VIOLATED FEDERAL LAW By STEPHEN LABATON Published: November 15, 2005 WASHINGTON, Nov. 15 - Investigators at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting concluded today that its former chairman repeatedly broke federal law and its own regulations in a campaign to combat what he saw as liberal bias. A report today concluded that Kenneth Y. Tomlinson, shown here testifying on funding for public broadcasting in July, repeatedly broke federal law in a campaign to combat what he saw as liberal bias. Text: Inspector General's Report (pdf) A scathing report by the corporation's inspector general described a dysfunctional organization that violated the Public Broadcasting Act, which created the corporation and was written to insulate programming decisions from politics. . . NY Times article: http://makeashorterlink.com/?G1EB62A2C See the Inspector General's report here: http://www.cpb.org/oig/reports/602_cpb_ig_reportofreview.pdf (Richard Cuff / Allentown, PA USA, Swprograms mailing list via DXLD) ** U S A. WHO'S LEADING OUR LEADERS?: Last month we mentioned the Bush Administration's propensity toward packaging and distributing "Video Press Releases" as legitimate news stories. Robert Sudock of KTTV/Fox- 11 graciously forwarded the FCC's own take on the practice, excerpted from the Commission's own MB Docket # 05-171, released last April: "The Commission has recently received a large number of requests that it consider whether the use of 'video news releases' or 'VNRs,' by broadcast licensees, cable operators, and others complies with the Commission’s sponsorship identification rules. VNRs are essentially prepackaged news stories, that may use actors to play reporters and include suggested scripts to introduce the stories. These practices allow such externally prepackaged news stories to be aired, without alteration, as broadcast or cable news. Some of the parties contacting the Commission have suggested that broadcast licensees and cable operators may have aired VNRs with news stories containing material paid for, prepared and/or provided to them by or on behalf of commercial, governmental and other entities without disclosing, at the time of the airing, the source of and the circumstances surrounding their acquisition of such material. With this Public Notice, the Commission reminds broadcast licensees and cable operators that air VNRs, as well as all entities and individuals involved in the production and provision of the material at issue here, of their respective disclosure responsibilities under the Commission’s sponsorship identification rules. These rules are grounded in the principle that listeners and viewers are entitled to know who seeks to persuade them with the programming offered over broadcast stations and cable systems. For the reasons noted in this Public Notice, and as provided for in the statutory provisions and in the Commission’s rules, whenever broadcast stations and cable operators air VNRs, licensees and operators generally must clearly disclose to members of their audiences the nature, source and sponsorship of the material that they are viewing. We will take appropriate enforcement action against entities that do not comply with these rules. This Public Notice is confined to the disclosure obligations required under Section 317 and our rules thereunder, and does not address the recent controversy over when or whether the government is permitted to sponsor VNRs, which is an issue beyond the Commission’s jurisdiction." - Aha! Now we see the Paid News Story practice is essentially verboten, UNLESS the Government itself is paying the tab. This can be read as a tacit admission, by the FCC, that Politics takes precedence over all other considerations, in the matter of brain-feeding the Great Unwashed. Perhaps this is Washington's strategy toward usurping and finally eliminating that there evil Lib'ral Media! The Left does this too; it's called Radio Havana. Iowa's Democratic Senator Tom Harkin has intro'ed a bill to fund an "ombudsman" to focus eyes 'n' ears on the Armed Forces Radio & Television Service, for "political balance". This comes years after the AFRTS signed on as a Rush Limbaugh affiliate...and a couple of weeks after Liberal-talker Ed Schultz initially lost his deal to air on the Military network. Schultz says the AFRTS pulled out after his criticism of Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Allison Barber, for allegedly scripting a video conference involving soldiers and President Bush. Now the Pentagon has done an about-face, declaring that Schultz' show will indeed air over AFRTS. Now it's up to individual AFRTS outlets to schedule the Liberal gabfest. AN INTERESTING IDEA: A group led by the Michigan-based Amherst Alliance is proposing that the FCC license a class of commercial, low- powered AM stations, to be found in the expanded band between 1610 & 1700 kHz. Within said group are two Virginia-based individuals, Nickolaus Leggett and Don Schellhardt, who co-filed the original Low Power FM petition with the FCC back in '98. The petition makes no bones about the need for commercial viability within the proposed service, along with emphasizing the lack of community "mom & pop" ownership generally in the AM-universe. The proposal specifically disallows ownership of, and investment in LPAM stations, by "established broadcasters". While station ownership would be limited to one LPAM facility per Metropolitan market, such owners would be allowed to own 12 such stations nationwide, and owners would be required to reside within 25 miles of one of those stations. The group also suggests that license awards be partly based on plans for programming. From the FCC petition itself: "...a proposed light jazz radio station in Roanoke, Virginia or Waterbury, Connecticut should automatically have a higher status (with the FCC) than a proposal to add another 'evangelical Christian' station - even if the light jazz applicant just arrived from Boston two weeks ago and the evangelical applicant is a church with a record of 150 years of service to the community. In the Low Power AM Radio Service, marketable innovations in local programming should clearly trump 'more of the same', even if 'more of the same' is being offered by a group or individual with deep community roots." It all sounds great...so what's gonna kill it, you inquire? Read on in the petition: you'll see the petitioners are nowhere near agreeing on the technical parameters, such as station power levels and spacing (both geographic and frequency spacing issues must be considered). The FCC is taking comments on the proposal, but the petition-mongers best get their act together on the tech fine-points, lest the whole thing be thrown out with the morning coffee grounds (Greg Hardison, Broadcast Band Update Nov 14 via DXLD) Full UD appears in the dxldyg ** U S A. Re this comment in the latest DXLD 5-196: "All the KWHR/WHRI/WHRA entries should be one hour EARLIER than shown on the web site - so that means some frequencies are different too & a couple of Cumbre txs have been deleted.`` What I meant was that the times shown on Wolfgang's DX Programme list (which he had sent me in an email) should be one hour earlier, because WHRI/WHRA did not move the programming one hour later this winter. In fact, the schedule on the WHR web site seem to be generally correct, though there is as always confusion as to which day of the week is correct, between some Eastern Time and UTC entries. 73s (Dave Kenny, UK, dxldyg via DXLD) Another error in the WHR schedule gives the UT Monday airings as being Monday-Friday! (John Norfolk, ibid.) ** VATICAN. "Spectrum Online" http://www.spectrum.ieee.org has published a comprehensive piece by Alexander Hellemans examining the battle faced by the Vatican, against the onus of electromagnetic pollution. Whether perceived or real, the brouhaha has cast a pall of uncertainty over venerable Vatican Radio: "The view is impressive, if strange. A forest of about two dozen huge towers supports an intricate web of antenna wires that together pump many hundreds of kilowatts into the atmosphere from a site 25 kilometers north of Rome. The antennas are the Vatican's portal to the world: signals from two medium-wave (standard AM) transmitters reach all of Italy at all times, while those from 27 shortwave antennas are beamed at selected parts of the world in different languages at varying times. (Only two of the shortwave antennas transmit at any given time.) Thus, papal speeches, news programs, and religious events are dispatched in 40 languages to all the corners of the world, making this complex as important to the Vatican as the Voice of America and Radio Free Europe were to the United States at the height of the Cold War. But to the inhabitants of Cesano and neighboring communities, the antennas, some transmitting at an effective 600 kilowatts, represent not only a blight on the landscape and something of a nuisance-hearing the Pope's voice picked up by your front-door intercom is not always appreciated-but also a possible health threat. "When the antennas were erected in 1951 on a 3.9-square-kilometer plot, the surrounding area, known as Santa Maria di Galeria, was still largely rural. But during the last few decades the area has been built up, and now an estimated 60 000 people live within a radius of 10 kilometers of the transmitters. "In 2000, a small number of cases of childhood leukemia, first reported by a local physician, were blamed by residents on the strong radio-frequency fields generated by the Vatican antennas. On the one hand, leukemia incidence was higher close to radio towers; on the other hand, the difference was Statistically Insignificant. This past May, an Italian court imposed suspended 10-day prison sentences on two Vatican officials responsible for operating the transmitters, a cardinal and a priest, for the 'dangerous showering of objects'- meaning the antennas' electromagnetic waves. (The term 'electromagnetic radiation' has not made it yet into Italy's legal vocabulary.) In addition, environmental groups and committees representing the local population will be awarded damages in a separate civil action, though the figures have yet to be determined. "Local residents and environmentalists have sought to have the Vatican close down the complex since 2000. Several years ago, an Italian environmental minister, Willer Bordon, organized field strength measurements and found that the Vatican's radio transmitters violated Italy's radiation standards, which are much stricter than those in other parts of the world. He threatened to cut off electric power to the site; in response, Vatican Radio reduced the time it was on the air and transferred some radio transmission to other sites. The Vatican's situation improved in 2002, when courts ruled that the Italian government had no jurisdiction over the transmitters because of the Vatican's status as an independent state. But in 2003, Italy's Supreme Court overturned those rulings, which resulted in the two Vatican officials' having to stand trial. "What does science say? While the complaints against Vatican Radio were bouncing back and forth in the Italian courts, the regional government commissioned an epidemiological study of leukemia incidence in the area around the disputed antennas. A team of researchers led by Paola Michelozzi of the Local Health Authority, in Rome, reported in 2002 that the incidence of childhood leukemia from 1987 to 1998 was twice the expected rate, but the actual numbers were very small. The results, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, indicated that instead of the expected 3.7 cases in the population of 60 000, there had been eight. Because of the small number, Michelozzi considers the result statistically insignificant. But a somewhat more disconcerting finding in her study made a stronger impression on critics of the Vatican, members of the press, and even some experts. Michelozzi's survey determined that if leukemia incidence was measured in concentric circles around the radio complex, rates dropped off with increasing distance from the transmitters. Based on that finding, a court-appointed expert science panel in the legal proceeding against the Vatican concluded, questionably, that 'the weight of evidence...is much more in favor of the existence of a [cancer] risk' and that it 'is in favor of a causal relationship.' That assessment, together with the Vatican's violation of Italian power limits, is what prompted the guilty verdict last May against the Vatican officials. "Similar studies of populations around radio and television transmitters have been conducted during the past two decades in several countries, including the United States, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. But all these studies are crippled by the very low normal incidence of leukemia, the need to study very large populations, and the technical difficulty of accurately determining actual exposure levels. 'The situation has not changed that much. If you look at the string of recent epidemiological studies, they are still equivocal,' says Keith Florig, a specialist in risk analysis and radiation protection at Carnegie Mellon University, in Pittsburgh. Florig expressed surprise at the court's ruling in the Vatican case. "Others agree that the ruling was premature. 'I'm quite concerned about a rush to judgment based on a less-than-adequate understanding of the scientific issues,' says Wayne Overbeck, a specialist in the legal aspects of communications at California State University, in Fullerton. (Overbeck, a ham radio operator, takes precautions to avoid exposing himself and other people to excess RF radiation.) Local inhabitants, on the other hand, reacted to the Italian court's finding with jubilation. 'We are satisfied; we had to suffer the arrogance of the Vatican for years,' one resident told the press. Representatives of Vatican Radio, maintaining that the radiation levels are safe, said that they found the judgment unjust and plan to appeal it. "The case of Vatican Radio is but the latest episode in a half- century-long scientific controversy. Last December, a panel of the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP), headquartered in Oberschleissheim, Germany, published a global review of epidemiological studies dealing with the impact on health of electromagnetic waves. The report covered a range of RF sources, including cellphones and communication towers, and one section reviewed eight epidemiological studies of residents living around radio and television transmitters, including Michelozzi's study. The panel found the results inconclusive. 'For these studies to be informative, there have to be better exposure assessments, and the numbers [of people in the samples] should be larger,' says Anders Ahlbom of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, who led the study. 'Even taken together, they don't really suggest any health risks,' he says. RF radiation is nonionizing-that is, it cannot break the bonds in molecules-and no plausible biophysical mechanism has been proposed that would predict biological effects from low-level fields, except as related to heating. Therefore, many scientists in the field have viewed research on the biological effects of radio waves with some skepticism. Radio frequencies do, however, induce currents in parts of the human body, which can resonate as a half-wave antenna: there is a maximum in the fraction of incident energy that is absorbed in the whole body at 100 megahertz (FM Band) and at 800 MHz in the head--the latter is close to the 850 and 900 MHz frequencies used for mobile phones in the United States and Europe. Exposure limits, such as those recommended by the IEEE, take that effect into account." --- excerpted from an article by Alexander Hellemans. The piece goes on to say that studies are continuing around the Planet, examining radiative effects on all parts of the human body...and that by no means, have any conclusions been reached. Many researchers feel the Italian neighbors of the Vatican broadcast complex have been overly spooked by the Court actions, earlier this year. An Update note: the above-mentioned Karolinska Institute has for many years been one of the World's leading centers of Leukemia research (via Greg Hardison, Broadcast Band Update Nov 14 via DXLD) Full UD appears in the dxldyg ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LANGUAGE LESSONS ++++++++++++++++ ``Let`s not associate this with Nazism. I already see plenty of English terminology in a German magazine, Radio Journal`` It is in fact quite dangerous to associate this matter with the Nazi regime, since official measures to keep the French language ``clean`` are in force in France. And there is certainly a difference to the Nazi policy to have no Redaktion (editorial staff) but a Schriftleitung etc., etc., since today many Anglizisms replaced well-established German words. The result is a ridiculous mess known as Denglisch, leading to such things like a ``Back Shop`` (in Dresden they had also a ``Bad Shop``, but it went bankrupt a while ago, what a surprise, harhar). Another closely related result is the use of English spelling in German words: Frequently Germans listen to their ``Radio`s`` and watch a ``Fernseh Übertragung``. These phenomena are meanwhile known as Deppenapostroph (idiots` apostrophe) and Deppenleerzeichen (idiots` space), and of course some people already created dedicated websites: http://www.deppenapostroph.de and http://www.deppenleerzeichen.de respectively. Speaking about radio: Commercial broadcasting in Germany is modelled on what they found to exist in the USA, resulting in these lots of English terminology. There are indeed cases where it is certainly appropriate to use English terms, or should I say to simply incorporate terms like jingle and trailer into German, since things like ``Indikativ`` are no doubt clumsy. But I meanwhile get really furious when receiving an e-mail with lots of references to ``processing`` when discussing what is known for decades as Dynamikkompression. On the other hand a lack of ``pride and passion`` in the ``music sell`` is only a problem of those civil servants managing the commercial stations here in Germany. (It is indeed my opinion that they are more stiff and formal than the ARD institutions ever were.) (Kai Ludwig, Germany, Nov 12, DX LISTENING DIGEST) PUBLICATIONS ++++++++++++ SHORT WAVE MAGAZINE TO CONTINUE --- press release 14 November 2005: The new publishers of Short Wave Magazine are pleased to announce that the well loved and long established radio listeners' favourite monthly publication is to continue. Contrary to industry rumours, the magazine, which was established in 1937, will continue to be available on the news stands, by postal subscription and soon, on-line. The former publisher of Short Wave Magazine decided earlier in 2005 to drop the title from their portfolio in order to concentrate on a new magazine for the radio enthusiast. Kevin Nice, the Editor of SWM for almost eight years says, "SWM's winning formula will stay the same. All the regular contributors will continue to feature along with some new authorities in their field who have joined the radio monitors essential monthly. The only immediate change will be that there will be more pages for our loyal readers to enjoy. We sincerely wish the former publishers of SWM much luck with their new publication!". Look out for the new and improved January issue of the real Short Wave Magazine in the shops from late December. Editor Kevin Nice is very upbeat about the change of Short Wave Magazine publisher. The Dorset based Short Wave Magazine Limited is set to establish a no nonsense approach to hobby radio magazines. Short Wave Magazine will also be operating a comprehensive book and radio related software shop. Don't miss out and make sure you reserve your copy. Subscriptions for the real Short Wave Magazine are available now. Please contact Short Wave Magazine Ltd., B1 Arena Business Centre, Nimrod Way, Wimborne BH21 7SH. Tel: (01202) 862762 or E-mail: subs @ shortwavemagazine.co.uk for more details. You can also visit the magazine's website at http://www.shortwavemagazine.co.uk (SWM readers Yahoo group via Mike Barraclough, DXLD) And what happens to long term subscriptions from the old SWM? Regards Richard (SWM Readers Yahoo group, November 14th) Hello Richard, that is a good question. I would respectfully suggest that you contact the former publisher regarding any contract that you have with them to supply SWM. I'm sure that they can assist you. We would of course love to welcome you as a subscriber to the real SWM. I look forward to hearing from you. Best regards, Kevin ++ Short Wave Magazine Ltd, The Home of Hobby Radio, 01202 826762 (SWM Readers Yahoo group, November 15th via Barraclough, BDXC-UK via DXLD) Andy Sennitt comments: We're pleased to see that SWM is going to continue. However, there is a limited market for radio-related hobby publications, and it is getting smaller. There is clearly some bad feeling between the old publisher and the SWM editor Kevin Nice, who told one reader asking what will happen to existing subscriptions: "That is a good question. I would respectfully suggest that you contact the former publisher regarding any contract that you have with them to supply SWM. I'm sure that they can assist you. We would of course love to welcome you as a subscriber to the real SWM." The press release also refers to "rumours" which were in fact statements by the editor of Radio Active, Elaine Richards, and quoted by us in good faith. The potential reader will be totally confused at the moment, as the website of the previous publisher has not been updated, and still indicates Short Wave Magazine as one of its titles. # posted by Andy @ 09:12 UT Nov 15 (Media Network blog via DXLD) DIGITAL BROADCASTING ++++++++++++++++++++ FCC INITIATES RULEMAKING ON DISTRIBUTED TRANSMISSION TECHNOLOGY (BOOSTERS) FOR DIGITAL TV STATIONS The FCC has adopted a Clarification Order and Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding the use, by DTV stations, of Distributed Transmission Systems (DTS) technology. DTS allows DTV stations to employ multiple synchronized transmitters spread around a station's service area, rather than a single transmitter, enabling broadcasters to fill gaps in service coverage. Each transmitter broadcasts the station's DTV signal on the same channel, similar to analog TV booster stations, but more efficiently. The major benefit offered by DTS is to afford over-the-air service in areas previously blocked by terrain. http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-262082A1.doc http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-05-192A1.doc EVERY NEW TV SET TO BE EQUIPPED WITH A DTV TUNER BY 3/1/07 Here is the FCC's Report & Order ("R&O") requiring that every new TV set (and VCR) sold in the U.S. - as of March 1, 2007 - be equipped with a DTV tuner. The DTV reception requirement is also known as the "DTV tuner requirement." Of course, some receivers must be equipped with DTV tuners prior to the March 1, 2007 cut-off date under the Commission's existing phase- in plan. For example, all TV receivers with screen sizes of 25 to 36 inches must include digital reception capability by March 1, 2006. http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-05-190A1.doc (both: CGC Communicator Nov 15 via Kevin Redding, ABDX via DXLD) RADIO EQUIPMENT FORUM +++++++++++++++++++++ HDTV AND LIGHTING Re 5-195: ``HDTV really brings out the limitations (such as lighting) in the program source material; you can really tell which sports arenas and stadiums are poorly lit!`` Without checking manuals of current equipment and so taking the risk to make an outdated statement: HDTV cameras have a rather poor sensitivity compared to 525/625 lines models, more or less in the range of the old tube cameras I think. I still recall ballgames being shot with Plumbicons: In many cases the pictures where not really convincing; at times they even had a distinctive green tint, apparently produced by standard HQI lamps in the floodlights. At a cycling track not very far away from here the lighting even consisted of sodium vapor lamps. Time and again races there were covered on GDR TV. No problems until one day a race extended into the evening. Well, the lighting level was fully sufficient for the good old KCU 40 cameras. Trouble was, the pictures were not much else than all shades of yellow --- (This was after 1989; earlier such available light shooting was obviously considered taboo at GDR TV. Apparently they disliked this style for showing the pure reality.) All the best, (Kai Ludwig, Germany, Nov 12, DX LISTENING DIGEST) TYPE IN MORSE CODE While shopping for fonts online, I came across this beauty: http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/larabie/radios-in-motion/ Best of all: it's free (Ricky Leong, AB, Nov 14, DX LISTENING DIGEST) SOME TIPS FOR TRACKING DOWN NOISE PROBLEMS: Power Line Noise Often this type of noise involves power lines, and heating systems. I have the same problem here. As you've noticed in hunting with a portable, the noise only radiates a short distance. Try the following test. Go to where power enters the house outdoors. Place a portable receiver near where the power enters the meter and exits the meter. There's a good chance the noise will be there. If not, then that's good news, indicating that the noise is being generated from a device within the house. If the noise is from the power lines entering the house, then the best defense is a noise reduced lead-in for your outdoor antenna. See BAMLog (URL below) for a construction diagram of a typical noise reduced antenna. Household Noise Sources The noise reduced antenna should eliminate any radiated noise pick-up from within the house, including from televisions, computers, and light dimmers. Sometimes the noise is conducted via house wiring directly into the receiver. If operating a receiver with battery power eliminates the problem, then the noise is most definitely conducted, traveling through the house wiring and up the power cord into your receiver when it's plugged in to the AC outlet. This can be eliminated by using a powerline filter. Power filters are available from any high-end audio retailers, often used in home theater and audiophile installations to provide a noise-free power source. The other option is to eliminate the source of the conducted noise. This could be generated by the blower in a furnace, anything with a fan, or a poor electrical contact in a major appliance such as a water heater, all of which can generate spikes on the house wiring. Try turning off circuit breakers to isolate the problem. Conducted noise can also be "piped in" from the outdoor electricity service. An electrician can install a filter at the point of entry to the main circuit breaker to eliminate the problem, or you can contact the electric company to attempt to get the problem corrected on their power lines (Bruce Conti - Nashua NH, http://members.aol.com/baconti/bamlog.htm ABDX via DXLD) TIPS FOR RATIONAL LIVING ++++++++++++++++++++++++ SCIENCE BE DAMNED It is hard for Mexicans to understand the hold that religion has in America, and many of us are baffled by the lax attitude of policymakers in the United States to the religious right, who manage to influence and sometimes undermine the public educational system. Thomas Jefferson's famous phrase about "the wall of separation" between the Church and State may be a guiding principle of American politics, but the huge cultural space that evangelical Protestantism and other politically active religious movements have gained in the United States demonstrates how tenuous are the boundaries between the secular and the religious. . . http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/310/5749/787 From a much longer essay: GLOBAL VOICES OF SCIENCE: Teaching Evolution in Mexico: Preaching to the Choir, by Antonio Lazcano (via Gerald T. Pollard, NC, DXLD) PROPAGATION +++++++++++ CONTINENTAL ELECTRONICS AHEAD OF SCHEDULE IN HAARP PROJECT Continental Electronics Corporation today announced that it is ahead of schedule in delivering 132 ultra-low-noise transmitters to US government contractor BAE Systems for use in the High-Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) near Gakona, Alaska. When the massive planar array for ionospheric research is completed in 2007, it will include a total of 180 Continental Electronics Corporation D616G 10 kW combined transmitters, which the company is upgrading specifically for HAARP. HAARP first installed Continental Electronics transmitters in 1993 when the project began. The US government is constructing the HAARP facility to conduct upper- atmospheric and solar-terrestrial research via a phased array transmitter, with an aim of learning more about the ionosphere - an upper section of the Earth's atmosphere ionized by solar radiation with natural electrical currents that can be modulated with powerful radio signals. Much of the ionosphere's scientific potential lies in satellite communications, which depends on signals passing through it. BAE Systems today leads the installation at HAARP, which began in 1993 with 18 transmitters, grew to 48 in 1998, and is currently being expanded to a total of 180 transmitters - all built by Continental Electronics with some components from BAE and other suppliers. The final expansion will bring the HAARP array to full power, with its effective radiated power (ERP) increasing from 84 dBW to about 96 dBW. It will have greater transmitter modulation capability, variable frequency range, and beam steering than any other high-frequency transmitting system in the world. Continental Electronics is under contract to supply six transmitters per month. The transmitters for HAARP needed to have extremely low noise characteristics to maximize the ability to manipulate the ionosphere. They also must be tough enough to perform reliably in the challenging Alaskan environment. HAARP Home Page http://www.haarp.alaska.edu/ # posted by Andy @ 16:47 UT Nov 15 (Media Network blog via DXLD) Please note that with the rotation of the sun, the next period with NO SUNSPOTS and extraordinary good reception on MW and the tropical bands should be Nov 19-23! (Anker Petersen, Denmark, DSWCI DX Window Nov 11 via DXLD) The geomagnetic field, at middle latitudes, ranged from quiet to unsettled levels with an isolated active period early on 13 November. At high latitudes, the field was generally quiet to unsettled through early on 12 November. Thereafter, the field was generally at active to major storm levels. Solar wind speed ranged from a high of near 700 km/s early on 07 November to a low of about 340 km/s late on 10 November. The period began with wind speed elevated at near 700 km/s, but decaying, and the Bz component of the IMF not varying much beyond +/- 3 nT. These conditions persisted through late on 10 November. Early on 11 November, a weak shock was detected in the ACE SWEPAM data as wind speed slowly elevated to near 400 km/s, and the IMF Bz fluctuated weakly to +/- 7 nT. This shock was believed to be associated with the filament eruption late on 08 November. The period ended with wind speed near 400 km/s and the IMF Bz not varying much beyond +/- 5 nT. FORECAST OF SOLAR AND GEOMAGNETIC ACTIVITY 16 NOVEMBER - 12 DECEMBER Solar activity is expected to be at low to moderate levels through 25 November when Region 822 is due to rotate around the west limb. Thereafter, very low to low activity is expected. No greater than 10 MeV proton events are expected. The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit is expected to be at high levels on 16 – 17 November, 01 – 08 December, and 12 December. The geomagnetic field is expected to range from quiet to minor storm levels. Unsettled to active levels are possible on 21 November, while unsettled to minor storm levels are possible on 30 November – 01 December due to recurrent coronal hole high speed wind streams. Otherwise, expect quiet to unsettled conditions. :Product: 27-day Space Weather Outlook Table 27DO.txt :Issued: 2005 Nov 15 2024 UTC # Prepared by the US Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Environment Center # Product description and SEC contact on the Web # http://www.sec.noaa.gov/wwire.html # # 27-day Space Weather Outlook Table # Issued 2005 Nov 15 # # UTC Radio Flux Planetary Largest # Date 10.7 cm A Index Kp Index 2005 Nov 16 100 10 3 2005 Nov 17 100 8 3 2005 Nov 18 100 8 3 2005 Nov 19 100 8 3 2005 Nov 20 100 8 3 2005 Nov 21 95 15 3 2005 Nov 22 95 10 3 2005 Nov 23 90 8 3 2005 Nov 24 85 8 3 2005 Nov 25 85 8 3 2005 Nov 26 90 8 3 2005 Nov 27 75 12 3 2005 Nov 28 75 8 3 2005 Nov 29 75 10 3 2005 Nov 30 75 20 4 2005 Dec 01 75 20 4 2005 Dec 02 75 12 3 2005 Dec 03 75 8 3 2005 Dec 04 75 8 3 2005 Dec 05 75 5 2 2005 Dec 06 75 8 3 2005 Dec 07 75 10 3 2005 Dec 08 75 10 3 2005 Dec 09 80 12 3 2005 Dec 10 85 10 3 2005 Dec 11 85 8 3 2005 Dec 12 85 8 3 (http://www.sec.noaa.gov/radio via WORLD OF RADIO 1294, DXLD) ###