Yearly Archives: 2013

The 24th Anniversary of Tiananmen Square

Tiananmen Square_man_blocks_tank_238 Yesterday, I had two reminders of how important shortwave radio is in China.

The first was this incredible recording shared by David Goren–an unidentified Radio Beijing announcer who departed from the script and commented on the massacre of protestors in Tiananmen Square in 1989. It’s believed this announcer is still imprisoned:

The second was an article that a journalist friend had posted. It’s simply a list of search terms that the Chinese government blocked on Sina Weibo as of June 4th. Of course, the list contains words you would assume would be included, like: 1989, 89, vigils, and memorial ceremony. But it also includes words like: Internet block, sensitive word, and inappropriate for the public. Think of how many sites and posts this blocked (certainly ours!). Of course, there are many more terms on the list–check out this article on China Digital Times for more information.

So why is shortwave radio still important in China? It’s impossible to block those search terms on radio.

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Introducing The Shortwave Radio Audio Archive

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I used a photo I took of the large slewable curtain antenna at the Edward R. Murrow Transmitter Site for the iTunes cover art of the Shortwave Radio Audio Archive.

I transformed this photo I took of the large slewable curtain antenna at the Edward R. Murrow Transmitter Site into the iTunes cover art for the new Shortwave Radio Audio Archive.

SWLing Post Readers,

I am very happy to announce a project to share and archive our shortwave radio recordings: The Shortwave Radio Audio Archive.

Many of you probably already know that I believe archiving our shortwave radio broadcasts is vital now. Many broadcasters are leaving the air, and many target areas are being removed altogether. Meanwhile, over the past two years there have been new broadcasters coming on the air, often doing test transmissions before beginning broadcasting in earnest. These, too, are significant in radio history.

I have already populated the site with more than eighty recordings, most of which I’ve posted here over the past two years. I still have thirty or more to add. Already in the archive: Radio Bulgaria (now silent), Radio Netherlands Worldwide, The BBC WS special broadcast of the Diamond Jubilee, and a very interesting Vatican Radio broadcast announcing the selection of the new pope.

If you subscribe to the SW Radio Audio Archive’s podcast, you’ll be able to see and download the entire existing collection and new recordings as they are added.

To make this project work, we need your participation! You can help in two ways:

Share your shortwave radio recordings! Simply create an Archive.org account, upload your recording, and share the link with us (we have a nifty web form for submissions). Full details are available on this page.
Simply subscribe to the podcast, download the recordings…and save them. By doing this, you’ll be making an archived copy of all of the recordings. Here are two ways to subscribe to the podcast:
- Use your podcast application to subscribe to our RSS feed. Here is the feed URL: http://shortwavearchive.com/archive?format=rss
- or subscribe via iTunes by clicking here

Donations and radio-related, commercial sponsorships are also welcome.

On the site, we state that “Multiple archives in multiple storage locations ensure the integrity of this collection over time.” This is very true of all archives: the more forms of back up, the better. Especially since archive-quality digital storage does not yet exist. Safety and integrity come with redundancy.

Remember, this project is a collective, community effort, so I hope you will consider sharing your recordings with the rest of the world!

Feel free to share this post and the site http://shortwavearchive.com via social media, your radio groups and message boards. Thank you!

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VOA Radiogram features EasyPal digital images this weekend

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VOARadiogram (Source: VOA Radiogram)

During the past weekend, EasyPal digital images were received successfully throughout Europe and North America. You can see a gallery of some of the received images here:

voaradiogram.net/post/51385444401/voa-radiogram-easypal-images-received-100-or-0

Reviewing the advantages of EasyPal versus MFSK32:

EasyPal:

1) When received successfully, the picture is perfect.

2) Takes less time to transmit than MFSK32 and most SSTV images of the same size.

3) No problems with slant if soundcards are not calibrated.

MFSK32:

1) If the signal drops below a certain level, or if interference exceeds a certain level, no EasyPal image will be received at all. Under similar reception conditions, MFSK32, which uses an analog frequency shift keying system for images, will allow the an image to be seen, even if the quality is not perfect.

2) MFSK32 images allows images of different heights and widths, including small images which can be transmitted quickly. The gray tone MFSK32 image option allows even faster transmission.

3) MFSK32 images can be decoded by more than one software program under more than one operating system. There is only one EasyPal program, and it works only under the Windows operating system.

I welcome your comments and suggestions about the transmission of images via shortwave broadcast. Weighing all of the above factors, I am inclined to adopt MFSK32 as the primary image mode for VOA Radiogram. However, the EasyPal images are so impressive that I will continue to include some in future programs.

On VOA Radiogram for the weekend of 1 and 2 June 2013, we will continue to compare MFSK32 and EasyPal images. Here is the lineup for the program:

3:44    MFSK16: Program preview
3:17    MFSK32: VOA News story about Olympics wrestling
3:16    MFSK32: VOA News story about 2013 hurricane season
1:10    MFSK32: File image of Atlantic hurricane
2:53    MFSK32: VOA News story about colliding galaxies
1:04    MFSK32: Image of the colliding galaxies
1:21    MFSK32: Introduction to MFSK64 and EasyPal
1:30    MFSK64: Same VOA News story about colliding galaxies
:39     EasyPal text: Same VOA News story about galaxies
2:38    EasyPal image: Colliding galaxies
2:38    EasyPal image: Soyuz capsule being moved to launch site
1:09    MFSK16 closing announcements
:29     Surprise mode of the week

To decode EasyPal text and images, download the 4-May-2013 version of the program from vk4aes.com.

To decode the MFSK modes, use Fldigi from w1hkj.com or another digital decoding program.

VOA Radiogram transmission schedule
(all days and times UTC)

Sat 1600-1630 17860 kHz
Sun 0230-0300 5745 kHz
Sun 1300-1330 6095 kHz
Sun 1930-2000 15670 kHz

All via the Edward R. Murrow transmitting station in North Carolina.

Please send reception reports to [email protected]

And visit voaradiogram.net (where any schedule or frequency changes will be posted)

Twitter: @VOARadiogram

Kim

Kim Andrew Elliott
Producer and Presenter
VOA Radiogram

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Shortwave Radio Recordings: Radio Australia’s Jazz Notes

Radio Vacation

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The front cover of MT features a photo I took at Pointe-à-la-Renommée lighthouse and Marconi station in Quebec, Canada. Without a doubt, one of the most beautiful lighthouses I’ve ever seen.

Some of you may remember that I took an extended vacation last year in the maritime region of Canada.

Monitoring Times Magazine just published an article I wrote about the vacation which includes a visit to Sackville, New Brunswick, four weeks in an off-grid cabin in eastern Prince Edward Island and a trip through the Gaspe region of Quebec.

Looking back, it’s amazing how much radio time I packed into that trip.

Read the full article in the June 2013 issue of Monitoring Times magazine.

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PCJ Radio International moves to 11,835 kHz

Check out the AFRTS Archive

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Many shortwave listeners are familiar with the Armed Forces Radio and Television Service (AFRTS); we’ve mentioned them before and the wide variety of programming they offer via several transmission sites.

I recently discovered the AFRTS Archive, an excellent blog that posts archived audio and memories from the AFRTS. The AFRTS Archive is actively updated and chock-full of nostalgia.

It’s Memorial Day here in the States and found this a fitting time to dig through the AFRTS Archive.

Of course, you can still listen to the AFRTS on shortwave–here are the frequencies:

AFN/AFRTS Shortwave Frequencies (note: all broadcasts are in USB)