Yearly Archives: 2013

Heritage Foundation: BBG is cutting “the most cost-effective part of its organization”

One of the 19 curtain antennas on the campus of the Edward R. Murrow Transmitting Site (Click to enlarge)

One of the 19 curtain antennas on the campus of the Edward R. Murrow Transmitting Site (Click to enlarge)

For those of you not familiar, note that the The Heritage Foundation is a US conservative think tank based in Washington, D.C. whose mission is to “formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong national defense.”

(Source: Heritage Foundation)

The Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) recently informed its workforce about sequestration cuts to Voice of America’s (VOA) shortwave and medium-wave broadcasting. Ironically, the Board is cutting the most cost-effective part of its organization: radio.

It would be more rational to cut the bloated management and administration of the International Broadcasting Bureau, which accounts for over 36 percent of the 2013 BBG budget request. Television broadcasting would also be a good place to look for savings, being far more expensive to produce and highly variable in terms of ratings.

Last year, however, the BBG declared in its “Strategic Plan” that radio is a “legacy medium,” a hold over from the past compared to television and the Internet. Now a golden opportunity has presented itself for the BBG staff. Thus, under the guise of complying with sequestration, the board has moved ahead with plans to cut radio, plans that have been fought by Members of Congress and heavily criticized by supporters of U.S. public diplomacy for several years.

One vocal critic was former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, no less. During her Benghazi testimony in January, Clinton had harsh words for the BBG. Clinton bemoaned the fact that the U.S. government has “abandoned broadcasting to the Middle East,” and stated that the BBG, which is responsible, is “a defunct agency.” While this is hardly true in terms of budget, it is in terms of leadership.

Under sequestration, the BBG must cut $37.2 million out of its total budget of $720 million. The announced cuts in shortwave and medium-wave broadcasting are a drop in the bucket, a mere $5.3 million. While efficiencies should certainly be part of the budget picture, decimating the agency’s core mission—broadcasting—should not. Moreover, management has made it clear that these cuts are permanent and not reversible.

[…]It means deep cuts in broadcasting in Cantonese to China, Dari and Pashto to Afghanistan, English to Africa and Asia, Khmer to Cambodia, and English-learning programs around the world. It further means elimination of medium-wave and shortwave broadcasting in Albanian, Georgian, Persian, and Spanish, as well as in English to Afghanistan and in English to the Middle East.

The document notes that national FM and television affiliates will continue to carry VOA broadcasting. The catch is that local affiliates are subject to the whims of the host countries, with all the vulnerabilities and complications that entails.[…]

Read the full article on the Heritage Foundation website.

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Ragnar’s review of the RFspace NetSDR

The RFspace NetSDR wideband receiver

The RFspace NetSDR wideband receiver

A few weeks ago, I posted a link to Universal Radio’s used receiver page which featured a used RFspace NetSDR. Ragnar Daneskjold (of Pirates Week fame) jumped on the deal. Ragnar had been contemplating an SDR purchase for some time, and the NetSDR fit the bill.

Now that Ragnar has had some time to play with the NetSDR, he posted some of his impressions which began with this statement:

A few weeks ago I purchased a Net SDR from RF Space. I have to say that I love it. Its just a black box that resides in my basement but it has revitalized shortwave listening for me.

Ragnar evaluates the NetSDR using three different SDR applications: CuteSDR, sdrDX and SDR-Radio.

Click here to read his full post which also includes instructions on how to listen to his Internet-connected NetSDR.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the NetSDR, Ragnar!

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Shortwave Radio Recordings: Voice Of Islamic Republic of Iran

Tehran, Iran

Tehran, Iran

On Thursday, March 14th, I tuned to the Voice of the Islamic Republic of Iran on 9.895 MHz at 02:30 UTC.

The signal was strong, but audio somewhat typically over-modulated. However, I was able to record the full broadcast.

Click here to download the MP3 of the recording, or simply listen via the embedded player below:

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Excellent price for Grundig G3 at Amazon

GrundigG3Thanks to both Mike and Gary for pointing out that the Grundig G3 is currently $47.21 with free shipping at Amazon.com.

That is the lowest price I’ve ever seen for this excellent shortwave portable. I’ve noticed that the price has actually fluctuated over the past 24 hours, but I haven’t seen it higher than $52.46.

Click here to view the Grundig G3 on Amazon.com.

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Shortwaveology #2 now on SoundCloud

Radio producer and shortwave radio artist, David Goren, has recently posted his 2008 production of Shortwaveology #2 on Soundcloud. If you like the sonic texture of the shortwaves, you’ll love this recording:

Perhaps if we badger David enough–say, on his Facebook page, or on his Soundcloud feed–he’ll produce Shortwaveology #3? Hey, it’s worth a try!

Wait a minute.  You haven’t heard Shortwaveology #1? Take a listen:

In the spirit of full disclosure, David’s a good friend. That is, he will be, until he figures out that I’m asking readers to heckle him into producing another installment of his ongoing work, Shortwaveology. Oh, what the heck; friends come along every day, Shortwave installments don’t.  Let’s hound him! (Whatcha waiting for, David?)

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RNW looks into Zimbabwe’s history of media repression

Zimbabwe-MapIronically, Radio Netherlands Worldwide was once an international voice for those living without free press. In the following RNW article,  Dlamini points out that technology is advancing at a rapid pace and media outlets increasing; however, radio remains the most accessible means of receiving news and information, and unlike technologies that rely on the Internet and mobile phone networks, radio listening cannot be easily traced or monitored by those in power.

It is my sincere hope that, somehow, RNW’s voice will once again find the means to speak for those in need of free press.

Even 33 years after winning the fight for independence, Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe remains a harsh critic of the white colonial government’s system. But with his recent ban on radios, he is imposing the same oppressive tactics that he himself once fought against to liberate his people.

By Nkosana Dlamini, Harare

As I write, Zimbabwe’s statutes are being stiffened with the state oppression that Mugabe himself once fought against. A case in point is the state’s recent banning of small wind-up radios with a short-wave dial.

To understand better, let’s first rewind a few decades…

Chiefs and Commandos
Zimbabwe, formerly Rhodesia, gained independence in 1980 after a protracted guerrilla war. At its peak, in the 1970s, the two main fighting movements, ZIPRA and ZANLA, established exiled radio stations in neighbouring countries where their fighters received training. These stations broadcast into Zimbabwe via short and medium-wave. It was the way to communicate with the local villagers who supported the war by sharing intelligence and foodstuffs.

But in a bid to thwart enemy operations, Ian Smith, the last white Rhodesian ruler, developed strategies that forced radios to be fitted with frequency modulation (FM), as opposed to short wave.

Manufactured by local Zimbabwean firms, Smith’s FM radio sets were branded with the name ‘Chief’.[…]Other radios were manufactured under the name ‘Commando’ and distributed to soldiers in the bush. The government’s intention here was to keep spirits up with music and programmes in which troops could request favourite songs and relay messages about their welfare to loved ones.

Mugabe’s heavy hand
Smith claimed – as Mugabe does now – to be shielding people from pirate stations broadcasting hate speech. In both eras, locals have been instilled with fear. They have had to resort to listening to exiled stations from under the blankets and in their barns, anxious that their neighbours might see them using forbidden radios.

[…]Even under Zimbabwe’s stringent laws today, it is not a crime to own a radio receiver. But, by day, Mugabe’s state agents confiscate the radios and harass citizens found in possession of them – a practice that gets revved up each time a Zimbabwean election looms. By night, the same agents return home to tune into exiled stations via the radios they’ve confiscated. In some instances, they distribute them among their relatives.

The state says it is confiscating the receivers because they are being brought into the country by NGOs without paying a customs fee. In some instances, the do admit they are trying to prevent ordinary citizens from accessing exiled Zimbabwean radio stations through shortwave – a unique feature in these radios.

In other ways, too, Mugabe has proven worse than his predecessor. He has made repeated attempts to scramble these stations’ signals. He is also allegedly responsible for the 2002 bombing of exiled station Radio Voice of the People and the 2000 and 2001 bombings of independent newspaper The Daily News.

Today’s listener
But Mugabe may be fighting a losing battle. Technological advances are no longer so slow. Today’s listener is not only more stubborn, but also more able to access alternative media sources such as the internet and digital satellite broadcasters.

Radio is also accessible via cell phone and computer. Most Zimbabweans now own cheap Asian-import cars fitted with radios that can access Studio 7, the exiled station most despised by Mugabe which has coverage even wider than that of the FM state broadcaster, Zimbabwe Broadcasting Cooperation (ZBC). Radio Voice of the People and Short Wave Radio Africa are two other exiled stations that attract a generous listenership.

And the stricter Mugabe gets about the ban’s imposition, the more ravenous becomes the appetite of Zimbabwean citizens. They want to hear precisely what the state broadcaster cannot – or will not – put in their domain.

(Source: RNW)

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Shortwave Radio Recordings: VOA Special English

VOApodcastimageSPecialEnglishI believe that VOA Special English may be one of the best educational resources on the shortwaves. At Ears To Our World, we find that it is often the most popular program in countries where English may be the official language, but where locals only speak it as a second language.

Over four years ago, I mentioned a Special English broadcast honoring Henry Loomis, the creator and champion of Special English at the VOA. Click here to read the archived post.

I recorded this particular broadcast of VOA Special English on March 19, 2013 at 1:30 UTC on 5,960 kHz.

Click here to download the recording as an MP3 file, or simply listen via the embedded player below:

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