Category Archives: Broadcasters

WYFR to close June 30, 2013

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(Photo source: QRZ.com)

(Photo source: QRZ.com)

Shortwave Central has posted a message from Dan Elyea of WYFR announcing its closure on June 30, 2013:

(Source: Shortwave Central)

We regretfully inform you that the final day of operation for WYFR will be June 30, 2013.

This station descended from W1XAL (an experimental class license assigned in 1927). In 1939 the call letters were changed to WRUL, and then changed to WNYW in 1966.

Initially, broadcasts came from Boston. In 1936 the station moved to Scituate, Massachusetts.

On October 20, 1973 Family Stations, Inc. took ownership of the station using the call letters WYFR. (FSI had been buying airtime from WNYW starting in January of 1972.) At that time, the station sported four transmitters and nine reversible rhombic antennas.

Construction started in Florida in 1976. On November 23, 1977 the first transmission from Okeechobee went on the air.

For several years WYFR operated simultaneously from Scituate and from Okeechobee. The last broadcast from Scituate took place on November 16, 1979.

The Okeechobee site eventually grew to 14 transmitters and 23 antennas. And now we’ve gone full cycle.

Good listening to all, and 73,

Dan Elyea

Court orders Greek National TV and Radio, ERT to reopen

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(Photo source: AP / Petros Giannakouris)

(Photo source: AP / Petros Giannakouris)

Though the Voice of Greece has only been off the air very little, this court order will allow them to legally broadcast again:

(Source: Reuters)

A Greek court ruled that shuttered state broadcaster ERT must reopen immediately, a court official said on Monday, offering the squabbling ruling coalition a way out of a political crisis over the station’s abrupt closure.

The ruling – which ordered ERT switched back on until a restructured public broadcaster is launched – came six day[s] after Prime Minister Antonis Samaras took it off air in the name of austerity and public sector layoffs to please foreign lenders.

The ruling appeared to vindicate Samaras’s stance that a leaner, cheaper public broadcaster must be set up but also allowed for ERT’s immediate reopening as his coalition partners had demanded, offering all three a way out of an impasse that had raised the specter of snap polls.

“It appears that the interim decision of the top administrative court gives the three leaders an opportunity to find a face-saving formula,” said Theodore Couloumbis of the ELIAMEP think-tank.

A live feed of ERT – whose journalists have continued broadcasting over the Internet in defiance of orders – showed workers breaking into applause on hearing the court ruling. ERT’s Symphony Orchestra began an outdoor concert outside its headquarters, playing an old news jingle to cheering supporters.

“I’ve been here seven nights and this is the first time I’ve seen people smile,” said Eleni Hrona, an ERT reporter outside the headquarters.[…]

Read the full story at Reuters. Many thanks to Zach for the tip!

Shortwave Radio Recordings: Voice of Turkey

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Gezi protest in Ankara (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

Gezi protest in Ankara (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

A few days ago, I posted a recording of the Voice of Turkey that noticeably lacked coverage of the Gezi Park protests.

Friday, I recorded VOT’s English language broadcast and was surprised to find that they actually mentioned the protests (admittedly, without it’s due weight) in several news items. I’m very curious how future VOT broadcasts will cover news of yesterday’s riots in Istanbul as police cleared crowds of protesters with water cannons and tear gas.

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

More ERT updates from Athens

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(Source: radioakroatis.blogspot.gr/)

(Source: radioakroatis.blogspot.gr)

SWLing Post reader, Christos, has been reporting regularly on the state of ERT broadcasting in defiance of a government shutdown.

Here’s his latest report:

My logging on the frequencies used by ERT employees:

  • 1404 KHz – KOMOTINI
  • 1260 KHz -RODOS
  • 1512 KHz – CHANIA, CRETE
  • 9420 KHz – AVLIDA

This radio programme can be heard at the following internet address: http://193.43.93.230/ert.php

  • 1008 KHz CORFU, [is] relaying audio from live video streaming.

This programme can be watched at: http://www3.ebu.ch/cms/en/sites/ebu/contents/news/2013/06/monitor-ert-online.html

  • 729 KHz
  • 96 MHz FLASH FM for Athens, Attiki.

They broadcast another radio programme.

  • 666 KHz , 981 KHz : Transmitters are active, but there is no audio.

Also, check out Christos’ blog where he has posted several photos he took at ERT protests: http://radioakroatis.blogspot.gr/

ERT now broadcasting on several medium wave frequencies

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(Photo source: AP / Petros Giannakouris)

(Photo source: AP / Petros Giannakouris)

It’s been several days now since the Greek government tried to shut down Greek National TV and Radio broadcaster, ERT. In fact, ERT was only off the air for a few hours; they immediately set up a live Internet stream and restored shortwave service to the Voice of Greece. They’re still going strong and, evidently, expanding.

SWLing Post reader, Christos, lives in Greece and has been keeping us up-to-date with field reports. He writes:

This day [Friday] the employees of ERT took over the frequencies of medium waves 666 KHz, 729 KHz, 981 KHz, 1008 KHz (Corfu) and 1404 KHz (Komotini), that the previous days remained silent.

Short waves (9429 KHZ) and 1260 kHz from Rodos Island continue active.

[There] are now two radio channels in operation.

Thanks again, Christos! Follow this story with the tag: ERT Cuts

VOA Radiogram this weekend mixes bad noise with good noise

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VOARadioGram(Source: VOA Radiogram)

During the past weekend, we experimented with mixing music with MFSK text modes. Reducing the MFSK modes by 9 dB was not a problem if the signal level was good, but the MFSK text did break up for some listeners if reception conditions were marginal.

This weekend, 15 and 16 June, we will mix some actual noise taken from shortwave with MFSK text. After the noise begins, a VOA News story in MFSK16 will first be transmitted at full level, then reduced to -6 dB, then reduced to -12 dB. I will probably lose many of you when the level is reduced to -12 dB, but please stay tuned: the audio level will soon be restored.

Here is the lineup for VOA Radiogram, 15 and 16 June 2013:

  • 2:10 MFSK16: Program preview
  • 1:58 MFSK16: Introduction to noise experiment
  • 10:09 MFSK16: At -0 -6 -12 dB versus noise
  • :59 MFSK16: Image of VOA logo
  • :47 MFSK16: Introduction to MFSK32
  • :51 MFSK32: Image of VOA logo
  • 3:19 MFSK32: VOA News re Curiosity Rover on Mars MFSK32: VOA Radiogram logo
  • 2:40 EasyPal Image of the week
  • 1:10 MFSK16: Closing announcements
  • :20 Surprise mode of the week

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]

Christos’ report on ERT shutdown & English statement from broadcaster

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GREECE-ECONOMY-MEDIA

People gather outside the Greece’s public TV ERT headquarters in Athens on June 12, 2013, in support of the broadcaster’s staff and unions. AFP Photo (Source: RT)

SWLing Post reader, Christos, visited the protests at the ERT Radio House yesterday.  Here are his comments:

This evening, I visited the Radio House of ERT (Radiomegeron) in Aghia Paraskevi suburb of Athens. I estimate that about three thousand people had been gathered to protest against the government’s decision of shutting down the radio and television channels. I cannot predict the reaction of authorities but I think that the popular support is limited.

At this time I checked two transmissions. A television one, through EBU internet video stream:
http://www3.ebu.ch/cms/en/sites/ebu/contents/news/2013/06/monitor-ert-online.html

And a radio one, relayed by some local FM stations and two classic ERT frequencies: 9420 KHz on short waves from Avlis and 1260 KHz on medium waves from Rhodes island. I receive both with my eton E5 portable radio right now.

Thank you for the report, Christos!

Also, Mauno Ritola recorded this English statement from the Voice of Greece (9,420 kHz) around 19:45 UTC yesterday:

Mauno believes they’ve been repeating this same statement in English and French throughout the day. He mentioned that he can also hear their 1260 kHz station in Finland. He said, “in the early evening they had regional programming, but around midnight joined the SW feed, which apparently was TV audio [with this feed]”

For more updates on the ERT protests, please follow this tag.