Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, David Iurescia (LW4DAF), who reminds us that 2015 is the 80th anniversary year of NHK Radio Japan.
David shares the following link to NHK’s anniversary website:
NHK Radio Japan’s 80th Anniversary
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Category Archives: Nostalgia
When WLW was the one and only “Super Station”
WLW’s diamond-shaped Blaw-Knox radio tower at night (Original photo by RP Piper via Creative Commons 2.0)
(Source: National Endowment for the Humanities)
For a Brief Time in the 1930s, Radio Station WLW in Ohio Became America’s One and Only “Super Station”
When President Franklin Roosevelt, sitting in the White House, pushed a ceremonial button on his desk in May 1934, a five hundred thousand-watt (500 kW) behemoth stirred in a field outside Cincinnati. Rows of five-foot glass tubes warmed. Water flowed around them at more than six hundred gallons per minute. Dozens of engineers lit filaments and flipped switches, and, within the hour, enough power to supply a town of one hundred thousand coursed through an 831-foot tower.
Thus began WLW’s five-year, twenty-four-hour-a-day experiment: a radio station that used more power and transmitted more miles than any station in the United States had or would. The so-called super station—licensed by the new Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on a temporary basis—amped up the debate among broadcasters, government regulators, and listeners about how radio should be delivered to serve the “public interest,” a mandate laid out in the Radio Act of 1927, and influenced legal, programming, and technical decisions that shape the broadcast system we know today.
Since radio’s beginnings in the early 1920s, industry and government leaders promoted it as the great homogenizer, a cultural uplift project that could, among other things, help modernize and acculturate rural areas. The challenge was how to reach these areas, many of which received few or no radio signals in the mid-1930s. One solution was high-powered, clear-channel stations that could blanket large swaths of the country with a strong signal. These stations operated on “cleared” frequencies that the government assigned to only one station to prevent interference.
WLW had operated on one of forty designated clear channels since 1928. The station’s creator and owner, an entrepreneur, inventor, and manufacturer named Powel Crosley Jr. frequently increased the station’s wattage as technology and regulation allowed. In 1934, when WLW increased its power from 50 kW to 500 kW, all other clear-channel stations were operating at 50 kW or less. Now, WLW had the ability to reach most of the country, especially at night, when AM radio waves interact differently with the earth’s ionosphere and become “skywaves.” People living near the transmitter site often got better reception than they wanted; some lights would not turn off until WLW engineers helped rewire houses. Gutters rattled loose from buildings. A neon hotel sign near the transmitter never went dark. Farmers reported hearing WLW through their barbed-wire fences.
Support a Willis Conover US postage stamp
If you’re a fan of the iconic Willis Conover, you might consider signing this petition supporting a postage stamp in his honor.
Marie Lamb writes:
Those of us at the Willis Conover Facebook page are trying to get support for a postage stamp in honor of the great Voice of America jazz broadcaster, one of the great voices of shortwave. The recognition for this fine broadcaster and supporter of America’s music is long overdue. Please sign! Thank you–Marie Lamb.
If you’re looking for a little inspiration, listen to this superb interview with Willis Conover circa 1987 on NPR’s Weekend Edition with Scott Simon:
As you’ll hear in this interview, Willis Conover actually supported a stamp in honor of the late and great Duke Ellington. Perhaps it’s time we support a stamp honoring Willis Conover. Click here to sign the petition.
Media Network Vingate Vault: 1988 VOA Relay Stations Feature
Jonathan Marks writes:
I published a few more old programmes which I think are relevant to the ongoing discussions in Washington about US International Broadcasting. One programme in particular from 1988 no less, shows me that not a lot has changed in over 25 years.
Indeed, not much has changed in so many respects. Many thanks for sharing this recording, Jonathan!
Readers: I encourage you to bookmark Jonathan Mark’s Media Network Vintage Vault–a true treasure trove of international broadcasting history.
A true fashion statement: the “Man-from-Mars Radio Hat”
(Source: Mashable)
Inventor Victor T. Hoeflich, founder of novelty manufacturing corporation American Merri-Lei of Brooklyn, New York, introduced his “Man-from-Mars Radio Hat” in March 1949.
In the press conference, he used teenagers as models. Sold in department stores across the U.S. and by mail, the hat retailed for $7.95. Designed after a pith helmet, it could be ordered in eight colors: Lipstick Red, Canary Yellow, Blush Pink, Rose Pink, Tangerine, Flamingo, Chartreuse and Tan. Later seven more color options were added.
Although the hat had a futuristic appearance at the time, this was in fact due to technical limitations. While the transistor had been invented in 1947, it was still experimental and not widely available. And portable transistor radios did not appear until 1954. The hat’s radio relied on valve technology, and Hoeflich made the valves a prominent feature, as well as the loop aerial. The tuning knob sat between the two valves.[…]
Cambridge 105 goes pirate for Good Friday
(Source: Southgate ARC via Thomas Ally)
Cambridge 105 goes pirate – including on 6,070 kHz – for Good Friday
Community broadcast radio station Cambridge 105 is throwing away the modern technology and returning to the era of pirate radio for Good Friday.
Setting up turntables and cart machines on the Riverboat Georgina on the River Cam, we’ll be broadcasting from 10am to 10pm, covering everything from the early days of offshore radio in the 1960s to the end of the era in the early ’90s.
We’ve also teamed up with the DARC-run Channel 292 shortwave transmitter on 6070kHz for the day, so SWLs should be able to hear us there across much of Europe.
Dom M0BLF will be handling QSL cards for anyone who does hear us on HF.
Cambridge 105 is run entirely by volunteers, including a good number of licensed amateurs, both on the engineering and presentation side of the station.
73,
Rob, M0VFC
My new (to me) Sony ICF-2001 shortwave radio
A few weeks ago, I made an impulse purchase: a Sony ICF-2001.
Perhaps it was the post about John Lennon’s ICF-2001, or perhaps it was the simple fact I couldn’t afford a ‘2001 when I was a kid; either way, I saw what I thought was a fair price and I bit the bullet.
At about 9-10 years old I remember seeing the (above) image of the ICF-2001 in an advertisement and imagining all that I could hear with this amazing–microprocessor-controlled, dual conversion, frequency synthesized general coverage(!)–portable receiver.
At the time, my only shortwave radio was the Zenith Trans Oceanic Royal D7000–a wonderful radio for sure–but the convenience of digital tuning? I could only imagine.
The ICF-2001 had revolutionary featured like direct access keypad tuning and an LCD digital readout. The ICF-2001 covered 150 to 29,999 kHz and, like my Transoceanic, could receive single sideband. It also had six memories that could be assigned to buttons for quick access to my favorite frequencies. Six. Whole. Memories!
I picked up my used ICF-2001 for $67.00 US shipped. The seller (a fellow ham radio operator) insured that the radio was in excellent mechanical shape, though cosmetically showed some signs of wear. The only thing missing was the ICF-2001’s shoulder strap. That was fine by me, though, because the seller included all original manuals/documentation and a very cool canvas carry bag (below) that fits the ICF-2001 like a glove.
I’ve had the ICF-2001 for a few weeks now and I must say that I’m quite pleased. It’s much larger that most portables currently on the market, but was probably slightly smaller than the venerable ICF-2010.
The audio from the ICF-2001’s built-in speaker is top-notch; with separate treble and bass control, it’s easy to adjust audio to your taste.
Would the ICF-2001 out-perform a modern portable receiver? Probably not. Was performance similar to the ICF-2010? No way. The ICF-2001 has a few annoying quirks (like muting between frequencies, no tuning knob, a backlit display that’s rather small and hard to read at certain angles)–items most modern portables have long since addressed.
With that said, the ICF-2001 does have a few features I wish modern receivers would adopt, like, a built-in antenna trimmer.
This morning, on my porch, I listened to several broadcasters across the bands and used the antenna adjustment to tweak the match. The adjustment would sometimes increase reception by three S units. I would love to have a similar feature on, say, my Tecsun PL-680.
I also like the old school power switch–a proper mechanical switch that makes it much more difficult to accidentally turn the radio on while traveling or operating in a portable setting.
Even thought the ICF-2001 was a bit of an impulse purchase, I have no buyer’s remorse at all. She’s a sturdy rig with great audio and, I believe, decent performance on the shortwave and medium wave bands. I can certainly confirm that it would have blown my mind when I was 9 years old!
Besides..if the ICF-2001 is good enough for John Lennon, it’s good enough for me!
Any SWLing Post readers out there still have a Sony ICF-2001?