Many thanks to Mauno Ritola who shares a link to the following schedule from the DRM Consortium via the WRTH Facebook page:
During IBC, Babcock will be transmitting DRM service from the UK, towards Europe.
[Friday September 11, 2015 to September 15, 2015]
1600-1700 local Amsterdam time (1400-1500 GMT), BAB Woofferton, 100 kW, 6040 kHz, 114 degrees (Programme TBA)
1700-1800 local Amsterdam time (1500-1600 GMT), BAB Woofferton, 100 kW, 6040 kHz, 114 degrees (BBC WS English)
Last week, I received a tip from SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson: Radio Biafra, a new clandestine station, was audible on 15,560 kHz via the Universite Twente Web SDR.
Despite miserable propagation conditions, I tuned my receiver to 15,560 kHz and was surprised to hear a weak signal from Radio Biafra, here in North Carolina. I recorded a few minutes before conditions changed and Biafra’s signal began to fade.
This was the first time I had logged Radio Biafra, so I was amazed to have copy clear enough to understand.
Wikipedia has a short entry for Radio Biafra:
Radio Biafra also known as Voice of Biafra, is a radio station that was originally founded by the government of the Republic of Biafra but is currently operated by Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. Believed to have had its first transmission before the Nigeria-Biafra war, the radio station was instrumental in the broadcast of speeches and propaganda by Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu to the people of the Republic of Biafra.
[…]Radio Biafra currently transmits via the internet and shortwave broadcast targeted majorly around Eastern Nigeria. Radio Biafra claims to be broadcasting the ideology of Biafra –”Freedom of the Biafra people”.
[…]Radio Biafra has been met with mixed reactions. While some critics have criticized the station for “inciting war” through its programmes and “preaching hate messages” against Nigeria which it refers to as a “zoo”, an editor for Sahara Reporters wrote in defence of the radio station after he compared Radio Biafra with the British Broadcasting Corporation Hausa service.
On 14 July 2015, it was reported in the media that the radio station had been jammed because it did not have a broadcast license from the Nigerian Broadcasting Commission. However, the radio station in a swift reaction labelled such claims as “lies” and went on to release its new frequency details to the public.
To put this in perspective, the Wikipedia entry for Radio Biafra is rather new, having only been created in August, 2015.
The following recording was made using my WinRadio Excalibur hooked up to a large skyloop antenna:
This two hour recording, by Dan Robinson, was made via the Universite Twente Web SDR in the Netherlands:
Post Readers: Have you logged Radio Biafra in your part of the world?
Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Ulis, who recently shared a link to this story in the DailyNK.
Here’s an excerpt:
In the case of loudspeaker broadcasts, which roiled the North, eventually leading to artillery fire, it can only be heard 25km into the North from the demilitarized zone, but in the case of radio broadcasts, many North Koreans can gain access, which is why it’s believed to a play a larger role in psychological warfare.
“After listening to the radio, I naturally found myself comparing things with the reality in North Korea,” Chae Ga Yeon (50), a North Korean defector who used to enjoy tuning into radio broadcasts, told Daily NK on Wednesday. “Having learned about things that are different from state propaganda, I took on a more critical way of thinking toward the state, and I started to realize Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il are not gods as the state claims. They started to look like average human beings,” she said.
“People who have tuned into broadcasts like these don’t keep the information to themselves. They share it with others,” Chae explained. “This makes other people listen in on the broadcasts as well, and they start being more critical against the state that is blocking out the information.”
Kim Seong Yeob (45) is another escapee who also tuned into these broadcasts. “North Korean broadcasts are not interesting since all they do is focus on idolization, so I enjoyed listening to South Korean broadcasts since they would share different news stories and air radio dramas as well,” Kim said. “Then I came to open my eyes to the false propaganda and developed this desire to learn more about society in North Korea and study it,” he recalled.[…]
Experts believe these broadcasts can expedite change in people’s awareness in North Korea. Given that state dominance over information is the control mechanism used over North Koreans, they believe information from outside can deal a severe blow to the North Korean system.
Daily NK and Unification Media Group will post a series of nine articles on the effects of broadcasts to North Korea. Check the DailyNK website for updates.
As we mentioned in a previous post, the BBC has announced plans to broadcast to North Korea in the near future via shortwave. Bloomberg Business reports, however, that these broadcasts may never happen due to the potential for political backlash.
To follow all of our North Korea posts, bookmark this tag.
(Source: Southgate ARC)
Members of the ARI Fidenza will be activating special callsigns IO4ENG and IQ4FE during the ‘Enigma Event’.
The Enigma Event consists of exchanging ham radio messages over the air encrypted with the Enigma code of WW II memory to commemorate its importance in the history of communications and encryption.
The Event Enigma is one of the “European Researchers’ Night” events on Sept 25th, when a number of initiatives will be organized by European research and cultural institutions.
An Amateur Radio Award (ENIGMA AWARD) is associated with this event. The ham activity of the ENIGMA AWARD will start on Sept. 12th.
All details and rules are available on the official Web site at: http://www.enigma-reloaded.it
This should be a fun event to hear on the air and one of the very few sponsored by ham radio operators who will intentionally transmit “encrypted” messages. I will try to tune in.
SWLing Post reader, Alex, has just informed me that he’s updated his printer-friendly shortwave frequency charts for the winter broadcasting season.
Note that Alex creates his charts based on listening to broadcasters rather than importing schedules from other sources.
You can download the free charts on his website:
Shortwavetimes.com
Many thanks, Alex!
Monday, September 7, is Labor Day throughout most of North America; shortwave pirates love to operate on long holiday weekends (though you can hear them most any weekend for that matter).
So, if you’ve never heard a live pirate station on shortwave radio, this is a great opportunity to catch your first pirate!
Don’t know how/where to hear shortwave pirates? Check out this primer!
Feel free to comment with any Labor Day weekend loggings!
Despite dismal propagation, I was quite happy to receive a relatively strong signal earlier this week (31 August 2015) from Channel Africa, starting around 16:40 UTC on 15,235 kHz.
This recording begins with the French language service (already in progress), followed by the English language service. Receiver used was a WinRadio Excalibur connected to a large horizontal delta loop antenna.
Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below:
Remember: this, along with many more recordings, are available in podcast form via the Shortwave Radio Audio Archive. Click here to view on iTunes.