Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and noted political cartoonist, Carlos Latuff, who shares his radio log art of a recent Voice of Korea broadcast.
Carlos notes:
Kim Jong Un guides combined tactical drill simulating nuclear counterattack, via Voice of Korea.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Carlos Latuff, who writes:
Hi Thomas,
I received today by radiofax in Porto Alegre the morning edition of Kyodo News and the front page news is that, due to lack of personnel, the Japanese government has not put into operation more FM radio stations for use in disasters.
Here’s an article dealing with the subject. https://www.tokyo-np.co.jp/article/322546
Since the original is in Japanese, here’s an English translation:
In four cities and towns in the Oku-Noto region of Wajima, Suzu, Noto, and Anamizu, Ishikawa Prefecture, which suffered severe damage from the Noto Peninsula Earthquake, local governments have set up ‘Temporary Disaster Broadcasting Stations” (Disaster FM) to disseminate support information to residents. Interviews with local governments revealed on the 20th that the government has not done so. The lack of personnel is said to be a contributing factor, and it has become clear that there are still issues with the way administrative information is communicated, such as procedures for restoring water outages and setting up temporary housing.
Disaster FM was institutionalized in 1995 based on the experience of the Great Hanshin Earthquake. If a local government applies to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications and obtains permission, they can be temporarily installed. In the wake of the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, 28 municipalities opened and operated them. It was also opened during the 2016 Kumamoto Earthquake and the 2018 Hokkaido Eastern Iburi Earthquake.
Disaster FM broadcasts on the radio about the safety of residents, evacuation information, and the status of restoration of lifelines such as electricity and gas. It also provides administrative information on the reopening of roads, supermarkets, gas stations, etc., as well as disaster victim certification and donation procedures, and plays a role in supplementing disaster prevention administrative radio.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, in the wake of the Noto earthquake, employees of the ministry’s Hokuriku General Communications Bureau visited city halls and appealed for the establishment of such systems.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and noted political cartoonist, Carlos Latuff, who shares his radio log art of a recent Radio Havana Cuba broadcast.
Carlos notes:
News bulletin from Rádio Habana, Cuba, on 11760 kHz, heard in Florianópolis, Brazil.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and noted political cartoonist, Carlos Latuff, who shares his radio log art of a recent Voice of Vietnam broadcast.
Carlos’ goal is to vividly illustrate the broadcaster’s message in his own unique artistic style and is not a reflection of his own beliefs or those of the SWLing Post. His objective is for his artwork to add historical context and put a visual with the news, reporting, and broadcast content:
Carlos notes:
Voice of Vietnam (in Spanish) describing the terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall in Moscow.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and noted political cartoonist, Carlos Latuff, who shares this special dive into the world of radio both in and targeting the Korean peninsula. His report includes off-air recordings along with his own original artwork.
by Carlos Latuff, a special for the SWLing Post
The war that divided Korea in two began in 1950. A truce was signed by both sides in 1953, but a peace agreement never came to fruition. Therefore, North Korea and South Korea remain at war. And this war is not just happening on the ground, but also over the airwaves.
Every day, a battle for hearts and minds takes place on AM, FM and shortwave. Whether the DPRK broadcasts are directed to South Korea, or South Korean broadcasters (including clandestine ones) broadcast to the DPRK.
I bring here a small collection of radio listenings made between February 29th and March 17th, all of them happened in Porto Alegre, Brazil, using a XHDATA D-808 receiver, with long wire antenna (outdoor), except for Radio Free Asia, listened with a Toshiba TR 486 receiver, using a telescopic antenna (indoor). Translations from Korean to English were made using transcription and translation apps.
KBS World Radio was created in 1953, the year the truce was signed between the two warring Koreas, under the name “The Voice of Free Korea”, and today, as a public radio station, it broadcasts to several countries in different languages. Its programming includes news, music, variety, and of course, opposition to the DPRK government.
As part of the effort to promote “regime change” in the DPRK, the Seoul government, through its intelligence service, maintains clandestine radio stations (“Echo of Hope” and “Voice of the People”) whose role is basically broadcast 24 hours a day anti-Communist propaganda to North Korea, along South Korean and American pop music.
Created by the CIA in 1951, at the height of the Cold War and the conflict in Korea, Radio Free Asia has undergone changes throughout its history, but continues to be operated by the United States government and aims, in its own words, to “provide independent, uncensored and accurate local news” for countries like China, Vietnam and, of course, North Korea. Content directed at the DPRK follows the same principle as South Korean clandestine broadcasters: basically anti-Communist orientation, in order to achieve a “regime change”. The articles broadcasted on the radio are the same as those published on the Radio Free Asia’s website.
Korean Central Broadcasting Station (KCBS) Pyongyang is the DPRK’s domestic radio station, whose programming reaches North and South Korea, even being heard in Japan. News about the achievements of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, music and attacks on Seoul government, seen by Pyongyang as a puppet regime.
On October 14, 1945, the year Japan was defeated in World War II, KCBS Pyongyang and Voice of Korea were founded (domestic and international radio stations respectively). Voice of Korea broadcasts programming in several languages ??to the world via shortwave. The content is not much different from KCBS Pyongyang: achievements of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, attacks on Seoul government and the United States, and traditional/patriotic music.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Carlos Latuff, who shares the Radiofax news report (above) from Kyodo News Agency and his amazing artwork (below) detailing the news and his Radiofax reception. Carlos writes:
This time, the main headline of Kyodo News Morning Edition it’s about the passing of the world-renowned conductor Seiji Ozawa.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and noted political cartoonist, Carlos Latuff, who shares his radio log art of a recent Voice of Korea broadcast.
Carlos’ goal is to vividly illustrate the broadcaster’s message in his own unique artistic style and is not a reflection of his own beliefs or those of the SWLing Post. His objective is for his artwork to add historical context and put a visual with the news, reporting, and broadcast content:
Carlos notes:
EEUU, El Lobo Desdentado, La Voz de Corea (en español), RPDC, 12015 kHz.
“…es una conducta imbécil confiar la garantía de seguridad en un lobo desdentado que está desesperado para mantener su vida precaria…“
(“…it is a foolish act to get a security guarantee by relying on a toothless wolf trying to prolong its remaining days…”)