Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and noted political cartoonist Carlos Latuff, who shares illustrated radio listening reports of recent Radio Nikkei 1 and Radio Nikkei 2 broadcasts.
Carlos notes:
News and music from Radio Nikkei 1 and 2
Click here to view on YouTube.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and noted political cartoonist, Carlos Latuff, who shares illustrated radio listening report of recent Radio Nikkei 1 ad Radio Nikkei 2 broadcasts.
Recording:
Click here to view on YouTube.
Recording:
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and noted political cartoonist, Carlos Latuff, who shares illustrated radio listening report of recent NHK World and Radio Ciudad broadcasts.
Click here to view on YouTube.
Click here to view on YouTube.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and noted political cartoonist, Carlos Latuff, who shares illustrated radio listening report of a recent Radio Nikkei 2 broadcast.
Carlos notes:
Eye of the Tiger, Survivor
RaNi Music, Radio Nikkei 2, Japan, 6115 kHz
Feb 26 2025, 09h00 UTC
Listened in Porto Alegre, Brazil, on a Sony ICR-N20 receiver.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and noted political cartoonist, Carlos Latuff, who shares illustrated radio listening report of recent Radio Nikkei 1 and 2 broadcasts.
Click here to view on YouTube.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Carlos Latuff, who shares the following guest post:
by Carlos Latuff
In the last century, several Japanese electronics manufacturers such as Sony, National-Panasonic, Hitachi, and Sanyo produced radio receivers aimed at the Japanese public and which had a peculiar characteristic: they came with crystal lock, preset frequencies from Radio Nikkei, which in the past was known by the acronym NSB (Nihon Shortwave Broadcasting) or “Radio Tampa”. For more information about this station, check out this post.
One of these models is the Sony ICR-N20, which, based on the date of the instruction manual I found on the Internet, must have been produced in the late 1990s. The device measures 150 mm × 75 mm × 36 mm and weighs 400 grams (with batteries). It has a 6.6 cm speaker (8 ohms) and a headphone output.
This device is analog and operates on the following frequencies:
Shortwave:
Currently, Radio Nikkei only broadcasts on two frequencies: 6.055 and 6.115 MHz.
It has a 7-segment telescopic antenna. No input for an external antenna.
It works on electrical power (DC 4.5 V) or 3 AA batteries.
As it’s primarily intended for the Japanese market, the buttons and dial panel are written in Japanese.
I have no complaints about the selectivity and sensitivity of the Sony ICR-N20 when it comes to medium waves. At night, in Porto Alegre (in the extreme south of Brazil), it was possible to receive (indoor) stations from Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina, but due to its proximity to these countries, this is not such a difficult task. It’s not a receiver for the most ardent DX fan, but it does a good job of being a radio for regular, everyday listening.
In the case of shortwave, I was able to receive the signal from Radio Nikkei 1 and 2 close to the Guaiba waterfront. The signal from active frequencies is weak, but audible. With favorable propagation, the reception is sometimes surprising. Following the instructions in the instruction manual, I used a long wire antenna for better reception.
In my region, the most favorable propagation window is between 08:45 and 09:15 (UTC), and yesterday, for example, February 7, 2025, the signal reached well until 10:00 (UTC). On other frequencies, it is even possible to hear other stations, such as China Radio International, and even amateur radio interference. Remember that this is not a radio receiver with all shortwave frequency bands, but only those in which Nikkei Radio 1 and 2 operate.
Here are some of the listenings made with this receiver.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Carlos Latuff, who shares the following guest post:
Exploring Radio Radio Nikkeiby Carlos Latuff
It’s been a while since I listened to Nikkei Radio, a Japanese commercial broadcaster that operates on shortwave for a domestic audience. If I remember well, the signal was very weak and, since I don’t speak Japanese, I didn’t know what the content of its broadcasts was about. But today, with the possibility of recording the audio, transcribing it and translating it, it has become more interesting to follow its programs on shortwave here in Brazil, more specifically in Porto Alegre (distance between Nikkei’s transmitter in Chiba, Japan, and Porto Alegre, Brazil: 18779 km).
Nikkei Radio 1 was founded in 1954 and Nikkei 2 in 1963, and at the time it was called Nihon Shortwave Broadcasting Co., better known by the acronym “NSB”. Some Japanese electronics manufacturers have in the past released receivers dedicated to receiving the signal from these stations (see below).
Today, the Japanese company Audiocomm has radio models whose packaging states that this receiver is compatible with Nikkei Radio; note the image alluding to horse racing (see below).
I haven’t been able to acquire any of these devices (yet), since they were basically produced for the Japanese public. But any receiver with shortwave bands can tune into Radio Nikkei. I use my good old XHDATA D-808 with a long wire antenna. In Porto Alegre, the best propagation is between 08:45 AM and 06:15 AM (UTC). In the late afternoon, the signal also arrives, but with a fair amount of static.
Both Radio Nikkei 1 and Radio Nikkei 2 operate on the following frequencies:
Radio Nikkei 1:
Radio Nikkei 2:
On the station’s website https://www.radionikkei.jp/ you can find details of its programming, as well as broadcast times, including a table (in Japanese) with this information, which can be translated with the help of Google Lens.
Radio Nikkei also broadcasts its programming via streaming, however the platform used (radiko) is inaccessible to me here in Brazil (see message below).
Nikkei Radio is majority-owned by the business newspaper Nihon Keizai Shimbun and the Tokyo Stock Exchange, which means the station focuses mainly on the financial market. However, much of its programming, especially on weekends, is dedicated to horse racing, a popular sport in Japan. In addition to news, talk shows and music, the radio station also broadcasts evangelical preaching (!). One of these religious programs is called “True Salvation” and is sponsored by The Japan Gospel Mission, a Christian Protestant organization.
This heterogeneous mix of business, horses and Jesus Christ makes Nikkei Radio an interesting station to tune into, to say the least.
The radio listening sessions published here were made in the central Porto Alegre, Brazil, between January 15th and 19th, 2025.
(Domo arigato gozai masu Mr. Tagawa Shigeru for helping me with translation).
Click here to view on YouTube.
Click here to view on YouTube.
Click here to view on YouTube.
Click here to view on YouTube.
Part of Radio Nikkei 1 program “Health Network”, in Japanese. Topic: Winter diet and health. Listened in Porto Alegre, Brazil.