Tag Archives: Radio World

Armstrong Broadcast Returns to New Jersey on June 19, 2025

Radio World: Three Mysterious New Shortwave Stations Approved in the U.S.

From Radio World: In a rare move, the FCC has approved two new construction permits and granted a full license for international shortwave broadcasting—prompting questions about their true purpose. All three applicants—DPA Mac, Parable Broadcasting, and Turms Tech—claim intentions to use the DRM standard, yet past filings and meeting summaries suggest possible ties to high-frequency financial data transmissions, a purpose not authorized under current broadcast rules. Who are these new players, and what exactly do they plan to transmit?

Nick Langan unpacks the story in Radio World. Click here to read the full article.

DRM: Should the U.S. Take the Leap?

17 Replies

Photo by Brock Wegner on Unsplash

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Alan, for his recent article in Radio World titled “The Modernization of Broadcast Radio.” In it, Alan argues that the proposed “AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act” in the U.S. should go beyond preserving legacy systems and instead embrace Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) as the future of terrestrial broadcasting. Drawing comparisons with digital transitions in countries like Norway, Switzerland, India, and China, Alan highlights the potential to reduce transmission costs, increase coverage reliability, and enhance emergency communications — all while offering a path to modernize U.S. broadcasting infrastructure.

Click here to read at Radio World.

Radio World: NRSC Studies RF Noise on Various Roadway Types

2 Replies

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dennis Dure, who shares the following item from Radio World:

NRSC Studies RF Noise on Various Roadway Types (Radio World)

Radio World asked Cris Alexander to read the report and comment

The National Radio Systems Committee recently published the results of a study on AM band noise.

The report, principally authored by John Kean, is titled NRSC-R102, “Measurement of AM Band RF Noise Levels and Station Signal Attenuation.” It was released in January.

The study consisted of several measurement series conducted along roadways both in urban and rural areas, measuring the signal strength of three different Baltimore/Washington 50 kW AM stations as well as the RF noise on three different unoccupied AM band frequencies.

Measurements were made across five environments: rural, rural-suburban, suburban, urban and dense urban. The results were mostly as one would expect, but there were a few surprises. [Continue reading…]

Click here to download the NRSC PDF report.

AM Band RF Noise Study

2 Replies

Photo by Brock Wegner on Unsplash

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dennis Dura, who shares the following article from Radio World:

NRSC Releases Details of AM Band RF Noise Study (Radio World)

Noise levels remained consistent throughout different environments, even in downtown Baltimore

The National Radio Systems Committee’s AM Improvement Working Group has published a study examining the effects of RF noise on AM radio reception in cars.

Radio World readers will find the study’s scientific detail of interest. Noteworthy was how RF noise on the road often did not vary amongst the diverse environments sampled. Overcoming downtown building signal degradation was more of a concern, according to the study’s authors. Additionally, the study found field strength projections of AM signals to often not be reflective of contour predictions.

The group’s study intended to provide a better understanding of how AM radio reception is affected by RF signal strength and noise in a range of roadway environments. The authors also provided some suggestions to overcome signal loss. [Continue reading…]

Radio World: “A New FM Class ‘A10’ for Radio?”

A New FM Class “A10” for Radio?

Commander to FCC: Make it so

his story has been updated to reflect that the FCC is now seeking public comments on the proposal.

A Mississippi broadcaster is asking the FCC to establish an FM station class called A10, hoping that hundreds of Class A stations would be able to increase power.

He thinks his proposal might stand a better chance at the FCC than the previously proposed Class C4. And on Thursday the FCC announced it will take public comment on the idea. [Continue reading…]

Radio World: WRTH “lives on” and new digital option

2 Replies

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, David Iurescia, who shares the following article from Radio World:

“World Radio Television Handbook” Lives On

With its comprehensive listing of radio/television stations worldwide, including their frequencies and general program content, the “World Radio Television Handbook” has been an essential companion for broadcasting listeners and radio professionals.

So when publisher Nicholas Hardyman announced that the 2022 edition of the WRTH would be the last, many reacted in horror — but not the folks at Germany’s Radio Data Center.

[…]Because books are hard to update, Radio Data Center also offers the WRTH WebApp. It is an online version of the WRTH’s content that is easy for Radio Data Center to update on a regular basis.

“An electronic product like the WebApp doesn’t have the same problems as a book that has to be printed and shipped, because it’s available online anywhere,” said Gunter.

Click here to read the full article at Radio World.