{"id":10032,"date":"2014-07-07T11:39:16","date_gmt":"2014-07-07T15:39:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=10032"},"modified":"2014-07-07T11:47:56","modified_gmt":"2014-07-07T15:47:56","slug":"book-review-the-early-shortwave-stations-a-broadcasting-history-through-1945","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2014\/07\/book-review-the-early-shortwave-stations-a-broadcasting-history-through-1945\/","title":{"rendered":"Book Review: &#8220;The Early Shortwave Stations: A Broadcasting History Through 1945&#8221;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/The-Early-Shortwave-Stations1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-10214\" src=\"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/The-Early-Shortwave-Stations1.jpg\" alt=\"The-Early-Shortwave-Stations\" width=\"633\" height=\"446\" srcset=\"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/The-Early-Shortwave-Stations1.jpg 633w, https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/The-Early-Shortwave-Stations1-300x211.jpg 300w, https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/The-Early-Shortwave-Stations1-100x70.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 633px) 100vw, 633px\" \/><\/a>As\u00a0a life-long student of the history of technology\u2013radio or otherwise\u2013I appreciate well-written, authoritative works of history on the subject. That is exactly what you&#8217;ll find in Jerome S. Berg&#8217;s\u00a0<strong><em>The Early Shortwave Stations: A Broadcasting History Through 1945. \u00a0<\/em><\/strong>In these days during which shortwave is often viewed only as a legacy technology, it&#8217;s particularly fascinating to read about the days during which shortwave was new on the scene, exerting a disruptive influence, and threatening\u00a0the established technology.<\/p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re a shortwave radio enthusiast, you may already know of Jerome (Jerry) Berg; he is, without a doubt, one of the foremost historians of shortwave radio broadcasting and listening. His knowledge, moreover, grew out of his passion for the radio medium, and it shows in his writing. Berg has authored a\u00a0series of history books on the subject on the subject of shortwave broadcast and listening, which this latest work joins:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/gp\/product\/078643029X\/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=211189&amp;creative=373489&amp;creativeASIN=078643029X&amp;link_code=as3&amp;tag=swlcom01-20&amp;linkId=ELR4L255WEWFPOIQ\" target=\"_blank\"><em>On the Short Waves, 1923-1945: Broadcast Listening in the Pioneer Days of Radio<\/em><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/gp\/product\/0786460776\/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=211189&amp;creative=373489&amp;creativeASIN=0786460776&amp;link_code=as3&amp;tag=swlcom01-20&amp;linkId=OZG3XYURRCSXTKQR\" target=\"_blank\"><em>Listening on the Short Waves, 1945 to Today<\/em><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/gp\/product\/0786469021\/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=211189&amp;creative=373489&amp;creativeASIN=0786469021&amp;link_code=as3&amp;tag=swlcom01-20&amp;linkId=3GEDQ6EY2NRNSKM6\" target=\"_blank\"><em>Broadcasting on the Short Waves, 1945 to Today<\/em><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I&#8217;m not sure how Berg manages to convey\u00a0his vast store of knowledge in\u00a0such a readable form, but he does so, and very successfully. As with the other\u00a0works in this series,\u00a0<em>The Early Shortwave Stations <\/em>is chock full of details all entirely\u00a0relevant, and Berg manages to weave this complex and multifaceted history into a very comprehensive, comprehensible, and rich story that the reader will enjoy.<\/p>\n<p>Moreover, I like the manner in which Berg presents the chapters in <em>The Early Shortwave Stations<\/em>: the first chapter sets the stage, covering radio broadcasting up to the point of the invention of shortwave; the chapters then coincide with a decade-by-decade account of shortwave broadcasting, e.g., chapter 2 covers the 1920s, chapter 3 the 1930s, and chapter 4 covers 1940-1945 (where Berg&#8217;s <em>Broadcasting on the Short Waves, 1945 to Today<\/em> picks up)<em>.<\/em> Furthermore, each decade and chapter is covered year by year. This obviously makes for easy future reference: should you like to know\u00a0was happening in shortwave broadcasting in 1931, simply turn to chapter 3 (page 82) to find out.<\/p>\n<p>Berg also draws insightful conclusions in his summary and in chapter 5,\u00a0which only made me want to buy his next volume,\u00a0<em>Broadcasting on the Short Waves, 1945 to Today.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>I can say that I learned an extraordinary amount of radio history from\u00a0<em><em>The Early Shortwave Stations, <\/em><\/em>and have enjoyed every minute of it. I&#8217;ve had this book for a little while now, and it soon became my bedside reading.\u00a0 Indeed, it&#8217;s been wonderful capping off each day (or even starting it) with early shortwave history. I find that it puts many of the changes that are happening in\u00a0the industry currently into perspective.<\/p>\n<p>And I would be negligent if I didn&#8217;t mention the numerous illustrations and stunning images in\u00a0<em><em>The Early Shortwave Stations<\/em><\/em>:<em><em>\u00a0<\/em><\/em>there are enough QSL cards, radio ads, and other print nostalgia within its pages to make for good coffee table reading, too. Although its pages are printed in black and white, the photos and illustrations are sharp and of high quality.<\/p>\n<p>The publisher of Berg&#8217;s books, McFarland\u2013a leader in publishing academic and non-fiction works\u2013prints in relatively small quantities, hence the price tag per volume is about $45.00. But\u00a0I assure you that it&#8217;s a bargain for a book which so completely encapsulates\u00a0early shortwave broadcasting history. \u00a0It&#8217;s a book that you will likely want to reference, and (if you&#8217;re like me) not only read, but read again and again.<\/p>\n<p>The real test? I&#8217;ve placed\u00a0<em><em>The Early Shortwave Stations<\/em> <\/em>on the same shelf with my <em>WRTH.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>The Early Shortwave Stations: A Broadcasting History Through 1945<\/em> <a title=\"Click to open McFarland's website\" href=\"http:\/\/www.mcfarlandpub.com\/book-2.php?id=978-0-7864-7411-0\" target=\"_blank\">can be purchased directly from the publisher, McFarland, by clicking here<\/a>\u00a0or by calling their order line (800-253-2187). \u00a0I&#8217;m pleased\u00a0to say that\u00a0<em>The Early Shortwave Stations\u00a0<\/em>is <a title=\"Amazon\" href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/gp\/product\/0786474114\/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=211189&amp;creative=373489&amp;creativeASIN=0786474114&amp;link_code=as3&amp;tag=swlcom01-20&amp;linkId=W42A2EKVEJSBQHPT\" target=\"_blank\">also available via the Amazon Kindle format at $16.12 US,\u00a0<\/a>possibly the best purchasing option for those living outside North America. \u00a0Enjoy!<\/p>\n<p>Jerry Berg also maintains the excellent website,\u00a0<a title=\"On the Shortwaves\" href=\"http:\/\/www.ontheshortwaves.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">On The Shortwaves<\/a>. \u00a0This one&#8217;s\u00a0been in our list of links for many years, do check it out if you haven&#8217;t already.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As\u00a0a life-long student of the history of technology\u2013radio or otherwise\u2013I appreciate well-written, authoritative works of history on the subject. That is exactly what you&#8217;ll find in Jerome S. Berg&#8217;s\u00a0The Early Shortwave Stations: A Broadcasting History Through 1945. \u00a0In these days during which shortwave is often viewed only as a legacy technology, it&#8217;s particularly fascinating to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[251,3,305,288,129,43],"tags":[3084,3085,3086,4091,3087,249,1098,3083],"class_list":["post-10032","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-books","category-news","category-nostalgia","category-radio-history","category-reviews","category-shortwave-radio","tag-jerome-s-berg","tag-jerry-berg","tag-mcfarland-publishing","tag-radio-history","tag-review-of-the-early-shortwave-stations","tag-shortwave-history","tag-shortwave-radio-history","tag-the-early-shortwave-stations-a-broadcasting-history-through-1945"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-2BO","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":17799,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/03\/radio-world-schenectady-shortwave-transmitters-1941\/","url_meta":{"origin":10032,"position":0},"title":"Radio World: Schenectady Shortwave Transmitters, 1941","author":"Thomas","date":"March 16, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, for sharing a link to the following article in Radio World: The General Electric Co. was truly among America\u2019s premier broadcasting companies. In addition to developing much of early broadcast technology and building a trio of high-power AM stations in the early\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Articles&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Articles","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"philco38-4_dial_1","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/philco38-4_dial_1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/philco38-4_dial_1.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/philco38-4_dial_1.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3697,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2012\/07\/bob-padulas-history-of-australian-shortwave-broadcasting\/","url_meta":{"origin":10032,"position":1},"title":"Bob Padula&#8217;s history of Australian shortwave broadcasting","author":"Thomas","date":"July 21, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"I recently discovered that Bob Padula, long-time shortwave radio enthusiast and publisher of The Australian DX Report, has an online project entitled\u00a0The History of Shortwave Radio In Australia. It's a thorough and informative read and is available free of charge. Check it out on Bob's website.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Articles&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Articles","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/06\/BobPadula-WarrandytePoundBend-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":30374,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/01\/going-by-the-numbers\/","url_meta":{"origin":10032,"position":2},"title":"Going By the Numbers","author":"Robert Gulley","date":"January 18, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"For those who follow numbers stations or, like me, enjoy seeing articles about numbers stations, below are a few paragraphs from a recent article in Radio World by author James Careless: \u201c6-7-9-2-6. 5-6-9-9-0.\u201d Tune across the shortwave bands (above AM\/MW), and chances are you will come across a \u201cnumbers station.\u201d\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Articles&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Articles","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/numbers.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/numbers.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/numbers.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/numbers.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":63154,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/ktwr-guam-dan-suggests-you-log-a-piece-of-radio-history-today\/","url_meta":{"origin":10032,"position":3},"title":"KTWR Guam: Dan suggests you log a piece of radio history&#8230;today!","author":"Thomas","date":"June 15, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Dan Greenall, who writes: Hi Thomas Regarding your recent post on June 5: https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/twr-guam-to-end-broadcasting\/ KTWR, Trans World Radio has recently announced they will be ending their shortwave broadcasts from Agana, Guam by October 31, 2025. However, unlike some stations that have vanished somewhat abruptly,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;International Broadcasting&quot;","block_context":{"text":"International Broadcasting","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/international-broadcasting\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/ktwr-shortwave-antennas.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/ktwr-shortwave-antennas.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/ktwr-shortwave-antennas.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/ktwr-shortwave-antennas.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/ktwr-shortwave-antennas.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/ktwr-shortwave-antennas.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":49926,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2021\/08\/german-radio-museum-sheds-light-on-the-wwii-era-zeesen-transmitting-station\/","url_meta":{"origin":10032,"position":4},"title":"German radio museum sheds light on the WWII era Zeesen transmitting station","author":"Thomas","date":"August 9, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Jonathan Marks, who shares the following article and notes in response to our previous post regarding WWII German broadcasts into Australia. Jonathan writes: [F]ound the attached on a German radio history site. Zeesen was well heard around the world, especially once the power was\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/Screen-Shot-2021-08-09-at-06.58.27.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/Screen-Shot-2021-08-09-at-06.58.27.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/Screen-Shot-2021-08-09-at-06.58.27.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":58910,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2024\/02\/unesco-world-radio-day-2024-club-du-perche-contribution\/","url_meta":{"origin":10032,"position":5},"title":"UNESCO World Radio Day 2024: Club du Perche contribution","author":"Thomas","date":"February 12, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to\u00a0SWLing Post\u00a0contributor, Paul Jamet, who shares the following contribution to World Radio Day 2024 on behalf of the Club du Perche: Word Radio Day 2024 Paul JAMET Member of the Radio Club du Perche Among the framing elements of the 2024 edition, UNESCO states on its website that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Broadcasters&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Broadcasters","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/broadcasters\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/World-Radio-Day-2024.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/World-Radio-Day-2024.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/World-Radio-Day-2024.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/World-Radio-Day-2024.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/World-Radio-Day-2024.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10032","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10032"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10032\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10032"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10032"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10032"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}