{"id":52152,"date":"2022-03-12T08:23:21","date_gmt":"2022-03-12T12:23:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=52152"},"modified":"2022-03-12T08:23:21","modified_gmt":"2022-03-12T12:23:21","slug":"shortwave-radio-in-ukraine-why-revisiting-old-school-technology-makes-sense-in-a-war","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/03\/shortwave-radio-in-ukraine-why-revisiting-old-school-technology-makes-sense-in-a-war\/","title":{"rendered":"“Shortwave radio in Ukraine: why revisiting old-school technology makes sense in a war”"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Many thanks to a number of SWLing Post<\/em> contributors who’ve shared the following article from The Conversation<\/a>:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Shortwave radio in Ukraine: why revisiting old-school technology makes sense in a war (The Conversation)<\/a><\/h2>\n

Shortly before access to the BBC News website was reportedly blocked in Russia a few days ago, the BBC announced that it was resuming the broadcasting of the BBC World Service via shortwave radio for four hours per day. It said that this was to ensure that people in parts of Russia and Ukraine can access its news service.<\/p>\n

In a world with near-ubiquitous adoption of mobile phones, the use of early 20th century radio technology might seem unusual. But it makes sense for a number of practical reasons.<\/p>\n

Shortwave radio is an old variant of what many people may remember as \u201cAM\u201d analogue radio, operating on low frequency radio waves to deliver audio services. Shortwave radio is far simpler than modern digital TV or telecommunications services: receivers are widely available (or can be built from spare electrical parts), and it works across long distances.<\/p>\n

Traditional broadcast TV and radio fundamentally differ from modern internet-based services. Like Freeview TV received over an aerial, traditional broadcast radio services don\u2019t require you to transmit anything to be able to receive a service. It\u2019s transmitted once, and anyone with a receiver can listen or watch.<\/p>\n

When someone uses a shortwave radio receiver, there\u2019s no lasting trace of them using it. This makes it hard for an occupying force to find those listening to (perhaps banned) overseas media.<\/p>\n

Conversely, when you browse the internet or use a mobile app, your device is requesting the content you wish to receive, and it\u2019s being sent directly to your phone. This bi-directional communication means that when you browse the internet, various entities like your internet provider are able to see that you visited certain websites.<\/p>\n

Internet-based services can also become overloaded, either as a result of high demand, or due to malicious attacks flooding a service with requests, aiming to make it unavailable.<\/p>\n

There are a number of other technical reasons why shortwave radio can be very useful in crisis situations. Since it uses lower transmission frequencies, the signals can travel much further than TV or mobile phone signals \u2013 thousands of kilometres, rather than kilometres or tens of kilometres.<\/p>\n

This means the BBC can broadcast from outside into a conflict zone without needing local physical infrastructure. And since low frequencies are used, the signals propagate better through buildings and the environment. If you\u2019ve ever experienced poor mobile phone signal in the centre of an old building, you\u2019ve experienced the challenges of radio propagation. Low frequency signals reach into buildings and basements better, even when transmitted from far away, which might be useful for people who are taking shelter.[…]<\/p>\n

Click here to read the full article.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Many thanks to a number of SWLing Post contributors who’ve shared the following article from The Conversation: Shortwave radio in Ukraine: why revisiting old-school technology makes sense in a war (The Conversation) Shortly before access to the BBC News website was reportedly blocked in Russia a few days ago, the BBC announced that it was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","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":[3,43],"tags":[9688,4082,2615,4655],"class_list":["post-52152","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","category-shortwave-radio","tag-russian-invasion-of-ukraine","tag-shortwave-radio","tag-ukraine","tag-why-shortwave"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-dza","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":52067,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/03\/ny-times-bbc-revives-shortwave-radio-dispatches-in-ukraine-and-draws-ire-of-russia\/","url_meta":{"origin":52152,"position":0},"title":"NY Times: “BBC revives shortwave radio dispatches in Ukraine, and draws ire of Russia.”","author":"Thomas","date":"March 4, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to a number of SWLing Post contributors who share the following news item from the New York Times. I've included an excerpt below, but the full article article can be found on the NY Times website. You may need a NY Times account to read this article if\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "International Broadcasting"","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\/2018\/10\/Woofferton_transmitting_station_2011.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Woofferton_transmitting_station_2011.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Woofferton_transmitting_station_2011.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Woofferton_transmitting_station_2011.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":52071,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/03\/the-guardian-bbc-website-blocked-in-russia-as-shortwave-radio-brought-back-to-cover-ukraine-war\/","url_meta":{"origin":52152,"position":1},"title":"The Guardian: “BBC website \u2018blocked\u2019 in Russia as shortwave radio brought back to cover Ukraine war”","author":"Thomas","date":"March 4, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Chris, who shares the following report from The Guardian: BBC website \u2018blocked\u2019 in Russia as shortwave radio brought back to cover Ukraine war (The Guardian) Website reportedly available at only 17% of normal levels in Russia, hours after broadcaster revives radio technology to reach\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "International Broadcasting"","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\/2018\/10\/Soviet-Radio-Dial-e1539517556232.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Soviet-Radio-Dial-e1539517556232.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Soviet-Radio-Dial-e1539517556232.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Soviet-Radio-Dial-e1539517556232.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":52229,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/03\/carlos-shortwave-art-and-recording-of-the-bbc-world-service\/","url_meta":{"origin":52152,"position":2},"title":"Carlos\u2019 Shortwave Art and Recording of the BBC World Service","author":"Thomas","date":"March 20, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to\u00a0SWLing Post\u00a0contributor and noted political cartoonist,\u00a0Carlos Latuff, who shares\u00a0his radio log art of a BBC World Service broadcast to Ukraine and Russia in English. Carlos notes: BBC, 5875 kHz, listened in Porto Alegre, Brazil, March 19, 2022, 21h32 (UTC). Part of news bulletin: Russian missiles hit military base\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","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\/2022\/03\/Carlos-Latuff-Ukraine-BBCWS.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Carlos-Latuff-Ukraine-BBCWS.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Carlos-Latuff-Ukraine-BBCWS.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Carlos-Latuff-Ukraine-BBCWS.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Carlos-Latuff-Ukraine-BBCWS.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":52059,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/03\/ukraine-bbc-world-service-propagation-map-and-czech-radio-adds-dedicated-stream\/","url_meta":{"origin":52152,"position":3},"title":"Ukraine: BBC World Service propagation map and Czech Radio adds dedicated stream","author":"Thomas","date":"March 3, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"BBC World Service to Ukraine (Source: The BBC World Service via Twitter) You can listen for updates on the Russia-Ukraine war on BBC World Service live online http:\/\/bbcworldservice.com And the map shows our shortwave radio reach in #Ukraine 15735 kHz 16:00 \u2013 18:00 GMT +2 5875 kHz 22:00 \u2013 00:00\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Broadcasters"","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\/2022\/03\/BBCWS-Map-Ukraine.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":51992,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/02\/ukraine-bbc-adds-two-shortwave-broadcasts-nexus-adds-mw-service\/","url_meta":{"origin":52152,"position":4},"title":"Ukraine: BBC adds two shortwave broadcasts, NEXUS adds MW service","author":"Thomas","date":"February 25, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Andrea Borgnino (@aborgnino), who notes: On shortwave, the BBC is adding 2 shortwave broadcasts to Ukraine on 5875 kHz from 8\/10 UTC and on 15735 kHz from 2\/4 UTC. On medium wave, NEXUS- of Milan in Italy on 1323 kHz and proposes broadcasting for\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Mediumwave"","block_context":{"text":"Mediumwave","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/mediumwave\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/XHDATA-d-808-keypad-closeup-radio-dial-e1515698257533.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/XHDATA-d-808-keypad-closeup-radio-dial-e1515698257533.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/XHDATA-d-808-keypad-closeup-radio-dial-e1515698257533.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/XHDATA-d-808-keypad-closeup-radio-dial-e1515698257533.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":52692,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/05\/ctv-how-shortwave-radio-is-resurfacing-as-a-tool-in-ukraine\/","url_meta":{"origin":52152,"position":5},"title":"CTV: “How shortwave radio is resurfacing as a tool in Ukraine”","author":"Thomas","date":"May 9, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, William Lee, who shares this story from CTV which focuses on the resurgence of interest in shortwave radio following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This item features our good friend, John Figliozzi; author of the Worldwide Listening Guide: How shortwave radio is resurfacing as\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "International Broadcasting"","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\/2020\/12\/Tecsun-PL-990-Beach-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Tecsun-PL-990-Beach-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Tecsun-PL-990-Beach-1.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Tecsun-PL-990-Beach-1.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Tecsun-PL-990-Beach-1.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52152","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=52152"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52152\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52152"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52152"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52152"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}