{"id":54944,"date":"2022-12-12T07:20:26","date_gmt":"2022-12-12T11:20:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=54944"},"modified":"2022-12-12T07:20:26","modified_gmt":"2022-12-12T11:20:26","slug":"radio-waves-state-of-voa-broadcast-infrastructure-amish-weather-radio-96-7-fm-australia-calling-and-mame-showcase-gerat-32620-emulator","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/12\/radio-waves-state-of-voa-broadcast-infrastructure-amish-weather-radio-96-7-fm-australia-calling-and-mame-showcase-gerat-32620-emulator\/","title":{"rendered":"Radio Waves: State of VOA Broadcast Infrastructure, Amish Weather Radio, 96.7 FM, Australia Calling, and MAME Showcase Ger\u00e4t 32620 Emulator"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Radio Waves:\u00a0 Stories Making Waves in the World of Radio<\/h1>\n

Welcome to the\u00a0SWLing Post\u2019s<\/em> Radio Waves<\/em>, a collection of links to interesting stories making waves in the world of radio.\u00a0<\/strong>Enjoy!<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Where VOA\u2019s Broadcast Infrastructure Stands Today (Radio World)<\/a><\/h2>\n

Shortwave retains a role in serving particularly difficult-to-reach audiences<\/strong><\/p>\n

Russia\u2019s horrific invasion of Ukraine and its simultaneous blocking of Western media outlets has renewed public interest in shortwave radio broadcasters like the federally funded Voice of America.<\/p>\n

Now managed by the U.S. Agency for Global Media or USAGM, VOA\u2019s roots go back to 1941, when the U.S. government leased a dozen commercial broadcaster owned\/operated shortwave radio transmitters for the VOA\u2019s predecessor, the U.S. Foreign Information Service. (These shortwave transmitters were previously used by U.S. broadcasters to share content between their AM radio stations.)<\/p>\n

The VOA came into being in 1942. It played a major role in broadcasting U.S. news and views to the world during World War Two and the Cold War. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, shifting government priorities, the emergence of platforms competing with shortwave, and budget cuts led to VOA\u2019s language services, broadcasts and programming being reduced.<\/p>\n

Today, \u201cUSAGM operates transmitting stations around the world, including in the U.S., Africa, Europe and Asia,\u201d Laurie Moy, USAGM\u2019s director of public affairs said in an email earlier this year.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll of these stations are equipped with multiple shortwave transmitters, and four of these stations have a medium-wave (AM) transmitter each. In total, USAGM\u2019s network consists of about 75 shortwave (ranging from 100 to 250 kW) and medium-wave (ranging from 100 to 1000 kW) transmitters.\u201d<\/p>\n

The agency also has access to shortwave and medium-wave transmitters via leases and exchange agreements with other broadcasters.<\/p>\n

At present, USAGM produces content in 63 languages, 35 of which are aired on shortwave and medium-wave. VOA itself produces content in 48 languages, 18 of which are aired on shortwave and medium-wave.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn terms of the agency\u2019s shortwave network, shortwave continues to reach particularly difficult-to-reach audiences, such as in North Korea, western China, Afghanistan and elsewhere,\u201d Moy told Radio World. [Continue reading…<\/a>]<\/p>\n

How do you find out about tornadoes if your religion doesn’t allow TVs or smartphones? (Courier and Press)<\/a><\/h2>\n

If a tornado or flash flood is imminent, most Americans find out about it through a smartphone or a television.<\/p>\n

But as the National Weather Service was reminded in the wake of the deadly Dec. 10, 2021 Kentucky tornado, one segment of the population uses neither of those things: the Amish, who shun technology.<\/p>\n

As meteorologists studied damage in the days that followed that storm, which killed 80 people and damaged hundreds of homes, they encountered an Amish community in Ohio County, Kentucky, and asked: How do you get severe weather information?<\/p>\n

“They basically said they listen for the weather sirens from town,” said Derrick Snyder, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. But as loud as storm sirens are, not everyone is close enough to hear.<\/p>\n

A solution may be on the way, as the agency teams with a national radio maker as part of the Weather Awareness for a Rural Nation initiative. Snyder and other meteorologists are part of a project developing weather radios that will be both effective in relaying information immediately, but also acceptable for the Amish lifestyle.<\/p>\n

It will be a stripped-down, hand-crank model with absolutely no modern amenities.<\/p>\n

Midland Radio is working on prototypes, hoping it can deploy at least some of the radios in Amish communities by the time severe weather season arrives in the spring.<\/p>\n

There is plenty of need. The Amish population in Kentucky is estimated at 14,215. In neighboring Indiana, it’s more than 60,000, while another 7,500 live in Illinois. All three states endure severe weather on a regular basis.<\/p>\n

In an age where almost every product is built to be state of the art, the Amish radio project is an exercise in making things simpler, said Bruce Jones, a meteorologist and spokesman for Midland Radio.<\/p>\n

Jones said they’ve started with Midland’s ER40 model and have started figuring out what they can and can’t include on a model that would be acceptable to the Amish. That has meant outreach to Amish bishops. And like in every religion, not all Amish sects are alike. [Continue reading…<\/a>]<\/p>\n

Strange Sounds from 96.7FM (YouTube)<\/a><\/h2>\n

When Portland Redditors discover a myriad of bizarre broadcasts on 96.7 FM, a rabbit hole was quickly born. Unbeknownst to them, the mystery in which they were traversing had gone back much further than they initially believed.<\/p>\n