DX LISTENING DIGEST 1-179, November 22, 2001 edited by Glenn Hauser, wghauser@hotmail.com {Items from DXLD may be reproduced and re-reproduced only if full credit be maintained at all stages and we be provided exchange copies. DXLD may not be reposted in its entirety without permission. For restrixions and searchable 2001, 2000 contents archive see} http://www.angelfire.com/ok/worldofradio/Dxldmid.html Check the WOR websites: http://www.angelfire.com/ok/worldofradio/ http://www.worldofradio.com [NOTE: If you are a regular reader of DXLD, and a source of DX news but have not been sending it directly to us, please consider yourself obligated to do so. Thanks, Glenn] WORLD OF RADIO #1106: (STREAM) http://www.worldofradio.com/wor1106ram (DOWNLOAD) http://www.worldofradio.com/wor1106.rm (SUMMARY) http://www.angelfire.com/ok/worldofradio/wor1106.html MEXT AIRINGS ON WWCR: Friday 1030 on 3210[NEW or maybe back to 9475], Saturday 0300 on 3215, 1230 on 15685 FIRST AIRINGS ON RFPI: Friday 1930, Saturday 0130, 0730, 1330, 1800 on some of: 21815-USB, 15040, 7445 ** AFGHANISTAN. A Belgian ham, Peter, ON6TT with the World Food Programme is currently active from Afghanistan as YA5T: http://www.qsl.net/wd4ngb/ya.htm (via Bill Smith, TX, Nov 22, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** AFGHANISTAN [non]. Radio 'Voice of Afghanistan' / Radio Seday-e Afghanistan: Heard this new station on 9950 on 22/11 from tune in around 1320 when tx came on, tone sequence from 1325, into s/on 1330 in Pashto/Dari with ID by man, then recitals from Qur`an, news, music. Very clear stand-out ID at 1345 as "Radio seday-e Afghanistan", and heard variants of this at other times. Programming is modernist, with music interludes, short commentary/news segments. To my ears it sounds similar to an RFE/RL type format, but from a CIS transmitter. Certainly sounds much more inviting than the 'Information Radio' psyops station on 8700, which was heard very weakly at 1355 this day. Check out Glenn Hauser's DX Listening Digest for extensive and informative reporting on this station (Matt Francis, Canberra, Australia, DX LISTENING DIGEST and ARDXC) Hello Glenn & Kim. Am hearing that 9950 "Afghanistan" station strongly here. ID at 14 UT, something like Afghanistan Rak (Rag?) Radio. Nov. 22, as recorded here, downtown Copenhagen. Re 9950: Around 1040 UT Nov. 22 I heard a number station in an unknown language, and with a modulation which sounded strange. 73, (Erik Køie, DX LISTENING DIGEST) The weather is really dirty here today, preventing an outdoor listening session. I did not bother to listen to the 9950 broadcast with the loud buzz from local sources here within the house, but I can offer these interesting findings (clock not properly set, so times +/- 1 minute): Carrier already on at 1310. Interrupted 800 Hz tones between 1324 and 1327, then the already mentioned continuous 1000 Hz tone from 1329, straight into program audio at 1330. Conclusions: This procedure points to a CIS transmitter, namely the typical 800 Hz tones, probably but not necessarily also indicating that the feed is routed via the main control facility at Moscow. Regards, (Kai Ludwig, Germany, Nov 22, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Hello everyone, Re the station on 9950 at 1330-1430. I listened - uninterrupted --- throughout transmission today Nov. 22. Carrier appeared c1320 then "Russian type" on/off tones for about five minutes. A single tone preceded sudden s-on of station. The signal was again very good --- peaking 10dB over 9 --- and audio quality very crisp and clear. Music bridge tune preceded ID at s-on as "Da Afghanistan Rag Radio". Language is Pushto. Announcements then extract from the Qur`an, which appears to be pre-recorded, and the station presenter sang a few words at conclusion. A western type pop tune extract then sched given mentioning frequency. ID then news, which featured an item about Jack Straw (British Foreign Secretary) visiting Teheran. Music and song 1337-1341 then more talk followed by a recitation accompanied by a string instrument. Another announcement, then music bridge tune followed by ID "Radio Seday-e Afghanistan". This now in Dari. Announcements followed by extract from Qur`an, concluded by presenter singing. Extract from western pop tune, ID, news --- including item about Jack Straw. 1353 music and song (sounded a satirical one to me). Talk at 1358 followed by ID and sched, brief snatch of march tune, then same music bridge and back into Pushto and repeat of 1330 transmission. At 1415 same music bridge then repeat of 1345 Dari transmission --- including the brief snatch of martial music at the end. Off slightly after 1430. It's interesting to note that it is heard well in N. America and Mexico --- and that it has nothing to do with the IBB (Noel Green, England, Nov 22, DX LISTENING DIGEST) 9550 [sic], R. Sedaye Afganistan, Nov 21 1320- in Pashtu, Urdu(?). 34433 Tone signal from 1320-1327, then suddenly heard music and man announcer, at 1330. 1331-1333 Koran, heard talk by man and two traditional musics with man vocal. Heard the word 'Pakistan' 'Afganistan' 'America' 'Tali'ban' in his talks. At 1345, change the lang, and IDed as 'Radio Sedaye Afganistan'. I think that they are broadcasting 15 minutes segment programs in two languages. The signal is very very clear and strong here. Sign off at 1430 (Iwata Gaku, Kanto, Japan Premium, via DXLD) Heard on 9950 at 1421 22.11 with Afghan folk song. At 1425 man giving reference to Arjuma Radio Television and next to 'Afghanistan Mahasiswi (Sanskrit: students) 'Na... Kadahar' Prior to program close IDed in as 'Radio Sedaye Afganistan' and closed with an anthem. Anthem has been heard for very short time (about 2 secs) then audio was off. Dead carrier for less than 1 minute, then signal off. 44444 with level of S9+20 dB on my ICOM R75 (Zacharias Liangas, Greece, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Hello Glenn, Olle Alm wrote: Today I tried 9950 from 1355 to 1420 and heard the new station with a good to very good and stable signal. Before 1400 and after 1415 the programme was in Dari (Persian) as Radio Sada-ye Afghanestan and in between in Pushto as Afghanestan Khalq Radio. (via Wolfgang Büschel, DXLD) Harald Kuhl comments in DXplorer: procedure reminds me of former R Vatan (via Egypt). (ibid.) 9950, Radio Saday-e Afghanistan - Radio Voice of Afghanistan, heard at 1330-1430 UT today Nov 22nd. Supposedly two segments in Dari and Pashto? Each segment had music, IDs, Qur`an recitation, Afghan music. The station signed off at 1430 and was quite strong here at Stuttgart-Germany. Just heard the new station on 9950: signal strength was tremendous, like the nearby Europeans Hörby, Sweden 9430 & 9865, Flevo- Netherlands 9895, Finland 9600, Italy Rome 9585, and Iran in Chinese 9810 too. Signal was fluttery though, and could also originate from Samara, Armavir-Krasnodar, or Grigoriopol`-Moldova sites. Never from Afghanistan or Egypt soil itself. R.Seday-e-Iran/R. Voice of Iran starts also xx.30 UTC .... [well, both Iran & Afghanistan are on half-hour time zones, so it`s hourtop for both of them -gh] But all other stations from other parts of Russia, Gavar, Armenia and Dushanbe, Tajikistan were much weaker, when I compared the signal strength. Carrier was on at 1328 UT, when I switched on, and a 800? Hertz test tone started at 1329:37 UT. Program like a rather Muslim country or Muslim organization, with Qur`an prayer and recitations, and mentioned many times of Mr. Mubarak Pres. of Egypt in the news, on Taliban etc. At 1429 UT mentioned address, phone, fax terms, but not really address' ones. Program ends at 1430:07, and transmitter switched off at 1430:24 UT. The frequency was measured on even 9950.00 kHz. vy73 de wb df5sx (Wolfgang Büschel, Germany, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Afghaanse zender op 9950: Net voor het inpakken voor het DXA-DX- weekend te Kasterlee hoorde ik het nieuwe Afghaanse station waarover in de laatste DXLD te lezen was. Signaal was zeer sterk S8 tot S9+10. Op de zender liep tussen 1330 en 1430 UTC een programma in Afghaanse talen, maar voor 1330 was reeds vanaf 1305 een carrier waar te nemen die af en toe terug uitgeschakeld werd. Later hoorde ik de geregeld onderbroken testtonen gekend van de zenders uit de ex-Soviet Unie. Men identificeerde zich als "Afghanistan.......Radio" en vanaf 1415 veranderde de ID in "Radio Sedayeh Afghanistan". 73, (Guido Schotmans, Belgium, Nov 22, Benelux DX Club via DXLD) Just uploaded to the Interval Signals Archive, a clip of the new clandestine Radio Voice of Afghanistan http://www.intervalsignals.net (Dave Kernick, Hard-Core-DX mailing list via DXLD) It took some hunting, as not directly mentioned in the What`s New list --– but pretend you are looking for Balkh 1584. In case anyone has not noticed, several clips of 9950 I recorded myself are on this week`s WORLD OF RADIO 1106. It continues to be heard well from *1330, Nov 22. My money`s on Moldova for the site. We did a Google search on the person BBCM quoted yesterday as backing the 9950 station, Sayd Jalal Afghan. This led us to one Sayed Jalal, which may or may not be the same person, in this BBC news story over three years old. Is ``Afghan`` really part of his surname? (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) BBC News | South Asia | Afghan POWs set for release ... Both sides have acknowledged the part played in the agreement by, Sayed Jalal, a wealthy young Afghan intellectual, who works as a businessman in Saudi Arabia. ... http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/south_asia/newsid_203000/203926.stm The Taleban movement is Afghanistan has said it is planning the largest yet exchange of prisoners of war with the opposition. A senior Taleban spokesman, Abdul Hai Mutmaen, said the two sides have agreed to release 1,000 prisoners each. In a country with few accurate statistics, the precise number of prisoners held by the two sides is unknown, but they both claim to have captured large numbers over the past few years. A spokesman for the opposition commander, Ahmad Shah Massoud, said his side had already brought 100 Taleban prisoners to the frontline north of Kabul ready for exchange. Unusual go-between Both sides have acknowledged the part played in the agreement by, Sayed Jalal, a wealthy young Afghan intellectual, who works as a businessman in Saudi Arabia. He has met the Taleban's supreme leader Mullah Mohammad Omar and Mr Massoud separately to work for a longer term peace. Last week Sayed Jalal secured the release of 50 Taleban prisoners from the opposition.... [excerpt via DXLD] Radio Voice of Afghanistan, By Takuya Hirayama, CRW Japan Bureau [Nov 22] Radio Voice of Afghanistan, first noted by Mexican monitor Adolfo Murrieta González in DX Listening Digest 1-176 on November 17, continues to broadcast test programs on 9950 kHz between 1330 and 1430 GMT in Pashto and Dari. The station does not announce an address or the name of the organization sponsoring the broadcasts. Schedule: 1130-1345 9950 kHz Test transmission in Pashto 1345-1400 9950 kHz Test transmission in Dari 1400-1415 9950 kHz Repeat of Pashto test transmission 1415-1430 9950 kHz Repeat of Dari test transmission Identifications for the station are as follows: Da Afghanistan Ghag Radyo (Pashto) Radyo-i Seda-i Afghanistan (Dari) 1 kHz test modulation tones precede the transmission for about 5 minutes. Broadcasts transmitters located in the former Soviet Union are known to require these types of tones before broadcasts are made. Summary of November 22 test transmission in Dari (Radyo-i Seda-i Afghanistan): The transmission starts with the famous song "Da Zamung Zebah Watan" by Ustad Awal Mir. The song is said to be the unofficial anthem of Afghanistan. An announcer opened the 15-minute broadcast by announcing "Today is Thursday... 8 Ramadan 1422 Hijri, 22 November 2001 AD..." Previous transmissions have not included the date. The announcer then said that this is a test transmission. They will transmit daily broadcasts in Dari and Pashto on 31 mb, 9950 kHz from 6 pm Kabul Time. There was no mention, however, of when regular transmissions will begin. Recitation of the Qur'an followed. Then, the announcer said that the purpose of Radio Voice of Afghanistan is to restore culture in Afghanistan after radio, television and newspapers were damaged during the past years. The program, he said, aims to end the war and promote mutual understanding and unity among the people of Afghanistan. He also said that the station will broadcast local and international news for the entire country. Afghanistan is now at very sensitive period, he announced, and that is why the station is making the broadcasts. He invited listeners' letters and comments, and asked people to send them to a postal address and fax and telephone numbers, which he said will be announced later during regular transmissions. For the first time, CRW also monitored a news broadcast on the program. Three news items were included in the "Important News of Afghanistan" (Akhbar muhimm-e Afghanistan): developments in Kunduz, where the Taliban have surrendered, and also in Kandahar, a meeting between officials of the Northern Alliance and the Iranian Foreign Minister, and a report about the closure of the Taliban's embassy in Islamabad. Although a "Radio Voice of Afghanistan" radio program is broadcast locally in California and on the Internet, the new short wave radio station does not appear to be related (Clandestine Radio Watch Nov 22 via DXLD) ** AFGHANISTAN. Media round-up Thursday 22 November Radio Voice of Afghanistan A radio station identifying itself in Pashto as "Da Afghanistan Ghaq Radio" (Radio Voice of Afghanistan) was first observed by BBC Monitoring on 21 November. The station announced that it is currently broadcasting test programmes for one hour a day, from 1330-1430 gmt on 9950 kHz and that the programmes were presented by the "Afghan broadcasting agency". The broadcast was heard again on 22 November. In Glenn Hauser's DX Listening Digest e-mail newsletter on 20 November, Hauser commented: "Modulation, precision and production were of high standard, as was the signal strength... My guess is that this is transmitted from IBB [International Broadcasting Bureau - US] or CIS [Commonwealth of Independent States] facilities... However, the word Azad [freedom] was never heard in the IDs. Since Afghanistan is increasingly free of the Taleban, perhaps that word has been considered unnecessary." Radio Voice of Afghanistan picture bulletin 22 November The following is a picture bulletin for the "Radio Voice of Afghanistan" broadcast in Pashto and Dari from 1330-1430 gmt on Thursday 22 November: - 1330 gmt - Programme in Pashto The broadcast began with a recitation of a few verses from holy Koran followed by news in Pashto, which included the following items. Report saying the Taleban agreed to surrender the besiege city of Konduz, quoting Reuters. Text of report: "We have received reports from Konduz City that after a few days of negations with the United Front, the Taleban have agreed to surrender the city unconditionally. Reuters news agency quoting Mola Fazl says that in addition to the Taleban, other foreign forces are under his command in Konduz City and will stop fighting as his request. Reuters adds that some 10,000 Taleban forces, including Bin-Ladin, Pakistani, Arab, Chechens forces are under siege in Konduz and in its surrounding areas by the United Front forces. They are subjected to air raids by international coalition forces." British Foreign Secretary arrived in Tehran today. Jack Straw will discuss Afghan issues with Iranian and Alliance foreign ministers. The report says: "It has been said that the talks would include the formation of an interim government in Afghanistan, the existence of British troops in Afghanistan and ways of providing humanitarian assistance to Afghans. At a news conference Dr Abdollah Abdollah said: If Britain wants to send more troops to Afghanistan, it should first secure the agreement of the United Front." Report on fighting continues in Maydanshar between Northern Alliance and the Taleban. American aircraft today bombed Kandahar and Paktia and its surroundings, quoting Afghan Islamic press. Song. Repeat of an article in Pashto from 21 November, on the suffering of Afghans as a result of war, this was followed by a poem and closing announcement. - 1345 gmt - Programme in Dari Introduction and station identification, followed by a recitation of holy Koran. Summary of news and followed by news in full in Dari. Northern Alliance forces have been advancing towards Konduz. Text of the report: "The forces of the United Northern Alliance are advancing towards Konduz city, in north of Afghanistan. This is at a time that Mola Fazl, the leader of the Taleban forces in Konduz Province has declared the unconditional surrender of his forces to the United Front. Mola Fazl met last night Gen Dostum and other local leaders of the Northern Alliance and assured that all Taleban forces including the foreign nationals would obey his order. According to a report by Reuters, around 10,000 Taleban men, including Arabs and Pakistanis and members of Al-Qa'idah had been under siege in Konduz City by the United Front forces." -Sporadic fighting is continuing around Kandahar. -Heavy bombings continued in Kandahar. -Fighting continues in Maydanshahr. -British Foreign Secretary arrived in Tehran. -Pakistan has closed Taleban embassy in Islamabad. -Pakistan has arrested a pro-Taleban local leader. -Song. Repeat of an article from 21 November, in Dari, on the destruction caused by war in Afghanistan and the reason behind setting up of the radio. -Closing announcements. 1400 gmt - Repeat of Pashto programme. 1415 gmt - Repeat of Dari programme. BBC Monitoring's Afghan monitor observed a difference between the news reports in Dari and Pashto. For example; in a report on the military situation in Konduz, the Pashto version does not say that "the forces of the United Northern Alliance are advancing towards Konduz city, in north of Afghanistan." However, the news in Dari starts with that sentence. It is unusual for one source to broadcast different versions of the news within the same transmission. Traditionally, Afghan radio stations have repeated news in Pashto and in Dari word for word. Source: Radio Voice of Afghanistan in Pashto/Dari 1330 gmt 22 Nov 01 KABUL Radio Afghanistan BBC Monitoring has not yet observed the reported radio broadcasts from Kabul. The station known as Radio Kabul or Radio Afghanistan is broadcasting via a mobile transmitter. The director of the Kabul- based radio, in an interview for India's Star News TV on 16 November, said the station was transmitting for three hours in the morning and four hours in the evening daily. Kabul TV on the air Kabul television began its first broadcast since 1996 at 1330 gmt (1800 local time) on Sunday 18 November. The Taleban had previously banned TV for five years. The station has a 10-Watt transmitter, which is very low power in terms of TV broadcasting, so range would be limited, probably to central Kabul. The station is on the air three hours a day. MAZAR-E SHARIF Balkh Radio On Thursday 22 November, the radio station broadcasting from the northern Afghan city of Mazar-e Sharif - identifying itself as Balkh Radio - was observed broadcasting as scheduled from 0230 to 0430 gmt on its usual frequency of 1584 kHz. Balkh Radio was heard later on 22 November, beginning its evening broadcasts earlier than scheduled at 1140 gmt; the broadcasts usually begin at 1230 gmt. The radio was airing a song in Urdu. No announcement of broadcast time changes has been observed by BBC Monitoring. 22 November morning broadcast The 0230-0430 gmt morning broadcast of Balkh Radio in Dari and Pashto began with recitation and interpretation of the Koran, poetry, commentary on Ramadan and songs. The news in Pashto repeated an earlier bulletin from 1330 gmt on 21 November. The news bulletin included the following items: Gen Dostum's activities: Gen Abdorrashid Dostum met a number of northern officials and commanders, he also met an official from the Supreme Council to discuss the situation. University reopened: Balkh University reopened on 21 November. Aims of the Islamic government: The commander of the 70th division met villagers and explained the aims of the Islamic government. The news in Dari and Turkmen repeated the Pashto news bulletin. Balkh TV Work began to repair the transmitter of Balkh Television on 21 November and, according to a technician, the station successfully aired a one hour test programme later the same day. Source: Balkh Radio, Mazar-e Sharif, in Dari 1330 gmt 20 Nov 01 HERAT Radio Herat The BBC continues to monitor a station identifying itself as Radio Herat broadcasting in Dari from the western city of Herat. [WTFK??!!] Herat television A TV station in Herat calling itself "Herat City Television" is on the air, broadcasting in Dari from 1600 local time (1130 gmt) for two and a half hours a day. JALALABAD Radio Nangarhar The New York Times reported on 19 November that Radio Nangarhar was on the air, using a 1,000 kW [sic] transmitter. The paper reported that until Sunday 18 November the station was called Radio Shari'ah, the voice of the Taleban. BBC Monitoring has been unable to trace any transmission from Nangarhar. US INFORMATION RADIO US PsyOps broadcasts continue US PsyOps Information Radio continues to be observed by BBC Monitoring broadcasting in Pashto and Dari to Afghanistan from 0030- 0530 gmt and 1230-1730 gmt daily. It is heard on 8700 kHz upper sideband mode and at times on the former Kandahar mediumwave frequency of 864 kHz. A third announced channel of 1107 kHz (former Kabul frequency) has not yet been observed by BBC Monitoring. The 864, 980 (reportedly a relay of Voice of America) and 1107 kHz channels are believed to be broadcast from US PsyOps "Commando Solo" EC-130 aircraft. FOREIGN MEDIA Al-Jazeera TV not expecting more messages from Bin-Ladin [see QATAR] Three more foreign journalists killed - Iran radio | Text of report by Iranian radio from Mashhad on 22 November Another three foreign journalists have been killed by unidentified people in Afghanistan. A correspondent of [Iran's] Voice and Vision in Kabul reports that the three journalists, whose nationalities have not yet been identified, were killed on the way to Kabul on Wednesday afternoon [21 November]. The report said that some officials from the Islamic State of Afghanistan have confirmed that the incident had occurred. This comes at a time when four correspondents from Australian, British, Italian and Spanish news agencies were killed on the way from Jalalabad to Kabul on Monday [19 November]. The head of Kabul's security committee, Yunus Qanuni, said in an interview with an external correspondent that the journalists killed on the way from Jalalabad to Kabul had been without coordination or visas. This comes at a time when last week another three foreign journalists - two French and one German - died south of Konduz in northern Afghanistan. Thus, 10 journalists have been killed so far owing to the existing insecurity since the beginning of the new phase of hostilities in Afghanistan. Source: Voice of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Mashhad, in Dari 0300 gmt 22 Nov 01 Compiled by Foreign Media Unit, BBC Monitoring Telephone +44 118 948 6261 e-mail: fmu@mon.bbc.co.uk Source: BBC Monitoring research 22 Nov 2001 (via DXLD) ** AFGHANISTAN [pas]. NDR: de son côté, la station américaine "Information radio" diffuse toujours sur 8700 kHz en bande latérale supérieure. Elle a encore été entendue dans le centre de la France le 22 novembre vers 0300 TU. La programmation consiste en des commentaires et des chansons apparemment afghanes. Aucune musique occidentale n'a été entendue (les informations sont issues de http://perso.wanadoo.fr/jm.aubier via DXLD) AFGHANISTAN: Information Radio ID By Takuya Hirayama, CRW Japan Bureau with Nick Grace C., CRW Washington Bureau [Nov 22] The U.S. Enduring Freedom psyop radio program, dubbed "Information Radio," has begun to identify. Identifications on the radio program were first noted by Clandestine Radio Watch (CRW) on November 19 during Pashto and Dari announcements that promote awareness of the US$25 million reward for the capture of Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahri. The reward announcement is now in heavy rotation on Information Radio. Radyo-e Ma'ulumat (Dari) Ma'ulumat-i Radyo (Pashto) Information Radio broadcasts are scheduled as follows: 1230-1730 864, 1107, 8700U kHz 0030-0530 864, 1107, 8700U kHz The reward announcement coincides with new PSYOP leaflets, which also promote awareness of the campaign (Clandestine Radio Watch Nov 22 via DXLD) ** AFGHANISTAN [non]. This Saturday's "Lingua Franca" programme on ABC Radio National in Australia (and presumably R. Australia, though I don`t have their programme guide in front of me), is doing the show on the BBC Pashto soap opera, "New Home, New Life," that we`ve heard so much about. Here's a link to the promo for the show: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/arts/ling/stories/s418285.htm RealAudio of the programme will be available after the show is broadcast, and should be on the website for four weeks. A transcript will also be made available on the website. 73- (Bill Westenhaver, QB, DX LISTENING DIGEST) I usually catch this on RA UT Fridays at 2305; repeats Sat 0530 and 1930 (gh, DXLD) ** AUSTRIA. 1476 kHz: After 2100 hours this station relays Radio Africa International. Operating hours 1700-2308. [UPDATES TO EMWG (1st Nov 2001 Edition), from Steve Whitt, MWC e-mail, via NRC IDXD via DXLD] ** CHINA. Last night (NOV 21) I heard a Chinese station on 4839.88 kHz after 2200 UT. I really would be very glad if it was Heilongjiang reactivated --- a rare station from the most eastern part of China). Heard no ID, from 2230 to 2300 they had a nationwide newscast (a number of stations relays this news) and after 2300 the signal was getting weaker and weaker as it always was in the past when I was listening to Heilongjiang (the Sun rises in that easterly area of China shortly after 2300 UT, I think)... Maybe some observations from other parts of the world (west coast of NAm to name just one) perhaps would throw more light on this signal - its off channel frequency could be a hint. The other possibility is Haixa which had a variable frequency too. It is not difficult to understand the ID, but you must have a clear signal at that very moment. As much as I remember Heilongjiang had rare IDs at this time of the day - once in 30 minutes or so... GOOD DX, (Karel Honzik, the Czech Republic (Czechia), Hard-Core-DX mailing list via DXLD) ** CHINA [non]. Johno here, been after this Falun gong station. Heard this morning at 2100 sign on with ID as good as my Chinese as "Shinjie Falun Dafa Diantai" This on 9945 kc/s, China programme underneath. Faded out 2115 UT. Fair signal at first.....but by 2115 unreadable. Via a CIS TadjIkistan maybe (Johno Wright, Australia, Nov 22, ARDXC, via DXLD) ** FRANCE [and non]. MONTE CARLO/ MOYEN ORIENT. La filiale de Radio France Internationale a annoncé une hausse sensible de son audience en Jordanie, au Liban et en Syrie. Ainsi, l'antenne FM de RMC Moyen- Orient à Amman (Jordanie) enregistre une audience cumulée veille de 8.8%, selon les résultats du sondage Stat-Ipsos de décembre 2000. Ce chiffre représente une progression de 1.8 points par rapport à septembre 1999, date du dernier sondage qui indiquait 7% d'écoute veille. Avec une présence encore plus prononcée chez les hommes (13,1%) et chez les 35-54 ans (14,2% chez les 35-44 ans et 13.6% chez les 45-54 ans), RMC Moyen-Orient devient la quatrième radio la plus écoutée à Amman, où elle est diffusée sur 97.4 FM. En Syrie, où RMC Moyen-Orient est présente en ondes moyennes sur 1233 kHz OM, le sondage réalisé en janvier 2001 par MRO (Marketing Research Organisation) indique une audience cumulée veille de 20,2%. RMC-Moyen-Orient est la deuxième radio la plus écoutée en Syrie, avec une progression de 6 points par rapport à mars 1998, date du sondage Stat/Ipsos qui indiquait 14,2% d'écoute veille. Enfin, au Liban, où RMC Moyen-Orient est également captée en ondes moyennes (1233 kHz OM), la radio enregistre une audience cumulée veille de 6,3% selon les résultats du sondage Stat-Ipsos de mars-avril 2001, soit une progression de 2 points par rapport à 1998, date du dernier sondage qui indiquait 4,3% d'écoute veille. RMC Moyen-Orient est la troisième radio généraliste la plus écoutée dans ce pays. Notons que RFI est également présente au Liban puisque certaines tranches d'informations en français sont reprises par Radio Liban, qui émet sur 96.2 MHz en FM. RMC Moyen-Orient est diffusée en FM en Jordanie (97.4 MHz FM), au Qatar (93.4 MHz FM), à Bahrein (90.9 MHz FM), en ondes courtes, en ondes moyennes, sur le satellite Worldspace en réception directe et dans les bouquets satellitaires Orbit et Arabasat 2A. (Média actualités 8.11.2001 http://www.radioactu.com/ via Bernard Chenal, France, DXLD) ** FRANCE. Radio France Internationale (RFI) va diffuser à compter de la mi-décembre une demi-heure quotidienne en Paschtou (16h30-17h00 UT) en ondes courtes, après les programmes en persan. Cette initiative est une conséquence directe des évènements de septembre et de la guerre en Afghanistan, et coûtera 300000 euros hors coûts de diffusion (Libération 22 septembre [sic – veut dire novembre -gh] 2001 via Bernard Chenal, DXLD) ** FRANCE [and non]. RFI multiplie les langues à l'est. Radio France Internationale a inauguré cette semaine les nouveaux locaux de sa filiale bulgare, où se sont installés les sept permanents et la cinquantaine de collaborateurs de RFI Sofia. La radio jout en Europe de l'Est la carte de l'immersion, proposant à Sofia et à Bucarest une partie des programmes en langue locale, élaborés par des équipes locales, avec en ligne de mire l'adhésion à terme de ces pays à l'Union Européenne. Sur l'antenne bulgare, cohabitent 6h30 d'informations et de programmes culturels en français, 11h30 d'émissions en bulgare et le fil musical de RFI. Par ailleurs, RFI va diffuser à partir de mi-décembre une demi-heure quotidienne en pashto (1630 - 1700 TU) en ondes courtes après ses programmes en persan, ont indiqué les dirigeants de la radio internationale. Cette initiative est une conséquence directe des événements de septembre et de la guerre en Afghanistan, et coûtera 300 000 francs (hors coûts de diffusion). Elle aura une double mission d'information classique mais aussi humanitaire pour permettre par exemple à des familles séparées par l'exode de se retrouver. Le dispositif de diffusion est en cours de finalisation. Il pourrait s'appuyer sur l'émetteur de RFI à Krasnodar, en Russie. Cette nouvelle langue va mobiliser une équipe de 4 à 5 personnes. RFI émet actuellement en 19 langues étrangères. D'autres langues comme l'haoussa ou le swahili pourraient suivre dans le cadre du contrat d'objectifs et de moyens de RFI qui est en discussion et qui devrait être présenté d'ici à la fin de l'année (Satellifax - 22 novembre 2001 --- les informations sont issues de http://perso.wanadoo.fr/jm.aubier via DXLD) ** GERMANY [and non]. Re interpreting the entries in DTK schedule: Hello GH, freq start-stop ciraf zone ant# azi ant-type day of the week from-to date broadcaster ant# = the number of antenna at Juelich/Wertachtal/Nauen used as indicator in the feeder/antenna switching matrix, and dipol# on the mast array, and # of the switching software table entry. ant-type = last two digits are the ITU/HFCC type #s of antennas, see BELOW; for example: 26 = is a horizontal non-dir 'around Germany' antenna. 73 wb df5sx (Wolfgang Büschel, Germany, DXLD) HFCC lookup table ANTENNA Title : HFCC antenna types ANTENNA.RPT Date : Released Apr. 3, 1998 (hfcc-support@nexus.org) Copyright : (c) 1998 HFCC, Hi Frequency Coordination Conference, All rights reserved Disclaimer : This data is offered free of charge for information purposes only, HFCC and NEXUS-IBA do not offer any guarantee of accuracy. Use at your own risk. 0 Unknown 0 1 HR(S)4/4/1.0 22.3 2 HR(S)4/4/0.8 22.1 3 HR(S)4/4/0.5 21.5 4 HR(S)4/3/0.5 20.5 5 HR(S)4/2/0.5 19.1 6 HR(S)4/2/0.3 18.1 7 HR(S)2/4/1.0 19.7 8 HR(S)2/4/0.8 19.4 9 HR(S)2/4/0.5 18.8 10 HR(S)2/3/0.5 17.9 11 HR(S)2/2/0.5 16.5 12 HR(S)2/2/0.3 15.5 13 HR(S)2/1/0.5 14.5 14 HR(S)2/1/0.3 13.4 15 HR 1/2/0.5 14.1 16 HR 1/2/0.3 13.1 17 HR 1/1/0.5 11.8 18 HR 1/1/0.3 09.6 19 H 2/1/0.5 10.8 20 H 2/1/0.3 08.5 21 H 1/2/0.5 11.2 22 H 1/2/0.3 10.2 23 H 1/1/0.5 08.9 24 H 1/1/0.3 06.9 25 ND 03.9 non directional 26 LPH hor. log-periodic 27 LPV ver. log-periodic 28 RH hor. rhombic 29 T(S) hor. dipoles 30 VM ver. monopole 31 HR(S)8/8/1.0 32 HR(S)8/8/0.8 33 HR(S)8/8/0.5 34 HR(S)8/6/0.8 35 HR(S)8/6/0.5 36 HR(S)8/2/0.5 37 HR(S)4/8/1.0 38 HR(S)4/8/0.8 39 HR(S)4/8/0.5 40 HR(S)6/6/1.0 41 HR(S)6/6/0.8 42 HR(S)6/6/0.5 43 HR(S)6/4/1.0 44 HR(S)6/4/0.8 45 HR(S)6/4/0.5 46 HR(S)6/2/0.5 47 HR(S)4/6/1.0 48 HR(S)4/6/0.8 49 HR(S)4/6/0.5 50 HR(S)4/6/0.3 51 HR(S)3/4/0.5 52 HR(S)3/2/0.5 53 HR(S)2/4/0.3 54 HR(S)8/4/1.0 55 HR(S)8/4/0.5 56 HR(S)4/4/1.5 57 HR(S)4/3/0.3 58 HR(S)4/1/0.8 59 HR(S)4/1/0.5 60 HR(S)4/1/0.2 61 HR(S)2/3/1.0 62 HR(S)2/2/1.5 63 HR(S)2/1/1.0 64 HR(S)4/5/1.0 65 HR(S)4/5/0.5 66 HR(S)4/5/0.3 67 HR(S)4/4/0.3 68 HR(S)4/3/1.0 69 HR(S)4/2/1.0 70 HR 2/6/0.5 71 HR 2/4/1.5 72 HR(S)2/2/0.1 73 HR(S)1/4/1.0 74 HR(S)4/3/0.7 75 HR(S)2/8/1.0 (via Wolfgang Büschel, DXLD) > ant# = the number of antenna To interpret this column just download http://www.telekom.de/dtag/ipl1/cda/level4s_a/0,3682,12611,00.html This document includes an antenna table with the internal antenna numbers as last column. There is also a map, showing where the individual antennas are located on the station grounds (but be aware of one layout slip: Alaska is of course not the favourite target area for the nondirectional systems). Note the typical "antenna star" instead of the usual curtain rows. This arrangement was first used at Zeesen (1945 dismantled, transmitters moved into the USSR, incl. the Lithuanian Sitkunai site). Wertachtal has such an antenna star, too. > ant-type = last two digits are the ITU/HFCC type #s of antennas I think this is rather the actual, complete code. There must be a newer, more extensive document with more codes for many curtain variations, not published like the complete HFCC data (the data they edit out from the public version also includes the antenna codes and slews; the degrees in this file are in fact the nominal antenna azimuths but not necessarily the actual beam headings since a slew could be in use). > Note that the only difference is in the column following the CIRAF > zones 38, 39: 107 at 1300-1500 instead of 102 throughout. I believe > this merely refers to the DTK antenna in use, right? Yes, it's merely an antenna change, as I already tried to put in plain text: Until Nov. 4 15715 was aired through antenna 102 exclusively, a HRV 4/4/0.8 curtain (not slewable) aiming at 115 degrees. Now they use between 1300 and 1500 antenna 107 instead, a HRV 4/4/0.9 curtain aiming at 115 degrees, too, but suitable for the 11...17 MHz range while antenna 102 is for 9...15 MHz. Just an operational modification for whatever reason. > One would expect the kW power... The Excel sheets do not include powers, simply because it's always 100 kW at Jülich. The antenna details are of course not valid when the regarding transmission is not operated from Jülich but from either Wertachtal or Nauen instead, marked in the file as "an W" and "an N", respectively. Both Wertachtal and Nauen are still contracted to Deutsche Welle but this does not exclude using otherwise idle transmitters for broadcasts of its own customers instead of rejecting requests when Jülich has no free capacity (at certain times indeed all 12 transmitters there are on air); instead Wertachtal and now also Nauen take over in such cases, running the 500 kW transmitters at 125 kW. An exception is FEBC, which evidently ordered Wertachtal 250 kW from the start, independent from Deutsche Welle, so included in the file from Jülich. Glenn, you also asked if Jülich would transmit on 10000 if a customer requests that: No, since they are still under supervision of the regulation authority. Remember the 3945 matter? Somebody complained about the use of this out-of-band frequency, so they had to leave. I think it was Bob Zanotti who concluded that "somebody" must be the French military. And do you also remember the customer who used 3945? If not: The story is very similar to the current one at WWCR. Regards, (Kai Ludwig, Germany, Nov 22, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** GUATEMALA. 4698.77, Radio Amistad, 1100-1145 plus Nov 22. Noted interval signal "Onward Christian Solders", ID Radio Amistad. Program from 1100 to 1130 was Spanish Religious comments by man, then at 1130 musical program of popular music presented ID's between series of tunes. Signal was good (Chuck Bolland, Lake Worth, FL, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ICELAND. American Navy station on 1530 kHz definitely has regular local breaks in its network programmes (NPR). Heard with local public service announcements, event information and "Radio Newsline Keflavik". [UPDATES TO EMWG (1st Nov 2001 Edition), from Steve Whitt, MWC e-mail via NRC IDXD via DXLD] (And heard with local announcements in Newfoundland, too – Jim Renfrew, IDXD ed.) ** INDIA [and non]. BCDX NET INDIA CELEBRATES 14th ANNIVERSARY On Sunday, November 25, 2001 BC DX NET celebrates its 14th anniversary which is still going strong. This net on the Amateur Radio Band was started on November 27 in 1988 by the following Hams viz. Mr. Shanmughasundaram VU2FOT, Mr. Victor Goonetilleke 4S7VK and yours truly, Jose Jacob, VU2JOS. We used to meet regularly at various times on the band and exchanged BC DX news. This later transformed into a regular net. The unique thing about this net is that it has helped Hams to become BC Dxers and BC Dxers to become Hams! The net is conducted on Sundays at 0300 to 0330 UT on 7085 kHz in the 40 meter Amateur Band to exchange BC DX News by Hams who are also BC DXers. The net controllers nowadays are Mr. Sun VU2FOT and Mr. Neel VU3BGK. The 14th anniversary net will be conducted on Sunday, 25th November, 2001 at 0300 UT on 7085 kHz which will cover South India, Sri Lanka, Maldives etc. 73 (Jose Jacob, VU2JOS, dx_india via DXLD) ** INTERNATIONAL VACUUM / EUROPE. Re the comments by Kai Ludwig: Strictly speaking, Sky is not "available for people in the UK only". You can also subscribe if you live in the Republic of Ireland, or are a member of the British Armed Forces serving in Europe, as technically the British bases are UK sovereign territory. The reason it is restricted to the UK and Ireland is that programme rights in Europe are still sold on a country by country basis. For example, Sky has the rights to Premiership soccer (i.e. stupid ball games) in the UK and Ireland, but here in The Netherlands those rights have been bought by two Dutch channels, RTL5 and Canal+. The fact is that sports bodies and programme suppliers can make a lot more money by doing it this way. Clearly, the Dutch channels would not be willing to pay as much if they were not guaranteed exclusivity in The Netherlands. The same applies to movies and many other series. The losers are the viewers, like me, who live in one place but are culturally affiliated to another. In the old days of analogue, it was possible to subscribe to Sky via an address in the UK and use the viewing card in another European country. Not only did Sky know this happened, it even on occasions encouraged it. I once saw Sky's Program Director say on a live phone- in that you could do that, adding "but of course, I didn't say that". With digital it's not possible, as the service contains an interactive component that requires Sky to verify that you have a UK telephone number. I agree with Kaj that the media situation in the EC is far from satisfactory. In theory we all have the right to live and work in any EC country, but not the right to view the TV channels of our choice. I don't see any solution in sight, as we're talking about huge amounts of money that the TV operators are pouring into the economies of the countries where they're based. So there is no economic incentive to change things, and we all know that economics takes precedence over "lesser" considerations like individual rights :-) 73, (Andy Sennitt, Holland, Nov 22, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** MEXICO. So much for clear channels. Superpower XEWA is no longer the only Mexican on 540 --- besides faraway Tijuana: (gh, DXLD) 540 MEXICO XETX, "La Ranchera de Paquime," Nuevo Casas Grandes, Chih. NOV 11 0443-0503 - This one strong and perfectly readable during most of this period in XEWA's null, but there were two dips in signal strength, predictably one occurring right at the top of the hour. But the low-key male disk jockey did mention XETX on a couple of occasions during his spiels between each record. There was a full ID at 0500 and a short commercial break, then at 0501:30, this: "El cober(?) es total desde Nuevo Casas Grandes, Chihuahua, La Ranchera de Pasquime (I transcribed it Desquime, close), en el quinientos cuarenta AM." Followed with an oompah bandera tune (John Callarman, Krum TX, NRC IDXD via DXLD) NOV 12 0330-0509 - in XEWA null first heard "La Ranchera..." jingle in the same tune as heard on XEG-1050 then quickly faded. Up and down during this period mixing with traces of XEWA, choral music, presumably from CBK and country music from KWMT. Finally heard two very clear "La Ranchera de Paquime" slogans 0503 and 0509 between music selections (Bruce Winkleman, Tulsa OK, NRC International DX Digest via DXLD) ** QATAR. Al-Jazeera TV not expecting more messages from Bin-Ladin Ibrahim Hilal, chief editor of Qatar's pan-Arab satellite Al-Jazeera TV channel, said the station does not expect to receive any more taped statements from Usamah Bin-Ladin and his Al-Qa'idah network. In an interview with the Russian Strana.Ru web site, Hilal said no Al- Jazeera TV correspondents were with Bin-Ladin in Afghanistan. Hilal said the station did not have a single owner - some of the company's shares were owned by the Qatari government, some by individual citizens. Following is an excerpt from the interview carried on the web site on 22 November; the date and location of the interview are not specified: ..[Strana.ru interviewer Aleksandr Shumilin] In these weeks of war, your channel has been called the "Arab CNN". After all, previously only America's CNN had managed to bring reports from both sides of a conflict. Do you see that assessment as a compliment? . [Hilal] Some people might have wanted to pay us a compliment but in reality our company is a long way from CNN. We do not have the same opportunities, or the same budget. In short, we are a small company, but personally I am pleased with that assessment. [Shumilin] How did you earn the exclusive right to transmit Bin- Ladin's messages? [Hilal] We ourselves regard this as luck. Prior to the start of `combat operations our company was the only one with a satellite communications channel in Kabul and the Taleban asked us to let them use this channel in case of necessity. [Shumilin] That is to say, you had formed a special relationship with the Taleban? [Hilal] Certainly not, their choice fell on us exclusively for technical reasons. In the first days of the bombings Usamah Bin-Ladin was in hiding not far from Kabul and it was easier for his people to deliver cassettes to our office than anywhere else. I am sure that if other TV companies had offices in Kabul at that time, the Taleban would have made contact with them too. [Shumilin] You are certainly accused of engaging in politics, playing along with Bin-Ladin, that at a certain moment Bin-Ladin even won the information war thanks to you. Is that not so? [Hilal] Why do they not accuse us of being politicized when we transmit messages from people other than Bin-Ladin and interview politicians all over the world? We acted in the same way with Bin- Ladin's statements as with all others, including interviews with western leaders. We regard Bin-Ladin as a very important "player" in the present crisis. It was because of him that the United States bombed Afghanistan. He is "enemy number one", because of him, all the present events are happening. If you are objective you can hardly fail to agree with us that Bin-Ladin is the most important party in the conflict. Therefore it is also important to conduct dialogue with him, or rather to give him the opportunity to have his say. [Shumilin] Are your correspondents now accompanying Bin-Ladin in the mountains and caves? [Hilal] Nothing of the kind. Who told you that? We have no correspondents in Bin-Ladin's entourage. Our correspondent in Kabul - and incidentally he was wounded in a recent air raid on that city. He had only just left our office building when it was hit by an air raid. Our correspondent is now in Doha for medical treatment. In addition we have lost contact with our cameraman - he disappeared after that same bombing on 15 November. We are looking for him now. Another correspondent of ours was working in Kandahar [Yusuf al- Shuli] but recently crossed the border and is in the Pakistani city of Quetta. And incidentally he is currently doing reports alongside CNN, covering events in southern Afghanistan. All the world's agencies and TV companies now have correspondents there. [Shumilin] Are you not expecting any more cassettes containing messages from Bin-Ladin? [Hilal] I think that is impossible since, first, we have lost our office in Kabul. Second, we have lost the privilege of being the only channel in Kabul - all the serious TV companies have opened offices there. And our satellite communications installation, as I have said, was bombed by the Americans. [Shumilin] What do your people say about Bin-Ladin - his behaviour, his plans? Do they say he has decided to kill himself? [Hilal] No, we have no such information. [Shumilin] The United States tried to put pressure on your channel via the Qatari government. Why did it not succeed? [Hilal] It is all quite simple, the Amir of Qatar told them that he has nothing to do with our channel, that Al-Jazeera is an independent company. And he explained that he would comply strictly with the country's constitution and refuse to interfere in the affairs of companies like ours. In addition he even stressed that Al-Jazeera is entitled to act as it sees fit. The Amir has faith in our objectivity, and I can add that if anyone ever interferes in our information policy it will be the end of Al-Jazeera. [Shumilin] Is anyone threatening you? [Hilal] No. The only threat might come from attempts to interfere in our information policy. We fear nobody except ourselves, if we betray ourselves by abandoning our present policy we will thereby be betraying our audience. We will lose their trust and then lose the audience. I believe we must now be even more objective than we were before. [Shumilin] Who really owns your company? [Hilal] We have no single owner from whom orders and instructions might come. Some of the company's shares are owned by the Qatari government, some by individual citizens. [Shumilin] I have been able to talk with some of your journalists, they speak in various Arabic dialects, how many do you have and which countries are they from? [Hilal] We have something like 400 journalists. Only one is actually from Qatar. The others are from practically all the Arab countries: Mauritania, Morocco, Egypt, and so forth. Source: Strana.Ru web site, Moscow, in Russian 22 Nov 01 (via BBCM via DXLD) ** RUSSIA. 11840-usb, R. Sakhalin, Nov 6 0559-0610 45444 Russian, R. Rossii relay until 0559. ID as "Govorit Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. V efire Radio Sakhalin", followed by Russian Hymn, then pips for 7 hours there. The day marked the holiday of Reconciliation &, former Revolutionary Day. Announcer congratulated listeners of Sakhalin & Kurils on the holiday (OGUMA Hironao, Tokyo JAPAN :AR7030 with AN-1, Japan Premium via DXLD) ** SOMALILAND. DX Information from the British DX Club (BDXC-UK). From: BBC Monitoring Service - United Kingdom; Nov 22, 2001. An independent shortwave radio station and a TV station were for the first time opened in Boorama, Awdal Region [Somaliland]. The stations officially started their broadcasts this week. The radio, which went on air on Friday night, 16 November, can be heard on shortwave one, 5.5 MHz. The radio broadcasts for 10 hours. The new radio station was initiated by some Boorama technicians. The head of the new Boorama radio station, Mr Deq Mahmud Du'ale, who spoke to Jamhuuriya said the station is equipped with electronic equipment and unlike other radio stations doesn't need a transmitter or antennas. It's also a light mobile radio and doesn't require mains power... /BBC Monitoring/ © BBC (via Mike Terry, BDXC-UK via DXLD) [Doesn`t need a transmitter or antennas?????? Maybe that`s why this item did not appear directly from BBC Monitoring...? -gh] ** SRI LANKA [non]. Tamil clandestine radio stations Tamil Broadcasting Corporation --- London 1230-1330 21590, sinpo 4444 [sic] International Broadcasting Corporation --- Tamil 0000 to 0100 7460, 1500 to 1530 17485 Voice of Tigers --- Tamileelam 0100 to 0230 7460 (D. Prabakaran, Mettupalayam, Nov 22, dx_india via DXLD) See also INDIA; note: this is not identical to item in previous issue, which was originally from two sesquiweeks ago; so, an updater (gh, DXLD) ** TIBET. Re Olle Alm: >>In the early afternoon they were heard on 9490, absent on 7385, even after 9490 close. 6200 also seemed to be off.<< It seems I'm listening to this on 7385 at 1510 in Tibetan in // 5240. A very good signal and lively presentation too. I can`t hear 4905 very well, but 4920 seems to be Chinese. There is something else on 6200 --- IRIB? (Noel Green, England, Nov 22, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U K. The BBC has some gaps in its archives, and over the years a number of these gaps have been filled by contributions from former employees and members of the public. The latest digital clean-up techniques mean that recordings that would have been written off as unusable only a few years ago can now be cleaned up to a sufficient standard for rebroadcast. Some missing episodes of the classic sitcom Dad's Army recently turned up, and are being prepared for transmission. Over the years, the BBC has been very careless about its archives. At one point, some young people on work experience were let loose in the sound archives and managed to destroy all the work of Al Reed, a northern comedian who was very popular on radio in the 50's and 60's. The gaff was discovered just in time to invite Al Reed to perform his best-known sketches again in front of a studio audience. He passed away shortly after completing these programmes, which are now the only memorial to his radio work. The BBC has actively been campaigning for people to send in details of what they have (Andy Sennitt, Netherlands, standard disclaimer, Nov 22, swprograms via DXLD) ** U S A. WWCR posted another frequency schedule revision as of Nov 21. This still shows no WWCR-1 usage of 9475 as previously, but here`s the good news at least for some WOR listeners: 15685 is now planned to stay on until 2200, instead of until 2100 during December, January and February, so unlike many previous years, our first WWCR broadcast of WOR, Thursday 2130, will remain on 15685. This may or may not propagate to Europe, rather long after darkness there. However, Mundo Radial, Fridays at 2215, will be on 3215 with a much shorter range, than the previous 9475. That is --- unless further changes have to be made (gh, DXLD) Transmitter #1 - 100 KW - 46 Degrees [WOR and variety] FREQ TIME (CDT)[sic] TIME (UTC) DATES 15685 5:00AM-4:00PM 1100-2200 14 Nov 01-31 Mar 02 3215 4:00PM-1:00AM 2200-0700 14 Nov 01-31 Mar 02 3210 1:00AM-5:00AM 0700-1100 14 Nov 01-31 Mar 02 Transmitter #4 - 100 KW - 90 Degrees [Bro. Stair ONLY] FREQ TIME (CDT)[sic] TIME (UTC) DATES 9475 8:00AM- 4:00PM 1400-2200 16 Nov 01-30 Nov 01 7435 4:00PM-11:00PM 2200-0500 16 Nov 01-30 Nov 01 7560 11:00PM-8:00AM 0500-1400 16 Nov 01-30 Nov 01 (Tentative) 9475 8:00AM- 4:00PM 1400-2200 01 Dec 01-28 Feb 02 7435 4:00PM-11:00PM 2200-0500 01 Dec 01-28 Feb 02 7560 11:00PM-8:00AM 0500-1400 01 Dec 01-28 Feb 02 (WWCR website Nov 22 via DXLD) ** U S A. Soon to be testing, WWCV "World Wide Christian Voice", Manchester, TN. We have 5 Harris SW-100F 100 kW transmitters, 3 x 50 kW Conquest series transmitters. We are a non profit shortwave station. Air time as low as $30.00 per hour for 100 kW. WWCV has 8 x 200 foot high directional antennas pointing to various points of the globe. Azimuths: 360, 045, 090, 130, 160, 180, 270, 310 degrees (Radio Station WWFV, wwfv@ellijay.com Nov 22, DX LISTENING DIGEST) WTFK??? ** U S A. Is Clear Channel playing a "shell game"? Critics of the radio-industry giant charge that it is skirting federal ownership rules with puppet competitors. - - - - - - - - - - - - By Eric Boehlert Nov. 20, 2001 | Is Clear Channel Communications, the radio behemoth, playing a "shell game" with the Federal Communications Commission? That's the charge an Ohio resident is bringing against the company, which, with nearly 1,200 radio stations, is far and away the radio industry's most powerful player.... http://www.salon.com/ent/clear_channel/2001/11/20/fcc_complaint/index.html (via Bill Westenhaver, DXLD) This is the latest in a series of articles by the same author in salon.com exposing Clear Channel. The previous ones are linked at the end (gh, DXLD) ** U S A [and non]. Well, this thing gets a little complicated, as implied in several comments. Sometimes, "stations" didn't get moved, whole frequencies got moved... sort of. KDKA just happened to be on 980 when the FCC made a huge, final, major frequency reallocation after the NARBA treaty was signed in Havana in 1940. It left the AM band much as we see it today. The date of the change (3/29/41) shifted a number of frequencies. Those on 550 to 730 stayed put (thus KFI, WOR, CKUA, plus WLW, WGN etc., didn't move). 740 to 780 moved up 10 kHz. 790 to 870 moved up 20. 880 to 1450 moved up 30 kHz. The clears on 1460 to 1490 moved to 1500 to 1530 and the locals on 1500 went to 1490. 41 other stations at the top of the dial made moves here and there. This affected 813 of 904 US stations on the air at the time, opened six new clears to Mexico, gave Canada and Cuba each one new clear, and increased US clears from 44 to 59. It also got rid of the Mexican "outlaws" run by Dr. Brinkley (XERA) and Norman Baker (XENT). FWIW, I might try to make the case that KCBS, San Francisco was the nation's first broadcaster (that is, first to carry regularly scheduled programming for "broad-cast" to the public). Originally a San José station (FN, 6XE, 6FX, SJN, and then KQW), the station was built in 1909. It carried regularly scheduled broadcasts starting in 1912! This would make KCBS first by about a decade (over KDKA and WWJ). However, all broadcast facilities were required to go silent toward the end of World War I, so maybe things kind of start over then. Regardless, as noted, KDKA did many, many things to make radio the serious player it soon became and was certainly one of the very first stations to have a clue about the potential (and future direction) of the medium. Maybe many of you are paying attention to the strange twists and turns developing as the internet comes into its own. Creative and visionary insight (or lack of it), people and companies who are too far ahead of (or behind) the curve, heavy legal and ethical questions handled or mishandled by the courts and many other parallels can be drawn between the things that happened in the first years of radio and the present time. If you never have had the chance, you might want to read up on Sarnoff, Armstrong, Farnsworth, etc. It is incredibly fascinating, and often amazingly sad, to see what happened. Very few people "got it". Very few of those who did, benefited from it. Anyway, happy birthday KDKA!! (Brian Goodrich, amfmtvdx@qth.net via DXLD) ** U S A. Replacement for TV Tower Lost on Sept. 11 Is in Doubt November 22, 2001 By JAYSON BLAIR Plans to build an enormous television tower to replace the one atop the World Trade Center are in doubt. The efforts have stalled despite growing pressure from television executives concerned about losing millions of viewers and the advertising dollars they attract. The plan, proposed after the terrorist attack, calls for building a 2,000-foot tower to replace the trade center's antenna mast, which served all but one of the 11 television stations in the New York region. ... http://www.nytimes.com/2001/11/22/nyregion/22ANTE.html?ex=1007457484&ei=1&en=ce0e812a88e4d2f5 (via Bill Westenhaver, DXLD) ** U S A. From the Chicago Tribune Radio documentary's roots are growing in Chicago By Steve Johnson, Tribune media critic, November 22, 2001 Natural sound: Shuffling of papers, clearing of throat, etc. Narrator: Is this thing on? OK. Here goes. . . . Radio documentary is undergoing a renaissance. Given that most of contemporary radio is getting smaller in its ambition, narrower in its focus, more puckered up and penny pinched in its every aspect, this is like saying that there's this abandoned lot, strewn with broken glass and old tires, where this incredible flowering plant grows. But it's true. Probably more than at any time since TV, great documentaries -- great stories because, let's face it, "documentary" is a cold sore of a word -- are being produced for radio. The result can be more deeply affecting than almost anything else in contemporary media. I've had tears rolling on the elevated, listening to haunting tapes made decades ago by a Vietnam War soldier who planned to go into radio if he returned. I've sat in my car -- and this has become the stereotypical anecdote about radio documentaries precisely because it is true -- well after turning the engine off, hoping I'll get to the end of the story before the mall security guard comes out to break the spell. Good radio, simply put, gets in your head. Dan Collison, an independent producer living in Chicago, is in the vanguard of this movement. Dan Collison: Some people like to say there's a renaissance in documentary radio production, and that may be true. But, still, it's a pretty tough way to make a living. There's probably less than 10 of us who can make a living simply doing radio documentaries full time. It's a hustle, so you wonder how long you can keep doing it. I've actually begun to do television and film, and my true love is still radio. Without sounding too high-minded about it, it is a more pure storytelling medium. It is more intimate. Narrator: This renaissance has Chicago roots. The producer David Isay set one of the seminal documentaries here in 1993 by giving tape recorders to South Side teens LeAlan Jones and Lloyd Newman. The result, "Ghetto Life 101," was kind of the pop breakthrough in the field, acknowledges Torey Malatia, president and general manager of the producing station, Chicago's WBEZ-FM 91.5. Torey Malatia: The intensity of hearing LeAlan and Lloyd on those tapes talking about very simple moments in their lives brought you closer to them than you could ever get if you actually saw the scene. And I think it did get people thinking about what was possible. It put us on the map too. LeAlan Jones: We were playing Super-Nintendo. I hear this lady say, `I heard you been lookin' for me.' Then she just, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom -- she let off about eight shots. Then I heard the other gun fire off. And we were just still there playing. Narrator: Since then, WBEZ has given birth to "This American Life," Ira Glass' weekly wonder of storytelling and story finding and story crafting that he says fills a void. Ira Glass: At this odd cultural moment when we're inundated with stories all day long, it's still remarkable how few TV shows, movies, songs, magazines and advertisements actually capture what our lives are really like. We hunger for something that puts our lives in some perspective. That's what documentary is for. Narrator: And last month, WBEZ staged the first annual Sundance for radio documentary, the Third Coast International Audio Festival. Conceived and directed by WBEZ producer Johanna Zorn, it was, by all accounts, a resounding success: 313 entries from a dozen countries, close to 300 attendees. The first annual event's final, and most public, component airs on stations nationwide, mostly over this holiday weekend. A three-hour best of the fest program, hosted and co-produced by Glass, bids to supplant -- or at least supplement -- the playing of "Alice's Restaurant" as a Thanksgiving Day radio tradition. Music: "You can get anything you want at Alice's Restaurant. . . ." (TO FADE) Narrator: The featured pieces in it roam far and wide, including a segment with a compulsive walker-slash-audio diarist, and another about a Kansas prom taking place on the night tornadoes devastated the town. Man's voice: This is a story about a fanatic reactionary pedestrian who despises motorized vehicles . . . . Woman's voice: There was only just that one sentence that said, you know, the tornado hit while most of the high school students in town were up at the Knights of Columbus. And I felt like there had to be something more. Like, prom is supposed to be this night that changes your life but, of course, never really does. It's absurd. But then. . . . Narrator: The program is playing at 10 a.m. Thursday and again at 8 p.m. Sunday on WBEZ. And it is itself a great example of the form, a kind of impressionistic radio documentary about radio documentary. In and around playing the pieces, Glass interviews their makers and comes up with some surprising revelations, like this from Alan Hall, a British producer with the most nakedly experimental piece, a narrative-free, sound collage on the composer Charles Ives. Alan Hall: I'm a writer-producer who spends his life mostly doing hack work, but occasionally you get the opportunity to do something which allows you to treat material differently. Narrator: There's Collison's award winner about James Robinson, a Cook County criminal trying to find his way back into society. While I'm on the phone with Collison, months after James' story first ran, he plays me a message he just got on his answering machine. The exuberant voice, he says, is James'. James: Hi, Dan? I just got informed that I got the place! Movin' in on the 26th! Narrator: You can also hear, in the third hour, the festival's magnificent grand-prize winner, Christina Egloff and Jay Allison's "The Vietnam Tapes of Lance Corporal Michael A. Baronowski." Baronowski is the long-dead, once-aspiring deejay mentioned above and first heard on National Public Radio's "All Things Considered." Baronowski's voice: I don't know where to begin. There's so much to tell you about. We've been real lucky with the rain so far. It's rained only about four of the days we've been here, and the rest of the time we've been busy every hour, every minute, with setting in and digging in, preparing fields of fire . . . patrolling, ambushing, standing 50-percent security at night, stringing up barbed wire, trip flares and other goodies. The terrain is majestic. It's like something out of "Heidi." The view is magnificent. And just as sinister as it is magnificent. Narrator: There are all kinds of styles in the new radio documentary, of course, but certain characteristics come through: A feeling of personal commitment by the maker, even to the point of letting the listener hear the documentary being made. A focus on people without press agents. A rejection of the artifice symbolized by the golden-throated radio announcer. Tape: This is a long-distance dedication. . . . Narrator: One other thing to remember about radio pieces these days: You don't have to catch them on the radio. They are usually available perpetually, on Web sites like http://www.thirdcoastfestival.org And Internet audio, unlike Internet video, actually works pretty well. Internet recording: You're listening to WWOZ-FM in New Orleans. . . . Narrator: The documentary movement has flowered outward, beyond the big NPR shows. The legendary Jay Allison, creator of the pioneering "Soundprint" program and a mentor to Glass, continues to push documentary boundaries and invite participation at http://www.transom.org Minnesota Public Radio has a new-ish documentary unit, as does the Los Angeles station, Malatia says. College radio stations are producing documentaries, and new shows devoted to the form are cropping up on public radio. Tape: Remember, don't just pledge because we ask you to. . . . Narrator: Be assured, this is a public radio story. Documentaries don't fit into a commitment to provide traffic and weather on the ones. But it is also a story of a medium coming into its new self, and that is what's most encouraging. After its blossoming during World War II, radio began constricting. Though they work in different countries, Alan Hall and Torey Malatia are in agreement. Alan Hall: There's a sort of almost unbearable literalness to most radio in the U.K. It's the idea that the listener needs help at every stage. Torey Malatia: A basic assumption of radio over the past 25 years is that people have short attention spans, and anything and everything we do has been based on that attention span. On that premise has been built every pyramid rotation of pop music, every headline news delivery, every sensational morning show. It's all been based on this notion that we will lose people in the next nanosecond if we don't somehow keep them interested. What's ironic is that very good radio storytelling of the kind we're talking about here is all the more effective because it actually lengthens that attention span. People find themselves listening for 20 minutes and they think it's been two. The use of the human voice and all of the subtle expression that comes from a speaking voice is hypnotic at times. Narrator: And, frankly, at times it isn't. If you're still with me, my hat is off to you, because the piece you're listening to right now is no prize winner. There's too much of me and not enough anyone else. I let in one bit of natural sound and then forget all about the device. The only music is "Alice's Restaurant," for God's sake. My quote set-ups are as graceful as SUVs, and my Glass quote is, frankly, canned. Then there's my voice. I don't know if you can hear this, but I've been fighting a cold. I sound like Marlo Thomas in "That Girl." I'm thinking about just going into print. (Copyright © 2001, Chicago Tribune Nov 22, via Mike Cooper, DXLD) See also VIETNAM for a competing version ** UZBEKISTAN. 7105 kHz, R. Tashkent, Nov. 15 at 2030(IS)-2059. SINPO 45444. Started with IS and ID at 2030, followed by news in English. Quiz was heard at 2035, Commentary followed at 2039 (Iwao NAGATANI, Kobe, JAPAN, NRD-545 with 20 meters LW, Japan Premium via DXLD) This transmission keeps showing up on unknown frequencies; cf recent BBCM schedule; and... (gh, DXLD) NOV 21, I noted the following transmissions of Radio Tashkent on 5025 kHz: 1600-1630 Uzbek, 1730-1830 Uzbek, 1935-2030 German, 2030-2100 English, 2130-2200 English. In other times the transmitter is off the air. Transmitters on 5035 and 5060 kHz are not in use anymore. GOOD DX, (Karel Honzik, the Czech Republic (Czechia), Hard-Core-DX mailing list via DXLD) ** VIETNAM [non]. Kai, the VoV item concerning 0330-0400 7260, 0100- 0130, 0230-0300 5940, would not seem to be intended for European listeners at those times. Their former sched seems to indicate transmissions only to N & C Am during those hours --- via Russia? And using 7260? (Noel Green, England, Nov 22, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** VIETNAM [and non]. NPR builds Audio Fest around 'Vietnam Tapes' November 22, 2001, BY DAVE HOEKSTRA STAFF REPORTER The cognitive power of radio is clearly heard in "The Vietnam Tapes of Lance Corporal Michael A. Baronowski," the first-place winner in the Third Coast International Audio Festival. Billed as the Sundance Film Festival for radio, the three-hour feast of documentaries and features debuts at 10 a.m. today on WBEZ-FM (91.5). The "Vietnam Tapes" were compiled by Baronowski, who carried a reel-to-reel tape recorder through the battlefields of Vietnam. He taped his comrades, talked about life in foxholes and described the beauty "of a billion stars" on a clear night. Baronowski was enamored with the possibilities of radio. HEAR IT NOW Winning documentaries in the Third Coast International Audio Festival will be broadcast from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. today on WBEZ-FM (91.5), with a repeat from 8 to 11 p.m. Sunday. The programs also will air from 3 to 6 p.m. today on Milwaukee's WHAD-FM (90.7) and 7 to 10 p.m. Saturday on KWMU-FM (90.7) in St. Louis. "This is so much easier than writing," he says during the 22-minute tape. "You get all the right voice inflections, and I can do it in the dark, of course." Once, after hearing from relatives, Baronowski pays tribute to the "warmth of the voice" of family. This is the end of the tape. Baronowski was killed in action Nov. 29, 1966. Producers Christina Egloff and Jay Allison collaborated with Baronowski's friend and fellow platoon member Tim Duffie to honor and preserve Baronowski's work. The Third Coast International Audio Festival is produced by Chicago Public Radio. The festival will air on more than 125 public radio stations nationwide, hosted by Ira Glass, host and producer of WBEZ's "This American Life." The festival will play the seven winning entries from the competition and include highlights from more than 300 entries, interviews and excerpts from the awards ceremony held last month in the ballroom of the School of the Art Institute. Submissions came from as far as Australia, Finland and Spain. Finalists received $23,000 in prize money. Chicago Public Radio executive producer Johanna Zorn is director of the festival. ''I'm not sure there is one thread that connects the entries," she said. ''They have been influenced by 'This American Life.' There are strong narrative story lines in the winning work. None of the winning documentaries are explanatory: 'How did this happen?' 'How does this work?' 'What is the history of ...?' They are all stories, which is part of the rebirth of interest in radio documentary work." The broadcast's first hour features "Tornado Prom," the Best New Artist Award winner, which originally aired on "This American Life." The radio story visits Hoisington, Kan., where a tornado touched down on prom night and destroyed a third of the town, but missed the dance hall where the prom was held. The second-hour highlight is "Heroin," in which Bronx, N.Y., teenager Janesse Nieves confronts her father about his drug addiction. "Heroin" was produced as part of WNYC New York's ''Radio Rookies'' program. It won the festival's Silver Prize (second place). ''The Vietnam Tapes" are featured in the third hour, as well as two honorable mentions. And is there any better way to celebrate Thanksgiving's family qualities than with "Jay's Kids," an honorable mention produced by Alex Spiegel? His documentary is about some of the 57 children of late rhythm and blues musician Screamin' Jay Hawkins ("I Put a Spell on You") who met each other for the first time last year. The program aired on National Public Radio's "All Things Considered." Chicago is a natural locale for a Sundance-influenced radio festival, which will become an annual event. During the 1930s Chicago was the home of nationally known radio shows such as "Amos 'n' Andy" and "Fibber McGee and Molly." In 1925 WMAQ became the first U.S. radio station to air daily baseball games on a regular basis. Announcer Hal Totten called the games for the Chicago Cubs. And timeless hipster Studs Terkel celebrated the imaginative spirit of radio from 1952 to 1997 on WFMT. Zorn said, "The 'Vietnam Tapes' would not have been enhanced by pictures. At all. These were like his demo tapes. The top two winners were very emotional stories and I don't think that's coincidence. People can hear that in these tapes." (Chicago Sun-Times Nov 22 via Mike Cooper, DXLD) See also USA for a competing version ###