GLENN HAUSER'S SHORTWAVE/DX REPORT 99-28, June 28, 1999 {Items from this and all our reports may be reproduced and re- reproduced only provided full credit be maintained at all stages} Note: there was a typo on the top line of Report 99-26: date should have read June 17, not June 27! Archivists, please fix. THIS WEEK ON WORLD OF RADIO Extra 29: See topic sumary at http://www.angelfire.com/ok/worldofradio/Worx29.html WORLD OF RADIO SHORTWAVE-ONLY SCHEDULE AS OF JUNE 28 Wed 2100 WBCQ 7415 Thu 2030 WWCR 15685 Fri 1930 RFPI 21460-USB 15049 Sat 0330 RFPI 15049 6975 Sat 1130 RFPI 15049 6975 Sat 1130 WWCR 12160 Sat 1800 RFPI 21460-USB 15049 Sun 0200 RFPI 21460-USB 15049 6975 Sun 0230 WWCR 5070 Sun 0630 WWCR 5070 Sun 1000 RFPI 15049 6975 Sun 2300 RFPI 21460-USB 15049 Mon 0500 WWCR 3210 Mon 0700 RFPI 15049 6975 Tue 1230 WWCR 15685 Tue 1900 RFPI 21460-USB 15049 Wed 0300 RFPI 15049 6975 Wed 1100 RFPI 15049 CANADA. New Director of Programming and Operations at RCI from June 21 is Joy Sellers, replacing the retiring Jean-Claude Asselin. She had worked for CBC television, has degrees from NYU, Osgoode Hall Law School, London School of Economics and Political Science (RCI press release via BBC Monitoring, summarised by gh for REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) CANADA. Glenn, You can view the CBC Radio Guide online at: http://www.saturdaynight.ca/cbc/index.asp (Ivan Grishin, REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) CHILE [non]. On this week's Radio-Enlace on R. Nederland, Miguel Angel Morales, Radios Cooperativa de Chile, reported from California that the Spanish numbers station on 11485 at 0500 is from USA to agents in Chile (Glenn Hauser) COSTA RICA. On this week's RFPI Mailbag, James Latham asserted he was now "motivated" to finish fixing the 21460-USB transmitter, which needed a new cooling fan. Sure enough, when we checked after 1800 UT Sunday June 27, it was back on. However, later in the afternoon, 15049 was down. More from the Mailbag: electricity has been installed to the top of the mountain to the south of RFPI, which blocks its radiation toward the south. RFPI expects to have transmitters up there in 6-8 months allowing better reception southwards (Glenn Hauser, REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) EGYPT. For a while I've noted R. Cairo NAm service at 2300 on 9900 for first transmission knocked out by 9895. The second for WNAm at 0200 on 9475 is usually audible for me but continues with that trademark garbled audio on speech and music; music often overmasks voice overs. Same old same old that's been going on for years despite complaints from listeners. I've sent my share of scoldings. Now and then a clean transmission is heard but it doesn't last long. Very next day or so... (Bob Thomas, CT, June 24, REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) GHANA. An archived recording of the 2000 GMT news in English (carried on GBC Radios 1 and 2) is available at: http://www.ghanaclassifieds.com/ URL: http://www.ghananet-tv.com/ (Contains archived video of the evening news bulletin) (BBC Monitoring June 23 via REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) IRELAND. I have had mail from John P. Kelly, Project Co-Ordinator of RTE's Albanian Language Radio Service on MW. Here are a few quotes: "We are now transmitting on all 2FM MW transmitters from 19.00 BST to approx 20.45 with the intention of being on air until 21.00 by the end of the week. Right now, we are using one half an hour from BBC World Service and similar from DW in Cologne. Three evenings per week, we are using a fifteen minute segment from SR in Sweden. We are almost ready to go with a BBC English language series, supported by the Language Support Unit of the Irish Refugee Agency. Besides this, we are playing quite a bit of Albanian music and, where possible recording and transmitting the voices of the refugees in the reception centres (greetings, birthdays, local colour etc.). We have received a number of requests for children's programming and we are sourcing this. (There are) plans also to do some background on the areas in which the centres are located (in Ireland)." -Mr. Kelly's reference to "all 2FM MW transmitters" means that RTE is using not only Athlone and Cork as I stated before now, but also Dublin / 1278kHz / 10kW. The latter would be in indistinguishable to me at my location due to masking by much closer Cork, same frequency, same power. The fact that I reported the programme was sometimes longer than the announced 90 minutes is confirmed and the promise of two hours is excellent. For those who might be confused by "BST", translate as Irish / British Summmer Time, one hour ahead of UT. So, the Kosovar refugees in Ireland can expect programming 1800 - 2000 UT shortly. So, summary: RTE Albanian Language Radio Service: Weekdays 1800 - 1930 UT (but up to 1945 noted; 2000 UT imminent) Frequencies: 612 kHz / Athlone tx, 100 kW // 1278 kHz / Cork tx, 10 kW // 1278 kHz / Dublin tx, 10 kW (Finbarr O'Driscoll, Ireland / 24 June '99, REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) JAMAICA [non?]. During Saturday evening's all-out sporadic E opening, making hash of channels 2-6 and the entire FM band, so many signals were interfering with each other, for a few seconds here and there on 89.3 a newscast surfaced in Caribbean-accented English, mainly about Jamaica with some rather parochial items, and Barbados, Dominica. This was UT Sunday June 27 at 0015, 0019, 0022, 0026; however, the next fade-in at 0028 had WPFW in Washington DC promoting its minority programming, so I suspect this was what I actually had a few minutes earlier. Can someone in the DC area confirm this? 8:15 PM EDT Sat. Jamaica stuff really had me going, after finding that "KLAS-FM" there does have 89.3 among its frequencies in the 1998 WRTH. Jamaica is beyond single-hop Es range from OK, never heard here before on FM. I also ruled out WRMB in Boynton Beach FL, which is supposed to have a religious / Moody network format, per M Street Directory. (gh) MEXICO. Hi Glenn, After hearing your WOR tonite, I was tuning around 9705 to see if the R. Mexico Int'l station was audible. At 0300-0330, there was a weak station here in English, with a program that sounded like a DX program, "DX Experience" was a repetitive jingle of sorts throughout the half-hour. About 0329, the announcer was thanking staff members at R. Mexico International, when VOA signed on in Romanian at 0330. While I heard no clear ID stating as such, I thought you might want to know this one SEEMS to be on. (Jack Widner, Edinboro PA, June 26, REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) MEXICO. As soon as I reported R. Mexico Internacional missing from 9705, as of June 23, back they came June 24, at 1430 check with English ID, seemingly a better signal than before, and on exactly 9705.0 (Glenn Hauser, REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) SPAIN. Dear Glenn, On last week's WOR, I think the number was 993, you mentioned the programs from Spain in Catalan, Galician and Basque. You gave a time of 22:00. I have discovered that they are actually on at 22:30. Best freq here is 15110, despite some splatter from DW on 15105. (Tim Hendel, AL, June 25, REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) U K O G B A N I. A mostly useful BBC WS strip for July: 1130 UT on AE 15220 only: Sat People & Politics Sun In Praise of God Mon Pick of the World Tue Omnibus Wed Sports International Thu Assignment Fri Focus on Faith (gh, from BBC On Air via Chris Hambly, REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) U K O G B A N I [non]. Joe Hanlon notes that 5975 has been closing much earlier than scheduled 0700, at 0400. However, here's what I found when checking at 0400 June 28: 5975 went off, but came back on, indicating a change of antenna, or perhaps even of transmitter site; it had been Antigua throughout. 6175 was already off and stayed vacant. 6185, however, was still on with the usual Mexican clash (Glenn Hauser, REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) U K O G B A N I. Glenn, An extensive review of 1998/99 for BBC WS at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/aboutus/annualreview/index.html 73, (Ivan Grishin, REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) U S A. Bandscanning on the analog ICF-5900W, came across SSB on 12180 at 2022 June 24. Was wacky paranoid call-in talkshow typical of WGTG, which was missing from 9400 - and a couple days ago when 9400 was on I couldn't find any second frequency. 12180 is USB only, no carrier, and as a matter of fact this show was //WWCR on 12160; how convenient. Dave Frantz told me some months ago he planned to use 12 MHz; since I no longer have any personal interest in WGTG, haven't really kept up with developments there, but this one is news to me. Confirmed at 2100 as "Genesis Communications Network on WGTG, McCaysvile, Georgia" GCN with a Minnesota address. By this time 12160 was no longer // (Glenn Hauser, OK, REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) U S A. DENVER CLASSICAL ON AM. I happened to see an ad in the Sunday Denver Post (June 13?) for 1280, giving no calls but KVOD, long associated with classical on FM, even tho 1280 is supposedly licensed as KEXX -- maybe they are in the process of changing. Made some asinine assertion that "Gus told them" classical should be on AM so they could be "as big as KOA" (Glenn Hauser, REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) PROPAGATION > Midsummer night and what am I doing? Not frolicking in the woods with > nymphs, but bandscanning 13m at 0530+ UT June 22, which is 2300 LMT: > 21715 ? Qur'an? TRT Turkey 0100-1300 UTC 500 kW 105 degr to AS/AUS > 21560 something 0500-0700 IBB Udorn Thani-THA Tibetan 250 kW 316 degr to Tibet-CHN > 21470 music, BBC? No, 0515-0730 VoIRIB Sirhan 500 kW 263 degr Hausa & Fr to AF. > 21460 S Asian lang, kept talking about Pakistan; other country names expressed in English. Kuwait? No, it's Pakistan there to ME workers in Urdu. 0500-0700 21460.13 kHz 250 kW 252 degr to Gulf and ME. (Wolfgang Bueschel, Germany) ###