DX LISTENING DIGEST 1-029, March 2, 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

[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] 

RADIO ENLACE: nuestro primer informe DX de marzo se difunde en las 
emisiones de viernes y domingos 2 y 4 de marzo en Radio Nederland, 
alrededor de 10 a 16 minutos después de la hora en el interior del 
programa.

** AUSTRALIA. Nigel Holmes, Head of Transmission for Radio Australia, 
was the ARDXC guest at the Wyong Field Day 25 Feb. Nigel this week is 
testing the programme feed to Darwin in preparation for using the 
Christian Voice transmitters (ex RA). This is likely occur in the 
few weeks. The contracts are in (Nigel`s briefcase), so we await the 
last development, i.e. go to air, after signatures! It should also be 
noted that the target audience response, to the additional relay 
transmitters has been fantastic, mostly clear reception, with minor 
exceptions being worked on. Nigel has asked me to send out thanks to 
those who have sent reports into RA on the signal quality of these 
transmissions, and for identifying any problem areas, and a new QSL 
card is expected to be available in about 2 months from now, i.e. 
first week of May. The Olympic QSLs expect out in about 3 weeks. 
(Nigel Holmes via John Wright ARDXC via Cumbre DX March 1 via DXLD) 

** AUSTRALIA. RA director Jean-Gabriel Manguy says RA is spending a 
lot of money on helping partner stations in Indonesia get satellite 
downlinks in order to relay RA. A new 7-part series starts next 
weekend, ``On the Record``, focusing on the media in Philippines, 
Thailand and Indonesia: Fri 1830, Sat 0330, 2230, Sun 2130. And on 
WRN Sundays from March 11 at 0805 UT. A website for it will not be 
put up until March 9, including transcripts and audio: 
http://www.abc.net.au/ra/media (RA Feedback March 3, notes by gh for 
DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** AUSTRALIA/NETHERLANDS [non]. RA observed again clashing badly with 
RN in Spanish via Bonaire on 6020 between 1130 and 1225 on Mar 2. 
Surprising that one of them hasn`t gotten off this frequency yet. I 
would think this also causes problems for Latin American and Pacific 
listeners. 73, (Mike Horan, Park Forest, IL, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** AUSTRIA. The "Intermedia" show had today further details about the 
new Moosbrunn transmissions from ORF frequency manager Ernst Vranka: 
AWR will broadcast daily 12 hours through the rotatable antenna 
towards West Africa, East Africa and the Middle East and further 2 
hours for Europe. A satellite link will be used to feed the programs, 
it is intended to replace it later by soundfile distribution through 
the Internet.

Furthermore also Trans World Radio will start to transmit a single 
broadcast in Russian via Moosbrunn. Frequency will be 9745; the 
broadcasts will last between 15 and full 75 minutes (i.e. the 
familiar broadcast time chaos) in the 1400-1515 range.

Vranka stated that these arrangements are quite important for ORF 
because they ensure effective operation of the Moosbrunn station 
after the dramatic reduction of their own ORF/ROI transmissions.

Some further comments regarding the equipment at the Moosbrunn site: 
When the new 500 kW transmitters were inaugurated all four 100 kW 
units remained at the site, two still in regular service, the other 
two standby for cases of failures and maintenance work. Reportedly 
new 100 kW transmitters were installed recently to replace the ones 
from the sixties, but I have no further details at hand about this. 
Anyway ROI currently uses three transmitters:

- one 500 kW through the day 0400-2400 on 6155 as well as 0000-0100 
on 13730 and 0100-0200 on 9870, in all cases running 300 kW only 
because this is the power limit of the involved antennas (an HQ and a 
curtain; the latter one can also radiate backwards into the Middle 
East. This possibility is no longer in use for their own ORF/ROI 
broadcasts but if I am correct still for RCI);

- the other 500 kW operates with full power through the rotatable 
antenna, as well-known now with only a few ROI transmissions (0200-
0300 7325, 1400-1500 17855, 2200-2300 13730);

- one 100 kW transmitter is on air 0400-1800 on 13730 and 1800-2400 
on 5945.

Until A00 a second 100 kW unit was in use at certain times either 
with the mentioned curtain or a log-periodic. This LP as well as the 
VM's for 5945/13730 can handle only 100 kW at all; I guess the LP 
will be used for the new TWR outlet. At least a couple of years ago 
also the old rhombics, which were in use to serve overseas targets in 
the pre-300/500-kW-era, were still available but no longer in regular 
use, just kept as reserve.

It will be interesting to see if the 12 hours of AWR programming for 
Af and ME indeed overlap with the 2 hours for Europe as the AWR 
release suggests. If so, only a 100 kW transmitter would be available 
for 6155 during this period. So I`m rather curious about the new ROI 
schedule. Regards, (Kai Ludwig, Germany, March 2, DX LISTENING 
DIGEST)

** BANGLADESH/U K. BBC man 'linked to coup plot'
MediaGuardian.co.uk -- Luke Harding and Arshad Mahmud in Dhaka 
Thursday March 01 2001 The Guardian 

The government of Bangladesh has called on the BBC to sack the head 
of its Bengali service after accusing him of colluding in the bloody 
1975 coup which led to the murder of the country's independence 
leader, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. ... entire article at:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Archive/Article/0,4273,4144773,00.html
(via Bill Westenhaver, PQ, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** CAMBODIA [non]. A reminder that another weekly broadcast from V. 
of Justice, via Taiwan, should be sought Saturday March 3 at 1000. If 
not on 15455, suggest a quick search for some other frequency, as we 
still do not know why it failed to appear there last week after its 
only known broadcast the week before that (gh, DXLD)

** CANADA [non]. TAIWAN 9735U Radio Vancouver International. The 
transmitter site had a problem with its phone lines on Feb 25 so we 
didn`t broadcast (Keith Perron, RVI, Feb 26 via Hans Johnson, Cumbre 
DX via DXLD) So try again this Sunday 1200-1400 UT (gh)

** CHECHNYA [non]. Starting from March 1, Radio Chechnya Svobodnaya 
ceased its short-wave broadcasting. The station switched to local 
AM/FM relays. In Europe it still can be heard on LW 171 kHz. An AM-
transmitter on 1089 kHz now carries Radio Russia, local Radio 
Krasnodar and the Russian Service of the Voice of Russia (Konstantin 
Gusev in DX_Bistro, via Sergei Sosedkin, March 2, DX LISTENING 
DIGEST)

** CONGO DR. Re Bunia 6698: I believe that this one is a clandestine. 
Bunia Radio, which seems to be the station mentioned above, is 
controlled by a group opposed to the recognized government in 
Kinshasa. This group is known as the Congolese Liberation Front (CLF) 
and is led by Jean-Pierre Bemba, head of the Movement for the 
Liberation of the Congo (MLC). MLC has a shortwave radio station as 
well, Radio Liberté, last reported on 15725 in June 2000, but 
inactive since then. The MLC merged with a breakaway faction of the 
Congolese Rally for Democracy (RCD) to form the CLF. The CLF formed 
earlier this year and is aligned with Uganda, which has troops in 
Bunia as well. Bunia was the scene of a coup against the leader of 
the RCD last November. It`s located in the province of Ituri, which 
has seen ethnic strife for the last sesquiyear in which thousands have 
died. Thanks to various media reports for the political details above 
(Hans Johnson, AZ, Mar 2, Cumbre DX via DXLD) 

** CONGO DR [non]. Hi Glenn, about the Congo DR item in DXLD 1-028.
I can`t say that this is not Bunia but:

For a couple of weeks P`yongyang has been putting out several spurs 
in the range of 6.6 to 6.8 MHz during UT evenings. This is when the 
6575 is used. The reported time fits with their French program. If we 
put word P`yongyang instead of Bunia and Corée instead of Congo in 
the heard ID, voilà. And that reported time is a bit late for Bunia 
to be on the air. This is just my opinion. Bye (Jari Savoläinen, 
Kuusankoski, FINLAND, March 2, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** COSTA RICA. Joe Bernard at RFPI has been turning on the 15049 
transmitter around 1230 UT, until 1600, though sometimes left on all 
day until the regular schedule of 2200-0400. This is in response to 
listener requests, including groundwave hearers nearby. Will continue 
only if membership support level allows. ``Enjoy it while you can.`` 
(It was on at 1900 for COM and WOR, 2000 for Mailbag March 2.) 

Live Wire Independent News concludes its 30-day trial run today. Now 
it will survey listeners and stations which carried it, then take the 
results to a community radio conference and try for support to make 
it permanent. The final show for now aired at 1730, repeats at 2330, 
UT Sat 0530 on 7450 (Joe Bernard and James Latham, RFPI Mailbag first 
airing 2000 UT March 2, notes by gh for DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** CUBA/CUBA [non]. USA/CUBA [non]. Perhaps the Cubans are so busy 
inadvertently jamming their Chinese comrades (as reported in DXLD 1-
027) that they haven`t even noticed R. Martí on a new daytime 
frequency of 21675. I first heard it Feb 23 around 1930 with no 
jamming present, and have listened at least once every day since 
then, without hearing so much as a single warble from a jammer. This 
is not listed in HFCC or the schedule on Martí's website, but I 
believe it runs between 1400-2200. The jammers sometimes obliterate 
Martí even this far north and are always audible to some degree, so I 
wonder if anyone in Habana has noticed this yet. Or perhaps they are 
just ignoring it due to the fact that jamming an unlisted frequency 
would be admitting that someone on the island actually listens to the 
broadcasts? (Mike Horan, Park Forest IL, March 2, DX LISTENING 
DIGEST)

It is an axiom of jammer-combatting that higher frequencies get 
through better. This is primarily because of skip distances. A 21-MHz 
signal could be jammed within Cuba only on groundwave, since even 
eastern Cuba is not far enough away to put a skywave jammer into 
Havana, or vice versa. Thus one wonders why most of Martí`s 
frequencies are in the 6-15 MHz bands, even 13 MHz which we doubt old 
Soviet-era SW radios even cover. We reported 21675 already some weeks 
back in DXLD (gh, DXLD)

** CYPRUS. Dear Glenn, CyBc Domestic service on 603 and 963 MHz back 
on the air as from 1 pm 1st March 2001 after being off the air with 
technical problems. Channel 2 is also back. The overseas service 
using the BBC site transmitters at Zgyi near Limassol is running as 
usual over the week ends only; known as CyBc and airing a half a hour 
programme in Greek only (Costa Constantinides, Cyprus, March 2, DX 
LISTENING DIGEST)

** DIEGO GARCÍA. 12579.05, AFRN noted running much later than normal 
switch time at 1500. Pop music program w/man announcer 1535-1559.5 
and DOD anmts 1550-1554. CBS new summary at 1600-1604 and back into 
pop music program. Nice level at S4 fading to S3 after 1600 but same 
old ute QRM. Recheck at 1710 and still going but signal reduced to 
S1-2. Theoretically as So. Hemisphere goes into their Fall, switch 
times to night frequency should be earlier, not later at Diego García 
(Bruce Churchill, CA, Feb 26, Cumbre DX via DXLD)

Same: 0227-0255 Finally audible here after months of listening. 0227 
Program of late 1960s and early 1970s music (Diana Ross, the Beatles, 
Bill Withers, Billy Joe Royal, etc.) with male DJ. 0235 Talk about a 
drawing. Short segment on "arms" (arms race, call to arms, armor, 
armistice, etc.). Female announcer with "Pacific Report" with news 
about a military exercise just completed, and a South Korean Air 
Force F5E accidentally firing a Sidewinder missile due to a short 
circuit. 0240 Back to music. Signal running almost even with heavy 
utility interference at 0227 (SINPO 32222), but slowly degrading with 
heavy fading to nil at 0255. Parallel 12689.5 USB from Key West, 
SINPO 33333 at 0227, but degrading quickly and gone by 0235. Country 
205 here, the first new one in two years! (Jim Evans, TN, Feb 27, 
Cumbre DX via DXLD) 

** FINLAND. I keep intending to give slightly more advance notice, 
but the dates creep up on me. It`s the first Saturday of the month, 
so time for another 24-hour broadcast by Scandinavian Weekend Radio. 
Their website http://www.swradio.net as of Feb 26 shows this 
timetable, tentatively, here converted to UT. Unlike previous months, 
the antenna direction is shown as 220 degrees throughout. See the 
site for a few program titles within the 24 hours:
2200-2400 11690
0000-0600 11720
0600-1200 11690
1200-1600 11720
1600-2000 11690
2000-2200 11720
(Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

We will have some antenna tests toward North-America also this time 
during first 8 hours (swr mailing list via Andy Cadier, BDXC-UK via 
DXLD)

** FRANCE. Dear Glen[n], been reading the Digest for some months now 
since I came Online, I think it is great. Here`s my first 
contribution to the news. Radio France International is announcing 
that the 1200 and 1400 UT English broadcasts are being cut back to 30 
minute transmissions from one hour. This is taking place from next 
week as far as I can gather. The 1600 UT emission is being left 
unchanged (i.e. one hour). Regards - (Mick Knapton, Sheffield, 
England, March 2, DX LISTENING DIGEST) 1600 was a sesquihour on a 
couple of its frequencies; still? (gh)

** GEORGIA. I checked for R. Georgia, and found exactly the same 
situation as in DXLD 1-028 reported by Craig Seager on the other 
worldside! March 2 at 0629, heterodyne between it on 11805.3 and VOA 
which went off at 0630 sharp. Fair signal but very rapid flutter; 
modulation so weak that I could not be sure it was English, though 
the intonation fit; overpowered by the sound of the flutter itself 
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** GERMANY. By the way, such echos as you found on WHRA 17650 are 
familiar here on 13 metre outlets like Wertachtal or Nauen towards 
Asia. I was really fascinated by this effect when I was new to 
shortwave (and I`m still fascinated), because it demonstrates that 
the earth is a ball (I know, not exactly...) and the speed of 
electromagnetic waves indeed limited. For the same reason also 
satellite delays are fascinating, especially when no digital 
equipment is involved. [another possibility is backscatter, but the 
delay would be even shorter -gh]

Back in 1993 it was common usage during the call-in segment of the 
DT64 DX show to identify if a caller listens via the Astra satellite 
or on 1044 kHz. However, one day the first caller contradicted: "No, 
I`m listening on mediumwave, but why the echo... but I know, there 
was an extended transmission failure today..." Yes, for quite some 
time only white noise was transmitted, then DT64 returned but with 
unprocessed audio. It was immediately clear to me what happened, and 
later it turned out that indeed the STL from Berlin to Leipzig (at 
this time still the old analogue microwave link, hence the white 
noise) was disrupted, so the guys at the MDR radiohouse Leipzig 
simply caught DT64 off the Astra satellite and forwarded this signal 
to the transmitter. 

I should add that the "processing" of the mediumwave signal consisted 
of a cheap limiter/compressor and an equalizer within the "K6" studio 
at the Berlin Nalepastraße radiohouse, placed on a table beside the 
desk and connected by "flying" wires, an unbelievable sight. This 
equipment was "adjusted" by listening to the 1044 signal, 200 km away 
from the transmitter and within the local noise of the studio house, 
so it is certainly no surprise that the results were anything but 
satisfying. The transmitted signal sounded rather "squeezed". But 
nobody cared about this because only a few months later it was over 
and DT64 (now MDR Sputnik) kicked off mediumwave, leaving many 
listeners behind, including me (Kai Ludwig, Germany, March 2, DX 
LISTENING DIGEST)

** INDIA. All India Radio- Hyderabad, 4800 kHz, full data "Ahmadabad" 
card, v/s A. K. Bhatnagar - Director (Frequency Assignments) New 
Delhi, in 9 weeks, for taped report and IRC (Joe Talbot, Red Deer, 
Alberta, Canada, March 2, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** INDONESIA. 3325, RRI Palangkaraya, Feb 26 at 1130: While Central 
Kalimantan is being afflicted by ethnic violence, this station was 
heard with family news at this time. Usually this program carries 
messages about some family members who have died; this edition 
carries messages informing relatives at obscure places of the time so 
that they will make the return journey home or requests for money so 
that they could make the journey. Presumably these are from Madurese 
immigrants. At 1135 an announcement from the local security committee 
warns residents against carrying parangs on the streets. The 
announcement further urges any persons spotting suspicious packages 
should call 110. If you hear of any plans to disrupt public security, 
then inform the nearest police officer on duty. Heads of 
neighbourhood and community committees are also reminded to report 
all new arrivals within 24 hours. This announcement is repeated 
frequently. Otherwise, the normal music program is heard (Richard 
Lam, Singapore, Cumbre DX via DXLD) 

** IRAN [non]. For Mojahed, their best channel seems to be 88XX. When 
they escape the jamming, the signal is not too bad at times. On this 
thread, my further research shows that my suggestion that the Mojahed 
transmitters would have XX20 as a "home" frequency is not correct. 
Although they seem to have some preferred channels, there is no clear 
system (Olle Alm, Feb 26, Cumbre DX via DXLD)

** ISLE OF MAN. DX Information from the British DX Club (BDXC-UK). 
From: http://www.offshore-radio.de/ The Isle of Man being the 
original home of Radio Caroline North, to remember 3rd March 1968, 
Manx Radio are broadcasting an offshore radio special on Saturday 3rd 
March from 1000 to 1200 GMT. Radio Caroline/RNI`s Dave West had a 
hand in the production of this programme. There will be an internet 
relay of the programme. They have produced a special Caroline site at 
http://www.manxradio.com/Caroline/Welcome.htm (via Mike Terry, BDXC-
UK via DXLD)

** ITALY. March 2 at 1258* tuned in to 17820 just in time to hear a 
couple of notes, and ID by woman as ``This is Adventist World Radio, 
the Voice of Hope`` and cut off. This is a low-power transmitter at 
Forlì little-noticed except by QRP-chasers. Website shows it used 
only at 1230-1300 in English to NW Europe, but no details of power or 
azimuth! For that we have to go to HFCC:
17820 1230 1300 27,28 FLI 10 320 1234567 291000 250301 D I AWR AWR  
6100 -- that is, 10 kW at 320 degrees -- right at us too. BTW, the 
final four-digit figure in the HFCC items I might as well delete, 
just refers to the consecutive entry number in the frequency list 
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** KURDISTAN [non]. CLANDESTINE from BULGARIA to IRAQ; 9450, Radio 
Bopeshawa. Heard singing on at *1459 music and female voice 
announcing ID in Arabic "Hona Izahat ela al-Amam"; This is Radio 
Forward. The first half an hour of transmission is in Arabic, mostly 
commentary and interviews; no news heard. 1534 off for Arabic 
transmission and on for Kurdish with male voice announcing ID at 1536 
"Ira Radio Bopeshawa". Off at 1559*. SINPO/24344 during the first 
half hour, 23333 during the Kurdish transmission. What is worth 
mentioning is that the carrier of Radio Slovakia Int. in Deutsch, 
which signs off at 1458 on the same frequency, this carrier was not 
off the air and it was used for Radio Bopeshawa! Furthermore Radio 
Bopeshawa went off the air for about 2-3 minutes, just 1 to 2 minutes 
after signing on to resume with a dropped signal (from S4 at signing 
on to S2 when they resume) as if the transmission site had changed 
its angle and/or direction (Mahmud Fathi, Germany, Feb 26, Cumbre DX 
via DXLD)

** MÉXICO. Mexico Mayor Refuses Daylight Time

MEXICO CITY (AP) - What time is it? That soon may be a tough question 
to answer in Mexico.

Mexico City Mayor Andrés Manuel López Obrador decreed on Monday that 
the nation`s capital would refuse to ``spring forward'' with the rest 
of the country - or much of it anyway - for daylight savings time in 
May [sic].

That immediately turned the clock into a constitutional crisis, 
pitting the leftist mayor against President Vicente Fox of the 
conservative National Action Party.

López Obrador, who is a possible presidential candidate in 2006, 
insisted that Fox ``does not have the power to change the hour.''

Fox`s office issued a release late Monday insisting that it did, 
saying Lopez Obrador`s decree ``is unconstitutional.''

``Daylight savings [sic throughout] time is greater than our 
individual preference, in benefit of the greater good, that of 
Mexico,'' according to the presidential bulletin.

It said that an earlier mayor from López Obrador's own party had 
admitted as much in 1999 in grudgingly accepting the time change.

But the prospect for confusion does not stop there: Other states in 
the country want to adjust the clock to their taste. Some say they 
will have five months of daylight savings time, some six, some seven.

Federal officials say the measure saves hundreds of millions of 
dollars in energy costs and helps coordinate Mexico's companies with 
their main trading partners in the United States.

They are worried that a conflict over the time will baffle tourists 
flying into Mexico City - as well as workers struggling into the 
capital by subway and minibus from its sprawling suburbs.

``All the federal government offices and services would have a 
different hour than the local offices and services,'' the president`s 
office noted.

López Obrador acted after sponsoring a telephone poll over the 
weekend in which the majority voted against daylight savings time. A 
poll by the newspaper Reforma also showed a clear majority disliked 
the time shift - but also opposed having Mexico City's clocks vary 
with those of the rest of the country (via Jeff Kadet, March 1, WTFDA 
via DXLD)

** MONACO [non]. Hi Glenn, regarding TWR English 0645/0655-0820 in 
A01: Currently this broadcast is aired one hour later on 9870 via the 
Mt. Angel site in France (rather than Monaco) and on 12070 from 
Cerrik, Albania, suggesting that indeed both 6045 and 9870 will be 
used in //. 9870 will certainly remain Mt. Angel, but 49 metres is 
too low for transmissions from Albania to zone 27 (which is the 
current target of 12070) at this time, so I guess 6045 will originate 
from Jülich instead, especially because JUL already use this channel 
for RNW and various German program producers (Kai Ludwig, Germany, 
March 2, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** NAMIBIA. 7215 (Cumbre DX follow up): NBC; Once again, this one was 
heard here well before the listed *0500. On Feb 24 and 25, I heard a 
station here running continuous soul and R&B music as early as 0240. 
I think this was Namibia, but I never heard any announcements. This 
is the kind of programming they had at this time years ago. Looking 
back over old Cumbres, it seems that the airing of WRN overnight must 
have ended after the three month trial ended in early 2000. TWR 
blocks the channel at 0330-0400 but at 0400 NBC was there in English. 
I noticed on Feb 26 that while they had an English news program at 
0400, it wasn`t the "World at Six" that I had heard before. They have 
English news at 0500 but programming in Afrikaans by 0509 or so. Not 
heard early after Feb 26. Old Cumbres reveal that Namibia has a fair 
amount of switching errors; I assume that this is what is going on as 
this is listed as 3290 until *0500 on 7215. I have tried their 
website every day, but it is never working for me (Hans Johnson, AZ, 
Cumbre DX via DXLD) Don`t forget possible local time change about now

** NETHERLANDS. 15070, R. Alfa Lima International, March 2 0845-0915, 
test transmission. Empty carrier @ 0845. A few minutes later mx faded 
up and then a talk break announcing that this was a test to The 
Pacific, Australia, and New Zealand. TX power was mentioned as 200 
watts. Fair strength, moderate fading with some nice peaks. SIO: 243. 
Received using 300 meter long wire antenna. Noted that signal was 
barely audible on 19 meter half-wave dipole aimed at Europe. Alfa 
Lima Int. will be testing on this frequency at various times, over 
the next few days (David Hodgson, TN, DX LISTENING DIGEST) 

** NEW ZEALAND. Glen[n], Have just browsed to Radio New Zealand`s 
site in Wellington and read that their schedule of frequencies from 
18th March to 06th May 2001 will be as follows: 

0459-0705 All Pacific 15120 
0706-1105 All Pacific 11720 
1106-1305 East Timor & NW Pacific 15175 
1305-1650 OCCASIONAL - to All Pacific 6095 
1651-1850 (MF) NE Pacific / Samoa / Cook Isles 6095 
1851-2050 All Pacific 15120 
2051-0458 All Pacific 17675

Broadcasts labelled (MF) are on Mondays to Fridays only (DXDave 
Harries, Bristol, England, March 2, DX LISTENING DIGEST, who still 
needs more volunteers to help with his new SW website)

** PERÚ. 4955: I received a Christmas card and a personal letter in 
Spanish from Radio Cultural Amauta (Huanta), signed by Mrs. Demetria 
Montes Sinforoso (Manager), thanking my report but not confirming the 
data, just informing the time of shortwave transmission: 1000 to 1400 
and 2100 to 0200 UT (a little bit different from WRTH and PWBR info). 
Report was sent to Jr. Cahuide 278, Apartado 24, Huanta, Ayacucho - 
Perú, with post card and 1 US$. Replied after 269 days. There is a 
printed e-mail address on the letter: cpdayni@hys.com.pe (Núcio 
Ribas, Brazil, Cumbre DX March 1 via DXLD) 

** RUSSIA. 11840U, Sakhalinsk Radyo, Feb 19 2230-2247, Russian. After 
network ID for Radyo Rossii, lady gave local ID as shown. "Musika" 
progam - classical, then piano tunes from 1920s. At 2245 man 
interviewed man. SIO 344, 1 station under (Bill Flynn, OR, Cumbre DX 
via DXLD)

Same: 1218 to 1400* // 5940 with Radio Rossii programming. Checked on 
Feb 24, but untraced. Weak on Feb 25 at 1355 (Hans Johnson, AZ, Feb 
23-25, ibid.) 

I think this one is aimed at the fishing fleet in the northern 
Pacific area. I reported it several years ago and received a nice and 
correct QSL letter in Russian directly from the station (Olle Alm, 
Sweden, Feb 24, ibid.) 

R. Sakhalin, an affiliate of Russia`s state broadcasting company "TRK 
Sakhalin", broadcasts local programs 2100-1400 on 531 kHz in Yuzhno-
Sakhalinsk. This program is partially relayed on 11840 usb. On SW, 
breaking R. Rossii relay, R. Sakhalin appears 2100-2200 & 0300-0400. 
From late Mar to late Oct broadcasts 1 hour earlier because of 
daylight shifting. R. Sakhalin mentions only 531 kHz even though it 
relays [on] SW. I sometimes heard the radio say hello to listeners on 
Sakhalin & Kuril islands at 0300, the beginning of its SW relay. 
Kuril, a chain of islands between Japan & Kamchatka, is out of reach 
for MW from Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. So I presume local program on 11840 is 
for Kuril islanders and fishing boats. A Japanese DXer got a QSL for 
report written in Russian (Oguma, Feb 25, ibid.) 

Sadly, the local program at 0300-0400 is blocked by HCJB in English. 
11840 is being used, ex 12015 apparently. I can hear them prior to 
this time carrying Radio Rossii and then a different program at 0300, 
but HCJB is too strong for one to get an ID (Hans Johnson, AZ Feb 25, 
Mar 2, Cumbre DX via DXLD) 

** SWITZERLAND [non]. I found two websites, 
http://www.countrymusic.ch in French and http://www.country-music.ch 
and...guess what? They seem to be about American country music! Ah--
apparently if one wants to find what SRI called "Swiss country music" 
one needs to look under "Swiss FOLK music". (Joël Rubin, NY, March 2, 
DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U K. Glenn, Since I know you care about these things, I`d like to 
point out a spelling mistake in the 70 years of British TV item. The 
presenter is Alan Whicker, not Wicker :-) 73, (Andy Sennitt, Low 
Countries, March 2, DXLD)

** U K [non]. Banned organizations - radio implications? 
DX Information from the British DX Club (BDXC-UK).

Earlier this week, Home Secretary Jack Straw announced the names of 
21 organizations which the government proposes banning in the UK 
under the provisions of the Terrorism Act 2000. The list is below. It 
is subject to approval by parliament and there is also a right of 
appeal. As some of these organizations have operated radio stations 
in the past (or do so now), and as London has become something of a 
centre for various exile groups to prepare their programmes (if not 
actually to use UK-based transmitters) the ban might disrupt some 
clandestine-type radio activities.

For example, the Mujaheddin e Khalq (an Iranian opposition 
organization) has been quite active in recent years in hiring 
satellite time and uplinking broadcast material from the UK, in 
addition to their extensive radio and TV operations in Iraq. 

I`ve pasted the list straight from the FCO web site, and so the 
spellings and/or translation of the names of some of the groups may 
be slightly different to those that appear elsewhere, e.g. in press 
reports. This list is in addition to the various Irish organizations 
that are already banned in the UK under the provisions of the Act. 

Al-Qa`ida 
Egyptian Islamic Jihad 
Al-Gama`at al-Islamiya 
Armed Islamic Group (Groupe Islamique Armée) (GIA) 
Salafist Group for Call and Combat (Groupe Salafiste pour la 
Prédication et le Combat) (GSPC) 
Babbar Khalsa 
International Sikh Youth Federation 
Harakat Mujahideen 
Jaish e Mohammed 
Lashkar e Tayyaba 
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) 
Hizballah External Security Organisation 
Hamas-Izz al-Din al-Qassem Brigades 
Palestinian Islamic Jihad - Shaqaqi 
Abu Nidal Organisation 
Islamic Army of Aden 
Mujaheddin e Khalq 
Kurdistan Workers` Party (Partiya Karkeren Kurdistan) (PKK) 
Revolutionary Peoples' Liberation Party - Front (Devrimci Halk 
Kurtulus Partisi - Cephesi) (DHKP-C) 
Basque Homeland and Liberty (Euskadi ta Askatasuna) (ETA)
17 November Revolutionary Organisation (N17)

(Chris Greenway, March 2, BDXC-UK via DXLD)

The above information may only be reproduced if full credit is given 
to the original source, contributor AND to the British DX Club (BDXC-
UK).

** U S A. Re: The Connection`s Over As We Knew It 

Chet, I think that this shows where the *real* priorities lie in 
public radio: money and ownership. I think WBUR is to blame mostly 
for this one, as they sound like the pompous ass, arrogant station 
that says, "Since we carry things like 'Car Talk,' we should do 
whatever we want." THEY offered Lydon the salary of up to $300,000 
per year, then have the gall to say, "Well, he asked for that much." 
That's bullshit! I think Lydon wanted part ownership so that he could 
prevent the show, which by going into syndication has pretty much 
ended up in his hands, from being dumbed-down and neutralized by WBUR 
management, and, more importantly, since they`ve been slowly turning 
to more commercialism, NPR. 

I`d listen to that show on WSUI during the summer and I always 
enjoyed Lydon`s intelligence and his willingness to talk about a 
variety of issues. Some people on his Internet forum keep comparing 
him to Terry Gross. Well, the only things the two shows have in 
common are that they`re on NPR and they interview people. Gross 
focuses on more of the people involved with the arts. Lydon did much 
more. To compare the two like that is simply unfair to both shows. 

I think it`s WBUR that needs to think about controlling its ego and 
using its money more wisely. I`d also like to see not only WBUR, but 
all public radio stations program to ALL people, not just the yuppies 
who want to hear "All Things Considered" as they drive home from work 
in their Mercedes and their BMWs and give the station loads of money. 
Given the ratings-driven nature of "public" radio, however, I don`t 
see that happening (Dave Vollenweider, IA, March 2, via Chet 
Copeland, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

I had listened to only a few Connections, but was impressed with what 
I heard. How many two-hour talk-shows can one digest every day, 
anyway? Besides, there was always the archive, where one later, any 
time, could pick topics or guests that looked promising. Let`s hope 
the sesquiyear audio archive remains accessible from WBUR despite its 
disdain for Lydon: http://www.theconnection.org/archive/ That should 
tide us over until Lydon and company come back before long via a more 
friendly outlet, no doubt under some other title. Hey, they should 
spell it with an X! (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

Connection' duo, WBUR disconnect permanently 
By Mark Jurkowitz, Boston Globe, 3/2/2001 

Ending a bitter two-week standoff marked by harsh words and 
unyielding positions, WBUR-FM parted ways with ''Connection'' host 
Christopher Lydon and senior producer Mary McGrath yesterday, 
signaling the end of the popular six-year-old call-in show - at least 
as listeners have come to know it. The key sticking point appeared to 
be Lydon and McGrath`s desire for ownership of ''The Connection'' and 
a share of future growth in the revenue the program generates. A 
statement released by the station said, ``With great regret, WBUR 
today announces that `The Connection` host Christopher Lydon and 
Senior Producer Mary McGrath have informed WBUR that they are leaving 
their employment to pursue careers in a for-profit, independent 
production company.`` [Read entire article:] 
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/061/nation/_Connection_duo_WBUR_disconnect_permanently+.shtml 
Other sites (Now HTML; Under his picture, earlier today, it said: 
"Christopher Lydon Has Left The Building." Later: "Christopher 
Lydon's Official Website." http://www.christopherlydon.org/ (Esp. the 
Forums) http://www.theconnection.org/ (Chet Copeland/NYC, DXLD) 

Public Radio Host Is Leaving in Dispute March 2, 2001 
By THE NEW YORK TIMES 

After two weeks of public wrangling, Christopher Lydon, the host of 
``The Connection``, a public radio program with 400,000 listeners 
around the country, parted ways with WBUR, the Boston radio station 
that owns the program. Read entire article: 
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/03/02/national/02NPR.html?ex=984552165&ei=1&en=f611eb293ba22c11
(via Bill Westenhaver, PQ, DXLD)

This didn`t take long: KUOW Seattle is dropping The Connection from 
its schedule. Friday 3/2 is its last day. A rerun of TOTN will take 
its place, weeknights at 11 p.m.-1 a.m. PT. Christopher Lydon`s new 
web site http://www.christopherlydon.org/ has expanded greatly since 
yesterday, with a forum section that already has over 120 messages. 
Interesting copyright statement: "(C) 2001 L&M Productions" -- an 
indicator of their intended direction (Kevin Kelly, Arlington MA, 
PublicRadioFan.com DXLD)

In WBUR`s defence, their website presents both sides of the dispute. 
I just listened to a 9-minute piece about it. Someone ``impartial`` 
from Harvard concluded that 60-year-old Lydon had made a big mistake, 
should have taken the big salary and stayed at WBUR under their terms 
(gh, DXLD)

** U S A ?  Recently, a new station has popped up on the air. A 
station reading numbers in, get this, Roman numerals. It`s doubtful 
the station is an actual numbers station, but most likely a pirate 
spoof. It`s only been logged on 6950 and 6955, the two currently most 
popular pirate frequencies. The transmissions start out with a callup 
of III X VI which is repeated for several minutes, then ten chimes 
which sound like they`re coming from either a church or grandfather 
clock, then five figure groups of Roman numerals.

When this station was first heard, it was thought that it was 
repeating 555 X 35 and the groups consisting of variations of 5, X, 
and 3. But it`s apparent that what sounded like 5, X and 3 is 
actually I, X and V. Especially after pirate DXers were clued in by 
someone in the FRN chat room.

Could this be long-lost communications between Spartacus and Rome, 
bouncing around space for thousands of years, before the signal found 
its way back to earth? I`m sure if the Romans had numbers stations, 
it would probably sound just like this station (Tom Sevart, KS, 
Covert Comms, The Monthly A*C*E, March via DXLD)         ###