DX LISTENING DIGEST 1-195, December 11, 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 #1108: (STREAM) http://www.worldofradio.com/wor1108ram (DOWNLOAD) http://www.worldofradio.com/wor1108.rm (SUMMARY) http://www.angelfire.com/ok/worldofradio/wor1108.html FINAL 1108 AIRINGS ON RFPI: Wednesday 0100, 0700, 1300 on some of: 21815-USB, 15040, 7445-USB WORLD OF RADIO ON WWCR: Canceled times: Tue 1200, Sat 1230 on 15685 YAHOO PROBLEMS. Please do NOT use our yahoo address, but instead wghauser@hotmail.com MARCONI CENTENNIAL SPECIAL SITE: http://worldofradio.com/marconi.html ** AFGHANISTAN [non]. When Bombs Are Not Enough The Army's Psyop Warriors Deploy an Arsenal of Paper By Richard Leiby, Washington Post Staff Writer Monday, December 10, 2001; Page C01 FORT BRAGG, N.C. -- A famously hard-bitten Green Beret, Col. Mike Kirby, glowers down on a conference table full of Army commanders here as they plot their next attack on the Taliban and al Qaeda. Kirby growls a key message: "Better go PSYWAR on that." For the leaders of the 4th Psychological Operations Group -- considered among the Army's most intellectual warriors -- Kirby is a hero. Never mind that he's a Hollywood construct: a character played by John Wayne in the 1968 agitprop classic "The Green Berets." An enlarged photo of the Duke in uniform and a snippet of his dialogue hangs on the wood-paneled wall in tribute to one of the military's rarely glamorized special operations units. The weaponry of the psyop soldier includes radio transmitters, loudspeakers and music, from classical to heavy metal. These elite airborne troops don't drop bombs on the enemy -- they drop leaflets and crude cartoons urging surrender. They parachute in, offering bribes, hoping to rat out evildoers like Osama bin Laden. They set up battlefield copy centers to crank out pro-American handbills. "No one else does what we do," says Col. James A. Treadwell, who commands the 4th Psyop Group, a 1,200-member unit whose slogans include "Win the Mind -- Win the Day" and "Verbum Vincet" ("The Word Conquers"). Schooled in marketing and advertising techniques, they are a brainy subset of the "snake eaters," as the brawny commandos based here in the scrub pine and strip-club wilds of Fayetteville are known. Wearing a maroon beret that designates him as a qualified paratrooper, Lt. Col. Kenneth A. Turner sounds like a typical "psyop-er" -- they don't go in for menacing nicknames -- as he patiently explains "the distinction between dissemination and communication." When he talks about a target, he means an audience. Turner, 42, commands a dissemination battalion. He speaks French and holds master's degrees in international relations and military arts and sciences. Like others here, he considers psychological operations an art with a practical application. If you can demoralize the enemy and promote defections, the fighting ends sooner -- thereby minimizing casualties. "Stop fighting for the Taliban and live," urges a leaflet designed here. "Drive out the foreign terrorists," says another. "That's what we're all about: influencing people to take certain behavioral actions that accomplish our national goals," says Turner. During the Persian Gulf War, many Iraqi soldiers surrendered clutching U.S.-dropped leaflets that offered safe passage. "There were special [Iraqi] teams organized to shoot anyone that was found to be in possession of our leaflets," Treadwell says. But he and other commanders of the Afghan psyop war are hesitant to make claims about the effectiveness of their propaganda in promoting surrenders, saying they haven't yet been able to make assessments. The leafleting over Kandahar, one of the last Taliban strongholds to yield to U.S.-backed forces, included a broadside depicting Mullah Mohammed Omar as a "kuchi," a dog of nomads, chained at the heel of bin Laden. "Who really runs the Taliban?" it asks. Apparently it hit a nerve. "If the Taliban are complaining because we dropped this in Kandahar, which they have been, we're kind of happy -- because they're upset about it," says David C. Champagne, a PhD research analyst with the Army psyop group. "If you have a reaction to it, it means you've been affected one way or another." In Afghanistan, with a population of 26 million, some 18 million leaflets have been distributed -- often via fiberglass "leaflet bombs" that explode in midair. "We have leaflets that are dropping like snowflakes in December in Chicago," Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld noted earlier in the campaign. Many messages produced here are benign, trying to reinforce the point that Americans are nice people -- anti-terrorist, not anti-Muslim. "To the honorable people of Afghanistan, may you have a Happy Eid," Champagne roughly translates from the Pashto as presses roll behind him. "May your fasting -- your sacrifice, be acceptable to God." This is essentially a greeting card to mark Eid al-Fitr, the end of Ramadan. It depicts a date palm and a bowl of dates -- a traditional food for celebrating the end of the month-long fasting period. "Obviously the target audience is the civilian population of Afghanistan, showing our friendship," explains Maj. Ric Rohm, another battalion commander. "All of our products fit into a plan." At the start of a campaign, the psyop-ers decide which media will be most useful in getting across their message, "very similar to how a marketing firm would try to do their business," says Rohm. In Afghanistan, that ruled out television -- the Taliban had banned it. But many Afghans owned radios, so the psyop-ers began drafting scripts and musical programming for the "Commando Solo" aircraft circling the region, broadcasting 10 hours a day. The leaflets relied on simple messages and graphics because of the population's low literacy rate, but Champagne, who served in the Peace Corps in Afghanistan decades ago, quickly points out, that doesn't mean "they're not intelligent." Messages must be approved by the brass at Central Command and comport with the overarching info-war strategy laid out by the White House. Critiques and wrongheaded suggestions abound. One official objected to a leaflet showing Afghanistan as a chessboard with bin Laden orchestrating Taliban pawns -- until the experts here explained that chess is immensely popular in the region and the image would instantly connect. Potential linguistic and cultural gaffes lurk in every operation. In Somalia in 1992, prior to a U.N. humanitarian effort, a hastily printed psyop leaflet contained a spelling error. Instead of announcing help from the "United Nations," it came out "Slave Nations." At Fort Bragg, translations are scrupulously checked -- "So we don't end up having an advertisement for a car that says 'Won't Go,' " says Rohm, referring to a classic marketing screw-up involving the Chevy Nova. (In Spanish, no va translates as "won't go.") In Afghanistan, the psyop-ers deliberately avoided using the word "surrender" because they knew it would not play well with the Taliban. They substituted appeals along the lines of "Return to your homes and villages." Military mind-warriors had faced that problem before. "That's an old issue going back to the Second World War and leaflets that were directed at the Japanese," explains Robert D. Jenks, another doctorate-holding civilian analyst at Fort Bragg. "They discovered that [surrender] was offensive to Japanese. So they retooled and phrased it differently. What they said was: 'Cease resistance.' " Over the years Army psychological operations have spread to the civilian arena. Because the unit supports peacetime anti-drug and de- mining efforts around the globe, the old term "psywar" – accurate when John Wayne made his Vietnam War movie -- is out of favor now. But the swaggering spirit seems to live on among the guys who bring strong editing and graphic skills to combat, who can write radio scripts and leaflet slogans with a certain punch. In October, when Army Rangers parachuted behind enemy lines outside Kandahar, four members of Fort Bragg's psyop group jumped with them. They left behind their calling cards for the enemy -- leaflets, of course. "We wanted them to know that we were on the ground," says Lt. Col. Glenn Ayers. One bore an image of firefighters raising the American flag. It said simply, "Freedom Endures." © 2001 The Washington Post Company (via Mike Cooper, DXLD) ** AFGHANISTAN [and non]. Media round-up Tuesday 11 December 2001 - US PsyOps radio: broadcast in Arabic heard - US Senators seek support for Radio Free Afghanistan - Kabul radio times and frequencies confirmed Kabul TV/Radio Radio Afghanistan in the capital Kabul broadcasts from 0130-0330 gmt and 1130-1630 gmt on 1530 kHz mediumwave and 96 MHz FM. The news in Pashto is at 1430 gmt, and in Dari at 1500 gmt. Kabul TV broadcasts via 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 for three hours a day. Balkh Radio Balkh Radio, which is based in the northern city of Mazar-e Sharif, Balkh Province, continues to be heard. On Tuesday 11 December, the 0230-0430 gmt (0700-0900 local time) morning broadcast was observed by BBC Monitoring; the evening broadcast was also observed from 1130 gmt. Broadcasts are on the usual frequency of 1584 kHz. Konduz radio reportedly on the air, pro-Northern Alliance According to a report on the International Herald Tribune (IHT) web site on 30 November, the former pro-Taleban radio station in Konduz has now switched sides and is broadcasting in support of the Northern Alliance. The web site carried a report from a New York Times Service correspondent in Konduz who said the station had resumed test broadcasts on 28 November. The IHT report said the Konduz radio station was now broadcasting for one hour a day from 5-6 p.m. local time (1230-1330 gmt) on 1520 kHz mediumwave (although BBC Monitoring believes the frequency is more likely to be 1521 kHz). The reported broadcasts from Konduz radio have not yet been observed by BBC Monitoring. US PsyOps radio: broadcast in Arabic heard US PsyOps Information Radio continues to be observed by BBC Monitoring broadcasting in Pashto and Dari to Afghanistan. On Tuesday 11 December, the broadcasts were heard from 0030-0530 gmt and again from 1230 gmt. Information Radio 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. The 9 December broadcast included a statement in Dari warning people in Kandahar not to drive at night. "For the attention of the noble people of Kandahar. Kandahar has become a dangerous place. Considerable military movements and activities are taking place in Kandahar. Avoid driving at night. If you are driving on roads or streets at night, you might be mistaken for the enemy and be attacked. We are concerned about the security and safety of innocent Afghans. We appeal to you not to drive at night-time." US broadcast in Arabic on Bin-Ladin bounty On Monday 10 December Information Radio carried the following announcement in Arabic: "Attention, O Afghan people: A reward of the value of 25m dollars will be given in exchange of information leading to capturing Usamah Bin- Ladin or Ayman Al-Zawahiri. These Al-Qa'idah terrorists are responsible for killing thousands of innocent people around the world. "Every day, the proud Afghan people are getting closer and closer to liberating themselves from the tyranny of foreign terrorists. We ask for your help to get rid of these foreign terrorists. Every day, more foreign terrorists are being defeated in battles. We are asking for your assistance because these cowards and murderers are still hiding. The Afghan forces' alliance authority, which is fighting to liberate Afghanistan, will continue searching for these cowards. With your help, we will be able to bring the Al-Qa'idah terrorists to justice. "There is also another reward in exchange of documents and more information leading to unveiling Al-Qa'idah agents. We hope you will continue listening to Information Radio to know the latest developments. Information Radio will broadcast contacts you can get in touch with to give any information on the whereabouts of these terrorists. This assistance may lead to a reward. We hope you will continue listening to Information Radio to have information on the latest developments." US Senators seek support for Radio Free Afghanistan The following press release appears on the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations web site http://foreign.senate.gov/press/01/011206.html 6 December 2001: Additional broadcast services to Central Asia are needed to help extend US efforts to restore stability to Afghanistan, Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr said today as he introduced legislation to launch a new Radio Free Afghanistan. Biden, chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, co- sponsored the bill with the committee's ranking member, Senator Jesse Helms. "Afghanistan's ability to establish a stable and peaceful state will depend in part on the free flow of information about the country and the world to its people," Biden said. "Radio Free Afghanistan would bring that sort of news to Afghans in their own languages, produced by people familiar with the region but shaped by the traditions of journalism as it is practised in United States - based on the values of accuracy and objectivity." The services envisioned in the legislation would start with four hours each in Afghanistan's two major languages, Dari and Pashto. They would receive 17 megadollars for fiscal year 2002, with subsequent funds to come from future budget cycles. Start-up costs for the services would include construction of a new transmitter in Kuwait that could have other uses for US broadcasting. The services are to be run by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, which conducted broadcasts to Afghanistan from the mid-1980s to 1993. The proposal is similar in many respects to legislation passed by the House of Representatives in November in support of such radio services. Senator Biden intends to bring the bill before the Foreign Relations Committee next week. Compiled by Foreign Media Unit, BBC Monitoring Telephone +44 118 948 6261 e-mail: fmu@mon.bbc.co.uk Source: BBC Monitoring research 11 Dec 01 (via DXLD) ** AFGHANISTAN [non]. Glenn, Your comments: ``I was listening to 9950 around 1342-1348 UT Dec 10, and did not notice any change of language; has the quarter-hour pattern changed? (gh, OK, DXLD)`` The first half-hour is in Pushto and the remaining half-hour is in Dari, according to my friend Nasim. He's a very interesting fellow. We talked about events in Afghanistan. His profession is a journalist; he worked in Kabul, prior to 1992. He left with his wife and children after the events there. Remember when the Soviets were in. He did translation for the newspaper and the government service, as well for Afghan Television and Radio. His family is still back there in Mazar-I- Sharif. 73's (Edward Kusalik, VE6EFK, Alberta, Dec 11, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Tnx, Ed. So this means, as I suspected, that at some recent point RVOA doubled its output of original programming from a quarter-hour in each language, repeated, to a semi-hour in each language, not repeated (gh, DXLD) ** ANTARCTICA. Some listeners told you (and you passed it on), that LRA-36 was possibly off the air. I believe I`ve heard them three times this week. I logged them as LRA36 because they met the following criteria: always on weekdays from 1900 to 2100 UT; always on approximately 15475.4 kHz; and music and talk, when identifiable, in Spanish. I heard them today with fair signal. I`m a longtime listener to WORLD OF RADIO and an avid reader of your column in MONITORING TIMES. I appreciate your hard work and dedication. By the way, I`ve been through OK many times - beautiful country! (Zeke Russell, Williams AZ, Dec 6, DX LISTENING DIGEST) I`ve had no luck hearing this for a long time, but made a point of checking Tue Dec 11: until 1900* as usual, ANO in French hogged the frequency, but as soon as it went off, no trace of LRA-36. However, at 2055 recheck, by again turning off as much local noise as possible, I was able to detect a carrier on 15475.6 (not 15475.4), which disappeared promptly at 2059:25, so I hereby claim to have heard what must have been LRA-36, agreeably still on the air on its characteristic split frequency. I definitely heard it years ago when on in the evening (Glenn Hauser, Enid, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ARMENIA. V. of Armenia, 4810, 0334-0505+ Dec 8, tune-in to talk in Language; local music with a mid-east flair. Choral music at 0400-0430, talk in language at 0430. Very weak. \\ 9965 only at *0400-0430* (Brian Alexander, PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** CANADA. **M** Good day Glenn! I see that Ricky Leong already sent you the news that the big "Tuning the World" special has been cancelled. I should point out that the strike doesn't affect technicians in the province of Québec, nor in Moncton, since they're on different unions. However, Sackville techs are part of the striking unions, so if there are any missing frequencies or problems with transmissions via Sackville, it's probably because of the strike. 73- (Bill Westenhaver, QC, Dec 10, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** CANADA. 21st Century Dispute Scuppers CBC Marconi Celebration 11 December 2001 18 months of planning by a team of Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) producers in Newfoundland has been rendered in vain by a labour dispute involving 1600 CBC technical staff. An ambitious live international broadcast called Tuning the World had been planned for 12 December to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Marconi's famous wireless experiment from Signal Hill. The programme was to involve broadcasters around the world, but CBC management decided that it was too complex to go ahead using stand-in labour. Some pre-recorded segments will go ahead, but the bulk of the broadcast has been abandoned. Several overseas broadcasters that had planned to take the programme in its entirity now have to scramble to find replacement programmes. The decision will come as huge embarrassment to CBC, which has suffered many industrial disputes over the years, but never with such a dasvastating impact on its international image. The dispute centres around CBC's proposals to save $6m, which involves changes to the rules regarding lunch breaks, shift working and overtime affecting CBC technicians. Despite a planned pay rise of 3.5%, the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union says that its members will lose income. Although the flagship event has been cancelled, the anniversary is being commemorated by a number of broadcasters and many special amateur radio activities around the world. Glenn Hauser has compiled a comprehensive listing of these. (© Radio Netherlands Media Network via Mike Terry, BDXC-UK via DXLD) Tomorrow, the actual date of the wireless transmission, listen on CBC- Radio Two at 8 p.m. to Radio 1901, to hear what a Canadian musical special might have sounded like when there was no radio and no such musical. There is a related interactive exhibit on the Web site, http://artscanada.cbc.ca That's all that's left of planned programming for tomorrow for the anniversary because the CBC technicians' strike has cancelled what was to be a live broadcast on CBC Radio One and in Australia, England and New York City from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. (Toronto Star Dec 11 via Mike Cooper, DXLD) See also NEWFOUNDLAND, UK, USA ** CROATIA [non]. Latest changes at Jülich, released on Dec. 10: Hrvatska Radio: 9885 0000-0159 and 0200-0359 deleted from Dec. 8, only single 9925 remains. (Evidently the announced change to 7285 was never carried out.) (Kai Ludwig, Germany, DX LISTENING DIGEST) See also USA [non]: UMC ** CUBA. RADIO HAVANA CUBA ENGLISH BROADCASTS From: Radio Havana Cuba radiohc@radiohc.org Newsgroups: rec.radio.shortwave Date: Tue, 11 Dec 2001 09:44:06 -0500 Program Guide RADIO HAVANA CUBA ENGLISH BROADCASTS, UT 2230-2330 Caribbean 31m \ 9550 kHz 0100-0500 North America 49m \ 6000 kHz 0100-0700 North America 31m \ 9820 kHz 0500-0700 North America 31m \ 9550 kHz 0100-0500 Europe/Mediterranean 25m \ 11705 kHz USB 0500-0700 Europe/Mediterranean 31m \ 9830 kHz USB 2030-2130 Europe/Mediterranean 11m \ 13660 kHz USB 2030-2130 Europe/Mediterranean 21m \ 13750 kHz ENGLISH PROGRAM SCHEDULE Caribbean: UT Monday-Saturday 2230, Monday-Saturday, International News 2240, Monday-Saturday, National News 2245, Monday-Saturday, RHC's Viewpoint 2300, Monday-Saturday, News Bulletin 2305, Monday-Saturday, Time Out (sports) 2310, Tuesday and Saturday, Dxers Unlimited 2310, Monday and Thursday, Caribbean Outlook 2310, Wednesday, Mailbag Show 2310, Friday, Weekly Review UT Sunday 2230, Weekly Review 2300, Mailbag Show North America: UT Monday-Saturday [sic, not UT days, but local days, obviously --gh] 0100, Monday-Saturday, International News 0110, Monday-Saturday, National News 0115, Monday-Saturday, RHC's Viewpoint 0130, Monday-Saturday, News Bulletin 0135, Monday-Friday, Time Out (sports) 0140, Tuesday and Saturday, Dxers Unlimited 0140, Monday and Thursday, Caribbean Outlook 0140, Wednesday, Mailbag Show 0140, Friday, Weekly Review 0200, Monday-Saturday, International News 0210, Monday-Friday, Spotlight on the Americas 0210, Saturday, The World of Stamps 0230, Monday-Saturday, News Bulletin 0300, Monday-Saturday, International News 0310, Monday-Saturday, National News 0315, Monday-Saturday, RHC's Viewpoint 0330, Monday-Saturday, News Bulletin 0335, Monday-Friday, Time Out (sports) 0340, Tuesday and Saturday, Dxers Unlimited 0340, Monday and Thursday, Caribbean Outlook 0340, Wednesday, Mailbag Show 0340, Friday, Weekly Review 0400, Monday-Saturday, International News 0410, Monday-Friday, Spotlight on the Americas 0415, Saturday, The World of Stamps 0430, Monday-Saturday, News Bulletin 0500, Monday-Saturday, International News 0510, Monday-Saturday, National News 0515, Monday-Saturday, RHC's Viewpoint 0530, Monday-Saturday, News Bulletin 0535, Monday-Friday, Time Out (sports) 0540, Tuesday and Saturday, Dxers Unlimited 0540, Monday and Thursday, Caribbean Outlook 0540, Wednesday, Mailbag Show 0540, Friday, Weekly Review 0600, Monday-Saturday, International News 0610, Monday-Friday, Spotlight on the Americas 0615, Saturday, The World of Stamps 0630, Monday-Saturday, News Bulletin UT Sunday 2000, Weekly Review 2130, Mailbag Show 2200, Top Tens 2230, Jazz Place 2300, Breakthrough 2330, From Havana Europe: UT Monday-Saturday 2030, Monday-Saturday, International News 2040, Monday-Saturday, National News 2045, Monday-Saturday, RHC's Viewpoint 2100, Monday-Saturday, News Bulletin 2105, Monday-Saturday, Time Out (sports) 2110, Tuesday and Saturday, Dxers Unlimited 2110, Monday and Thursday, Caribbean Outlook 2110, Wednesday, Mailbag Show 2110, Friday, Weekly Review UT Sunday 2030, Weekly Review 2100, Mailbag Show -- http://www.radiohc.org (via John Norfolk, OKCOK, DXLD) ** DOMINICAN REPUBLIC. To Don Trelford in Jamaica: the station on 1480 you heard July 20 and IDed as ``Radio Ven``: that is not the station you heard. The one you heard was ``Radio Villa``, a local pop music station, as it is labelled by themselves as ``música de bachata``. Radio Ven is on 1210 and is a strictly religious station, no bachata there, ever. That is what I was referring to in my Nov 19 Musing; I do not use the list published by INDOTEL as it is always wrong, and SURPRISE! That list published on their web site was probably provided by ADORA, the Dominican Republic Radio Association, and it is wrong. Also, the last list published by ADORA in this new year 2001 is another untrusty list. As it is a long time I do not receive the WRTH, I do not know if that book is also correct, as I understand that their list is either provided by Indotel or Adora, and I do not trust any of them when they make a list, even though they are supposed to be able to do the correct one. So the best that you can do is wait for an ID and not report to them according to any list you happen to find. My problem is that I do not have the time or the money to travel around the country and prepare a list; besides, I do not have a car. Sorry. When we did not have so many stations in the country it was easy for me to prepare such a list; right now there are so many that it is too difficult to do that. Besides, I am only speaking about AM stations, as FM is another huge enterprise. My cousin Franklin does not have the time to visit some towns around the country on Sundays in order to do that as we usually did. BTW, there was a fight between the members of ADORA (addressed to the government) against he illegal stations. But when this new government took office on August 16, 2000, there started a raid to close illegal stations all around the country, and according to INDOTEL, they closed down more than one hundred illegal stations, both on AM and FM. It seems that everything is coming to order, but anyway the new Law for Broadcasting is reducing the separation between two local stations on the air in the same town from 30 to 20 kHz, as there are too many of them already on the air interfering with each other. Another news that none of you seem to have noticed is this: The new member of NRC mentioned on the front page of issue No.3 in Miami, FL, is Teo Veras, my partner in the preparation of this book about Radiodifusión in the D.R.; only that he lives in Santo Domingo, not in Miami; that is a mailing address he uses. Merry Christmas to you all, ho ho ho (César Objío, Santo Domingo, cesarobjio@codetel.net.do in Musings, NRC DX News Dec 10 retyped by gh for DXLD) ** GERMANY. 29820 (3 X 9940), Deutsche Welle, 1345 Dec. 11, German PX. ID @ 1355. Harmonic: Fair to strong carrier, but muffled audio. Fundamental: Strong with heavy flutter.(Hodgson, TN USA) If anyone knows this TX site, please let me know. Thanks, (David Hodgson, TN, harmonics yahoogroup via DXLD) ** GERMANY [non]. Germany/USA: Deutsche Welle to air German TV in USA from March 2002 | Text of press release in English by Deutsche Welle on 11 December Deutsche Welle (DW) has decided to start broadcasting German TV - the new German-language television programme for overseas viewers - in the United States via the GlobeCast DTH World Television Platform on Telstar 5 and GE 1. The contract regulating the leasing of the platform was signed by DW Director-General Erik Bettermann and GlobeCast Senior Vice-President Alain Baget on 7 December 2001 in Cologne. At the signing ceremony, Director-General Erik Bettermann said: "The contract assures the launch of best-of programming from the ARD, ZDF and DW on the American pay-TV market beginning 1 March 2002." The decision in favour of GlobeCast was based on a solid market analysis and careful consideration of the opportunities and risks. GlobeCast (which is based in Paris) describes itself as the world's largest provider of satellite transmission services for broadcasters. "We are convinced that with GlobeCast and a soon to be named distribution and marketing agency we can attract all the people interested in German-language TV in the United States to German TV," Bettermann added. Subscribers to German TV will also be able to access DW-radio's German-language broadcasts in stereo quality. "As one of the world's most prestigious broadcast organizations, Deutsche Welle's selection of GlobeCast for distribution of such a prestigious programme as German TV in North America is confirmation in the faith placed in our company's strategic competence in the US," said GlobeCast Senior Vice-President Alain Baget. By offering attractive programmes from abroad including, for example, Euronews GlobeCast was broadening the diversity of TV programming available to American audiences. German TV offered the best programmes from public broadcasters in Germany and was at the same time demonstrating the high quality of European TV productions. "We are confident that other broadcasters will follow in DW's footsteps," Mr Baget added. The agreement signed by DW and GlobeCast paves the way for transmissions via the Ku-band satellite Telstar 5 for direct reception and the C-band GE-1 satellite for cable feeds. In addition, the agreement also puts GlobeCast in charge of subscription services and the distribution of DVB decoders for reception. Henning Knudsen, Deutsche Welle, Programme Distribution, Communications Coordinator, D - 50588 Cologne. Tel: +49-221-389-2731; Fax: +49-221-389-2777; e-mail: Henning.Knudsen@dw-world.de; internet: http://www.dwelle.de Source: Deutsche Welle press release, Cologne, in English 11 Dec 01 (via BBCM via DXLD) ** GREECE. V. of Greece, 7477, slightly off nominal 7475, Dec 8 0115- 0230+, Greek music and talk; \\ 5865, 12110, all good (Brian Alexander, PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** GUATEMALA. R. Verdad, 4052.48, 0300-0505* Dec 8, Spanish religious programing with talk, marimba, vibraphone, choral music. English ID announcements with address, asking for reports at 0311 and 0404. Sign off with 4-minute-long NA. On late tonight; weak to fair (Brian Alexander, PA, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** GUATEMALA. I have been hearing Radio K'ekchí on 4844.85 kHz with a good signal lately between 1100 and 1145 UT. In fact the station is coming in with a good signal now (1128 UT Dec 11). (Chuck Bolland, Lake Worth, Florida, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** INDIA. Hi Glenn, I was just looking over your Monitoring Afghanistan & Vicinity list. One broadcast from All India Radio that I noticed was missing is the 1530-1545 news broadcast in English. It's on all (apparently) of the following frequencies: 1134 3223 3315 3390 4760 4775 4800 4820 4850 4880 4895 4910 4920 4950 4960 4970 4990 5040 5050 6085 7255ki 9565d 9820p 9835d 9910a 11740p. [suffixes apparently denote some transmitter sites -gh]. I've been hearing it at fair levels most days on 11740 (Steve Lare, Holland, MI, N8KDV, Dec 11, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** INDONESIA. RRI Pontianak: FINALLY!! after 8 reports over 10 years I received a f/d photo of the studio building in 37 days with info on back for a 1997 report on 3976.8 kHz. V/s: St. Ruddy Banding. Indo# 43! (Terry Palmersheim, KC7LDP, Dec 11, Hard-Core-DX mailing list via DXLD) ** NETHERLANDS. Andy and the rest of the mortals, I was listening to a mailbag program. Ten letters were read, and not one had any program feedback. This mailbag program very seldom has any program feedback. I would almost bet my life the station did not censor and would have loved to received program feedback. Not a new issue, I have posted this question before, maybe more than once. What percentage of RN's letters in English are not reception reports, or wow I heard you, or what happened to Dody and Jerry or I last listened thirty years ago, or most important, can you broadcast Saturnish and the very most important, can you send a radio? What percentage are constructively critical or useful in pointing out errors or have suggestions for programs that can be and are followed up. To be blunt, what percentage are useful for more than increasing the letter count? (Larry Nebron, CA, swprograms Dec 10 via DXLD) Larry, an interesting question, to which I personally don't know the answer, but I've passed it on to Howard Shannon and perhaps he will answer on air, or at least get back to you. I don't routinely see the mail that comes into the English department, as I work along the corridor in the Interactive Department. My English colleagues do, of course, share with me the letters and E-mails they get that ask technical questions, or other things that are appropriate to Media Network. We do get some quite interesting feedback to our programmes via the Web site (the Guestbook and - for current affairs - the forums we set up for that purpose). Rob Greene usually generates some strong opinions with Insite. I think part of the problem is that people tend to write to individual programme producers about their particular shows. I know that because some of my colleagues tell me about interesting feedback they've had. On the other hand, I always remember Margaret Howard telling me that the letters she used on letterbox on BBCWS were often about the only ones worth using that week, which surprised me as I'd imagined that BBCWS must get hundreds of letters with opinions each week. So probably SWL's should be more proactive. As we've discussed before, the lack of feedback could have been a contributory factor to ending the BBC's shortwave service to North America (Andy Sennitt, ibid.) Although I work for Radio Netherlands, I am participating here on an individual basis. Opinions expressed are my own, and do not necessarily reflect the official position of Radio Netherlands. ** NEWFOUNDLAND. [Greateastern] Dispute scuttles Marconi special Yes, at some point, bootleg gods willing, it will be on the web site. The official word I heard today from GE types was there is no official word. CBC would like to air it but don't know when or in what context. One of the problems is that it is sort of specific to the Marconi occasion. (Gerry Porter, School of Continuing Education, Memorial University of Newfoundland, 709-737-7575/2380, Dec 10, greateastern yahoogroup via Mike Cooper, DXLD) ** NEWFOUNDLAND [and non]. Marconi's milestone 12/9/01 By MICHAEL MacDONALD, The Canadian Press As far as historic events go, it was an odd scene indeed: several men on a hill trying to fly a kite in a December gale. But the antics atop Signal Hill in St. John's enabled Guglielmo Marconi to record a milestone in telecommunications history: receiving the first wireless signal transmitted across the Atlantic Ocean. It was Dec. 12, 1901 -- 100 years ago this week. The 27-year-old Italian inventor reported hearing a series of three faint clicks -- the letter S in Morse code. The electromagnetic signal, picked up by a copper wire suspended from the kite, came from about 3,500 kilometres away in Poldhu, England. ``Electric waves ... had traversed the Atlantic, serenely ignoring the curvature of the Earth,'' Marconi later wrote. It was an incredible technological feat. The headline in the St. John's Evening Herald was typical of worldwide reaction: The Wireless Wizard! Marconi Spans the Ocean. For his efforts, he was awarded the Nobel Prize. More importantly, he became known as the father of radio. To mark the 100th anniversary of Marconi's experiment, Gov. Gen. Adrienne Clarkson will travel to St. John's this week to take part in a re-enactment that will be beamed worldwide via satellite. It will be a proud moment for Newfoundland and Labrador. But a closer look at the history books reveals a little-known story few Newfoundlanders would be proud to share. On the same day the world learned of Marconi's accomplishment, a lawyer showed up at the inventor's hotel, according to D. R. Tarrant's new book, Marconi's Miracle. The lawyer handed Marconi a letter threatening a lawsuit and demanding immediate removal of all experimental ``appliances'' from the colony. The man behind the letter was the local superintendent of the Anglo- American Telegraph Co. The company's executives, who held a monopoly on all transatlantic telegraph cables, knew killer competition when they saw it. ``It was a business decision,'' says Judith Tulloch, a historian with Parks Canada in Halifax. ``The cable company had made a lot of money from transatlantic communication.'' The letter's impact was immediate. Marconi had planned to repeat his experiment the following day on Signal Hill. But he instead offered a lecture to local dignitaries. The legal threat also forced Marconi to scuttle plans to build permanent wireless stations at either Signal Hill or nearby Cape Spear, the most easterly point in North America. Within days, Marconi had his equipment packed up and sent back to England. He left for Ottawa where he struck a deal with the Canadian government to build a wireless station in Nova Scotia, near Glace Bay. Where radio was born Still, Newfoundland can always boast about being the birthplace of radio, even though its father didn't stick around very long. To capitalize on that theme, CBC Radio in Newfoundland created a promotional campaign this year featuring ads that proclaim: "Radio was born here. It lives here.'' Again, history tells a different story. Newfoundland's claim as radio's birthplace ``is a bit of hyperbole,'' says Tulloch, an expert on Marconi. ``(Radio waves) had been used quite extensively in Britain. There were lots of experiments to show it worked. ... Marconi was one of a number of researchers.'' While theories about radio waves date back to the early 1800s, it wasn't until 1888 that German physicist Heinrich Hertz verified those theories by transmitting and receiving electromagnetic signals across a room. To this day, the frequency of radio waves is measured in units called hertz. It was a journal article by Hertz that inspired a young Marconi to make his own radio equipment. By 1895, six years before his triumph on Signal Hill, Marconi had built a device that could ring a bell without wires. That's why the Geneva-based International Telecommunications Union believes radio was born on the Marconi estate near Bologna, Italy -- not Newfoundland. The organization celebrated radio's 100th birthday on Oct. 7, 1995. To confuse matters, there was another 100th birthday in March 1999 in England, complete with a re-enactment. A century earlier, Marconi succeeded in sending wireless messages across the English Channel -- a 50-kilometre span from Wimereux, France to South Foreland in England. It was the first time two countries had been linked by a radio signal. By 1899, Marconi had already proven his wireless transmitter could overcome great distances. But there was one more physical obstacle to overcome: the horizon. Scientists at the time said it couldn't be done. They were convinced radio waves would sail into space once they hit the curvature of the Earth. Marconi would prove them wrong. But not in Newfoundland. Soon after his company completed work on the wireless station at Poldhu in 1901, Marconi succeeded in sending signals to a station in Crookhaven on the Irish coast -- a beyond-the-horizon distance of 350 kilometres. With the horizon bridged, the Atlantic was the next great challenge. While the experiment on Signal Hill was hardly a pioneering effort, its symbolic appeal was undeniable, Tulloch says. Marconi captured imaginations around the world by bridging such a great distance. ``It was the linking the continents that mattered,'' she says. ``Crossing the ocean -- it's the incredible distance.'' (The Telegram via via Mike Cooper, DXLD) Faking the waves A hundred years ago this week, Guglielmo Marconi sent the first radio signals across the Atlantic - or so he claimed. Laurie Margolis on the historic moment that may never have happened It goes down as one of the great moments in science, along with Newton's apple and Fleming's mouldy dish of penicillin: and all it amounted to was three sounds - click-click-click. The time was 12.30pm on December 12 1901, at Signal Hill, a gale-swept cliff on the Newfoundland coast. Some 2,200 miles away, at Poldhu in Cornwall, it was 4.30pm, dusk. There, on the southwest coast of England, was a radio transmitter, the most powerful then built, sending groups of three Morse code dots, repeated over and over - the letter S. There is nothing special about S, other than that it comprised only dots. There were fears that anything longer - a dash - might cause the transmitter to break down. It is the scene in Newfoundland that requires analysis. It shouldn't have been Newfoundland. .... They knew what they hoped to receive: three clicks. And this is extremely important. At 12.30pm, Marconi became convinced he could hear the signal. "Sigs at 12.30, 1.10 and 2.20." Marconi and Kemp had successfully received the first radio signals ever to cross the Atlantic ocean. It was a massive moment; everything in telecommunications followed on from that click-click-click. ..... Except that it may never have happened.... http://www.guardian.co.uk/Print/0,3858,4317198,00.html (Guardian via Daniel Say, swprograms via DXLD) ** NIGERIA [non]. Nigeria/USA: VOA Hausa Service accused of pro-Muslim, anti-Christian bias A Nigerian newspaper, Daily Trust, has reported on allegations that the Hausa Muslim staff of the Voice of America (VOA) have been spreading pro-Muslim, anti-Christian and anti-American propaganda through its broadcasts. The Daily Trust on 10 December quoted an American newspaper, The Weekly Standard, as saying that the allegations prompted VOA to appoint Mr Sunday Dare, a Nigerian Christian, to head the Hausa Service. The Weekly Standard report, dated 12 November, quoted VOA Director Robert Reilly as saying "we are aware of the problems (allegations of bias)" and are "paying very special attention" to the Hausa service. The Weekly Standard said Reilly had expressed concern over the VOA Hausa Service interview with Sheikh Dahiru Mohammed Bauchi on 15 October, in which the Islamic scholar accused American forces of killing innocent Muslims in Afghanistan. The Weekly Standard quoted Reilly as describing the broadcast as "totally unacceptable". It added: "All broadcasts from the Hausa section are now being reviewed by both Dare and the regional director, Mr Reilly." The Weekly Standard had earlier reviewed what it said were the criticisms against the Hausa service's pro-Muslim anti-Christian programming and hiring policies. It said: "Nigerian Christians complain that the VOA perpetuates a subtle pro-Muslim bias, as when it exaggerates the size of the Muslim population in places such as Jos and interviews a disproportionate percentage of Muslims in "man-on-the-street segments." Source: BBC Monitoring research, 10 Dec 01 (via DXLD) ** OMAN. Radio Oman is no longer being heard in English 0300~0400 UT on 15355 kHz. Instead a religious program in Arabic is being heard (Call: Idha`at ul Sultanat e Umman). Wonder if they have done this just for Holy month of Ramadaan or discontinued English altogether. English programming was in fact a relay from their local programs. 73s, (GRDXC, Punjab, Dec 11 via DXLD) ** PHILIPPINES. Radio Philipinas morning schedule (announced) in English: 0200~0330 UT, 15270 kHz, 15120 kHz, 12015 kHz. The station announces itself as "Radio Pilipinas, Voice of the Philippines. 73s, (Harjot Singh Brar, Punjab, for GRDXC Dec 10 via DXLD) Used to be one hour at 0300? (gh, DXLD) ** SWITZERLAND. The End of an Era: This is what Bob Zanotti wrote. December 2001 Dear Colleagues, 2001 witnessed events and trauma that few of us could ever have imagined. The main shocks were, of course, the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and the war in Afghanistan that followed. Here in Switzerland, we were incredibly shaken by the shooting-bloodbath in the cantonal legislature in Zug, the collapse of Swissair, and the disastrous accident and fire in the Gotthard Road Tunnel. Although certain outstanding current events topics have figured in +Swiss Mix this year, its main thrust has always been to portray everyday life in Switzerland and developments that occur here, that are relevant to a non-Swiss audience. When I became responsible for +Swiss Mix 10 years ago, it consisted of a small selection of topical reports of particular interest to the community of Swiss Abroad in Australia. In the ensuing years, it has grown to a 90-minute audio package serving some 100 producers, stations and networks all over the world. During that period, it has been my privilege to meet many +Swiss Mix users in person, while attending the Public Radio Conferences in the United States. These and other contacts have continued till today. But things change and nothing lasts forever. The old Swiss Radio International has become a primarily Internet-based swissinfo. This last edition of +Swiss Mix in the year 2001 also sees the last Name Game and Letter From Switzerland. This reflects changes in swissinfo/SRI’s English-language programme philosophy. This is also the last time I will be producing +Swiss Mix, moving on to other duties in the new year. Starting with the January 2002 edition, my colleagues Anna Nelson and Gillian Zbinden will be responsible for +Swiss Mix. I wish them well. One thing does not change, however: the need for your continued input in the form of criticism and suggestions. It has been a very great pleasure to serve you these past 10 years, and it is not easy to say good-bye. I wish you all the very best for the future and for the holiday season. (Bob Zanotti, via Larry Nebron, Dec 11, swprograms via DXLD) ** TAIWAN. B-01 FREQUENCY USAGE - December 2001 In view of the public unavailability of a composite schedule for HF transmissions from the CBS, which includes the External Network (Radio Taipei International), this compilation may be of interest. It is based on engineering planning data made available to me from sources within the ABU and ITU, with no embargo on further publication, in addition to information supplied directly from the CBS in Taipei. It is updated to December 1, 2001. I make no apology for any inconsistencies with actual operations, as frequency movements may be made at short notice, to avoid interference. These are usually channels in the same band, selected from the ITU Master List of authorized frequencies. Times shown for some services may be varied. Some broadcasts in Chinese nominally designated "RTI" may include relays originating from the Domestic Networks. Note that "Voice of Asia" programming is no longer carried as a separate service, having been incorporated into other Networks. Good listening to Taiwan! Bob Padula, Broadcast Engineering Consultant, Melbourne, Australia --------------------------------------------- TAIWAN B-01 FREQUENCY USAGE - DECEMBER 2001 --------------------------------------------- KEY: RTI External Network - Radio Taipei International VAR Variety Network DIA Dialects Network NWS News Network DWT Date with Taipei Network (Chinese) RA Radio Australia FAM Family Radio (WYFR) VOC Voice of China WSHB World Harvest Radio Network Transmissions originating from CBS/RTI, as relayed over other broadcasters, are shown for completeness. 3335 0600 1000 Date with Taiwan Chinese 5810 2100 2200 RTI German via WYFR 5810 2200 2300 RTI English via WYFR 5950 0000 0100 DIA Hakka via WYFR 5950 0100 0200 DIA Cantonese via WYFR 5950 0200 0400 RTI English via WYFR 5950 0400 0500 RTI Chinese via WYFR 5950 0500 0600 DIA Cantonese via WYFR 5950 0600 0700 RTI Spanish via WYFR 5950 0700 0800 RTI English via WYFR 5950 2200 0000 NWS Chinese via WYFR 6040 1400 1800 DWT Chinese 6085 0800 1500 VAR Chinese 0800-1500 Sa 6105 1000 1100 DIA Hakka 6105 1200 1400 DIA Cantonese 6145 1000 1200 DIA Hakka 6145 1200 1300 DIA Cantonese 6150 2230 0000 VAR Chinese 6165 1100 1200 DIA Hakka 6180 1900 2000 RTI German via Skelton 6280 1500 1600 FAM English 6300 2100 0000 FAM Chinese 7130 1100 1200 RTI Japanese 7130 1200 1300 RTI English 7130 1300 1400 RTI Japanese 7130 1400 1500 RTI Korean 7365 0900 1800 NWS Chinese 7415 0900 1700 VAR Chinese 7445 1100 1200 RTI English 7445 1200 1300 RTI Indonesian 7445 1600 1700 RTI Indonesian 7445 2200 2300 RTI Thai 7520 0100 0200 DIA Cantonese 9280 2100 0000 FAM Chinese 9355 0600 0700 RTI German via WYFR 9355 0700 0800 RTI French via WYFR 9355 2000 2100 RTI French via WYFR 9355 2100 2200 RTI German via WYFR 9355 2200 2300 RTI English via WYFR 9540 1000 1100 DIA Tibetan 9610 0900 1000 RTI Chinese 9610 1000 1100 DIA Cantonese 9610 1100 1200 NWS Chinese 9610 1200 1300 RTI English 9640 0700 1800 NWS Chinese 9650 0900 1800 NWS Chinese 9650 2230 0100 NWS Chinese 9680 0200 0400 RTI English via WYFR 9680 0400 0500 RTI Chinese via WYFR 9680 0500 0600 DIA Cantonese via WYFR 9690 2300 0300 DWT Chinese 9690 2300 0000 RTI Spanish via WYFR 9780 1000 1100 DIA Cantonese 9780 1100 1200 DIA Cantonese 9780 1300 1400 DIA Hakka 9790 2300 0000 NWS Chinese 9790 2200-2300 RTI Vietnamese 9955 1500 1700 RTI Russian 9955 1700 1800 RTI Russian 9955 1800 1900 RTI German 9955 1900 2000 RTI Chinese 9955 2000 2100 RTI French 9955 2100 2200 RTI Spanish 9960 2300 0000 RTI Vietnamese 11550 0000 0100 FAM Hindi 11550 0800 0830 RA Indonesian 11550 1000 1100 RTI Indonesian 11550 1100 1200 RTI Indonesian 11550 1300 1500 FAM English 11550 1600 1800 RTI English 11550 2130 2330 RA Indonesian 11605 0900 1000 RTI Chinese 11605 1000 1100 DIA Amoy 11605 1100 1200 RTI Japanese 11605 1200 1300 RTI Chinese 11605 1300 1400 RTI Japanese 11610 1800 1900 RTI Arabic 11615 1100 1400 VAR Chinese 11635 1000 1100 DIA Cantonese 11635 1100 1200 DIA Hakka 11635 1200 1300 RTI Indonesian 11635 1300 1400 DIA Amoy 11635 1400 1500 RTI Thai 11635 1500 1600 RTI Burmese 11635 2200 0000 NWS Chinese 11645 0000 0200 VAR Chinese 11645 0400 1400 VAR Chinese 0600-0900 Sa-Su 11665 1300 1700 VAR Chinese 11715 0800 0900 DIA Amoy 11720 2300 0000 RTI Spanish 11725 0900 1300 VAR Chinese 11730 0400 0900 VAR Chinese Sa Su 11740 0200 0300 RTI English via WYFR 11740 0300 0400 DIA Cantonese 11740 0400 0500 RTI Spanish via WYFR 11745 0500 0530 RA Indonesian 11745 1300 1400 RTI Russian 11745 1400 1500 RTI Indonesian 11745 1600 1700 RTI Indonesian 11780 1000 1100 WSHB English 11795 1400 1800 DWT Chinese 11825 0200 0300 RTI Spanish via WYFR 11855 0200 0300 DIA Cantonese via WYFR 11855 1400 1700 VAR Chinese 11865 0000 0200 VAR Chinese 11875 0000 0100 DIA Amoy 11875 0100 0200 DIA Amoy 11875 0300 0400 DIA Hakka 11875 0300 0400 RTI English 11875 1700 1800 DIA Hakka 11875 2300 0000 RTI Vietnamese 11885 2230 0000 VAR Chinese 11905 0100 0500 NWS Chinese 11915 1200 1300 DIA Cantonese 11915 1300 1400 DIA Cantonese 11915 1400 1500 DIA Hakka 11915 1500 1600 RTI Vietnamese 11955 1600 1700 RTI Arabic 11985 0400 0600 VAR Chinese 11985 0900 1000 RTI Russian 11985 1000 1100 DIA Mong 11985 1100 1200 RTI English 15060 0000 0100 FAM Hindi 15060 0100 0200 FAM English 15060 0400 0600 VAR Chinese 15215 0200 0300 RTI Spanish via WYFR 15215 0300 0800 NWS Chinese via WYFR 15245 0000 0200 VAR Chinese 15265 1400 1500 RTI English 15265 1500 1700 VAR Chinese 15280 2200 2300 VOC Chinese 15290 0100 0200 DIA Cantonese 15290 0200 0500 NWS Chinese 15310 0100 0200 RTI Japanese 15320 0200 0400 RTI English 15320 0400 0500 RTI Chinese 15320 0500 0600 DIA Cantonese 15320 0600 0700 RTI Thai 15320 0900 1000 RTI Chinese 15330 0400 0900 VAR Chinese Sa-Su 15345 0300 0400 RTI Korean 15350 0400 0800 VAR Chinese Sa-Su 15395 0900 1300 NWS Chinese 15405 0400 0500 RTI Chinese 15405 0600 0700 RTI Thai 15405 0700 0800 RTI Burm 15405 0900 1000 RTI Chinese 15405 1100 1200 DIA Cantonese 15405 1200 1300 RTI Chinese 15405 1400 1500 RTI Thai 15405 1500 1600 RTI Vietnamese 15430 0400 0600 VAR Chinese 15440 0000 0100 DIA Amoy via WYFR 15440 0100 0200 DIA Cantonese via WYFR 15440 0600 0700 DIA Amoy 15440 2200 0000 NWS Chinese via WYFR 15465 0200 0300 RTI English 15465 0800 0900 RTI Japanese 15465 0900 1000 DIA Hakka 15465 1000 1100 DIA Amoy 15465 1100 1200 DIA Hakka 15465 1200 1300 RTI Chinese 15465 1300 1400 DIA Amoy 15465 1400 1500 RTI Korean 15525 1000 1100 DIA Cantonese 15525 1500 1700 FAM English 15580 0500 0600 DIA Cantonese 15580 0700 0800 DIA Amoy 15580 0800 0900 RTI Indonesian 15580 0900 1000 RTI Chinese 15580 1000 1200 RTI Indonesian 15600 1900 2000 RTI Chinese via WYFR 15695 1300 1400 RTI Russian 17750 1900 2000 RTI Chinese via WYFR 17760 1800 1900 RTI French via WYFR 17760 2000 2100 RTI Spanish via WYFR 17845 0100 0200 RTI Chinese via WYFR (End) (Bob Padula, Electronic DX Press via DXLD) ** TUVALU. Tuvalu being abandoned. The Tuvalu Government has announced that it`s giving up the battle against rising seas caused by global warming, and is preparing to gradually abandon the island nation, home of Radio Tuvalu 621 kHz. Australia and New Zealand have advanced plans to resettle Tuvaluans, many of whom already live in New Zealand. The first group for resettlement will leave for New Zealand in 2002. Rising sea levels are a major problem for low lying Pacific islands. However, this is the first time an island government has admitted it simply can`t afford to continue attempts to build higher and higher seawalls and find new sources of drinking water (Pacific Islands Report via Dec NZ DX Times via DXLD) Radio Tuvalu from Funafuti is regularly heard in New Zealand and around the south Pacific. If you haven’t logged and QSL`d them, we suggest you get onto it over the next couple of years. Ironically, the signal gets out well because of the increasing salt water impregnation of its transmitting site (Dec NZ DX Times via DXLD) What about all the $$ they are raking in by selling their .tv domain? Somewhat credible, but is this a December Fool story? (gh, DXLD) ** UKRAINE. 7285, 1956-, R. UKRAINE INTERNATIONAL, Dec 8. Sign of the winter season. noon local, and I'm receiving RUI with Ukrainian music program with fair reception. Only occurs in the deepest of the winter months. I've heard Radio Polonia on 49 and 31 meters around the same time of the year as well in broad daylight here (Walt Salmaniw, Victoria, BC, Canada, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U K. BROADCASTERS `GIVING LEGITIMACY TO MIDEAST TERROR GROUP` By John Deane, Chief Political Correspondent, PA News British broadcasters are conferring a degree of "legitimacy" on anti- Israeli groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad, Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith suggested today. Mr Duncan Smith argued that the BBC and other broadcasters were guilty of "fudging" the real nature of such groups in their reports on the Middle East conflict, by failing to identify them as terrorists. In a speech to the Conservative Friends of Israel in London, the Tory leader warned that terrorists must not be appeased, arguing that groups like Hamas are bent on the destruction of Israel and have no interest in finding a peaceful settlement. Mr Duncan Smith told his audience, at The Savoy Hotel, that he endorsed US President George W Bush's view that following the recent terrorist attacks on Israel, the time had come for those who wanted peace, in the President's words, to "rise up and fight terror". He also welcomed the US administration's freezing of terrorist finances. Mr Duncan Smith continued: "Against this background, surely it is time that our national broadcasters, not just, but including the BBC, stopped describing Hamas and Jihad with such euphemisms as radical and militant? "Let us call things what they are: they are terrorist organisations. "Such fudging of what Hamas or Islamic Jihad are confers some sort of legitimacy on people who are terrorists. "Such misappropriation is absurd when even Palestinian moderates in Jerusalem describe the suicide bombers as terrorists." Palestinian suicide bombers have killed dozens of Israeli civilians in recent weeks, and injured many more, prompting a forceful Israeli military response against targets in Yasser Arafat's Palestinian Authority. The Israelis accuse Arafat of doing too little to rein in the violent factions based in his territory. Mr Duncan Smith argued that the agenda of Hamas and Islamic Jihad was clear. He said: "Hamas and Islamic Jihad are not interested in peace. They demand nothing less than the destruction of Israel and all that it stands for. "The violence and terror they use have become ends in themselves. Israel has the right to defend herself accordingly. "It is now up to the Palestinian Authority to show that it will no longer tolerate terrorism. More than that, it must never again allow terrorists to justify their monstrous acts in the name of the Palestinian cause." The attacks on Israel, as well as the September 11 terror attacks on the United States, underlined the importance of the civilised world making a prolonged stand against terrorism, the Tory leader argued. "Our fight against terror must not stop in Afghanistan. The days of safe havens for terrorists are over. No longer can we appease or turn a blind eye to regimes that support terrorism." Turning to the domestic agenda, Mr Duncan Smith emphasised the need for party discipline if the Tories were to return to power. He told his audience: "I am told that David Ben-Gurion (Israel's first prime minister) once said `In Israel, in order to be a realist you must believe in miracles.' "As the leader of the Conservative Party, I think I know what he meant. "Our party must once again be disciplined and determined to return to Government. We must inspire people to believe that we are on their side - our policy must be about helping people to achieve." Responding to Mr Duncan Smith's criticism, a BBC spokesman said: "The BBC has an obligation to be impartial, independent and accurate. "We use entirely neutral language in which to describe news events, particularly in complex situations such as the Middle East, where any appearance of bias would undermine our credibility." But the spokesman said the Corporation was explicit in its reporting of events such as suicide bombings and their consequences "detailing the atrocities which have taken place, the effects on the victims and their families and the fact that no warnings were given". (PA Dec 10 via Mike Cooper, DXLD) ** U K [and non]. Here are three sites to learn about Wednesday's re- creation of Marconi's spark gap transmission of December 12, 1901. http://www.qsl.net/g4rfr/marconi.htm http://www.the-technology-channel.com/showna.cfm?na=160 http://www.royal-navy.mod.uk/static/content/1933.html (Mark Durenberger, CPBE, NRC-AM via DXLD) ** U K. **M** BBC and Marconi: Although I have no FIRM news, I find it hard to believe that something won`t be mentioned somewhere. (1) Have a look at Schedule Up-Dates Very Late Tuesday Evening or, if you are on 24/7 Web Access, Wednesday Morning on http://www.radiotimes.com (2) Check out Programmes like To-Day (Radio 4) Breakfast (Radio 5 Live) Nicky Campbell (0900-1200) and especially the Midday News (1200-1300) Radio 5 Live. In theory I would have thought Fi Glover Radio 5 Live, 2300-0100 Wednesday. Radio 5 Live should be good as well for this; however I rarely hear her mention media matters, despite the fact she is 'supposed to be in the know' Also look out on the Sci-Tech Pages of Ceefax on Wednesday, http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice and other scientific pages on the net. Also News Programmes on Television, especially BBC. I think everybody is being too despondent about this and that we will be reasonably well surprised by coverage, at the end of the day!! (Ken Fletcher, BDXC-48, 10th December 2001, 2320UTC=11.20pm British Clock Time, BDXC-UK via DXLD) ** U K. Subject : [BDXC-UK] Cornwall celebrates Marconi milestone DX Information from the British DX Club (BDXC-UK). From: http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_1701000/1701461.stm (with pictures) Tuesday, 11 December, 2001, 16:35 GMT By BBC News Online's Helen Briggs On 12 December, 1901, three faint clicks tapping out the Morse code for the letter "s" were picked up by an aerial held aloft by a kite on the coast of Canada. The first and final answer came at 12:30 when I heard...dot...dot..dot - Guglielmo Marconi. The signals had been sent for the first time across the Atlantic from a makeshift wireless station on a cliff at Poldhu in Cornwall, England. The Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi masterminded this visionary experiment, earning a place in history as the "father of wireless". This week's centenary of the first transatlantic radio signal will be marked by the opening of a museum dedicated to Marconi and his achievements. Click here http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_1701000/1701461.stm to listen to Sir Ambrose Fleming - whose equipment was used in the Atlantic experiment - talking about the early days of wireless. A few days short of the 100th anniversary, Carolyn Rule, chair of the Poldhu Amateur Radio Club, sits in front of hi-tech radio equipment looking out at the field from which the first transatlantic radio signal was sent. All modern day telecommunications, including radio, TV, mobile phones and satellites can be traced back through this milestone of wireless communication. "It's quite an emotional thing to be sitting here looking out on to the wireless field," she says. "You can see the ruins over there just ahead of us which is the actual remains of the original wireless building that Marconi would have used." On 11 December, 1901, the first attempt at transmission from Poldhu took place - and failed. Marconi, who was in Newfoundland, had sent a message back to England, via the underwater telegraph cable, to tell the Poldhu transmitter to send radio signals between 12 noon and 3 pm local time. A weak signal was received in Canada but the wind was so strong that the balloon holding the aerial aloft was swept away. The following day, after losing one kite, a second was launched with the aerial attached and the signal from Cornwall was heard by both Marconi and George Stephen Kemp, his assistant. "The chief question," Marconi said at the time, "was whether wireless waves would be stopped by the curvature of the Earth. All along, I had been convinced that this was not so. The first and final answer came at 12:30 when I heard...dot...dot...dot." In an age when transatlantic radio and television broadcasts are routine, Marconi's Atlantic success seems unremarkable. But it was a scientific milestone that changed global communications. Each year, hundreds of radio enthusiasts from all over the world make a pilgrimage to Poldhu to pay homage to Marconi. The ruins of the original building built by Marconi to send the signal across the ocean are still visible in the cliff-top field at the edge of the Lizard Peninsula. All that remains are the scars left by the main mast, crumbling chunks of brick and some of the original floor tiles of the hut. Beyond that, over a dry-stone wall, lies a memorial to Marconi and then the ocean stretching more than 2,700 kilometres (1,700 miles) to Canada. "It's hard to believe that these ruins started it all - radio, TV and internet," says Debbie Peers, of the National Trust, which owns the land. "[The original station] was actually taken down in 1934 and demolished," she says. "But it's quite evocative - you can still see on the ground plan parts of the transmitter and the original rooms the engineers worked in." To celebrate the centenary, the National Trust has constructed a new building on the site with the help of Marconi plc and a local grant. "It's been built in the spirit of Marconi rather than an actual replica of the buildings that were there," says Debbie Peers. "It's made entirely of wood and it's been built so that it takes in environmental considerations but also so that it blends in with the background." The building houses radio equipment, an exhibit on Marconi and computers that link with Marconi plc's archive collection on their founder. "This building is a permanent memorial to his great work," says Carolyn Rule. "Amazing things went on here and we can now mark it in a proper way." The 100th anniversary will also be commemorated by a re-enactment of Marconi's historic transmission. Members of the Poldhu Amateur Radio Club will send the "s" signal across the water to radio enthusiasts in Newfoundland, just as Marconi did all those years ago. Marconi centenary: - Opening of the new Marconi centre, set up by the National Trust, Marconi plc and Poldhu Amateur Radio Club - The "s" Morse code dot, dot, dot, will be sent across the Atlantic to St John's, Newfoundland - Royal Navy's Thunderer Squadron will take part in the celebrations Carolyn Rule admits that it is a little easier nowadays. "We can cheat a little with e-mails and mobile phones," she says. Marconi proved what many respected scientists doubted - that a signal could be picked up thousands of kilometres away in Canada. At the time it was thought that wireless communication over long distances would never be possible because electromagnetic waves, which travel in straight lines, would be radiated into space or absorbed by the curve of the Earth. Marconi achieved his dream of seeing a network of radio stations linking the world. But he could scarcely have imagined that one day it would be possible to stand on the same Cornish cliff-top and send a fax, e-mail or text message anywhere in the world; or that giant telescopes would be tuning in to radio waves sent from deep space. Marconi was often asked whether he had ever heard signals from Mars. He always replied: "I am concerned enough at present with business upon Earth." Across the Atlantic and Beyond - a special programme on Marconi's historic transmission will be broadcast on Wednesday, 12 December, at 15.30 GMT on BBC Two in the South West (via Mike Terry, BDXC-UK via DXLD) According to BBC News Site, special programme on Marconi Wednesday 12th December 1530 UT BBC2-South West Region [I am a little suspicious of that time because of Parliamentary Coverage], but those of you in the South West should be able to check BBC 1 Ceefax-Page 602 for the latest Situation. ALL interested should keep an eye on http://www.radiotimes.com schedule changes for the latest on this. See my E-Mail of yesterday, for some other suggestions. I suspect also there will be further items on http://www.bbc.co.uk/news later this evening and to-morrow (Ken Fletcher 1832 UT 11th December 2001, BDXC-UK via DXLD) Go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/news then click on sci/tech. Several sub- stories now available from that including a profile of Marconi (Ken Fletcher, 11th December 2001 2115 UT, BDXC-UK via DXLD) ** U K. My copy of the December BBC On Air was defective --- half the pages duplicated, half the pages missing (signature mixup). Again to OA`s credit, they replaced it in less than a week, at a postal expense of 4.85 pounds, replying immediately to my E-mail. I`ve consulted it much less, lately, anyway, with BBCWS marginalizing itself so much, but should check in case there be any Xmas specials worth mentioning. But first, I couldn`t help but notice that on the Americas weekday page 30, the local time columns were headed EDT and PDT even though the conversions from GMT were correctly -5 and -8 for EST and PST. (At least, I hope the programming matches up correctly.) Isn`t it about time, excuse the expression, that Americans and non-Americans quit mixing up DST with ST in fact or in nomenclature??? Remember only a few years back, when BBCWS deliberately went in for Xmas specials, but this year the only obvious ones are FONLAC, as usual on all streams Mon 24th at 1502 for 90 minutes (bet it`s really 87 or 88... but then we couldn`t call it a sesquihour), and additionally to Ams repeated at 2230, and to E Asia Tue 0030. ...and of course, HM The Queen`s Xmas Message to the Commonwealth [including Mozambique....], billed as 10 minutes on the 25th, at quite a variety of times into the next UT day: WAf 2105, 0205; Eu 2005, 0205; E&SAf 1805, 0205; ME 1805, 0205; SAs 1605; EAs 1105; Ams 0205 [only!] (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U K. Some of last summer`s Promenade Concert broadcasts on BBC Radio 3 are about to be repeated, between Dec 20 and Jan 9. Schedule: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/broadcasts/repeats.shtml Meanwhile, the pages detailing content and programme notes seem to have vanished (Glenn Hauser, DXLD) ** U K. Monday, 10 December, 2001, 06:26 GMT Radio days of 'Cuddly Ken' unearthed Kenny Everett during his radio days The comedian was often "at war" with his BBC bosses. Kenny Everett's local radio days are to be recalled on air as broadcasts up to three decades old have been unearthed. The documentary has been developed after some local BBC radio stations had to be reminded the late comedian had actually worked for them. Broadcasts of the man, who liked to be known as "Cuddly Ken", have also been made possible after one current BBC employee admitted he "borrowed" a master tape. Mr Everett worked for up to six BBC radio stations in the 1970s, nearly 10 years before he became a television star. The stations themselves didn't keep the tapes and... some were insistent he never worked for them Presenter Paul Rowley His "break" into the local scene came after a "jokey reference" to a transport minister's wife on national radio got him sacked from Radio 1. Researched and presented by BBC political correspondent Paul Rowley, the programme Kenny Everett: The Local Radio Years will remind audiences of the "sheer ingenuity" of the man. An appeal for "lost" broadcasts led John Holmes, now a mid-morning presenter on Radio Derby, to admit he removed a master tape of Mr Everett's from the offices of Radio Nottingham in 1972. 'Master craftsman' Another source was Rob Salvidge, of BBC Radio Bristol, who owned up that he had "illegally" recorded the comedian's Radio Merseyside show. Then aged 13, he had plugged a reel-to-reel tape machine into his mother's radio. Mr Rowley, who grew up listening to the comedian, said many radio stations were mystified when they were told Mr Everett had worked for them. Kenny Everett as Sid Snot, one of his comedy characters [caption] The comedian went on to front his own TV show He said: "The stations themselves didn't keep the tapes and in researching this programme some were insistent he never worked for them." Mr Rowley explained the gaps in history were probably to do with the fact that after being sacked from Radio 1 he went on being fired. After failing to impress the then managing director of radio at BBC Radio Bristol in 1971, Mr Everett went on to create problems at BBC Radio Solent. Mr Rowley said: "Radio Solent's 30th anniversary programme had made no mention of him...perhaps it was because he was sacked from the station. "His crime was to produce a Saturday morning programme, which featured extracts from American radio." Fortunately, Mr Everett was able to break back in to the national radio scene after he was re-instated at Radio 1 in 1973. He turned his back on the BBC in the same year, however, to become one of the first voices on commercial London station Capital Radio. Mr Rowley remembers: "It was Kenny Everett who made the radio crackle for me. "Nothing was bland, every link was a gem. He was a master of his craft." The documentary can be heard between 24 December and 1 January 2002 on BBC local radio across England. (BBC News via Mike Cooper, DXLD) ** U S A. I had a conversation with a Boston area engineer today. The pirates in the Boston area "apparently" run legal Part 15 systems made by some commercial outfit. They went so far as to give locations and technical specs to the local FCC Field Engineer. I will not vouch that they meet their claimed specs (Craig Healy, Dec 11, NRC-AM via DXLD) Evidently referring to 1500-1700 kHz area, if not FM? (gh, DXLD) Don't the FCC requirements specify ERP? And isn't that also a function of the antenna? And therefore wouldn't that potentially negate any presumed 'legality' of the transmitters? (Russ Edmunds, PA, NRC-AM via DXLD) There are alternate specs which stipulate something like 100 mw input to the final amp, and a 3 meter antenna including feedline. There is some question about the grounding, and if this enters into it. These transmitters are apparently on the roofs of three-decker houses on top of hills (Healy, ibid.) Only 3-meter antennas? Not likely!!! (Russ Edmunds, Blue Bell, PA, ibid.) ** U S A. **M** In honor of the 100th anniversary of Marconi's historic transmission, I will send the letter "s" in morse on a halogen lamp dimmer. It should be have a range of 500 feet on any longwave or medium wave frequency (Brock Whaley, Atlanta GA, Dec 11, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. Hello; We noticed Kirsten Kaiser's name in one of your past reports. She is now Kirsten Helene Kaiser Betsworth. You ask if ABC's chat was archived. Yes, it is, and you can see it at: http://www.abcnews.go.com/onair/DailyNews/2020_rightwomen_000210_chat.html (Brian and Kirsten Betsworth, Dec 2 via Fred Osterman, DXing.com, DX LISTENING DIGEST) The original item: Neo-Nazi SW broadcaster Kevin Alfred Strom made a brief appearance on ABC`s 20/20 Wednesday night, Feb 9 around 0315 UT Feb 10, in a story about women in the far right movement. One who has now seen the light is his ex-wife Kirsten Kaiser, who said, directly quoted, ``I was married to a monster``. They share custody of three children. She was going to chat at abcnews.com Thursday at 2 pm ET. Are these things archived? (Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. BTW, I forgot to tell you, 15685 on past Sat 1230 had NOT a World of Radio, but an unID British English accented program. 73 wb df5sx (Wolfgang Büschel, Germany, Dec 10, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. You might think that the schedules on WWCR`s website are bound to be more up-to-date than those sent out by P-mail. At least they don`t match, tho both are dated Dec. 1. We`ve gone by the website in maintaining the WOR schedule, but the hard copy received Dec. 10, postmarked Dec. 6, shows that two of the three 15685 kHz broadcasts have been replaced: Sat 1230, and Tue 1200, the latter because the Arabic(?) block has been expanded to a sesquihour starting at 1100 M-F, with the original Esper Ajaj hour latened to start at 1130, bumping off five weekday shows at 1200. However, neither version is necessarily in effect, as WWCR often anticipates changes, expected at uncertain dates. But you should not depend on hearing us any longer at these times (gh, Anomaly alert Dec 10 via DXLD) Later: indeed, no WOR Tue Dec 11 at 1200, but Arabic... (gh, DXLD) In the hardcopy schedule, but not the online schedule, 15685 shows M-F: 1100-1115 Arabic Scriptures (Arabic) with William Jundy 1115-1130 On Wings of Eagles, [English?] with Winston Mazakis 1130-1230 God Is Love [no language shown, so defaults to English, tho website shows Arabic], with Esper Ajaj. There is also a weekly hour of ``Spoken Word of God`` in Asian languages. (I believe these are merely bible reading tapes, already airing in Spanish, etc., which starts and ends abruptly without production, to fill the necessary time.) This is Sat 1000-1100 UT, including 1000-1030 Japanese with Koichi Sakai, 1030-1045 Korean with Billy Kim, and 1045-1100 Chinese with Tang Ding Kuo. Unfortunately, these are now on 3210 kHz, unlikely to propagate well to the Far East, compared to the former 9475 which is no doubt why the programs were originally scheduled at this time. On the hardcopy schedule, we found another language listed, merely as ``Amharic Program``, Sunday 1730-1745 UT, with Alemaychi Mammo, (and filling until 1800 with New Horizons from the London Radio Service). These replace The Baptist [Half-]Hour, still shown on the website. We assume this show is semi\clandestine, and wonder what its real name and purpose be, and if it be related to the previous ``Ethiopian`` broadcasts (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. For a story on how US international broadcasting is apparently counter-productive, see NIGERIA [non] above (gh, DXLD) ** U S A. OTC 12/10 1114 MUSIC STUDY FOR THE MIDDLE EAST BROADCAST Dec 11, 2001 (FIND, Inc. via COMTEX) -- NOTICE TYPE: Solicitation NOTICE DATED: 120601 ZIP CODE: 20237 OFFICE ADDRESS: Broadcasting Board of Governors, Associate Director for Management, Office of Contracts (M/CON), 330 C Street, SW, Room 2500, Washington, DC, 20237 SUBJECT: B -- B -- MUSIC STUDY FOR THE MIDDLE EAST BROADCAST INITIATIVE SOLICITATION NUMBER: SOL CON-02-0002 RESPONSE DEADLINE: DUE 122101 CONTACT: POC Lesley Isaac, Contracting Officer, Phone 202-619-1623, Fax 202-205-1921, Email lisaacibb.gov -- Gloria Sweetney, Contracting Officer, Phone 202-619-1623, Fax 202-205-1921, Email gsweetneyibb.gov NOTICE TEXT: This is a written Request for Quotation (RFQ) No. CON-02- 0002 pursuant to procurement of the required services as described below using the Simplified Acquisition Procedures specified in Part 13 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR). Price quotations submitted in response to this RFQ that exceed the Simplified Acquisition Threshold (as defined in FAR Subpart 2.101, Definitions) will not be considered as responsive to this RFQ. The Broadcasting Board of Governors' International Broadcasting Bureau (BBG/IBB) has a requirement for a contractor to conduct a study of the musical tastes of young publics in the Middle East. Quoters are herein requested to submit written price quotations and technical capabilities/experience information for conducting research as outlined below. 1) OVERALL PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The International Broadcasting Bureau is developing a major new radio service, broadcasting in Arabic, for the countries of the Middle East. In its initial phases, the service will be primarily designed to reach younger (age 30 and below) listeners in the Levant, Egypt, and the Gulf. As the station's programming shall include significant amounts of contemporary popular music -- both Arabic and Western -- in depth research into the musical tastes and preferences of the target audience is required. Research shall be conducted by playing musical excerpts to a sample drawn from the target audience and recording reactions to a brief questionnaire designed to elicit listeners likes and dislikes, as well as the intensity of their preferences. 2) RESPONSIBILITIES OF CONTRACTOR: It is anticipated that this project will be handled by a single contractor, who shall sub-contract as necessary with other firms for conduct of any fieldwork. The Prime Contractor shall be responsible for preparation, oversight, and analysis of all research necessary to address the substantive topics of interest outlined above. This shall include: (1) Regular consultation, by phone and in person, with IBB staff and consultants to ensure common understanding of research objectives. (It is assumed that this shall entail at least one full day meeting with IBB staff in Washington and one additional full day in Washington for presentation of research findings at conclusion of project.); (2) Selection of research sub- contractor(s) for any field work; (3) Sub-contracting as required with selected field work providers; (4) Oversight of any field work carried out on this project, including training of local sub-contractors in music research techniques; (5) Drafting of research instrument(s); (6) Translation of research instrument(s) (may be handled by the subcontractor) and back-translation for verification purposes; (7) Ensuring provision of clean data by the sub-contractor(s), to specifications outlined below; (8) If necessary, arranging for acquisition of tape recorders and/or CD players for the sub- contractor's field staff to allow music testing during interviews; (9) The preparation of final, machine readable data file containing results of research in each location; (10) In-person presentation of overall findings and recommendations at IBB headquarters in Washington, D.C. 3) DESCRIPTION OF REQUIRED FIELDWORK: It is assumed that the sub- contractor(s) selected by the prime contractor for this project shall be responsible for carrying out the fieldwork. However, it is the prime contractor's ultimate responsibility to ensure that any fieldwork is carried out to the standards and specifications outlined in Sections 3.1 through 3.3 below. The study shall be based on fieldwork as follows: 3.1 Sample. The research for this project shall be carried out in Cairo, Amman, and Bahrain. The research shall be based on samples drawn from the target population for the new radio service described above. In the initial stage of sampling, recognized probability techniques shall be used to select households for screening to ascertain the presence of eligible household members. In the event that a selected household does not contain any members eligible for this study, or eligible members within the household refuse to participate, successive additional households shall be identified, again based on recognized probability techniques, until a substitute respondent has been successfully recruited. In no case shall more than one respondent be drawn from the same household. In each city, four separate sample of 25 respondents shall be drawn as follows: (a) males, age 17 -- 22, (b) females, age 17 -- 22, (c) males, age 23 -- 28, (d) females, age 23 -- 28. In addition, potential respondents shall be screened for the following characteristics: (1) All respondents shall be regular music listeners, listening to music by any means at least one hour per day, 5 -- 7 days per week. (2) All respondents shall listen at least occasionally to Western, as well as Arabic artists. (3) All respondents shall either have completed secondary education or be currently enrolled in a secondary educational institution. These screening criteria may be slightly modified, and further screening criteria may be identified by the IBB in consultation with the contractor prior to commencement of any sampling and fieldwork. 3.2 Contractor responsibilities. The contractor shall be responsible for the project design, drafting, translation, formatting, pretesting, adaptation, and printing of the survey instruments; developing the sampling plan and screening procedures; training interviewers; supervising fieldwork; cleaning and encoding survey responses; entering and processing the data; preparing tabulations in data books; submitting data on diskette; and communicating all necessary information and results to IBB in a timely manner. 3.3 Fieldwork. The primary object of this research is to test respondents' familiarity with and reactions to individual musical selections, as identified by brief, easily recognizable excerpts, usually lasting between 5 and 10 seconds in length. Approximately 1000 songs shall be tested. The quoters may specify any methodology to accomplish this task that they believe to be culturally appropriate, efficient, and cost effective. It is assumed, however, that in the cities specified for this study, testing will be performed in the respondent's home in face-to-face interviews using a portable tape recorder. IBB shall prepare and supply tapes or CDs of the musical excerpts to be used in this testing. 3.4 Data Processing. The contractor is responsible for data entry, cleaning, and processing. The contractor shall provide printed tabulations of marginal results. The contractor shall provide data to IBB as a fully labeled SPSS ".sav" file with a complete data dictionary of variable names and value labels. The contractor shall also provide raw data on computer diskettes in ASCII fixed format with accompanying codebook identifying location of all variables and coding scheme. 4) SUMMARY OF DELIVERABLES. The four deliverables to be provided to IBB by the contractor under this contract are as follows: (a) Raw data on computer diskette, with codebook; (b) Complete data set formatted as SPSS file; (c) Printed tabulations of results; (d) Analytic report on survey findings. 5) DELIVERY SCHEDULE: Research shall begin in mid January, 2002, with receipt of deliverables by February 28, 2002. 6) TRAVEL: It is expected that the contractor will travel to Washington, D.C. and to the Middle East in the performance of the consultation, training, oversight, and reporting requirements outlined above. All such travel is to be performed in accordance with applicable U.S. Government regulations. Cost of such travel shall be included in the price quotation submitted by quoters for this project. 7) SELECTION CRITERIA: A contract (i.e., Purchase Order) award will be made by the Contracting Officer based on: A) the quoters Technical Capabilities/Experience (for which there are seven (7) equally weighted subcriteria); and B) the quoter's Price Quotation. Of the two Selection Criteria, Technical Capabilities/Experience is the significantly dominant criterion over the Price criterion. The Technical Capabilities/Experience subcriteria are as follows: (1) Demonstrated experience in conducting commercial radio audience research; (2) Demonstrated experience in conducting radio audience research in international settings; (3) Demonstrated experience in music testing and research for radio programming, both within and outside of the U.S.; (4) Proposals for training local subcontractors in music research techniques and overseeing their fieldwork; (5) Professional qualifications of key project leaders; (6) Qualifications and experience of proposed sub-contractors; (7) Ability to complete project in a timely manner. (8) SUBMISSION OF RESPONSES TO THE RFQ (i.e., Technical Information) In the event that price quotations for the work outlined in this RFQ significantly exceed IBB's budgetary limitations, IBB reserves the right to reduce the scope of the work specified herein. Each quoters proposal shall include information on the following technical items to enable IBB to objectively evaluate the quoters capabilities/experience to successful perform the work specified in this RFQ: (a) detailed description of the proposed research methodology, including specific listing of organization(s) the quoter shall use for fieldwork; (b) Current information on the qualifications of quoters office and field staff; (c) A description of the procedures proposed for training and oversight of local subcontractors; (d) Specific information on quoters past experience in conducting commercial radio research, both domestically and internationally; (e) Specific information on quoters past experience in conducting music testing and research for radio programming; (f) A detailed description of the proposed fieldwork plan; (g) A schedule showing the time required for each phase of the project. Quoters are encouraged to seek potential co-sponsors for this survey to minimize cost to IBB. In addition to specially addressing the points noted above, submissions should also provide details on any subcontractors who would be engaged to work on these projects. Omission of any of the points of information requested will weigh against the quoter during the Contracting Officer's evaluation of the quoters response to this RFQ. Firms interested in the above described work are requested to submit their proposals and price quotations by Friday, December 21, 2001 and they shall reference this RFQ No.CON-02-0002 in their transmittal letter to the Contracting Officer. All any questions (technical or otherwise) shall be submitted in writing to the Contracting Officer for this procurement, Mr. Lesley D. Isaac, via facsimile at (202) 205-1921 or email at lisaac@IBB.GOV The price quotation shall be submitted on a separate page from the Technical Capabilities/Experience and Schedule information. The Contracting Officer has found and determined that this proposed work is appropriate for an unrestricted" procurement pursuant to FAR Subpart 19-502 (Setting Aside Acquisitions). All responsible sources may submit a price quotation which will be considered. -- Visit this URL for the latest information about this notice RECEIVED: (D-341 SN5146C7) Issue No. PSA-2992 URL: http://www.eps.gov/spg/BBG/ADM/MCONWASHDC/CON-02-0002/listing.html Copyright (c) 2001: FIND, Inc. (via Mike Cooper, DXLD) ** U S A. NPR's Wertheimer Leaves Anchor Post By Teresa Wiltz, Washington Post Staff Writer Tuesday, December 11, 2001; Page C07 For 13 years, she was one of a trio of mellow voices riding the helm of NPR's award-winning evening newsmagazine, "All Things Considered": perennially calm, cool and chilled-out amid the swirling pace of public radio. And now, it was announced today, news anchor Linda Wertheimer, 58, is leaving her hosting duties to take on new responsibilities as the network's first "senior national correspondent." In this new position, which she starts Jan. 2, she will travel the world, providing reports for "All Things Considered" and "Morning Edition With Bob Edwards" along with other NPR shows. Wertheimer, who since 1989 has hosted the show with Noah Adams and Robert Siegel, will continue to play a "principal role" in election coverage for the radio network. Jay Kernis, NPR's new senior vice president for programming, said that management thought Wertheimer's talents would be better suited to field reporting. "Why hide that light?" said Kernis, who arrived at NPR from CBS's "60 Minutes" in May to evaluate programming. "Why not spread it around? Linda is very, very good. When Linda is out in the field with real people, she makes policy stories come alive. . . . After awhile, you're trapped on these shows. I think September 11 changed things. We had a lot of these discussions" about programming changes. When asked how Wertheimer reacted to the idea of leaving the anchor desk, Kernis said, "It's not one idea. This doesn't happen in one day. I'm told that she baked banana bread for her staff today. "It's an emotional day. She's been doing this for a long time," Kernis said. "Today is the day she realizes, 'I'm going to do something else.' " Wertheimer was not available for comment. Through NPR publicist Jessamyn Sarmiento, she said she wanted to stress that her new assignment was something "mutually agreed to" by herself and management. A native of New Mexico, Wertheimer came to NPR in 1971 after working for the BBC in London. She joined "All Things Considered" at its inception the same year, serving first as program director and then branching out to reporting and anchoring. As her career grew, so did the show: With nearly 10 million listeners, it is one of the top five shows in U.S. radio. © 2001 The Washington Post Company (via Mike Cooper, DXLD) ** U S A [non]. Latest changes at Jülich, released on Dec. 10: United Methodist Church: 0400-0559 now on 11645, replacing 11775, effective Dec. 12 (Kai Ludwig, Germany, DX LISTENING DIGEST) R. Africa Int`l; see also CROATIA [non] ** UZBEKISTAN. In regard to the report in DXLD 1192 that 5060 kHz is no longer used by Radio Tashkent, I found them there with good level during the 1200-1230 UT English on 8 Dec. The only other useable frequency (9715) was blocked by RN as usual. 73, (John Cobb Roswell, GA, Dec 10, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** VANUATU. I've listened to Vanuatu's local evening program for several days now and I have noticed a change in format on 7260. Their old schedule was as follows: 0700-0715 UTC E, 0715-0730 F and 0730-0800 Bislama. What I hear now is a program in Bislama at 0700-0730 consisting of local and int'l pop music (no news at 0700 at all), followed by the old "Yellow Bird" IS (the original one, not the variation which was heard now and then last year) and news in English. I wonder what happened to their French program; does anyone know? 73, (Enzio Gehrig, Denia / Spain (38.50N/000.04E) JRC535D/ICR8500/ALA1530/ Dipole, Hard-Core-DX mailing list Dec 11 via DXLD) UNIDENTIFIED. Hi All, Back after a few months in sunny Brisbane to the cold reality of Sydney; 1920z to 2000z had a station on 7175 kHz but could not get an ID. At first I though it might be R. Romania but that would seem strange at this time, then I thought it might be RFE-RL. It ceased at 2000z and then RFE did come up on 7180 kHz with an ID at 2008z. Anyone any idea who it might have been? (David Brown, ARDXC Dec 9 via DXLD) You don`t mention language, but most likely Iran, as previously reported in DX LISTENING DIGEST 1-180 and 1-181 (Glenn Hauser, ibid.) Hi Glenn and All, Thanks for the info on 7175. Had a look at 180 & 181, but I am not sure that this is right. Language is Arabic, the program from 1900 to 2000 is a news/current affairs type. Some of the news contains English replays of various players, (e.g. George W Bush) but the rest is in Arabic. What you do get is backing the American stance that the September 11 incident was a crime etc. The speakers are professional in nature as the diction is perfect, both male and female. The signal is very strong, full scale on the SS meter. I am in Sydney, Australia, local time is 06:55am (2000 UT) and the sun is well up with full daylight but the signal is booming in. I do not understand Arabic, but the speakers are not ranting and raving, I do not hear English words very often, I would expect to hear "Bush", "Blair", "America", "USA" if they were threatening. In the 181 Digest, Wolfgang Buschel's notes seem to stack up but then I would not expect this from Tehran and there was a female singing just before transmission ceased at 2000 UT. I get a suspicion that this is VOA , RFE or similar in Arabic. Kind Regards (David Brown, ARDXC, Sydney, Australia, Dec 10, via DXLD) DIGITAL RADIO MONDIALE Please may I be allowed to 'echo' Bob Padula's Pleas to get these WRETCHED DRM Tests OUT of the Conventional Bands. They should only be allowed to continue when DEDICATED Frequencies/Bands can be found for them. They make a TOTAL MOCKERY of Frequency Management as we know it. Thank you (Ken Fletcher, December 10th 2001, 1836UTC=6.36pm British Clock Time, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Hi Glenn, I just got word today that the long-term DRM tests, delayed from the previous broadcast season, have commenced today from Bonaire. These tests will continue daily till the end of the B01 broadcast season. I've posted details at http://www.rnw.nl/realradio/html/drm.html As far as I am aware, audio will be our regular Dutch and English programming, which will be immaterial to the 99.99% of people who only have analogue receivers :-) 73, (Andy Sennitt, RN, Dec 10, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Viz.: Long-Term Tests Under Way from Bonaire Long-term DRM tests from Bonaire have commenced as of 10 December 2001, and will continue daily until the end of the current broadcast season. The schedule is as follows: UTC kHz Az kW Language 0750-0900 11970 50 50 Dutch 0900-0927 12035 50 50 Dutch 0927-1000 12035 50 50 English 1000-1100 15420 50 50 English (RN DRM site as above via DXLD) WORLD RADIO TV HANDBOOK, 2002 Received mine Friday. Most of the winter schedules are in, including some which came out quite late such as the North Korean reorganisation. Interestingly they also list clandestine broadcasters under the country headings, some they dont quote frequencies but for several, for example those relayed by Julich, they do. The US psyops station on 8700 is listed. I have checked some of the countries where I noted errors last year and these have been updated. I have not had time to thoroughly go through the book but my first impression is favourable, though as I say have not had a chance to go through the book with a fine tooth comb. There is a very long list of major contributors this year, nearly all well known names whose information is always reliable. (Mike Barraclough Letchworth, UK, hard-core-dx via DXLD) ###