DX LISTENING DIGEST 1-136, September 29, 2001 edited by Glenn Hauser, wghauser@hotmail.com {Items from DXLD may be reproduced and re-reproduced only if full credit be maintained at all stages and we be provided exchange copies. DXLD may not be reposted in its entirety without permission. For restrixions and searchable 2001, 2000 contents archive see} http://www.angelfire.com/ok/worldofradio/Dxldmid.html [NOTE: If you are a regular reader of DXLD, and a source of DX news but have not been sending it directly to us, please consider yourself obligated to do so. Thanks, Glenn] RFPI FREQUENCY CHANGE AFFECTS WORLD OF RADIO Wish we had known about it a day earlier before distributing our new schedule far and wide, now at new URL, so change bookmarks to: http://www.angelfire.com/ok/worldofradio/radioskd.html At 1200 UT Sat Sept 29 we found RFPI on 15045 instead of 15050, and finally clear of the Taiwan/Chinajam clash on 15050. We don`t yet know if this is experimental or permanent, but suspect the latter; and for 24 hours, as RFPI does not shift frequencies during the day – one frequency has to serve at all the times that band be on the air. Here`s the revised radio sked. Would those who received the already outdated version please replace it; however, we are not distributing the revision to the entire mailing list. WORLD OF RADIO, CONTINENT OF MEDIA, MUNDO RADIAL BROADCAST SCHEDULE EFFECTIVE SEPTEMBER 29, 2001 It always pays to check all RFPI frequencies beyond their scheduled hours. Schedule shown is nominal, but it is not unusual for one transmitter to be down. RFPI unexpectedly changed from 15050 to 15045 Sept. 29. For latest updates see our Anomaly alert page: http://www.angelfire.com/ok/worldofradio/Anomaly.html Days and times here are strictly UT. Note: from Sunday Oct. 28, end of DST means our times on all stations except RFPI shift one UT hour later, and some SW frequencies may also change. Wed 2330 WOR WBCQ 7415 [first airing of each edition] Thu 0415 WOR WBCQ 7415 Thu 2030 WOR WWCR 15685 Fri 0930 WOR WWCR 9475 Fri 1900 COM RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Fri 1930 WOR RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Fri 2115 MR WWCR 15685 Fri 2230 WOR Studio X, Momigno, Italy 1584 87.35 96.55 105.55 Sat 0100 COM RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Sat 0130 WOR RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Sat 0200 WOR WWCR 3215 Sat 0700 COM RFPI 15045 7445 Sat 0730 WOR RFPI 15045 7445 Sat 0800 WOR WRN1 to Europe, Australia, NZ, WorldSpace AfriStar, AsiaStar Sat 0855 WOR WNQM Nashville TN 1300 Sat 1300 COM RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Sat 1330 WOR RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Sat 1400 WOR WRN to North America, also C-SPAN Audio, WLIO-TV Lima OH SAP Sat 1730 COM RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Sat 1800 WOR RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Sat 1828 WOR WPKN Bridgeport CT 89.5 (week delay) Sat 2330 COM RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Sun 0000 WOR RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Sun 0230 WOR WWCR 5070 Sun 0530 COM RFPI 15045 7445 Sun 0600 WOR RFPI 15045 7445 Sun 0628 WOR WWCR 3210 Sun 1130 COM RFPI 15045 Sun 1200 WOR RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Mon 0000 WOR WWCR 3215 Mon 0330 WOR WSUI Iowa City IA 910 (week delay) Mon 0500 WOR WWCR 3215 Tue 1100 WOR WWCR 15685 Tue 1900 WOR RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Tue 2000 COM RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Wed 0100 WOR RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Wed 0200 COM RFPI 15045 7445 Wed 0700 WOR RFPI 15045 7445 Wed 0800 COM RFPI 15045 7445 Wed 1300 WOR RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Wed 1400 COM RFPI 21815-USB 15045 Internet: see Our Current Audio page for availability: http://www.angelfire.com/ok/worldofradio/Audiomid.html Webcasts at times shown are available from all stations except WWCR, WNQM, Studio X. http://www.wrn.org/live.html http://www.boinklabs.com/ifpi.html http://www.wpkn.org http://wsui.uiowa.edu WORLD OF RADIO via Sackville! I was surprised to hear the conclusion of WOR 1098 from World Radio Network until 1430 UT Saturday Sept 29 on 15220. Very good signal, an improvement over WWCR which is weak here. RVI relay followed (Ron Trotto, IL, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Sackville, or rather Montréal, does it again! Wrong feed transmitted and nobody notices; supposed to be R. Netherlands. This probably was not turned on until about 1425, usual start time for RN, rather than from 1400 when WOR started. When I tuned in at 1445 there was Arabic vocal music, but turned out to be RVI. After WRN IDs, RFI started at 1500, but finally without apology switched to RN just in time for the much-promoted Aural Tapestry about 911 (gh, DXLD) ANOTHER DX PROGRAMME SCHEDULE DX Information from the British DX Club (BDXC-UK). The BDXC Guide to DX and Media programmes has now been fully updated on the club web site at: http://www.bdxc.org.uk (click on Articles page) The update was rather overdue and includes many changes. It should remain valid until the end of October when the winter B01 schedules are introduced (Dave Kenny, BDXC-UK via DXLD) ** AFGHANISTAN. Earlier this week, my colleagues managed to hear the shortwave outlet on 7085 kHz, which it transpires had been off the air for a few days. Unfortunately, when I checked the tape the same audio distortion was present, so the end result was not much better than what we had already. Nick Grace of our partner site Clandestineradio.com has some recordings made by Yuki Sakagami in Japan using the online Javaradio in Sweden (you'll find a link to this in our Hitlist). These are in Arabic, but if you're interested you can access them at http://www.clandestineradio.com/archives/audio/afghanistan_sharia_sep26.ra and http://www.clandestineradio.com/archives/audio/afghanistan_sharia_sep26_ar.ra Both Nick and I would be interested to hear from anyone else with recent audio of this station, as it's still uncertain how much longer it will be around in its current form (Andy Sennitt, Media Network newsletter Sept 28 via John Norfolk, DXLD) ** AFGHANISTAN [non]. APPEALS TO GOD, PROMISES OF HEAVEN SPURRED TERRORISTS How do you get over a dozen people to seize control of airplanes in a suicidal political act? How do movements based in the Middle East motivate young men, even boys, to become bombers at the cost of their own lives, and when they know that their actions will result not only in the deaths of others, but themselves as well? These questions have become more urgent in the wake of the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and other targets in Washington, DC. Now, some insight into the peculiar mindset of Islamic fanaticism is being provided thanks to a five-page handwritten document left in the luggage of Mohamed Atta, the man considered a key organizer in the hijackings. A piece in today's Washington Post by veteran reporter Bob Woodward reveals that the document "is a cross between a chilling spiritual exhortation aimed at the hijackers and an operational mission checklist." The papers have been described as everything from a "suicide note" to a "will." They are believed to have been composed some time around the night of September 10, when Atta and another man identified as Abdulaziz Alomari were staying at a motel in Portland, Maine. On the following morning, the pair boarded a flight to Logan Airport in Boston, where they connected with American Airlines Flight 11, the plane that was subsequently taken over by the terrorists and crashed into the north tower of the WTC. The papers leave a curious trail, though, especially since they were in Atta's luggage which was not loaded onto Flight 11. Woodward says that "another copy of essentially the same document" was found in the wreckage of United Flight 93, which crashed into a field in western Pennsylvania. "The multiple copies suggest the document was shared among at least some of the hijackers," says the Post story. Prayer and promises of a blissful afterlife are replete in Atta's testament. One declares, "I pray to you God to forgive me from all my sins, to allow me to glorify you in every possible way." Another reads, "Oh God, you who opens all doors, please open all doors for me, open all venues for me, open all avenues for me... God, I trust in you. God, I lay myself in your hands ... There is no God but God, I being a sinner. We are of God, and to God we return." Woodward reported that according to several unidentified scholars with a specialty in the study of Islam, the document "draws on traditional Islamic prayer and alludes to Koran verses." There is the benediction of God's supposed mercy and compassion -- ironic in light of the carnage of the attacks -- with the last entries echoing the Muslim belief that "there is no God but God." Martyrdom is another theme in the Atta testament, says Richard C. Martin, a professor of Islamic studies at Emory University. Giving one's life for the holy war or "jihad" is a form of "purification," which is then concluded with more prosaic instructions such as how to board the airplane and what to do. The role of martyrdom seems to be significant for the September 11 terrorists as well as suicide bombers throughout the Middle East. First, the action is justified in the name of God, even a family. "Challenges" against "the infidels" are noted. In the case of some suicide bombers, often adolescents and young men, there are assurances of spending a blissful afterlife in a paradise with concubines and food. There is finally the assurance, as Atta described it, that "Everybody hates death, fears death. But only those, the believers who know the life after death and the reward after death, would be the ones who will be seeking death." The revelations about Atta's final testament continue to fuel debate over the role of Islam in motivating "jihad" holy warriors, and whether "good Muslims" will denounce the violent history and rhetoric of their religion. Ibn Warraq, author of the book "Why I Am Not A Muslim" notes that the Koran (or Qur'an) is filled with examples and exhortations to violence, intolerance and jingoism, everything from the killing of "Idolators" to "Forcing non-believers to pay tax," "smiting" unbelievers, punishment for rejecting faith and the warning that nonbelievers are destined for hell. Much of this, of course, mirrors the cranky and authoritarian Judeo-Christian deity found in the Old Testament. With many sides in this religious-ideological war appealing to their respective deities for salvation and hope, there seems little prospect for a sane solution. For further information: http://www.atheists.org/flash.line/islam8.htm ("Before we strike back for freedom," 9/26/01) http://www.atheists.org/flash.line/islam9.html (`Atheism in the New Holy War`) http://www.atheists.org/Islam RESOURCES FROM AMERICAN ATHEISTS * For membership information about American Atheists, send mail to info@atheists.org Kindly include your name and postal mailing address. * For a free catalogue of American Atheist books, videos and other products, send mail to catalogue@atheists.org Kindly include your postal mailing address. * The American Atheist Magazine is now on the web! Check out select articles from current or back issues, as well as special web-only features. Visit http://www.americanatheist.org/ ABOUT THIS LIST... AANEWS is a free service from American Atheists, a nationwide movement founded by Madalyn Murray O'Hair which defends the civil rights of nonbelievers, and addresses issues of First Amendment public policy. You may forward, post or quote from this dispatch, provided that appropriate credit is given to both AANEWS and American Atheists. Edited by Conrad F. Goeringer, cg@atheists.org --------------------------------------------------------------------- To subscribe, send a blank message to aanews-on@atheists.org (via DXLD) Here is a site for an organization that has a good track record for keeping on top of events. John Pike used to be with the Federation of American Scientists - an anti-nuke group. http://www.globalsecurity.org (Tom McNiff, VA, Sept 29, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** ARMENIA. Hi Glenn, in DX-publications the large transmitter center in Armenia is typically referred to as either "Kamo" or "Gavar". However, these are not equally valid names. The point is that the town "Kamo" was renamed "Gavar" several years ago. The original name of this town was Nor-Bayazet, in 1959 it was renamed "Kamo" after the Armenian revolutionary Simon Ter-Petrosian Kamo (1882-1922), and after the end of the communist era it received the name "Gavar". Hence, this transmitting center should be called only "GAVAR", the name Kamo is as outdated as calling St. Petersburg "Leningrad". 73s, (Bernd Trutenau, Lithuania, Sept 28, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Tnx for the update! Someone please tell the HFCC, where Kamo is still on their list of transmitter sites: KMO Kamo ARM 40N21 045E07 -- with no listing for Gavar (gh, DXLD) ** AUSTRIA. La survie du service français sur ondes courtes est officiellement assurée. Il y aura même une nouvelle rediffusion à 2030 TU (période hivernale). Le dimanche, cette nouvelle émission sera consacrée à "Accents d'Europe" pendant 20 minutes; pour les dix minutes restantes, ce sera un programme "Internet". Du lundi au samedi, ce sera le programme habituel. Par contre, il n'y aura toujours pas de rediffusion à destination de l'Amérique du Nord (Radio Autriche Internationale - 23 septembre 2001; les informations sont issues de http://perso.wanadoo.fr/jm.aubier via DXLD) ** BELGIUM. Nouveau courrier reçu de la RTBF suite à la possible fermeture du site de Wavre d'où partent les émissions vers l'Europe de RTBF International. "Pas d'inquiétude à avoir. RTBF international continuera à émettre vers l'Europe du Sud depuis Wavre. Un investissement est déjà prévu à long terme pour le remplacement de l'OC3 (NDR : l'une des unités du site de Wavre) qui arrive en fin de vie." (couriel de Priscille CAZIN, producteur à RTBFI - 13 septembre 2001; les informations sont issues de http://perso.wanadoo.fr/jm.aubier via DXLD) So Wavre will stay on the air for RTBF, but not RVI (gh, DXLD) ** BELGIUM [non]. QSL-cards will be available for broadcasts organized by TDP as of October 1, 2001 for reports send by ordinary mail and that include return postage. More information about the radio stations that broadcast through TDP can be found on the web site http://www.airtime.be (TDP-BEL, September 28, 2001, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Organisations currently broadcasting via SW facilities arranged by TDP are: Que Hong Radio, World Falun Dafa Radio, Fong Guang Ming Radio, Water into Wine Ministry, Radio International, Radio Bopeshawa, Eurosoner Radio, Netsanet Le Ethiopia Radio, Voice of Khmer Kampuchea-Krom, Denge Mezopotamya, Voice of Biafra International, Radio Ezra, Dejen Radio (Bob Padula, EDXP via DXLD) Ha! Bet they aren`t full-data QSLs showing transmitter sites! My hunch, and it is only that, about the reason for TDP secrecy on actual transmitter sites, is that some of this business is under-the- table, i.e. technicians at certain under-used sites are paid to put the programs on the air without full knowledge or authorization by the governmental agencies owning them. The ones which are clandestine also dislike truth-in-transmitter-sites, of course (gh, DXLD) ** CANADA. CBC preview for SUNDAYS: FRESH AIR A magazine program from CBC Radio One Toronto. Archival moment at 1110 UT mines the rich veins of the CBC Radio archives for radio gems from the past as they were originally heard by CBC listeners. The CBC Quebec news is heard at 1130 and 1230. On Adrian's Music at 1137, Adrian Shuman searches out listeners' long-lost songs, while host Jeff Goodes shares their letters and musical memories. Our contributors help us to experience life all across Ontario in music and stories following World Report 1200-1210. And that's just the beginning. We have live music, listener challenges, interviews and much more. It begins after the news 1100-1259 UT on CBC North Quebec 9625 kHz (generic blurb adapted by Joe Buch, swprograms via DXLD) ** CANADA. The last part of Dispatches was cut off RCI's transmission on Wednesday night (2001-Sept-26). To hear the whole thing, click the link to hear the entire 60 minute program. http://www.rcinet.ca/Scripts/template/sd_pop_up.asp?sd_id=111 If that doesn't work, click on the link in the bottom right corner of the RCI English page. http://www.rcinet.ca (Ricky Leong, QB, DX LISTENING DIGEST) Rick MacInnes-Rae will co-host this week's show with Michael Enright. MacInnes-Rae is in Cairo, Egypt. Enright is in Toronto. We will hear from Patrick Brown in Pakistan, an essay from Michael Colton on Times Square in New York and an interview with an expert on Middle Eastern affairs on the fundamentalist obsession with establishing a theocratic state. And much more. (from above site) Ricky, glad you found this! Having missed earlier webcasts, I went with the rcinet feed starting at 0330 UT Thursday, and sure enough, it was cut off at 0400 for several minutes of dead air, and then something came back but was not sure it was still Dispatches, and did not hear all of it. Then I looked at the program website at CBC and found it had not been updated for months! tho there were some old audio archives. Now I`ve heard the parts I missed at above link (gh, DXLD) ** CANADA. Subject: A whack of CBC announcements! 1) http://www.cbc.ca/onair/jhtml/newsitem.jhtml?ID=1867 2) http://www.cbc.ca/onair/jhtml/newsitem.jhtml?ID=1868 3) http://www.cbc.ca/onair/jhtml/newsitem.jhtml?ID=1871 ---------- MORE CBC IN BC! RADIO TWO 105.3 COMES TO KAMLOOPS ON INTERNATIONAL MUSIC DAY CBC welcomes Kamloops, B.C. to the Radio Two network when it begins broadcasting on 105.3 FM in Kamloops on October 1, 2001. Not coincidentally, October 1 is Radio Two Day, the network's celebration of International Music Day. Adrian Mills, Executive Director of Programming for English Radio, said, "What better day than International Music Day to extend Radio Two's classical music and cultural programming in British Columbia. This quality service will be a delight to the people in the Kamloops area and give a boost to local interest in the arts. We are delighted to welcome Kamloops into the Radio Two family." International Music Day was begun in 1975 by classical violinist, Sir Yehudi Menuhin to raise awareness for music as the common language of all races and creeds. Now, people around the world celebrate by making music in schools, churches, on the streets and in concert halls. CBC Radio Two will devote the day's programming to eavesdropping on Canadians as they make music. The network will visit dozens of people and groups across the country as they sing, rehearse, busk, ring bells, blow horns or otherwise make music. In addition, listeners will learn of historical Canadian musicians, hear requests from famous Canadians, and may even be selected as a winner in a Radio Two Day contest. The opening celebrations for Kamloops' 105.3 FM transmitter will play a part in Radio Two Day. Jurgen Gothe, host of the popular drive-home show DiscDrive will officially welcome Kamloops to the network, live on air at 1:05 p.m. Pacific Time. Kamloopsians are invited to a free concert sponsored by Radio Two's regional music show, Westcoast Performance. Local musicians and audiences will gather to celebrate International Music Day and the arrival of Radio Two. [those lucky Kamloopsians!! Countless other towns of similar or even larger size are still deprived of Radio Two service, a scandalous situation -gh] REX MURPHY, HOST OF CROSS COUNTRY CHECKUP ON CBC RADIO ONE, ASKS CANADIANS, "CAN A WAR ON TERRORISM BE WON?" On Sunday, September 30, CBC Radio One presents a special edition of CROSS COUNTRY CHECKUP live from the Isabel Bader Theatre in Toronto. From 4 - 6 p.m. (5:30 p.m. NT; 5 p.m. AT; 3 p.m. CT; 2 p.m. MT; 1 p.m. PT) host Rex Murphy invites listeners and audience members to share their points of view on this question: "Can a war on terrorism be won?" The United States is gearing up for what some say will be long battle against terrorism. President Bush says the U.S. will use 'every necessary weapon of war.' And, he has asked nations of the world for sympathy and support. Critics say this is a war that cannot be won without attacking the root cause. What do Canadians think? Can a war on terrorism be won? What is Canada's role? Canadians clearly desire a national conversation on these issues. In the aftermath of September 11, more than 90,000 people called CROSS COUNTRY CHECKUP broadcasts to share their thoughts. Listeners in the Greater Toronto Area are invited to join the live broadcast of CROSS COUNTRY CHECKUP from the Isabel Bader Theatre, located at 93 Charles St. West, on the University of Toronto campus. Admission is free, door open at 3 p.m. CROSS COUNTRY CHECKUP is CBC Radio One's national open-line program, heard live every Sunday afternoon across Canada. Host Rex Murphy invites listeners to call with their opinions on the topic of the week. Invited guests contribute their knowledge and views, creating an in-depth, two-hour forum on a particular subject. Senior producer of CROSS COUNTRY CHECKUP is Lynn Munkley. For more information, log on to: http://www.cbc.ca/checkup GLOBAL VILLAGE BROADCASTS BELGRADE 2001: BACK FROM THE BRINK - A DOCUMENTARY ON THE VITAL ROLE THE ARTS CAN FULFILL DURING WAR AND ITS AFTERMATH, OCTOBER 6 AND 13 ON CBC RADIO ONE How do citizens preserve culture and maintain freedom of expression in the midst of crisis and turmoil? GLOBAL VILLAGE broadcasts its insightful documentary on the role the arts continue to play in the preservation of culture in Belgrade, beginning October 6, the first- year anniversary of the end of the Miloshevich dictatorship. The documentary will be broadcast in two segments, beginning at 7 p.m. ET on October 6 and 13 on CBC Radio One. Travelling to Belgrade in the spring of 2000, Belgrade 2001 producers spoke to artists, animators, musicians and writers, as well as their colleagues at Radio B92, Belgrade's then- alternative opposition radio station. The resulting program offers audiences a rare glimpse into the lives of the people who weren't heard from on the daily news. Their extraordinary accounts illustrate how art has helped them maintain their culture and will play a role in bringing the once flourishing country back from the brink. "Music and arts have helped many people cope with the turbulence that engulfed them throughout the Miloshevich dictatorship," says GLOBAL VILLAGE producer Ann MacKeigan. "The artistic work that has come out of Belgrade will be one of the ways we recall this period of history, as well as one of the references by which future generations of Serbians will maintain their unique perspective on life." Belgrade 2001 is accompanied by an award-winning Web site that expands on stories, provides in-depth background and enhances the audience's ability to experience Belgrade as seen through the eyes of the program's producers. Visit the site at http://www.cbc.ca/belgrade2001 Radio B92 features prominently in the arts and cultural life of Belgrade. CBC Radio One's DNTO will offer an in-depth look at this "underground" radio station, also on October 6. DNTO is heard Saturdays from 1 to 5 p.m. ET GLOBAL VILLAGE broadcasts news about music from around the planet to Canadians every Saturday at 7 p.m. ET on CBC Radio One. It reaches an international audience through RCI, and features audio reports from more than 150 journalists in 90 countries. -30- (via Ricky Leong, QU, DXLD) ** CONGO DR. Did you see the report in DXLD 1-135) from one Samuel Casio (one S) in Uganda, about Congo stations?? I am wondering if this was a big mixup, or perhaps you have been to Uganda. (I think you have been posting from Brazil as usual for the past few weeks!) 73, Glenn to Samuel Cassio Caro Glenn, Com certeza existiu uma grande confusão, eu não estive em Uganda e estas noticias sobre o Congo não são minhas. Tenho visto no DX- Window do Anker Petersen um colaborador de Uganda chamado Ouma Samuel. Esta aí a confusão. 73 (Samuel Cássio, São Carlos-SP, Brasil, Sept 28, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** COSTA RICA. RFPI has moved from 15050 to 15045, first noted 1200 UT Sept 29; see above (gh, DXLD) ** ECUADOR. HCJB changes for the B01 English DX Information from the British DX Club (BDXC-UK). From: Karldxiswl@aol.com Globe-radio-dx@yahoogroups.com Hi folks, Just been listening to HCJB English to Europe 0600-0800 on 11680 and they have announced some changes for the B01 English. N America, 0100-0600 9745 11840 Europe, 0700-0900 9780, 2000-2200 11890 India, 2300-0100 11785 No Mention of Pacific services so presume no changes there. Many years on the SW bands, From SE England, Karl kruger 73's :-{)} (via Mike Terry, BDXC-UK via DXLD) ** ESTONIA. Subject: [HCDX] 1035 AM (Tartu Pereraadio) Hello, Jim Hulse, owner and manager for ``Towers For Jesus`` and at the moment in charge of the transmitter project in Tartu, Estonia (Tartu Pereraadio - Tartu Family Radio) now testing its 50 kW transmitter with Christian content and relaying a Russian station, tells me in a mail September 27: ``Last night we made some major repairs on the transmitter and noticed a big improvement in the signal. Could you please give us a report on the signal now after the repairs. I hope it is better. God Bless, Jim Hulse`` The email address to Jim Hulse is: 7hulsefm@cbd.net If you want to look at ``his`` website it is: http://www.towersforjesus.org Jim Hulse also said in an email some days ago: ``I am with Towers For Jesus and a missionary who builds Christian radio stations around the world. We built this station in Estonia and are here now finishing up the last details. Thank you so much for sending your report, it is the first one we have gotten. We are not officially on the air yet and are testing and tuning. We have been running 50 kW most of the time and are licensed for 100 kW. We are going on the air with the 50 kW transmitter now and the 100 kW later. We started with a 818 foot tower last year and then a dispute came up on the frequency we were assigned at 612. We decided to change frequency to 1035 and not battle in courts for years. In the process of changing frequency we took off 338 feet of tower and placed it in front of the existing tower and are using it as a director for night time use. This station is mainly concerned with broadcasting to the Russian people the Christian view.`` Best regards (Jan Edh, Hudiksvall, Sweden, Sept 28, - DX-ing in Fredriksfors, Hard-Core-DX mailing list via DXLD) ** GERMANY. 6030, SDR Mühlacker, 0520 Sept 24, fair signal with English pops, running //7265. Audible Mondays with R Martí silent period 0400 - 1000. Slight het on frequency presume from CFVP though no sign of audio from the latter during the evening prior to China fade-in at 0850 (Paul Ormandy, New Zealand, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** INDIA. 11620 doesn't reach Europe anymore (that was the freq. that used to boom in here a lot). I think it is still used for Australasia at 2045-2230. Last weekend I heard 13605 with AIR in English up until 1945, then into French till 2030. This is beamed to East Africa. This frequency replaced 13795 back in May, per Alok das Gupta, see the complete list on his website: http://www.angelfire.com/in/alokdg 13605 is also heard well on the 2245-0045 block to Southeast Asia; try for that channel also. (Joe Hanlon in Philadelphia, swprograms Sept 28 via DXLD) If want to hear AIR, try: http://air.kode.net/news1.html (Larry Nebron, ibid.) ** INDONESIA. 4777.12 reported by NELSON also at INS nighttime, so this freq should be on air from 1800 UT onwards mornings, and also at nighttime too. 73 (Wolfgang Büschel, Germany, DXLD) INDONESIA. 4777.12, RRI Jakarta, 1200-1330 20-Sep, Indopop music program under heavy sweeper ute (Nelson-WA via Büschel, DXLD) ** INTERNATIONAL VACUUM. [Note: although it could be argued that satellite services should be listed under the country of origin, and/or target country (not always the same), we propose to keep XM and Sirius under this heading for convenience of reference --gh] Communications World this weekend has an interesting 10 minute report from XM's launch party including Kim Elliott driving around in one of their vans experiencing the reception and discussing the radios available. I visited the site and found 13 of the channels have audio programmes up which need Windows Media Player. Listened to the first 40 minutes of the 60s channel which has a 3 hour ondemand show up, lots of original and adapted jingles from the 60s which many will remember from the offshore pirates, some US station jingles from the 60s, TV themes and adverts and good selection of music (Mike Barraclough, BDXC-UK via DXLD) USA - XM Satellite Radio satellites may be faulty, Boeing says DX Information from the British DX Club (BDXC-UK). From: http://www.kurthanson.com/ September 28, 2001 You can listen to XM Satellite Radio at http://www.xmradio.com/home.html From R&R: "XM shares were down 22% to $4.85 -- after having fallen to a near-52-week-low of $4.51 -- shortly before the market closed after Boeing acknowledged that it recently told XM and other users of its high-powered 702 satellites that the birds could eventually experience decreased power output due to inefficient solar-power generators... "XM...issue(d) a statement in which it said the problem will have 'no material impact' on its service quality, business conduct or operation costs, though it could result in an earlier-than-expected replacement of its satellites. XM VP/Communications Chance Patterson then told R&R Online that the company has had 'no degradation in the performance of the satellites.'" Read the entire article at http://www.rronline.com/ , here is an extract: "The life expectancy of the satellites is 12-15 years, and it was not immediately known how much the 702s cost XM. XM's ground- spare satellite is currently being redesigned to eliminate the power problem". (via Mike Terry, BDXC-UK via DXLD) XM Says Satellites Might Burn Out Early By Renae Merle, Washington Post Staff Writer Friday, September 28, 2001; Page E01 Two days after a celebrated kickoff of its service in Dallas and San Diego, XM Satellite Radio Inc. said yesterday that its two satellites have a technical glitch that could mean they will have to be replaced earlier than expected. District-based XM's stock tumbled 31 percent in heavy trading on the news yesterday, closing at $4.30. XM made the announcement in a press release that cited a "solar array anomaly" in the satellites, which were made by Boeing Satellite Systems International Inc. That means the two satellites -- launched in March and May -- may lose power faster than they should. XM officials stressed that the satellites -- nicknamed Rock and Roll -- now have more energy than they need to beam digital-quality music to the company's customers and shouldn't fall below the power specifications before the second half of the decade. They were supposed to last 12 to 15 years. "We are full steam ahead on rolling this service out across the country in October and November," said XM spokesman Chance Patterson. The problem will have no impact on customers' reception quality, he added, and insurance is likely to cover any premature satellite failure. Boeing alerted XM and several other customers about the problem within the past few weeks. George Torres, a Boeing spokesman, said reflectors that are supposed to focus light onto the satellites' solar panels are degrading faster than expected. "They are getting cloudy, in layman terms," he said. "This happens to satellites anyway, but it is degrading a little faster than we expected." Torres said the satellites already in space can't be fixed but the issue would be addressed before XM's planned replacement satellite is finished. Boeing first thought the problem was isolated to one satellite but now believes it affects all five of the models now in space. XM's stock took a beating after the news was revealed. Investors were already wary of XM's finances -- the company needs to raise more than $200 million by the end of 2002. "Investors were already jittery and so news -- even if it's not as bad as it seems -- sends people running," said J. Patrick Fuhrmann, an analyst for C.E. Unterberg, Towbin. XM launched its service in the San Diego and Dallas-Fort Worth regions on Tuesday and plans to roll out nationwide service in November. It offers 100 channels of music and news for $9.99 a month. The satellites were launched in March and May. XM has spent more than a decade developing the concept of satellite radio. © 2001 The Washington Post Company (via Mike Cooper, DXLD) ** IRAN. 13745, VoIRI, 2130 Sept 24, fair-good signal in EE with Iranian slant on Sept 11 [events], largely siding with USA; // 9570 was poor-fair by comparison (Paul Ormandy, New Zealand, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** MEXICO. I am not aware of anyone else picking up this from our previous reports here, or from WOR 1098 this week, but indeed the 32nd anniversary special from XERMX started at 0007 UT Sat Sept 29, not at 0100, as in the erroneous publicity widely circulated which failed to take into account the fact the DF is on summer time of UT - 5, when the UT for it was given as 0100. But anyone who took our advice to tune in at 0000 instead of 0100 did not miss it. After a musical interlude of marimba music, the show, sounding live, got underway with announcements at 0007, addresses, request for reports using SINPO, offering special anniversary QSL, a history of the station (one predecessor: XEXA). 11770 had the usual splash and jammer bleed from 11775, so 9705 was a little better, tho it had some weak co-channel QRM. A few minutes later it was into the promised Mexican music, followed by applause from a live audience, interspersed with announcements. After 0100, 9705 progressively deteriorated as co-channel QRM grew, and am not sure how long the special lasted. I also wasted a lot of time hunting for the correct IMER website in case there is now any audio streaming. Announced contact info at the outset: Apartado 21-300, 04021 México DF; phone 01-56-28-17-20, and a second number I could not catch; rmi@eudoramail.com http://www.imer.voz.mx Unfortunately I am not certain of the `voz` part, as the word was spoken, not spelt, and this does not seem to work. Maybe really .com. ? The only site linked by Media Network, which claims there is audio, leads to a very uninformative page with no audio icons, http://hello.to/rmi (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** MEXICO. EL DOMINGO 30 DE SEPTIEMBRE FINALIZA EL HORARIO DE VERANO Se les recuerda (SOLO A LOS COLEGAS Y AMIGOS DE MEXICO), que este Domingo 30 de Septiembre termina el horario de verano, por lo que les sugerimos que mañana sábado a la hora de irse a dormir ATRASEN UNA HORA el reloj, para que de esta forma ya amanezcan el domingo con el horario normal. No se olviden que este año México dió inicio un mes tarde el horario de verano y lo termina un mes antes, es decir que lo hemos tenido 2 meses más corto que lo normal y como los demás países del mundo que hacen este ajuste. Así es que no se les olvide pues sino van a tener problemas el lunes. Para efecto de horario en relación a la UTC mismo que usamos los Radio Aficionados, con respecto a la zona centro tendremos una diferencia de - 6 horas (MENOS 6 HORAS). (XE1RCS Radio Club Satélite Bulletin Sept 28 via Juan José Miroz, DXLD) I thought it was only DF going off DST a month earlier, while the other Mexican states already on DST would stay on until Oct 28 like USA (gh, DXLD) ** MONGOLIA. 12085, V. of Mongolia Sep 27 2015 fair in English with interesting program on Mongolia and music. ID 2026. SIO=343 (Ken Baird, Christchurch NZ, Japan Premium via DXLD) ** NETHERLANDS. SATURDAY 29th SEPTEMBER: DAVID SWATLING weaves the threads of art, culture and history and in the process, casts a spell to create his Aural Tapestry! "Tragedy in Five Movements" In the mid- 19th century, the poet Walt Whitman lived in New York City when the American Civil War began with the bombing of Fort Sumter. He reflected his love of the city and his experiences of war in some of his most moving poetry. In the mid-20th century, the composer Dmitri Shostakovich lived in Leningrad when the city was under siege and being bombarded during the Second World War. His Eighth Symphony, written in 1943, contemplates the horrors of war and yearns, not for victory, but for peace. At the beginning of the 21st century, a new age of terror has dawned. Witnesses to the disasters in New York and Washington e-mail their experiences and words of comfort or hope to friends near and far. David Swatling combines poetry, music and first-person accounts in "Tragedy in Five Movements" on Aural Tapestry. Broadcast times (UTC): 10.00 (Pacific/Asia/Far East), 11.30 (Europe/East Coast USA), 15.00 (Asia/West Coast USA), 18.00 & 19.30 (Africa), 21.00 (Europe), 00.00 & 05.00 (North America) (RN previews via gh, DXLD) This is a repeat of last Sunday; hope we can catch it this time (gh, DXLD) ** NETHERLANDS. DX Information from the British DX Club (BDXC-UK). ----- Original Message ----- From: Peter Verbruggen To: FRSH--2: Sent: Thursday, September 27, 2001 11:54 PM Subject: FRS E-News #3 Dear Radio Friends, We'd like to inform you that this weekend, Sat Sept. 29th/Sun Sept. 30th, FRS-Holland will take to the air. Transmissions already begin early Sat evening at approx. 1545 UT and will last till late Sun evening. The 4 hour block is several times repeated. Programs consist of FRS Magazine/Peter Verbruggen, the FRS Golden Show/ Steve Reath, Off Beat/ Mark Jones and FRS Goes DX/ Peter Verbruggen. Programming includes great music and several interesting items, the well-known "A balance between music and information" philosophy. FRS will be broadcasting on 7450 kHz / 41 metres. Of course we welcome your reception reports!! October 28th (that's most likely) we will be celebrating our 21st birthday. We'd like to invite all of you to participate. It's simple and easy: Send us your musical request from the FRS era 1980-2001 accompanied with a few words. We will play your record and read out your text. Don't wait too long but do it right now. With your help we turn this transmission into an unforgettable 21st anniversary.... So, we count on you. Send your request via Email or snailmail but do it now; time is running out! Hopefully many of you will be tuning in to FRSH next Sunday on the 28th of October!! New Address: Remember our new address is: P. O. Box 2702, 6049 ZG Herten in the Netherlands. Our Email addresses: frsh@club.tip.nl frsh@go.to or peter.verbruggen@tip.nl Website: http://frsh.club.tip.nl or http://go.to/frsh As far as the website is concerned: it will be completely updated/ adjusted, hopefully in the not too distant future. 73's, Peter Verbruggen on behalf of the FRS crew (via Mike Terry, BDXC-UK via DXLD) ** NEW ZEALAND. Radio New Zealand International Frequency Schedule 7 October 2001-18 March 2002 1650-1750 11725 NE Pacific, Fiji, Samoa, Cook Is. Mon-Fri 1751-2216 15160 All Pacific Daily 2217-0358 17675 All Pacific Daily 0359-0705 15340 All Pacific Daily 0706-1005 11675 All Pacific Daily 1006-1205 15175 NW Pacific, Bougainville, E Timor, Asia Daily 1206-1650 6095 All Pacific Occasional use for Sports or Cyclone warnings At 1105-1305 UTC, RNZI programs are directed to the Northwest Pacific and Asia for the New Zealand peacekeepers based in Bougainville, the Solomon Islands and East Timor (RNZI website via Marie Lamb, swl@qth.net via DXLD) Not exactly B-01 yet on Oct 7, which must be the day NZ go onto DST of UT plus 13. Resultantly, some (but not all) RNZI programs will be heard one UT hour earlier (gh, DXLD) ** PAKISTAN. Hi Glenn, re 7100, 1-135 : I heard Pakistan open on about 7099.9 at 1606 today (Sept. 28th). I think this is the transmission listed for API-2 at 1615-1700 called Islamabad Programme (Aaina) on 9575. It did close down at 1700. ID was positive. So it will be a frequency change ex 9575. "Current Affairs" is the only other HS transmission on air at this time, and this was heard where it should be (well, almost) slightly lower than listed 7365. The transmission Mahendra reports at 0123 is also likely to be API-2 listed on 7275 at 0045-0200 with "Haya Allal Falah". The only other HS transmission "Current Affairs" does not open until 0200 (until 0400) listed on 7265 according to schedule. So likely another frequency change. Best 73's (Noel Green, UK, Sept 28, DX LISENING DIGEST) ** PAKISTAN. 11650.1, R Pakistan, 0045 Sept 23, poor signal with slight het on channel from unID on 11650. English-language Assamese service, mostly music with some commentary. // 15455 (Paul Ormandy, New Zealand, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** PALESTINE [non]. CLANDESTINE (IRAN TO PALESTINE). 9610, Voice of Islamic Palestine (Sawt t'il Islamiyah fi Filistina?), 0330 Sept 24, fair-good with martial music at sign-on, //11870 fair-good also (Paul Ormandy, New Zealand, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** SURINAM. 4991.1, R Apintie, 0547 Sept 25, audible every evening around this time with mostly English pops and few announcements (Paul Ormandy, New Zealand, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** TAIWAN. Dans le "Courrier des Auditeurs" du service français, Typhaine Lee a expliqué que les députés taiwanais tentaient régulièrement de réduire le budget de Radio Taipei International. Cependant, il ne semble pas que la vie de ma station soit menacée pour autant (radio Taipei Internationale - 22 septembre 2001) (Cette position fait suite à une information donnée par le service anglophone de RTI - cf info du 2 septembre. Toutefois, je n'ai pas trouvé l'explication de la section française très claire....) les informations sont issues de http://perso.wanadoo.fr/jm.aubier (via DXLD) ** TAJIKISTAN. According to a report on the website "hotline.kz" of 7 September 2001, a new 500 kW "broadcasting" transmitter was inaugurated in Tajikistan. It is reported to cover Tajikistan, and to reach Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and Iran. No frequency was mentioned, but it is likely to operate on MW or LW. As part of a modernisation programme, several new AM transmitters have been taken into service during recent months, but so far no frequencies are known (Bernd Trutenau, Lithuania, Sept 28, MWDX via DXLD) ** TURKEY. Radio Kumru, new station: Dear Glenn, I had a listen; it is indeed Radio Kurmru [sic] from Istanbul Turkey heard last night on my car radio at 1915 UT in Turkish w/ID and E-mail and postal address given. Tim Bucknall, a DXer from England, was first to report this station a few months back whilst on a visit to Kryenia, Cyprus. I heard this station last night for the first time. The signal was good into Limassol, an SIO rating of 444. At 1930 into unknown language. I hope to be able to make a recording on tape soon. 73,s. (Costa Constantinides, Cyprus, Sept 29, DX LISTENING DIGEST) {1170 kHz!} ** UKRAINE. Glenn, Following received from RUI. I asked the question and Alexander replied. "> Any new frequencies in October? Some later. Preliminarily, to North America 9385 can be used again 0000-0500. But there is one obstacle - some portable receivers have a gap 7400 through 9400 kHz in the continuous SW range. Such disappointing thoughtlessness of the radio designers. With the best regards, Alexander Yegorov." 73, (-.. . Kraig, KG4LAC, Krist, Sept 28, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U K. Hi Glenn, I haven't even attempted to keep up with all the temporary changes, but I should start to incorporate some of the moves that seem semi-permanent. BBCWS is a good place to start. Here are the major changes I see, the first noted by you: Eur 13-14 UT Newshour (ex features on weekdays) Amer 20-21 UT Newshour (ex features on weekdays) Amer overnights (0400-0845 UT) entirely parallel the news stream. No more 05-06 UT features, no Play of Week, etc. Conceivably this could have something to do with overnight carriage by US public radio, though in the past the PRI feed has had its own distinct schedule. Have read contradictory information about certain streams for 0230- 0300 UT and 0845-0900 UT. Will try to monitor the former but probably won't lose sleep over the latter. The BBCWS Australia stream relayed by 2NUR doesn't seem to have any changes during those hours. ABC News Radio runs an undocumented schedule different from any stream, so I have no idea what's on there now. >I also noticed earlier that you had double listings for some BBC streams, such as general titles and specific titles at the same hour. I've intentionally included entries for the general titles so that listeners who hear vague promos like "Thursday night during World Showcase" can search my site and make sense of those titles instead of finding nothing. But maybe this is more confusing than helpful. I don't particularly like the appearance of the double listings, especially showing up on the front page. Even BBC's own online schedules aren't showing the general titles. Maybe I should just get rid of them. Later: Hi Glenn, Next week's BBC schedules are up now. Those extra Newshour airings are still listed, but the 05-06 UT features on the Americas stream return October 2 (Kevin Kelly, Arlington, Mass. PublicRadioFan.com via DXLD) ** U S A. ATTACK ON AMERICA: HOW TO FIND TERRORISTS AND SPIES ON THE AIR - PART 2 Ham radio operators across the nation and around the world continue to look for ways to help in the United States war against terrorism. Some are still providing communications in the New York City area. Others have headed the call by FCC Special Counsel Riley Hollingsworth to watch the radio spectrum and report suspicious transmissions. Last week, monitoring specialist Joe Schroeder, W9JUV, gave us a bit of insight into what to listen for on the high frequency bands. Joe is back with a look at the spectrum above 50 MHz and the way that terrorists cells might try to use it: FRS probably not an option because there are just to many people on it. There's not so much the chance of being overheard and having the whistle blown. More likely, some kid is going to inadvertently break in and break up the communications. Especially in a mall or some downtown area. CB at 27 MHz is also a no. I would also say that the ham bands are not a good alternative because there is to much of an opportunity for radio amateurs to come across such communications and recognize that it is not normal ham radio talk. What hoes on in the Amateur VHF and UHF bands is so normal sounding that many hams readily recognize all of the voices. If there was something abnormal going on it would stick out much more than on an HF band like 20 or 40 meters. One thing Riley Hollingsworth suggested was to tape any suspicious communications. If you do, we would suggest using fresh tape and also using a direct connection to your recorder from your station receiver. This will eliminate the chance of room noise obscuring what you are trying to record. And, if you do happen across something that needs to be reported, probably the best place to forward it is directly to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The FBI has set up a toll free number for leads or other information on the terrorist attack. It's at area code 866-483-5137. Again, that's area code 1-866-483-5137. Leads can also be sent via a special website at http://www.ifccfbi.gov Please do not contact the FCC. Also, if you want to hear more on monitoring the world above 50 MHz for clandestine communications, you are invited to tune in this weeks Rain Report. There you will hear a lot more with Joe Schroeder, W9JUV. You will find it on the web at http://www.rainreport.com or by phone at 847-827-7246 (ARNewsline(tm) Sept 28 via Joihn Norfolk, DXLD) ** U S A [non]. The Roots of Hatred The causes == Sep 22, 2001 From The Economist print edition Whatever its mistakes, the idea that America brought the onslaught upon itself is absurd WHO is to blame? The simple answer-the suicide attackers, and those behind them-is hardly adequate, just as it would hardly be adequate simply to blame Hitler and his henchmen for the second world war, without mentioning the Treaty of Versailles or Weimar inflation. But that does not exculpate the perpetrators of last week's onslaught, just as the Versailles treaty does not excuse Auschwitz: whatever their grievances, nothing could excuse an attack of such ferocity and size. So what explains it? A surprising number of people, and not just gullible fanatics looking for someone to hold responsible for the hopelessness of their lives, believe that to a greater or lesser extent America has reaped as it sowed.... Entire article at: http://www.economist.com/PrinterFriendly.cfm?Story_ID=788407 (via Tom Roche, DXLD) ** U S A. Marion`s Attic: Dear Glenn, Just a little milestone is near; my 100th show will air this Saturday on WBCQ. (17.495 at 1700 and 7.415 at 0100 UT Sunday). I am starting my third season this weekend. I know there are far more important events going on in the World, but I am doing my best to bring a smile to my radio fans. To all of those who think short wave radio is in the decline, I would never know it since I have received a stack of e-mail over a foot high during my second year of broadcasting. I have been asked to write articles on cylinder records and have had to turn down the local television reporters who want my story. (I have enough nosey neighbors.) I am repeating my August programs during the month of October. They are good ones. I will be working on new programs for November. My health is OK, so I will keep going for now. Thank-you to all of my radio fans all over the World. I am pleased to make you happy with my old records and machines. Lovingly, (Marion Webster, Sept 28, DX LISTENING DIGEST) As a rule, WBCQ is weak and fadey here on 17495, and no exception at 1700 Sept 29; hard to believe it is 50 kW aimed this way (gh, DXLD) ** U S A. Different Kind of Oldies Show update: Program News for the week of 9/29/2001: Special News: Tonight, ONLY on WBCQ Shortwave, NOT the webcast, we will be giving away a Radio Shack DX-396 portable shortwave receiver. To make it extremely easy for you, we will have the contest someplace in the middle of the show. I have come up with a very simple trivia question that has a one word answer. For those who don't know the answer, I even came up with a 2nd trivia question THAT HAS THE SAME ANSWER, you can answer either question! Both these questions could be considered trick questions, so I also eliminated the trick by giving you the alternate answer as clues to the one I want. I will try to call in and announce the winner after the show on the air. I will also place the lucky winner's name on this website. Remember, the contest is only on the air, a different mix of the show without the contest is going to be running on live365.com [Since you are making it so easy(?), does one then win by a drawing?] This week's show: We begin a series on "Heavenly Bodies" with "Moon Tunes", mostly doo-wop, of course. You can listen on the web at http://www.live365.com/stations/15660 in mono or http://www.live365.com/stations/63570 in stereo beginning at 8PM Eastern Time tonight. Next week's show: I plan part 2 to be "The Sun and Stars", although I do have a number of POP "Moon Tunes" left over. I will record the show tomorrow and may include some leftovers or just do a part 3 the week after. Other News: Like most of us I have received a number of different items concerning the tragedy at The World Trade Center. I am putting together a page of most of these items and expect it to be online around 12-noon Eastern Time today, 9/29/01. You can access it from our home page: http://bigsteve.wbcq.net I will not be lowering the resolution of the photos and graphics so the page will be slow to load on a dial up connection. Impatient browsers, you have been warned. Where do we go from here: I need your help in planning future shows. I've noticed my personal tastes skewing to the R&B roots more and more recently. Since the show reflects mostly my tastes, I'm wondering if that is the direction you would like me to go when it comes to programming the show. Please e-mail me at bigsteve387@msn.com or write me at P.O. Box 396, New York, NY 10002 with your suggestions as to what you want to hear on A Different Kind Of Oldies Show. If you're reading this on our website or on a newsgroup but would like to get it in your mailbox instead, please write me back at bigsteve387@msn.com Similarly, if you do not want to be on our mailing list, also write me at the same address. Do not use any other e-mail address we may have had. I no longer use them (Steve Coletti, Sept 28, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ** U S A. An interesting item from the list-serve of the Canadian Association of Journalists http://www.caj.ca regarding editorial pressure on VOA to kill an interview with Taliban officials: http://www.cpj.org/news/2001/US27sep01na.html Saul Chernos, ODXA via DXLD) New York, September 27, 2001 --- Under pressure from the U.S. Department of State, the Voice of America (VOA) recently delayed airing a story containing parts of an exclusive interview with the leader of Afghanistan's Taliban movement, Mullah Mohammed Omar. The federally funded broadcaster's decision came after Deputy Secretary of State Richard L. Armitage and senior National Security Council officials contacted members of VOA's board of governors to express their concern that broadcasting the interview would amount to providing a platform to terrorists, according to The Washington Post. The VOA board then relayed these concerns to staff members. The news report, by VOA's Ed Warner, was scheduled to air on September 21. It contained excerpts from Warner's exclusive interview with Omar and also quoted U.S. president George W. Bush's September 20 address to Congress. Warner's report also featured commentary by John Esposito, director of the Center of Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University, and by a spokesman for the Northern Alliance, an Afghan military coalition that opposes the Taliban and currently controls between 5 and 10 percent of Afghanistan. VOA ultimately aired the piece on September 25, despite State Department objections. When asked in a September 24 press briefing to explain the State Department's opposition to VOA airing the Omar interview, department spokesperson Richard Boucher said, "We didn't think that the American taxpayer, the Voice of America, should be broadcasting the voice of the Taliban." VOA is an international multimedia broadcasting service funded by the U.S. government. Since 1998, when it was removed from direct State Department control, VOA has operated under the oversight of a government-appointed board of governors, although the secretary of state or his designee still sits on the board. News of the controversy prompted more than 100 VOA employees to send a letter to newspapers protesting that their work was being censored, according to The New York Times. The VOA report has been available since Tuesday, September 25, at http://www.voanews.com under the headline "Taliban Leader: God Promised to Protect Us." (via Chernos, ODXA via DXLD) ** U S A. John, What frequency was your 19 MHz test on last night??? WDX6AA widely publicized it at 0415 UT on 19840. I heard nothing there, and half an hour later it occurred to me that *19480* seems more like one of the old VOA feeders. So I tuned there and heard traces (only) of some audio. Propagation was not exactly favorable. Could not get a definite ID or parallel with Martí; still audible, it seemed at 0500. But it could have been receiver overload from somewhere else, on the YB-400. Was this one of the old disused transmitters you said you were going to revive? 73, (Glenn Sept 28 to John Vodenik, VOA Delano) Date: Fri, 28 Sep 2001 01:11:40 -0700 From: John R Vodenik k9hsp@juno.com Subject: [SWL] "test" To all who were listening on the wrong frequency. I am sorry that there was a report of a "test" being run from Delano. I tried to send a message stating that it had been canceled, but I guess it never got here. I regret to say that the notice was brought about by a casual comment that I would be doing an operational test of the transmitter on 19,480 at 9:15 Friday night (0415 Saturday morning). I am sincerely sorry for the mix up, and am happy that I received many reports from people listening. Any testing as was mentioned needs to be coordinated with VOA frequency division. In that case, I would be using an antenna and not the dummy load. Should I get approval one day, I will let you know about it more than a few hours ahead. I was involved is a few tests back at Bethany, and all were scheduled through the frequency division. That has not changed. The ISB / SSB transmitters are indeed tested here at least monthly, but at no scheduled time. You can take a check on 19,480 or 14,526 I think, every so often. You just might catch something. Since I am going to midnight shift, I would be running them between 0800 and 1400 UT. Sorry I can't give you a firm date and time. Again, thanks for taking the time to go hunting. 73, (John Vodenik, Sept 28, swl@qth.net via DXLD) To those who tried to tune into the VOA Test, I apologize for sending on missguided info. I rcvd a phone call from a local swl who stated that he just finished talking to John about a VOA TEST via Delano and that I should get it out onto the lists quickly as it was a short notice test. I also apologize to John for causing lotsa commotion in his direction. The good to come out of this is that many swl's on the lists and in the Pacific Rim area's were INTERESTED in trying to log the test transmition even if it was only 10-12 kw of power. The hobby of swling is ALIVE and well!!! Everyone have a good weekend of radio listening and DX! (Stewart H. MacKenzie - WDX6AA, swl@qth.net via DXLD) ** U S A. Can Catholic commercial TV survive? Mother Angelica's network barely makes it month to month; when she is away, donations fall greatly. She seems to have had a serious stroke recently, and she is in her seventies. What happens after she is gone remains to be seen. Catholics are no generous tithers; contrary to what many believe, most dioceses and organizations struggle hand to mouth. There is not the kind of money to support television. Glenn, I know there is a lot of prejudice against Catholicism in this country, among other things the constant charges of how much money the church has. That, and I know what I speak of, is simply not true. What the church does have is property, mostly tied up in church buildings, schools, hospitals, and monasteries. Catholics come up near the bottom in professional surveys of per capita giving among all the churches. What money there is by and large goes to support an expensive to operate system of schools. There is not the money needed to buy stations and operate them, at least according to the thinking of many bishops. Of the 53 U.S. Catholic stations, all but a handful are owned and run by lay groups, and many of these are struggling. Catholic stations do not sell airtime to Catholic preachers and program producers, unlike their Protestant counterparts. Instead, Catholic stations rely on freewill donations from listeners. These are an uncertain source of funds even in good times; in these bad times they are even more uncertain (Mike Dorner, LA, Sept 27-29, DX LISTENING DIGEST) As I recall, EWTN / WEWN had a single large benefactor from Holland who donated most of the funds (gh, DXLD) ** U S A. At around 3:20 EDT WSKY 4, Outerbanks NC, was running various information videos on the outer banks, a hurricane awareness video from 3:35 until 4pm and went back into the static. Considering that it appears that they are still having antenna problems down at the transmitter site (to sum it up: the company who put thier antenna up did a shabby job). The station was scheduled to be on the air and running normal programming on labor day. - - (Ernest Gates NC, USA E92FM JAMZ, Sept 26, amfmtvdx via DXLD) That`s a brand new station, Es Dxable (gh) UNIDENTIFIED. 2260, unID spur (presumably 2 x 1130), 1055 29 Sept, Loud distorted LA spur. Strong well after Peruvian fade out. My guess is this is either Mexican or TexMex. Good copy all the way to 1130 (local daylight). LA Pop MX. I heard no Andean MX. High paced commercial format with jingles, comedy skit, and so forth. This may or may not be the same station Mark Mohrmann logged on the 27th. I need to spend some time reviewing the tape I made; perhaps it contains an ID (David Hodgson, TN, harmonics via DXLD) UNIDENTIFIED. 14581-USB Sept 27 at 0245, strange signal w/Arabic talk, as 14589-LSB carried the same program! (Paul Ormandy, New Zealand, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ###