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Telamon
Ventura, California

I think there are many people using them for information and news but
not so much for entertainment. The entertainment factor may be making
the difference in which SW does not show up in the surveys.

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What makes you think that using radio for news and information instead of
for entertainment would lessen the extent to which shortwave listener would
be reflected in survey results? It wouldn't make any difference. Surveys
either measure listening coincidentally (as in "What are you listening to
right now?") or through recall via diary or interview (as in "Write down
what you listened to today or tell us what you listened to today"). There
is no reason why results would be skewed by program content. Shortwave
listening is essentially zip in developed countries and just about zip in
impoverished countries (as a percentage of radio listeners who _ever_ listen
to shortwave, that is....

(In audience research work, the term "lots" as in "lots" of shortwave radios
are sold or "lots" of people get their news, etc., doesn't cut it
statistically). Shortwave is a technology the time for which has come and
gone in terms of being of any serious utility. And it "disappears" just a
little bit more day by day. And _that_ is not surprising.

Don Forsling