The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave

U.S. shortwave broadcasters consider themselves rebels - and are proud
of it.

by James Careless

Radio's renegades.

That's how many broadcasters view privately-owned U.S. shortwave radio
stations. They've got a point; when it comes to the conventions of
commercial AM/FM radio, this country's 25-odd shortwave stations are
anything but conventional.

In fact, the U.S. shortwave broadcast industry is sufficiently
different from domestic AM and FM that it has its own lobbying group,
the National Association of Shortwave Broadcasters (online at www.shortwave.org
). A look at its membership list reveals stations unknown to most U.S.
broadcasters, such as WMLK Assemblies of Yahweh, KAIJ Two If By Sea
Broadcasting Corp., and WRMI Radio Miami International.

Missing from the shortwave ownership list are names like Clear Channel
and Infinity. Most U.S. shortwave stations are owned by religious
groups, while a few others, such as WRMI and WBCQ, are commercially
owned.

Restricted access

Why is U.S. shortwave so different?

First, AM and FM are local or regional in coverage, while SW is
national or international, thanks to the way radio waves propagate in
the 5,000-30,000 kHz area of the spectrum. Like familiar AM signals at
night, amplitude-modulated shortwave signals literally bounce off the
ionosphere, allowing them to reach thousands of miles beyond the
horizon. However, shortwave signals do this all the time, depending on
which of the SW bands are used.
FCC-Authorized U.S. Shortwave Stations

KAIJ Dallas

Two If By Sea Broadcasting Corp.

KFBS Northern Mariana Islands, SA

Far East Broadcasting Co.

KHBN Medorn, Aimeliik, Palau

High Adventure Ministries

KIMF Pinon, N.M.

International Fellowship of Churches

KJES Vado, N.M.

Our Lady's Youth Center

KNLS Anchor Point, Alaska

World Christian Broadcasting Corp.

KSDA Agat, Guam

Adventist Broadcasting Service Inc.

KTBN Salt Lake City

Trinity Christian Center of Santa Ana Inc.

KTWR Agana, Guam

Trans World Radio Pacific

KVOH Rancho Simi, Calif.

High Adventure Ministries Inc.

KWHR Naalehu, Hawaii

LeSea Broadcasting Corp.

WBCQ Monticello, Maine

Allan H. Weiner

WEWN Vandiver, Ala.

Eternal Word Television Network Inc.

WGTG McCaysville, Ga.

Blue Ridge Communications Inc.

WHRA Greenbush, Maine

LeSea Broadcasting Corp.

WHRI Noblesville, Ind.

LeSea Broadcasting Corp.

WINB Red Lion, Pa.

World International Broadcasters Inc.

WJCR Millerstown, Ky.

World Wide Gospel Radio Inc.

WMLK Bethel, Pa.

Assemblies of Yahweh

WRMI Miami

Radio Miami International

WRNO New Orleans

Good News World Outreach

WSHB Furman, S.C.

Herald Broadcasting Syndicate Inc.

WTJC Newport, N.C.

Grace Baptist Church

WWBS Macon, Ga.

Charles C. Josey

WWCR Nashville, Tenn.

WNQM Inc.

WWFV McCaysville, Ga.

Blue Ridge Communications Inc.

WYFR Okeechobee, Fla.

Family Stations Inc.

Details: www.fcc.gov/ib/sand/neg/hf_web/stations.html

The rule of thumb: higher shortwave frequencies bounce best during the
day; lower SW frequencies work better at night. Combine this with
seasonal ionospheric variations and the sun's 11-year sunspot cycle,
which affects how well SW signals bounce, and one can see that
shortwave stations need a number of frequencies assigned to each of
them.

Second, in the United States, the SW bands are reserved for
international broadcasters.

"When the Voice of America was founded in 1947, it was prohibited from
broadcasting domestically, in order to prevent the government from
propagandizing to its citizens," says Larry Magne, editor in chief of
"Passport to World Band Radio."

"The FCC decided that if this rule applied to the VOA, it should also
apply to domestic shortwave broadcasters as well."

Fuzzy business model

However, according to NASB President and WRMI General Manager Jeff
White, the FCC's restriction has an important loophole.

"The current rules do not say SW stations cannot broadcast to the
U.S.," he said. "They say stations cannot broadcast programs that are
intended exclusively for an audience in the continental United
States."

As a result, U.S. shortwave broadcasters typically target countries
such as Canada and Mexico, with their signals coincidentally
blanketing any U.S. territory that happens to be in the way.

For instance, WRMI's 50 kW North American feed originates from a
Florida-based periodic yagi antenna pointed towards Vancouver at 317
degrees.

"With this heading, we manage to legally cover virtually all of the
continental United States," White said.

Then there's the issue of revenue. Although some U.S. shortwave
broadcasters - religious groups such as EWTN Global Catholic Radio and
Adventist World Radio, for example - don't count on making a profit,
others, like WWCR, WCBQ The Planet and WRMI, definitely do. But
although there are believed to be 600 million shortwave listeners
worldwide, including about 5 million in North America, no Arbitron-
style ratings service exists to report what they're listening to.

Without ratings, it is difficult to impossible to sell commercials. As
a result, profit-minded U.S. SW stations make their living by selling
airtime to whoever wants it. Typically, this tends to be religious or
political groups.

The religious programmers run the gamut from mainstream to fringe,
while political programmers range from Cuban dissidents to right-wing
militia groups. In some cases these programmers work live in the
station's studios. However, it's more typical for them to send in
prerecorded programs on cassette, CD or MiniDisc, or to send in their
shows by phone or, increasingly, over the Internet.

The cost? "We charge anywhere from $25 to $65 an hour, depending on
the time of day and the number of hours purchased," said Allan Weiner,
WBCQ owner and general manager. Based in Monticello, Maine, the
station uses three converted commercial/military transmitters, some
home-built antennas and a 1950s-vintage mobile home converted into a
studio building.

At WRMI in Miami, Jeff White sells airtime for $1 a minute. Meanwhile,
WWCR in Nashville, Tenn., charges anywhere from $15 for 4.5 minutes to
$160 for 59.5 minutes, depending on whether you're buying on a one-
day, weekly or Monday-through-Friday basis. With four 100 kW
transmitters - a single 50 kW transmitter is considered to be the bare
minimum by the FCC - WWCR has more reach and a more sophisticated
transmission/production plant than WCBQ or WRMI.

Thus, given the FCC's restriction on domestic broadcasting, the issues
of propagation, audio quality and static associated with amplitude-
modulated shortwave and the lack of a measurable audience, the
commercial SW market is not one for the faint-hearted.

Add the general public's lack of awareness of the medium - "People ask
me all the time how they can pick up Radio Miami International on
their AM/FM receivers," White said with a shrug - and one can see it's
a tough business.

"The handful of truly commercial stations may generate anywhere from
less than $200,000 a year to perhaps a few million," he added. "These
are not Clear Channel-type operations."

Paying the bills

These broadcasters are willing to put up with poor production quality
and content; this comes with the turf of selling airtime blocks. They
can tolerate downright weird shows.

"I remember one show where the guy was doing a chant to the angels,"
White said. "He just kept chanting the same thing over and over again
for 15 minutes."

In fact, U.S. SW broadcasters are willing to put up with almost
anything from their clients, as long as they pay their bills.

"It is still a free country and they have a right to say a lot of
things," said WWCR General Manager George McClintock.

"We pretty much let anyone say what they want," said Weiner. "Our
listeners demand that we be as open and free speech as possible. They
crave it. They demand it."

Besides, "The FCC doesn't really monitor the content on U.S.
shortwave," White said. "I don't think they see that as their mission
or concern. They are more worried about whether a station's technical
parameters are correct."

That said, U.S. shortwave broadcasters often suffer grief from their
clients' programming. Even radio's renegades have their limits.

For instance, WWCR learned that neo-Nazi Ernst Zundel was using his
airtime to deny the Holocaust. "We threw the program off," said
McClintock. Zundel had been broadcasting in German, and WWCR's
operators didn't understand what he was saying.

Even so, many Americans associate U.S. shortwave with far-right
broadcasts. This is ironic, given that most of what McClintock calls
"militia money" stopped flowing to shortwave broadcasters when the
dreaded year 2000 finally arrived. Apparently the New World Order's
"non-collapse," in McClintock's words, severely hurt the militias'
ability to solicit donations from listeners.

All in all, U.S. SW broadcasters operate in a strange, Twilight Zone
kind of world, but one that they relish. Passport's Magne believes
that U.S. shortwave broadcasters enjoy it so much that they don't want
the FCC to loosen its archaic restrictions on domestic shortwave.

"The truth is that they like it the way it is," he said. "If the rules
were changed, it could open the floodgates to more competition."

An unfair accusation? Not according to WRMI's White.

"We discussed changing the rules at the National Association of
Shortwave Broadcasters' convention a few years ago," he said. "In
fact, the FCC asked for our help in doing so. However, after some
discussion, a lot of people came to Magne's conclusion: that we're all
better off just leaving things as they are. After all, under the
current regime, the FCC pretty much leaves us alone. If the rules were
changed, then they might get serious about enforcing them."

"If it works for you, leave it alone," said McClintock. Granted, the
FCC shortwave rules are "as loose as a goose," he said. But "If it
ain't broke, don't fix it."


-----------------------------------------------

Interesting


Double V Shortwave Australia
Radio 2 Double V AM & ZFM Fairfield NSW
Phone 02 9726 7841
Listen to Vale Vision Community Radio
and TV Association Inc on
http://www.radio2doublev.org
Search with http://www.aussieseek.com

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

On Nov 28, 4:21 am, "australia.radio.broadcast.moderated -"
wrote:
The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave

U.S. shortwave broadcasters consider themselves rebels - and are proud
of it.

by James Careless

Radio's renegades.

That's how many broadcasters view privately-owned U.S. shortwave radio
stations. They've got a point; when it comes to the conventions of
commercial AM/FM radio, this country's 25-odd shortwave stations are
anything but conventional.

In fact, the U.S. shortwave broadcast industry is sufficiently
different from domestic AM and FM that it has its own lobbying group,
the National Association of Shortwave Broadcasters (online atwww.shortwave.org
). A look at its membership list reveals stations unknown to most U.S.
broadcasters, such as WMLK Assemblies of Yahweh, KAIJ Two If By Sea
Broadcasting Corp., and WRMI Radio Miami International.

Missing from the shortwave ownership list are names like Clear Channel
and Infinity. Most U.S. shortwave stations are owned by religious
groups, while a few others, such as WRMI and WBCQ, are commercially
owned.

Restricted access

Why is U.S. shortwave so different?

First, AM and FM are local or regional in coverage, while SW is
national or international, thanks to the way radio waves propagate in
the 5,000-30,000 kHz area of the spectrum. Like familiar AM signals at
night, amplitude-modulated shortwave signals literally bounce off the
ionosphere, allowing them to reach thousands of miles beyond the
horizon. However, shortwave signals do this all the time, depending on
which of the SW bands are used.
FCC-Authorized U.S. Shortwave Stations

KAIJ Dallas

Two If By Sea Broadcasting Corp.

KFBS Northern Mariana Islands, SA

Far East Broadcasting Co.

KHBN Medorn, Aimeliik, Palau

High Adventure Ministries

KIMF Pinon, N.M.

International Fellowship of Churches

KJES Vado, N.M.

Our Lady's Youth Center

KNLS Anchor Point, Alaska

World Christian Broadcasting Corp.

KSDA Agat, Guam

Adventist Broadcasting Service Inc.

KTBN Salt Lake City

Trinity Christian Center of Santa Ana Inc.

KTWR Agana, Guam

Trans World Radio Pacific

KVOH Rancho Simi, Calif.

High Adventure Ministries Inc.

KWHR Naalehu, Hawaii

LeSea Broadcasting Corp.

WBCQ Monticello, Maine

Allan H. Weiner

WEWN Vandiver, Ala.

Eternal Word Television Network Inc.

WGTG McCaysville, Ga.

Blue Ridge Communications Inc.

WHRA Greenbush, Maine

LeSea Broadcasting Corp.

WHRI Noblesville, Ind.

LeSea Broadcasting Corp.

WINB Red Lion, Pa.

World International Broadcasters Inc.

WJCR Millerstown, Ky.

World Wide Gospel Radio Inc.

WMLK Bethel, Pa.

Assemblies of Yahweh

WRMI Miami

Radio Miami International

WRNO New Orleans

Good News World Outreach

WSHB Furman, S.C.

Herald Broadcasting Syndicate Inc.

WTJC Newport, N.C.

Grace Baptist Church

WWBS Macon, Ga.

Charles C. Josey

WWCR Nashville, Tenn.

WNQM Inc.

WWFV McCaysville, Ga.

Blue Ridge Communications Inc.

WYFR Okeechobee, Fla.

Family Stations Inc.

Details:www.fcc.gov/ib/sand/neg/hf_web/stations.html

The rule of thumb: higher shortwave frequencies bounce best during the
day; lower SW frequencies work better at night. Combine this with
seasonal ionospheric variations and the sun's 11-year sunspot cycle,
which affects how well SW signals bounce, and one can see that
shortwave stations need a number of frequencies assigned to each of
them.

Second, in the United States, the SW bands are reserved for
international broadcasters.

"When the Voice of America was founded in 1947, it was prohibited from
broadcasting domestically, in order to prevent the government from
propagandizing to its citizens," says Larry Magne, editor in chief of
"Passport to World Band Radio."

"The FCC decided that if this rule applied to the VOA, it should also
apply to domestic shortwave broadcasters as well."

Fuzzy business model

However, according to NASB President and WRMI General Manager Jeff
White, the FCC's restriction has an important loophole.

"The current rules do not say SW stations cannot broadcast to the
U.S.," he said. "They say stations cannot broadcast programs that are
intended exclusively for an audience in the continental United
States."

As a result, U.S. shortwave broadcasters typically target countries
such as Canada and Mexico, with their signals coincidentally
blanketing any U.S. territory that happens to be in the way.

For instance, WRMI's 50 kW North American feed originates from a
Florida-based periodic yagi antenna pointed towards Vancouver at 317
degrees.

"With this heading, we manage to legally cover virtually all of the
continental United States," White said.

Then there's the issue of revenue. Although some U.S. shortwave
broadcasters - religious groups such as EWTN Global Catholic Radio and
Adventist World Radio, for example - don't count on making a profit,
others, like WWCR, WCBQ The Planet and WRMI, definitely do. But
although there are believed to be 600 million shortwave listeners
worldwide, including about 5 million in North America, no Arbitron-
style ratings service exists to report what they're listening to.

Without ratings, it is difficult to impossible to sell commercials. As
a result, profit-minded U.S. SW stations make their living by selling
airtime to whoever wants it. Typically, this tends to be religious or
political groups.

The religious programmers run the gamut from mainstream to fringe,
while political programmers range from Cuban dissidents to right-wing
militia groups. In some cases these programmers work live in the
station's studios. However, it's more typical for them to send in
prerecorded programs on cassette, CD or MiniDisc, or to send in their
shows by phone or, increasingly, over the Internet.

The cost? "We charge anywhere from $25 to $65 an hour, depending on
the time of day and the number of hours purchased," said Allan Weiner,
WBCQ owner and general manager. Based in Monticello, Maine, the
station uses three converted commercial/military transmitters, some
home-built antennas and a 1950s-vintage mobile home converted into a
studio building.

At WRMI in Miami, Jeff White sells airtime for $1 a minute. Meanwhile,
WWCR in Nashville, Tenn., charges anywhere from $15 for 4.5 minutes to
$160 for 59.5 minutes, depending on whether you're buying on a one-
day, weekly or Monday-through-Friday basis. With four 100 kW
transmitters - a single 50 kW transmitter is considered to be the bare
minimum by the FCC - WWCR has more reach and a more sophisticated
transmission/production plant than WCBQ or WRMI.

Thus, given the FCC's restriction on domestic broadcasting, the issues
of propagation, audio quality and static associated with amplitude-
modulated shortwave and the lack of a measurable audience, the
commercial SW market is not one for the faint-hearted.

Add the general public's lack of awareness of the medium - "People ask
me all the time how they can pick up Radio Miami International on
their AM/FM receivers," White said with a shrug - and one can see it's
a tough business.

"The handful of truly commercial stations may generate anywhere from
less than $200,000 a year to perhaps a few million," he added. "These
are not Clear Channel-type operations."

Paying the bills

These broadcasters are willing to put up with poor production quality
and content; this comes with the turf of selling airtime blocks. They
can tolerate downright weird shows.

"I remember one show where the guy was doing a chant to the angels,"
White said. "He just kept chanting the same thing over and over again
for 15 minutes."

In fact, U.S. SW broadcasters are willing to put up with almost
anything from their clients, as long as they pay their bills.

"It is still a free country and they have a right to say a lot of
things," said WWCR General Manager George McClintock.

"We pretty much let anyone say what they want," said Weiner. "Our
listeners demand that we be as open and free speech as possible. They
crave it. They demand it."

Besides, "The FCC doesn't really monitor the content on U.S.
shortwave," White said. "I don't think they see that as their mission
or concern. They are more worried about whether a station's technical
parameters are correct."

That said, U.S. shortwave broadcasters often suffer grief from their
clients' programming. Even radio's renegades have their limits.

For instance, WWCR learned that neo-Nazi Ernst Zundel was using his
airtime to deny the Holocaust. "We threw the program off," said
McClintock. Zundel had been broadcasting in German, and WWCR's
operators didn't understand what he was saying.

Even so, many Americans associate U.S. shortwave with far-right
broadcasts. This is ironic, given that most of what McClintock calls
"militia money" stopped flowing to shortwave broadcasters when the
dreaded year 2000 finally arrived. Apparently the New World Order's
"non-collapse," in McClintock's words, severely hurt the militias'
ability to solicit donations from listeners.

All in all, U.S. SW broadcasters operate in a strange, Twilight Zone
kind of world, but one that they relish. Passport's Magne believes
that U.S. shortwave broadcasters enjoy it so much that they don't want
the FCC to loosen its archaic restrictions on domestic shortwave.

"The truth is that they like it the way it is," he said. "If the rules
were changed, it could open the floodgates to more competition."

An unfair accusation? Not according to WRMI's White.

"We discussed changing the rules at the National Association of
Shortwave Broadcasters' convention a few years ago," he said. "In
fact, the FCC asked for our help in doing so. However, after some
discussion, a lot of people came to Magne's conclusion: that we're all
better off just leaving things as they are. After all, under the
current regime, the FCC pretty much leaves us alone. If the rules were
changed, then they might get serious about enforcing them."

"If it works for you, leave it alone," said McClintock. Granted, the
FCC shortwave rules are "as loose as a goose," he said. But "If it
ain't broke, don't fix it."

-----------------------------------------------

Interesting

Double V Shortwave Australia
Radio 2 Double V AM & ZFM Fairfield NSW
Phone 02 9726 7841
Listen to Vale Vision Community Radio
and TV Association Inc onhttp://www.radio2doublev.org
Search withhttp://www.aussieseek.com

This looks like mostly religious ****!

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

On Nov 28, 4:44 am, IBOCcrock wrote:
On Nov 28, 4:21 am, "australia.radio.broadcast.moderated -"



wrote:
The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave

U.S. shortwave broadcasters consider themselves rebels - and are proud
of it.

by James Careless

Radio's renegades.

That's how many broadcasters view privately-owned U.S. shortwave radio
stations. They've got a point; when it comes to the conventions of
commercial AM/FM radio, this country's 25-odd shortwave stations are
anything but conventional.

In fact, the U.S. shortwave broadcast industry is sufficiently
different from domestic AM and FM that it has its own lobbying group,
the National Association of Shortwave Broadcasters (online atwww.shortwave.org
). A look at its membership list reveals stations unknown to most U.S.
broadcasters, such as WMLK Assemblies of Yahweh, KAIJ Two If By Sea
Broadcasting Corp., and WRMI Radio Miami International.

Missing from the shortwave ownership list are names like Clear Channel
and Infinity. Most U.S. shortwave stations are owned by religious
groups, while a few others, such as WRMI and WBCQ, are commercially
owned.

Restricted access

Why is U.S. shortwave so different?

First, AM and FM are local or regional in coverage, while SW is
national or international, thanks to the way radio waves propagate in
the 5,000-30,000 kHz area of the spectrum. Like familiar AM signals at
night, amplitude-modulated shortwave signals literally bounce off the
ionosphere, allowing them to reach thousands of miles beyond the
horizon. However, shortwave signals do this all the time, depending on
which of the SW bands are used.
FCC-Authorized U.S. Shortwave Stations

KAIJ Dallas

Two If By Sea Broadcasting Corp.

KFBS Northern Mariana Islands, SA

Far East Broadcasting Co.

KHBN Medorn, Aimeliik, Palau

High Adventure Ministries

KIMF Pinon, N.M.

International Fellowship of Churches

KJES Vado, N.M.

Our Lady's Youth Center

KNLS Anchor Point, Alaska

World Christian Broadcasting Corp.

KSDA Agat, Guam

Adventist Broadcasting Service Inc.

KTBN Salt Lake City

Trinity Christian Center of Santa Ana Inc.

KTWR Agana, Guam

Trans World Radio Pacific

KVOH Rancho Simi, Calif.

High Adventure Ministries Inc.

KWHR Naalehu, Hawaii

LeSea Broadcasting Corp.

WBCQ Monticello, Maine

Allan H. Weiner

WEWN Vandiver, Ala.

Eternal Word Television Network Inc.

WGTG McCaysville, Ga.

Blue Ridge Communications Inc.

WHRA Greenbush, Maine

LeSea Broadcasting Corp.

WHRI Noblesville, Ind.

LeSea Broadcasting Corp.

WINB Red Lion, Pa.

World International Broadcasters Inc.

WJCR Millerstown, Ky.

World Wide Gospel Radio Inc.

WMLK Bethel, Pa.

Assemblies of Yahweh

WRMI Miami

Radio Miami International

WRNO New Orleans

Good News World Outreach

WSHB Furman, S.C.

Herald Broadcasting Syndicate Inc.

WTJC Newport, N.C.

Grace Baptist Church

WWBS Macon, Ga.

Charles C. Josey

WWCR Nashville, Tenn.

WNQM Inc.

WWFV McCaysville, Ga.

Blue Ridge Communications Inc.

WYFR Okeechobee, Fla.

Family Stations Inc.

Details:www.fcc.gov/ib/sand/neg/hf_web/stations.html

The rule of thumb: higher shortwave frequencies bounce best during the
day; lower SW frequencies work better at night. Combine this with
seasonal ionospheric variations and the sun's 11-year sunspot cycle,
which affects how well SW signals bounce, and one can see that
shortwave stations need a number of frequencies assigned to each of
them.

Second, in the United States, the SW bands are reserved for
international broadcasters.

"When the Voice of America was founded in 1947, it was prohibited from
broadcasting domestically, in order to prevent the government from
propagandizing to its citizens," says Larry Magne, editor in chief of
"Passport to World Band Radio."

"The FCC decided that if this rule applied to the VOA, it should also
apply to domestic shortwave broadcasters as well."

Fuzzy business model

However, according to NASB President and WRMI General Manager Jeff
White, the FCC's restriction has an important loophole.

"The current rules do not say SW stations cannot broadcast to the
U.S.," he said. "They say stations cannot broadcast programs that are
intended exclusively for an audience in the continental United
States."

As a result, U.S. shortwave broadcasters typically target countries
such as Canada and Mexico, with their signals coincidentally
blanketing any U.S. territory that happens to be in the way.

For instance, WRMI's 50 kW North American feed originates from a
Florida-based periodic yagi antenna pointed towards Vancouver at 317
degrees.

"With this heading, we manage to legally cover virtually all of the
continental United States," White said.

Then there's the issue of revenue. Although some U.S. shortwave
broadcasters - religious groups such as EWTN Global Catholic Radio and
Adventist World Radio, for example - don't count on making a profit,
others, like WWCR, WCBQ The Planet and WRMI, definitely do. But
although there are believed to be 600 million shortwave listeners
worldwide, including about 5 million in North America, no Arbitron-
style ratings service exists to report what they're listening to.

Without ratings, it is difficult to impossible to sell commercials. As
a result, profit-minded U.S. SW stations make their living by selling
airtime to whoever wants it. Typically, this tends to be religious or
political groups.

The religious programmers run the gamut from mainstream to fringe,
while political programmers range from Cuban dissidents to right-wing
militia groups. In some cases these programmers work live in the
station's studios. However, it's more typical for them to send in
prerecorded programs on cassette, CD or MiniDisc, or to send in their
shows by phone or, increasingly, over the Internet.

The cost? "We charge anywhere from $25 to $65 an hour, depending on
the time of day and the number of hours purchased," said Allan Weiner,
WBCQ owner and general manager. Based in Monticello, Maine, the
station uses three converted commercial/military transmitters, some
home-built antennas and a 1950s-vintage mobile home converted into a
studio building.

At WRMI in Miami, Jeff White sells airtime for $1 a minute. Meanwhile,
WWCR in Nashville, Tenn., charges anywhere from $15 for 4.5 minutes to
$160 for 59.5 minutes, depending on whether you're buying on a one-
day, weekly or Monday-through-Friday basis. With four 100 kW
transmitters - a single 50 kW transmitter is considered to be the bare
minimum by the FCC - WWCR has more reach and a more sophisticated
transmission/production plant than WCBQ or WRMI.

Thus, given the FCC's restriction on domestic broadcasting, the issues
of propagation, audio quality and static associated with amplitude-
modulated shortwave and the lack of a measurable audience, the
commercial SW market is not one for the faint-hearted.

Add the general public's lack of awareness of the medium - "People ask
me all the time how they can pick up Radio Miami International on
their AM/FM receivers," White said with a shrug - and one can see it's
a tough business.

"The handful of truly commercial stations may generate anywhere from
less than $200,000 a year to perhaps a few million," he added. "These
are not Clear Channel-type operations."

Paying the bills

These broadcasters are willing to put up with poor production quality
and content; this comes with the turf of selling airtime blocks. They
can tolerate downright weird shows.

"I remember one show where the guy was doing a chant to the angels,"
White said. "He just kept chanting the same thing over and over again
for 15 minutes."

In fact, U.S. SW broadcasters are willing to put up with almost
anything from their clients, as long as they pay their bills.

"It is still a free country and they have a right to say a lot of
things," said WWCR General Manager George McClintock.

"We pretty much let anyone say what they want," said Weiner. "Our
listeners demand that we be as open and free speech as possible. They
crave it. They demand it."

Besides, "The FCC doesn't really monitor the content on U.S.
shortwave," White said. "I don't think they see that as their mission
or concern. They are more worried about whether a station's technical
parameters are correct."

That said, U.S. shortwave broadcasters often suffer grief from their
clients' programming. Even radio's renegades have their limits.

For instance, WWCR learned that neo-Nazi Ernst Zundel was using his
airtime to deny the Holocaust. "We threw the program off," said
McClintock. Zundel had been broadcasting in German, and WWCR's
operators didn't understand what he was saying.

Even so, many Americans associate U.S. shortwave with far-right
broadcasts. This is ironic, given that most of what McClintock calls
"militia money" stopped flowing to shortwave broadcasters when the
dreaded year 2000 finally arrived. Apparently the New World Order's
"non-collapse," in McClintock's words, severely hurt the militias'
ability to solicit donations from listeners.

All in all, U.S. SW broadcasters operate in a strange, Twilight Zone
kind of world, but one that they relish. Passport's Magne believes
that U.S. shortwave broadcasters enjoy it so much that they don't want
the FCC to loosen its archaic restrictions on domestic shortwave.

"The truth is that they like it the way it is," he said. "If the rules
were changed, it could open the floodgates to more competition."

An unfair accusation? Not according to WRMI's White.

"We discussed changing the rules at the National Association of
Shortwave Broadcasters'

...

read more - Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

i think US shortwave is a travesty. terrible showing of our country
to the world as religious fanatics. terrible-- i hate it and wish
there were more intelligent US content broadcast.

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

"tom k in L.A." wrote:

On Nov 28, 4:44 am, IBOCcrock wrote:
On Nov 28, 4:21 am, "australia.radio.broadcast.moderated -"



wrote:
The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave

U.S. shortwave broadcasters consider themselves rebels - and are proud
of it.

by James Careless

Radio's renegades.

That's how many broadcasters view privately-owned U.S. shortwave radio
stations. They've got a point; when it comes to the conventions of
commercial AM/FM radio, this country's 25-odd shortwave stations are
anything but conventional.

In fact, the U.S. shortwave broadcast industry is sufficiently
different from domestic AM and FM that it has its own lobbying group,
the National Association of Shortwave Broadcasters (online atwww.shortwave.org
). A look at its membership list reveals stations unknown to most U.S.
broadcasters, such as WMLK Assemblies of Yahweh, KAIJ Two If By Sea
Broadcasting Corp., and WRMI Radio Miami International.

Missing from the shortwave ownership list are names like Clear Channel
and Infinity. Most U.S. shortwave stations are owned by religious
groups, while a few others, such as WRMI and WBCQ, are commercially
owned.

Restricted access

Why is U.S. shortwave so different?

First, AM and FM are local or regional in coverage, while SW is
national or international, thanks to the way radio waves propagate in
the 5,000-30,000 kHz area of the spectrum. Like familiar AM signals at
night, amplitude-modulated shortwave signals literally bounce off the
ionosphere, allowing them to reach thousands of miles beyond the
horizon. However, shortwave signals do this all the time, depending on
which of the SW bands are used.
FCC-Authorized U.S. Shortwave Stations

KAIJ Dallas

Two If By Sea Broadcasting Corp.

KFBS Northern Mariana Islands, SA

Far East Broadcasting Co.

KHBN Medorn, Aimeliik, Palau

High Adventure Ministries

KIMF Pinon, N.M.

International Fellowship of Churches

KJES Vado, N.M.

Our Lady's Youth Center

KNLS Anchor Point, Alaska

World Christian Broadcasting Corp.

KSDA Agat, Guam

Adventist Broadcasting Service Inc.

KTBN Salt Lake City

Trinity Christian Center of Santa Ana Inc.

KTWR Agana, Guam

Trans World Radio Pacific

KVOH Rancho Simi, Calif.

High Adventure Ministries Inc.

KWHR Naalehu, Hawaii

LeSea Broadcasting Corp.

WBCQ Monticello, Maine

Allan H. Weiner

WEWN Vandiver, Ala.

Eternal Word Television Network Inc.

WGTG McCaysville, Ga.

Blue Ridge Communications Inc.

WHRA Greenbush, Maine

LeSea Broadcasting Corp.

WHRI Noblesville, Ind.

LeSea Broadcasting Corp.

WINB Red Lion, Pa.

World International Broadcasters Inc.

WJCR Millerstown, Ky.

World Wide Gospel Radio Inc.

WMLK Bethel, Pa.

Assemblies of Yahweh

WRMI Miami

Radio Miami International

WRNO New Orleans

Good News World Outreach

WSHB Furman, S.C.

Herald Broadcasting Syndicate Inc.

WTJC Newport, N.C.

Grace Baptist Church

WWBS Macon, Ga.

Charles C. Josey

WWCR Nashville, Tenn.

WNQM Inc.

WWFV McCaysville, Ga.

Blue Ridge Communications Inc.

WYFR Okeechobee, Fla.

Family Stations Inc.

Details:www.fcc.gov/ib/sand/neg/hf_web/stations.html

The rule of thumb: higher shortwave frequencies bounce best during the
day; lower SW frequencies work better at night. Combine this with
seasonal ionospheric variations and the sun's 11-year sunspot cycle,
which affects how well SW signals bounce, and one can see that
shortwave stations need a number of frequencies assigned to each of
them.

Second, in the United States, the SW bands are reserved for
international broadcasters.

"When the Voice of America was founded in 1947, it was prohibited from
broadcasting domestically, in order to prevent the government from
propagandizing to its citizens," says Larry Magne, editor in chief of
"Passport to World Band Radio."

"The FCC decided that if this rule applied to the VOA, it should also
apply to domestic shortwave broadcasters as well."

Fuzzy business model

However, according to NASB President and WRMI General Manager Jeff
White, the FCC's restriction has an important loophole.

"The current rules do not say SW stations cannot broadcast to the
U.S.," he said. "They say stations cannot broadcast programs that are
intended exclusively for an audience in the continental United
States."

As a result, U.S. shortwave broadcasters typically target countries
such as Canada and Mexico, with their signals coincidentally
blanketing any U.S. territory that happens to be in the way.

For instance, WRMI's 50 kW North American feed originates from a
Florida-based periodic yagi antenna pointed towards Vancouver at 317
degrees.

"With this heading, we manage to legally cover virtually all of the
continental United States," White said.

Then there's the issue of revenue. Although some U.S. shortwave
broadcasters - religious groups such as EWTN Global Catholic Radio and
Adventist World Radio, for example - don't count on making a profit,
others, like WWCR, WCBQ The Planet and WRMI, definitely do. But
although there are believed to be 600 million shortwave listeners
worldwide, including about 5 million in North America, no Arbitron-
style ratings service exists to report what they're listening to.

Without ratings, it is difficult to impossible to sell commercials. As
a result, profit-minded U.S. SW stations make their living by selling
airtime to whoever wants it. Typically, this tends to be religious or
political groups.

The religious programmers run the gamut from mainstream to fringe,
while political programmers range from Cuban dissidents to right-wing
militia groups. In some cases these programmers work live in the
station's studios. However, it's more typical for them to send in
prerecorded programs on cassette, CD or MiniDisc, or to send in their
shows by phone or, increasingly, over the Internet.

The cost? "We charge anywhere from $25 to $65 an hour, depending on
the time of day and the number of hours purchased," said Allan Weiner,
WBCQ owner and general manager. Based in Monticello, Maine, the
station uses three converted commercial/military transmitters, some
home-built antennas and a 1950s-vintage mobile home converted into a
studio building.

At WRMI in Miami, Jeff White sells airtime for $1 a minute. Meanwhile,
WWCR in Nashville, Tenn., charges anywhere from $15 for 4.5 minutes to
$160 for 59.5 minutes, depending on whether you're buying on a one-
day, weekly or Monday-through-Friday basis. With four 100 kW
transmitters - a single 50 kW transmitter is considered to be the bare
minimum by the FCC - WWCR has more reach and a more sophisticated
transmission/production plant than WCBQ or WRMI.

Thus, given the FCC's restriction on domestic broadcasting, the issues
of propagation, audio quality and static associated with amplitude-
modulated shortwave and the lack of a measurable audience, the
commercial SW market is not one for the faint-hearted.

Add the general public's lack of awareness of the medium - "People ask
me all the time how they can pick up Radio Miami International on
their AM/FM receivers," White said with a shrug - and one can see it's
a tough business.

"The handful of truly commercial stations may generate anywhere from
less than $200,000 a year to perhaps a few million," he added. "These
are not Clear Channel-type operations."

Paying the bills

These broadcasters are willing to put up with poor production quality
and content; this comes with the turf of selling airtime blocks. They
can tolerate downright weird shows.

"I remember one show where the guy was doing a chant to the angels,"
White said. "He just kept chanting the same thing over and over again
for 15 minutes."

In fact, U.S. SW broadcasters are willing to put up with almost
anything from their clients, as long as they pay their bills.

"It is still a free country and they have a right to say a lot of
things," said WWCR General Manager George McClintock.

"We pretty much let anyone say what they want," said Weiner. "Our
listeners demand that we be as open and free speech as possible. They
crave it. They demand it."

Besides, "The FCC doesn't really monitor the content on U.S.
shortwave," White said. "I don't think they see that as their mission
or concern. They are more worried about whether a station's technical
parameters are correct."

That said, U.S. shortwave broadcasters often suffer grief from their
clients' programming. Even radio's renegades have their limits.

For instance, WWCR learned that neo-Nazi Ernst Zundel was using his
airtime to deny the Holocaust. "We threw the program off," said
McClintock. Zundel had been broadcasting in German, and WWCR's
operators didn't understand what he was saying.

Even so, many Americans associate U.S. shortwave with far-right
broadcasts. This is ironic, given that most of what McClintock calls
"militia money" stopped flowing to shortwave broadcasters when the
dreaded year 2000 finally arrived. Apparently the New World Order's
"non-collapse," in McClintock's words, severely hurt the militias'
ability to solicit donations from listeners.

All in all, U.S. SW broadcasters operate in a strange, Twilight Zone
kind of world, but one that they relish. Passport's Magne believes
that U.S. shortwave broadcasters enjoy it so much that they don't want
the FCC to loosen its archaic restrictions on domestic shortwave.

"The truth is that they like it the way it is," he said. "If the rules
were changed, it could open the floodgates to more competition."

An unfair accusation? Not according to WRMI's White.

"We discussed changing the rules at the National Association of
Shortwave Broadcasters'

...

read more - Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

i think US shortwave is a travesty. terrible showing of our country
to the world as religious fanatics. terrible-- i hate it and wish
there were more intelligent US content broadcast.

Then you might consider renting time and putting some on.

dxAce
Michigan
USA

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

"tom k in L.A." wrote in message
...

i think US shortwave is a travesty. terrible showing of our country
to the world as religious fanatics. terrible-- i hate it and wish
there were more intelligent US content broadcast.

Who would pay for it? We already have the constantly downsizing VOA for
that...

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

On Nov 28, 6:44 am, IBOCcrock wrote:
-
- This looks like mostly religious ****!
-

IBOC Crock -Yes you are religious about your **** ! ~ RHF

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

"tom k in L.A." wrote in message
...


i think US shortwave is a travesty. terrible showing of our country
to the world as religious fanatics. terrible-- i hate it and wish
there were more intelligent US content broadcast.

Are you going to do anything about what's bothering you?

Frank Dresser

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

On Nov 29, 10:16 am, "Frank Dresser"
wrote:
"tom k in L.A." wrote in ...



i think US shortwave is a travesty. terrible showing of our country
to the world as religious fanatics. terrible-- i hate it and wish
there were more intelligent US content broadcast.

Are you going to do anything about what's bothering you?

Frank Dresser

it would be good if US shortwave stations would sell big blocks of
time directly to Deutsche Welle, BBC, VoR, NHK, Radio Prague, etc.
then at least it would be intelligent programming.

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

In article ,
"Frank Dresser" wrote:

"tom k in L.A." wrote in message
...


i think US shortwave is a travesty. terrible showing of our country
to the world as religious fanatics. terrible-- i hate it and wish
there were more intelligent US content broadcast.

Are you going to do anything about what's bothering you?

He could always listen to WBCQ. Oh, wait a minute... that won't work.

--
Telamon
Ventura, California

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

In article
,
"tom k in L.A." wrote:

On Nov 29, 10:16 am, "Frank Dresser"
wrote:
"tom k in L.A." wrote in

m...



i think US shortwave is a travesty. terrible showing of our country
to the world as religious fanatics. terrible-- i hate it and wish
there were more intelligent US content broadcast.

Are you going to do anything about what's bothering you?

Frank Dresser

it would be good if US shortwave stations would sell big blocks of
time directly to Deutsche Welle, BBC, VoR, NHK, Radio Prague, etc.
then at least it would be intelligent programming.

Just because the US religious broadcasters don't have what you want does
not make them unintelligent.

I'm not interested in listening to relays from transmitters in our own
country. It kind of ruins the whole idea of SW for me.

--
Telamon
Ventura, California

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

Telamon wrote:
In article
,
"tom k in L.A." wrote:

On Nov 29, 10:16 am, "Frank Dresser"
wrote:
"tom k in L.A." wrote in

m...



i think US shortwave is a travesty. terrible showing of our country
to the world as religious fanatics. terrible-- i hate it and wish
there were more intelligent US content broadcast.
Are you going to do anything about what's bothering you?

Frank Dresser
it would be good if US shortwave stations would sell big blocks of
time directly to Deutsche Welle, BBC, VoR, NHK, Radio Prague, etc.
then at least it would be intelligent programming.

Just because the US religious broadcasters don't have what you want does
not make them unintelligent.

I'm not interested in listening to relays from transmitters in our own
country. It kind of ruins the whole idea of SW for me.


There are 2 kinds of SWLs. One kind enjoys other cultures. One kind
doesn't.

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

Since I don't live in the US, I find these kind of stations rather
interesting and jolly good fun to listen to; of course I am entirely aware
that they do not represent the views of the average US citizen, and at
many times they are quite the "crackpot fringe". I don't think that any
reasonably sophisticated European listener, at least, could think
otherwise.

But I, certainly, have a great deal of fun listening to fire-and-brimstone
pastors and the "apocalypse now, hoard-gold-and-buy-guns" broadcasts. It's
miles and miles away from commercial FM, and isn't that the whole point of
the SWL hobby?

My other interests are Tropical Band and anything from South America
(since my wife is from Brazil!)

Alex


There are 2 kinds of SWLs. One kind enjoys other cultures. One kind
doesn't.

WHICH KIND OT SHORTWAVE LISTENER ARE YOU ?
 

On Nov 30, 5:58 am, David wrote:
Telamon wrote:
In article
,
"tom k in L.A." wrote:

On Nov 29, 10:16 am, "Frank Dresser"
wrote:
"tom k in L.A." wrote in

m...

i think US shortwave is a travesty. terrible showing of our country
to the world as religious fanatics. terrible-- i hate it and wish
there were more intelligent US content broadcast.
Are you going to do anything about what's bothering you?

Frank Dresser
it would be good if US shortwave stations would sell big blocks of
time directly to Deutsche Welle, BBC, VoR, NHK, Radio Prague, etc.
then at least it would be intelligent programming.

Just because the US religious broadcasters don't have what you want does
not make them unintelligent.

I'm not interested in listening to relays from transmitters in our own
country. It kind of ruins the whole idea of SW for me.

-
- There are 2 kinds of SWLs.
- One kind enjoys other cultures.
- One kind doesn't.
-

David,

Make that Three Kinds of Shortwave Listners (SWLs) :

1 - One Kind Enjoys 'other' Cultures and is a Shortwave
Listener (SWL) who likes to listen to the Programs from
International Boradcasters or Their Families Ethno-Cultural
Homeland.

2 - Another Kind Searches for News and Information from
the Source; and Un-Biased News and Information with a
Different Perspective; and they use the Shortwave Radio
as a means of doing so.

3 - Plus the Kind that are Shortwave Radio DXers; and
are into : The Art; The Challenge; and The Technology
of Seeking Out those Hard-to-Find and Hard-to-Hear
Shortwave Radio Signals that only a few get to Hear
from the Far Corners of the World.

.. . . and some Shortwave Radio Listeners (SWLs) enjoy
doing all three kinds of Shortwave Radio Listening.

WHICH KIND OT SHORTWAVE LISTENER ARE YOU ?

FWIW - I am a 2-1-3 Kind of Shortwave Radio Listener (SWL).

i want to know ~ RHF

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

"tom k in L.A." wrote in message
...
On Nov 29, 10:16 am, "Frank Dresser"
wrote:
"tom k in L.A." wrote in

m...



i think US shortwave is a travesty. terrible showing of our country
to the world as religious fanatics. terrible-- i hate it and wish
there were more intelligent US content broadcast.

Are you going to do anything about what's bothering you?

Frank Dresser

it would be good if US shortwave stations would sell big blocks of
time directly to Deutsche Welle, BBC, VoR, NHK, Radio Prague, etc.
then at least it would be intelligent programming.

OK, but are you going to do anything to make your opinion count? Have you
written your congressman?

I frequently find the programming on US SW stations annoying, silly and
wrong-headed. Oftentimes it's very amusing. Even more often, it's boring.
But sometimes there's something on of great interest and importance.
Something that can't be easily dismissed.

But the bottom line is US SW radio exists the way it does because people
have put their money where their mouths are.

Frank Dresser

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

"Alex" wrote in message
. ukMEAT...
Since I don't live in the US, I find these kind of stations rather
interesting and jolly good fun to listen to; of course I am entirely aware
that they do not represent the views of the average US citizen, and at
many times they are quite the "crackpot fringe". I don't think that any
reasonably sophisticated European listener, at least, could think
otherwise.

But I, certainly, have a great deal of fun listening to fire-and-brimstone
pastors and the "apocalypse now, hoard-gold-and-buy-guns" broadcasts. It's
miles and miles away from commercial FM, and isn't that the whole point of
the SWL hobby?

My other interests are Tropical Band and anything from South America
(since my wife is from Brazil!)

Alex



I'm sure you are right.

Do the US SW broadcasters speak for the average American? No.

Are the average non-US listeners smart enough to figure that out? Yes.

Frank Dresser

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

"Telamon" wrote in message
...


He could always listen to WBCQ. Oh, wait a minute... that won't work.


He could broadcast his own show on WBCQ.

Frank Dresser

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

I'm sure you are right.

Do the US SW broadcasters speak for the average American? No.

Are the average non-US listeners smart enough to figure that out? Yes.

Frank Dresser

Hear, hear!

I've been lurking on this group for years and years - and I see so much
bickering and b*tching it's almost like my old headmaster used to say -
"Like washerwomen round the well". Glad to see some level-headed
discussion again. The RFI posts are great too.

At the prices US SW airtime is going I think a few people could get
together and sponsor a "rationalist" segment on as many channels/stations
as we can. Raise a couple of thousand dollars and get someone like Richard
Dawkins to speak, or, perhaps, replay some of Richard Feynman's interviews
from UK's Horizon back in the 1980's.

Yes, and thinking back to the 80s/90s in the UK - we're in the same
situation on TV - a severe lack of critically thought-out and
science-based documentary, in favour of the "shockumentary" - a recent
one could have been subtitled "WiFi in schools is giving your children
cancer!!" - and that was the once-renowned "Panorama".

Sigh...

Alex

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

In article ,
"Frank Dresser" wrote:

"Telamon" wrote in message
...


He could always listen to WBCQ. Oh, wait a minute... that won't work.


He could broadcast his own show on WBCQ.

That's the ticket! Excellent suggestion!

--
Telamon
Ventura, California

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

In article ,
David wrote:

Telamon wrote:
In article
,
"tom k in L.A." wrote:

On Nov 29, 10:16 am, "Frank Dresser"
wrote:
"tom k in L.A." wrote in
.
co m...



i think US shortwave is a travesty. terrible showing of our
country to the world as religious fanatics. terrible-- i hate
it and wish there were more intelligent US content broadcast.
Are you going to do anything about what's bothering you?

Frank Dresser
it would be good if US shortwave stations would sell big blocks of
time directly to Deutsche Welle, BBC, VoR, NHK, Radio Prague, etc.
then at least it would be intelligent programming.

Just because the US religious broadcasters don't have what you want
does not make them unintelligent.

I'm not interested in listening to relays from transmitters in our
own country. It kind of ruins the whole idea of SW for me.


There are 2 kinds of SWLs. One kind enjoys other cultures. One kind
doesn't.

For me it is not about "enjoying other cultures" but understanding
another countries point of view on current events. Generally I want the
ability to hear this opinion directly though the medium of SW so that
the influence of individuals domestic do not have the opportunity to
screw with this content. I have a great disrespect for the USA news
media that has a tendency to spin everything in favor of a liberal
point of view. Here, for example, the news and opinion provided by
"public radio" on the FM broadcast band provides vast amounts of
amusement.

--
Telamon
Ventura, California

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

Telamon wrote:


For me it is not about "enjoying other cultures" but understanding
another countries point of view on current events. Generally I want the
ability to hear this opinion directly though the medium of SW so that
the influence of individuals domestic do not have the opportunity to
screw with this content. I have a great disrespect for the USA news
media that has a tendency to spin everything in favor of a liberal
point of view. Here, for example, the news and opinion provided by
"public radio" on the FM broadcast band provides vast amounts of
amusement.


You have a bizarre sense of humor.

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

In article ,
David wrote:

Telamon wrote:


For me it is not about "enjoying other cultures" but understanding
another countries point of view on current events. Generally I want the
ability to hear this opinion directly though the medium of SW so that
the influence of individuals domestic do not have the opportunity to
screw with this content. I have a great disrespect for the USA news
media that has a tendency to spin everything in favor of a liberal
point of view. Here, for example, the news and opinion provided by
"public radio" on the FM broadcast band provides vast amounts of
amusement.


You have a bizarre sense of humor.

Bizarre is what I wold define opinion as on PBS or alternatively
laughable. If I want the whacked view of current events PBS is the way
to go.

--
Telamon
Ventura, California

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

Telamon wrote:
In article ,
David wrote:

Telamon wrote:

For me it is not about "enjoying other cultures" but understanding
another countries point of view on current events. Generally I want the
ability to hear this opinion directly though the medium of SW so that
the influence of individuals domestic do not have the opportunity to
screw with this content. I have a great disrespect for the USA news
media that has a tendency to spin everything in favor of a liberal
point of view. Here, for example, the news and opinion provided by
"public radio" on the FM broadcast band provides vast amounts of
amusement.

You have a bizarre sense of humor.

Bizarre is what I wold define opinion as on PBS or alternatively
laughable. If I want the whacked view of current events PBS is the way
to go.


PBS is not a radio network. If you actually listened to NPR you'd
probably remember the name better. No doubt you are skewed to the right
and something straight up the middle will appear left to you.

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

David wrote:

Telamon wrote:
In article ,
David wrote:

Telamon wrote:

For me it is not about "enjoying other cultures" but understanding
another countries point of view on current events. Generally I want the
ability to hear this opinion directly though the medium of SW so that
the influence of individuals domestic do not have the opportunity to
screw with this content. I have a great disrespect for the USA news
media that has a tendency to spin everything in favor of a liberal
point of view. Here, for example, the news and opinion provided by
"public radio" on the FM broadcast band provides vast amounts of
amusement.

You have a bizarre sense of humor.

Bizarre is what I wold define opinion as on PBS or alternatively
laughable. If I want the whacked view of current events PBS is the way
to go.


PBS is not a radio network. If you actually listened to NPR you'd
probably remember the name better.

Yeah, it's "National Propaganda Radio".

dxAce
Michigan
USA

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

In article ,
David wrote:

Telamon wrote:
In article ,
David wrote:

Telamon wrote:

For me it is not about "enjoying other cultures" but understanding
another countries point of view on current events. Generally I want the
ability to hear this opinion directly though the medium of SW so that
the influence of individuals domestic do not have the opportunity to
screw with this content. I have a great disrespect for the USA news
media that has a tendency to spin everything in favor of a liberal
point of view. Here, for example, the news and opinion provided by
"public radio" on the FM broadcast band provides vast amounts of
amusement.

You have a bizarre sense of humor.

Bizarre is what I wold define opinion as on PBS or alternatively
laughable. If I want the whacked view of current events PBS is the way
to go.


PBS is not a radio network. If you actually listened to NPR you'd
probably remember the name better. No doubt you are skewed to the right
and something straight up the middle will appear left to you.

I'm not skewed to the right. I'm skewed to the truth and facts not
someone's fabrications. If you want to hear news that has been stapled
with a left point of view, folded into a story that satisfies the left
leaning perceptions and mutilated to the point it barely resembles
reality then NPR is the way to go.

--
Telamon
Ventura, California

The Truth About NPR/PB$/CPB's 'Balanced' Panels of Commentators
 

On Dec 1, 8:47 am, David wrote:
Telamon wrote:
In article ,
David wrote:

Telamon wrote:

For me it is not about "enjoying other cultures" but understanding
another countries point of view on current events. Generally I want the
ability to hear this opinion directly though the medium of SW so that
the influence of individuals domestic do not have the opportunity to
screw with this content. I have a great disrespect for the USA news
media that has a tendency to spin everything in favor of a liberal
point of view. Here, for example, the news and opinion provided by
"public radio" on the FM broadcast band provides vast amounts of
amusement.

You have a bizarre sense of humor.

Bizarre is what I wold define opinion as on PBS or alternatively
laughable. If I want the whacked view of current events PBS is the way
to go.

- PBS is not a radio network.
- If you actually listened to NPR you'd probably remember
- the name better. No doubt you are skewed to the right
- and something straight up the middle will appear left
- to you.

NPR {PB$/CPB} Usually presents two points of view in their
so called 'Balanced' Panels of Commentators :

1 - A Liberal who does the most talking on how you should
Think about the the Topic or Issue as an Enlightened Being.

2 - A Moderate who Comments on what the Liberal Says;
by simply Toning-it-down a bit.

Plus a Moderator who says yada, Yada. YADA ! to everything
that the Liberal Says.

Oops - Whats Missing a True Conservative Voice !
[ But That's OK cause Conservatives are Degenerates
and should not be allowed to speak at all. ]

yes it say that ~ RHF

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

Telamon wrote:
In article ,
David wrote:

Telamon wrote:
In article ,
David wrote:

Telamon wrote:

For me it is not about "enjoying other cultures" but understanding
another countries point of view on current events. Generally I want the
ability to hear this opinion directly though the medium of SW so that
the influence of individuals domestic do not have the opportunity to
screw with this content. I have a great disrespect for the USA news
media that has a tendency to spin everything in favor of a liberal
point of view. Here, for example, the news and opinion provided by
"public radio" on the FM broadcast band provides vast amounts of
amusement.

You have a bizarre sense of humor.
Bizarre is what I wold define opinion as on PBS or alternatively
laughable. If I want the whacked view of current events PBS is the way
to go.

PBS is not a radio network. If you actually listened to NPR you'd
probably remember the name better. No doubt you are skewed to the right
and something straight up the middle will appear left to you.

I'm not skewed to the right. I'm skewed to the truth and facts not
someone's fabrications. If you want to hear news that has been stapled
with a left point of view, folded into a story that satisfies the left
leaning perceptions and mutilated to the point it barely resembles
reality then NPR is the way to go.


My dad was a John Bircher/Minuteman. He loved NPR News; I shudder to
think what may pass for "truth and facts" through your prism.

The Odd World of U.S. Shortwave
 

In article ,
David wrote:

Telamon wrote:
In article ,
David wrote:

Telamon wrote:
In article ,
David wrote:

Telamon wrote:

For me it is not about "enjoying other cultures" but understanding
another countries point of view on current events. Generally I want the
ability to hear this opinion directly though the medium of SW so that
the influence of individuals domestic do not have the opportunity to
screw with this content. I have a great disrespect for the USA news
media that has a tendency to spin everything in favor of a liberal
point of view. Here, for example, the news and opinion provided by
"public radio" on the FM broadcast band provides vast amounts of
amusement.

You have a bizarre sense of humor.
Bizarre is what I wold define opinion as on PBS or alternatively
laughable. If I want the whacked view of current events PBS is the way
to go.

PBS is not a radio network. If you actually listened to NPR you'd
probably remember the name better. No doubt you are skewed to the right
and something straight up the middle will appear left to you.

I'm not skewed to the right. I'm skewed to the truth and facts not
someone's fabrications. If you want to hear news that has been stapled
with a left point of view, folded into a story that satisfies the left
leaning perceptions and mutilated to the point it barely resembles
reality then NPR is the way to go.


My dad was a John Bircher/Minuteman. He loved NPR News; I shudder to
think what may pass for "truth and facts" through your prism.

If you must confess in public to being stupid and easily led do it on
your own time. Don't involve me in your mental morass please. Thanks in
advance.

--
Telamon
Ventura, California