March 2010
IN THIS ISSUE:
Review of the HFCC
A10 Conference
2010 NASB Annual Meeting in Hamilton , Ontario
Potpourri of Shortwave News
A Review of the HFCC A10 Conference
by Dr. Jerry Plummer, WWCR
by Dr. Jerry Plummer, WWCR
The A10 HFCC
Coordination Conference was held in Kuala Lumpur , Malaysia , February 1-5, 2010. The theme, or key, of the
conference was “Developing Friendship.”
DomesticU.S. shortwave
broadcasters were represented by Tom Lucey of the FCC,
George Ross and Mike Sabin of Trans World Radio ( Guam
) and Dr. Jerry Plummer, representing the NASB and WWCR. A total of 118
attendees were present for the Conference.
Regarding climactic conditions inKuala
Lumpur , temperatures in the Fahrenheit scale typically
were 92-94 daily and 73-76 in the evenings. To me, it felt like Punta Cana, but
no pool or ocean nearby. However, it was generally tolerable, and being located
directly in the “Golden Triangle” of KL offered much dining and shopping
activities, with a myriad of varied type restaurants, offering all imaginable
types of fare—as well as a milieu of merchants, offering everything from
knockoff Rolex watches to “reflexology” sessions (i.e. massages).
The meeting opened promptly at 9:30 Monday morning, and the opening included welcoming remarks by several members of the Board, including Horst Scholz of Deutsche Welle; Oldrich Cip, Chairman of HFCC and representative of Czech Radio; Geoff Spells of VT Communications; and Bassil Zoubi of Arab States Broadcasting Union. Upon completion of the opening remarks, the coordination activities began, and ran through Friday morning.
The conference room was a spacious, well-equipped area with plenty of room for all members, including room to suitably place extra chairs across each table for visiting representatives to sit and discuss collision correction. The wireless network worked well, including external Internet access; although (as expected) peak times of activity slowed down overall speed. However, the system was usable the entire time. The print server never was operable to several representatives, but anything needing to be printed could be at the four workstations located at the back of the conference room.
A meeting was held Tuesday afternoon for the G8 representatives and Steering Board regarding the Russian contingent(s) and its requirements entries. GFC, as one group, and TRW and RAM as another group, previously separately entered requirements. If I understand correctly, one group was VOR and the other two combined for all “retail” sales to out of country leased transmitter time. GFC told the G8/HFCC group that they were now responsible for all Russian shortwave coordination activities, and requested the HFCC to announce as such, and to remove all entries not posted by GFC. The HFCC, preferring to not become politically involved, declined to do so at the current time. Thus, there are 173 duplicate entries in the database.
To quote the HFCC:
Wording of the Russian Delegation for the HFCC Conference Minutes:
“The delegation of the Russian Federation gave explanations regarding 173 radio broadcasting requirements which were submitted on 01.02.2010 on behalf of the General Radio Frequency Centre (GFC) of Russia within the process of the HFCC Conference.
“The above mentioned radio broadcasting requirements fully duplicate the requirements submitted by the Radio-Agency-M Ltd. (RAM) and TV Radio Wave (TRW) organizations with the used technical facilities to broadcast radio programs from the territory of theRussian Federation
. Only the name of the Frequency Management Organization
(FMO) was changed in the above requirements.
“Coordination of new 173 radio broadcasting requirements was carried out by the GFC organization at the HFCC Conference. In doing so the former requirements of the TRW and RAM organizations which were duplicated should have been ignored within the process of the HFCC Conference.
“To avoid confusion and misunderstanding in the work of the HFCC conference the delegation ofRussia
requested the HFCC Steering Board to delete the RAM and TRW requirements with
the use of technical facilities to broadcast radio programs from the territory
of the Russian Federation
from the list of the requirements to be coordinated.
Answer of the SB for the HFCC Conference Minutes:
“The HFCC Steering Board thanked Alexander Stadinchuk for the detailed explanation for the duplication of requirements of RAM and TRW via facilities inRussia
by GFC. However, the SB stated that it
cannot accept the request to delete the corresponding RAM and TRW requirements
for those transmissions from the territory of the Russian Federation . The reason for
this is that both RAM and TRW are members of HFCC and the SB does not have the
authority to delete requirements of any member.
The SB states that the duplication of requirements significantly hampers
the informal co-ordination process. On this occasion the Steering Board of the
HFCC suggests to the Administration of the Russian
Federation to work with the three FMOs on the territory
of the Russian Federation
with the aim of eliminating the duplicated requirements and to resolve this
difficult problem. As RAM and TRW are
not present at the joint HFCC/ASBU/ABU-HFC meeting held in Kuala Lumpur , the SB will inform them of this
matter.”
Coordination flowed smoothly all during the week, with no computer or network anomalies. Much interaction was noted among all members during the coordination times.
For the first time that I remember, no group dinner was held at the Conference, although a Friday afternoon tour was arranged, which included trips to the 500 metre Communications Tower, as well as KL’s skyline Twin Towers. The tour also included a visit to Malaysian radio studios and a trip to a local group of craft shops.
During the conference, the Group of Experts met (Wednesday) and offered the following information on the Friday Plenary (closing) statements:
G. of E. documents will soon be placed on the website for everyone to review.
Regarding the new software showing target ID by polygon, the testing is going well. It will offer clearer and better collision calculation.
Antenna design frequency, used in the requirements file, must be filled in. It is used for calculation of collisions. A warning message will be displayed whenever a requirements file missing this information is entered.
More information regarding a new antenna program will be coming in future.
Older DOS versions of the plotting software should not be used; consider using newer software.
A list of minutes from Punta Cana of requests and their updates will be issued shortly.
Domestic
Regarding climactic conditions in
The meeting opened promptly at 9:30 Monday morning, and the opening included welcoming remarks by several members of the Board, including Horst Scholz of Deutsche Welle; Oldrich Cip, Chairman of HFCC and representative of Czech Radio; Geoff Spells of VT Communications; and Bassil Zoubi of Arab States Broadcasting Union. Upon completion of the opening remarks, the coordination activities began, and ran through Friday morning.
The conference room was a spacious, well-equipped area with plenty of room for all members, including room to suitably place extra chairs across each table for visiting representatives to sit and discuss collision correction. The wireless network worked well, including external Internet access; although (as expected) peak times of activity slowed down overall speed. However, the system was usable the entire time. The print server never was operable to several representatives, but anything needing to be printed could be at the four workstations located at the back of the conference room.
A meeting was held Tuesday afternoon for the G8 representatives and Steering Board regarding the Russian contingent(s) and its requirements entries. GFC, as one group, and TRW and RAM as another group, previously separately entered requirements. If I understand correctly, one group was VOR and the other two combined for all “retail” sales to out of country leased transmitter time. GFC told the G8/HFCC group that they were now responsible for all Russian shortwave coordination activities, and requested the HFCC to announce as such, and to remove all entries not posted by GFC. The HFCC, preferring to not become politically involved, declined to do so at the current time. Thus, there are 173 duplicate entries in the database.
To quote the HFCC:
Wording of the Russian Delegation for the HFCC Conference Minutes:
“The delegation of the Russian Federation gave explanations regarding 173 radio broadcasting requirements which were submitted on 01.02.2010 on behalf of the General Radio Frequency Centre (GFC) of Russia within the process of the HFCC Conference.
“The above mentioned radio broadcasting requirements fully duplicate the requirements submitted by the Radio-Agency-M Ltd. (RAM) and TV Radio Wave (TRW) organizations with the used technical facilities to broadcast radio programs from the territory of the
“Coordination of new 173 radio broadcasting requirements was carried out by the GFC organization at the HFCC Conference. In doing so the former requirements of the TRW and RAM organizations which were duplicated should have been ignored within the process of the HFCC Conference.
“To avoid confusion and misunderstanding in the work of the HFCC conference the delegation of
Answer of the SB for the HFCC Conference Minutes:
“The HFCC Steering Board thanked Alexander Stadinchuk for the detailed explanation for the duplication of requirements of RAM and TRW via facilities in
Coordination flowed smoothly all during the week, with no computer or network anomalies. Much interaction was noted among all members during the coordination times.
For the first time that I remember, no group dinner was held at the Conference, although a Friday afternoon tour was arranged, which included trips to the 500 metre Communications Tower, as well as KL’s skyline Twin Towers. The tour also included a visit to Malaysian radio studios and a trip to a local group of craft shops.
During the conference, the Group of Experts met (Wednesday) and offered the following information on the Friday Plenary (closing) statements:
G. of E. documents will soon be placed on the website for everyone to review.
Regarding the new software showing target ID by polygon, the testing is going well. It will offer clearer and better collision calculation.
Antenna design frequency, used in the requirements file, must be filled in. It is used for calculation of collisions. A warning message will be displayed whenever a requirements file missing this information is entered.
More information regarding a new antenna program will be coming in future.
Older DOS versions of the plotting software should not be used; consider using newer software.
A list of minutes from Punta Cana of requests and their updates will be issued shortly.
Geoff of VTC says that
ITU is considering adding DRM to its system, which includes HD Radio, etc. This
will be reviewed in April, 2010 for acceptance. The following items came from
Geoff, also:
26 MHz DRM for local broadcasts services proposal is in the ITU pipeline.
A proposal for DSP for new receivers was not approved, but will be reviewed again in April, 2010.
G9960 includes a proposal regarding powerline devices to extend range to 200 MHz. The intention is greater bandwidth for data services, but also offers tremendous interference for many bands, outside of shortwave, too. Much discussion has occurred over this proposal.
Oldrich addressed the need to increase access to shortwave listeners, particularly via the HFCC website. Currently, the public access database is updated twice per year, and there was a vote to update the public record more regularly. The delegates approved this measure.
Regarding finances, Geoff reported that 2008 was a lean year for the HFCC, but 2009 year-end numbers indicated that things were back financially where the HFCC should be. Geoff says that this is partially because member arrearage has been paid. He noted that Czech law has changed, and there is a chance that the HFCC will be exposed to a value added tax. This must be investigated more to determine if the HFCC is applicable to this taxation law change. Results will be forthcoming.
Horst chaired the election activities, where two posts were to be voted on: Chairman and System Coordinator. Oldrich Cip was the only candidate for the former, and was unanimously elected. Gerald Theoret of Radio Canada International and Sergio Salvatori of Vatican Radio were co-elected to the System Coordinator position. Upon election Oldrich called for an increase in public awareness of the HFCC and its functions.
Oldrich noted that REE Spain, who had been absent for two years, will be back next time; and that an FMO name change was awarded for DTK changing to MDK.
It was noted again about the duplication of requirements due to the Russian situation noted above.
In closing the Plenary meeting, Oldrich thanked the ABU for hosting and orchestrating the Conference.
26 MHz DRM for local broadcasts services proposal is in the ITU pipeline.
A proposal for DSP for new receivers was not approved, but will be reviewed again in April, 2010.
G9960 includes a proposal regarding powerline devices to extend range to 200 MHz. The intention is greater bandwidth for data services, but also offers tremendous interference for many bands, outside of shortwave, too. Much discussion has occurred over this proposal.
Oldrich addressed the need to increase access to shortwave listeners, particularly via the HFCC website. Currently, the public access database is updated twice per year, and there was a vote to update the public record more regularly. The delegates approved this measure.
Regarding finances, Geoff reported that 2008 was a lean year for the HFCC, but 2009 year-end numbers indicated that things were back financially where the HFCC should be. Geoff says that this is partially because member arrearage has been paid. He noted that Czech law has changed, and there is a chance that the HFCC will be exposed to a value added tax. This must be investigated more to determine if the HFCC is applicable to this taxation law change. Results will be forthcoming.
Horst chaired the election activities, where two posts were to be voted on: Chairman and System Coordinator. Oldrich Cip was the only candidate for the former, and was unanimously elected. Gerald Theoret of Radio Canada International and Sergio Salvatori of Vatican Radio were co-elected to the System Coordinator position. Upon election Oldrich called for an increase in public awareness of the HFCC and its functions.
Oldrich noted that REE Spain, who had been absent for two years, will be back next time; and that an FMO name change was awarded for DTK changing to MDK.
It was noted again about the duplication of requirements due to the Russian situation noted above.
In closing the Plenary meeting, Oldrich thanked the ABU for hosting and orchestrating the Conference.
-----
Join us in
Hamilton, Ontario for the 2010 NASB Annual Meeting
Final plans are being made for the 2010
NASB Annual Meeting, which is being hosted by associate member Galcom
International at its headquarters in Hamilton ,
Ontario , Canada
May 20 and 21. Below is all of the
information you need to know to join us. Anyone with an interest in shortwave radio –
listeners, broadcasters, consultants, etc. – is very welcome to take part. You can find a registration form on our web
page: www.shortwave.org/meeting.htm.
As usual, the two-day meeting will be
combined with the DRM USA annual meeting.
The agenda for the two days includes the taping of a television show
about shortwave radio, a tour of the Galcom factory where it makes fix-tuned
shortwave receivers, talks and lectures about shortwave radio with a focus on Canada this year, the annual NASB business
meeting and a tour to world-famous Niagara
Falls , complete with dinner. Here's a look at the preliminary agenda:
Thursday May 20, 2010
8:30 am - Live taping of the "100 Huntley Street "
syndicated television show
10:30 am - Crossroads Christian
Communications facility tour
11:00 am - Tour of the Galcom International
factory
12:00 pm - Barbeque Lunch at the Galcom
factory
1:00 pm - DRM USA Meeting at Mohawk College ,
with updates on DRM broadcasting and receivers
2:30 pm - Coffee Break
4:00 pm - Meeting Ends
4:30 pm - Bus Tour and Dinner, Niagara Falls
Friday May 21, 2010
9:00 am - NASB Meeting begins at Mohawk College
Conference Center . Speakers will include Steve Canney of the
Ontario DX Association, which acts as QSL coordinator for Toronto shortwave station CFRX. Invited speakers include representatives of
CBC/Radio Canada International.
10:30 am - Coffee Break
11:00 am - NASB Meeting continues
12:00 pm - Lunch (catered at Mohawk College )
1:00 pm - NASB Business Meeting
5:00 pm - Meeting Ends
Everyone with an interest in shortwave
radio is invited to attend the NASB/DRM USA annual meeting in Hamilton .
There is a C$55 registration fee (that's 55 Canadian dollars) per
person, which includes lunch and coffee breaks on both Thursday and Friday at
the Mohawk College Conference
Center . For those who wish to participate in the
optional tour to Niagara Falls
on Thursday afternoon/evening, there is an additional C$55 fee. Galcom has arranged for accommodation at the Mohawk College
student residence, or there is alternative accommodation at the Courtyard
Marriott.
Those who plan to attend the NASB/DRM USA
annual meeting should fill out the registration form. If you have any questions, please feel free
to contact Jennifer at galcom@galcom.org or Jeff White at radiomiami9@cs.com.
Note that for those coming from long
distances, you can fly into either the Buffalo
Niagara International
Airport in Buffalo ,
New York ; or the Toronto
International Airport
in Canada . Hamilton
is located about equal distance between the two airports (about an hour or so
driving time). There is bus
transportation from Buffalo airport to Hamilton , and there is bus or train transportation from
the Toronto airport to Hamilton .
Or, of course, it is convenient to rent a car at either airport and
drive to Hamilton . Hamilton
also has its own international airport, with service by WestJet and
Flyglobespan airlines.
We look forward to seeing many of you at
the NASB annual meeting in May!
Explanatory Notes for Registration Form:
Block A – Please fill out one form for each
person attending. The registration fee is C$55 per person (i.e. Canadian
dollars). This will cover the basic registration fee, lunches on Thursday and
Friday, and coffee breaks on both days. Please check the days you plan to
attend (Thursday, Friday or both). If you do not require accommodation, or if
you plan to stay somewhere other than the Mohawk College residence, check the
box indicating that you will take care of your own overnight accommodations.
Block B – This is the cost of accommodation
at the Mohawk College residence. These are student
residences which are made available to the public in the summer months. The
C$87.50 rate (Canadian dollars) is per person for TWO nights (Wednesday and
Thursday), based on double occupancy in a standard suite. This is, for example,
if you plan to share a suite with a colleague from your own organization (or
anyone else you want to share with). Please indicate the name of the person you
will be sharing your suite with. Note that each suite has two private rooms,
along with a shared bathroom and kitchenette. See the suite layout at: http://www2.mohawkcollege.ca/dept/market/vtour/WhereToLive.html.
The C$175.00 rate is per person for TWO nights (Wednesday and Thursday) if you
prefer a private suite for yourself and/or family members. The residence suite
includes the two nights' accommodations, two continental breakfasts, free
parking and free Internet. The address is 245 Fennell Avenue West , Hamilton ,
Ontario . It is not possible to
stay at the Mohawk residence for just one night. (See Alternate Accommodations
below.)
Block C – There will be an optional visit
to Niagara Falls
on Thursday evening. The price of C$55.00 per person includes bus
transportation from Mohawk College to the Falls and back, and a private NASB
dinner at the Old Stone Mill restaurant in Niagara Falls , Ontario .
You are welcome to bring family members along for the same price of C$55.00 per
person. Please note on the registration form the names of any family members
who will be accompanying you, and put the total amount in the box. Here is the
tentative menu for the dinner: Bread Service. 1st Course: Mixed Green Salad
with House Dressing. Main Course: Dry Aged Angus Prime Rib of Beef au jus with
Yorkshire pudding, mashed potatoes and seasonal vegetables; or Angel Hair Pasta
with caramelized onions, crumbled goat cheese, arugula and olive oil; or
Eggplant Parmesan. Dessert Course: Choice of New York style cheesecake, Lemon Craze, or
Apple Blossom. Coffee, tea.
You may send your registration form by
standard mail along with a personal or company cheque payable to Galcom
International, or you can pay everything by credit/debit card if you wish. Just
indicate if it is a Visa or MasterCard and provide the card details. If paying
by Visa or MasterCard, you can fax your registration form to Galcom at the
number indicated, or you can scan and e-mail the form to them.
Alternative Accommodation: The Mohawk
residence package above is for two nights (May 19 and 20); there is no rate for
just one night of accommodation. The Mohawk
College residence is not
available on Friday night. However, there is alternative accommodation
available (for Friday or for any other nights) at the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel,
1224 Upper James Street in Hamilton for an NASB group rate of C$129 per night
plus tax. The normal rate for May is C$169 per night. The group rate of C$129
per night is for single, double, triple or quad occupancy, with two queen beds
or one king size bed, free high-speed Internet and free parking). This hotel is
approximately seven minutes from the Mohawk
Conference Center
by car. To get this conference rate, call the Marriott 800-number
(+1-800-MARRIOTT) and tell them you are with the National Association of
Shortwave Broadcasters group. If you prefer, you can also e-mail Marilyn Frame,
the hotel's Sales Manager, at: m.frame@concordhotels.com to make your
reservation with your name, address, telephone number and credit card details.
You should guarantee your reservation with a credit card. The group room block
expires on April 19, 2010. If you reserve after that date, the price will be at
the hotel's regular rate, if rooms are available.
(Registration Form follows below)
NASB May 2010 Registration
Name:
Address:
Phone:
Email:
Company or Organization Name (if
applicable):
A C$55.00 NASB REGISTRATION
I will be attending:
Thursday
Friday Both
_____ I
have taken care of my own overnight accommodations
(Please circle 'BOTH' in A above)
B FULL
CONFERENCE ACCOMMODATIONS
C$87.50 Wednesday and Thursday night
accommodations only...
(Mohawk
College Fennel Campus not available Friday night)
Includes
Continental Breakfast
NOTE:
Each room has a private sleeping quarters with a double bed, shared washroom and kitchenette. Specific rooms
will be assigned when registration
is
closed.
Please list the person or people you plan
to share a washroom & kitchenette
with:
C C$175.00
I'll have my own room.
D OPTIONAL...visit
to Niagara Falls
(Thursday) including Dinner
C$55.00 Bus will leave Mohawk at 4:30pm
TOTAL: Please
add amounts A, B, C and D as applicable.
________ Canadian Dollars
Please circle payment method (cheque, Visa
or Mastercard)
Cheque
(Payable to GALCOM INTERNATIONAL)
Visa
Mastercard
Name on
card:____________________________________
Card Number:
____________________________________
Card Expiry Date: _____/_____
Please send all completed REGISTRATION
FORMS, payment or any questions to Jennifer at:
Galcom International
CANADA L8W 2E1
TEL: 1-877-242-5266
FAX: 1-905-574-4633
EMAIL:
galcom@galcom.org
-----
HCJB Global,
Samaritan’s Purse Join Efforts in Haiti After Massive Quake
HCJB Global news release by Ralph
Kurtenbach and Harold Goerzen
A quick response by NASB associate member
HCJB Global put an emergency medical response team from Ecuador en route to the devastation on the
Caribbean nation of Haiti
after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck on Tuesday afternoon, Jan. 12.
In response to Samaritan Purse’s request
for medical help, International Healthcare Director Sheila Leech immediately
began assembling a medical team including surgeons, family physicians, nurses,
an anesthesiologist and a water engineer. A registered nurse, Leech is heading
the group as she has done in previous disasters around the world such as in
2005 when a medical team from Ecuador
helped in quake relief efforts on Nias
Island , Indonesia .
Samaritan’s Purse is centering its relief
efforts at a 100-bed hospital in Port-au-Prince
operated by a local partner, Baptist Haiti Mission. The hospital, 20 miles from
the quake’s epicenter, only suffered minor damage and had electricity from
back-up generators. The hospital’s director of operations, Kyrk Baker, called
the situation “overwhelming” with patients lining the floor. “There are big box
vans coming in with people to see a doctor,” he told Samaritan’s Purse. “It’s
just unbelievable the amount of people that are lined up trying to get basic
medical care.”
Samaritan’s Purse chartered a DC-3 cargo
plane from Missionary Flights International (MFI) to transport supplies such as
water, shelter materials, medical supplies and other emergency needs to Port-au-Prince .
HCJB Global and Samaritan’s Purse combined
efforts after two natural disasters in 2007, including an earthquake that left
thousands homeless in Pisco , Peru , and flooding that inundated southern Mexico ’s Tabasco
state.
The quake struck while an HCJB Global
engineer was in Port-au-Prince
to repair an automation system for partner radio station Radio Lumière. The
engineer and three other technical workers, including two volunteers from the U.S. , escaped
injury. Operated by the Evangelical Baptist Mission of South Haiti, Radio
Lumière is a radio ministry with a network of nine stations that reaches 90
percent of Haiti ’s
population.
Radio station 4VEH, operated by cooperating
ministry One Mission Society (formerly OMS International) in Cap-Haitian, was
not damaged by the temblor.
-----
Special Happy
Station Show for Relief to Haiti
The January 21 edition of the Happy Station Show was a special
program on the relief work that is being done by organizations like SATERN
www.satern.org (Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network), which was very
busy after the earthquake trying to establish contact with the ham radio
operators on the island to contact family and friends that were affected by
this disaster. At the same time Thomas
Witherspoon from Ears To Our World http://earstoourworld.org was on the Happy
Station program to talk about the 100+ self powered radios that were sent to Haiti
shortly after the quake. Happy Station, hosted by Keith Perron, is aired on
NASB member station WRMI in Miami
each Thursday at 0200 and 1600 UTC on 9955 kHz. An audio file of the program is
available at www.pcjmedia.com.
-----
Message from
Lauren Libby, President of NASB Member Trans World Radio
via Dino Bloise
It's difficult to quell the emotions when
viewing the images of or reading about the devastation that has hit the people
of Haiti .
The outpouring of support from countless
individuals, organizations, churches and governments has been tremendous. Many
emergency response teams are either on the ground already or are en route to
bring much needed relief in the form of clean water, food, medical supplies and
treatment for the survivors.
To address the spiritual and emotional needs
of the people of Haiti , TWR
has partnered with Haiti ’s
Radio 4VEH to rebroadcast its local Christian programming over our 100,000-watt
AM station on the Caribbean island
of Bonaire .
Since Radio 4VEH is located in the northern
part of Haiti
it was not severely impacted by the earthquake. But because its broadcasts do
not effectively reach listeners in Port-au-Prince ,
Radio 4VEH has agreed to allow TWR to rebroadcast its live Internet audio
stream, in the local language of Creole, into Port-au-Prince .
NASB Board member Bill Damick of TWR
added: "TWR is rebroadcasting
4VEH's audio stream from Bonaire (over our 100 kW AM station in Bonaire on 800
kHz in hopes of getting a better signal into Port-au-Prince ) from 10PM to 2AM with content
designed for the quake recovery."
-----
Message from
NASB Vice President Mike Adams of Far East Broadcasting Company
Several of you have asked, so I am sure
others are thinking, "Is Mike planning to go to Haiti ?" The short answer is no. FEBC's FIRST Response teams are working in
countries that FEBC and FEBA radio have an "on the ground" presence
in already. FEBC work in the Far East
and FEBA radio is across South Asia, Mid East and parts of Africa .
This means that FIRST Response only has the capacity to respond in these
regions, and only if we have people there.
This means we don't respond to disaster in
the Americas , Europe or where we don't have people. We do anticipate partnering with other
missions and agencies who work in the areas we do not - and will pass on our
experience to them allowing them to fill these big gaps where we can't
cover. This will take time before FIRST
response, or some form of Rapid Response Radio Unit is operating on all
continents and across most disaster prone countries.
So what will happen in Haiti ? There
are some stations in Haiti
already that are run by Christians. One (Radio 4VEH) appears to still be on the
air, while another (Radio Lumiere) says its transmitter on the hill is “down,”
but studios and staff are OK. I think other
groups like HCJB and TWR are already working with them in the past. Pray for these Christian stations who are in
the middle of things right now... they will be concerned about their own needs
and families first and then will try to help their listeners if they can get
back on the air. I will make contact
with the other Christian missions to see if they need any support/advice but we
will leave it to those who already work there and have the contacts.
It is very hard to see the need and feel
the pull knowing “we can help,” but if you don't speak French and Creole and
have partners on the ground you will find that you have just taken up valuable
seats arriving in Haiti
and then are just in the way.
Thank you for your thoughts about us and
our team. Pray for those who are on the ground now and
those going.
-----
Adventist
Assistance to Haiti
Here is a summary of the work that the
Adventist denomination is performing in response to the earthquake situation in
Haiti . This information was gathered from many
different sources by NASB Board member Adrian Peterson of Adventist World Radio
on February 12.
1. Adventist presence in Haiti
* 335,000 baptized members in Haiti ;
100,000 in Port-au-Prince
* 973 congregations, large & small throughout Haiti
* 470 church buildings in Haiti ,
123 in Port-au-Prince
* 55 church buildings destroyed & 60 damaged
* 1 university, partly damaged
* 1 hospital, partly damaged
* Nationwide school system; 4 schools in Port-au-Prince destroyed, some staff &
children killed
* 1 bakery, in Port-au-Prince
* 1 orphanage, no damage, no staff nor children injured
* 1 book shop
* 1 office for ADRA, Adventist Disaster & Relief Agency
2. Adventist relief work in Haiti
* Adventist Disaster & Relief Agency ADRA working locally
* Adventists on all continents providing funding in multi-millions of
dollars for relief in Haiti
* Several ADRA teams from USA ,
Canada , Dominican Republic , many countries of Caribbean
and Latin America & Europe now serving in Haiti
* Several medical teams from Adventist universities & hospitals in
USA, Europe, Dominican Republic, Martinique etc, rendering service in Haiti
* Flow of aid flown in to Santo Domingo
and convoyed to Haiti
by road
* All available Adventist properties in Port-au-Prince serving as aid centers,
emergency shelters, providing food & water, medical treatment, disaster
counseling, religious meetings, etc
* Some 15,000 people sheltering on Adventist university property
* Inflatable hospital flown in
* Giving aid to 1,000 children in other orphanages in Haiti
* Constructed 60 toilet facilities
* Provided 2 million water purification tablets
3. Media coverage
*
Fox TV news in USA
gave coverage to community relief work on one Adventist church property where
the building is destroyed
* One Adventist radio station in Port-au-Prince ,
AM & FM, but at this stage it is not known whether this station is currently
on the air
* Nationwide network of Adventist radio stations in the nearby Dominican Republic
Neiba AM Relay station
SanPedro AM Relay station
Santo Domingo FM
Santo Domingo Shortwave 1 kW (affiliated with Adventist WorldRadio)
At this stage, the details are not known, but it is presumed that Radio
Amanecer in SantoDomingo, through the AM network and the shortwave relay, are
providing at least some programming for the benefit of Haitian survivors.
-----
Haiti Aid from
Other NASB Members
Brady Murray of WWCR in Nashville offered airtime on 13845 kHz during
daytime hours to help with communication efforts. He noted that this frequency was strong when
he was in the Dominican
Republic in August of last year. WWCR also ran an HCJB spot directing
listeners to their website.
The Voice of America increased its
Creole-language broadcasts to Haiti ,
even cutting into Radio Marti's airtime in some cases.
Charles Caudill, President and CEO of NASB
member World Christian Broadcasting which operates KNLS in Alaska ,
explained: "Since Haiti is not in
our primary listening area, we have not tried to do any broadcasts directly to
the Haitian people. We have broadcast
prayers on behalf of everyone involved in the tragedy and we have broadcast
information about how to give financial help to the people of Haiti . These broadcasts were in English and
Chinese."
WRMI in Miami began a daily one-hour
broadcast to Haiti and the French-speaking Caribbean with programs in French
and Creole, including relays of news programs from Radio Prague, Vatican Radio
and United Nations Radio, as well as religious programs in Creole and English. This hour is currently running Monday-Friday
from 1400-1500 UTC on 9955 kHz.
-----
2009
Clandestine Shortwave Activity Survey
from Mathias Kropf – Bad Hersfeld , Germany
During the year 2009 the activity of
political clandestine stations broadcasting on shortwave has decreased by 13.4
% to 1088 Weekly Broadcasting Hours (WBHs). This is the lowest level of
activity ever recorded since this survey
has been introduced in the year 1986 (so far the low had been 1116 WBHs in the
year 1999).
The activity of clandestine stations
broadcasting to target areas on the Asian continent has dropped by 18.7 % to
744 WBHs. On the American continent the activity has decreased by 8.4 % to 197
WBHs. However, on the African continent the activity has even increased
(although from a very low level) by 21.5 % to 147 WBHs.
For the second year in a row the most
active target area worldwide is North
Korea with 252 WBHs (+7 when compared with last year), followed by China P.R.
with 226 WBHs (+2). On the third place is Cuba with 197 WBHs (-18).
The number of different target areas active
worldwide has remained unchanged at 17, although some changes have occurred.
While Laos and Iran are no longer thought to be active, Madagascar and Sudan have emerged as
new/reactivated target areas.
-----
Galcom
Announces New Cornerstone Transmitter
News release from Galcom International
Now, Galcom is pleased to introduce a new,
high quality, affordable transmitter that will further help Christian
broadcasters communicate the Gospel message. Galcom’s new Cornerstone FM Radio
Transmitter has been approved for use by the US Federal Communications
Commission (FCC). With accompanying amplifier it has a power range of 0.1 to 45
watts. Standard features include a complete digital design with LCD
touch-screen display for control and monitoring; a mono/stereo encoder; 50 or
75 micro-second pre-emphasis; an internal audio processor/mixer; built-in SWR
monitoring; SCA broadcast capability; two balanced or unbalanced mic/line
inputs plus four component inputs all mixed separately; and table top or rack
mount capability.
For more information contact Galcom
International at 905-574-4626 or by e-mail at galcom@galcom.org.
-----
Review of the
Year 2009 on Shortwave
by Rumen Pankov and Ivo Ivanov of Radio Bulgaria , via Yimber Gaviria in Colombia
In 2009 a large number of stations cut part
of their shortwave programming, and other transmitters went off the air. New stations came on the air and other old
stations resumed their transmissions after a long interruption. On January 1st, 2010 a new public radio
station, Radio Vidin, began operating in northeastern Bulgaria .
On shortwave, Irish radio began to
broadcast again for an hour each day, and on Vanuatu in the Pacific, a shortwave
transmitter came back on the air. A
station called Super Radio Dios del Amor began to be heard. This station was the successor to Radio Tupi
in Curitiba . Despite comments by the management of the
Voice of America and the BBC that broadcasts on shortwave were not necessary,
the two stations created new programs for the Caucusus, and Radio Liberty began
a special program called "The Eco of the Caucuses."
Almost all international stations abandoned
the new spectrum assigned to radio amateurs from 7100 to 7200 kHz, in which two
exotic transmitters from Guinea
and Somalia
began to operate on 7125 and 7145 kHz, respectively. In July of 2009 the BBC carried out
experimental transmissions to Antarctica . On Nov. 14 the traditional annual broadcast
of Radio Saint Helena took place in the Atlantic . The program was heard by few listeners due to
low solar activity.
A new Christian station from the United States ,
WJHR, began experimental transmissions on shortwave. In April 2009 to mark the Resurrection of Our
Lord Jesus Christ, the KBC broadcast from the Netherlands a special series of
musical programs. The 25th of April was
officially proclaimed for U.S. stations Willis Conover Day, the presenter and
host of a program dedicated to world jazz in the 20th Century [on the VOA]. Another legendary radio program, "Happy
Station," broadcast from 1925 to 1995, interrupted during the Second World
War years, via Radio Netherlands ,
was re-established and began to broadcast on shortwave from Radio Miami in the U.S.
In 2009 a large number of political
programs came on the air destined for countries like Zimbabwe ,
North Korea , Ethiopia , Eritrea
and Madagascar , and
broadcast by transmitters located in Germany ,
Japan and the United Arab Emirates ,
among other countries. The year 2009
will be remembered also for the strikes at two important radio organizations,
one in France and other in India . The events at Radio France International
began at the start of 2009 after it was learned that authorities planned to
shut down some of the overseas broadcasts.
During the solar eclipse of April 26th,
anomalies in shortwave broadcasting were noted, typical for that
phenomenon. The year 2009 will also be
remembered for the closure of Radio Vilnius and Radio Ratia in Lithuania , Radio
Center in Latvia ,
Radio Peace for Afghanistan ,
Radio Star from Liberia , the
Radio Reading Service of New Zealand and Radio Vlaanderen in Belgium . Dec. 31, 2009 was the last day of
transmission on shortwave for Radio Austria and the Radio of the
French-speaking Community of Belgium.
-----
Invitation to
the 2010 European DX Council Conference
from Tibor Szilagyi, EDXC Secretary General
Dear
DX --Friends and Shortwave Radio Listeners all over the World: The EDXC (European DX Council, the Umbrella
Organisation of shortwave clubs and DX-Clubs in Europe) cordially invites you
all to the next EDXC Conference, September 30-- October 3, 2010, in Ankara,
Turkey. We kindly ask you to make your
hotel reservation now.
Venue of the Conference: Hotel Dedeman, Ankara . Address:
Akay Cad. Buklum Sok No. 1, Ankara
06660 , Turkey . Phone:
+ 90312 416 88 00. Fax: + 90 312
418 13 86. Homepage: www.dedeman.com. For room reservations, contact Mrs. Ozlem
Gollu, E-Mail: ozlem.gollu@dedeman.com.
Single Room: EUR 91,80 / night, including VAT and full breakfast. Double
room: EUR 113,40 / night, including VAT and full breakfast. If sharing a double room you only pay EUR
56,70 including VAT and full breakfast.
The hotel accepts the following credit cards: Visa, MasterCard,
Eurocard, American Express and Diners Card.
Please make your room reservation now. First you write the special password for this
conference reservation: EDXC Conference
in Ankara . Then
you write your family name, your Christian name, your arrival date at the
hotel, and your departure date from the hotel. The hotel needs your credit card
number at the time of reservation to be able to confirm your room. Please observe: When you reserve your room, please inform me about
your name(s), because I am producing the name tags, and I have to know that you
are coming.
The preliminary programme of the Conference
looks like this:
Thursday, September 30: Arrival at the hotel, Registration from 12.00
hours Ankara Time. Informal gathering in the bar/restaurant of the hotel from
19.00 hours Ankara
time.
Friday, October 1: After breakfast at our hotel, visit to the
Voice of Turkey , External
Service in Ankara .
Visit the different studios, different language sections. Lunch in the canteen
of the Radio. Possible visit to the shortwave transmitter site either in
Cakirlar or in Emirler. This visit is subject to the permission from the radio
management. Back to the hotel late
afternoon or evening.
Saturday, October 2: After breakfast at the hotel, EDXC Conference in the Conference
Room of the hotel. Internal EDXC matters and interesting lectures. If you would like to give a lecture, please
let me know as soon as possible. Lunch
at our hotel. After the lunch:
Sightseeing in Ankara
with English speaking guide. Back to the
hotel and in the evening the traditional Banquet Dinner at the hotel
restaurant.
Sunday, October 3: Departure home or tourism in Turkey . Please do not forget : This year Istanbul is one of the
European Cultural Capitals.
The Conference fee is : EUR
96,-- per person, which you pay to me at the registration table in the
hotel when you arrive on Thursday, September 30. This fee includes use of Conference Room at
the hotel, relevant papers like conference covers, name tags, lunch on Saturday,
sightseeing tour in Ankara
and also includes the Banquet Dinner.
For further information please
contact: Tibor Szilagyi, EDXC Secretary
General, E-Mail: tiszi2035@yahoo.com.
-----
John White to
Retire from Thomson
John White of NASB associate member Thomson
Broadcast and Multimedia reports that he will be retiring on March 31,
2010. John has been an active
participant in NASB annual meetings for many years, and on behalf of Thomson he
hosted a very nice beachside reception and dinner at the HFCC B09 Conference in
Punta Cana last August which the NASB organized. We wish John and his wife Nicki all the best
in his retirement.
-----
All India Radio Confirms
Order for Two Megawatt DRM MW Transmitters
DRM Press Release
The new Megawatt transmitters can be
operated in analogue, in simulcast or in DRM mode with automatic change-over
between these three operational modes. The transmitters shall provide coverage
to very large areas in the Indian sub-continent as well to the West, North,
East and Southeast Asia .
This significant purchase was revealed at
the recently concluded Broadcast Engineering Society (BES) India ’s conference in New Delhi , attended by exhibitors and
participants from all over the world. The need for cheaper digital radio sets
and content innovation was highlighted by speakers during the event.
All India Radio has already chosen DRM as
the technology for converting its vast analogue network to digital. This is
part of its digital radio switchover strategy where more than 40 transmitters
are to be made DRM capable in the near future. AIR is already broadcasting in
DRM from one of its high-power shortwave transmitters located at Khampur near Delhi that covers an area
of approximately 800 kilometre radius.
The DRM Consortium is delighted with this
development which underlines the commitment made by India to new technology in general
and the DRM standard in particular.
-----
Shortwave Radio
Remains Important
by Md. Azizul Alam Al-Amin, excerpted from
January 2010 Monitoring Times
It is clear that, even now, there is not an
appropriate alternative to shortwave broadcasting, at least in the rural
places, where people have no access to Internet, no devices to receive
satellite signals, no television or even newspaper or electricity. In so many
places in the world, shortwave broadcasts are the main source of news,
information and entertainment, and the reality is that most of the world’s
population lives in these areas.
In the last century, the discovery of
shortwave technology made an important breakthrough to bring the world together
as a "global village." And, shortwave radio has been enjoying a
dominant position throughout most of the last century because it can reach across
borders even when governments halt FM broadcasts, block Internet sites and jam
television programming.
Graham Mytton, a former head of the BBC’s
audience research unit said "Shortwave does not respect boundaries and
reaches the rich and poor." Ian McFarland, former host and writer at Radio
Canada International said, "Shortwave also can deliver news faster than
you might find it online, and in places where your other devices don’t
work."
Vincent Nowicki, director of the
engineering and technical operations at America ’s International
Broadcasting Bureau (IBB), also recognized the importance of shortwave. In the
response to Jack Quinn and Nick Olguin’s guest commentary on the Broadcasting
Board of Governors, "Don’t Close Shortwaves, Improve Them," published
in Radio World, he said, "The BBG is keenly aware of the value of
shortwave in distinct markets such as some parts of Africa and parts of Asia . Shortwave
sustained international broadcasting throughout the Cold War and still makes a
significant mark today in the global war on terror." There are so many people around the world who
still favor shortwave as the prime vehicle of international broadcasting.
-----
The World is
Waiting
Excerpted from World Christian Broadcasting
Newsletter February 2010
On July 23, 2010, Station KNLS in Anchor Point , Alaska
will celebrate its 27th year of broadcasting the gospel to more than one-half
of the world's population. The goal to
introduce people to Jesus Christ where our missionaries could not go or where
there were not enough missionaries helped us to keep our focus through the
years. This is why we continue to
broadcast 10 hours in Mandarin Chinese, five hours in Russian and five hours in
English – a total of 20 hours each day. The Lord has enabled us to hear from every
country of the world, every province in Canada
and every state in America
and Mexico .
In addition to literally millions of people
being contacted each day by shortwave radio, our website readership continues
to grow each month. Our websites received
a total of 3,651,951 hits during 2009.
Construction continues on the Madagascar
World Voice station in Mahajunga ,
Madagascar . In the fall of 2009, two much-needed
diesel-powered generators arrived after months of delay. Electrical wiring, destroyed by vandals last
year, has been ordered and should arrive during April. In early 2010, the antennas will be erected
between the four towers that are already standing. We will then ship the three 100,000 watt
transmitters which are already built, tested and packed in three 40-foot
containers ready
for shipment.
-----
VT Group
Wins Transmission Contract With R. Australia
By Andy Sennitt, Radio Netherlands Media Network
Support services provider VT Group has expanded its
network of shortwave transmission customers with a contract to broadcast
programming from Radio Australia .
VT, which has over 40 customers for its broadcast services, will output ten
hours a day of Radio Australia
programming to audiences in South East Asia .
The content will be in English, Indonesian, Chinese and Burmese.
VT has a worldwide network of transmitter
sites and the programming will be broadcast from locations in the United Arab Emirates and Palau in the Pacific Ocean .
The programming will be downlinked from Radio Australia ’s satellite channels to
VT’s central London Media Management Centre for scheduling and frequency
management. VT will then utilize its Global Media Network to backhaul the
programmes to the two transmitter sites.
The contract will be for a year and
follows VT’s recent success in adding the Polish state broadcaster Polskie
Radio to its global transmission customer base.
VT’s John Prior, General Manager Broadcast and Security, said:
”Having previously transmitted Radio Australia programming until 2006,
we are delighted that they have re-joined the network of broadcasters using
VT’s facilities. It extends our broadcast service customer base and we hope to
increase our partnership with Radio Australia further within the scope
of the contract.”
-----
Chinese, Japanese Broadcasts
Resume from HCJB Australia
by Ralph Kurtenbach, HCJB Global
Repairs to a storm-damaged antenna at the international transmitting site of HCJB Global-Australia were completed in mid-February, allowing the station’s Chinese and Japanese language broadcasts to return to the air.
Strong winds had damaged the antenna at the Kununurra-based site in late January. A team consisting of Dave Brewster, Mike Ewers, Daniel Forrer and Greg Wilson assessed damages to a broken tower guy wire and seven broken element guy wires. The broadcast team assembled all materials needed for the repairs. Dennis Pease traveled fromPerth , Western Australia ,
to supervise repairs.
Rains during Kununurra’s wet season made the ground too soft to use a crane, so Pease andWilson
climbed the tower, assisted by staff on the ground. Replacing the broken guy
cable made the tower secure. Then they dismantled the broken section of the
antenna, hauled up a new section, and fitted and secured it.
by Ralph Kurtenbach, HCJB Global
Repairs to a storm-damaged antenna at the international transmitting site of HCJB Global-Australia were completed in mid-February, allowing the station’s Chinese and Japanese language broadcasts to return to the air.
Strong winds had damaged the antenna at the Kununurra-based site in late January. A team consisting of Dave Brewster, Mike Ewers, Daniel Forrer and Greg Wilson assessed damages to a broken tower guy wire and seven broken element guy wires. The broadcast team assembled all materials needed for the repairs. Dennis Pease traveled from
Rains during Kununurra’s wet season made the ground too soft to use a crane, so Pease and
The repairs were
completed on Thursday, Feb. 11, and regular programming in Chinese and Japanese
resumed the next day after being off the air for 12 days. “Several Japanese
DXers wrote to us regarding loss of signal,” said Peter Penford, the studio
manager. “One of them in particular often writes.”
The site broadcasts 15 hours of programming per day in 21 languages, including English, Urdu, Hindi, Nepali, Chhattisgarhi, Indonesian (Bahasa), Mandarin, Bhojpuri, Tamil, Marathi, Marwari, Telegu, Gujarati, Malayalam, Kurux, Japanese, Malay (Bahasa), Rawang, Fujian, Punjabi and Hmar.
The site broadcasts 15 hours of programming per day in 21 languages, including English, Urdu, Hindi, Nepali, Chhattisgarhi, Indonesian (Bahasa), Mandarin, Bhojpuri, Tamil, Marathi, Marwari, Telegu, Gujarati, Malayalam, Kurux, Japanese, Malay (Bahasa), Rawang, Fujian, Punjabi and Hmar.
-----
SWL Fest
World
Christian Broadcasting and KNLS were part of the annual Shortwave Listeners
Festival (SWL Fest) held March 5 and 6 in
-----
NASB Members
Adventist World Radio
Assemblies of
Yahweh
EWTN Shortwave
Radio (WEWN)
Family Stations
Inc.
Far East
Broadcasting Co.
Fundamental
Broadcasting Network
La Voz de
Restauracion Broadcasting, Inc.
Le Sea
Broadcasting Corp.
Radio
Trans World Radio
World Christian
Broadcasting
World Wide
Christian Radio
|
NASB Associate Members
Comet
Continental
Electronics Corporation
Galcom
International
George Jacobs
& Associates
Hatfield and
Dawson Consulting Engineers
HCJB World Radio
IBB
Kintronic Labs,
Inc.
TCI
International, Inc.
TDF
TDP
Thomson Inc.
VT Communications
National Association of Shortwave
Broadcasters
Ph:
(863) 763-0281 Fax: (863) 763-8867 E-mail:
nasbmem@rocketmail.com
|