VOA plans to sunset SWBC

[Bill, KD0HG]

"The sun is setting on Voice of America's shortwave radio service, heard worldwide in dozens of languages for 70 years.

A strategic technology plan prepared by the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), the federal agency responsible for Voice of America, Alhurra, Radio Free Asia and other international stations, concludes that it should end many shortwave broadcasts in favor of "more effective" media such as internet radio.

"The intrinsic high cost of operating high powered shortwave stations is constantly being weighed against the rapidly diminishing effectiveness of shortwave within a growing number of countries," the report states. "... the cost effectiveness of shortwave transmissions continues to wane and is expected to be circumscribed to a very small number of target countries in the relatively near future."

The "sun-setting strategy" proposed will reduce the number of stations owned by the BBG in favor of lease or sharing arrangements with—or outsourcing to—independent broadcasters. A "long-term analysis" of each country and language, and in-house research on shortwave's effectiveness in each, would determine which areas retain service.

The report, released following a Freedom of Information Act request by Government Attic, took six months to surface and it isn't clear to what extent its recommendations have been implemented. In February, however, Voice of America ceased shortwave broadcasts in China." ((snip))

Rest of article here, along with some excellent reader comments.

Hey, if the VOA wants to lease time on alternate SWBC providers, that might open an opportunity up for JJ.

http://www.boingboing.net/2011/06/06/voice-of-america-ope.html

[K2PG]

Stupid, stupid, stupid move! The VOA is making a fatal mistake by putting all of its eggs into the Internet radio and AM/FM relay station baskets, for these reasons:

1. In many of the countries targeted by VOA and related U.S. stations, Internet access is severely limited or filtered by the government. North Korea doesn't even have Internet access, per se. The university in Pyongyang has computers, but they only have access to an intranet that is operated by the government. In other countries, the common people cannot afford computers and Internet access may not be available outside of the capital city anyway. Even in countries that do not filter or limit Internet access, such access is often very expensive and, financially, out of the reach of the common people.

2. The VOA has been arranging for mediumwave and FM stations to carry its programming in various countries and they had been contracting with other countries for shortwave relays as well. That works well...until an anti-American regime comes to power in the host country or countries. Then it's goodbye, VOA!

It seems that the people in charge of IBB (the agency that runs VOA and related stations) are very myopic and they are looking at the rest of the world through American eyes. They take Internet access for granted, not knowing or caring that this is not the case in many parts of the world. Perhaps they should ask W3JN about the Internet situation in Cuba, a country just 90 miles from our shores. It is quite different in Havana from what it is in Miami!

An alternative might be for the FCC to relax the restrictions on privately-owned U.S. shortwave stations, at least as far as the broadcasting of advertising is concerned. If such stations could run the same kind of advertising that domestic AM and FM stations run, promoting, of course, products that are sold in the target countries, we might have some viable alternatives to the barrage of religious programming that is aired by the private SWBC stations in this country. WBCQ is probably the only SWBC station that airs a significant amount of secular programming from this country. Of course, these stations would have to find a way to show the ad agencies that they have a significant listenership in the target countries.  The current restrictions on advertising aired by private SWBC stations pretty much limits such stations to block programming...which, for most of them, means syndicated religious programming.

[WA1GFZ]

how many people in N.K. own shortwave receivers? How would they power them?

[kb3ouk]

what really hurts private shortwave stations is the fcc will not license stations unless they run 50 kw or more, combine that with the limited money they may be able to get from programming and it is easy to see why there are so few private swbc stations. if everyone thinks that shortwave is becoming obsolete then why doesnt the fcc make it easier to get a swbc license since there are no longer as many stations as there used to be.

[Bill, KD0HG]

how many people in N.K. own shortwave receivers? How would they power them?

I was thinking along those lines. What if VOA and etc. made millions of cheap, solar powered SWBC receivers available at little or no cost?

Drop thousands of them by parachute into hostile countries.

[k4kyv]

They wouldn't have to be expensive. They could be powered by wind-up generators; these are already available, and some cost less that $20.  If only 1% of the receivers made it into the hands of the people, that would still be a significant link to the outside world. And the cost would be much less than the cost of a lot of the military bloatware that money is wasted on now but which does nothing to enhance our security.

Internet "radio" is  capable of picking up thousands of stations, many CD quality, that you could never hope to find on shortwave.  Many of these are  intended for local audiences, so they are not even broadcast on SW. But just as shortwave signals fade in and out with vagaries of propagation, webcasts tend to drop out at random, even with a good computer and fast internet connection. I recently bought a dedicated internet "radio" receiver, and the drop-out/buffering pauses are still just as bad as they are with the regular computers.

Direct satellite broadcasts, like internet access, won't be available any time soon for much of the population of the world.  SWBC is probably the cheapest and most effective way to reach a wide target audience. Which one has the greater total cost, one high power transmitting plant and thousands of cheap little radios, or a web server and all the infrastructure that has to be built in the target country (and that can be turned off at the flip of a switch by the local dictator) in order to get that signal into every home?

[K5UJ]

Sounds like FCC Commissioners are running VOA now.

[W1DAN]

Hi:

This is sad, but expected. I also do not agree with it for the above reasons.

Phil: The FCC relaxed advertising in SW in the early 1980's with WRNO-WW. Owner Joe Costello went to court and won that capability. He put a station on the air and it did poorly economically.

Dan

[kb3wbb]

It's another example of the assumption that everyone not only has access to the Internet but that the access is uncensored. How  niave. We're not going to send you instructions for your tax forms, they're on the Internet; We're not going to send you a manual for your new camera, it's on the Internet; We're not going to send you a phone book anymore, it's on the Internet. According to current estimates, about 18%, or 20 million, Americans do not have Internet access. Now if the number is that high here, what is it in less developed countries? Really dumb decision.

Larry

[flintstone mop]

what really hurts private shortwave stations is the fcc will not license stations unless they run 50 kw or more, combine that with the limited money they may be able to get from programming and it is easy to see why there are so few private swbc stations. if everyone thinks that shortwave is becoming obsolete then why doesnt the fcc make it easier to get a swbc license since there are no longer as many stations as there used to be.

That is an interesting point that always comes up, Shelby. With present conditions the HF bands are miserable longer between sunspot cycles than during a peak time. And I know that 50,000 watts and a 10db gain antenna don't cut it for reliable coverage anywhere. So having less power and less stringent rules would have more less powerful stations on the air with less effective signals. Not many SWL's will put up an effective antenna for their Sangean, whatever.
China rules for a power house and several other countries with 500,000 watt stations. That's the only way to become world wide.
I'm sure Allan Weiner and WBCQ are really struggling now with high electric rates and his three shortwave freqs. And the terrible propagation. During the Winter around November the band goes long and who knows where 7.415 is heard.
7.415 being a real full carrier transmitter and the others are a pseudo modified AM transmission. Basically a USB linear with about 6% carrier.
Fred

[KA2DZT]

how many people in N.K. own shortwave receivers? How would they power them?

With batteries that they can buy at their local Walmart,  Duh

[WA3VJB]

In times past there has been a huge outreach by the U.S. to distribute portable shortwave radios to the Third World.

I did a story a few years ago on such a program, and got one of the radios to illustrate.

They're still around.

http://www.countycomm.com/gp4light.htm

More recently, it was still possible to find "world band" radios similar to this one at Walgren's, CVS and other such stores, right on the hooks near the batteries, memory cards and (old) VHS tape. I don't know if you still can, but I bought and still have one that came in a blister pack that was about $29.

It was part of the whole, post-911 "home preparedness" thing, with crappy crankup plastic radios Made in China with branding by the American Red Cross.  Someone got my father-in-law one, and I couldn't get it to be stable on an FM broadcast station, let alone SW.  Built-in flashlight worked, ok fine !

how many people in N.K. own shortwave receivers? How would they power them?

I was thinking along those lines. What if VOA and etc. made millions of cheap, solar powered SWBC receivers available at little or no cost?

Drop thousands of them by parachute into hostile countries.

[k4kyv]

I'm sure Allan Weiner and WBCQ are really struggling now with high electric rates and his three shortwave freqs. And the terrible propagation. During the Winter around November the band goes long and who knows where 7.415 is heard.
7.415 being a real full carrier transmitter and the others are a pseudo modified AM transmission. Basically a USB linear with about 6% carrier.

That should work well with a synchronous detector if the 6% carrier (is that 6% power level or rf carrier voltage?) is enough to cause lock with the PLL.  6% carrier power level would be 25% rf carrier voltage (-12 dB), something the SD should handle easily. 6% carrier voltage level would be 24.4 dB down, a little iffy IMO.

This is where the ESSB boys are missing the boat as they fully suppress their carrier.

[WD8BIL]

how many people in N.K. own shortwave receivers? How would they power them?

The station(s) in Bolivia I did antenna work for gets small solar powered SW radios and their unit cost is $7 U.S. from someplace out of Taiwan.

They also have a battery operated model they hand out to the natives with 2 sets of NiCad rechargables and a solar powered charger. Drop 2 batteries in the charger, close the lid and lay it out in the sun.

[K9PNP]

I can see the headline in somebody's "Daily Worker":   Comrades:  For years we have had to endure the propaganda from the capitalists and their puppets from their "Voice Of America".  It was one of the few sources we could not effectively suppress, even with expensive jammers.  But now, thanks to the far-sighted and now-correct thinking of their bureau of propaganda, we will soon be rid of this problem.  This is the dawning of a new age where we can be free to educate our masses without outside interference.

Yeah, I know, I studied the other side too much during the Cold War.  But, you get the picture.

[WD8BIL]

Phred said:

During the Winter around November the band goes long and who knows where 7.415 is heard.

S9 +20 in Bolivia and Brazil in January!!

After 10 days in the jungle it was good to hear The Tron again.
Music from home!!!

[ve6pg]

..internet radio?...i live abt 3 miles from a town of 6,000 village down the road, has about 500 people...they have hi speed internet...i dont...i fall just between the the 2 drops...can you imagine some poor slob, in a remote part of the world?...internet radio does not work on dial-up, that is, if he has a computer, let alone, a phone line....stupid ,move...

..sk..

[K2PG]

The Chinese are now doing here what the VOA has been doing in numerous other countries: leasing time on domestic stations. On Wednesday, WILD in Boston (1090 kHz) began carrying English-language programming from China Radio International. Rumors in the broadcasting industry say that WNWR in Philadelphia (1540 kHz, currently airing brokered ethnic programming) will soon follow suit. The brokered ethnic programming is moving to a competing station, WWDB (860 kHz). Unlike the VOA, the Chinese have no plans to abandon shortwave. In addition to using their own transmitters, they lob a healthy signal into this country by leasing time on the Radio Canada International transmitters in Sackville, New Brunswick. The Voice of Russia is also said to be pursuing a lease agreement with WNSW in Newark, NJ (1430 kHz), but that programming will be entirely in Russian. There are a lot of Russian immigrants and expatriates in the New York metropolitan area.

Back to the VOA, do any of you have pictures of the old VOA site in Bound Brook, NJ? This station last operated with the call letters WBOU and went off the air in 1965. Nothing remains of the site anymore, except, possibly, some concrete pylons from the tower bases and guy anchors. WBOU started as experimental W3XAL (yes, there were "3" calls in NJ before World War II, as some counties were in the third district), owned by NBC. The government took the shortwave station over during World War II and leased it from NBC/RCA after the war before buying the property outright. VOA also had a site in Wayne, NJ. That station began as W2XE, owned by CBS. It later held the callsigns WOOC, WOOW, and WDSI. It was purchased by the government after World War II and was decommissioned in 1962. Any pictures of that site?

[W1DAN]

Phil:

Speaking of China Radio Int'l, I heard a rumor that they cloned a Continental SW transmitter as the basis of their transmitters.

Also, not they seem to not be following the EBU 9kc bandwidth suggestion.

Listened to WILD-AM yesterday. The audio was not very loud or processed.

Thoughts?

Dan

[W3LSN]

A strategic technology plan prepared by the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), the federal agency responsible for Voice of America, Alhurra, Radio Free Asia and other international stations, concludes that it should end many shortwave broadcasts in favor of "more effective" media such as internet radio.

"The intrinsic high cost of operating high powered shortwave stations is constantly being weighed against the rapidly diminishing effectiveness of shortwave within a growing number of countries," the report states. "... the cost effectiveness of shortwave transmissions continues to wane and is expected to be circumscribed to a very small number of target countries in the relatively near future."

The "sun-setting strategy" proposed will reduce the number of stations owned by the BBG in favor of lease or sharing arrangements with—or outsourcing to—independent broadcasters. A "long-term analysis" of each country and language, and in-house research on shortwave's effectiveness in each, would determine which areas retain service.

The report, released following a Freedom of Information Act request by Government Attic, took six months to surface and it isn't clear to what extent its recommendations have been implemented. In February, however, Voice of America ceased shortwave broadcasts in China." ((snip))

Rest of article here, along with some excellent reader comments.

Hey, if the VOA wants to lease time on alternate SWBC providers, that might open an opportunity up for JJ.

http://www.boingboing.net/2011/06/06/voice-of-america-ope.html

Having worked as a contractor at the VOA/IBB until just last week, I can attest to the fact that the report in question has been available to everyone throughout the agency on its organizational intranet, and there was no secrecy surrounding it. I also know its author personally, and know it was part of a technology briefing prepared for the BBG, the political appointees that govern IBB and various government sponsored broadcasters, including VOA.

The IBB admitted in the same report that it made some foolish errors in shutting down particular SWBC sites in the past, but listener surveys also indicated that much of the audience for the canceled services has moved away from SWBC technology.  IBB does see a diminished role for SWBC, but it will not fade away completely and will be redirected primarily to developing nations. Despite this, many third-world countries are increasingly coming to rely on FM radio and wireless broadband themselves.  In many instances the wireless PCS availability of developing countries rivals or surpasses that of many American states, and there have been aggressive 4G/WiMax rollouts in places that you wouldn't expect. With regard to Internet blocking, the Chinese public takes it as a joke, and it's common for many Chinese students to work around the problem in a few minutes.  

The IBB is simply trying to adapt to changing times within a limited budget.  If the whole report is read without bias from beginning to end, it becomes clear that the IBB is trying to correct years of patchwork upgrades and misguided technology choices. It wants to create a coherent strategy for its near term technology initiatives. They are also offering early retirement incentives to staff in order to bring in new and badly needed skill sets. I'm just as nostalgic as the next guy, but when you have tribesmen listening to local FM radio and flipping open smart phones, it means it's time to rethink your concept of "business as usual".  That is the conclusion of the report along with its recommendations.

73, Jim
WA2AJM/3

[k4kyv]

The Sunday after Dayton, we stopped by and visited the old VOA site in Mason, OH.  Also took a close look at the WLW Blaw-Knox tower. They are now converting the VOA site to a museum, and have quite a collection - worth looking at if you are in the area.  Except for special occasions like Dayton, you normally have to contact the personnel and arrange for a visit.

But another way to look at it is that as interest in SWBC dwindles, it puts less pressure on the amateur bands. That's the only reason we were able to  get rid of the broadcasters in 7.1-7.2. We might even see some expansion of HF amateur spectrum in the future, or at least dwindling threats to reallocate amateur spectrum to other services, even as the pressure builds on existing amateur allocations on UHF and microwave. But OTOH, this also means less government interest in keeping the HF spectrum unpolluted with consumer electronics garbage and digital hash.