[HCDX]: Glenn Hauser's SW/DX Report April 16

["Glenn Hauser" <wghauser@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

        GLENN HAUSER'S SHORTWAVE/DX REPORT 98-19, April 16, 1998

CONTINENT OF MEDIA, April 1998 edition, exclusively on RFPI, may
start airing by April 18, Fri 1930, Sat 1730, Wed 2300 plus
repeats 8 and 15 hours later on some of: 21465, 15050-USB, 7385:

*Dr. Brinkley, goat-gland surgeon, and his impact on Del Rio
*Grenada radio station now on internet http://www2.spiceisle.com
*Less than 1/2 of one percent of airtime for local broadcasting;
 see http://www.benton.org/Policy/TV/whatslocal.html
*DXing digital TV
*Orthodox Jewish FM pirate in Brooklyn FCC doesn't dare bust
*Threat of increased SW interference caused by data on power lines
*C-band satellite systems are easy to find, used and cheap
*Deutsche Welle on-the-air TV in Florida
*AM stereo website http://www3.ns.sympatico.ca/lettuce/home.htm
*Creeping commercialism at NPR; avoiding precise time checks
*KMOX goes out of its way to play the national anthem
*New Mexico media news from Carlsbad Caverns, Las Vegas drive-in
*CBC and RCI have new show for Anglophones, "C'est la vie"
*New web "radio" service, http://www.imagineradio.com        

THIS WEEK ON WORLD OF RADIO 937: WRN Baygen giveaway; Sri Lanka
via UK; new schedules from Albania, Croatia, Romania, Syria, 
Armenia, and others; V. of Southern Azerbaijan comes from Israel;
Taleban replies to listeners; press teletype from Vietnam; no SW
coming from Idaho; ham specials from submarines; and some of the
stories below (Hauser)

CHILE. Voz Cristiana was back with same test programming as 
before, soft gospel rock and IDs in Spanish, around 1545 April 15
but gone after 1600 check, this time on 21550 instead of 21551
(Glenn Hauser, OK)

CHINA [non?]. CRI in Portuguese until 0056* April 15 on 11850,
strong with generator(?) hum, unlikely direct, and perhaps Mali
relay reactivated, as has been reported for English earlier
(Glenn Hauser, OK)

ECUADOR. As of April 15 check, HCJB had moved its Russian at 0200 to 
9775, clearing 9780 for Finland; and warmed up with open 
carrier only before 0200 on 9775 instead of IS, to avoid clashing
with VOA's editorial on weekdays. HCJB is also on 21470 for Czech
at 1830-1900, and warming up with IS before 1830, a bit too close
for comfort to RFPI on 21465.7. And Ivan Grishin reports that R.
Australia's best frequency for us at 2130-2230, 17795, is now
blocked by HCJB (Glenn Hauser, OK)

GREECE [non]. VOG via VOA USA now confirmed with English news at 1800 
April 9, local-level signals from both coasts, 17765 leading
17705, so Greenville and Delano, respectively; news interrupted
for musical interlude at 1806 (Glenn Hauser, OK)

IRELAND [non]. "Ask WWCR" says that Emerald Radio, Senior College, 
Ballyfermot, Dublin, Ireland, are doing some programmes LIVE and 
TAPED on WWCR later on in April and early May. The Emerald 
website http://www.emeraldradio.com has been inaccessible. "Ask 
WWCR" has announced live shows from Emerald for 27 - 30 April 
inclusive, with repeat-tapings going out 28 Apr - 01 May
inclusive, 1200 UT and 1000 UT respectively, all on 5070 kHz.
There is a taped two-hour show planned for Sat 02 May, 1100 UT,
5070 kHz with a repeat of same on the following day at 0800 UT,
3210 kHz. Slan agus beannacht (Finbarr O'Driscoll, Ireland, RIB 
and WORLD OF RADIO 937)

NEW ZEALAND. Still no further information on the fate of RNZI,
but the current funding is going to run out in June (Adrian
Sainsbury, RNZI Mailbox April 13 at 1130) BTW, current 9795
has some CCI in Vietnamese? underneath it, uncovered after
RNZI 1209*. But from first Sunday in May, RNZI goes to 6100 
(Glenn Hauser, OK)

Thank you for your letter of 26 February to the Prime Minister
concerning the future of RNZI and your comments in support of 
that service. As this matter falls within my portfolio, I am 
replying on behalf of the Prime Minister.

As you are aware, RNZI has been under review. Some of the 
questions which are being addressed concern whether shortwave is
still a viable broadcasting option given the growing importance
in the region of other media such as television, and the fact 
that the majority of listeners in the South Pacific - the target 
audience for the service - hear RNZI through relayed services over 
local stations. The review has also looked at some of the 
technical requirements necessary to maintain an international
service, particulary in respect of strong competition from Radio
Australia and the BBC, and the clarity of signal these 
competitors are able to provide.

I expect that a decision on the future of RNZI will be made in 
the next short while, Yours sincerely, (Rt. Hon. Don McKinnon,
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Parliament Buildings,
Wellington, New Zealand; tel +64 4 471 9971, fax +64 4 471 1444
27 March 1998 reply to Bill Smith, Sachse TX, WORLD OF RADIO 937)

ROMANIA. We've been wondering about RRI's Z-98 schedule, but 
finally here it is. Note that NAm is only getting two frequencies
per transmission as some of the bcs are also aimed elsewhere.
Some of the frequencies have changed for the morning 1300-1400
broadcast, best received here W97 on the so-called "Eu" freqs. 
On April 14 at 1300 we found 17790 best, 17770 weaker with co-
channel, 15390 clear but weak, 15250 accompanied by noise
probably from RRI's own transmitter and totally absent the next
day. The 2300 hour is again partly for us; and the 0600 should be 
better audible now on higher summer frequencies, if clear -

Eu 0640-0700 11885, 9665, 9625, 9550
   1300-1400 17770, 15390
   1700-1800 15250, 11940, 9510
   2100-2200 11830, 9570, 7195, 6130

NAm 2300-2400 11830, 9570
    0200-0300 9570, 6155
    0400-0500 11940, 9570
    0600-0700 11940, 9510
    1300-1400 17790, 15250

Pac 0200-0300 11740, 9690 (Japan), 11940, 15380

As 0200-0300 11740, 9690
   0400-0500 17720, 15335

Af 0700-0800 21480, 17735 (RRI fax, not completely legible,
via MONITORING TIMES)

TURKEY. VOT's Turkish to NAm, with lots of great music, is 
audible all evening on 9445 and 11885, but the latter is blocked
by VOA in Spanish at 0100-0200 weekdays. VOT sked shows usage:
2100-0700 9445, 2200-0400 11885, and also 0700-2100 9460, a 24-
hour service (Glenn Hauser, OK)

U S A. WEWN "Catholic Radio"/EWTN is already making money off of 
owner/manager Mother Angelica's "miracle healing" which she 
claimed earlier this year.

A two-part video in which Angelica proclaims Almighty God's
miracle endorsement of her broadcasts (items V253 and LV2) is now
available from WEWN for a total" donation" of $36 ($18 each
cassette). (No tapes of the "miracle" itself are available.)

Audio versions (items T277 and LT2) are available for $8 
"donation" each.  Other items available from the station include 
a portable foam-rubber kneeler with the EWTN logo (item *089) 
available for a "donation" of only $10.

In Catholic tradition, the sale-for-profit of holy items or
services is a grave sin called "simony," which could ultimately
cause the seller to be damned to hell forever and ever. So, of
course, all quoted prices are actually suggested donation 
mounts... which pious (and gullible) Mother Angelica fans will 
gladly pay.

I wonder what would happen if someone ordered one (or a hundred) 
of the items and chose not to "donate" anything more than the 
cost of production and mailing...  If a true miracle is involved, 
how does this differ from "simony?"  And if not, how does it 
differ from highway robbery? (Owen Williamson, TX, April 10,
REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING) [ellipses as in Owen's original; 
nothing has been deleted -gh]

U S A. On April 13, Charles Josey of WWBS, Macon GA, told me 
that the power had been hooked up. They are aware of the QRM on
11910, such as Hungary before 0100, Vatican afterwards, and may
prefer to use 11905, but at the moment 11910 is the only 
frequency authorized by the FCC for them to test (George Thurman,
RIB via Hauser)

U S A. VOA Communications World, Saturday 1230-1300 via 
Greenville 7768.5, was on LSB instead of USB on April 4, but on
April 11 was on both LSB and USB, carrier still reduced. This
means less audio power on either sideband. I have been advocating
LSB only as long as China is on AM 7770 (Glenn Hauser, OK)

U S A [non]. A BBC frequency schedule includes an extraneous
entry for WYFR via Skelton 250 kW, 140 degrees to North Africa, 
daily at 1800-1900. On April 14 I was able to hear this poorly,
in Arabic as before on lower frequencies (Glenn Hauser, OK)

Free copies of current frequency schedules, shown in local time
with DST taken into account, are available upon request for the
following stations: R. Australia, BBC WS, China Radio Int'l, R.
France Int'l, Kol Israel, Rai-Italy, R. Mexico Int'l, V. of 
Turkey (George J. Poppin, 2654 Seventeenth Ave., San Francisco,
CA 94116-3003)                                             ###


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