[HCDX] DX News

["Md. Azizul Alam Al-Amin" <alamin@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

DX-NEWS
 
q       CRI received record high letters in last year:
In 2004 China Radio International received 1.8 million letters from listeners in 160 countries and regions, which hit a record high.
 
q       CRI English New Website :
Recently China Radio International has changed the outlook of their website. The address is same www.crienglish.com  
 
q       VOA Reporter Wins Award in China:
On Jan. 19, 2005 The Beijing News Awards Committee presented Voice of America (VOA) Mandarin Service China correspondent Kunghua Chang with the first-ever "Award for Excellence in Broadcast News" in a ceremony in China's capital city. Chang, 57, was recognized for his report on a Mandarin language proficiency competition in August 2004. The report profiled some of the university students from 39 countries participating in the competition, focusing on their experiences studying Mandarin and how language can cross the divides between nations. 
 
q       Deutsche Welle assists broadcasters:
Deutsche Welle has embarked on a series of relief efforts in the wake of the earthquake and tsunami which hit Asia, including sending 1,000 radio sets to stricken areas in Indonesia. The sets were distributed with the help of Jakarta radio 68H. DW has also been providing assistance for its Sri Lankan staff in Trincomalee as well as offering support to aid organizations at its relay station, located 25km north of the Sri Lankan city. It is also aiding the Sri Lankan Broadcasting Corporation's scheme for tsunami survivors, offering technical support where needed. DW has organized fund-raisers for the disaster. A helpline has also been set up for Germans to locate missing persons in the affected areas. Appeals to contact family members are broadcast over DW's current affairs programs 24 hours a day.
 
q       Radio NZ gets ready to stream: 
Radio New Zealand (RNZ) will enter the mainstream of online news publishing in February or March, investing a lot of money into this venture.
 
q       Radio Nepal to improve audibility, studios:
Radio Nepal and the Japan International Cooperation Agency have signed an agreement to carry out a study on the feasibility of expanding and strengthening Radio Nepal's short- and medium-wave broadcasts. Under the agreement, both parties have also planned to modernise Radio Nepal's existing studios.
 
q       Intelsat satellite lost over Pacific:
On 16 January, 05 Intelsat announced that its IS-804 satellite experienced a sudden and unexpected electrical power system failure on January 14 that caused the total loss of the spacecraft. The satellite, launched in 1997, provided broadcast and telecommunications services in the South Pacific.  Intelsat said it was in the process of making alternative capacity available to its IS-804 customers. A number of Intelsat-operated satellites in the region are being utilized to restore service to affected customers.
 
q       Vietnam to host 2005 ABU General Assembly:
The venue for the ABU's 2005 General Assembly and annual meetings has been changed to Hanoi, Vietnam. ABU Secretary-General, David Astley, made the announcement on 20 January 05 after several months of discussions with Radio the Voice of Vietnam (VOV). He said that the Secretariat had been advised by Prasar Bharati in November that they were unable to host the 2005 General Assembly in India as planned. The General Assembly will be hosted jointly by VOV and Vietnam Television (VTV) and the dates of the meetings will be November 21-28, with the Administrative Council meeting being held on November 24 and the three-day General Assembly opening on November 26.
 
q       ABU members working fast to provide relief:
The first cache of 20,000 radio sets for survivors of the tsunami disaster are on their way to the capital cities of Indonesia, Sri Lanka and the Maldives, as ABU members do their bit to help in relief efforts. The radio sets, with two sets of fresh batteries each, are being flown to Jakarta, Colombo and Male. Arrangements have been made to clear the consignments at the destination ports. The initiative to send the radio sets to stricken areas was mooted by Joan Warner, the CEO of Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) on the New Year's Day, and is being coordinated by the ABU secretariat in Kuala Lumpur. Some 23,000 radio sets, low power radio and television transmitters, emergency studio equipment, portable production equipment and volunteer engineers are among the needs identified by affected broadcasters.
 
q       Ham radio to the rescue:
Short-wave radios proved vital immediately after the tsunami hit Sri Lanka on 26 December, allowing the Sri Lankan prime minister to communicate with staff on the ground when power and phone lines were down. The New Scientist magazine reported that shortly after disaster struck, the head of the island's amateur radio society delivered a short-wave radio set and two 12-volt car batteries to the prime minister's emergency headquarters in Colombo. At the same time, three others drove through the devastation to Hambantota, on the hard-hit southeast coast, where they set up another battery-powered short-wave radio, enabling the prime minister to use the short-wave link over the next two days. Short-wave signals from Sri Lanka, the Andaman Islands and mainland India also helped to spread news of the disaster around the world as short-wave radio enthusiasts were able to maintain emergency communication.

            (Source: CRI, VOA, DW, ABU)

Regards,

MD. AZIZUL ALAM AL-AMIN
RAJSHAHI, BANGLADESH
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