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Staying in Touch with Shortwave
We don't consider ourselves "news junkies," but when we travel internationally, away from our daily newspaper and CNN broadcasts, we develop a tremendous hunger for news of the world.
In past years, every day we spent out of the country began with a search for the International Herald Tribune. Unfortunately, the Tribune was not always available in less urban areas, or in many "less developed " countries, and, of course, out at sea on cruise ships.
Recently, we began to travel with a compact shortwave radio. Now, no matter where we are, even out at sea, we can always find English - speaking news on the BBC to keep us in touch with events of the world.
Radio stations broadcast cast their programs on various frequencies or broadcast bands. The most common broadcasts are on the AM and FM bands, frequencies received by the radios most of us have in our cars and homes. The programs from these radio stations travel for relatively short distances - up to about 100 miles for FM broadcasts, and up to 200 miles or so for AM.
Many stations around the world broadcast on shortwave frequencies. These are the broadcast frequencies (1.6 to 30 megahertz) that can travel into the earth's ionosphere, bounce off this layer of atmosphere, and return to earth thousands of miles away, unlimited by mountains, oceans or other obstructions. With a shortwave receiver, you can be in the middle of the African desert and listen to a shortwave broadcast from the Voice of Russia in Moscow (broadcast in English).
Some shortwave radio stations broadcast sporting events, music, and drama that keep listeners entertained for hours. But it's the news we find so valuable, and, specifically, news that is broadcast by the venerable British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).
Those of us who treasure our shortwave radios for their ability to keep us abreast of world events when we're far from home all agree that "Britannia rules the airwaves." The BBC World Service broadcasts 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and their news programs are widely considered to be the most complete of any, full of detail and balanced analysis.
Listeners to shortwave radios can hear news from the BBC at many positions on their radio dial. The strength of the signal (i.e., the volume and clarity of the sound) continually varies, as is normal with shortwave reception, depending on location of the listener and the time of day. During the morning hours in North America, for example, news from the BBC might be received most effectively with the dial set at 9515 kilohertz (kHz); at night, 5975 kHz is a good spot for clearer reception. "Surfing the dial" is one way to search for strong signals; looking up frequencies in such books as Passport to World Band Radio is usually more efficient.
Knowing that our little Grundig travel-sized shortwave set can always bring us our daily news (thanks to the BBC), we can now stay in touch with the world without having to spend valuable time chasing around looking for copies of the Tribune. We've got better things to do.
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