Monday, April 30, 2012

VOA site to be rededicated

A Voice of America site once scheduled for closure has not only been saved but will be rededicated Wednesday in a ceremony featuring the son of broadcasting pioneer Edward R. Murrow.

Voice of America Site B, located 15 miles east of Greenville outside of Grimesland, was named for the legendary broadcaster when it opened in 1963.

Murrow’s name was removed from the building as part of security measures taken after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Murrow’s name will be returned during a 10 a.m. ceremony being held at the site, 3919 VOA Site B Road.




More at :



http://www.reflector.com/news/voa-site-be-rededicated-1046177


Going gaga over the radio

In this day and age while everyone is glued to television sets, this dedicated group of men from various walks of life, still ardently listens to the radio.






Thursday, April 26, 2012

VOA Kurdish Goes on Direct to Home Satellite

Washington, D.C., April 23, 2012 — Voice of America's Kurdish language radio broadcasts will be simulcast on direct-to-home satellite starting Monday, giving listeners in the Kurdish- speaking regions of Iraq, Turkey, Syria and Iran, a new way to hear the popular programs.

VOA's Kurdish service is the only international broadcaster that speaks to the Kurds of Iraq in their main dialects, Sorani and Kurmanji. The service, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this week, also attracts a significant audience in Syria, Turkey and Iran, all with sizable Kurdish minorities.


VOA Director David Ensor, who recently introduced TV/radio simulcasts in Pakistan and Burma, says putting the Kurdish program on satellite makes sense. "VOA has a solid news team that is already broadcasting on radio to areas where direct-to-home satellite use is growing. By simply putting cameras in the studio, we can offer the satellite audience an additional way to hear and see our programs," Ensor says.


The Kurdish satellite broadcasts go on the air daily at 5:00 PM Iraq time and are simulcast on radio and Hotbird, one of the most widely-used direct-to-home satellites in the region. VOA Kurdish radio programs are also delivered on shortwave, FM transmitters in northern and southern Iraq, and broadcast over medium wave from Kuwait.


VOA's Kurdish program lineup includes news and current affairs shows, a weekly call-in show as well as the bi-weekly Internet television program called, Kurdish Connection. The Service's multimedia websites, with successful blogs in both major Kurdish dialects, provide comprehensive coverage of regional, international and U.S. news and links to social media sites that offer the audience a platform for informed discussion.


(Press Release)

DRM - Ready for Transmission and Reception

The DRM Consortium used its stronger than ever presence at NAB 2012 to showcase a new DRM receiver and to update participants on the developments and potential of the DRM standard, now fully recommended by ITU for both AM (DRM30) and VHF (DRM+).


More at :

Monday, April 23, 2012

Winners of the “Targu Mures in History and in Our Times” Contest

Dear friends of Radio Romania International, you have been invited once again to take part in a competition called "Targu Mures in History and In Our Times", with some exciting prizes on offer. The competition was dedicated to a very interesting area in the center of Romania, Mures County, and especially to its main city, Targu Mures.

30 merit prizes went to: Maxim Bojok of Belarus, a listener of the Ukrainian language programs, Gianangelo Rosati of Italy, Romanian born Valentin Hogea of Sweden, Nikolai Popov of Russia, Javier González Balón from Ecuador, Marius Rybak of Poland a listener of the German language programs, Kamal Bouamama from Algeria, Khaled Said Dayan of Yemen, Long Dingzhong from China, Ng Chuanwah of Malaysia, a listener of the Chinese language programs, Jamet Paul of France, Naghmouchi Nouari and Naghmouchi Oussama, both from Algeria, listeners of the French service programs, Sabadou Sy of Mauritania, Gregory Amand, Jeffrey M. Cobb and Chris Larkosh, all 3 from the USA, Grant Skinner of Great Britain, Catherine Agboola of Nigeria, Arne Edsbagge and Borje Sahlen, both from Sweden, Mizanur Rahman, Robina Aktar Golapy, Mahmuda Sultana Mitu, MD Dipon and Dewan Rafiqul, all 5 from Bangladesh, Balbir Singh and Soutik Hati, both from India, M. Mansoor Bhatti of Pakistan, and Jaroslaw Jedrzejczak of Poland.

The 25 third prizes went to: Danijel Dazdja of Serbia, Natalia Zabolotna of Ucraina, Giovanni Sergi and Stefano Citterio, both from Italy, Bogdan and Daniela Itu, from Spain, Ludmila Dementieva of Russia, Joan Coba Femenia of Spain, José Roberto da Silva Cunha from Brazil, Klaus Karusseit of Sweden, a listener of the German language programs, Abdelnaser Mohd Rashad Kamel of Egypt, Ferhat Bezazel of Algeria, Mohamad Taher Amri from Tunisia, Gong Yudie, Zhi Yanjiao and Nan Zhou, all 3 from China, Raïf Chaaban of Lebanon, Christian Ghibaudo of France, Gita Chakrabarty, Mitul Kansal, M. Ganesan and Anil Tamrakar, all 4 from India, Syed Ali Akbar of Pakistan, Hans Verner Lollike of Denmark, Ian Morrison from China, and Usman Ali of Dubai.

20 second prizes went to: Ana Savic of Serbia, Serhii Badik from Ukraine, Agide Melloni from Italy, Romanian born Eduard Bogoe from the US, Nikolai Matveev of Russia, Antonio Ángel Morilla Ríos of Spain, Ariel Becerra Pérez from Cuba, Peter Lakati of Hungary, Erhard Lauber of Germany, Abdel Karim Ahmad Ali Al-Mabrouk of Lebanon, Noura Toubal from Algeria, Xue Fei and Lin Shan, both from China, Barry Ismaila of Sierra Leone, Boumechaal Farid from Algeria, Carlo Prelz of the Netherlands, Habib Ur Rehman of Pakistan, Christer Brunstrom from Sweden, Mogire Machuki of Kenya, and Stephen War from Cameroon, all 5 listeners of the English language programs.

10 first prizes went to: Gian Luca del Marco of Italy, Romanian born Vasile Constantinescu from Canada, Martin Rogan of Great Britian who gave detailed answers in the Romanian language, Nikolai Loghinov of Russia, David Iurescia from Argentina, Abdelrahim Ait Awad pf Morrocco, Nada Mohd Abdelkader of Egypt, Bai Huijun from China, François Jaby from France and Chinmoy Mahato from India.

15 special prizes were awarded to: Zdravka Sebastijanovic of Serbia, Steve Cherry and Weldon Walles, both from the US, Alyn Scott of Great Britain, our co-national Maria Costas from Ukraine, Valter Bruno of Italy, our conational Narcisa Gabriela Bolbos from the US, Valeri Lugovski of Belarus, a listener of the Russian language programs, Juan Franco Crespo and Emilio Sahuquillo Dobon, both from Spain, Burkhard Müller of Germany, Mohamad Al-Sayed Abderrahim of Egipt, Wu Chunyan and Liu Ripu, both from China and Renaud Didice of France.

The two Grand Prizes went to: Igor Kanevski and Irina Goncearova from Harkov, Ukraine. Congratulations!

(Newsletter Radio Romania International, No. 41, 23 April 2012)

The radio chronicles

Radio in Bhutan has come a long way when with just a table, three chairs and a transmitter rented from a local telegraph office in Thimphu, the first radio station of Bhutan was formed by a voluntary group of youths known as the National Youth Association of Bhutan (NYAB) on 11 Nov, 1973.


More at :


http://www.thebhutanese.bt/the-radio-chronicles/

Saturday, April 21, 2012

NEWSTAR DR111 tested in New Delhi

New DRM receiver from CDNSE, Newstar DR111 was tested in Delhi, here's a video :


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOZ38emzPgg


(Thanks to Shakti Verma for sharing the video)

BBG reverses planned reductions in VOA & RFA broadcasts to Tibet and China

Facing overwhelming bipartisan criticism in Congress and from numerous human rights and media freedom groups, BBG members reversed their previous plan and decided to retain Voice of America (VOA) radio broadcasts in Tibetan, the VOA Cantonese Service (radio, TV and Internet), as well as Radio Free Asia services at present levels.

More at :

http://www.usgbroadcasts.com/bbgwatch/2012/04/20/bbg-reverses-planned-reductions-in-voice-of-america-and-radio-free-asia-broadcasts-to-tibet-and-china/

Thursday, April 19, 2012

DOMESTIC BROADCASTING SURVEY 14

The DOMESTIC BROADCASTING SURVEY 14 (DBS-14), April 2012
edited by DSWCI Chairman, Anker Petersen.
ISSN 1399-8218

The 55 years old DSWCI which counts experienced DX-ers in 33 countries all over the world as members, has just issued the 14th Edition of its annual Domestic Broadcasting Survey. This survey is divided into three parts:


Part 1: The 40th edition of the Tropical Bands Survey covering all ACTIVE broadcasting stations on 2300 - 5700 kHz, including clandestines.


Part 2: Domestic stations on international shortwave bands above 5700 kHz broadcasting to a domestic audience.


Part 3: Deleted frequencies between 2 and 30 MHz which have not been reported heard during the past five years, but may reappear. (This Part 3 is only published in the E-mail version, but buyers of the printed version can get a copy from the Editor upon request.)


This new Survey is based upon many official sources and DX-bulletins. A12 schedules are included when available.


In order to make the DBS reliable, our own monitors around the world have checked throughout the period April 2011 – March 2012, if each of the 690 station frequencies is on the air. ACTIVE stations are marked with an A ("Regular"), B ("Irregular") or C ("Sporadic") in the list.
D means "Likely inactive". A unique feature is the right column called "Last log". It shows the last month and year before DBS deadline on March 31, 2012 when the particular station was reported logged by a DX-er somewhere in the world. This is another way of indicating the current audibility of the station. To avoid inactive stations in this DBS, most frequencies which have not been heard during the past year, have been deleted and are moved to Part 3.


Other useful features for easy identification (ID) are the parallel frequencies and reference to Station ID slogans. Three sample extracts from the DBS-14 are shown below. Reviews can be found on www.dswci.org All buyers of DBS-14 will get a username and password to the monthly updates on the tropical bands published as "Tropical Bands Monitor" on our website. The similar data from 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 are available at www.dswci.org/tbm to anybody.


The 23 pages A-4 size DBS-14 is available by e-mail as pdf-format (about 505 kB). A limited number is also available printed on paper. It has 20 pages without Part 3.


It is sold by the treasurer: DSWCI, c/o Bent Nielsen, Egekrogen 14, DK 3500 Vaerloese, DENMARK


E-Mail edition: DKK 35,00 or USD 7.00 or EUR 5,00 or GBP 4,00 or SEK 45,00 or IRC 3.
Printed edition: DKK 70,00 or USD 13.00 or EUR 10,00 or GBP 8,00 or SEK 90,00 or IRC 5.
Payment by cash notes are accepted whereas checks and postal money orders are not accepted.


DSWCI Bank is Danske Bank, 2-12 Holmens Kanal, DK-1092 Copenhagen K.
BIC/SWIFT : DABADKKK. IBAN: DK 44 3000 4001 528459.
Danish buyers please use: Reg. 3001- konto 4001528459.


If you have EURO as national currency, you are advised to pay to our representative in Germany, Andreas Schmid.
Andreas Schmid, Lerchenweg 4, D-97717 Euerdorf, Germany. E-mail: schmidandy@aol.com
Account 2912472076 at Targobank BLZ: 30020900. BIC: CMCIDEDD. IBAN: DE24300209002912472076 .
If you want to pay via PAYPAL, you have to contact Andreas Schmid, before you send your payment.


Payment via PayPal only in US$ currency and only for persons, living outside the European Union (EU).


Best 73's,
Anker Petersen and Bent Nielsen

Ham station debut music to radio fans’ ears

Favourite hobby of many across globe, communication mode to help administration during disasters

Young geeks and amateur radio enthusiasts in the state capital can now explore the exciting world of ham radio.


National Institute of Amateur Radio (Niar), Hyderabad, on Wednesday joined hands with Prof G.P. Sinha Centre for Disaster Management and Rural Development, Patna for setting up a ham radio station at Rajendra Nagar as a pilot project sponsored by the Union ministry of information and technology.


More at :



http://www.telegraphindia.com/1120419/jsp/bihar/story_15392831.jsp

New Amateur Radio Features on Radio Heritage

Two new amateur radio features have been released today by the Radio Heritage Foundation at their website www.radioheritage.com.

Amateur QSL Gallery is the latest in a series looking at the radio shacks of amateur operators contained in QSL collections held by the New Zealand based non-profit organization.


This follows on from the popular Radio Shacks Gallery series which shows QSL cards issued by operators from around the world.


Also released is the first of a new series Art of Amateur Radio, which takes a closer look at cartoon characters found on cards issued from Japan.


From home drawn pictures to professional art work, these cartoons capture a great sense of humor and reflect many aspects of Japanese culture.


Other related features at www.radioheritage.com include the Art of Radio, Art of Radio New Zealand, Art of Radio Japan and the Art of Radio Hawaii and more features are planned for release in 2012.


Radio Heritage Foundation is a registered nonprofit organization connecting radio, popular culture, history and heritage. It is supported by donors throughout the world. It is also a full member of the NZART amateur radio organization.
W: www.radioheritage.com


Radio Heritage Foundation
www.radioheritage.com
April 19 2012

From AIR to FM - revolution in the radio industry

Since June 1923 Indian skies are experiencing radio frequencies and they are pretty familiar with them by now. We grew up by listening to the tunes of Aakashwani. Radio has the widest reach and well structured network pan India. Be it Short Wave, Medium Wave or Frequency Modulation it doesn't matter to the listener as far as he is hearing his favourite music.

More at :

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Annette Lantos Defends Voice of America Broadcasts to China

Annette Lantos, wife of the late Congressman Tom Lantos, has written a letter to the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) defending Voice of America China broadcasts in Tibetan and Cantonese. The BBG put these broadcasts on the chopping block in its budget proposal earlier this year.

More at :



http://www.christiannewswire.com/news/2428019443.html

Connecting the world through their own radios

Life is busy for VT Sadasivan (78), a retired physics professor based in Madurai. He is teaching batches of students the nuances of amateur radio communications. After the teaching sessions, Prof Sadasivan tunes in to his Ham Radio transceiver communicating with friends across the globe.

More at :



http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_connecting-the-world-through-their-own-radios_1676386

65 years of Radio Netherlands Worldwide

It is exactly 65 years ago that Radio Netherlands Worldwide began its activities as an international broadcaster. A lot has changed over the years, so time to look back.

More at :



http://www.rnw.nl/english/article/65-years-radio-netherlands-worldwide

April 18 Is World Amateur Radio Day

The year 2012 marks the 87th anniversary of the founding of the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU). To mark this occasion, the IARU and its more than 160 Member-Societies will celebrate World Amateur Radio Day on April 18. For many years, the IARU has declared a theme for each World Amateur Radio Day. The theme for 2012 is Amateur Radio Satellites: Celebrating 50 Years in Space in remembrance of the launch of OSCAR 1 on December 12, 1961 and the launch of OSCAR 2 on June 2, 1962.

More at :



http://www.arrl.org/news/view/april-18-is-world-amateur-radio-day

For six decades, international service has been lifeline to Canadian culture

More at :

http://www.montrealgazette.com/Shortwave+broadcaster+will+sign+June/6444826/story.html

Saturday, April 14, 2012

BBG Shortwave: Sorting the Fact From the Fiction

Interesting post from the BBG Stratergy website....tries to respond to most of the criticism...

Read the post here : http://tinyurl.com/cllaeok

BBS FLASH

April 14th I didn't find Bhutan Broadcasting Service(BBS)'s signal during my aircheck late in the morning on its skd frequency 6035 kHz during its morning English transmission slot 0500-0600UTC and earlier.And just around 0631UTC it was still off the air. But again while checking around 0732 UTC, I found BBS signal in a local language. BBS English transmission heard around 0759UTC this afternoon i.e.April 14th. Anyway, let me keep 6035kHz in my close watch list for ensuing weeks.

(Gautam Kumar Sharma, Abhayapuri, Assam)

Friday, April 13, 2012

BBS is back on 6035 kHz:

Observed Bhutan Broadcasting Service had been back on air for the first time in many weeks on its usual shortwave frequency during my aircheck on 6035 kHz from 0544 UTC to 0600 UTC on April 10th.There was English songs with a host introducing the songs etc, closing announcements plus music, then announcements about a new language service transmission beginning around 0600 UTC. The signal strength was satisfactory and overall reception was good no QRM as such
observed.

And later in the afternoon, BBS English was also heard with News,public announcements & English songs on air on 6035 kHz from 0805 UTC onwards upto 0817 UTC or so as per my monitoring.

(Gautam Kumar Sharma, Abhayapuri, Assam, India)

Thanks to tip from Martien Groot from Schoorl, Netherlands via DXLD list, Bhutan was noted on air on 10th Apr 2012 at 1859 UTC on 6035, strong here // to live streaming at http://www.bbs.bt/news/radio-wan.html

Alokesh Gupta

Thursday, April 12, 2012

When HAM tided over jams

Amateur radio (HAM) operators swung into action immediately when they heard news about earthquake and tsunami.
When all modes of communication, including cellphones got jammed due to hyper activity of the people, HAMs started to contact other operators in various parts of the state to help them to pass messages to their near and dear ones in the vicinity.


More at :

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/chennai/when-ham-tided-over-jams-713

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

From Short Waves to Flash Mobs

Watch out Big Brother. In the digital era, Arab dictators aren't the only ones who will be thrown on their heels.

More at : http://tinyurl.com/6q7zy6q

Friday, April 06, 2012

SWR txn - 6/7 Apr

Scandanavian Weekend Radio broadcast slated for this weekend :
6th-7th April 2012, starting 21 UTC

Schedule as usual at :
http://www.swradio.net/schedule.htm

Next txn dates :

4th-5th May 2012, starting 21 UTC

1st-2nd June 2012

22nd-23rd June 2012 Midnight Sun Radio

Amateur e-qsl's received on 5th April

Thursday, April 05, 2012

HCJB Australia Newsletter - March 2012

March 2012 issue of HCJB Australia Newsletter :

http://www.hcjb.org.au/docs/144_Voice_and_Hands_Newsletter_HCJB_Australia_Mar_2012.pdf

Dx-Antwerp 30th Anniversary special broadcast

DX-Antwerp (the only Belgian DX-club) celebrates its 30th anniversary on May 12th, we are airing short-wave broadcast as follows :

UTC kHz STATION ITU MOD TARGET

0430-0530 17880 Issoudun F AM India


0800-0900 9680 Issoudun F AM Western-Europe


1200-1300 6015 Issoudun F DRM Western-Europe


1400-1500 17880 Montsinery GUF AM North America East


1530-1630 15775 Issoudun F DRM India


1700-1800 21680 Montsinery GUF AM North America West


2000-2100 17755 Montsinery GUF DRM North America
(www.broadcast.be)


A special QSL card was designed for this occasion. Send a report by ordinary mail to DXA QSL c/o TDP Radio, PO Box 1, B-2310 Rijkevorsel, Belgium or e-mail to dxaqsl@gmail.com.


Please spread this news in your area.

Guido Schotmans via dx_india fb group
http://www.facebook.com/groups/dxindia/

Radio Canada International to shut down shortwave, to cut Russian & Brazilian departments

Summary of cuts announced :

- As announced in the 2012 federal budget, government has chosen to reduce CBC/Radio-Canada's appropriation by $115 million over three years.
- significant impact on services, organization and staff; upwards of 650 positions will be eliminated over three years, including about 475 this fiscal year."
- CBC/Radio-Canada intends to accelerate the shutdown of analogue television transmitters.
- Radio Canada International (RCI) will undergo a transformation that will see the service move away from shortwave and satellite transmission in order to focus its efforts on the web. The service will also end the production of news bulletins and close its Russian and Brazilian departments in order to concentrate on the five languages most spoken by its audiences: French, English, Spanish, Arabic, and Mandarin.

More info at :
http://www.cbc.radio-canada.ca/newsreleases/20120404.shtml

Related News :

CBC to slash jobs, eyes radio ads
Public broadcaster tries to offset $115-million cut in funding

http://www.vancouversun.com/news/slash+jobs+eyes+radio+updated/6410854/story.html

Wednesday, April 04, 2012

Radio Free Asia starts new QSL series - IBB Relay Sites

Radio Free Asia (RFA) announces a new series of QSL cards recognizing the International Broadcasting Bureau (IBB) relay sites used for RFA programming. RFA currently uses, and confirms broadcasts from the following IBB sites: Biblis, Iranawilla, Kuwait, Lampertheim, Saipan and Tinian. The first card of this series is from IBB's Tinian relay site. In this picture you are facing north from Tinian's Tower 16, part of antenna 305L, overlooking the antenna fields. The transmitter building is at the upper right side of the picture and above it you can see the Island of Saipan to the north of Tinian. This is RFA's 45th QSL overall; it will be used to confirm all valid RFA reception reports for April-July 2012.

RFA is a private, nonprofit corporation that broadcasts news and information to listeners in Asian countries where full, accurate, and timely news reports are unavailable. Created by Congress in 1994 and incorporated in 1996, RFA currently broadcasts in Burmese, Cantonese, Khmer, Korean to North Korea, Lao, Mandarin, the Wu dialect, Vietnamese, Tibetan (Uke, Amdo, and Kham), and Uyghur. RFA strives for accuracy, balance, and fairness in its editorial content. As a 'surrogate' broadcaster, RFA provides news and commentary specific to each of its target countries, acting as the free press these countries lack. RFA broadcasts only in local languages and dialects, and most of its broadcasts comprise news of specific local interest. More
information about Radio Free Asia, including our current broadcast frequency schedule, is available at www.rfa.org.

RFA encourages listeners to submit reception reports. Reception reports are valuable to RFA as they help us evaluate the signal strength and quality of our transmissions. RFA confirms all accurate reception reports by mailing a QSL card to the listener. RFA welcomes all reception report submissions at www.techweb.rfa.org (follow the QSL REPORTS link) not only from DX'ers, but also from its general listening audience. Reception reports are also accepted by email at qsl@rfa.org, and for anyone without Internet access, reception reports can be mailed to:

Reception Reports
Radio Free Asia
2025 M. Street NW, Suite 300
Washington DC 20036
United States of America.

Upon request, RFA will also send a copy of the current broadcast schedule and a station sticker.

(RFA Release)

Tuesday, April 03, 2012

From Thomson Broadcast, a DRM-FM Solution

Thomson Broadcast will use the NAB Show to highlight a new Digital Radio Mondiale-based system that promises a cost-effective and eco-friendly solution for distributing and broadcasting radio programs over long distances, and to dispersed populations.

More at :
http://www.radioworld.com/article/from-thomson-broadcast-a-drm-fm-solution-/212696

61 years of Radio Nepal and Its Dilemma

By Mohan Nepali
Radio Nepal began its broadcasting services in 1951. The state-owned radio right now is observing its 61st anniversary. Its historical significance and the information and entertainment services it has been providing to rural masses on no account can and must be ignored.

More at :
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Nepal-61-years-of-Radio-N-by-Mohan-Nepali-120401-807.html

Digital radio on the rise

Commercial Radio Australia says the takeup of digital radio in this country is progressing faster than expected. Australians have bought 784,478 digital radios since they were launched in 2009, according to figures from Commercial Radio Australia's Digital Radio Industry Report 2012, released on Monday.


More at :


http://www.skynews.com.au/tech/article.aspx?id=735505&vId=

HF Pirate Weekend Logs


It was real fun last weekend digging out the low powered Euro-pirates admist heavy QRN & QSB....overall bands were noisier than last HF pirate weekend.


Here's my final count :


31st March 2012


0912 - 1416 UTC s/off 15845 USB Spaceshuttle Radio 25222 (35322 at peaks) 200 W



1346 UTC 18950 LSB Baltic Sea Radio Traces only 80 W



1506-1530 UTC 15055 USB Tropiq Radio 80 W 25222



1551 UTC 15020 USB Mustang Radio Faint signal (txn in AM) 60 W 25322



1723 UTC 15070 AM Balkan Radio Intl ( Relayed by Cupid Radio) 25322





1st April 2012


0815 UTC 21460 AM Cupid Radio 25322 (13mb dipole) *



0829/1202 UTC 15845U Spaceshuttle Radio 25322 200 W



0900 UTC 21485 LSB Baltic Sea Radio 80/150 W (13mb dipole )*


* for 21 MHz freq's much better reception was observed with temporarily installed dipole for 13mb

Monday, April 02, 2012

DRM General Assembly in Winnersh, UK – new Steering Board elected

The Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) Consortium has set its strategy for the next two years at the General Assembly held in Winnersh, UK on 28 - 29th March 2012 and elected its new governing bodies.

The Consortium has inducted two new members to its Steering Board, both receiver chip-set manufacturers – Frontier Silicon and NXP Semiconductors. The annual meeting of DRM members also re-elected Ruxandra Obreja (BBC) as the Chair of the DRM Consortium along with Jochen Huber (Transradio) as Vice Chair, Ludo Maes (TDP) as Vice Chair and Commercial Committee Chair, Lindsay Cornell (BBC) as Technical Committee Chair and Alexander Zink (Fraunhofer) as Treasurer.

Apart from the above mentioned members, other companies who make up the DRM Steering Board are Nautel, RFmondial, Continental Electronics, Thomson, Babcock, SWR, Robert Bosch GmbH and Voice of Russia.

The meeting was hosted by DRM member Harris at its headquarters in the UK. During the two days, the members saw and discussed presentations and updates from around the world and set the strategy and budget for the next year. Two new members were also announced – Parrot SA and Keystone Technologies have joined the DRM Consortium this year.

The General Assembly is the largest decision-making body of the DRM Consortium which elects its governing bodies and representatives every two years. They guide the Consortium's activities in promoting the use and take-up of DRM digital radio technology.


(Source : www.drm.org)

VOA Websites Get New Design

Voice of America is giving its websites a new look and additional features, and saving some money in the process.

The new layout makes navigation easier for the user, moves more content to the top of the page, provides bigger images, and more multimedia functionality. The design also allows online commenting on audio and video for the first time.


VOA, which broadcasts news and information around the world in 43 languages, began the transition to the new content management system (CMS) this week with its Indonesian, Spanish and Creole websites. Eventually more than 50 VOA websites will make the switch.


"Our audience should love it," says Iscar Blanco, Managing Editor of the VOA Spanish site. "It gives us more exposure with social media, and it allows us to be more creative in the way we lay out the page every day. If we have great pictures of a developing story and some interesting audience contributions, we can highlight that, clump them together, and move the entire cluster to the center of the page. I love it," Blanco says.


Martha Townes, the Internet Managing Editor for VOA's East Asia and Pacific Division, says, "The new system makes more sense. It allows editors to move things around and organize graphics and stories in a more intuitive and dynamic way."


The content management system, called Pangea, will also save money by migrating VOA and other U.S. international broadcasters to the same platform and reducing duplicate systems. Pangea was created by Internet technology developers at VOA's sister station, Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, a U.S. government-funded international broadcaster, which has shared the program with VOA and will also store content on its servers.


For more information about VOA programs, visit our main English language website at www.voanews.com.


(VOA Press Release)