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Throughout the United States, trying to cope with what happened September 11 has
involved trying to understand a part of the world that few of us have
ever studied. Everything about this world is foreign, from the lack
of radio and television, to the limited rights of its people, to the
fiery beliefs that drive it. Nevertheless, we're confronted with learning
about this world if we are to follow what is happening right now in
our country. For many Americans, learning about Afghanistan, the Taliban,
and jihad has involved a tool that many people had mistakenly assumed
was obsolete shortwave radio.
In the last few weeks I've stumbled across articles in national newspapers
like the New York Times and USA Today where journalists have been surprised
by the sudden surge in shortwave and scanner sales around the country.
They had reason to be surprised. Just a few months ago the BBC had
decided to cutback on shortwave broadcasts to the US, preferring instead
to rely on Internet webcasts. It seemed as if shortwave was destined
to become a novelty. No more. September 11 changed everything.
I've listened to shortwave on and off over the years, and was glued to a
shortwave radio while living in Germany in 1992. I'd always enjoyed
the thrill of catching a station I hadn't heard before, or pulling
in a program that let me catch a whisper of another culture I'd never
seen. Since September 11, however, shortwave has become my desktop
tutor. I use a Sangean ATS 909
to catch frequencies from Kuwait, Israel, Iran, and any other Middle Eastern
country I can find.
Listening to shortwave not only lets you listen to what other countries are saying
about what's happening in the US and around the world, it also lets
you know what they're not saying. For instance, a few nights ago, I
heard a Cuban broadcast (9820 MHz at 9 UTC). As they were reading the
news of the day, the anthrax scare that had seized the United States
was hardly mentioned at all. Understandably, Radio Havana focused on
the Cuban view of the war, offering many critical ideas about the international,
legal definitions of war and terrorism. Though I disagreed with their
points of view, their words were thought provoking in that I had not
heard their particular opinions expressed anywhere in the US media.
From Radio Havana, I went on to tune in the Voice of the Andes (11680 6-7UTC)
from Quito, Ecuador (not that far from my birthplace in Peru). Voice
of the Andes is a mission sponsored broadcast, and the news I heard
there was among the most objective I'd heard anywhere on radio. From
there I also learned that American missionaries are prepared to offer
assistance to the refuges fleeing Afghanistan. Compared to what's happening
on a daily basis in the US, it would be small news, and I was pleased
to learn of it first hand by tuning in a station in South America.
The broadcasts I mentioned in this article were all in English. If you're
interested in listening to a broadcast in a foreign language, don't
worry, just about any language in the world can be heard on shortwave.
What's more if youre outside of the country, as many members of
the armed services are now, shortwave gives you a great way to listen
to news and music from home. Consider sending someone in the service
a shortwave radio as a present.
Here are some useful Web sites to help you find stations of interest to you:
To view our past articles, please visit our What's
in the News Archives.
As always, please contact us with any comments or
article suggestions you might have.
If you are interested in using C. Crane's articles on your own Web site,
please let me know. I'd be happy to take a look at your Web site and
see what we can do. Good-bye for now, Carlos. About
the author
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