Broadcasting on the Short Waves, 1945 to Today (PDF)

Shortwave broadcasting originated in the 1920s, when stations used the new technology to increase their range in order to serve foreign audiences and reach parts of their own country that could not easily be covered by regular AM stations. The early days of shortwave radio were covered in On the Short Waves, 1923-1945: Broadcast Listening in the Pioneer Days of Radio, published by McFarland in 1999. This book picks up the story after World War II, focusing on the stations themselves and the environment in which they operated. A companion volume, Listening on the Short Waves, 1945 to Today, focuses on the shortwave listening community. The heart of the book is a detailed, year-by-year account of the shortwave bands in each year from 1945 to the present. It reviews what American listeners were hearing on the international and domestic shortwave bands, describes the arrivals and departures of stations, and recounts important shortwave events. The book also introduces readers to the several categories of broadcasters--international, domestic, religious, clandestine and pirate--and to private shortwave broadcasting in the United States. It explains the impact of relay stations, frequency management, and jamming, and describes promising shortwave technologies. It also addresses the considerable changes in, and challenges to, shortwave broadcasting since the end of the cold war. The book is richly illustrated and indexed, and features a bibliography and extensive notes to facilitate further reading or research.