Shortwave broadcasting in the United States

Shortwave broadcasting in the United States is unique^{[citation needed]} in that the United States allows private ownership of commercial and non-commercial shortwave stations that are not relays of existing AM/MW or FM radio stations, as are common in Africa, Europe, Asia, Oceania and Latin America. In addition to private broadcasters, the United States also has government broadcasters and relay stations for international public broadcasters. Most privately owned shortwave stations have been religious broadcasters, either wholly owned and programmed by Roman Catholic and evangelical Protestant charities or offering brokered programming consisting primarily of religious broadcasters. To better reach other continents of the world, several stations are located in far-flung US territories. Shortwave stations in the USA are not permitted to operate exclusively for a domestic audience; they are subject to antenna and power requirements to reach an international audience.

Non-religious private broadcasters

While most private shortwave broadcasters in the United States are operated by religious groups or carry mostly religious programming, there have also been attempts at starting non-religious shortwave stations.

Two such stations were WRNO in New Orleans and KUSW in Salt Lake City, both of them with a rock and roll music format. Both stations were well received by shortwave listeners, but could not make the format successful in the long run. KUSW was eventually sold to the Trinity Broadcasting Network and converted into religious broadcaster KTBN. WRNO kept its rock & roll format going for most of the 1980s but eventually switched formats to selling brokered airtime to political and religious broadcasts, suffered a damaged transmitter, and eventually ceased broadcasting following the death of its owner, Joe Costello. WRNO was acquired by Dr. Robert Mawire and Good News World Outreach in 2001. After installing a new transmitter, the station was within just days of returning to the air when Hurricane Katrina struck on August 29, 2005. The new transmitter was spared from flood waters, but the antenna was severely damaged by high winds. WRNO finally returned to broadcasting in 2009, operating 4 hours per day. On March 13, 2010, WRNO began transmitting a weekly religious broadcast in Arabic for a portion of its broadcast schedule.

A notable exception is WBCQ, a non-religious private station operated by Allan Weiner in Maine. WBCQ has been a success by brokering much of their airtime to religious programs like Brother Stair, while also carrying some music and entertainment programs. Allan Weiner Worldwide, which can be heard in most of North America, airs Fridays from 8:00 to 9:00 PM Eastern time and 7:00 to 8:00 PM central time on 7490 kHz.

Pirate radio

Numerous pirate radio stations have operated sporadically in or just outside the shortwave broadcast bands. Most are operated by hobbyists for the amusement of DX'ers with broadcasts typically only a few hours in length.

Few American pirates are political or controversial in their programming. Pirates have tended to cluster in unofficial "pirate bands" based on the current schedules of licensed shortwave stations and the retuning of amateur radio transmitters to operate outside the "ham" radio bands.

Most pirate activity takes place on weekends or holidays, Halloween and April Fool's Day being traditional favorites of pirates. Most broadcasts are only a few minutes to a few hours at a time. One notable exception was Radio Newyork International, a short-lived attempt to establish a permanent broadcasting station operating from international waters.

Some European nations have recently begun allowing privately owned shortwave stations on a far more limited scale.

Notable personalities

Preachers/Religious broadcasters

• Tony Alamo
• Kirby Anderson
• Mother Angelica
• Harold Camping
• E. C. Fulcher
• Texe Marrs
• Robert Mawire
• Dr. Gene Scott (deceased)
• Melissa Scott (replaced Dr. Gene Scott)
• Brother Stair
• Peter J. Peters

White Supremacists

• William Luther Pierce (deceased)
• Kevin Alfred Strom
• Hal Turner (FBI plant)
• Ernst Zündel

Commentators

• Willis Conover (deceased)
• William Cooper (deceased)
• Chuck Harder
• Glenn Hauser – World Of Radio
• Marie Lamb – DXing With Cumbre
• Keith Perron - The Happy Station Show
• Alex Jones
• Rush Limbaugh – his show was carried on WRNO-Worldwide in the 1990s
• Dr Stan Monteith
• Jay Smilkstein
• Allan Weiner
• Paul Harvey (deceased) – Paul Harvey News & Commentary/Rest Of The Story was carried on AFRTS Radio
• Jack Anderson (deceased) – was heard on AFRTS Radio in the 1980s
• Mort Crim
• John Stadtmiller on WWCR - notorious for setting up Mark Koernke
• John from Staten Island & Frank from Queens - hosting "The Right Perspective" on WWCR

Shortwave stations

Government broadcasters (USA)

• Voice of America
• WWV/WWVH
• Armed Forces Radio Network
• Radio Marti

Current privately owned US broadcasters

• KFBS – Far East Broadcasting Company – Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands
• KHBN – High Adventure Ministries Piti, Guam
• KJES – "The Lord's Station" – Vado, New Mexico
• KNLS – Anchor Point, Alaska
• KSDA – Adventist World Radio – Agat, Guam
• KTWR – Trans World Radio – Agana, Guam
• KVOH – "Voice of Hope" – Rancho Simi, California
• KWHR – "World Harvest Radio" – Naalehu, Hawaii
• WBCQ – "The Planet" – Monticello, Maine
• WBOH – Fundamental Broadcasting Network – Newport, North Carolina
• WEWN – "Eternal Word Network" – Irondale, Alabama
• WHRA – "World Harvest Radio" – Greenbush, Maine
• WHRI – "World Harvest Radio" – Furman, South Carolina
• WINB – "World International Broadcasting" – Red Lion, Pennsylvania
• WJIE – Evangel World Prayer Center – Louisville, Kentucky
• WMLK – Assemblies of Yahweh – Bethel, Pennsylvania
• WRMI – "Radio Miami International" – Miami, Florida
• WRNO – "WRNOradio.com" – New Orleans, Louisiana
• WTJC – Fundamental Broadcasting Network – Newport, North Carolina
• WTWW - "We Transmit World Wide" - Lebanon, Tennessee
• WWCR – "Worldwide Christian Radio" – Nashville, Tennessee
• WWRB – Manchester, Tennessee (successor to WGTG and WWFV)
• WYFR – "Family Radio" – Okeechobee, Florida

Defunct broadcasters

• KGEI – San Francisco, California (studios and transmitter in Redwood City, California)
• KHBN – Palau (now T8BZ)
• KIMF – Pinon, New Mexico (licensed, but never built)
• KTBN – Trinity Broadcasting Network – Salt Lake City, Utah
• KUSW – "Superpower" – Salt Lake City, Utah (station sold, and became KTBN)
• KYOI – Saipan (1982-1989)
• WGTG – McCaysville, Georgia
• WNRI: Bound Brook, New Jersey owned by NBC
• WNYW – "Radio New York Worldwide" – Scituate, Massachusetts
• WSHB – Furman, South Carolina
• WWBS – Macon, Georgia
• Radio Newyork International – Pirate radio station operating from international waters
• KAIJ Dallas, Texas

New stations

• WTWW – Lebanon, Tennessee – licensed June 30, 2009, transmitter testing occurred in January 2010
• KTMI – Lebanon, Oregon – not yet on the air, construction permit

External links

• Official listing of active stations at the FCC.gov website. CAUTION: This FCC information is often out of date, and does not include domestic IBB relay stations.
• shortwavesites - The Shortwave Transmitter Site Archive – The shortwave transmitter site archive of current and historical shortwave transmitter site information, includes data on North American shortwave broadcasters' transmitter sites both past and present
• NASWA WWW Shortwave Listening Guide
• Glenn Hauser's World of Radio website
• SWDXER ¨The SWDXER¨ – with general SWL information and radio antenna tips
• Radio World special report on American shortwave stations