Shortwave Pirate Radio and Oddities of the Spectrum

Presented at HOPE X (2014), July 18, 2014, 1 p.m. (60 minutes).

Radio has become marginalized and governments are curtailing international shortwave broadcasting, yet these bands remain one of the most anonymous and inexpensive ways to convey information within and across international borders. This presentation will include background information about shortwave radio, its range, what types of stations are on the air (broadcast, military, weather fax, spy numbers, amateur, and more), and finally pirate radio. It will include background information behind pirate broadcasting stations on the air, how stations attempt to maximize their signal quality and range while avoiding detection by the authorities. Some of these tactics have ranged from transmitting from ships, to leaving battery-powered transmitters on public lands, to installing equipment at highway billboards. In an age when IP addresses, GPS, and cell phones track people as well as data, pirate radio is one of the few means of sending untracked, anonymous information.


Presenters:

  • Andrew Yoder
    Andrew Yoder has been listening to, writing about, and speaking about pirate radio stations, particularly on shortwave, for more than 30 years. He has written Pirate Radio Stations (1990, TAB Books), Pirate Radio (1996, HighText), Pirate Radio Operations (1995, with Earl T. Gray, Loompanics), Pirate Radio Stations (2000, McGraw-Hill), and The Pirate Radio Annual (2010-2014, Hobby Broadcasting). His blog is at: http://hobbybroadcasting.blogspot.com.

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