Musk calls for closure of USAGM services

[JeeperOne]

What else would you expect out of someone who TRULY BELIEVES WITH EVERY FIBER OF THEIR BEING that ANYTHING receiving ANY amount of Government funding (Even if less than 1%) would COMPLETELY DIE without it to say??

PBS/NPR/CPB & Planned Parenthood have been preparing for this day FOR DECADES because Republicans can't KEEP THEIR MOUTHS SHIUT when it comes to wishing things like this would glo away

As it iks now, it's not like they won't survive on their own without Government fiunding as they'll find ways to adapt

So Elon Musk (Who BTW doesn't have ANY legal authority) can HOPE these things are shut down, but they WILL NOT be shut down. They'll just no longer receive Government funding

Legal authority to hasnt stopped him yet form doing what hes doing now has it?

That's because Congress has been compromised

If the VOA doesnt get government funding, then RFE and VOA are gone.

Not so fast. they may have to shut down their RF transmitters but everyone (Except those in Third World countries) all have this thing called a smartphone which connects to this wonderful place called the Internet

They'll just have to broadcast that way

If CPB doesnt get government funding, small NPR member stations are gone, toast, off air permanently......

Only THE TINIEST of stations will suffer this.

That's what the MAGA Cult WANTS you to believe

and the bigger ones will have massive cutbacks akin to IHeart

Public TV & Radio will still go on even without PBS & NPR & they will still remain woke (In fact, it'll only make them MORE woke as the member stations will just simply form THEIR OWN networks if they haven't already

 

[Miss Tuned]

I’ve always enjoyed the DX & Reception board as an oasis from the politically charged posts found on other RD Discussions forums. Boy do I miss Cyberdad, who gently steered and kept the mood here neutral and upbeat.

I've been coming here a bit less over the past few weeks because of the sheer amount of heavy political stuff, as another data point. As a non U.S. Citizen it's not my fight, and I'm mostly here to read about radio.

 

[MarkW]

I generally find Elon Musk to be repulsive, but I am in general agreement with him on this topic.

Can anyone show me one credible shred of evidence how VOA or Radio Free Europe in the past two decades have been successful in advancing U.S. foreign policy objectives or persuading public opinion overseas in the U.S.'s favor?

VOA has made audacious claims of listenership numbers in recent years with zero evidence to back up those claims. They claim a weekly audience globally of 326 million or 361 million depending on which press release from the USAGM is used. I'd love to see someone do a FOIA request for the research that backs up such claims.

PBS and NPR member stations in good sized cities should not receive any federal funding, either. Any federal funding should be reserved for stations in outlying areas where over-the-air secular programming choices are limited.

 

[TheBigA]

PBS and NPR member stations in good sized cities should not receive any federal funding, either. Any federal funding should be reserved for stations in outlying areas where over-the-air secular programming choices are limited.

That wasn't the way the law was written, or has been implemented for 50 years. If a station meets the qualifications, it receives the grant. That is the same way Elon Musk gets billions of dollars in federal money even though he isn't hurting for money. You haven't seen him offering to turn any of it down, have you? I believe the government should follow the law. Don't you?

 

[MarkW]

The laws should be changed accordingly via legislation, and unless or until that happens, current law should be followed.

As for the money Musk's companies receive, if it is for products, services or other contractual arrangements the federal government utilizes, and if proper bidding procedures were followed, his companies may very well deserve such funds. If we're talking subsidies / handouts, then that's a different story.

 

[TheBigA]

The laws should be changed accordingly via legislation, and unless or until that happens, current law should be followed.

The law was amended by Ronald Reagan because he felt giving federal money based on need was a form of welfare. So he told stations they had to raise the money locally, and the government money would be based on their ability to raise money locally. It's a very republican approach to funding.

If congress wants to amend the law, they know how to do that. But that's not what they want to do. They want to defund it completely based on an ill-informed opinion.

As for the money Musk's companies receive, if it is for products, services or other contractual arrangements the federal government utilizes, and if proper bidding procedures were followed, his companies may very well deserve such funds. If we're talking subsidies / handouts, then that's a different story.

CPB qualified stations provide products and services. The federal grant is mean to assist in providing those services as identified in the law. Those services are meant for all of the people, including those who don't have the money to pay for cable, streaming services, or the internet. About 5% of the federal money pays for the interconnection system that's available to everyone, not just NPR stations. These stations meet very high standards set by CPB. It's not a handout. That's the complete opposite of what it's meant to do. It was meant to be an incentive. It works, and has worked well for over 50 years.

Same thing with VOA. There are ways of fixing it rather than shutting it down. Government should not be run like a business. Government is meant to serve the public. That's a different goal from making a profit.

 

[SomeRadioGuy]

They'll just have to broadcast that way


Only THE TINIEST of stations will suffer this.

That's what the MAGA Cult WANTS you to believe



Public TV & Radio will still go on even without PBS & NPR & they will still remain woke (In fact, it'll only make them MORE woke as the member stations will just simply form THEIR OWN networks if they haven't already

No, no.. no.. that's not how this works or will happen.

MY station will be totally gone, off the air permanently, as will other stations like mine. And most others will have DRASTIC Cut backs in news and programming production.

Public radio and tv will not go on anywhere near as normal

 

[SomeRadioGuy]

Personally, I think the US should open up diplomatic and other relations completely with Cuba, and it should have done so long ago. But that's apparently not politically expedient.

If Marti gets the plug pulled that would be sad, in a way. They have some good programming. They talk about sports, and baseball a lot. If you're learning, or re-learning Spanish, and you're far enough from the Cuban jammers to be able to hear Marti clearly, it's a great resource.

i dont disagree with the first statement but that second one? That's what the internet is for and if you're relearning spanish, you likely have access to it

 

[TheBigA]

Once again, these cuts to public broadcasting and USAGM are not being done to save money. The budget bill being discussed now will add $2.8 trillion to the deficit.

House Budget Allows At Least $2.8 Trillion of Deficit Increases | Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget

2025-02-21-The House of Representatives will soon consider a budget resolution for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025, which was reported favorably out of the House Budget Committee on February 13.

www.crfb.org

They're cutting these things for personal reasons, not to save money.

 

[gr8oldies]

Once again, these cuts to public broadcasting and USAGM are not being done to save money. The budget bill being discussed now will add $2.8 trillion to the deficit.

House Budget Allows At Least $2.8 Trillion of Deficit Increases | Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget

2025-02-21-The House of Representatives will soon consider a budget resolution for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025, which was reported favorably out of the House Budget Committee on February 13.

www.crfb.org

They're cutting these things for personal reasons, not to save money.

If Elon doesn't personally like it, it goes apparently. But I am assured everything is perfectly normal.

 

[davideduardo]

Points taken, but what about China? Afghanistan? North Korea? We have SW (and possibly other) broadcasting aimed at them, too. Two of them may be adversaries, but are they really going to attack us? Doubtful.

Yet we broadcast there because of soft power reasons. I think it's the same with Marti, which has a lobe aimed at Mexico and Central America (whether it's on purpose or not I don't know).

If you are referring to the 1180 signal, Mexico and Central America are too far away for reception and there are other stations locally in that zone on 1180. As far as shortwave, where in Mexico and Central America would you expect anyone today to have a radio capable of receiving the station? And the content of Martí is so centered on Cuba, nobody elsewhere would have any interest at all in its content.

The biggest thing about Cuba is its close proximity to the US, and it having a history of being somewhat of a political adversary, at least from the perspective of its government. In the past it was used as a Soviet military outpost. Not so sure what connections Cuba may have with the Russians today (I hadn't heard about Chinese military connections, although China doesn't have much of a blue water navy or long distance capable air force).

China is launching multiple aircraft carriers and building up an extensive navy, likely for the most part to try to expand in the surrounding areas, such as conflicted claim islands near the Philippines.

Personally, I think the US should open up diplomatic and other relations completely with Cuba, and it should have done so long ago. But that's apparently not politically expedient.

What purpose would that achieve? The current Cuban government, only exceeded by Venezuela, is virulently anti-American and has been for 65 years.

If Marti gets the plug pulled that would be sad, in a way. They have some good programming.

Not really. It is ponderous and very old-fashioned in presentation.

They talk about sports, and baseball a lot. If you're learning, or re-learning Spanish, and you're far enough from the Cuban jammers to be able to hear Marti clearly, it's a great resource.

I don't think language learning, particularly focused on Cuban Spanish, is the intent of that station.

 

[davideduardo]

If the Cuban diaspora could do that, they probably would have done so already, using MW or FM. After all, Cuba is only 90 m from the Keys. Any such station would just be jammed, though. Or covered by domestic radio.

You'd have to have a heck of HAAT for FM to cover the 800 mile wide island of Cuba.

And every MW frequency is occupied except a few of them at the very high end. Otherwise, every frequency is essentially blocked, island wide.

A private operator would be limited to 50 kw on AM. Where could you put multiple 50 kw AMs that would be aimed at different parts of Cuba? And they would immediately be blocked.

Martí tried to use 530 AM for a while. Within months, the Cuban radio system had stations on 530 blocking it.

 

[Patrick 29582]

Radio Marti is the least likely of the USAGM shortwave services to be shut down. The Cuban diaspora in Florida is a powerful force. And you have Marco Rubio as Secretary of State.

Is there any possibility Radio Marti would be privatized? If that Cuban diaspora wants to broadcast to the home country, shouldn’t they finance it themselves?

Actually I agree but didn't state it very clearly. Radio Marti.. goodbye to everyone else.

 

[SomeRadioGuy]

Actually I agree but didn't state it very clearly. Radio Marti.. goodbye to everyone else.

why?

 

[boombox4]

If you are referring to the 1180 signal, Mexico and Central America are too far away for reception and there are other stations locally in that zone on 1180. As far as shortwave, where in Mexico and Central America would you expect anyone today to have a radio capable of receiving the station? And the content of Martí is so centered on Cuba, nobody elsewhere would have any interest at all in its content.

I was referring to the SW signal. There are three beams used by Marti on SW, and one is aimed Southwest, towards Mexico, bypassing Cuba altogether. There is one aimed due south from Greenville, towards Cuba, and one aimed slightly SW, and the third one is beamed at 225 degrees. which bypasses Cuba and is aimed more at Mexico, or the Gulf of Mexico and Mexico.

China is launching multiple aircraft carriers and building up an extensive navy, likely for the most part to try to expand in the surrounding areas, such as conflicted claim islands near the Philippines.

True, but their ability to have any meaningful naval influence or operations in any ocean aside from a few subs in the Pacific, or their operations in the South China Sea and East China Sea. just aren't there yet, and may not be for another decade or more. Their air force is regional as well. I'm not aware, for example, of any Chinese air operations anywhere in the eastern Pacific. I'm not even sure they have the refueler aircraft that would be needed to fly bombers and fighters to Cuba if they wanted to use Cuba as an air base. So I'm not sure Cuba would be much of a Chinese military base. I suppose they could have personnel and operate missiles and drones from Cuba. That definitely could happen, if it isn't happening already.

What purpose would that achieve? The current Cuban government, only exceeded by Venezuela, is virulently anti-American and has been for 65 years.

By opening up trade, the people themselves will be influenced by and interact with Americans, and the results couldn't be worse for Cuba or Cuban-American relations than they are now. I don't see where the present diplomatic situation is of any benefit to anyone.

If you personally are opposed to opening up diplomatic and other relations with Cuba, why? How could that be bad for either Cuba or America? How could it be any worse than it is now? Canada has relations with Cuba and it hasn't hurt either Canada or Cuba any.

Not really. It is ponderous and very old-fashioned in presentation.

Marti sounds like a sports talk network to me. Can't be any more ponderous than what Cuba already has. You ever listen to Rebelde? Very sedate, and sounds like 1965 era Radio Havana broadcasts, sans the anti-American paranoia and anti-'imperialist running dogs' propaganda.

I don't think language learning, particularly focused on Cuban Spanish, is the intent of that station.

That wasn't the point of my statement. I was making a personal observation, as an SWL and listener. I wasn't saying that it would be one of the goals of the station.

 

[boombox4]

i dont disagree with the first statement but that second one? That's what the internet is for and if you're relearning spanish, you likely have access to it

I was making a personal statement. I personally find Marti interesting to listen to to hone up on Spanish. I don't expect anyone else to.

 

[bigdonho]

One of the things to keep in mind is we might need shortwave capability at some point. Once a relay station is closed, it's gone for good. It will never be rebuilt. Back when it was the USIA/BBG, they closed the Rota, Spain relay station 30 days before the USSR invaded Afghanistan. The BBG had to scramble and never really succeeded in getting a decent signal into the area. We maintain ships in the reserve naval fleet because we might need them in a hurry. The desert Southwest has airplane bone yards because we might need the planes or parts.

In the great scheme of things, a relay station doesn't cost that much to operate.

While Radio Marti in its present form is a colossal waste of money, it does serve a purpose in that we retain the capability should we need it.

 

[Mediafrog+]

One of the things to keep in mind is we might need shortwave capability at some point. Once a relay station is closed, it's gone for good. It will never be rebuilt.

The bigger question is whether a significant number of people own shortwave radios today. It appears that number is minuscule to nonexistent, depending on what part of the world you’re considering.

Back when it was the USIA/BBG, they closed the Rota, Spain relay station 30 days before the USSR invaded Afghanistan.

That facility was in Playa de Pals, Spain, not Rota. It was closed in 2001, more than two decades after the USSR invasion of Afghanistan.

While Radio Marti in its present form is a colossal waste of money, it does serve a purpose in that we retain the capability should we need it.

If Radio Marti gets the ax on shortwave, that will be the end of what’s left of the Greenville facilities. There are only a few non-Marti transmissions that come from the Greenville-B site. Note that Greenville-A was shuttered and torn down some years ago.

 

[gr8oldies]

You'd have to have a heck of HAAT for FM to cover the 800 mile wide island of Cuba.

And every MW frequency is occupied except a few of them at the very high end. Otherwise, every frequency is essentially blocked, island wide.

A private operator would be limited to 50 kw on AM. Where could you put multiple 50 kw AMs that would be aimed at different parts of Cuba? And they would immediately be blocked.

Martí tried to use 530 AM for a while. Within months, the Cuban radio system had stations on 530 blocking it.

That's why we have Radio Enciclopedia playing Beautiful Music on 530.

 

[Plate Blocker]

I've been coming here a bit less over the past few weeks because of the sheer amount of heavy political stuff, as another data point. As a non U.S. Citizen it's not my fight, and I'm mostly here to read about radio.

I agree with you completely.

It is, unfortunately, everywhere on every medium like this...the first party actually seem to believe that they will type a few snarling, offensive lines and the second party with the opposing viewpoint will suddenly in response snap around to the first party's point of view, and all will be well. Read these messages with that in mind, and you will just shake your head.

It also divides friends, neighbors, coworkers, and even strangers talking. No one wants to simply and politely discuss something; opposing points of view seem to need to be a battle to the death.

It renders message boards like this to nothing more than rough roads with giant potholes. There is so much chaff you can't seem to find the wheat anymore. I came here from another board that is especially bad, and although this one is better, its not all that much better. I'm mostly retired and don't need the benefits (industry inside information, tech support, pros and cons on equipment brands and models, etc.) that these sorts of mediums used to provide anymore, so not coming around much isn't a big deal to me.