The Pirate Report

Following up last Thursday's post on how to find pirate shortwave radio broadcasts, I spent some time looking this weekend and found three.  The sound quality of two of them was awful.  Between low signal strength and lots of lightning crashes, it was hard to dig out any content beyond simply registering something was there.  But the third broadcast was very listenable.  Here are the details.

Friday, 8:20pm CDT, 6880 AM: Possibly clips from vintage horror radio play.  Could just resolve scattered words and phrases.

Saturday, 7:15 CDT, 6935 AM: Radio Appalachia.  Mix of old country and string band music.  Was able to identify several songs, including "White Lightning," something by Johnny Cash, and "I'd Rather Have Jesus," "He Walked withe Me."  Signed off with "God Bless America Again" at 8:11 CDT.  More discussion (should you feel compelled) at HF Underground.

Saturday, 8:15 CDT, 6950 USB: Wolverine Radio (wiki article).  Started with Billie Holliday, worked its way through the 40's, 50's, & 60's, some CCR, a James Taylor song, The Cars' "You're All I've Got Tonight," and wrapped up with Wang Chung.  The signal was clear and strong.  At sign-off, this slow-scan TV QSL image was sent:

Again, more discussion at HF Underground.

Well, these pirates, they're out there.  No, I mean they're out there, and pretty far out there at that.  Kind of interesting stuff though.  Perhaps the most interesting part is the why people make these pirate broadcasts.  I won't delve into that other than to point to a FAQ over at HF Underground.  Another question is why, in this age of crystal-clear podcasts, why bother listening?  Only answers I can come up with are it's something different, it's a technical challenge, and because it's there.  I'm sure that in the future I'll tune in on an occasional basis.