AIB condemns jamming of international broadcasters

6 March 2013

The Association for International Broadcasting (AIB) today condemned attempts that are being made to interfere with the broadcasts of international broadcasters on short wave in the Asia region.

English-language broadcasts from the BBC World Service, Radio Australia and Voice of America beamed towards China are being deliberately interfered with by the jamming of a number of frequencies. Such jamming makes it difficult or sometimes impossible to listen to the broadcasts that include news, current affairs, science and entertainment.

Research undertaken by the broadcasters and by independent monitors in the Asia region indicate that the source of the jamming is within the People’s Republic of China.

“AIB condemns this latest interference to the broadcasts of the BBC, ABC Radio Australia and Voice of America,” said Simon Spanswick, chief executive of the Association for International Broadcasting. “Free access to information is a universal human right, and this interference is preventing audiences based within China to hear news from outside the country. It comes at a time when China’s own international broadcasters – on radio and television – are expanding rapidly around the world. They do not suffer from attempts by other nations to silence them. AIB calls on China to cease its jamming activities.”

Broadcasts in Mandarin from broadcasters including the BBC, Radio Free Asia and Voice of America  have been interfered with for many years. This is the first time that English-language services have been targeted in such a widespread way.

AIB is lodging protests with the Chinese Foreign Ministry and its Missions in Canberra, London and Washington DC.

Read the press release here.

Last day for Bush House

12 July 2012

1106 GMT, Thursday 12 July – the end of an era. That’s when Bush House, home to BBC World Service for the last 70 years, will cease to be its home, the place from where the strains of Lilliburlero have been broadcast on the global English-language service to listeners around the world on the hour, every hour.

The final broadcast will be an English-language news bulletin starting after the 1100GMT time signal. Then, as the transmission light goes out for the last time, the final members of staff will decamp to the brand new extension to Broadcasting House a couple of miles away from Bush where the rest of the World Service is now located.

And if you’re hungry for a piece of nostalgia – or need a good, albeit heavily-used, radio studio, you can bid on the first phase of the technical equipment that World Service is leaving behind. An online auction is being run that will see all the broadcasting kit, plus a good deal of somewhat scuffed office furniture as well as a couple of pianos, disposed of.

Take a look at The Guardian‘s pictorial tribute to Bush House, and take a trip down memory lane on the Bush House Memories Facebook group.

And from everyone at the AIB who has worked at Bush, we say thank you for having us and farewell.