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This is the first chapter in a series on the subject of radio, am-radio, fm-radio, shortwave radio - the present and its future... from the ground up. Inspired by a tip from local hobbyist Eric Floden and dedicated to the memory of John Bryant of Stillwater, Oklahoma and the San Juan Islands.

I have been working at one of British Columbia's largest and most comprehensive Universities - since the late 80's - and in that time I have hung out with several generations of aspiring minds.
And because it is a center of learning, intellectual endeavors and leading edge adolescent development, it tends to be ground zero for whatever is hot in terms of technology, pop culture
and fashion.

Photo at right: The Grundig Yacht-Boy portable AM-FM-SW radio tunes the World without an internet connection, subscriptions, fees and/or government interference (for the most part...) for under $200.

In 1987, the  average university student might have had a cassette walkman on their hip. They most certainly did not have a cell phone or a lap top computer.
Personal electronics consisted of cassette players, many with an AM-FM tuner. The primary source of random entertainment of the day would have been stereo FM from one of several local FM stations with
perhaps a subset of one of those groups would have tuned in local or regional AM radio.

And in listening to one of those mediums; AM and VHF FM radio, they would have been among the majority of citizens who kept themselves informed via the miracle of radio.
Newspapers were selling briskly. Television was on an all time high in terms of popularity. You might have called the 80's a news generation.

This would all change in 1987 - In that year the prestigious Fraunhofer Institut research center began researching high quality, low bit-rate audio coding, a project named EUREKA project EU147, Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB).
Say hello to the origin of the MP3.

Flash forward 12 years to 2009. I took it upon myself to start randomly interviewing folks on the subject of radio, print media and television. The results were somewhat surprising, but not entirely gloomy.

(And) Last year (2009) I adopted a stock random question(s) for students, faculty and staff that I randomly encountered during the day:

"Where do you get your news of the day? Radio, TV, Newspaper, word of mouth or Internet?"

The most alarming response (not surprisingly from the younger set in the University) is (and somewhat apologetically)... "I do not listen to the radio, watch TV at all - and I do not read the news on the internet... and
nor do I read a newspaper..." News for them, apparently, is word of mouth - or via the water cooler telegraph as I call it.

Other odd responses include: "I had an Uncle who listened to a radio once..." - not sure about the validity of that statement.

And while working in a lab once and having the CBC FM on a "radio play" called "Afghanada" on, a passing student observed: "I have never heard a radio play before..."

Fascinating stuff indeed.

OK. So where does this all fit in with shortwave radio, where it is, what it is and where it's going?
A snapshot of the bigger picture first before we dive in on some definitions and what crackling radio can do in the 21st century.

Photo right: The Grundig G6 Aviator high performance AM, FM and SW radios offer a myriad of traditional radio listening options - analog, not really digital and no internet hook-up required!

In the year 2010, newspaper media is taking a hammering - Our local paper has switched off the Monday paper ostensibly to save money and serve us better and at the same time, steering us
in the direction of the "internet" for free updates - free news online. But is it free?

AM Radio is in the middle of a mass exodus to FM and beyond - and in the latter stages of a failed experiment called Digital AM or IBOC - which has for all intents and purposes been a comedic farce for the audience, a staggering waste of money  for investors and a great big annoyance for the tens of thousands of folks who still listen to traditional AM radio who abhor the unwelcome pastiche of debilitating interference that IBOC has heaped upon the medium wave dial.

A recent report indicates that there is a mass media abdication for the internet for, not only news, but also entertainment - like television and internet radio - in whatever form it takes.

And in keeping in mind that good old radio and TV is largely free (sure, we have had cable for over 40 years now) - the internet is not a free (nor open) media and it is significantly more fragile a news medium than most people care to think out. More on that later.

So, with that mindbogglingly long introduction, why, if at all, is radio meaningful to this and future generations - and for the newcomer to this conversation, what the heck is "shortwave" and why should it be of interest to me?"

Radio for you and why: As a long time radio enthusiast, media junkie, pop culture observer and, yes, amateur radio operator - I am always in the mood to soliloquize (rap) on the subject of recruiting and retaining new media junkies - I mean, who does not enjoy preaching enthusiastically to the converted? Besides, the state of being informed socially and connected is important to me (and I hope) to the average person - because the state of being engaged is integral to the continuance of a functional society - take away the connections and the very fabric of society and family become weaker.

 Coming up in the Chapter Two, we will introduce you to some basic concepts and terminology.

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