The Shortwave Audience

What kind of audience can a specific shortwave broadcaster hope to reach? Dr. Graham Mytton, former head of BBC World Service audience research, says: "You may have audiences of less than 0.1%.... But this does not mean an insignificant achievement necessarily. Shortwave broadcasters are niche broadcasters. Often they are not aiming to reach mass audiences , but people with specific needs, interests and tastes.... If your average reach was, let us say, one person in 10,000, that is 0.01%. On a global scale that is a lot of people -- about 350,000 of them. The problem is that we can never afford the scale and number of surveys that would necessarily prove it."

The Resurgence of Shortwave Radio

However, many sources agree that shortwave radio is experiencing a resurgence. According to VT Communications, which operates the BBC's worldwide transmitter sites, "latest research shows that shortwave radio listeners are growing globally, with shortwave penetration at its highest in the developing countries. That is not to say that shortwave is not having an impact in the developed countries. The increase in the shortwave audience, says VT Communications, is "spelt out dramatically by just one factory in China that is frantically producing 300,000 shortwave radio sets per month just to support demand. Grundig in America report growth each year on their sales of shortwave receivers. There are at least 600 million shortwave radio sets worldwide."

Surveys cited by VT Communications show that in France, 70% of households with radio have access to shortwave. In Slovakia, the figure is 77%, "What is most interesting," according to VTC, "is the growth over the last 10 years in shortwave usage by business travellers, diplomats, aid workers and others who move about the world as a result of their jobs. This change has occurred because of the portability of new sets and the simplicity of their use. Modern synthesized sets, which have the facility of actually entering the precise frequency number, made shortwave easy for everyone. People learned to pre-tune their sets, forgetting about kHz, MHz and wavebands. The new sets went in pockets, handbags and briefcases. Now sets weigh as little as 220 grams and are easily available and affordable."

TeleDiffusion de France, which operates Radio France International's extensive shortwave transmitter network, says that "an estimated 2.5 billion people tune in to programs broadcast on shortwave, and about a billion receivers pick up shortwave transmissions. At any given moment, over 200 million receivers are tuned in to shortwave broadcasts. Shortwave remains the only means of reaching a broad audience anywhere in the world, via a simple portable radio that can be bought for around $25. Listeners include expatriates, business travellers, tourists or simply people who want to hear programs in a language other than their own or who want to open a new window on the world."

Large government-owned broadcasters like the BBC and the Voice of America have been able to carry out listenership surveys in certain countries. These surveys reveal that around 1% of the population of Jamaica and the United States listens regularly to shortwave radio stations. In Brazil, Mexico, Peru and Trinidad, listenership to shortwave is between 1% and 5% of the population. In Ecuador, it is between 5 and 10%. Guyana in South America has a shortwave listenership rate of between 10 and 30% of the population. Other countries -- especially certain African countries -- have a shortwave listenership rate of over 30%. In Barbados, 39% of households with radios have access to shortwave. Listening rates are often higher in countries like Peru and Brazil, where shortwave is used for domestic broadcasting as well. The Voice of America has estimated its weekly Spanish-language audience in Latin America at 3.2 million adults, and this does not include the Radio Marti broadcasts to Cuba. Country-by-country listening rates for VOA in Spanish range from 1% to 10% of the adult population.

WRMI attended the National Meeting of Mexican Shortwave Listeners in Veracruz in 2004

In 1998, Los Medios y Mercados de Latinoamérica carried out international radio listening surveys in 18 Latin American countries. Regarding shortwave stations, Medios y Mercados said: "When we consider any local market, their audiences may be miniscule. However, their strengths lie in their broad coverage and they may have sizeable listenership when aggregated across many local markets." Indeed, the survey found that 9.2 million people between the ages of 12 and 64 in the 18 countries surveyed had listened to at least one of the eight government-owned shortwave stations included in the survey within the past 30 days. The highest rating was for Radio Nacional do Brasil, with 3.5 million listeners. "In terms of demographics," the study concluded, "the listeners to the international radio broadcasters are more affluent, better educated and have a higher occupational status (owners, managers, professionals)."

The Cuban shortwave audience is a special case. Since the government controls all media on the island, a great many Cubans tune in to foreign radio stations for news and other programming. And thanks to the Soviet legacy, many if not most radio receivers in Cuba have shortwave bands on them, so listening to shortwave is very commonplace on the island. In a 1988 survey in four cities (Havana, Santa Clara, Holguin and Santiago) carried out for the U.S. Government's station Radio Marti, about half of all adults reported having access to shortwave radio, and 12% had listened to a shortwave stations within the last week (22% within the last 12 months). As much as 21% of respondents in the city of Santiago indicated they had listened to Radio Marti within the past week, and Radio Marti had a total weekly audience of 220,000 in the four cities. One Cuban exile program aired by Radio Miami International, La Voz de la Fundación, had a 2% weekly audience rating in Santa Clara.

Listener correspondence can also provide some helpful information about a station's audience. An analysis of listener letters received by WRMI in 1999 showed that the largest percentage of correspondence (39%) came from Latin America and the Caribbean, and the second-largest (29%) was from the United States and Canada. (The North American service of WRMI had just begun at that time.) Europeans produced 23% of the correspondence, which is interesting since we don't specifically target that continent. Six percent of the letters came from Asia and the Pacific, and the remaining 3% were from Africa. Breaking down the origin of the correspondence from Latin America, by far the largest amount (35%) was from Cuba. Brazilians contributed fully 20% of our Latin American correspondence, even though we have very few programs in Portuguese. (The Brazilians listen to Spanish and English programming, as well as Portuguese.) After Brazil came Argentina (13%), Venezuela (11%), Mexico (7%), Uruguay (5%) and Peru (4%).

Mexican listener Pepe Gonzalez accepts a Freeplay shortwave receiver as a contest prize given away by C. Crane Co. and WRMI

WRMI Radio Miami International
175 Fontainebleau Blvd., Suite 1N4
Miami, Florida 33172 USA
Tel +1-305-559-WRMI (9764)
Fax +1-305-559-8186
E-mail: info@wrmi.net
www.wrmi.net

Selected Comments from Listener Correspondence

Eisleben, Germany (Ralf Urbanczyk) – On 4 July 2009 at 0430 UTC I heard Radio Praga (programme of Radio Prague in Spanish language) with noticias, then political commentaries about critics of former Czech prime minister Svoboda about relationship of EU to Cuba, and about the international film festival in Karlovy Vary. I was amazed about some weeks ago that I could listen to WRMI on shortwave even with my simple equipment. How good may be reception for listeners with a good antena. Reception was possible almost every day, with best results between 0400 and 0500 UTC.

El Paso, Texas, USA (Luis C. Camarillo) – Desde El Paso, Texas los saludo un radioescucha de su emisora. Quisiera una lista de su programación con los horarios y frecuencias desus programas en español para USA, México y el Caribe. Gracias por todo. Su amigo mexicano.

Decatur, Gerogia, USA (Steve Carper) – I heard you at 0800 with ID's in English and Spanish, then you began relaying Radio Prague. This is the first time I have heard your station. I have been a shortwave listener since I was 12 years old. I am 48 now.

Tegucigalpa, Honduras (Denis Tábora Sanabria) - Escuché la siguiente programación: Conversando entre Cubanos con artículo sobre la posibilidad de Obama de tener negociaciones con la Habana. 0045 UTC Escuché el programa la Verdad para el Mundo con el pastor y evangelista Philip Grey con el tema "Cómo podemos saber con certeza de que las Escrituras son la palabra de Dios?" 0100 UTC continuó la emisión con un programa cristiano en idioma ingles. 

Hanover, Germany (Rolf Hacke) – I heard your transmission to the Horn of Africa from Radio Oromiyaa Liberation on 13820 kHz. I have received your station for the first time.

Pukerua Bay, New Zealand (Dene Lynneberg) – I have just had the pleasure of listening to your station's programming broadcast on the frequency of 9955 kiolhertz. I must point out that my reception was not made from New Zealand, but via a remote controlled receiver of Globaltuners.com located in State College, Pennsylvania, USA. Globaltuners.com is a web based organisation of radio enthusiasts who have dedicated receivers connected to the web which listeners can gain access to and operate via the web, no matter where they themselves are located in the world. You may be intersted to know that for the last 40 years I have worked in the broadcating industry. I began working as a technical trainee with the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation in 1967. I was also responsible for the shortwave frequency planning of Radio New Zealand's shortwave service during my seven and a half years working at the Quartz Hill monitoring and receiving station.

Fyzabad, Trinidad (Robin Tancoo) – I have been tuning to your broadcast on 9955 kHz and would like some more details on your programs. Could you send me details of the “Happy Station” show? I listened to the first edition.

Fallston, Maryland, USA (William Patalon III) – Greetings from Baltimore! Tuning your station is local re-connecting with a treasured old friend. I really mean that. Putting Wavescan on WRMI was a brilliant move. I think it will drive traffic and will buttress your fan base. Shrewd move, and one that I know is appreciated. I wish you all the best!

An avid shortwave listener in Peru sent this photo