Broadcasting to MON (the Middle of Nowhere)

There is now a functioning radio station on Weno in Chuuk. Some Baptist group is broadcasting at 88.1 FM. I'm told that there is also government radio station there, too, but it doesn't broadcast very often. And I've not heard it during any of my trips to Chuuk.

I'm not particularly fond of the music on the Baptist station. It's deja vu of what many American Protestants listened to in the 1950's. I suppose that's okay -- unless people somehow get the idea that such music is supposed to define Christian music (which could be a danger with any music style).

While I was on Tol I was trying to find news on my shortwave radio. (The Weno FM station is too far away for reception on Tol.) Most everything that you get out there in that part of MON is in Chinese. Sometimes I can get an ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) English signal but this time the best signal was from the VOA (Voice of America).

The VOA is an interesting broadcast. It is definitely the voice of America but there is a level of objectivity that you might not expect from a propaganda station. For example, they do straight forward reporting when someone criticizes President Bush. The Americanism comes through most strongly in the editorials which give the opinion of the American government.

I would think that there are received as a credible voice.

The English broadcasts are geared toward people who want to learn the language or who have a low level of competency. (They also broadcast in 45 different languages.)

There are times when the American government does it right!