Mastodawn

My Favorite Stations on Shortwave

This is who – and why (5 = excellent; 1 = poor; 0 = no data):

CriteriaKBS World RadioRadio Taiwan InternationalRadio Romania InternationalAvailability/
technical reliability            4            4            3Contemporary music            5            4            4Everyday life            4            4            4Entertainment value            4            4            4Listener relations            4            4            3Live transmissions   Objectivity            4            4            4Range of news /
News relevance            4            4            5Realtime news            3            3            4Programs in
German            5            5            4Shortwave/Medium
wave available            4            4            4Traditional music            4            3            3Sum        45.00        43.00        42.00Number of
categories        11.00        11.00        11.00Average points            4.09            3.91            3.82

(If you wonder about the eleven "categories", there’s actually one station among those I frequently listen to that broadcasts live, occasionally. That’s Vatican Radio.) I only looked at stations that I logged at least nine times since January 1 this year.

#AsiaPacific #broadcasting #foreignRadio #KBSWorldRadio #music #RadioRomaniaInternational #RadioTaiwanInternational

Shortwave Listening Mar 24

Radio Taiwan International’s Shortwave Transmissions in English

Something is weird at Radio Taiwan International (RTI). Their English-language transmission for South Asia on 9405 kHz, at 16:00 UTC, usually comes in rather well in Europe, too. However, the opening bulletins are always old news. It was the Friday bulletin when I listened on Monday (yesterday), and the Monday bulletin when I listened again on Tuesday (today). On both days, the audio files they had chosen for transmission were actually correct – Monday’s program was according to schedule with "Beyond the Reefs" and "Doomscroll News Report" on Monday, and "Hear in Taiwan" on Tuesday. But why the old news on an otherwise current reel?

I found the same pattern on July 11 last year, when that Friday program ran the Thursday news bulletin.

This means that a news bulletin that the European audience gets to hear in French and German at 19:00 UTC on one day, will be beamed to South Asian listeners only a day – 21 hours – later.

The English transmissions are still worth to be listened to, but RTI gives away a classical ace that radio could and should have: speediness, if not realtime newsbreaking.

Suggestion: let’s send the occasional reception report to RTI’s English service, and express our surprise that the only English-language transmission available on shortwave (as far as I know, it is their only one) broadcasts old news. To show that we care might help keeping the program on air.

#broadcasting #foreignRadio #RadioTaiwanInternational #shortwave #Taiwan

SWLing Post Mar 24

Half a Century of Connection: RTI’s Spanish Service Turns 50

https://swling.com/blog/2026/03/half-a-century-of-connection-rtis-spanish-service-turns-50/

#DavidIuresciaLW4DAF #RadioTaiwanInternational #RTI

Half a Century of Connection: RTI’s Spanish Service Turns 50

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor David Iurescia, who shares this article from Radio Taiwan International, marking a major milestone: 50 years of Spanish-language broadcasting. Click here to r…

The SWLing Post

SakutaV1 Feb 15

Wusste gar nicht das so etwas gibt aber schön zu sehen.🇹🇼🎙️

#taiwan #radio #rti #radiotaiwaninternational

https://www.rti.org.tw/de/index

SWLing Post Jan 27

Radio Taiwan International and Radio Prague Recent Highlights

https://swling.com/blog/2026/01/radio-taiwan-international-and-radio-prague-recent-highlights/

#RadioPrague #RadioTaiwanInternational #RTI

Radio Taiwan International and Radio Prague Recent Highlights

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor David Iurescia, who shares two stories from the world of international broadcasting: First, Radio Taiwan International highlights a recent long-distance short…

The SWLing Post

SWLing Post Jan 19

RTI: One-Hour English Broadcast from Taiwanese Students to Norway

https://swling.com/blog/2026/01/rti-one-hour-english-broadcast-from-taiwanese-students-to-norway/

#PaulJamet #RadioTaiwanInternational #RTI #ShortwaveRadioSpecials

RTI: One-Hour English Broadcast from Taiwanese Students to Norway

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Paul Jamet, who shares the following tip: Dear Thomas, This morning I received a message from Meg Wang, Head of the French Service at Radio Taiwan Internatio…

The SWLing Post

SWLing Post Jan 18

RTI’s Spanish & Japanese programs ranking among shortwave broadcasters

https://swling.com/blog/2026/01/rtis-spanish-japanese-programs-ranking-among-shortwave-broadcasters/

#DavidIuresciaLW4DAF #RadioTaiwanInternational #RTI

RTI’s Spanish & Japanese programs ranking among shortwave broadcasters

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor David Iurescia, who shares this article from Radio Taiwan International highlighting how RTI’s Spanish and Japanese shortwave programs have placed in global l…

The SWLing Post

SWLing Post Jan 2

Taiwan on Shortwave – Then and Now

https://swling.com/blog/2026/01/taiwan-on-shortwave-then-and-now/

#DanGreenall #RadioHistory #RadioNostalgia #RadioTaiwanInternational #Recordings #ShortwaveRadio #TheVoiceOfFreeChina #WRMI

Taiwan on Shortwave – Then and Now

by Dan Greenall For nearly a half-century, The Voice of Free China broadcast programs via shortwave to a worldwide audience from Taipei, Taiwan. As a relatively new SWL in the early 1970’s, I was a…

The SWLing Post

Shortwave Listening Dec 20

Radio Taiwan International’s 2026 QSL Card Series, Medium Wave Transmission from Göteborg, and other Radio News

Japan

Radio Japan’s Mandarin service continues to air an "AI-voiced" daily news bulletin, retransmitted several times a day. The French service news is still read naturally. The Mandarin bulletin can currently be heard rather well here in NW Germany, from 14:00 to 14:10 UTC on 9750 kHz. The news is followed by a Japanese language course.

Slovakia

Radio Slovakia International appears to be saved (that’s what "Wavescan" previews suggest), and chances are that WRMI will continue to carry RSI’s English and Spanish services. However, the German service is no longer broadcast on shortwave, as the Kall-Krekel transmitter site in Germany has apparently ceased operation on the two frequencies that used to carry RSI programs (3985 and 6005 kHz).

Sweden

Medium wave test transmissions are scheduled from the Radiomuseet in Göteborg, Sweden, on the December 20 and 21 weekend. Frequency: 981 kHz.

Taiwan

Radio Taiwan International has announced its 2026 QSL card series. All of the twelve monthly editions will feature drawings by a Japanese listener, made during a stay of his in Taiwan.

#mediumWave #NHK #QSLCards #RadioSlovakiaInternational #RadioTaiwanInternational #shortwave

SWLing Post Dec 6

Carlos’ Illustrated Radio Listening Report and Recording of CGTN, NHK, and Radio Taiwan International (December 6, 2025)

https://swling.com/blog/2025/12/carlos-illustrated-radio-listening-report-and-recording-of-cgtn-nhk-and-radio-taiwan-international-december-6-2025/

#CarlosLatuff #CGTN #NHKWorld #RadioTaiwanInternational #ShortwaveArt #ShortwaveRadio

Carlos’ Illustrated Radio Listening Report and Recording of CGTN, NHK, and Radio Taiwan International (December 6, 2025)

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and noted political cartoonist, Carlos Latuff, who shares the following illustrated radio listening report of recent CGTN, NHK, and Radio Taiwan International…

The SWLing Post