Email to Discovery News about Amateur Radio

Here is another of those self indulgent things. I listen to the Friday news feedbag At Discovery News as a podcast and every week it seems that one of the host makes a negative remark about amateur radio. This week I had enough so I found the email address, loaded my musket and let them have it. It would be different if they knew what they were talking about. Here you go and if you hear people talking about the amateur radio service and they don’t seem to have a clue. Send them an email. If you don’t get an answer at least you can get it off your chest.

“Hello guys,
I find Discovery News to be a Great show. One thing disturbs me though. Jorge is always taking pot shots at the Amateur Radio Operators. Currently there are over 500,000 FCC licensed Amateur Radio Operators in the United States and over 200 countries have their own Amateur Radio Service. Most of the things you take for granted in everyday life from from television to mobile phones are thanks to Amateur Radio. If any of you use a Heil microphone to record your podcast you can thank Bob Heil an amateur radio operator. I know Joe Walsh WB6ACU does.

I think that your show is really great but every time Jorge cracks a joke about HAM radio operators he helps to reinforce the myth that amateur radio operators are amateurish. The “amateur” in amateur radio means unpaid. Like Olympic athletes are unpaid so they are amateur athletes. I would think Discovery News would be a little more diligent about their fact checking.

Since your show seams most of the time to be science and technology based I would think that you would be interested in doing some pieces on amateur radio since it is at the forefront of technology not stuck in the 1930′s as Jorge likes to believe. You might want to research amateur radio satellites, amateur radio digital voice, data, VOIP, Moon bounce or Meteor scatter.

We are first called when disaster strikes and Federal, State, and local government need interoperability in communications. When hurricane Katrina came ashore we had radio operators in the effected area before the Federal government had finished their second cup of coffee. When the space shuttle exploded raining down on east Texas radio operators were activated less than 10 minutes after the explosion and operated in the recovery efforts for over a month. Right now there are hundreds of amateur radio operators providing communications for the fire teams in the west as they do every year.

So please have Jorge pick on something else. Maybe he could pick on podcast host, I am also one of those and it would be easier to except since I would assume that he knows what he is talking about. I would think that Discovery News would fact check their topics a little better. Do the research guys, it ain’t Herman and Grampa in the basement.

Thanks for your time

Comments

Scott JOhnston (KD4EBL) says: April 27, 2011 at 7:28 PM

Will be intresting if they respond!Reply

• kb5jbv says: April 27, 2011 at 8:16 PM They did. Talked about it on their show. Continued to talk badly about amateur radio operators. That is why I deleted them from my podcast list. Reply

ws4e says: April 26, 2011 at 2:33 PM

Hmm, I get the feeling we have entered a new ‘crotchety old man Bailey’ phase of life. Reply

kb5jbv says: April 26, 2011 at 3:14 PM I wrote that a year or so ago. I was listening to one of their shows as a podcast and one of the host had been taking pot shots at the amateur radio operators for several episodes. I had had enough and since the host in question had proved he was an idiot in other ways I let them have it. I will let anybody have their opinion as long as they have a clue about the subject matter. Besides I have been a crusty old fart for years. Reply

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