The Realization of an Earthquake Early Warning System for Schools and Its Performance during the 2019 ML 6.3 Hualien (Taiwan) Earthquake

This article discusses the earthquake early warning system (EEWS) for schools of the National Center for Research on Earthquake Engineering, Taiwan (NCREE’s EEWS, earthquake early warning system [NEEWS]) that was recently completed. The system consists of 98 seismic stations with a complete set of system capabilities and 3514 broadcast stations with only the associated alert broadcast system capabilities. The broadcast stations receive both any on-site alerts issued by the seismic stations and any regional alerts issued by the Central Weather Bureau and then broadcast whatever alert is received earliest. Shortly after the establishment of the NEEWS, the ML 6.3 Hualien earthquake, which had a maximum measured peak ground acceleration (PGA) of 515.17 Gal, struck Taiwan on 18 April 2019. During the earthquake, the performance of both the seismic stations and the broadcast stations of the system was documented. The current study analyzes and discusses the accuracy of the PGA predictions, lead times, and classification performance at both the seismic stations and the broadcast stations of the NEEWS. The results show that the NEEWS is a cost-effective and promising system of EEW.

A comparative study of BRTV and NTA Maiduguri regarding their compliance with Nigeria Broadcasting Code on religious programming

The regulation of broadcast religious programming is a critical challenge the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) is facing in Nigeria. In Maiduguri, the capital of the north-eastern Nigerian state of Borno where religion forms a core part of the people’s culture, a great deal of Borno Radio Television (BRTV) and Nigerian Television Authority Maiduguri’s (NTA Maiduguri) airtime is allocated to Islamic preaching during the Muslim’s annual Ramadan fasting. However, there is a dearth of research on whether the airtime those broadcast stations allocate to Islamic programming complies with the NBC code on religious programming. This research gap formed the main research question of this study which was conducted during the second quarter of 2019. Primary data were collected using key informant interviews with five personnel from the two broadcast stations and the Maiduguri office of NBC, while secondary data were obtained through the review of official documents. Key findings showed that the airtime allocatedto religious programmes exceeded the 10% NBC limit, BRTV allocated more airtime to religious programmes than NTA Maiduguri and Islamic programmes were allocated more airtime than programmes of other religions. Recommendations on how to improve compliance to NBC’s regulations were offered at the end.Peraturan program siaran keagamaan merupakan tantangan bagi NationalBroadcasting Commission (NBC)/Komisi Penyiaran Nasional di Nigeria. Maiduguri, ibukota Negara bagian Borno, Nigeria Timur Laut di mana agama merupakan bagian inti dari budaya masyarakat, banyak Radio Televisi Borno (BRTV) dan Otoritas Televisi Nigeria Maiduguri (NTA Maiduguri) mengalokasikan jam tayang untuk khotbah Islam selama Ramadhan. Namun, ada kelangkaan penelitian tentang apakah jam tayang yang disiarkan oleh stasiun-stasiun siaran itu untuk program Islami. Kesenjangan penelitian ini membentuk pertanyaan penelitian utama yang dilakukan selama kuartal kedua 2019. Data penelitian ini dikumpulkan menggunakan wawancara informan kunci dengan lima personel dari keduanya stasiun siaran dan kantor Maiduguri NBC, sementara data sekunder diperoleh melalui telaah dokumen resmi. Temuan penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa “airtime” (jam tayang) dialokasikan untuk program keagamaan yang melebihi batas 10% NBC, BRTV mengalokasikan lebih banyak “airtime” ke program keagamaan dari NTA Maiduguri dan program Islam dialokasikan lebih banyak “airtime” daripada program agama lain. Implikasi dari penelitian ini adalah perlunya kepatuhan terhadap peraturan NBC.

Development of a reliable path-loss model for FM broadcast reception in office locations

This paper proposes for the development of a path-loss model to improve the accuracy in predicting the signal level in office locations for the reception of FM broadcast. Identifying the factors that affect the signal level and eventually developing a model to predict the signal inside buildings will guide engineers in designing a broadcast system. A properly designed broadcast system will ensure optimum signal penetration in these listening areas. Further, the developed model can find applications in policy-making on the regulation of FM broadcast stations, both for analog and digital radio systems. Signal level measurements from three FM broadcast stations have been made inside eight office rooms in De La Salle University-Manila. With the three stations utilizing circularly polarized transmitting antennas, the measurements aim to determine the signal levels of the horizontal and vertical components of the received signal. These measured levels are used to determine the effects on the magnitude of the received signal of some factors, such as signal frequency and polarization, receiving antenna height, walls, transmitter-receiver distance, etc. Since the developed model is based on the measured signal levels in the actual office environment, its accuracy is then better than any of the existing models earlier developed.

Challenges and Prospects of Private Broadcast Media Ownership in Nigeria: A Study of Stations in Port Harcourt

Ownership of the media was vested with the government, especially in the areas of issuance of licenses and renewal of such licenses, among others, through the National Broadcasting Commission empowered to carry out such salient responsibility. The empowerment of NBC through the enabling Decree in 1992 saw the emergence of private broadcast stations in Nigeria. But years after the deregulation of the broadcast media in Nigeria, the private broadcast stations and ownership are still bedeviled with some challenges, which If not well addressed, will leave them at cross roads; but if addressed properly, the sky would be too small to be their limit. To realize these, the study examined the challenges and prospects of private broadcast media using Africa Independent Television (AIT) and Rhythm 93.7fm as case studies. The survey method was used to expose the challenges faced by these stations and their prospects. In course of the study, the following findings, interalia, were discovered: that the private broadcast outfits are faced with challenges arising from poor facilities, government regulation and legislations, expensive equipment, welfare and debts. However, the study discovered that progress could be made if enabling environment would be created for them to strive.

POLISH RADIO ON THE BACKGROUND OF SYSTEMIC CHANGES IN POLAND IN THE YEARS 1945-1956

The Polish Radio began its activity on the first of February 1925. On this day the first program of the Polish Radio technical Society was broadcasted. From then on, the radio accompanied Polish people in good and bad times. The years 1946 – 1956 were not so glorious. At that time, Polish radio became the propaganda tool for the PPR and from December 1949 the PZPR. These parties, mainly under the slogans of the reconstruction of the country from war damage and the struggle for peace, sought to Stalinize Poland on the model of the USSR. While studying those times, it should be stated that information and publication hardly existed because it was replaced by a hypocritical, brutal and intrusive propaganda. However, history of Polish Radio in those years should not only been described in critical way. At that time, many very important and socially necessary initiatives took place. Since the first year after regaining independence, more and more new broadcast stations have been launched in various regions of Poland. New programs were broad-casting more and more often, such as "Muzyka i Aktualności", in which various mes-sages were given with ease, interwoven with modern jazz music.

Bans and Restrictions on Religious Broadcasting: A Review of the Arguments and Counter-Arguments

The ownership of broadcast stations by religious groups, the establishment of broadcast stations exclusively devoted to religious content and the inclusion of content of a religious nature within the programming of regular commercial, public or community stations are all practices that are common throughout the world. However, several countries have implemented bans or restrictions on the dissemination of religious content through broadcasting or the ownership of broadcast stations by religious groups. The present article aims to assess whether such bans and restrictions are compatible with the rights to freedom of religion and freedom of expression as recognized under international human rights law. For these purposes, the most common arguments in favour and against restrictions on religious broadcasting are explained and weighed against each other.