In the early days of broadcasting, communication by road and air was difficult or even non-existent. Shortwave broadcasting became a useful means to

bridge that gap. As telephone, cable and mail services improved, shortwave has become less important as a means of keeping people in the countryside in

touch with the world.

The number of shortwave stations in Latin America has shrunk during the past few decades.

This is shown by Graph 1, which covers the principal Andean countries of South America.

A peak occurred in the 70’s, but since then the number of used frequencies has been gradually dropping, except in Peru, where there has been a continuous

and uncontrolled growth of stations, some of which have been operating without legal permits. (1)

Graph 2 shows the continuous rise of medium wave operations in the same countries. The number of FM transmitters has of course risen even more steeply

during the same period. (2)

In southern South America, including Brazil, there is a similar downward turn for shortwave.

The trend appears to be irreversible, and it is believed that the number of shortwave outlets will dwindle even further as TV, postal and telephone services

improve.

The shortwave operations in Latin America in 1989 were, in general, geared for areas where other communications media were in an underdeveloped

state, mediumwave and FM transmissions missing.

This was one of the reasons for the upsurge of shortwave in the Peruvian countryside in the 80’s. In Peru, and in Ecuador, at that time, instant

communication with distant and small places in the countryside was best handled by means of shortwave.

DXers miss “the good old days” when there were many small Latin American broadcasters on shortwave. Now that they are gone, we may want to share

the joy of those Latin Americans who probably feel that they are now better served than before from a communications viewpoint.

(1) Already in the mid-80’s certain stations in northern Peru, such as Radio Marañón, in Jaén, were using satellite fax systems to communicate with the rest

of the country. The parabolic antennas of the station logo bear witness to this. The town of Cutervo, known for several shortwave services, Radio Satélite,

La Voz de Cutervo and Radio Sudamérica, received the blessings of landline telephone only in the early 90’s. Only a few years later, shortwave became

obsolete and many shortwave outlets were closing down.

(2) Strange as it may seem, Venezuela was one of the last countries in Latin America to open up for FM broadcasting. In 1987 there was only one FM station

operating in Caracas, the capital city. In 1989 some 7 or 8 stations were in full operation. In a country blessed with various AM stereo outlets in operation,

this slowness was due to the fears voiced by the Broadcasters’ Association that FM might jeopardize the financial status of the existing AM stations.