Radio in the Soviet Union
Encyclopedia
All-Union Radio was the radio
broadcasting organisation for the USSR from 1924 until the dissolution of the USSR. The organization was based in Moscow
.
's initiative (for a "newspaper without a paper" as the best mean of public information) in November 1924.
When the Cold War
started, Americans launched the station Radio Free Europe
while Western broadcasts were launched in the Eastern bloc
.
. The Komsomol
, the official youth movement in the USSR, started a campaign to encourage young people to remove or turn away aerials
suspected of carrying these broadcasts..
The USSR also instituted a programme of jamming
other foreign signals such as the BBC
. A network of jamming stations was built near suspected transmitters.
Nevertheless, people continued (or attempted) to listen to Western broadcasts. In fact, there was even no jamming of these signals (excluding Radio Free Europe) at all, from 1963-1968, and from 1973-1980. In 1963, a further attempt was made to draw USSR radio listeners from western broadcasts by launching a radio station favouring Moscow city and oblast
. The jamming stopped in 1988 (Radio Free Europe was, however, unblocked in August 1991).
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
broadcasting organisation for the USSR from 1924 until the dissolution of the USSR. The organization was based in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
.
Beginning
The first All-Union Radio station, under the Ministry of Posts and Telegraphs, was opened upon LeninVladimir Lenin
Vladimir Ilyich Lenin was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and communist politician who led the October Revolution of 1917. As leader of the Bolsheviks, he headed the Soviet state during its initial years , as it fought to establish control of Russia in the Russian Civil War and worked to create a...
's initiative (for a "newspaper without a paper" as the best mean of public information) in November 1924.
When the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
started, Americans launched the station Radio Free Europe
Radio Free Europe
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty is a broadcaster funded by the U.S. Congress that provides news, information, and analysis to countries in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Middle East "where the free flow of information is either banned by government authorities or not fully developed"...
while Western broadcasts were launched in the Eastern bloc
Eastern bloc
The term Eastern Bloc or Communist Bloc refers to the former communist states of Eastern and Central Europe, generally the Soviet Union and the countries of the Warsaw Pact...
.
Radio jamming
After the start of the Cold War, the USSR began a programme to attempt to prevent its citizens from listening to broadcasts from Radio Free Europe and the western VOAVoice of America
Voice of America is the official external broadcast institution of the United States federal government. It is one of five civilian U.S. international broadcasters working under the umbrella of the Broadcasting Board of Governors . VOA provides a wide range of programming for broadcast on radio...
. The Komsomol
Komsomol
The Communist Union of Youth , usually known as Komsomol , was the youth division of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The Komsomol in its earliest form was established in urban centers in 1918. During the early years, it was a Russian organization, known as the Russian Communist Union of...
, the official youth movement in the USSR, started a campaign to encourage young people to remove or turn away aerials
Antenna (radio)
An antenna is an electrical device which converts electric currents into radio waves, and vice versa. It is usually used with a radio transmitter or radio receiver...
suspected of carrying these broadcasts..
The USSR also instituted a programme of jamming
Radio jamming
Radio jamming is the transmission of radio signals that disrupt communications by decreasing the signal to noise ratio. Unintentional jamming occurs when an operator transmits on a busy frequency without first checking whether it is in use, or without being able to hear stations using the frequency...
other foreign signals such as the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
. A network of jamming stations was built near suspected transmitters.
Nevertheless, people continued (or attempted) to listen to Western broadcasts. In fact, there was even no jamming of these signals (excluding Radio Free Europe) at all, from 1963-1968, and from 1973-1980. In 1963, a further attempt was made to draw USSR radio listeners from western broadcasts by launching a radio station favouring Moscow city and oblast
Moscow Oblast
Moscow Oblast , or Podmoskovye , is a federal subject of Russia . Its area, at , is relatively small compared to other federal subjects, but it is one of the most densely populated regions in the country and, with the 2010 population of 7,092,941, is the second most populous federal subject...
. The jamming stopped in 1988 (Radio Free Europe was, however, unblocked in August 1991).
Collapse of the USSR
As the USSR began to fall in the 1980s, the radio organisation of the USSR began to shut down as private services were introduced and the USSR's stations were relaunched and refocused.Domestic
- All Union First ProgrammeAll Union First ProgrammeThe All-Union First Programme was a radio channel in the Soviet Union. It had a political focus and discussed events in the Soviet Union. Now it is a small commercial radio station broadcasting with the name "Radio-1".- History :...
-the national network of the USSR, focusing on the political and economic life of the Soviet Union. - Radio MayakRadio MayakRadio Mayak is a radio broadcasting company in Russia, owned by VGTRK. Mayak is the Russian word for "lighthouse" or "beacon". As well as Radio Mayak proper , the company is also responsible for the youth music channel Radio Yunost.Radio Mayak was established in August 1964 as a major All-Union...
- music and speech based entertainment. - Radio YunostRadio YunostRadio Yunost , also known as "You-FM" is the primary youth radio station in Russia .- History :Radio Yunost began broadcasting in 1962. It was the main station, where russian people could listen fresh foreign music...
- the station for young people. - Radio OrfeyRadio OrfeyRadio Orphey is a Russian radio station broadcasting classical music from central studios in Moscow...
- culture, education, classical music.
See also
- Eastern Bloc information disseminationEastern Bloc information disseminationEastern Bloc information dissemination was controlled directly by each country's Communist party, which controlled the state media, censorship and propaganda organs...
- Radio jammingRadio jammingRadio jamming is the transmission of radio signals that disrupt communications by decreasing the signal to noise ratio. Unintentional jamming occurs when an operator transmits on a busy frequency without first checking whether it is in use, or without being able to hear stations using the frequency...
- Censorship in the Soviet UnionCensorship in the Soviet UnionCensorship in the Soviet Union was pervasive and strictly enforced.Censorship was performed in two main directions:*State secrets were handled by Main Administration for Safeguarding State Secrets in the Press was in charge of censoring all publications and broadcasting for state...
- Propaganda in the Soviet UnionPropaganda in the Soviet UnionCommunist propaganda in the Soviet Union was extensively based on the Marxism-Leninism ideology to promote the Communist Party line. In societies with pervasive censorship, the propaganda was omnipresent and very efficient...