Pirate radio
A pirate radio station is a radio station that broadcasts without a valid license.[1]
For other uses, see Pirate Radio (disambiguation).In some cases, radio stations are considered legal where the signal is transmitted, but illegal where the signals are received—especially when the signals cross a national boundary. In other cases, a broadcast may be considered "pirate" due to the nature of its content, its transmission format (especially a failure to transmit a station identification according to regulations), or the transmit power (wattage) of the station, even if the transmission is not technically illegal (such as an amateur radio transmission). Pirate radio is sometimes called bootleg radio[2] (a term especially associated with two-way radio), clandestine radio (associated with heavily politically motivated operations) or free radio.
Propaganda broadcasting[edit]
Propaganda broadcasting may be authorized by the government at the transmitting site, but may be considered unwanted or illegal by the government of the intended reception area. Propaganda broadcasting conducted by national governments against the interests of other national governments has created radio jamming stations transmitting noises on the same frequency to prevent reception of the incoming signal. While the United States transmitted its programs towards the Soviet Union, which attempted to jam them, in 1970 the government of the United Kingdom decided to employ a jamming transmitter to drown out the incoming transmissions from the commercial station Radio North Sea International, which was based aboard the motor vessel (MV) Mebo II anchored off southeast England in the North Sea. Other examples of this type of unusual broadcasting include the USCGC Courier (WAGR-410), a United States Coast Guard cutter which both originated and relayed broadcasts of the Voice of America from an anchorage at the Greek island of Rhodes to Soviet bloc countries. Balloons have been flown above Key West, Florida, to support the TV transmissions of TV Martí, which are directed at Cuba (the Cuban government jams the signals). Military broadcasting aircraft have been flown over Vietnam, Iraq, and many other nations by the United States Air Force.
In popular culture[edit]
The films The Boat That Rocked,[11] Pump Up the Volume, and On the Air Live with Captain Midnight, as well as the TV series People Just Do Nothing are set in the world of pirate radio, while Born in Flames features pirate radio stations as being part of an underground political movement. Pirate radio is also a central plot point of the video game Jet Set Radio and its sequel Jet Set Radio Future.