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Archive-name: radio/broadcasting/guidelines
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rec.radio.broadcasting Posting Guidelines
Last updated 5/16/2011
Welcome to rec.radio.broadcasting! This is a moderated Usenet
newsgroup open to anyone who has an interest in broadcast radio
anywhere in the world.
The posting guidelines for rec.radio.broadcasting are divided
into the following sections:
1. Introduction
1.1 Invitation to participate
1.2 Charter
1.3 How to submit articles
2. Acceptable and Unacceptable Topics
2.1 Newsgroup focus
2.2 Examples of acceptable topics
2.3 Examples of unacceptable topics
2.4 Programming discussions
2.5 Commercial postings
2.6 Pirate radio
2.7 Moderation policies
3. Netiquette
3.1 Introduction to Usenet netiquette
3.2 Civility
3.3 Posting form
3.4 Excessive quoting
3.5 Pseudonyms
3.6 Signature files
3.7 Use of copyrighted material
3.8 Pointers to outside sources
4. Technical and Administrative Issues
4.1 Crossposting
4.2 Valid "From" address
4.3 Lost or rejected postings
This is a living document and will be updated as needed to meet
the needs of this group.
--------------------------------------------------------------
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Invitation to participate
The moderators of rec.radio.broadcasting (RRB) invite the
participation of broadcast professionals and non-professionals
alike. Both the people who operate radio stations and the people
who listen to them have valuable insights into the art, business,
and/or science of broadcasting.
1.2 Charter
Rec.radio broadcasting is intended as a worldwide forum dedicated
to the discussion of subjects pertaining to domestic radio
broadcasting. By the term "domestic," we mean radio which is
intended basically for reception within the country in which it
originates. Other Usenet groups are available for discussing
international broadcast services.
1.3 How to submit articles
You can use your newsreading software to submit an article to
rec.radio.broadcasting as you would to any other newsgroup. The
only difference is that your news server will automatically
forward your article to the moderation team instead of posting it
directly to the group. Alternatively, you can email submissions
to . We generally turn around
articles at least the same day, usually much faster.
--------------------------------------------------------------
2. ACCEPTABLE AND UNACCEPTABLE TOPICS
If you are ever unsure about whether a proposed topic is
appropriate for RRB, please feel free to ask the moderation
team at:
2.1 Newsgroup focus
RRB is designed to provide a public forum for professional and
informed discussion and dissemination of information pertaining
to the art, business, and science of radio broadcasting. By
"professional and informed," we mean discussions by broadcast
professionals as well as those with a serious interest in radio
broadcasting. As mentioned in the Introduction, we welcome the
participation of radio listeners as well as those inside the
industry.
RRB is an international newsgroup, so the term "domestic" should
not be taken to imply just the United States or North America.
Readers in other nations are encouraged to post questions and
comments about their own country's radio stations.
2.2 Examples of acceptable topics
Generally, if a subject would be of interest to broadcast
professionals or listeners, it is acceptable. Here are just
a few ideas for discussion topics:
* New stations and changes to existing stations (but see section
2.6 for limitations on discussions of unlicensed stations)
* Formats and programming
* Equipment and techniques involved in the transmission and
reception of broadcast radio signals
* Other engineering and technical matters
* Domestic broadcast-band DXing
* Community broadcasting
* Legislation affecting radio stations
* Radio's current and future trends
* Job openings and help to those seeking work in the industry
If you post about a local radio station or personality, please
realize that most RRB readers will know little or nothing about
that station or person, so please include a little background to
set the context for your remarks.
2.3 Examples of unacceptable topics
This is not a comprehensive list. Please contact the moderation
team if you aren't sure whether your proposed topic is appropriate
or not.
* Non-domestic stations and activities (BBC World, Voice of
America, SWLing, etc.)
* Non-broadcast radio services (amateur, Internet, satellite,
etc.)
* Television broadcasting (except on rare occasions when the
subject of the posting would also be of broad interest to
radio people).
2.4 Programming discussions
Because the intent of RRB is to foster discussion, postings of a
primarily promotional nature should be kept to a minimum. Program
hosts and other interested parties are welcome to submit brief
notices about special guests, fill-in hosts, etc. However,
playlists, weekly program schedules, and similar listings should
instead be posted in a more appropriate venue, such as the
station's or host's website.
Reviews of the performance of on-air personalities are fine,
but please note that rec.radio.broadcasting is not the place to
discuss the topics of radio talk shows. (Unless the topic itself
is the art, science, or business of radio broadcasting.)
Postings about broadcasters' off-air activities should usually be
confined to events that are that are related to their broadcast
career, such as personal appearances on behalf of their station.
Exceptions will be made for extraordinary events such as a
broadcaster's death.
2.5 Commercial postings
Businesses and individuals today have a wealth of online selling
venues--both general sites such as eBay and Craigslist, and
region-specific Usenet groups such as ba.broadcast and
uk.tech.broadcast. Therefore, RRB may not be the most effective
place to post your for-sale ad. It's best when you want to offer
an item that's likely to be of interest to broadcasters or radio
fans over a broad geographical area. Please consider the
alternatives before submitting your posting to RRB.
Examples of suitable for-sale postings might include, "My station
just got a new mixer and is selling its old Acme Model 100; please
contact me directly for details," or "I just found a box of KHJ
aircheck tapes in my basement; drop me a note if you're interested
in buying them."
For-sale message must solicit responses directly to the poster;
do not direct readers to another site such as Craigslist or eBay.
Notices about especially important or interesting new products are
fine. Please disclose whether or not you have a financial interest
in the manufacturer or reseller you're mentioning.
Each poster to RRB is allowed one commercial posting per month.
Postings about job openings are welcomed. Be sure to include your
real name, company name, and valid contact information (email
address, phone number, or mailing address).
2.6 Pirate radio
Postings about unlicensed domestic radio operations should be
limited to discussions of their history, notices of enforcement
actions, discussions of technical conflicts between licensed and
unlicensed stations, or strictly informational messages (such as,
"A pirate station has been heard in Chicago on 104.7"). Postings
that seek to support pirate stations (such as by drawing money,
personnel, equipment, or listeners) will not be approved.
2.7 Moderation policies
Questions or complaints about moderation decisions or policies
will not be permitted in the newsgroup itself. Please direct any
such feedback to the moderators by sending us a message at rec-
.
If you see an obviously inappropriate article in our newsgroup,
please assume that it was a mistake or a direct forgery, and do
not send follow-up postings. You may submit feedback to the
administrative address regarding such articles, although it is
likely that our monitoring software and procedures have already
detected the problem and we are actively handling it.
--------------------------------------------------------------
3. NETIQUETTE
3.1 Introduction to Usenet netiquette
Participants who are new to Usenet should familiarize themselves
with the "netiquette" of Usenet as well as the particular posting
guidelines for this group. Several useful posts for "newbies" can
be found on the newsgroup news.announce.newusers or on the World
Wide Web at:
http://www.faqs.org/faqs/by-newsgroup/news/
news.announce.newusers.html
Particularly helpful articles are:
Welcome to Usenet!
Rules for posting to Usenet
Hints on writing style for Usenet
A Primer on How to Work With the Usenet Community
Emily Postnews Answers Your Questions on Netiquette
Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about Usenet
3.2 Civility
Participants in rec.radio.broadcasting are encouraged to state
their own views and share their experiences enthusiastically.
However, in doing so, you should maintain a civil tone in all
postings and treat other people respectfully.
You are welcome to criticize someone else's actions, but such
criticism must not degrade into a personal attack or name-calling.
To be safe, refrain from making assumptions about the motivations
of other people. For example, "That's a lie" implies an
intentional prevarication, and "So-and-so is a liar" is name-
calling. Instead, say "That's not true, because...," or "I think
that So-and-so is wrong because..."
Making fun of someone's name or refusing to refer to them by their
proper name is also a violation of this guideline. In cases where
someone uses a different on-air name, please use that name unless
they have specifically said that it's all right to refer to them
publicly by their real name.
Note that this guideline covers everyone you talk about in your
postings, whether they are participants in this group or not.
3.3 Posting form
Any article that falls into any of the following categories will
be automatically rejected:
A) Articles that contain original text of more than 75 characters
per line (except for URLs; see sections 3.7 and 3.8)
B) Articles that are crossposted other than as described in
section 4.1)
C) Articles that contain more than 400 lines
D) Postings that contain attachments (except short .sig files; see
section 3.6)
E) Postings that include encoded binary files (except PGP and
other short digital signatures)
F) Articles containing obscene language
G) Articles from individuals who have been suspended or banned
from the newsgroup
H) Articles that consist mostly of direct quotation from
copyrighted sources (also see section 3.7)
3.4 Excessive quoting
Posters must show a reasonable effort to trim the post they are
replying to. Replies should include just enough of the original
material to establish a context for your own comments.
Posts more than 20 lines long that have more than 50% quoted text
will be carefully reviewed by a moderator to determine whether
that degree of quoting is warranted. Posts with excessive quoted
text may be rejected.
IMPORTANT: If you use a newsreader (such as Google Groups) that
allows you to hide the posting to which you are replying, you must
unhide the quoted text and trim it appropriately. Also be certain
that your newsreader is not configured to automatically append the
previous article to the bottom of your postings. All participants
in rec.radio.broadcasting are responsible for using their news-
readers properly to comply with the group's posting guidelines.
"Me too!" posts are discouraged. If you do post such a message,
you must edit the quoted material significantly.
3.5 Pseudonyms
Contributors to rec.radio.broadcasting are encouraged to use their
real (given or on-air) names. This not only creates a greater
sense of community in the newsgroup, it also lends credibility
to posters' opinions. However, as a pragmatic concession to the
realities of the present-day Internet, and consistent with the
practices of other moderated newsgroups, pseudonyms and unroutable
email address are permitted with some restrictions.
We ask that the From: lines of submitted articles not misrepresent
your identity, not be changed often, and not match a user or
domain name other than your own (spoofing). Postings that have a
pseudonym that violates any of our other rules (such as civility)
will be rejected.
Please realize that if you use an unroutable email address, you
will not be able to receive acknowledgment or rejection messages
for your submitted articles. If one of your articles was rejected
and you are unable to receive the notice that explains the
rejection, you will need to send a note to the moderation team
for clarification.
3.6 Signature files
Many people close each article they write with a few lines of
common text. This may be a clever quote, contact information,
or disclaimer required by their employer. Signature (.sig) files
attached to rec.radio.broadcasting postings must be no longer
than four lines plus a standard delimiter (such as two dashes).
The content of a poster's signature need not be relevant to
broadcasting, but it must not violate any of the other posting
guidelines. (For example, name-calling that would not be
acceptable in the body of a message is also unacceptable in a
signature.) Posters may include Uniform Resource Locators (URLs)
and business addresses in signature files, provided they comply
with all the other guidelines regarding signatures.
3.7 Use of copyrighted material
Unless you own the copyright yourself or have the written
permission of the copyright owner (either of which must be so
stated), do not post copyrighted material such as newspaper
articles to rec.radio.broadcasting. Instead, post a synopsis of
the material with a link to the full article. If you are posting a
link to a blog or other site where information changes frequently,
please use a "permalink" to the exact article you're citing.
Quoting of public domain information, such as radio station
information from the FCC database, is fine.
3.8 Pointers to outside sources
Unsolicited announcements and pointers to web sites that are
exclusively advertisements or other public relations campaigns are
not permitted. However, a pointer to a website or other external
source of information is permitted and encouraged in cases where
it is relevant to an existing thread, with appropriate context
being given in the post.
A URL with no information about what a user should expect to find
there will be rejected. If you are posting a link to a blog or
other site where information changes frequently, please use a
"permalink" to the exact article you're citing. Also, we prefer
full URLs instead of (or in addition to) ones that have been
modified by a link shortener so that readers of the posting will
know which website they are actually going to. If you do use a
link shortener, please also indicate the full name of the website
to which you are linking.
A pointer to information that is off-charter for
rec.radio.broadcasting will be rejected, as will a pointer which
itself does not meet the rec.radio.broadcasting guidelines (such
as a URL containing name-calling).
Moderators are not responsible for verifying the contents of any
external information source. Moderators only review submissions
for adherence to the RRB guidelines, such as appropriateness of
topic and Usenet etiquette.
--------------------------------------------------------------
4. TECHNICAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE ISSUES
4.1 Crossposting
A limited amount of appropriate simultaneous crossposting will be
permitted at the discretion of the moderation team. Appropriate
crossposted newsgroups could include rec.radio.noncomm,
ba.broadcast, ba.broadcast.moderated, or alt.radio.broadcasting.
Currently, a limit of 3 newsgroups total is enforced by our
moderation software.
Please note that, because of the way moderated Usenet groups
work, any posting submitted to a moderated group will not be
forwarded to any other groups until it is accepted by the initial
group. For example, if you submit a posting to both RRB and BAB,
and we reject it, it will never appear on BAB.
4.2 Valid "From" address
Participants in rec.radio.broadcasting may, if they wish, use an
invalid or "munged" email address in their "From" header line.
However, please be aware that if you do so, you will be unable to
receive messages from the moderators, such as requests to revise
submitted postings or explanations of why postings were rejected.
Also, we want rec.radio.broadcasting to promote interaction among
participants, and in some cases, information is more appropriately
relayed off-list. If you do not provide a valid email address,
other posters will not be able to send you information, ask
questions, etc. Therefore, if you are considering using an invalid
"From" address in order to avoid spam email, we recommend that you
instead (1) find an ISP with robust spam-filtering for incoming
email, and/or (2) obtain an email address just for your Usenet
postings (e.g. from Yahoo or Gmail).
4.3 Lost or rejected postings
We never reject anything in silence, and we make a point to answer
all our mail. However, newsgroup postings can and do get lost
every now and again.
If you send us a posting and you neither see it in RRB nor hear
from us directly within two or three days, you can be pretty sure
that either your mail never reached us, or that our answer never
reached you. (See section 4.2 for why the latter might happen.)
In that case, please submit your article again. (We will filter
out duplicates.) You're also welcome to send a note to rec-radio-
if you have any concerns about your
submissions not being received.
--------------------------------------------------------------
If you have any questions or comments about these guidelines,
please send a message to .
(Adapted from the rec.radio.amateur.moderated posting guidelines
and from Bill Pfeiffer's original RRB guidelines and FAQ.)