World Radio Day is coming, February 13

The United Nations organization UNESCO has proclaimed February 13 as World Radio Day. The day will be celebrated in Patria, where radio - particularly AM and shortwave - is still (to borrow a phrase from honorary Patrienish citizen Parvati) "rooted, vital and expansive", to say nothing of relevant in the so-called online age. Patria is the home of legendary AM stations since the early 1920s such as PMC (846 kHz) in Castoropolis: a classic full-service news, sports and information station in the model of KMOX back in the day. In Patria, you can hear Jungle Party House Leader Jim Rome and even American right-wing windbags such as Rush Limbaugh on AM stations. You will also find in-depth sports talk if you need to know more than just the scores about the Castoropolis Centurions (Patrienish Hockey League) and Cæsarea United (All-Patria Football Federation). Sorry, no Bible-thumping gospel hucksters in Patria, but there's no lack of "all bhajans all the time" Hindu stations like Radio Jaagriti-102.7 in Trinidad.

For World Radio Day 2016, UNESCO has stressed five key themes to bring radio to life:

1. Freedom of expression and journalists’ safety should be disaster-proof.
2. Radio empowers survivors and vulnerable people, being mindful of their right to privacy.
3. Radio has social impact and provides access to information. People’s right to information should be protected.
4. Radio saves lives. 
5. The immediate accessibility of radio frequencies is essential to saving lives. These frequencies should be protected in times of emergency.

Note the emphasis on radio in times of life-threatening emergency. In case of war or insurrection, one of the first things to be censored, restricted or shut down completely is the Internet. In case of a natural disaster such as an earthquake or flood, one of the first things to go down is the power grid, making it kind of hard to recharge your trusty smartphone or even access cellphone service (another reason for not killing off landlines completely). Your battery-powered, solar-powered or wind-up radio is your best friend in times of trouble, whether man-made or act of God.

As it was in previous years, note that the official World Radio Day logo of a stylized microphone looks a lot like a Shivalingam. Whether this was done intentionally or not, Shivaratri 2016 does not come until March 7 or 8. More often than not, this great festival dedicated to Lord Shiva falls during the month of February.