[Swprograms] Unbalanced "Morning Edition" BPL Story

[Joseph Buch <joseph.buch@xxxxxxx>]

The ARRL is taking on NPR News -- fair and balanced?  
This is from the ARRL weekly newsletter of Fri, 19 Aug 2005.

But while hams in Castroville were successful, the same BPL purveyor (Broadband Horizons)
was able to chalk up a victory in the City of Flatonia, which also owns its own
utility system. The town's BPL experience was the focus of a very upbeat
report August 16 on National Public Radio's "Morning Edition" program. NPR
had contacted ARRL while producing the BPL segment, and the report that
aired included a brief comment by ARRL Laboratory Manager Ed Hare, W1RFI,
addressing BPL's interference potential.

"BPL that operates at the FCC limits can and does cause strong local
interference problems on any spectrum it's using," declared Hare, who got
approximately eight seconds in the approximately six-minute NPR piece.

But the BPL industry, NPR's Wade Goodwyn went on to assert, "has come up
with a technological fix" to BPL interference to radio amateurs in the form
of notching. Hare contends that what the network neglected to include from
the much longer interview he gave NPR were his further observations that
notching in and of itself is "not sufficient" to reduce interference to
Amateur Radio or other HF users.

"We stressed several times and in several ways that notching helps, but it
still leaves some interference to Amateur Radio," Hare recounted, "and that
in system after system we have seen, international shortwave broadcast
spectrum was not notched." Based on notching efforts in earlier BPL field
trials, Hare says the BPL industry "is far from demonstrating that notching
is a practical and effective way to address interference."

Included in the NPR report were BPL-flattering interviews with Flatonia
Mayor Lori Berger, who called the $200,000 BPL deal "critical to the town's
future." Also featured was a local woman who lauded the system's ability to
quickly download e-mailed photos of her great grandchildren. Located midway
between Houston and San Antonio, Flatonia boasts a dozen ham radio licensees
among its some 1500 residents. The BPL system has been in operation since
early August.

ARRL Media and Public Relations Manager Allen Pitts, W1AGP, says he was
especially dismayed to hear Goodwyn's report, particularly after he and Hare
had expended considerable effort communicating their concerns about the
technology to Goodwyn. "I find it deeply disappointing to hear his sales
pitch, in which major known flaws in BPL schemes are given one passing
comment," he reacted. "NPR has a history of presenting fair, whole and
balanced information on topics, but this piece lacked all of those
qualities."

In its own 2003 comments to the FCC in the BPL proceeding, National Public
Radio urged the FCC to "ensure that any use of BPL technology will not
disrupt existing services," and, in particular, interfere with radio
receivers. NPR's comments even cited an ARRL study that concluded BPL poses
"a significant threat to Amateur Radio operations (and broadcasting) in the
HF and low-VHF (TV channels 2-6) region."

Meanwhile, Texas Gov Rick Perry is mulling whether to sign Senate Bill 5 (SB
5), legislation that promotes and encourages BPL in the Lone Star State. The
measure includes provisions to shut down interfering BPL systems. More
information is on the Web site of ARRL North Texas Section Manager Tom
Blackwell, N5GAR <http://www.n5gar.info/>.

Joe Buch


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