BBC resurrects WWII-era shortwave broadcasts as Russia blocks news of Ukraine invasion

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The country of Russia blocked access to the websites of the British Broadcasting Corporation, so the corporation is resorting to broadcasting news over radio. Just hours before its sites were banned, thebbc announced it was bringing back the WWII-era broadcasting technology in the region. RIA reported the news of the ban.

Shortwave radio can be accessed on portable sets. From 6pm to 8pm and from midnight to 2am, Ukraine time, the shortwave broadcasts of the British Broadcasting Corporation will be available. The news will be available in English in parts of Russia, as well as in Kyiv.

There has been a long history of broadcasts on shortwave radio. During the Cold War, it was used to broadcast propaganda, but also in WWII. The technology was used by the World Service in Europe for 76 years.

According to the Russian RIA news agency, the Russian communications watchdog has also restricted access to the US government-funded Radio Liberty, Voice of America and Meduza.

The Russia account of the British Broadcasting Corporation is advising Russians to download its mobile apps as a way to access its online coverage. The corporation launched a more secure, higher performance, and censorship-resistant way to access its website via a Tor browser in the year 2019. The onion domain of thebbc is: https://www.bbcnewsd 73hkzno2ini43t4gblxvycyac5aw4gnv7t2rccijh7745uqd.onion.

The Russian-speaking audience of the British Broadcasting Corporation has seen a huge increase since the invasion of Ukraine. The number of visits to its Russian language coverage more than tripled last week, while the number of visitors to its English-language content in Russia increased. The number of visits to its Ukrainian-language coverage more than doubled.

There is a need for factual and independent news in a conflict.

Russian state-backed media organizations are being targeted outside of the country by tech platforms and regulators, despite the limited reach of the British Broadcasting Corporation.