Quarter Century Wireless Association (QCWA) Founded 1947

📡 QCWA Zoom Presentation – The FCC in WWII: Patrolling the Ether and Tracking Down Radio Spies

Thursday, November 20, 2025 · 7:00 PM Eastern Time (US & Canada)

We are pleased to welcome back Brian Harrison, KN4R, for another fascinating presentation, "The FCC in WWII: Patrolling the Ether and Tracking Down Radio Spies." Just prior to World War II, the FCC’s Radio Intelligence Division (RID) and Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) were formed to monitor and police the airwaves. Staffed largely by former commercial and amateur radio operators, they worked closely with the military and FBI to train radio operators, intercept foreign broadcasts, take direction-finding fixes, identify spy radio stations, and assist lost aircraft.

This talk offers an overview of how the FCC operated during wartime — their equipment, missions, and remarkable accomplishments. The program also features a 20-minute dramatic film released in early 1944, "Patrolling the Ether," which showcases the RID in action and was among the first films ever broadcast simultaneously across multiple experimental TV stations in the U.S.

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