Initially the vision of a small group of individuals from Portland, Oregon in the US, the station now informs and entertains audiences from as many as 120 different nations. After 2950 pounds of equipment was lugged to Costa Rica and assembled on the grounds of the Universidad Para La Paz – a university created by the United Nations General Assembly in 1980 – the dream began to materialise. The daily tasks of RFPI are now handled by a team of interns, volunteers and, of course, some of the original founders. Shortwave radio continues to be the only way many people, outside of the west, gain access to information.
Approximately 2.5 million people throughout the world currently use shortwave radio and it is especially important in communicating with those in remote locations and developing nations. During the Haitian Revolution, as local media ceased in the midst of military conflict, RFPI quickly became the only media available. Whereas local television, Internet and radio can be – in times of war or natural disaster – shutdown, shortwave radio broadcasters can continue to inform and educate people from outside a nations borders.

The boundaries between different media, such as the Internet, print, audio and visual, are becoming more and more fluid. RFPI download numerous, independently produced programs via the Internet for daily broadcast, including ‘Democracy Now!’ and ‘Freespeech News’. In sharp contrast, programs produced on cassette recorders, often in people’s homes, all feature in the RFPI schedule.

While the production quality may not be great, the diversity of perspectives and style provide excellent examples of what people can do when the media becomes something to produce rather than consume. The remainder of RFPI content is sourced from much larger organizations such as the United Nations Radio Service, the infamous independent broadcaster Alternative Radio and programs produced in the RFPI studios such as ‘Global Community Forum’, ‘A Woman’s Voice’ and ‘The Far Right Radio Review’.

US voices, however, do predominate the RFPI broadcasts. Their once burgeoning Spanish department – serving their Central American listeners - is gone. Their only Australian content –‘Women on the Line’ (produced by Melbourne’s community broadcaster 3CR) is gone and much of the station time is devoted to playing pre-recorded content. These are major shortcomings of an organisation that could do so much, much more. Nevertheless, dust off Granddad’s shortwave and be entertained by RFPI and the numerous other voices that can be found on this forgotten international medium.