AFN Iraq
Encyclopedia
AFN Iraq was the American Forces Network
of radio station
s within Iraq. The network, nicknamed Freedom Radio, broadcasted news, information, and entertainment programs, including adult contemporary music
. Its mission was to "sustain and improve the morale and readiness" of U.S. forces in Iraq.
The first song played live on AFN was "Freedom" by Paul McCartney
.
The 222nd Broadcast Operations Detachment was relieved by the 209th Broadcast Operations Detachment (USAR) from Rome, Georgia, in August 2004.
In August 2005 the 206th Broadcast Operations Detachment (USAR), from Dallas, Texas relieved the 209th Broadcast Operations Detachment.
In August 2006 the 356th Operations Detachment (USAR), from Ft. Meade, Maryland, relieved the 206th Broadcast Operations Detachment.
In August 2007, the US Air Force assumed control of AFN Iraq until February 2009.
In March 2009, the 222nd Broadcast Operations Detachment (USAR), from Los Angeles, Calif. assumed control of the station. In March 2010, the 209th Broadcast Operations Detachment (USAR) from Rome, Georgia again assumed command of AFN-I.
The newscast was awarded 1st and 2nd place Keith L. Ware Broadcast Journalism Awards in 2005 for best Army Television Newscast while being produced by the 206th Broadcast Operations Detachment.
Broadcast journalists have traveled the entire theater of operations in support of Freedom Journal Iraq, from Kuwait to Turkey. Although, not desiginated combat camera correspondents, a few broadcast journalists have been awarded the Combat Action Badge for their duty serving at American Forces Network-Iraq.
Freestyle Iraq is currently produced by AFN-Iraq. Created by members of the 222nd BOD, Freestyle Iraq is a creatively produced upbeat production that highlights servicemembers in their "off" time. The show won 2nd place in the 2010 Keith L. Ware awards.
The 206th BOD resumed control of AFN Iraq in December 2010. The 206th was the last unit to man the TV/Radio station. Sept 30th, 2011, was the last day on the air for Freedom Radio. The last song played was "Courtesy of the Red, White, & Blue (The Angry American)" by country star "Toby Keith
", and the last piece of audio ever heard on the station was Porky Pig
's famous "That's all Folks!" exclamation.
American Forces Network
The American Forces Network is the brand name used by the United States Armed Forces American Forces Radio and Television Service for its entertainment and command internal information networks worldwide...
of radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
s within Iraq. The network, nicknamed Freedom Radio, broadcasted news, information, and entertainment programs, including adult contemporary music
Adult contemporary music
Adult contemporary music is a broad style of popular music that ranges from lush 1950s and 1960s vocal music to predominantly ballad-heavy music with varying degrees of rock influence, as well as a radio format that plays such music....
. Its mission was to "sustain and improve the morale and readiness" of U.S. forces in Iraq.
The first song played live on AFN was "Freedom" by Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
.
FM Transmitters
The network includes the following transmitter sites and their power, if known (status as of October 2008):- 93.3 MHz
- BaghdadBaghdadBaghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
(FOB Union IIIGreen ZoneThe Green Zone is the most common name for the International Zone of Baghdad. It is a area of central Baghdad, Iraq, that was the governmental center of the Coalition Provisional Authority and remains the center of the international presence in the city...
) — Transmitter Under Construction - FallujahFallujahFallujah is a city in the Iraqi province of Al Anbar, located roughly west of Baghdad on the Euphrates. Fallujah dates from Babylonian times and was host to important Jewish academies for many centuries....
(Camp BahariaDreamland (Fallujah, Iraq)Once a Baathist resort in Iraq, Camp Baharia was the smaller of two major U.S. bases maintained just outside Fallujah. The facility, specifically named after the Marine Corps, uses an Arabic word for the Marine Corps, 'mushaat al-baharia,' which translates into 'walkers of the navy' or naval infantry...
) - Al Taqaddum Airbase (‘TQ’)
- Baghdad
- 101.1 MHz
- TikritTikritTikrit is a town in Iraq, located 140 km northwest of Baghdad on the Tigris river . The town, with an estimated population in 2002 of about 260,000 is the administrative center of the Salah ad Din Governorate.-Ancient times:...
(COB SpeicherCOB SpeicherCOB Speicher formerly FOB Speicher is a US Army Contingency Operating Base captured from the Iraqi Army during the 2003 Invasion of Iraq. It was reassigned from a Forward Operating Base to a COB because of its large size...
)
- Tikrit
- 104.5 MHz
- Baquba (FOB Warhorse) — Transmitter Under Construction
- 105.1 MHZ
- MosulMosulMosul , is a city in northern Iraq and the capital of the Ninawa Governorate, some northwest of Baghdad. The original city stands on the west bank of the Tigris River, opposite the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh on the east bank, but the metropolitan area has now grown to encompass substantial...
(Camp DiamondbackLogistics Support AreaIn the United States Army, a Logistics Support Area is a military term which refers to military facilities which act as depot, barracks, and transportation hubs, providing supplies and personnel to facilities closer to or within arenas of armed conflict...
/FOB Marez2004 Forward Operating Base Marez bombingThe Forward Operating Base Marez bombing took place on December 21, 2004. Fourteen U.S. soldiers, four U.S. citizen Halliburton employees, and four Iraqi soldiers allied with the U.S. military were killed in an attack on a dining hall at the Forward Operating Base next to the main U.S...
) — 1 kW
- Mosul
- 107.3 MHz
- Al Asad Airbase
- BaladBaladAl-Balad is the historical area of Jeddah, the second largest city of Saudi Arabia. Balad can literally be translated as "The City." Balad is the historic center of the City of Jeddah. Balad traces its history 2,500 years back as a fishing village when the Quda'a fishermen tribe settled...
(LSA Anaconda) — 250 W - NasiriyahNasiriyahNasiriyah is a city in Iraq. It is on the Euphrates about 225 miles southeast of Baghdad, near the ruins of the ancient city of Ur. It is the capital of the province of Dhi Qar...
(Tallil Air BaseAli Air BaseAli Air Base is a military airbase located near Nasiriyah, Iraq. It is also known as Tallil Air Base. At present, the base is being used by United States Armed Forces. It is called Camp Adder by the U.S. Army; the name "Ali Air Base" is used chiefly by the U.S...
) — 200 W - Qayyarah West Airfield (‘Q-WEST’) — 250 W
- RamadiRamadiRamadi is a city in central Iraq, about west of Baghdad. It is the capital of Al Anbar Governorate.-History:Ramadi is located in a fertile, irrigated, alluvial plain.The Ottoman Empire founded Ramadi in 1869...
(FOB Blue Diamond) - SamarraSamarraSāmarrā is a city in Iraq. It stands on the east bank of the Tigris in the Salah ad-Din Governorate, north of Baghdad and, in 2003, had an estimated population of 348,700....
(FOB Brassfield-Mora) - Camp TajiCamp TajiCamp Taji is a military installation, also known as Camp Cooke used by coalition forces near Taji or Al Taji , Iraq. The camp is located in a rural region approximately north of the city of Baghdad in the Baghdad Governorate.-History:...
- Tall Afar (FOB SykesFOB SykesFOB Sykes is a US Army Forward Operating Base in Iraq located approximately five miles south of the Iraqi city of Tall'Afar and 40 miles east of the Iraq-Syria border....
) - Umm QasrUmm QasrUmm Qasr , is a port city in southern Iraq. It stands on the canalised Khawr az-Zubayr, part of the Khawr Abd Allah estuary which leads to the Persian Gulf. It is separated from the border of Kuwait by a small inlet...
(Camp BuccaCamp BuccaCamp Bucca was a detention facility maintained by the United States military in the vicinity of Umm Qasr, Iraq. As of June 2011, a group of entrepreneurial Iraqis and Americans are re-building Camp Bucca as Basra Gateway, a logistics city and environmentally-friendly industrial hub to lead the new...
)
- 107.7 MHz
- BaghdadBaghdadBaghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
(Camp SlayerCamp SlayerCamp Slayer is part of the Victory Base Complex outside of Baghdad. On the southeastern corner of the Baghdad International Airport, it is part of the former Al Radwaniyah Presidential Complex and contains several man-made lakes, a man-made hill, the Ba'ath Party House, the Victory Over Iran and...
) — 1 kW
- Baghdad
- The 222nd Broadcast Operations Detachment a United States Army Reserve unit, from Los Angeles, California took control of AFN Radio & Television in August 2003.
The 222nd Broadcast Operations Detachment was relieved by the 209th Broadcast Operations Detachment (USAR) from Rome, Georgia, in August 2004.
In August 2005 the 206th Broadcast Operations Detachment (USAR), from Dallas, Texas relieved the 209th Broadcast Operations Detachment.
In August 2006 the 356th Operations Detachment (USAR), from Ft. Meade, Maryland, relieved the 206th Broadcast Operations Detachment.
In August 2007, the US Air Force assumed control of AFN Iraq until February 2009.
In March 2009, the 222nd Broadcast Operations Detachment (USAR), from Los Angeles, Calif. assumed control of the station. In March 2010, the 209th Broadcast Operations Detachment (USAR) from Rome, Georgia again assumed command of AFN-I.
Television
Freedom Journal Iraq was produced by the electronic news gathering (ENG) team of the American Forces Network-Iraq, five times a week until 2009. The 10 minute newscast was produced Monday through Friday and uploaded via satellite to the Pentagon Channel in Washington D.C. Originally, the program was produced weekly.The newscast was awarded 1st and 2nd place Keith L. Ware Broadcast Journalism Awards in 2005 for best Army Television Newscast while being produced by the 206th Broadcast Operations Detachment.
Broadcast journalists have traveled the entire theater of operations in support of Freedom Journal Iraq, from Kuwait to Turkey. Although, not desiginated combat camera correspondents, a few broadcast journalists have been awarded the Combat Action Badge for their duty serving at American Forces Network-Iraq.
Freestyle Iraq is currently produced by AFN-Iraq. Created by members of the 222nd BOD, Freestyle Iraq is a creatively produced upbeat production that highlights servicemembers in their "off" time. The show won 2nd place in the 2010 Keith L. Ware awards.
The 206th BOD resumed control of AFN Iraq in December 2010. The 206th was the last unit to man the TV/Radio station. Sept 30th, 2011, was the last day on the air for Freedom Radio. The last song played was "Courtesy of the Red, White, & Blue (The Angry American)" by country star "Toby Keith
Toby Keith
Toby Keith Covel , best known as Toby Keith, is an American country music singer-songwriter, record producer and actor. Keith released his first four studio albums — 1993's Toby Keith, 1994's Boomtown, 1996's Blue Moon and 1997's Dream Walkin, plus a Greatest Hits package for various divisions of...
", and the last piece of audio ever heard on the station was Porky Pig
Porky Pig
Porky Pig is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series of cartoons. He was the first character created by the studio to draw audiences based on his star power, and the animators created many critically acclaimed shorts using the fat little pig...
's famous "That's all Folks!" exclamation.
External links
- Kasbah Radio, un-official website