IRONDALE, Ala. — EWTN Global Catholic Network plans to end its shortwave radio broadcasts Saturday, Oct. 31, citing declining listenership, high operating costs and aging transmission equipment.
The shutdown affects WEWN, the Alabama-based Catholic broadcaster’s shortwave service, which began broadcasting in 1992. EWTN Radio programming will remain available through AM and FM affiliates, satellite services, online streaming, mobile applications and podcasts.
Michael Warsaw, EWTN’s chairman and CEO, announced the decision Friday. The network’s board of governors approved the closure.
Operating costs had become high relative to the shrinking shortwave audience, Warsaw said, and the transmission facility needed significant, expensive repairs. He said making those repairs would not represent a “prudent stewardship of our resources,” according to an EWTN News report published by Catholic World Report and the National Catholic Register.
Radio World, a broadcasting industry publication, reported that EWTN also attributed the decision to the increasing availability of mobile devices, terrestrial and satellite radio, and digital platforms, including in remote regions.
“As we shift from shortwave to newer and more far-reaching distribution channels, we remain grateful for the coworkers and benefactors who sustained the service for so long and committed to expanding access to faithful Catholic content,” Warsaw said in a statement quoted by Radio World.
Although EWTN is based in Irondale, WEWN’s transmitters operate from a separate site in Shelby County, and the station is licensed to Vandiver. The shortwave service had already been operating on a reduced schedule, according to Radio World.
The service launched Dec. 28, 1992, becoming EWTN’s first radio operation. It carried Catholic programming to listeners in areas where access to other media was often limited
Warsaw credited a $26 million gift from a Dutch Catholic businessman and his wife with making construction of the transmitting facility possible, helping EWTN founder Mother Angelica expand the network’s reach.
EWTN stopped shortwave broadcasts specifically directed toward North America in 2008. In recent years, its English-language shortwave programming primarily targeted Africa and the Middle East, while its Spanish-language broadcasts served Latin America.
The network’s radio operation now distributes programming through approximately 600 AM and FM affiliate stations worldwide, as well as satellite and digital platforms, according to Radio World.