Live from Iraq, it's AFN - Airman's World - Brief Article

Airman, Feb, 2004 by J.C. Woodring

SAN ANTONIO -- U.S. military broadcasters hit the airwaves in Baghdad, Iraq, in December with the first manned American Forces Radio and Television Service broadcast from the country.

American Forces Network-Iraq features live shows, news, sports, weather and commentary 24 hours a day in the city. Expanded coverage is planned to reach the entire country through the service's satellite network.

Radio and television service is at all ma]of troop concentrations in the country; however, areas outside Baghdad receive their programming from the service's satellites.

"Major garrison locations receive the program, but one small unit with a satellite dish, decoder and a TV can get the signal as well," said Master Sgt. Erik Brazones, a broadcaster deployed from the Air Force News Agency here. "We have a lot of these types of setups around the country."

More than 2,200 decoders are being used in Iraq to receive the broadcast signals.

By broadcasting American programs in combat zones, service members get a chance to unwind. The establishment of AFN-Iraq continues a 61-year tradition of serving U.S. forces wherever they're deployed.

Sergeant Brazones and the other seven people on his team said they are anxious to start airing information aimed at service members in Iraq such as celebrity greetings and force protection messages.

--Tech. Sgt. J.C. Woodring Air Force Print News