Heard or seen something on the radio and TV lately that appalled/delighted/enlightened you? Of course you have. That's what Station Break with Paul Farhi is here for. Local stations, cable, radio shows, commercials -- they're all fair game.

Farhi, a reporter in the Post's Style section, writes about media and popular culture. He's been watching TV and listening to the radio since "The Monkees" were in first run and Adam West was a star. Born in Brooklyn and raised in Los Angeles, Farhi had brief stints in the movie business (as an usher at the Picwood Theater), and in the auto industry (rental-car lot guy) before devoting himself fulltime to word processing. His car has 15 radio pre-sets and his cable system has 75 channels. He vows to use all of them for good instead of evil.

The transcript follows.

Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.

Paul Farhi: Greetings again, TV/radio consumers. Welcome to our pre-war chat. Thoughts on President Bush's address last night? Thoughts on news coverage of All Things Scary? Thoughts of any kind? Let's rock and, if possible, roll...

The Airless Cubicle: Hello, Paul.

With war within 48 hours, many users will want to try to listen to the Middle East and European stations on shortwave to hear news and coverage that they will not get on domestic services.

Here's a quick guide for English-language transmissions:

Forget about Radio Baghdad. If you don't get them soon at 1900 hours UTC (2 PM EST) on 11875, you never will. Radio Yugoslavia's shortwave transmitters were one of the first targets in 1999. Baghdad will be next, to avoid the possibility of sending coded signals to sleeper cells overseas.

The German service, Deutsche Welle, has excellent coverage of world affairs in English. Check them out at 6020, 6045, 9640, and 9765 kHz after 8 PM EST, 0100 UTC.

Another "yes-but" station will be Radio Nederlands, which has been covering the humanitarian crisis linked to Iraq in its first-rate "NEWSLINE" program. They can be found on 6165 and 9840 kHz from 2300 to 0125 UTC, or 6 to 8:25 PM, using their relay transmitters from Bonaire in the Netherlands Antilles.

During the 1991, Kol Israel interrupted its regular English programming to broadcast civil defense news as the Scuds fell. I remember hearing them clearly. However, budget cut backs have limited Kol Israel's English-language service. 6280, 9435, 13720, and 15640 kHz should work between 2000 and 2045 UTC, or 3 PM here. The higher frequencies should be better.

Iran can be heard on 6120 and 9580 from 0030 to 0227 UTC (7:30 PM to 9:27 PM), but their signal doesn't always get through.

The Voice of America's NEWS NOW program service can be heard on 5995, 6130, 7405, 9455, 9775, 11695, 13790 in the early evening on the East Coast. I find 7405 is the easiest frequency to find.

The BBC stopped broadcasting to North America on shortwave but you can get a bleed off signal on 5975, 9825, and 12095 kHz. In the early morning, check 6195, and 15190 kHz .Plus, they have Michal Hussein on at 7:00 PM on Channel 32 and a repeat broadcast at 10:00 PM. When war starts, the BBC has a reputation for impartiality; expect this to hold true despite military censorship in the field.

One bit of advice: if you are buying a cheap shortwave radio, don't expect to hear much beyond the big broadcasters and the plethora of American Christian broadcasters much of the time. A digital-tuning set is much better, and provides entertainment when reality TV fails.

Paul Farhi: The foregoing is presented as a public service. The chat host makes no representations as to the accuracy or veracity of any of the listed sources. But thanks, Airless!

Rockville, Md.: Do we really need to cheapen the President's addresses by having a TV reviewer critique the delivery? My concern was with the content of President Bush's speech last night, not with his ability to speak in a manner that would win an Oscar. When he shows his own personality, admittedly, he is his mother's son, he is criticized for being too bombastic. If he tones it down, he's too wooden. Who cares what Tom Shales thinks?

washingtonpost.com: President Bush's Ultimatum and a Return to 'Fear Factor' (Post, March 18, 2003)

Paul Farhi: Well, apparently you care, although you clearly disagree with Tom. Personally, I think Tom's "reviews" of the president's major addresses illuminate aspects of the speech that I didn't consider. Yes, he's sharp. But isn't that a good thing in a reviewer?

Washington, D.C.: I thought Bush's speech was magnificent. Although I think he should have given it, minus the ultimatum, weeks ago.

So much of the content seemed intended to inform and reassure people about why and how we're undertaking this war, and it just seems like people would have appreciated that information and reassurance several weeks ago.

Paul Farhi: At the risk of turning this into Bush Talk, I don't think Bush will ever give a "magnificent" speech, for the simple reason that he's not a great communicator. He mushes his words and rarely has his facial features in sync with the content of his speech. But I also think most people (including me) can overlook this. It's WHAT he's saying, not how he's saying it.

Silver Spring, Md.: I heard Bret Heber will be the new morning guy on 104. I always thought radio guys wanted to get into TV, not the other way around. Is this a major step backwards for him?

Paul Farhi: Well, we'll report, you decide: Bret has gone from ESPN anchor to Channel 5 sports anchor to a NYC TV station sports anchor to 104.1 morning man. Yeah, the usual arc is from radio to TV, but going to 104 takes Bret out of the sports game, so maybe he's branching out.

Out of town: Paul, here's a non-war-related question: do you know if CBS makes the regional NCAA game feeds available on satellite or on-line? I'm in the wrong market for the games I want to see.

Assuming, of course, the tournament still starts this week -- we may all need some stress relief by then.

Paul Farhi: Not so sure about online, but I know DirecTV has a package--something like three dozen out-of-market games.

Arlington, Va.: Any insights as to how the Oscar telecast will handle the situation in Iraq? Will Steve Martin have to have more than one opening monologue, depending on what is happening over there? Will it become a giant soapbox for the actors to state their views?

Paul Farhi: The Academy has vowed to go on with the ceremony, come what may, but I kind of doubt they're going to want to do so in the middle of a war (same goes for the NCAA tourney). Remember, the Emmys were cancelled two or three times during the Afghanistan war. Hard to be cheerful and glamorous when people are dying...

Arlington, Va.: Wow -- did you catch the last two weeks of "Boomtown"? I thought that was outstanding television. Will it be back next year?

Paul Farhi: "Boomtown" is still officially on the bubble. But even Donnie Wahlberg was saying about a week or two ago that he doubts NBC will pick it up for next season. Which would be a shame. What, we need more "Fear Factor" instead?

Arlington, Va.: What's the deal with Mike Buchanan on the Channel 9 morning news? Whenever he's on the air, he seems so upset and anxious and full of doom and gloom, whether he's reporting about Iraq or traffic on 495. Or he's crotchety and making scrunched-up faces, like a 9-year-old. What happened to the compassionate, controlled composure of news anchors? Yes we live in tense times, but seeing Mike Buchanan acting like The End Is Near I can do without. Whenever he's on TV, I turn the channel. Am I the only one who feels that way?

Paul Farhi: Yeah, Mike can get kind of gloomy and dramatic at times. But I love watching him; he's so UN-anchorman like. We got plenty of anonymous meat puppets giving us the news. We need more like Mike!

Alexandria, Va.: What the heck is going on with the Channel 9 Sports department?

Paul Farhi: An excellent question. Steve Davis was just getting rolling, and he's been executed from the main chair. And then they take down Ken Meese, a very solid veteran. I don't get it. Maybe they want another anonymous meat puppet (AMP).

Washington, D.C.: I'm befuddled.

Why are so many media outlets, your own Washington Post included, calling themselves "embedded" with the troops?

That verb doesn't seem to make any sense in this context.

Paul Farhi: I think it was invented to give newsroom wits an opportunity to make smutty puns (and by the way, did you see the news item on Monday about the reporter who was taken off assignment in Kuwait because she got engaged to one of the troops?) Somewhat serious answer: "embedded" is one of those words that appear out of nowhere and then are suddenly inescapable. Like "anthrax" or "humvee" or you name it...

Oscar's: PLEASE let the academy postpone until after the war. I couldn't stand to listen to all those celbs who think we care what their personal opinion of the war is.

Paul Farhi: Definitely high insufferability potential there. Although the Grammys made it through sort of okay (you had to love Fred Durst's numbskull announcement that "we are all in agreeance" [sic] about opposing the war). Also, once troops are in combat, I can't imagine anyone, including a celebrity, dissing them...

Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.: I don't know who Mike Buchanan is, but I feel the same way as that chatter does about Pat Collins. Good grief, he is terrible.

Paul Farhi: Let me just say that Pat gets a very strong reaction. I am in agreeance with it.

Springfield, Va.: Am a rabid "24" fan. How 'bout a chat dedicated to "24" one of these days? I'm wondering what you thought of the last episode before this painful three-week break, not that the world itself hasn't brought us and will continue to bring us plenty of drama. I thought the episode was brilliant, stunning. I mean, naturally I expected George would take the hit, somehow, but it was so tense leading up to that. I thought that Kim redeemed herself as a serious character during the phone call. OK, I won't ramble on, but would love to hear what you thought. On the message board for "24" on the Fox site, some fans called it the best hour of television ever. I don't know if I'd go that far, but I did love it.

Paul Farhi: Yes, friends, it's that time again! "24" time! Please, hold your applause...I thought it was a very fine episode, yes, although I felt really, really queasy about being "entertained" by the explosion of a nuke. The "farewell" scene between Jack and Kim was well acted by both. But, no, Kim will never redeem herself as a serious character. She's merely playing a hokey damsel in distress, and an inconvenient distraction for Jack. If you think otherwise, all I can offer are two words: mountain lion.

To embed (v.): My Roget's lists these alternatives to "embed":

bury, deposit, dig in, drive in, enclose, fasten, fix, hammer in, impact, infix, ingrain, inlay, insert, install, lodge, pierce, plant, plunge, press, put into, ram in, root, set, stick in, stuff in, thrust in, tuck in.

Now please tell me in what way does a reporter accompanying troops in the battlefield undertake any of those actions?

(Reporter who became engaged excluded)

Paul Farhi: Dude, Copy Editor Chat is tomorrow. We've got some serious TV and radio issues to deal with here, like whether Pat Collins is the devil...

Washington, D.C.: Seriously, in a market with so much talent, how does Pat Collins still have a job?

Paul Farhi: See what I mean?

Washington, D.C.: Welcome to the Big Leagues, Paul. Your chat is running up against the Kornehiser and Wilbon Chat House juggernaut. How does it feel?

Paul Farhi: Hah! Feh on those guys. And c'mon, don't we already hear enough of their opinions on ESPN tv, ESPN radio, Full Court Press, the Post, Ladies Home Journal and a few thousand other outlets? You won't find my stuff anywhere else (unless you call me up and ask)...

Fairfax, Va.: Actually another publication (Entertainment Weekly, the "Buffy Quits" issue) was attempting to make fun of Fred Durst's use of the word aggreeance and they determined that he was actually using it in the correct context. Go figure.

washingtonpost.com: Word Experts in 'Agreeance', Vindicate Fred Durst (Reuters, March 7, 2003)

Paul Farhi: Wow! I stand corrected. I didn't realize I wrote a falsitude.

Reston, Va.: How do we call/write/torture to get those blasted commercials off of the bottom of the screen during tv shows? It's irritating and annoying. Bah!

Paul Farhi: I assume you mean the animated promos that run right after the commercial break? Some of them are quite creative and entertaining. Fox's NASCAR plugs, with the cars speeding on and off, were quite good. 'Course, most of the rest of them are just distracting and uninspired.

Washington, D.C.: You are very funny. You should go up against Weingarten.

Paul Farhi: Is he on ESPN, too?

Arlington, Va.: Agreeance is valid -- if obsolete.

The Oxford English Dictionary has an entry for "agreeance," saying that it means "the act of agreeing," or "'agreement' in several of its meanings." True, the OED says the term is "obsolete," but if contemporary rock stars are using it, I think all that shows is that it's not as obsolete as the editors think.

Paul Farhi: I think we are all in aggreeance that we should talk about something else.

Answer to the usual 24 question: Folks, the reason 24 takes a couple weeks off now and then is so they can stretch the show out through the entire TV season, from the November sweeps through the May sweeps -- i.e. so Fox can make more money.

You're welcome.

Paul Farhi: Thanks. But, you know, "24" is a little different. Most shows make money for a network when they're re-run. Not so "24." Fox has "repurposed" it (re-running it very soon after original broadcast) but it hasn't re-run it in the traditional way. I guess no one wants to see a cliffhanger they've already seen months earlier.

Chicago, Ill.: About the promos on the bottom of the screen, did you see episode of The Simpsons where Homer ate the Joe Millionaire promo and then spit it out because Fox tastes terrible? Funny stuff.

Paul Farhi: Fox pioneered this intrusion, so maybe we shouldn't be surprised that they have the best stuff. Just a guess here: Fox has a lot more experience in animation, what with "Simpsons," "Futurama," "King of the Hill," etc., so maybe that's their secret, if any.

Forest Glen, Md.: Haber's going to mornings on 104?

Any word or idea how that will play with Elliot Segal? Haber used to be a regular member of "the Class."

Paul Farhi: I don't think it will affect Elliot much, ratings-wise. 104's a much different station than DC101, music wise and audience wise. And I'm sure Elliot figures that Haber competing with him is all part of the radio game. He should, anyway.

Bethesda, Md.: Where has President Bartlett and the gang from the West Wing been hiding the couple of weeks? Is NBC consciously downplaying the activities of a fictional West Wing in the pre-war climate?

Paul Farhi: I don't think so. They certainly weren't shy about trotting him back out after Sept. 11. But "WW" ratings have been down this season (and creatively I'd say the show isn't having its best year) so NBC is probably hoarding original episodes for a big May sweeps buildup.

Takoma Park, Md.: I hope the Academy Awards go on as scheduled.
I'd rather watch the Oscars than 4 hours of nerve-wracking "ROAD TO WAR" TV coverage.
The invasion will still be there when the Oscars are over.

Paul Farhi: Fair enough. I don't think anyone needs to apologize for wanting a little escapism nowadays. Or maybe a lot of escapism. Or maybe a really stiff drink. Or all of the above.

Boomtown: They can't get rid of Boomtown! Honestly, this is one of the best shows on TV and I love Sunday nights because of it. The acting is great (gotta love Fearless) and the writing is good. It would be a serious shame to trash it after 1 year.

Paul Farhi: I'm with you. Totally. But NBC isn't necessarily.

Law & Order Fan: When is TNT going to change it's name to the Law & Order station? Some nights it's all they show! Add NBC's showing of Law & Order in all of it's flavors and you can log some serious Dick Wolf time. I love the show but come on, aren't they afraid of audience burnout?

Paul Farhi: L&O is one of the most amazing shows on TV. They change the cast every three years or so, and the show rolls on. They do two spinoffs, and the show still rolls on. It's indestructible (it's also a great show). People can't get enough of it. Michael Kinsley even wrote a whole column about women who adore the very re-runs you've mentioned. I think NBC would be very happy to be the all-"Law & Order" network. Probably TNT, too.

Re: Pat Collins: Allow me to defend Pat Collins. And Mike Buchanan for that matter. Yes they're dramatic. No, they're not the most stylish reporters on the screen. But both really know the city, and their sources are impeccable. Both men were terrific during the sniper shootings. Just one person's opinion.

Paul Farhi: Yes, yes, yes. Total aggreeance on that. Buchanan broke the "tarot card" angle during the sniper shootings. Collins, for all his distracting tendencies, is always accurate and on target. And again, who says you can't be and/or look different on TV?

Washington, D.C.: Is there any radio station in DC that plays BBC?

Paul Farhi: WAMU-FM (88.5) plays the BBC overnight service at 11 pm on weeknights.

Mt. Lebanon, Pa.: Well, Donahue is OUT and Clinton/Dole is IN. From the tedious to the tiresome. Is television news completely brain dead or what? Clinton and Dole weren't that interesting when they were alive! Thanks much.

Paul Farhi: Amazing how little heat those two generate. On paper, a great idea. In practice, dullsville. Maybe they're too hung up on being "elder statesmen," which in TV land means "where's that remote?"

Burke, Va.: Have you noticed that there is a certain run of words that are used to describe Bush in the media? It was Bold a few weeks ago, now it seems to be Audacious. Do media types need a thesaurus?

Paul Farhi: I'll take "bold" and "audacious." Better than "reckless" or "scary," which are way too loaded.

Oscar party plans: Paul, I'm having an Oscar-watching party -- costumes, special food including Chicago pizza and smoked Salma dip -- so, I need to plan ahead. I've heard rumors the show could be put off until Monday or Tuesday. How likely is that, and what would that serve since the war would still be on?

Paul Farhi: Well, let's pray that the war is over by then. But again, this thing could be moved again and again, depending on how the war goes. Unless the Academy wants to turn the show into a flag-waving exercise, it will look awfully crass and insensitive to hold it during the invasion.

Arlington, Va.: Who do I write to make sure Boomtown stays?

Paul Farhi: Well, NBC, of course. But you better bring about five million of your pen pals. At the risk of being insensitive, your opinion alone won't cut much ice.

Paul Farhi: Folks, thanks for the visit. We'll be back again in two weeks to do it again, no matter what Kornheiser and/or Wilbon have to say about it. Until then, peace...

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