There's something that's happened recently over at the #arrl, which is the national #hamradio organization for the USA.
ARRL identified, by name, clubs and organizations that produce educational videos as "being in competition with" the ARRL "Learning Center".
ARRL then retaliated against these clubs and organizations, calling them up and stating that these organizations would be excluded from ARRL publications and partnerships
@mattgriffin in the case of #qsotoday ham expo, with a phone call. Bob Interbitzen called Eric Guth to school him on how it was gonna be.
RATPAC's lead, Dan Marler, received a series of aggressively negative emails from David Minster. The latest round of decisioneering at #ARRL is that no one from the League should accept invitations to present at RATPAC, and an email directing some divisions to "not use any RATPAC videos for training".
Specifically singling out RATPAC as competition for LC.
This isn't the end of the list, but these are the ones where I have first person visibility.
There are a lot of upset folks out there, ranging from QRZ to organizations that have yet to realize they have lost ARRL as a partner because ARRL has decided their "Learning Center" has to "win" against organizations that promote, defend, and educate about #hamradio in the US.
@abraxas3d@mattgriffin Though, it does occur to me that I might want to donate the cost of one ARRL membership to RATPAC should donations become a thing that is possible. :)
@ai6yr@abraxas3d@mattgriffin Oh, yes, very much so, but they're blowing their own foot off. I'd 100% restart my membership if they'd improve and stop doing stuff like this.
A QRZ editor asked ARRL about this development because it is honestly a dumb way for an amateur advocacy group to behave, and got 1) Interbitzen 2) Roderick and 3) Minster doubling and tripling down on the policy in emails.
Minster et al communicated that this was a final decision and of course ARRL is in charge of amateur radio in the US and anything viewed as competing with the (paywalled, anemic) Learning Center will not be promoted or featured by #ARRL
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