  We consider a compact source of gravitational waves of frequency $\omega$, in
or near a massive spherically symmetric distribution of matter or a black hole.
Recent calculations have led to apparently contradictory results for the
influence of the massive body on the propagation of the waves. We show here
that the results are in fact consistent and in agreement with the ``standard''
viewpoint in which the high frequency compact source produces the radiation as
if in a flat background, and the background curvature affects the propagation
of these waves.
