Radio SOS

News & Features Sunday January 27, 2008

Power to inform

Air Raves

STARMAG, THE STAR

By ANTHONY THANASAYAN

TO many people, radio is synonymous with “entertainment”.

But, to me, a good broadcaster should not only be about pleasure; it should also inform listeners about the world they live in and what goes on in it. Such information may well be lifesaving knowledge for them one day.

Then there is the vital role of educating the public and raising awareness of issues – from social to health and more.

In closely monitoring our local FM bands over the years, I’m happy to welcome a marked improvement – especially of late – in many broadcasters.

It wasn’t too long ago that some of our deejays were callously making flippant or insensitive remarks about other people’s plight.

Thankfully, nowadays radio stations do appear to be more sensitive and in tuned with public sentiments. At the same time they are more responsive in times of crisis.

Some of them even attempt to go the extra mile despite their limited resources. The current flood situation caused by heavy rains is a good example.

Sadly, there were evacuees again last week. This time, 300 residents in two villages in Pekan, Pahang, were forced to abandon their homes because of the rising waters.

Radio24, the all-news broadcaster operated by Bernama in Kuala Lumpur, has been updating listeners on floods in various states since early December. It diligently kept up with its duty to cover the flood situation even as the nation celebrated two major holidays – Hari Raya Korban and Christmas.

During particularly bad weather, listeners were still able to follow news reports as frequent as each hour throughout the day.

Radio24 not only kept the public informed of the rising water levels but other details too, such as the kinds of aid available to the flood victims as well as the Government’s short-term and long-term plans in flood alleviation.

It also conducted live crossover interviews with officials to keep the people posted on how the flood victims were coping at the evacuation centres.

Apart from that, Radio24 also provided useful tips about what to do during an emergency and possible ways to reduce the risk of becoming a flood victim. These were aired either through short public service announcements (PSAs) or in audio capsules throughout the day.

Listeners in the Klang Valley can tune in to Radio24 on FM93.9MHz.

Those outside the area may access it via the Internet: http://www.radio24.com.my/main.html. Once in and after the introduction page, click on Radio24 Live Streaming.

Despite living in the cyber age, the writer insists that radio still provides a unique window on the world. When he isn’t scanning bandwidths, he helps to raise awareness of positive living with pets through his organisation, Petpositive (Malaysian Animal-Assisted Therapy for the Disabled and Elderly Association).

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS THE LAST TIME AIR RAVES WILL APPEAR ON SUNDAYS IN STARMAG. FROM NOW ON, YOU CAN READ AIR RAVES ON THURSDAYS IN THE STARTWO SECTION OF THE STAR. AIR RAVES WILL APPEAR NEXT ON FEBRUARY 7, 2008, ON THE FIRST DAY OF CHINESE YEAR.

Air Raves To Be Printed On Thursdays Soon

NEWSFLASH!

Air Raves is moving to a new day beginning the end of the month. Sunday, January 27 will be the last time when Air Raves appears on StarMag.

Starting on February 7, Air Raves will now be featured on every Thursdays - the day in which Wheel Power also appears.

The change of day for the column is scheduled to feature a more picture-driven format rather than a text-centred article.

By moving to Thursdays, Air Raves will now appear in StarTwo instead of StarMag.

So here's to Thursday, February 7 then!



Readership/Circulation of The Star and Sunday Star

Readership
Star		Other newspapers
The Star (daily)	1,136,000	New Straits Times	339,000
Sunday Star	1,039,000	New Sunday Times	306,000
* Source: Nielsen Media Research Q4 2006 (Oct 2006 - Dec 2006)		Malay Mail	61,000
		Sun (daily)	176,000

Circulation
Star		Other newspapers
The Star (daily)	310,288	New Straits Times	140,337
Sunday Star	323,644	New Sunday Times	153,203
* Source: Audit Bureau of Circulations, Malaysia - 1st Jul 2006 - 31st Dec 2006		Malay Mail	21,804
		Weekend Mail (20th May 2006 to 19th Nov 2006)	35,501
		The Edge	22,875
		The Sun	247,675

New Beginnings For The New Year

News & Features Sunday January 20, 2008

New beginnings

Air Raves: By ANTHONY THANASAYAN

StarMag, Sunday Star

IKIM.fm welcomed the Muslim new year (Maal Hijrah 1429) with several programmes, beginning with an evening prayer recitation the day before. It came on after a final prayer was said for the past year before the call for azan prayers was made for the Maghrib. The reflective mood continued until the wee hours of Jan 10.

The Islamic broadcaster operated by Ikim (Institute of Islamic Understanding) then opened up the telephone lines for listeners to interact with each other. Many took the opportunity to send out their New Year’s Day – also known as Awal Muharram – wishes to their friends and families.

At 6.30am, Tafsir Al-Quran, a 15-minute programme about Maal Hijrah and how it is celebrated by Muslims, was presented by Haji Zahazan Mohammad.

At 7.30am, Ustaz Zulramli, in his show Durul Hikmah, pointed out some of the challenges in 1429. For those who wished to know about the origins of Maal Hijrah, their questions were answered by DJ Siti Rohani Surani in Nur Pagi after that.

The morning segment also included live crossovers to the Putrajaya International Convention Centre where a national celebration was under way. The occasion was graced by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin, the Raja Permaisuri Agong Tuanku Nur Zahirah, and the country’s top leaders. The commentary was provided by IKIM.fm’s Zamri Zainal Abidin.

Meanwhile, Malaysia was featured by Radio Australia (RA) on Jan 8: “Panic buying prompts cooking oil rationing in Malaysia”.

The Melbourne-based international radio channel reported that the Malaysian government was forcing retailers to ration cooking oil to consumers after a bout of panic buying led to a shortage in shops.

“It is believed that the recent rush on cooking oil followed rumours of a price hike, although the government also says consumers have been hoarding supplies,” RA added in the news item that lasted about four minutes.

It went on to say that the new limits were due to go into force (on Jan 7), but Malaysia’s Bernama national news agency said retailers began limiting purchases at the weekend.

Those interviewed in the RA report were Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, Socio-Economic Development and Research Institute executive director Khoo Kay Peng, and Consumers Association of Subang and Shah Alam, Selangor, president Datuk Dr Jacob George.

It was presented by Girish Sawlani.

Radio Australia can be generally tuned in via short waves daily from 3am until 1am. For best results, please try all the frequencies: 6.080kHz, 49m; 9.475 & 9.500kHz, 31m; 11.660, 11.695 & 11.840kHz, 25m; 15.240 & 15.415kHz, 19m; 17.750 & 17.775kHz, 16m; and 21.725kHz, 13m.

n Despite living in the cyber age, the writer insists that radio still provides a unique window on the world. When he isn’t scanning bandwidths, he helps to raise awareness of positive living with pets through his organisation, Petpositive (Malaysian Animal-Assisted Therapy for the Disabled and Elderly Association).

Note: This article was in the Top 3 position in The Star on the day it was printed.

How 2007 ended on the airwaves

News & Features Sunday January 13, 2008

Downside to countdown

AIR RAVES
By ANTHONY THANASAYAN

StarMag, Sunday Star

THE recent 2008 New Year celebrations might have witnessed larger countdown crowds than usual at special events across the nation. But how was it like on radio, especially for home listeners who didn’t join the throngs at outdoor parties?

Picking out the best radio station for its “New Year feel” on the last day of the outgoing 2007 was frankly not difficult. Regrettably, not many radio stations went all out to make the occasion memorable for the audience.

The station that did its best to get listeners excited about sending off the old year and embracing the new was the all-news channel Radio24 run by Bernama in Kuala Lumpur.

Throughout the day the network had detailed some of the defining moments of 2007. These ranged from groundbreaking stories such as the space mission of Malaysia’s first angkasawan Dr Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor in October to the first ever appointment of a disabled person as senator in December.

The top stories were highlighted right up to the midnight countdown. Additional anchors were put on duty to provide for an interesting live chat with listeners.

Good or largely unmatched though it was with its features, there were somewhat weaknesses in Radio24’s presentation.

I found it difficult, for example, to continuously stay focused. Two reasons, perhaps: the weak delivery by anchors who were reading from prepared scripts, or as the night show demonstrated, the indiscriminate mix of serious stuff and unfunny jokes.

In hindsight, for the daytime and night features, I think it would have worked better if Radio24 had pre-recorded the show, say, a day or two earlier, before airing it. Then the irrelevant bits could have been edited out.

Sound clips of historic events, too, would have made the show more interesting.

The four-month-old broadcaster should realise that, as an all news channel, it probably has the toughest job on the airwaves to keep its listeners locked on to its frequency.

TraxxFM’s Greenman and Navsta of The Wake Up Show were the only other deejays to give listeners something worthwhile to think about as the year closed.

“Pay more attention to your mental health and never be shy to seek the help of a psychiatrist or a friend when you need it,” was their timely reminder to the listeners for 2008.

Traxx101, on the other hand, had what I thought was a most inappropriate topic on New Year’s Eve: male circumcision (ouch!).

Although the doctor who spoke on the topic was excellent, and the deejay (Jezza) who interviewed him was just as good, it was not quite the right talk for the day.

I would have liked to hear a local writer recount the best movies for 2007. Now that would have been a fun and fitting topic for the special day, don’t you think?

Despite living in the cyber age, the writer insists that radio still provides a unique window on the world. When he isn’t scanning bandwidths, he helps to raise awareness of positive living with pets through his organisation, Petpositive (Malaysian Animal-Assisted Therapy for the Disabled and Elderly Association).

NOTE: THIS ARTICLE APPEARED AT NO 2 UNDER THE MOST VIEWED SECTION OF THE STAR ON THE SAME DAY THAT IT WAS PRINTED.

Poor Xmas Show

News & Features Sunday January 6, 2008

No jingle all the way

AIR RAVES BY ANTHONY THANASAYAN

NOT normally an early riser, I was, however, up by 6am on the recent Christmas Eve. I did not want to miss any of the seasonal fare offered by our radio stations that day.

The morning rush hour seemed as if it would be supercharged with Christmas specials but as the hours wore on, it appeared that for most stations, it was a mediocre effort at best.

Lite fm, for example, had an interesting contest asking listeners to guess the type of gifts presented on the song The Twelve Days of Christmas which was fun to listen to.

But like many others, the broadcaster lacked consistency and a proper build-up to infuse listeners with the spirit and cheer before Christmas Day.

Believe it or not, Traxx fm opened up its telephone lines during the traffic show later that evening to talk about what makes a car sexy!

The show’s deejays, who usually have no short of great topics, should have come up with more timely and meaningful subjects. They could get people to talk about the true meaning of Christmas by reaching out to the needy, reading to the blind, visiting someone in hospital, etc. In short, how to be a Santa Claus!

The only radio station which I thought had done a better job in spreading good cheer was the Bernama-run Radio24. Its deejays were brimming with excitement from daybreak of Dec 24 to 25.

The station’s Tan Su Lin reported from a local children’s home on their festive celebration. Elsewhere, the 24-hour broadcaster gave an idea of how the occasion was being observed in neighbouring countries.

At the same time it did not neglect to cover news happenings in Malaysia and around the world.

It was refreshing to hear the words “Hari Krismas” and “Selamat Hari Natal” uttered repeatedly over Radio24, unlike many of the other Malay broadcasters which mentioned nothing during the times I listened in.

I was puzzled over why the homepages of Era, Xfresh and Sinar omitted to mention Christmas when the rest of the Airtime Management and Programming radio stations did.

Hot fm wished listeners “Selamat Hari Raya Korban” and “Selamat Menyambut Tahun Baru 2008” but was mum about Christmas. Fly fm, on the other hand, had its deejays in Santa hats.

Does this mean that stations that were devoid of Christmas cheer on their homepages have no Christian listeners?

Where does that leave me? I listen to all of them. Have they forgotten that Christmas is a national holiday for all Malaysians?

This reminds me of an interview I heard on BBC World Service recently. An atheist was asked by the London station why she celebrated Christmas.

She replied that Christmas has become so commercialised that it isn’t only celebrated by Christians but by everyone.

“Although I reject the divinity aspect of the occasion, I accept the morality message behind it,” she said.

“I’m a great believer in Santa Claus,” she concluded.

Despite living in the cyber age, the writer insists that radio still provides a unique window on the world. When he isn’t scanning bandwidths, he helps to raise awareness of positive living with pets through his organisation, Petpositive (Malaysian Animal-Assisted Therapy for the Disabled and Elderly Association).

Note: This article appeared under the Top 9 list of The Star's Most Viewed Pages on the same day as it was printed. aNt

Happy New Year 2008 From Air Raves!

Sunday December 30, 2007
The Star, StarMag

The best and the worst

Air Raves
By ANTHONY THANASAYAN

WE are at the tail end of another great year. Which means it is time to take a look back at some of 2007’s best and worst moments on radio.

The year started off disastrously for people in Johor. Two days of continuous rain sent a second wave of flood waters to many parts of the southern state.

Radio stations like Red fm (operated by The Star) and RTM’s Traxx fm offered invaluable help during the crisis. They not only provided the right information to the thousands of flood victims, but also guided listeners on what they could do to help.

I bet you were surprised (I was too) when I picked RTM’s Tamil broadcaster Minnal fm as the best radio station for festive programmes when the Chinese community ushered in the Year of the Pig.

They cleverly put up a midnight live phone-in session where Tamil-speaking callers were asked to share what Chinese New Year meant to them, especially when it came to open house visits.

Airtime Management and Programming’s Chinese broadcaster MY fm made a boo-boo when it aired an advertisement at the wrong time: during the final minutes of the midnight countdown. There must have been some red faces as the Golden Boar trotted in.

Three major entertainment events in the United States went virtually unnoticed by our radio stations.

The 64th Golden Globe Awards in January was carried live on Ntv7 and Astro. However Traxx fm’s world news update ignored the Globes even as it was proceeding on the other side of the globe.

The 49th Grammy Awards was the next to suffer in February. Missing on the airwaves were the airing of nominated tracks and singer profiles.

Similarly with the 79th Annual Academy Awards, also in February.

What I do not understand is that radio deejays talk about all three events constantly throughout the year. However, when it came to the big day itself, they sang a different tune.

Moving on, I praised Hitz.fm for being the station to come up with a worthy coverage of American Idol 2007 final as it was being broadcast from the US in May.

I chided deejays The Greenman and Navsta of Traxx fm for mentioning nothing about Idol. The boys defended their move in an e-mail response, explaining that it was not a priority for them because they believed that “the latest season was overrated and crappy”.

And now, the most memorable moment on radio in 2007:

It happened on June 5, a day after the death of Loganathan Arumugam of the Alleycats.

Traxx fm came up with a sterling tribute to the 54-year-old singer-flutist who was loved by many in the over three decades he was with the band. The mood was suitably sedate on The Wake Up Show helmed by The Greenman and Navsta that morning.

The two-hour session also had live crossovers to friends of the late performer, well-known personalities, top singers and even a chief minister.

For me, and probably hundreds, if not thousands, of listeners who tuned in that morning, the occasion was not only a memorable remembrance of a great Malaysian artiste but also listening to radio at its very best.

Happy 2008, everyone!

Despite living in the cyber age, the writer insists that radio still provides a unique window on the world. When he isn’t scanning bandwidths, he helps to raise awareness of positive living with pets through his organisation, Petpositive (Malaysian Animal-Assisted Therapy for the Disabled and Elderly Association).

The Spirit Of Christmas On Radio

Spirit of giving

AIR RAVES
By ANTHONY THANASAYAN

News & Features STARMAG Sunday December 23, 2007

CHRISTMAS is never Christmas if you don’t share the special moment with others. LiteFM, for one, is embracing the spirit of sharing and giving in a meaningful way this Christmas – by getting Malaysians to donate presents to children in need.

From tomorrow until next Friday, listeners are invited to call the station and pledge a present to a special child under its Gift of Love programme. Four times a day the public will get the chance to make the contribution by picking from a list of gifts featured on www.litefm. com.my.

These good Samaritans will then be invited to LiteFM’s Christmas tea party at The Loaf in Pavilion Kuala Lumpur on Jan 5. Here, they will be able to hand over their gifts to the children of a local charity home who will also be the guests at the event.

I can just imagine the joy on the faces of these young ones when they receive their special gifts!

Remember the recent Deepavali promotion where THR.fm literally gave a little “vroom-power” to listeners on their journey home to celebrate the festival?

Well, following its success, another Airtime Management and Programming radio station will be doing the same for its loyal listeners.

In the just-concluded Christmas Sleigh Ride contest run by MIX fm, five winners will drive home with a Naza Ria each, on loan for up to seven days, during these yearend holidays to any local destination.

In addition, they will enjoy a paid trip courtesy of the broadcaster, which is covering petrol and toll charges plus RM1,000 cash.

First, the contestants had to fill in the missing words of a Yuletide song aired by MIX in the quickest time possible. Those who made it then battled each other in on-the-ground Xmas competitions organised by the radio station.

They were indeed made to sweat for the “free” ride!

Finally, Christmas is not Christmas also if not for the Nine Lessons and Carols from the chapel of King’s College in Cambridge, Britain.

The 90-minute choir presentation, which includes selected readings from the Bible, is broadcast live by BBC World Service radio every year.

For those who want a traditional feel to the season, you can tune in to the Christmas Eve feature at 11.15pm tomorrow (Malaysian time). Please check The Star’s daily guide for radio frequency details.

Merry Xmas!

Despite living in the cyber age, the writer insists that radio still provides a unique window on the world. When he isn’t scanning bandwidths, he helps to raise awareness of positive living with pets through his organisation, Petpositive (Malaysian Animal-Assisted Therapy for the Disabled and Elderly Association).