Another round of surveys, in yet another school. I really look forward to them. I’m never sure what I’ll find. Never sure how the children will do the surveys. I’m never even sure how they’ll react to my introductory spiel.
This time it was Shashi, a boy in class 9 (fairly small-built, unlike his somewhat bigger classmates), who caught my attention. The expression on his face while I was talking, the way he was poring over the questionnaire had anyway caught my eye.
Continue reading...
3 minute read | 444 words
We’ve just finished the first half of our needs assessment survey in a government school in Gurgaon. As batches of children, both boys and girls, sat in the Edusat room in this village school, I could soon identify the children who were having the maximum difficulty in reading the questionnaire, and writing their answers. Even when these answers were just a tick mark, or a simple yes or no. Sheer habit made them check with the student next to them - what had they written?
Continue reading...
3 minute read | 450 words
#community-radio, #gurgaon ki awaaz, #samudayik radio station
An excellent opportunity for those looking seriously at how media is shaping our society, and how society is shaping media, is the Tejeshwar Singh Memorial Fellowship that will support such an endeavour by paying scholars Rs 50,000 per month for one year, plus Rs 50,000 as travel expenses. It would be interesting to see the publications that come out of this exercise.
Continue reading...
1 minute read | 62 words
There’s no doubt about it - we face challenging days ahead. The terror of air time is about to hit us. Even though we’re intending to start slow, with four hours of programming each day (two hours of programming broadcast once in the morning, once in the evening), it’s not easy ensuring that stuff gets out 365 days a year, which it must.
We’re planning on some core programs, around which we will add programs that are done on the fly, or as the children develop more story and programming ideas.
Continue reading...
2 minute read | 284 words
#community-radio, #gurgaon ki awaaz, #samudayik radio station
So there I was at Sanchar Bhavan today morning. I left about 45 minutes later clutching my precious SACFA clearance letter, and a frequency allotment letter. Next step, we complete our survey (which is waiting for schools to open after the Dushera break), sign the GOPA, deposit the license fees, and get our Wireless Operating License - The License. Three months later, we better be ready to beam it up. So, we’re looking at end-January to launch Gurgaon’s very own community radio station.
Continue reading...
1 minute read | 83 words
Finally, someone has spoken out against the strident, unrelenting branding of all terrorism being Islamic, and all Muslims being terrorists. According to a news report in The Times of India, Sharad Pawar asks a very pertinent question: “Why are only Muslims on the media’s and society’s terror radar? Why not Hindu terrorists like the Bajrang Dal? Read the full story here.
In the last few weeks, especially after the blasts in Delhi, I am deeply disturbed by the deeply etched biases in large groups representing the educated upper middle class in India.
Continue reading...
2 minute read | 220 words
Delhi-based Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) has announced that it is launching a six-month certificate course in community radio in association with Commonwealth Educational Media Centre. According to a report in The Times of India, the course will bring together community radio practitioners, communication experts and academics for content planning in community radio. Read the full TOI story here.
Continue reading...
1 minute read | 60 words
Its unofficial. But we’ve got our frequency. Yesterday’s visit to Sanchar Bhavan yielded this wonderful nugget of information that TRF has been allocated 107.8 as their CR frequency. An official letter follows next month.
Meanwhile, I am playing verse games with Ek Sau Saat Dashamlav Aath, which is what 107.8 will sound like in Hindi. The possibilities for a followup line seem endless. Though if something comes to your mind, please do send them in.
Continue reading...
1 minute read | 75 words
Symbiosis Institute is on its way to starting a CR station on-campus sometime early next year. According to a report in RadioandMusic.com, the SIMC Students’ Council President Mitin Chakraborty has confirmed, “We have already applied for the necessary government licence for our campus radio and would be starting the radio once we procure the licence.” Read the full story here.
Continue reading...
1 minute read | 60 words
India’s first CR station seems to have got caught in internal bickering. According to a story in The Indian Express, “The first community radio Anna FM was launched with lot of fanfare by the Media Science Department of the Anna University some years ago, providing the students with some valuable experience. But today, the students have minimal or no access to it.” Read the full story here.
Continue reading...
1 minute read | 67 words
Two wonderful stories about how the Jamia community radio station in Delhi contributed to keeping peace in Jamia Nagar where the recent shootout took place. Run by MCRC Jamia Millia Islamia University, the CR station helped broadcast information about what was happening in the neighbourhood, and quelled rumours that may have sparked off incidents of violence. You can read the RadioandMusic story hereand The Times of India story here.
Continue reading...
1 minute read | 69 words
A story just came through that reminded me of something N Ramakrishnan of Ideosync had thrown in the air as an idea worth pursuing. Using community radio, at a very local level, for the community to showcase its talent and “vote” for whom they think is the best. An “Indian Idol” reinvented at the local level. Via radio. Not only would a program like this generate enormous interest in the radio station, it could possibly reel in advertisers for the 5 minutes of ads per hour of programming that CR stations are allowed.
Continue reading...
1 minute read | 150 words
© 1995 – 2023 Ajay Jaiman