1.
INTRODUCTION: RADIO HISTORY
Radio
involves the process by which messages are sent through electrical waves. In
other words, sound would be sent and received through the waves (Sambe,
2008:75). The history of Radio dates back to the 19th Century when Samuel Morse
invented the electric telegraph. According to Bittner (1989:93), Gugielmo
Marconi built on this invention to produce electromagnetic impulses which would
be sent through the air without the use of wires. The voice was carried over
long distances.
Thus in 1866, signals were
transmitted from England to America without wires. Sambe (2008:75) states that,
in 1888, Heinrick Hertz, working on the electromagnetic theory propounded earlier
by a British scientist James Clark Maxwell, produced the first radio waves.
2.
ADVENT OF
RADIO IN NIGERIA
In Nigeria, radio started with the introduction of the Radio
Distribution System in the year 1933 in Lagos by the British colonial
government under the Department of Post and Telegraphs (P&T), according to
Idebi (2008,P.3).
The Radio Distribution System (RDS) was a reception base for the British
Broadcasting Corporation and a relay station, through wire systems, with
loudspeakers at the listening end. In 1935, the Radio Distribution System was
changed to Radio Diffusion system. The aim was to spread the efforts of Britain
and her allies during the Second World War through the BBC. The Ibadan station
was commissioned in 1939, followed by the Kano station in 1944. Later, a
re-appraisal of radio broadcast objectives gave birth to the establishment in
1950 of the Nigerian Broadcasting Service (NBS). The NBS began broadcast in
Lagos, Ibadan, Kaduna, Kano and Enugu on short wave and medium wave
transmitters. Through a Bill by the House of Representatives, the Nigerian Broadcasting
Corporation (NBC) was established in 1956. The NBC took up the responsibilities
of radio broadcast in Nigeria. The Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN)
was established in 1978. The Voice of Nigeria (VON) which served as the
external service was established in 1990. With the creation of more states and
each state wanting to propagate its people and culture, the pace for radio
broadcast began in Nigeria and has spread fast across the length and breadth of
the nation. Each state owns and operates at last one radio station.
3.
CHARACTERISTICS
OF RADIO
i.
Radio makes pictures: When you
listen to a commentary on radio of football match. As you heard the commentary, you could
visualize or ‘see’ in your mind what was being described. You could actively
‘see’ pictures in your mind of the footballers even as you listened to the
sounds of fans singing or the sounds of the referee’s whistle. You use your
power of imagination as you follow the running commentary.
ii.
Fast medium:
Radio is the fastest medium. It is instant. As things
happen in a studio or outside, messages can be sent or broadcast. These
messages can be picked up by anyone who has a radio set or receiver which is
tuned into a radio station. If you have a television set and cable or satellite
connection you may be using a remote to get your favourite channel.
iii.
Simple medium:
Compared to all other media, radio is simple to use.
As mentioned in the previous sections, radio needs very simple technology and
equipment.
iv.
Inexpensive medium:
Radio is inexpensive: As it is simple, it is also a
cheaper medium. The cost of production is low and a small radio can be bought
for as low a price as say three hundred naira
v.
Portable medium:
Don’t you move your radio set at home from the living
room to the kitchen or as you go out somewhere? You can’t do that very easily
with television. This facility of moving an object which is called
‘portability’ gives radio an advantage. These days if you have a car and a
radio in it, you can listen to it as you drive or travel. Can you think of
watching television, when you drive?
vi.
One does not
have to be literate to listen to radio: Unless you
are literate, you can’t read a newspaper or read captions or text on
television. But for listening to radio, you need not be literate at all. You
can listen to programmes or news in any language on the radio.
4. OBJECTIVES OF RADIO
Ø
to inform
Ø
to educate inter related
Ø
to entertain
5. LIMITATIONS OF RADIO
Ø
One chance
medium: When you read a newspaper, you can keep it with you
and read it again. You have the printed word there and unless the paper is
destroyed it will remain with you. Suppose when you read a news item, you do
not understand the meaning of certain words. You can refer to a dictionary or
ask someone who knows to find out the meaning.
Ø
Radio has no
visual images: Let us consider a news item on radio and the same
item on television. For example, the news about the devastating 9/11 attack
that hits World Trade Centre. Radio news talked about the intensity of the attack,
the number of deaths, details about property destroyed etc. However in the case
of television, it showed the actual planes hitting the twin towers, visuals of properties
destroyed, rescue operations and many more details which could be seen.
Ø
Messages on
radio are easily forgotten: The problem of not having visuals
leads to another limitation of radio. What is seen is often remembered and may
remain with us. For example if you have seen the fine visuals of the Taj Mahal
in Agra, it will remain in your memory. But what you hear is normally forgotten
fast. Probably you may remember what you have heard in a class room if you
found it interesting. But can you recall all the headlines of a news bulletin
you heard on radio? Normally, you don’t. So this is another limitation of
radio.
Ø
Poor
performance on the part of announcers: Presenters
or participants in a radio programme can be boring or uninteresting that it can
result in listeners switching off their radio sets. So listeners’ interest
depends up on how information or messages are presented.
Ø
Radio broadcasts are of no use to
people who have no sense of hearing especially those with hearing disabilities.
6.
RADIO
FREQUENCIES
Radio
frequency (RF) is a rate of oscillation in the range of about 3 kHz to 300 GHz,
which corresponds to the frequency of radio waves, and the alternating currents
which carry radio signals. RF usually refers to electrical rather than
mechanical oscillations; however, mechanical RF systems do exist.
Designation
|
|||
3 – 30 Hz
|
104 – 105 km
|
ELF
|
|
30 – 300 Hz
|
103 – 104 km
|
SLF
|
|
300 – 3000 Hz
|
100 – 103 km
|
ULF
|
|
3 – 30 kHz
|
10 – 100 km
|
VLF
|
|
30 – 300 kHz
|
1 – 10 km
|
LF
|
|
300 kHz – 3 MHz
|
100 m – 1 km
|
MF
|
|
3 – 30 MHz
|
10 – 100 m
|
HF
|
|
30 – 300 MHz
|
1 – 10 m
|
VHF
|
|
300 MHz – 3 GHz
|
10 cm – 1 m
|
UHF
|
|
3 – 30 GHz
|
1 – 10 cm
|
SHF
|
|
30 – 300 GHz
|
1 mm – 1 cm
|
EHF
|
|
300 GHz - 3000 GHz
|
0.1 mm - 1 mm
|
THF
|
7.
RADIO
PRODUCTION TEAM
Radio
production team or crew are the group of skilled and unskilled personnel that
make production possible; some of the radio production team include:
1) Station Manager:
Station Managers are responsible for the day-to-day running of Radio
stations - leading the management team to ensure they meet the key objectives
of the station in terms of output, audience, or revenue. In
Commercial radio the job title Station Director may also be used in reference
to the manager of a local or national station. In some organisations a Regional
Director may have responsibility for more than one station. Most stations also
have a Programme Controller (link) or Programme Director.
2) Programme Director:
the responsibility of a programme Director in any radio station is to direct
and coordinate daily radio station operations. She/he also develops, schedules
and supervises production, recording, and airing of all programs. Additional
information available includes essential job functions, additional
responsibilities, and education and experience requirements.
3)
Programme
Manager: In radio, a program manager/director or director of
programming is the person who develops or selects some or all of the content
that will be broadcast. A program director's selections’ are based upon
expertise in the media as well as knowledge of the target demographic.
Typically, a program director decides what radio program will be broadcast and
when.
Studio Manager: In a broadcasting
context, a studio manager, or SM, fulfills an operational role in
radio broadcasting to enable and ensure programmes are produced to a high
technical standard. The
following are some of the responsibilities of a studio manager:- Workload dispatch
- Compiling studio schedules for senior management
meetings
- Compiling Road map for projects
- Constant update of Studio schedules
- Designer’s annual leaves coordination
- Prompt timesheet collection
- Understanding of how deadlines work
4) Executive Producer: An
executive producer is the head producer who oversees the creation of a radio
broadcast, music album or theater performance. An executive producer usually
works for a production company, but may work independently. Executive producers
work on the business side of production. They ensure that a production meets
goals, such as helping the station to remain competitive, projecting the
intended brand image of a company and introducing new concepts or ideas.
5)
Producer:
Radio Producers work in
both speech-based and music Radio. Although they play a key role in creating
what is heard by listeners, they are not usually heard on air themselves. They
are responsible for creating and co-ordinating the content of Radio programmes,
and may also have responsibility for the content of related websites or other
mobile platforms. As well as managing the creative process they are often
closely involved with the business and technical aspects of programmes.
6) Microphone Operator: Set
up, operates, and maintains the electronic equipment used to transmit radio
programs. Control audio equipment to regulate volume level and quality of sound
during radio and television broadcasts. Some of the responsibilities of
microphone operators include:
Ø Report equipment problems, ensure that repairs are made, and
make emergency repairs to equipment when necessary and possible.
Ø Observe monitors and converse with station personnel to
determine audio levels and to ascertain that programs are airing.
Ø Monitor strength, clarity, and reliability of incoming and
outgoing signals, and adjust equipment as necessary to maintain quality
broadcasts.
Ø Control audio equipment to regulate the volume and sound
quality during radio broadcasts.
Ø Monitor and log transmitter readings.
7) Artists/Characters:
Performers entertain audiences. They may inform or educate them,
move them to laughter, or to tears. They contribute their various skills and
talents to a variety of genres, including Television, Film, Theatre, Radio and
other media. Professional Performers are trained, paid for their work, and must
fulfil their contractual obligations, as opposed to amateur performers who take
part for fun, and without payment. Personality is central to Performers' roles;
they need to be able to relate to their audiences, and involve them in their
performances.
8)
Continuity
Announcer: a person on
radio who makes linking announcements between programmes to give continuity to
a radio broadcast channel. continuity announcers are people who are employed to
introduce programmes on radio network, to promote forthcoming programmes on the
station, to cross-promote programmes on the broadcaster's other stations where
applicable and, sometimes, to provide information relating to the programme
just broadcast.
9) Newscaster:
A news presenter (also
known as newsreader, newscaster, anchorman or anchorwoman, news anchor or simply anchor) is a person who presents news during a news program on the radio. A newscaster (short for "news
broadcaster") is a presenter of news bulletins. This
person may be working in the field of broadcast journalism as a journalist and electronic news
gathering (ENG).
10) Editor: A
person who edits is called an editor. By editing, we mean preparing a news
report for publication, telecast or broadcast. Editing is a process by which a
report is read, corrected, modified, value-added, polished, improved and made
better for publication. Condensation is also part of editing.
Radio is divided into different categories which include the uses, characteristics, objectives.
ReplyDeleteThe uses: It involves the process by which messages are gotten from a reliable source to the listeners.
The characteristics: It is a very portable medium in the sense that it is very easy to carry your radio everywhere you go, it can be kept in your pocket but you cant do that to other devices eg television.
We also have the objectives: which is to inform in the sense that it is not everybody that can afford to buy a television but with the little they have a radio can be bought from it through that way they will be able to know what is happening around them.
ANDE OLUWAFUNKE OREOLUWA MASS COMMUNICATION 200LVL CALEB UNIVERSITY IMOTA LAGOS.
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