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Monday, October 11, 2004
Nalzaro: The state of radio broadcasting
By BOBBY G. NALZARO
CLARK FIELD — I am here in this special economic zone and tourist destination in Pampanga attending the 7th national conference of the Kapisanan ng mga Broadkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) held at the Montevista Resort, inside the vast and beautifully designed golf course of the Mimosa Leisure and Estate.
The theme for this year’s two-day conference attended by various KBP local chapter chairmen and regional coordinators is: “Taking the Higher Ground in Responsible Broadcasting.” Government Media Secretary Cerge Remonde introduced this national conference during his first term as KBP national chairman until now.
Local chapter chairmen rendered their reports about the activities, accomplishments and concerns of their respective chapters. As I listened to their reports, I observed that the broadcast industry has almost the same concern especially in the economic aspect anywhere in the country.
Like any business endeavor, radio broadcasting is one of the most affected industries in the face of the economic crisis that our country is experiencing today. The number one factor that triggered the bad state of radio broadcasting is the sudden reduction of the advertising budget by multinational companies.
Radio gets only a little percentage of the advertising budget. The biggest slice of the multi-billion advertising money goes to television and the print media.
Other new media like cinema, billboard and internet share the pie with radio. Because of this economic debacle, some provincial radio stations, especially the independent ones, are forced to close shop or adopt programs format with a lesser budget.
Even the big networks are also affected by the economic crunch. Revenue shortfall has forced them to retrench, lay off personnel or offer their employees attractive early retirement packages. Some have phased out their big budgeted drama production and even reduced the number of their broadcast hours to save electricity.
The threat to the lives of media men, especially in the provincial areas, was also taken up in the conference. The recent killings of media people have raised an alarm in the profession. Unfortunately, most of the killings remain unsolved.
Expressing concern for their safety and protection, some provincial broadcasters asked KBP national officials to urge the government to put pressure on police authorities for the immediate solution of the killings.
Shiela Coronel, executive director of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ), gave a “post mortem” of media’s performance during the May national and local elections. In her talks, Coronel acknowledged that media was a major influence on how people voted. She observed that some media entities were really openly supporting national candidates, adding that media’s vigilance has contributed to the peaceful and honest holding of the elections.
(e- mail: Bobby@sunstar.com.ph. text: 09193181404)
(October 11, 2004 issue)
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