RFE/RL Radio Listeners Cherish Platform 'With A Democratic Soul'
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Ahead of UNESCO World Radio Day February 13, we asked our listeners in five of the 26 countries where we broadcast what radio means to them, and the response was overwhelming. We received hundreds of calls, emails, social media messages and SMSs from listeners from Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Georgia, and Moldova telling us that the radio, and RFE/RL’s language services in particular, are an indispensable source of news and information for them. Here is a small selection of their comments.
Pakistan Service: Known locally as “Radio Mashaal,” is a public service broadcaster providing an alternative to extremist propaganda in Pakistan's tribal regions on radio and web.
I like Radio Mashaal very much. I am uneducated, but when I sit with my friends they ask me, “how is it you talk so differently when you are not educated like us?” I reply to my friends and other girls that it’s because I listen to Radio Mashaal. Radio Mashaal is like my mother, who gave me knowledge and awareness and taught me humanity. I’ve listened to Radio Mashaal and Voice of America’s Deewa Radio from childhood. I like all Mashsall programs, including news. My favorite shows are those featuring messages from listeners and your health show, which educates me about health issues. I feel like a doctor myself after listening to this program.
--Kulsoom Wafa, a female listener from Khyber Pashtunkhwa Province, Pakistan.
I’ve liked radio since childhood, but Radio Mashaal is the best because it gives voice to the people from the tribal areas and informs those in power about our problems and issues.
-- Noor Rahmad Dawa, a listener based in Dubai who is originally from North Waziristan, Pakistan.
The importance of your radio is so much. I am living out of country right now and there is no telephone line in our home in Waziristan. My family listen my voice when I call in to your radio shows and they know that I am all right. The only source I have to inform them about me is Radio Mashaal.
-- Zeer Mohammad Suliman Khel, a male listener from Waziristan.
Radio programs are so beneficial and useful for us. It gives us education, knowledge, and wisdom. We listen to your radio very keenly. As girls we are not allowed to go out and talk to anyone, and your radio programs give us a chance to come forward and take part in discussions through call-in shows.
-- Rohana Rehan, a female listener from Baluchistan Province, Pakistan.
Iran Service: Known locally as “Radio Farda,” broadcasts to Persian-speaking audiences on radio, satellite TV, and web. As Farda is officially banned by the government, listeners contacted us anonymously.
It has been 10 years now that Radio Farda has been my companion. Whether when I am in Iran or outside of the country, I love it dearly. I believe it is the only place in which people are to allowed to talk easily and freely, and I think a democratic soul guides Radio Farda.
*****
You provide such appealing entertainment for the miserable people of Iran who are not among those seven or eight million close to the regime. In taxis, shops, everywhere, you’ll find people listening to Radio Farda. A reporter should come and make a report about the role of Radio Farda in Iran.
*****
I have a message for your listeners. I am a 70-year old man who has traveled the world. I’ve come to this conclusion: When there is Radio Farda, there is hope, and with the help of Farda (in Persian “Farda” means “tomorrow”) we can have a better tomorrow. Tune in to Radio Farda with hope and tell others to listen, to absorb, and to remain hopeful.
*****
We are two truck drivers who listen to you on the road. You wipe away our fatigue.
*****
My name is Azadeh and I’m calling from The Netherlands. I’ve wanted to call you for some time and express my gratitude, but I’ve been searching for the right words to tell you how good your programs are. I didn’t find the words that I wanted, with which I can say how much I like your programs, how much effort you put into this radio. I am truly thankful for you.
Georgian Service: Radio Tavisupleba is a rare source of balanced journalism in a country with two breakaway regions (Abkhazia and South Ossetia) and a press that consistently backs either the government or the opposition. They reach their audience on the radio 18 hours per day, as well as on TV and web.
During the August war in 2008, sixteen neighbors were in my house listening to radio and receiving information. There is an entire social group that depends on the radio--people who work in the fields and on farms and want to constantly receive information, instead of waiting for evening news on television.
--Nino, listener from Nikozi, a village on the de facto boarder with South Ossetia.
Radio is alive and we need it. We need RFE/RL. And we are going to continue needing it until we become part of the big, free world. However, even after this, there will be other kinds of problems with freedoms so RFE/RL will continue working, albeit differently, for us.
-- Emzar Jgerenaia, sociologist
I represent the generation that witnessed radio’s transformation from a box into a mobile application. I believe the development and spread of the Internet will make radio even more accessible for people. It definitely remains a source of information for many people, especially those who drive.
Nie kopiuję całości.
Z tekstu wynika że słuchacze nie są idoktrynowani religijnie, nie każe im się do radia modłów wznosić. Może w ich kulturze by to było - jakby do złotego cielca się modlić?
'Radio Mashaal', jest nadawcą usług publicznych, stanowiącym alternatywę dla ekstremistycznej propagandy w plemiennych regionach Pakistanu w radiu i Internecie.
Otrzymaliśmy setki telefonów, wiadomości e-mail, wiadomości z mediów społecznościowych i wiadomości SMS od słuchaczy z Iranu, Afganistanu, Pakistanu, Gruzji i Mołdawii, informując nas, że radio, a w szczególności usługi językowe RFE / RL, są niezbędnym źródłem wiadomości i informacji dla słuchaczy.
Skąd ten pomysł, inspiracja do tego tematu?
Z dawnych lat, kiedy się słuchało polskojęzycznych rozgłośni radiowych, nadających na Polskę.
Z dawnych lat, kiedy słuchało się pirackich rozgłośni radiowych z najnowszą wtedy muzyką,
bez pitolenia od rana do następnego rana, kapel góralskich i innych kapel regionalnych, włącznie z „Te nejlepší z české dechovky“
Generalnie chodzi mi o to, że wszystko zależy czego się słucha.
Nigdy nie interesowało mnie słuchanie:
- policji
- pogotowia ratunkowego
- straży pożarnej
Jedynym moim ogromnym zainteresowaniem, było słuchanie w nocy, powyżej pasma 80 metrów, niezwykle kwiecistej mowy oficerów radio, zazwyczaj zamustrowanych już wtedy u zagranicznych armatorów na ich kajakach. (początek lat 90-tych - do połowy tych lat) Szkoda że tego nie nagrywałem, a miałem niekiedy bardzo dobry RX Kenwood do dyspozycji.
Co tam kto nadaje poza pasmami amatorskimi, czy to legalne nadawanie? Tyle mnie interesuje co....
Takie niedomówienie HI
