Sri Lanka possesses Asia's (and the world's) oldest radio station. Radio Ceylon used to be the name of the station. It grew into one of the world's most prestigious broadcasting institutions. The Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation is now the name of the company.
When the Telegraph Department began broadcasting in Ceylon on an experimental basis in 1923, just three years after broadcasting in Europe, Sri Lanka made Asian broadcasting history.
A modest transmitter created by Telegraph Department engineers using the radio equipment of a captured German submarine was used to broadcast gramophone music from a tiny chamber in the Central Telegraph Office.
This radio trial was a big success, and a regular broadcasting service was established only three years later, on December 16, 1925. Edward Harper, who arrived in Ceylon in 1921 as Chief Engineer of the Telegraph Office, was the first person in the country to actively push radio. With broadcasting services launched just three years after the BBC in the United Kingdom, Sri Lanka holds a significant role in the history of broadcasting.
Together with British and Ceylonese radio enthusiasts on the island, Edward Harper launched the first trial broadcast and founded the Ceylon Wireless Club. Because of his pioneering efforts, expertise, and resolve to succeed, Edward Harper has been dubbed "the Father of Broadcasting in Ceylon." It was made possible by Edward Harper and his fellow Ceylonese radio enthusiasts.
In the 1950s and 1960s, Radio Ceylon commanded the Indian subcontinent's airwaves. The station grew to become South Asia's most popular radio network. Radio Ceylon, for example, had millions of listeners in India.
Announcers such as Livy Wijemanne, Vernon Corea, Pearl Ondaatje, Tim Horshington, Greg Roskowski, Jimmy Bharucha, Mil Sansoni, Eardley Peiris, Shirley Perera, Bob Harvie, Christopher Greet, Prosper Fernando, Ameen Sayani (of Binaca Geetmala fame), Karunaratne Abeysekera, and S.P.Mylvaganam (the first
The Hindi Service further contributed to Radio Ceylon's image as the Indian subcontinent's market leader. Sunil Dutt, Gopal Sharma The station's Indian announcers included Ameen Sayani and Hamid Sayani.
Clifford Dodd, an Australian administrator and broadcasting expert dispatched to Ceylon under the Colombo Plan, led the Commercial Service of Radio Ceylon to great success. Dodd hand-picked some of South Asia's most skilled radio hosts. They went on to become celebrities in the Indian subcontinent. This was the heyday of Radio Ceylon.
In the late 1970s and 1980s, the Sri Lankan government liberalized the market by permitting private enterprises to establish radio and television stations.
The Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC), the Independent Television Network (ITN), and the allied radio station Lak-handa are the three public service broadcasters in Sri Lanka. With the private sector, they were up against a lot of competition.
Private broadcasting institutions such as Telshan Network (Pvt) Ltd, (TNL, Maharaja Television -TV, Sirasa TV, and Shakthi TV, and EAP Network (Pvt) Ltd – known as Swarnawahini – have all been established on the island as a result of the transition.
In Sri Lanka, a new generation of radio stations emerged in the 1990s, including the 'Hiru' station. Public service broadcasters, such as the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation, established its own FM division in the 1980s.
Radio Data System (RDS), which delivers written text information about programs being aired, as well as traffic warnings, precise time, and other teletext services, was introduced in 1987 by stations in the European Broadcasting Union.
SLBC's domestic FM network now broadcasts six radio stations around the country:
- 'Sinhala Swadeshiya Sevaya' means 'Sinhala Swadeshiya Sevaya' (Sinhala National Service)
- National Service in Tamil
- Service in English
- City FM is a radio station that broadcasts in (Sinhala)
- Thendral Velenda Sevaya' (Sinhala Commercial Service) (Tamil Commercial Service)
Sri Lanka commemorated its 80th anniversary in December 2005. The Sri Lanka Broadcasting Company commemorated forty years as a public broadcasting corporation on January 5, 2007.
Several lakh Indians are addicted to the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation's All-Asia station, also known as Radio Ceylon. It's a daily habit for some, more obsessive than their morning cup of tea. Others praise the company's professionalism and polished appearance. Several lakh Indians are addicted to the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation's (SLBC) All-Asia station, often known as Radio Ceylon, whether they are foot-tapping to its generous dose of bubble-gum pop music or absorbing its scholarly political analyses.
What draws Indian listeners to a radio station broadcasting from a small island with a population of less than 2% of India's? They claim that making comparisons is a waste of time. However, a rivalry between All India Radio (AIR) and its Sri Lankan equivalent would inevitably arise. AIR appears to be bureaucratic, stodgy, unimaginative, and old fashioned, whereas Radio Sri Lanka appears to be an informal, highly professional, on-the-go, and tacky organization.
Jimmy Bharucha, the 45-year-old head of the English department of the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation, says: "Every day, we receive 2,000 mails. And India accounts for 99 percent of them."
Commercial Radio: Bharucha is an institution in his own right. He started as an announcer for the SLBC 27 years ago and has virtually grown up with the station. "Our station was Asia's first commercial shortwave station. When we first started in 1950, we had 200 people. There are now around 1,700 people working for the company."
The Corporation's Colombo headquarters aren't very spectacular. The structure might use a fresh coat of paint. About the administrative wing, there is a relaxed kind of disarray and a general weariness in the air. Nothing could possibly be more deceiving. The broadcasting crew is professional to their fingertips, despite their casual appearance.
Sri Lanka has a state-of-the-art broadcasting system. Radio is a potent weapon in the mass media arsenal in the absence of television (which would debut on the island in the early 1980s). In May of this year, Sri Lanka has one million licensed radio sets. By August, the number had risen to 1,446,611, and Bharucha claims that 250,000 additional licenses had been issued in the last two months. With a population of 14 million people, this implies that nearly every family possesses a radio. Another statistic: at any given time of day, 65 percent of the population listens to the radio.
The SLBC is on the verge of bankruptcy financially. "In recent months, revenue from radio licences has increased dramatically," says Eamon Kariyakarawana, the Corporation's 48-year-old chairman. License revenue averaged SLRs 10 million (Rs 50 lakh) annually when Kariyakarawana took over as chairman in February. "Our earnings have totaled SLRs 40 million (Rs 2 crore) in the last eight months alone," Business Manager Jayastha Senanayake said.
Advertising revenue has also climbed significantly. The SLBC now makes around SLRs 2 million (Rs 10 lakh) per month, compared to SLRs 1 million (Rs 5 lakh) per month in 1977. As Bharucha puts it, "In the All-Asia service, we recently upped our advertising rates by 100%. There is no time for (new) advertising at this moment."
Radio Sri Lanka, although being a state-owned monopoly, takes an autonomous political stance. The government does not restrict broadcasts that are critical of the ruling party. Executives at the SLBC, on the other hand, see the need for greater autonomy and would welcome the establishment of a private broadcasting body.
Fine Equipment: The sophisticated equipment used by Radio Sri Lanka is one of its most distinguishing features. Listeners in Southern India frequently comment on how much crisper the reception is than AIR's New Delhi feed. R. E. H. Perera, Superintending Engineer, says: "The SLBC operates two major transmission stations, as well as a backup unit and a number of regional transmitters. The Corporation is now developing a medium wave growth program."
The All-Asia Service transmits for 63 hours per week, whereas the transmissions for Southeast Asia and the Middle East run for seven hours each week. In addition to English, the SLBC transmits in Hindi (70 hours per week) and Tamil to Asia (a weekly total of 112 hours on channels 1 and 2). In Southall, England, Hindi transmissions on the All-Asia beam are often picked up. Listeners in Scandinavia send letters about the programs that are picked up there on a regular basis. "When Hillary reached the Everest top, he could only catch one station - Radio Ceylon," Bharucha recalls.
Dedicated: Above all, it is the individuals behind the microphones who have allowed the SLBC to compete with radio stations from more developed and wealthier countries. Nihal Bharati, a 38-year-old announcer and disc jockey whose powerful voice and verbal pyrotechnics are well-known among Indian listeners who tune in to his Saturday morning music shows, is a typical SLBC product. He's been with the station for almost a decade and is one of its most popular hosts.
The Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation has well proven the popular economic wisdom: Small is Beautiful, with men like Bharati, Bharucha ("I am a bachelor, perhaps because I am wedded to this place") and Kariyakarawana (a former journalist who is entirely dedicated to his current profession). -Sri Lanka, for the sake of argument
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