ASIA

Pajhwok Afghan News agency celebrated its 20th anniversary last week at its headquarters in Kabul.Pajhwok was founded in 2003 and is Afghanistan’s largest independent news agency with eight regional bureaus and a wide network of reporters all over the countryIn addition to 24-hour general news reporting, it also publishes special investigative reports about important topics relating to Afghanistan, including political corruptionPajhwok founder and editor-in-chief Danish Karokhel thanked Pajhwok followers and readers for supporting the agency, saying this support enabled the organization to complete its 20-year journey successfully.“We once again renew our promise with the people that we will present the real picture of the events and our country and convey the voice of our suffering people to the authorities and the world with full trust.”Abdul Qadir Munsef, responsible for managing the agency, told a ceremony marking 20th anniversary of the outlet that Pajhwok completed its 20-year journey with full professionalism. He said during this period Pajhwok remained committed to religious and cultural values, national interests and journalistic principles.He asked Pajhwok employees to further strengthen their resolve in this way, consider the mentioned values and principles and convey the facts to the people and the voice of the people to the government and officials with full accuracy, impartiality and trustworthiness.Independent Journalists’ Union head Hujjatullah Mujaddadi said Pajhwok carried out its activities in the past 20 years with impartiality and observing all principles of journalism.He said despite ups and downs during this period, Pajhwok’s leadership and workers refused to bow down to pressure from any side and continued their work in a professional manner.Committee for Protection of Journalists head Abdul Qadim Ghaus said Pajhwok indeed was the first and only private news agency that started its work in a standard and professional manner and covered news to its readers from different regions of the country.“In the history of Afghanistan’s media, Pajhwok emerged the only private news agency that worked on what the people needed and what the society of Afghanistan needed and continues its professional work until today.”Hundreds of Pajhwok followers and readers also commented through posts published on its 20th anniversary and praised the agency.Mohammad Nasim Shakir wrote: “Pajhwok is one of the best standard and professional news agencies in Afghanistan… the only neutral media for raising the voice of Afghans.”He said journalists who gave priority to the voice of the people and exposed the powerful and usurpers and officials for the sake of national interests. The agency reported inhuman actions.”Hamtullah Mohmand wrote: “Congratulations. Pajhwok is a reliable address in Afghanistan, which works mostly in the research field.”Sarwar Khairy wrote: “I congratulate the Pajhwok family on their 20th anniversary. Pajhwok brought about a revolution in the media of Afghanistan 20 years ago and it was able to report with full impartiality and journalistic principles. I wish more success to Pajhwok.” […]

According to a Media Prima Audio (MPA), its stations had a total weekly listenership of 5.6 million unique individuals, an increase of over 100,000 listeners compared to last year in the latest listenership results from the Nielsen Consumer & Media View (CMV) survey.The survey covered the period from January to December 2023 and evaluated ‘Last Week Listening’ among individuals aged 15 and above across Peninsular Malaysia.Hot FM remained the country’s leading radio station for the third consecutive year, with nearly four million weekly listeners.Fly FM maintained its position as the second most popular English-language station in Malaysia, with 2.15 million weekly listeners.Kool 101, another Malay-language station, has experienced remarkable growth. Since rebranding, it has attracted 234,000 listeners in just six months by capitalising on current and trending social stories.Eight FM, the Chinese-language station under MPA, continues to attract 506,000 weekly listeners.Nazri Noran, CEO of Media Prima Audio, said: “We are dedicated to excellence in creating content for multiple platforms. As we embrace the digital era, our focus is on crafting exceptionally engaging content that resonates with fans across all our brands, reaching them wherever they engage with us.” […]

According to reports by Committee To Protect Journalists (CPJ)  and Afghanistan Journalists Center (AFJC), three radio journalists were arrested by the provincial directorate of the Taliban-controlled Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in Afghanistan on April 21.The journalists – Ismail Saadat of Naz FM Radio, Wahidullah Masum of Iqra FM Radio, and Ehsanullah Tasal of Wolas Ghag, were detained after being summoned and questioned about broadcasting music and talking to female callers during the holiday of Eid al-Fitr earlier this month.On April 23, the department of virtue and vice in Khost province confirmed this through a message in the joint group of this department and journalists on WhatsApp: “Media were advised multiple times not to include background music in programs or to make phone calls in entertainment programs with women as it is forbidden. Those who violated this order were sentenced to prison by the department and will be charged for not implementing the laws of the Islamic Emirate (Taliban) and will be introduced to the court in the future.”The Taliban outlawed playing and listening to music when they retook control of Afghanistan in August 2021.Last month, the Taliban police chief in Khost Province banned women and girls from phoning broadcasters, the AFJC said, adding that female listeners sometimes called in to ask questions on educational programs.Afghanistan is the only country in the world where girls are banned from high school.“The detention of Afghan journalists Ismail Saadat, Wahidullah Masum, and Ehsanullah Tasal is only the latest example of the Taliban’s ruthless suppression of the press since the group returned to power in 2021,” said Carlos Martinez de la Serna, CPJ’s program director, in New York “The Taliban must immediately and unconditionally release all detained journalists and allow the media to operate without restrictive measures like bans on women callers.”  AFJC demanded the immediate and unconditional release of the journalists and called for the cancellation of directives that severely restrict media freedom in the country.Photo: AFJC […]

Content from BPRMuch has been written about how radio has reinvented itself over the years, most notably how it transformed because of the introduction of television, with radio moving from a medium people primarily consumed in the evening to a medium mainly consumed during the morning and workday.Radio’s enduring attribute has been its ability to wrap around the lives of people, listening being something that does not prevent a person from doing other things unlike reading or watching. No other form of media has moulded itself to the way people live, like radio has.For decades radio has been principally “socialised” as a source of information and entertainment at the beginning and end of the working day. This is where radio has performed best and been most securely anchored to the daily routine of adults.The last few years has however created a “decoupling” of the way radio is socialised. First, there are more audio and entertainment choices diluting usage, second, the way people work and think about work and life has changed for many. This has created a much more complex matrix of listening behaviour and motivation. It would be fair to say that during the last four years all the listening balls were thrown into the air, and we are now starting to see where they are landing.All the evidence points to a resocialisation of radio amongst many adult listeners which presents both challenges and opportunities. Some key issues include:
More people using more radio stations for shorter periods.
Many people, no longer starting their day with radio.
More people using radio on weekends.
Fewer people listening to radio every day.
More people starting their radio listening day after 9am.
The most telling finding however is that relative to all the other listening choices adult listeners have radio is increasingly distinguished by its combination of music, personality, information, and localism. Importantly, most adults prefer this listening “mix” as a backdrop to their daily lives and get annoyed when their favourite radio station does something to screw it up and they have to find satisfaction in something else. The majority of adults who move from radio to other audio are “pushed”.  The good news is that they become equally disenchanted with other audio after a while and return to radio.What defines “localism” however has changed. It is not just local news, name-dropping suburbs, and community service announcements. It is now much more about conveying a sense of shared experience with the listener.Understanding the resocialisation of radio in your market and why people behave the way they do is more than critical, it defines your future.By Wayne Clouten, BPR […]

The University of Santo Tomas (UST) recently welcomed the founders of the International Student Broadcasting Championship (ISBC) – Phillip Vinciullo, Annwen Burrows, and Marcel Marais – as part of their Asia tour. The visit highlight was the Forward Together: Metro Manila Campus Broadcasting Networking Summit, which was a testament to the growing influence of student media on a global scale.
Hosted by UST, the Forward Together summit, organized by the MICE and Events students of the UST College of Commerce and Business Administration and TMN, brought together universities from across Manila. The event featured engaging panel discussions, led by Assistant Director of the communications bureau Faye Martel, delving into “Global Trends in Campus Broadcasting,” and exploring the vibrant landscape of campus media.
 ISBC Founder Phillip Vinciullo remarked: “The student summit provided the perfect platform to discuss global trends and explore the current media landscape and industry opportunities post campus media. Additionally, it was an honour to hand over the inaugural 2023 ISBC Station of the Year trophy in person to the UST Tiger Radio team.”

Co-Founder Annwen Burrows emphasized the impact of the recognition, stating: “The award ceremony was a proud moment handing over the inaugural trophy and highlighting the hard work and dedication of the Tiger Radio team. The ISBC team had a fantastic time engaging with the UST Tiger Radio team, even participating in their Tiger Rush program and exchanging social media content with a fun Aussie snacks vs. Filipino snacks challenge.”
During their tour across the region, ISBC embarked on a journey of collaboration and development, visiting esteemed colleges and universities such as Temasek Polytechnic in Singapore and Sunway University in Kuala Lumpur, among others. Their engagements extended beyond academic institutions, as they also met with major media groups, identifying trends, needs, and laying the groundwork and opportunities for an exciting ISBC 2024.

The Philippines leg served as the conclusion of the ISBC Asia tour, which encompassed exciting visits to Singapore and Malaysia. Co-Founder Marcel Marais shared his enthusiasm for the upcoming ISBC 2024, extending an invitation to students from colleges and universities worldwide to stay informed through ISBC’s social media channels and website.
 “For all the details for ISBC 2024, visit ISBChampionship on all social handles or visit ISBC.CO,” Marais said, emphasising the importance of staying connected and engaged as preparations for #ISBC24 unfold.
The visit of ISBC to UST epitomised the company’s commitment to fostering excellence in student media on an international scale and its passion for bridging the gap between graduates and industry and developing the landscape of media education and innovation. […]

The Indian Embassy in Kuwait said on Monday that the first-ever Hindi radio broadcast had started in the country.The program will air every Sunday on Kuwait Radio on FM 93.3 and FM 96.3 from 8.30 pm to  9 pm starting April 21.With around one million population, Indians are the largest expat community in Kuwait and both the countries enjoy friendly relations.India has been a trading partner of Kuwait and until 1961 the Indian rupee was legal tender in the gulf country. The year 2021-22 marked the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.Photo: Twitter […]