Message on World Radio Day 2013

MD. AZIZUL ALAM AL AMIN

By Md. Azizul Alam Al-Amin

My dearest fellow DX-er, radio hobbyists, radio personalities, radio activists,  amateur radio operators and last but not least those who associated with radio, I offer my heartiest felicitations and respect to all of you.

Let me introduce myself I am 39 years old youngman from Rajshahi, Bangladeh. I have been dedicated to radio hobbyist since last more than two and half decade.

You know, following a request from the Spanish Radio Academy, UNESCO Executive Board include an agenda item on the proclamation of World Radio Day. And on November 2011 the 36^th General conference of UNESCO approved the creation of World Radio Day. My sincere gratitude to the Spanish Radio Academy and UNESCO for recognized the importance of Radio.

I would like to show my deepest respect and salute and pay tribute to those who made their efforts to invent and developed this medium of communication. We know many of them are not alive but all are live in our heart. My sincere condolence to them as well as those radio reporters, presenters and supporters who passed away. May their soul keep in peace! 

Richard Feynman, the winner of Nobel Prize for physics said "From a long view of the history of mankind - seen from, say, ten thousand years from now, there can be little doubt that the most significant event of the 19th century will be judged as Maxwell's discovery the laws of electrodynamics",. We know Maxwell’s equations is the very foundation on which great scientists like Heinrich Hertz, Jagdish Chandra Bose, Alexander Stepanovich Popov, Karl Ferdinand Braun, Nikola Tesla and Guglielmo Marconi worked tirelessly and unfurled to the human civilization the fruition of science & technology of electromagnetic radiation or in simpler terms 'radio waves', which made a breakthrough to bring the world as a ‘global village’.

When Marconi first transmitted wireless signals over a distance of three kilometers more than a century years ago, in 1896 no one could suspect the global triumph that ultimately awaited the new technology. We are now faced with a wave of changes within the media environment. With vast technological advances in telecommunications, we now exist in a multi-media age, in which the integration of media and communications has eliminated pre-existing media boundaries.

 

Radio is not only entertaining us, it also contribute in the event of natural disasters. In these events communication is the prime factor and radio played a vital role, as it remains accessible, when other modes of communication go down. Professional and amateur radio operators can provide an effective communication platform. We have seen during Hurricane Katrina in Miami Florida on August 25, 2005, more than a thousand radio amateurs from all over the U.S. converged on the Gulf Coast in an effort to provide emergency communications assistance. In 2004 Tsunami in Indonesia, Amateur radio operator also helped to spread news of the disaster around the world.  On March 11, 2011 while the Great East Japan Earthquake hit, an Earthquake Early Warning was sent to all NHK channels and within 90-seconds, NHK switched all of its eight televisions and radio channels to emergency news and continued from there providing information on the earthquake and tsunami. To coverage this event, 500 to 600 NHK personnel were sent to the Tohoku region, making a total of more than 1,100 NHK staff operating in the region. The footage, which also came from 50 satellite broadcast trucks, was provided free to broadcasters around the globe, some of which simply switched over to live feeds from NHK. NHK started to run 24-hour non-stop news coverage, which continued for eight days by mobilizing human and technical resources, and used all media to transmit vital information to the public”.

However, nowadays international broadcasters are facing many difficulties to survive due to the frequent budget cuts. Elimination or reduce of various services, especially for short-wave broadcast is a regular phenomenon. We have seen recently BBC, VOA, RNW, RCI the major global broadcasters has forced to cut a huge portion of their budget. In the last decade there are huge numbers of radio station have closed or partially closed their services.  But the positive sign in broadcasting field an alternative media the Community Radio, which is growing very fast across the globe. It has bring an opportunity to implant this broadcasting tools to the grass-root level for local community, particularly for the third world’s countries, such as Africa and Asia where poverty and lack of infrastructure run  abundant, as does the need for education and information. Considered to be an alternative, effective mass-media platform for the rural disadvantaged population to express their thoughts, community radio serves as an important stage to engage thoughts on social, cultural, environmental and other aspects. Giving a voice to the voiceless, and educating for a better tomorrow — an important aspect that should not be overlooked.

Like, the UNESCO, other concerned organizations, civil societies and well-wisher of Radio I devoted myself to make popularize and live the radio for so many years to come. To show my dedication I am trying my level best to make social awareness to spread the advantages and importance of radio.

Well, its time to celebrate, let’s all we celebrate the every nano-second of the 2^nd World Radio Day, 13 February 2013 and make a commitment to work together to keep live radio, the Most useful and affordable medium of communication.

Finally, I urged the UNESCO, as well as other international body like EU, EBU, ABU, and other developed countries, please formed a fund to develop radio and establish ‘Radio Prize’ something like Noble prize.

Thank you very much, 

Best regards,

MD. AZIZUL ALAM AL-AMIN
E-65, GOURHANGA, GHORAMARA
RAJSHAHI-6100
BANGLADESH

e-mail : alamin@librabd.net

Bolg : http://sw-radio.blogspot.com