WILL DIGITIZATION BE THE DEATH OF RADIO JOURNALISM?

Radio presenter Richard Dean speaks on the impact of information technology on radio journalism

“You need to be a multimedia journalist and content creator. You need all the tools in your box. You need to know how to be able to edit audio, videos and understand the principle of screen making.”

Dubai- Dubai Eye Radio Journalist and Presenter, Richard Dean, states that radio journalism has a bright future ahead of it in the UAE, despite the changes in technology which has had a negative impact on the industry in most parts of the world. This is mainly due to the high numbers of the car-based commuters in the region, he explains. Research conducted in 2010 showed that 91% of UAE commuters used cars as their primary form of transportation. This meant that most people were listening to the radio. However, he adds that this is bound to change if new technology that allows music and podcasts to be readily available in people’s cars is introduced.

In terms of social media, recent research showed that 97.48% of the UAE population use Facebook, which is approximately 9.30 million people and 80.92% use Youtube, which is 7.72 million people.With the rise of utilization of social media and online platforms, Dean states that the first thing the ARN did to adapt to the changing environment was to place all its contents, in particular podcasts on social media and other online platforms.

Despite some of the podcasts being downloaded, social media demanded more visual content. Hence, the Arabian Radio Networks incorporated video cameras in their studios which would record interviews and then shared on the social media platforms to maximize views, he adds. Richard explains that the main difference between radio journalism and other forms of is that journalism such as writing is that radio is a “medium of impression” while print is a “medium of record”. He adds that print involves incorporating a lot of details while in radio there is slightly less details incorporated to news. Radio as he explains involves telling a story in people’s minds.

Another tactic that journalist are utilizing in remaining in the public eye is the representation of presenters and journalists as celebrities. Richard Dean says that there “is no moral jeopardy in that”. He says that news presenters have always been viewed as celebrities giving examples of high profile presenters such as Walter Cronkite, a television anchor for CBS evening news approximately 50 years ago and Richard Quest currently on CNN.

His advice to aspiring journalist is to not limit themselves to one platform of media. He states,“You need to be a multimedia journalist and content creator. You need all the tools in your box. You need to know how to be able to edit audio, videos and understand the principle of screen making.” He stresses that the most important principle to be a successful journalist in the practice of the fundamental rules of storytelling which have endured the test of time.