The FM Boom

Video has not quite killed the radio star. Not even private cable television has managed to do that. In fact in Pakistan, new radio stars are cropping up daily — thanks to the FM boom. Radio always had a far greater reach than television in this country, but the surge in FM stations has contributed to a new revival, with over 80 such stations holding licenses.

Everyone seems to want to get in on the act: as many as 171 private sector companies applied for licenses in the first half of this year. In May, PEMRA (Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority) invited 82 to a bidding in Islamabad, where 32 licenses (in addition to the existing 50) were granted. There were biddings from around the country — Karachi, Peshawar, Hyderabad, Quetta, Faisalabad, Raiwind, Sadiqabad, Gujar Khan, Bhurban, Toba Tek Singh, Dadu, Kalar Kahar, and DI Khan.

So what does this mean for Pakistan? After all, most FM stations just dish out ‘ear candy’ - easy listening, music hits, recipes, chit chat... including callers (and their driver, cook, and neighbour) ringing up to make inane conversation. Just more commercialisation and encouragement of ‘the burger culture’, right? Maybe, but only to an extent.

FM is also providing valuable information through talk shows by experts on legal, psychological and health matters; one community radio station in Lakki Marwat near FATA raises awareness on modern farming practices like drip irrigation. In Karachi, at a discussion on organ transplant and organ donation, a caller who identified herself as a doctor, pointed out that those who denounce the practice as un-Islamic forget that technically even blood is defined as an organ. She was well informed and articulate, and most importantly, unafraid to air her views publicly. When people have the chance to do that, it creates a positive atmosphere, underscoring the importance of dialogue and rational discussion over violence. Even the ear candy shows have their moments — a DJ politely but firmly put in his place a caller who tried to flirt with her on a late night show. He is not going to try that again, and neither will many others who may mistakenly think that such women are ‘fair game’.

Efforts to introduce a more professional, journalistic element to FM will also make an impact. Peshawar University’s Journalism department has developed the country’s first university-based community radio station and broadcast journalism curriculum, helped by the international media-training organisation Internews. Internews also trained women journalists through the women and media NGO Uks, which produced a syndicated radio series called "Meri Awaz Suno" ("Hear My Voice"), focusing on issues such as health and education. Much of this activity is funded by the American aid organisation USAID, reflecting Washington’s post-9/11 anxiety about developing democratic values in this part of the world - but then, many of us have been fighting for years for these values, including a free and fair media.

The FM scene is becoming more interesting with the introduction of news and current programming - as in Mast 103 FM, which, besides the usual ear candy, broadcasts a live five-minute news bulletin hourly from BBC Urdu in London. Many BBC Urdu reporters and producers started out with the English print media in Pakistan - and it’s good to hear the voices of old friends like Mazhar Zaidi, Umber Khairi, Arif Shamim, and Haroon Rashid.

In addition, FM 103 stands out for its locally developed content, like current affairs talk shows. This, combined with the BBC news element has led to the sale of radio sets on Hall Road shooting up - so says Ayyaz Gull, Mast producer current affairs in Lahore. When the Pakistan India Peoples Forum for Peace and Democracy (PIPFPD) recently celebrated its tenth anniversary, attended by about 90 Indian delegates, Gull roped in a couple of them along with two Pakistani journalists for a 55-minute live talk show, hosted by the human rights activist Wajahat Masood.

The Indian participants - well-known journalist Gautam Navlakha from Delhi and activist Neera Adarkar from Mumbai — were amazed that FM radio in Pakistan was going beyond entertainment and music. "Our FM stations just dish out the usual chat masala," they said wistfully. "We could really learn from this."

The discussion, focusing as it did on India-Pakistan relations, took up such sensitive issues as Kashmir and nuclear weapons. Kumail Bukhari on the sound panel later confessed that he had kept his finger on the ‘mute’ button, in case anyone said anything that might get them into trouble. This did not happen, although no one minced words either in criticising both governments for standing in the way of the people’s aspirations for peace.

By providing such platforms for free and frank discussion, FM radio will make a valuable contribution to developing a culture of rational dialogue - it is this that will give real meaning to this new window to free expression in Pakistan.