In 2011, the United Nations dedicated a holiday to radio known as World Radio Day. Radio is the world’s most widely consumed media platform, even after over 100 years. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) celebrates this holiday every year on Feb. 13. Each World Radio Day has a different theme, with this year’s being Evolution, Innovation and Connection. This year’s World Radio Day also marks the tenth anniversary of the holiday.
The theme of Evolution, Innovation and Connection was selected to highlight how radio has managed to evolve and adapt to continue keeping people connected over the last 100+ years. Even through the age of the internet, radio has come out on top as the best way to keep listeners informed and engaged. Without the radio, many people would be left with no way to stay up to date on important events in society.
NSU RadioX’s co-music director Arleene Perez-Sifontes remarked that this year’s theme is a great way to reflect on how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected media, specifically radio.
“As broadcasters, it is up to us to report and communicate to the world what is going on. I know that many radio stations, such as RadioX, were caught in difficult times at the beginning of the pandemic and changes had to be made to be able to communicate to the world safely. We had to begin communicating in new ways digitally through phones, podcasts and other recordings,” said Perez-Sifontes.
She also commented that this theme encapsulates radio’s capability to evolve and adapt to new technologies. Building on the topic of radio’s resilience, Perez-Sifontes believes that radio will continue to thrive in the future.
“It was one of the first methods of communication we had and I think it will continue to be effective in the future. It is up to people like us to effectively communicate information to the world,” she said.
She then went on to talk about how radio has impacted her life.
“Before getting involved with the radio, I never expected it to have such a huge impact on my life. I was confused and conflicted. I didn’t know what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I thought I was going to be stuck doing something I didn’t feel passionate about… That was until I joined RadioX and realized how much it opened my eyes to a new community I didn’t know much about. I started at RadioX as a practicum student and now I’m the co-music director. Being a part of this community has helped me realize how passionate I am about radio broadcasting and also made me realize what I want to study in grad school. The teamwork happening behind the scenes to communicate to the world via a radio station is incredible and something I am so happy to be a part of,” said Perez-Sifontes.
On this World Radio Day, we all must take a moment to step back and reflect on how the radio has served our society. Even though many people have moved on and rely on television, the internet and other platforms to hear new music, talk shows and world events, society cannot neglect radio and everything it has done for us.
