TACT, ETIQUETTE DISPLAYS HUMILITY

Sir,

Kindly allow me to voice out my and other members of our society’s concerns at the (at times) unprofessional manner some of our radio announcers display while on air, especially in the SiSwati channel.

I am especially concerned at the manner of approach at times directed at listeners by some programme hosts, specifically during phone-in programmes.

There is a worrying tendency by some hosts to be subtly or openly impolite to callers, by being impatient, curt and losing sight of the fact that we are not all literate and do not possess attributes of being eloquent and adept enough at posing questions with clarity. The tone of welcome and being courteous to a caller while he/she tries to put together and across his/her thoughts, betrays some announcers’ attitudes that the caller is wasting the hosting time. Of course, I am quite aware that programmes run on limited time, but use of tact and etiquette displays humility.
Correct me if I am wrong, but one of the basic ethics of radio announcing is, in my shallow mindedness:

*    Being polite to listeners
*   Being professional; treat everyone with respect
*    Not talking down people - give a caller time to put his point across
*   Being objective; respect; competence and allowing diversity of opinion of different people.
Some announcers are dismally failing to adhere to such simple and logical ethics. In my naivety, I know that any radio station belongs to taxpayers. - In simple language, it belongs to the listeners - not the other way round. Once it becomes a personal fiefdom of an announcer, then it loses listeners - and inevitably, revenue.

I am quite cognisant of the fact that some radio announcers began their careers donkey years back, and that human nature being what it is, if one has been working too long for one organisation, if not careful enough, tends to behave like he or she owns the place.
Consequently, I put the blame squarely on SBIS’s management. Do promote the old horses and give a chance to the young, vibrant and fresh of ideas radio announcers. I am impressed with the vibrancy and objectivity displayed by some announcers in the English Channel.
Without taking anything away from them, some display an impressive and high level of professionalism. Way to go!

We need our announcers to engage us  listeners on meaningful, logical and topical issues. There is a lot happening locally and outside our borders. Introduce vibrant phone-in debates. Draw out information from listeners. Engage us on world issues and trends. There’s a looming conflict between Trump and North Korea, which if it goes beyond the current rhetoric, has the propensity to escalate into a nuclear war - it will affect the whole world.

Engage us on such global issues instead of being monotonous in your presentation skills.
We are not interested in announcers telling us about their journey back home after knock off; or on any gossip doing rounds on social media etc.,- that is stuff for tabloids and gossip columns. Also they must refrain from discussing personal issues with friends or acquaintances on air - it is unprofessional.

Our radio announcers need to be skilful at generating ideas, think and have the ability to be creative and be pros in communicating with us listeners. Marginalising callers during phone-in programmes reflects badly on the intellectual acumen of the announcer.
I can single out quite a few who are lacking on the above but that would be discouraging. We are all fallible, but taking constructive criticism in your stride is a sign of maturity.

Finally, may I kindly implore guests who are invited in talk-show programmes, especially in the SiSwati channel, to be tolerant of questions posed by listeners. It is discouraging to a caller if the host and the guest will, with a haughty attitude, brush aside caller’s questions, with traces of arrogance and failure to adequately address callers concerns.

One of the most important talk-shows which come to mind is one that discusses health issues, hosted by one veteran male announcer, where the etiquette of the regular guest when responding to callers, leaves a lot to be desired.
Please understand that we are not all literate, therefore, kindly indulge us if we sound gibberish and less informed about health matters - that’s why we phone in.

To the station’s journalists, please lift up the standard on your news content. Our news content is drab, monotonous and concentrates mostly on government’s issues. The SiSwati channel is more of a community radio than  a national broadcaster.
Again, may our announcers refrain from being predictable in their music taste? Once I hear the music group Ojai’s or London Beat’s songs, I know so and so is on the airwaves. Please bring back the Rock music programme on weekends. Rock music lovers miss Phesheya Dube, hope.

Alex Lucky Nxumalo

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