Week Two: What is interactive radio?

radio gurune our interactive radio programmes are of phone insurance and field voices sharing their opinions and knowledge on the topic to be discussed on other special farmer programs or health or nutrition listeners could use the flashing way and we call out to them .texting is also one tool for mostly the youth programmes. the use of other social media tools are not very much used due to poor connectivity. Live discussion programmes is the phone that we get more women contributing. the other social media tools such aas FB,etc is less because our greater target audiences are rural and sub urban people even though the station is right in the heart of the capital of Upper East Region, Ghana.
Interactive radio is the process of the station always engaging community people to share their stories and comment on other issues they have heard from the station too.

Good piece it seems we are limiting the discussion on posing topics for on air discussions and allowing listeners to contribble by phoning etc etc Interactive radio involves more research and engaging the listeners sharing their opinions and learning new knowledge or information that will either motivate them to act or use it for life changes Like stated FGM is still practice in some parts of Africa because it’s a behavoiur change issue or cultural and needs continues discussion involving the practitioner and survivors. We will get there and save many girls

I think interactive radio is broadcasting that brings the gatekeepers (producers, presenters and reporters especially) in a blended (or conflicting?) contact and interaction that produces the intended balance in message productions. Technologically many use mobile phones, land line phones emails, text messages in responding or contributing to discussion shows (and even posted letters). The central approach here is that there is interaction and participation by audiences and those professionals producing. It’s a 2-way inputting
and outputting in the message production processes.

I am happy that the discussion is still continuing. Indeed we also have to take into consideration those who have no access to the ICT tools. There are loyal listeners in most remote areas who have no phones or internet. The best way to include them is to use what they have. There are may ways to do this. Say you decide on having listener groups and the groups compile feedback to the station. There was one station that decided on training at least one person in each community and supplied the person with a smart phone. That way the person was able to collect opinions, views and feedback from listeners and feeds through to the station. The most important thing is to accommodate everyone, not only those that are on social media.

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Interactive is when the audience have an opportunity to participate in an on going discussion in a given on the radio.There are so many ways through which that can be done; through the phone in platform, text messages, writing back to the producer and presenter through and nowadays via email, facebook and whatssap. And that is my simple definition of interactive radio
We have our own program that I produce and present The News Hour in which at times we host experts, it could be Agricultural officials, Environmentalists depending on the matters arising. We however get overwhelmed by the responses through the platforms of interaction mentioned. Others keep flowing even after the program.

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Most programs in Kenya are interactive programs. Though a huge percentage is entertainment. In the programmes, audience are invited to participate via phone calls, texts, whatsapp, facebook or twitter. While at it, they get to broadcast their voices, ideas, suggestions or lifetime stories about farming.
Most of times, burning and new issues on farming will be discussed during the program. The ability of interactive radio programs of audience to decide what the next program will be or what it will contain is what makes interactive programs unique. Basically, having what will run or be in next program out of listeners hands is like killing a bird with two stones as two efforts are met at same time.

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Interactive radio is an all inclusive output that gets all stakeholders onboard and which makes broadcasting communication rather than a transmission.
The feedback is istant and the message passed across to everyone listening

Sorry for the late engagement. I read most of the comments on interactive radio. It’s such an interactive discussion by itself. The thought and experiences forwarded by participants could be an input for the programs we produce. Interactive radio is an approach in which both radio program team and the audience interact on the contents of the programs. As communication is a two way traffic, interactive radio is also a communicative approach that fosters the audience participation on various topics. The producers in turn will have an opportunity to understand different perspectives that comes in via phone, email and social media platforms.

Our own radio programs in Ethiopia has an experience of interactive radio practices. For instance, we have Interactive voice response (IVR) which creates interaction with the audience. This is a two way communication process. The producers ask question of the week and the audiences send their response from their mobile phone and vise versa. The audience feedback could also be received through IVR. The producers play the audience voices back on radio on the next week program. That makes the audience to shift the role from being passive listener to be active participants. Thus, interactive radio programs significantly contributed to develop trustworthy relationship between the producers and the audience.

Netsanet Hailu,
FRI Ethiopia

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Snail speed alert!

my understanding of interactive radio is a style of broadcasting that encourages contribution and feedback from target audience on issues of importance to them; and timely response from the radio broadcaster.

Example of interactive radio programming employed in the “B’omugaiga” agribusiness program i produce and present at voice of Kigezi in Uganda, is that of the short phone text or whatsapp messages that may contain questions and comments from listeners about ongoing program, that are responded to by hosted experts or referred to next program.

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