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Wed 1 Dec, 2004 08:40 pm
I hope this isn't a completely idiotic question. On second thought, who cares? I'll just ask it.
I just recently got RAI (an Italian media conglomerate, I guess) to work with my computer, and I noticed that they play a lot of english language songs on the radio stations.
I was wondering if they do that in other countries too. And actually, are these RAI radio stations indicative of what the rest of radio is like in Italy? Are there any radio stations that have specific playlists, for instance an all-rock station, or an all dance music format? And what about other countries?
In America, most major cities have a couple rock stations, a couple pop stations, maybe a dance/urban format station, maybe one all-talk station, a college radio station somewhere hidden in there, among others. How does it work in your country?
This page probably has waaaaaaaay more info than you want (scroll down)
toronto radio market
just a bit of info
Quote:B. Existing Over-The-Air Stations
A total of 33 over-the-air radio stations, 12 AM and 21 FM, are licensed to serve residents of the Toronto area. Three of these stations were licensed in June 2000. The 33 Toronto radio stations can be categorized as follows:
* four stations, two English (both FM) and two French (one AM and one FM), owned and operated by the CBC;
* 18 commercial radio stations, seven AM and eleven FM, offering a variety of programming formats. Given that Orangeville is now part of the Toronto CMA, CIDC-FM is included as a Toronto station;
* six ethnic commercial radio stations, four AM and two FM, discussed in more detail below;
* three campus-based community FM stations, affiliated with the University of Toronto (CIUT-FM), York University (CHRY-FM) and Ryerson Polytechnical Institute (CKLN-FM); and
* a "special" FM station, CJRT-FM, offering jazz programming.
* Aboriginal Voices Radio, although licensed, is not yet on the air (Decision CRTC 2000-204).
C. Ethnic Radio Stations
Toronto's ethnic population is served by six radio stations licensed under the Commission's ethnic broadcasting policy. Such stations are required to broadcast to a variety of ethnic groups and in a variety of languages. Collectively, the six ethnic radio stations in the GTA broadcast programming in approximately 50 languages, providing over 700 hours of third language programming each week.
The following commitments for each ethnic station were included in the most recent renewal decisions, issued in January 2001.
* CJMR (AM) is required to direct its programming to a minimum of 11 cultural groups in a minimum of 15 different languages.
* CHKT (AM) is required to direct its programming to a minimum of 14 cultural groups in a minimum of 15 different languages. Additionally, no more than 66 hours per week of ethnic programming may be directed to the Chinese community.
CHIN * (AM) is required to direct its programming to a minimum of 23 cultural groups in a minimum of 17 different languages.
CHIN-FM
* is required to direct its programming to a minimum of 23 cultural groups in a minimum of 20 different languages.
CIRV-FM
* is required to direct its programming to a minimum of 9 cultural groups in a minimum of 9 different languages.
CIAO (AM) is required to direct its programming to a minimum of 12 cultural groups in a minimum of 13 different languages.
I have to go eat right now, but thanks, ehBeth. I'll be back to check that out.
In every country I have lived (except the US) there was a lot of foreign music in heavy rotation on the mainstream stations.
local radio stations churn out pop songs of the last 20-30 years and more and the DJ's talk excitable boring garbage in between songs and announcmements, one is BBC so no ads and there is an Asian version, others are commercial with annoying jingles and ads. One is SAGA radio aimed at the over 50's and playing old pop songs. I only listen to this on the radio alarm in the morning as I find it really irritating.
the BBC has several channels Radio 1 is pop music, contemporary. Radio 2 is mellower pop for slightly older people, Radio 3 is more classical music and serious stuff, Radio 4 is a mix - plays, comedy, clever and interesting mixture. There is classic FM that plays popular classics.
lots of English music, some US and some other.
I forget to listen to the radio and tend to play CD's for music - Radio 4 has some good stuff and I should listen to it more often.
What do you listen to?
I listen to the rock stations mostly in New York. Radio in New York is really not very good. Most of the "popular" radio stations play pre-packaged mainstream-appeal drivel, and the few truly alternative stations are either busy talking about liberal conspiracy theories or playing music that is so far out of my realm of experience that I find it hard to relate to.
But I like the feel of listening to the radio, for some reason. The DJs, the local news and traffic...it feels like I'm connected, or plugged in. Something like that, anyway.
Our radio stations are mostly driven by what is popular, and how many records the latest piece of crap has sold. In other countries, are record companies and corporations beginning to have that same chokehold on radio? I wonder if the DJs and programming people on other countries' radio stations have such a narrow range of what they can play, like here.
I don't know about RAI today. But before it was a bore. A bore when it had the monopoly. And a lesser bore when it started to compete against private stations (the big difference I found between Italy and Mexico -or the US- is that private stations in Italy were not specific: you'd hear a pop song, then a heavy rock song, then a folk song, then an opera aria).
In Mexico, things change a lot from region to region.
This is our FM in Mexico City:
88.1 Pop in English
88.9 News
89.7 Pop in Spanish (number 1 in ratings)
90.5 News on weekdays; world music, pop, jazz, rock on weekends
90.9 Ibero University Radio. Mostly rock, jazz, alternative and all types of music.
91.3 Pop in English
92.1 Classic rock and pop in English
92.9 Grupera (Nothern Mexican) music in Spanish(number 2 in ratings)
93.7 Ballads in Spanish
94.5 Public. Classical music.
95.3 Romantic ballads in (mostly) Spanish and English
96.1 National University Radio. Public. News, cultural programs, classical music, Mexican folk, Foreign folk, rock, raggae, jazz, salsa, world music...
96.9 News, talk shows, rock and hip-hop/dance/house/techno/rap in English
97.7 Pop in Spanish
98.5 Used to be the best rock station. Now, among protests, is 24 hour news and commentaries.
99.3 Pop in Spanish
100.1 Pop and rock in English, some Pop in French, a few Salsa programs
100.9 Tropical music
101.7 Pop in English
102.5 Pop in English
103.3 News and commentary.
104.1 Grupera music
104.9 Pop and ballads in Spanish
105.7 Public. Rock (with the guys kicked out of 98.5) and Ska, in English and Spanish
106.5 Catalog Pop and Ballads in Spanish
107.3 Ranchero music
107.9 Public. Jazz, Bossanova, New Age.
This is AM:
560 International music
590 Ballad in Spanish
620 International music
660 News
690 News
710 Ranchera music
730 Sports
760 Talk radio
790 News
830 News
860 National University Radio. Some segments are like in FM; in others, interviews with professors; folk and world music
900 Talk radio
940 Romantic instrumental
970 Talk radio
1000 Pop in Spanish
1030 Talk radio
1060 Public. Some talk radio. Lots of music from all times and all over the world.
1110 News (number 1 in ratings)
1150 Old Mexican music (before 1955, aprox.)
1180 Old pop hits in Spanish (1970-1990)
1220 Public.Old Mexican music (before 1955, aprox)
1260 Talk radio
1290 Talk radio
1320 Pop in English and Spanish
1350 Citizen's radio. Public, its' segments are operated by different "groups of the civil society"
1380 Romantic ballads and pop in Spanish
1410 Ranchera music
1440 News
1470 News
1500 talk radio
1530 Techno/House/Hip hop/ Rap
1560 Grupera music (number 2 in ratings)
1590 Ranchera music
What in pressed me about Bolivian radio was how much it sounded like my local AM station in Connecticut, with a Bolivian flavor. Almost all the music was out of date, the news was mostly local, and the whole thing served best (for me) as back ground noise. The locals liked it though.
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