Docu on PH Radio in the US colonial period kicks off broadcasting centennial celebrations

A documentary on the emergence of Philippine radio during the American colonial period will officially launch the celebration of 100 Years of Broadcasting in the Philippines (100 YBP), in a webinar hosted by the Department of Broadcast Communication (DBC), College of Mass Communication (CMC), University of the Philippines, Diliman (UPD), on June 29, 2022, 10 am, via the DZUP 1602 khz Facebook page.

The documentary Wika, Awit, Radyo, at Pananakop, produced and written by UP Professor Elizabeth Enriquez, and directed by Maps Arciga, will be aired during the webinar. It asserts how broadcasting was first used as a colonial apparatus, but later adopted for local purposes. Tagalog and other Filipino languages took centerstage in the story, being formative to the medium's acculturation process.

The documentary was produced with the support of the joint SALIKHA Grants for Creative Projects of the K-12 Transition Program of the Commission on Higher Education and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts.

Expected to grace the event are UP President Danilo Concepcion, UPD Chancellor Fidel Nemenzo, UP Visayas Chancellor Clement Camposano, and UPD CMC Dean Fernando Paragas.

UPD DBC Chair Daphne-Tatiana Canlas will introduce the activities and programs of the 100 YBP, which commences with a national conference this October 18-21, 2022, among other events.

Last March, 100 YBP had a soft launching when it aired over DZUP 1602 khz Facebook page the pilot episode of Pag-uugat, Pagpapatuloy: Ang Epikong Dumaracol ng mga Tagbanua Kalamianen ng Hilagang Palawan, a set of never-before-heard recordings of the epic, foregrounding the importance of human memory and the voice in the evolution of broadcasting.

The webinar is free and open to the public. To join, register here. For inquiries, email the Secretariat at 100ypb@up.edu.ph.

Wika, Awit, Radyo, at Pananakop
Executive Producer and Writer: Elizabeth L. Enriquez, PhD (University of the Philippines Diliman)
Director: Maps Arciga

Synopsis:
The documentary illustrates the emergence of radio in the country during the American colonial period in the first half of the 20th century. Broadcasting was part of the American strategy to reshape the consciousness of Filipinos in the American cultural mold. The English language and popular music from the West were first heard on radio and used as standard by Filipino broadcasters. While Filipino listeners enthusiastically adopted the foreign sound, it did not take long for Tagalog and kundiman to enter the soundwaves.

Japan replaced the United States as the new colonizers of the Philippines upon the outbreak of World War II. The Japanese attempted to purge

America from Filipino consciousness. On radio, Tagalog and other local languages and local musical compositions and folk songs enjoyed airtime, but English and American music was not wiped out while Filipinos hardly learned Nihongo and did not become accustomed to Japanese music.

After the war, broadcasting spread throughout the country. The English language and popular music from the United States were back on the air. But so were Tagalog and other Filipino languages as new radio stations began operating in the provinces. Filipino singers and musicians performing on the air attained fame especially when the local music recording industry took off.

The English language and western music continue to be a big part of local broadcasting, but Filipino languages and music, in all the forms they have evolved into, persist in connecting with Filipino audiences.

Note from the executive producer and director:
The paucity of archival materials and other primary sources posed a challenge in producing this documentary. Because radio signals are ephemeral and do not require a physical artifact to go on the air, unlike film and newspapers, and because sound recording was in its early stages of development during the time under study, archival materials are rare though there are extant pieces. The documentary thus relied significantly on printed primary and secondary sources and animation in representing the narrative.

From the Ethnographies of Philippine Auditory Popular Cultures website