Radio Announcers

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32060, 7 August 1969, Page 12

Radio Announcers

Sir, —Radio announcers (Wellington and Dunedin) in the YA and YC programmes have never been worse in spite of personal representations made at Broadcasting House 18 months ago. The worst voices, very ugly, are generally those used most frequently. Mr Robertson invites specific details. Here are some: on July 21, after switching on my radio at 12.30 a.m., I waited for the programme, “Military Band Music,” advertised to begin at 12.33 a.m. Instead, a mumbling, bumbling male announcer, (after stating that he was “only having you on”) played “pop” for the duration. No warning, no explanation, no apology. At 12.39 a.m. he remarked that he was going to “empty the ash tray” and that there was cigarette ash on the record. Is this the cause of the frequent retracking with classical recordings and are announcers permitted to smoke while -on duty? It could explain a great deal.—Yours, etc., PAUL MALING. August 1, 1969. [Mr J. Robertson, radio manager in Christchurch for the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation, replies: “Your correspondent’s opinions of the N.Z.B.C. are well known to both N.Z.B.C. staff and your readers. Surely, listeners to the all-night programme expect a friendly rather than a formal presentation. We do apologise, however, for the playing of a wrong programme without an apology, but must point out that at such a time no programme staff are available to help an announcer find a mislaid programme. Those announcers who do smoke are, of course, permitted to do so; it would be unfair to impose such a restriction on personal liberty. Cigarette ash cannot cause retracking on a record.”]