PICTURE this excerpt of a radio commentary I made at the Freedom Statue some years ago.
“Good morning listeners on Radio 2. This is Ben Kangwa at the Freedom Statue where we are broadcasting “live” the commemoration of Zambia’s 40th Independence Anniversary on this hot day – 24th October, 2004.
We are at the Freedom Statue on Independence Avenue! There are about 5,000 to 6,000 people this side of the Freedom Statue right behind the Government Complex including those facing the Statue from across the road at an open space that has been designated for the crowd.
Three Presidents, their Excellencies Levy Patrick Mwanawasa of Zambia, Thabo Mbeki of the Republic of South Africa and Paul Kagame of the Republic of Rwanda are expected to take salute and lay wreaths at the Freedom Statue.
According to the programme, Defence Chiefs and members of the diplomatic corps accredited to Zambia will also lay wreaths, while a 21-gun salute will be mounted by the Zambia Army Second Battalion.
Staging a drive-by will be armoured cars and military vehicles, while overhead, will be jets flying in what we expect to be a display of military might.
The Presidential motorcade has just arrived and stopped right in front of the presidential dias. His Excellency President Mwanawasa should be disembarking from his official Mercedes Benz in a moment. My colleagues Doris Mulenga and Justin Nshimbi are much closer to the dias … Doris, at that vantage point, describe to us what’s going on?”
Easier said than done. Outside broadcasts apply the same rules as programmes presented and produced in the studio except this time with added colour and sometimes logistical complications. Many of these can be thought through day of the actual broadcast.
Back in the day, I and other colleagues on Radio 2 had covered the same outside broadcast from “Freedom Statue” annually, but with each given year we started to notice that the set-up at the site was slowly changing in format.
This, therefore, called for more engagements with all concerned – our technical staff and our ever cooperating partner, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Chief of Protocol Office.
Together, we would visit the location like we had never before, did risk assessments and thought through the technical requirements.
Meanwhile, pre-production meetings were being held at the studio offices as an integral part of the production process.
They would be attended by the Production Assistant, the Commentators (who at most would be three) and of-course the Technical Staff.
The meetings would provide an overall vision of the production. Feedback would be received from everyone in the meeting. The meetings would also determine the impact of decisions taken and how to deal with particular issues.
As a producer, my main responsibility was to prepare the commentators and the technical staff for the broadcast.
It was my responsibility to create a brief of the event that would be given to each one of them. To avail them all the facts and information to hand and to share a complete running orders of the show.
The running order would give a description of the entire event from the start such as the crossing over (from the studio) to Freedom Statue followed by the welcome remarks by the lead commentator and then the introduction of the event.
The running order also included the description of the atmosphere and the ambience at the Statue, the introduction of the main dignitaries in full including other personalities.
Lastly how the show would end.
In my years of broadcasting I have learnt that three incredible habits will always produce a worth listening to outside broadcast.
These are to research on the event, to get whatever one can find, organize it in a way that it can be used.
The second habit is to research on correct pronunciation of every dignitary at that event and to make sure that correct phrases are used during the show.
The third point is time keeping. It helps to arrive at the broadcast site in plenty of time, in order to have a last look at the notes of the show and if possible do a last rehearsal.
Ben Kangwa is a broadcast journalist and Media Consultant
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ZNBC
Here is an item sent by one ardent reader of this column.
ZNBC Main Newscast at 07:00 hours, Tuesday, February 24, 2015. This is what the news reader said:
“… Mr Kalaba (Minister of Foreign Affairs) said Zambia and Ghana will also sign several MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDINGS..”
I don’t know whether it was a mistake or sheer ignorance on the part of the reporter and the news writer. It should be MEMORANDA or MEMORANDUMS OF UNDERSTANDING.
KABUSHA
It was highly professional of ba Kabusha Kayula Chasaya to promptly correct his co-host ba Kezzy Mubanga when he misdirected himself on National Pensions Scheme Authority (NAPSA) possibility to give out loans.
On that programme last Sunday, a caller wanted to find out whether NAPSA could extend loan facilities to ‘Life Pension Beneficiaries’, to which ba Mubanga responded with a possibility.
Ideally, such a confirmation could have only come from NAPSA officials themselves or from ba Kabusha after consultations with NAPSA.
During the same programme, Ba Mubanga earlier slipped up when he referred to one letter that it was written in 1914 instead of 2014.
Because radio is spontaneously heard by many people at the same time, it is important for prompt corrections whenever such errors are made, like that one avoids misrepresentation.
Those who retain to this column remember Ben Kangwa’s tip that interviewers must always correct misrepresentations promptly to avoid errors spread out.
***
Newly appointed deputy minister of Sports Ronald Chitotela was on ZNBC radio 1 last Sunday morning where he articulated the need for Zambians to embrace the spirit of ‘One Zambia, One Nation’.
What was exciting about his appearance on air was that he explained himself so well in ci-Bemba and went further to speak Lunda, the language he was said was his wife’s dialect.
Chongololo Club
What a timeless conservation song that plays on ZNBC’s Radio 2 Chongololo Club of the air programme aired on Sundays at 12:30 hours.
“Don’t kill the world, don’t let her down. Do not destroy basic ground.
Don’t kill the world our means of life. Lend ear to nature’s cry.
Don’t kill the world, She’s all we have, And surely is worth to save.
Don’t let her die, fight for her trees, Pollution robs air to breathe.
Don’t kill the world, help her survive.”
SUN FM
Where is Lucy Flux? Listeners miss the ‘noise’ she made every Tuesday nights when she played Reggae music.
Not that there is anything wrong with the new anchors of that programme, only that a female voice synchronized well on reggae tunes.
It is commendable that the two guys presenting that programme have a chic style of dropping non-stop beats with less talking.
Stay tuned, don’t touch that dial! – jackmwewa@gmail.com   0955115777