Both medium wave (standard or AM) and shortwave have been in use for decades. But as original transmitters are becoming obsolete, use of FM is increasing. Advertising support of radio's operational costs is becoming more accepted and widespread. Asian radio's role has undergone change-including more entertainment programming (music, drama, call-in shows) in recent years to counter the growing influence and popularity of television. Experiments with digital radio have taken place in China and elsewhere, but broad introduction is years into the future.

This continental survey begins in the West arid moves toward the East, briefly surveying the past and current state of radio in countries other than India and Japan, which are covered in separate entries.

Southwest and Central Asia

Turkey

Radio broadcasting in Turkey was first regulated in the Telegram and Telephone Law (enacted 1924), which granted monopoly rights to the government post, telegraph and telephone (PTT) authority. In 1926, the first radio broadcasting concession was granted to the Turkish Wireless Telephone Co., with which the PTT was a partner for a license period of ten years. Initial broadcasts followed in 1927 with installation of 5-kilowatt transmitters in both Ankara and Istanbul. The company operated these until 1936, when, on expiration of the concession, they became a state monopoly. A new transmitter of 120 kilowatts was installed in Ankara in 19 38, and radio broadcast services came under the direction of the press office attached to the prime minister's office. In 1949 a new 150-kilowatt transmitter installed in Istanbul began its first broadcasts. The 1961 Constitution stipulated that an autonomous public agency should operate and supervise radio (and television) services, and the 1982 constitution continued this requirement. The Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) was established in May 1964. FM service was introduced in 1968.

By the start of the 21st century, TRT operated four national radio services. Radio 1, headquartered in Ankara (164 hours weekly), reaches 99 percent of the population and is devoted to educational and cultural programs including drama, music, and entertainment, together with news and sports. It uses 12 FM and 12 medium wave transmitters. Radio II (126 hours weekly), based in Istanbul, reaches 97 percent of the population, and its programs are also broadly cultural, including education, drama, music, entertainment, news, and sporting events. It uses three FM and three medium wave transmitters. Radio III, also based in Ankara, reaches 90 percent of the people and programs 168 weekly hours of local and foreign popular music in stereo via 94 FM transmitters. Radio IV serves 90 percent of the population with Turkish classical and folk music for 112 hours per week. TRT also provides radio service aimed at tourists in seven regions of the country, with programs composed of music, cultural topics, and news. Broadcasts are in English, German, and French, in stereo using seven FM transmitters for 61 hours a week.

In addition to the national services, regional stations operate in Ankara and Istanbul as well as six other cities with programs consisting of educational, cultural, drama, musical, and entertainment broadcasts. Expansion of this regional system continues. The Voice of Turkey Radio broadcasts internationally in 16 languages to Europe, the northeastern part of the U.S., Asia, North Africa, the Balkans, and Central and Far East Asia. The center for such broadcasts is in Ankara-Mithat­ pasa, and the service transmits nearly 350 hours a week.

Afghanistan

  Afghan radio, government-controlled from the start, began. in 1925 when the USSR donated a low-power longwave trans­mitter to be installed in Kabul. Three years later a German 200-kilowatt transmitter replaced the longwave unit and marked the start of regular broadcasting. Audiences were tiny-there were perhaps 1,000 receivers by 19 30. Political unrest took the station off the air for two years in the early 1930s. Expansion of radio's role became a part of successive government five-year plans beginning in the r95os. New facilities, expanded programs, and effective training programs were begun, largely with aid from Britain and Germany. By the early 1970s, Radio Afghanistan was on the air about 14 hours daily with a diversified program schedule that emphasized national culture and performers. When the monarchy was overthrown in 1973, the event was first announced over Kabul radio.

A 1978 revolution led to establishment of a pro-Soviet government, followed by a partial Soviet occupation in the 1980s, during which powerful transmitters in the USSR relayed external service. In September 1996 Talaban forces occupied Radio Afghanistan and renamed it Radio Voice of Shari'a. With the overthrow of the conservative Talaban and installation of an interim government early in 2002, the future direction of Afghan radio (which needed to virtually begin anew) was again at a crossroads.

Persia/Iran

  The first broadcast in Persia was made in February 1928 from Tehran. In 1940 regular broadcasting began under the control of the Ministry of Posts, Telephones, and Telegraphs and the prime minister. By 1950 the state-controlled system included three transmitters in Tehran (on the air about six hours a day) and one at Tabriz (five hours daily) plus another 25 low-power relay stations. A limited amount of advertising helped to defray system expenses. National Iranian Radio and Television (NIRTV) operated Radio Iran by the 1960s, providing three national services 24 hours a day on both medium wave and shortwave transmitters. One service using stereo FM provided three daily hours of music for the capital city. Radio Tehran programs were also carried on 13 regional stations that provided many of their own programs. Two private stations were operated in the 1970s, one by the national oil company in Abadan and the other from a U.S. Air Force transmitter in Tehran.

With the 1979 overthrow of the Shah's government, the sole broadcaster became Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, which provided five national services originating from Tehran. There are studios in 39 centers producing programs in Farsi and local languages. The external service broadcasts in 29 languages.

Central Asia

  The five Central Asian republics were all part of the USSR until the early 1990s, so the first radio stations generally relayed broadcasts from Moscow Radio for much of the day, with some local programs. In later years each republic inaugurated one or more additional republican services in the local language. In all these countries, the former Soviet broadcasting apparatus has been reformed as national state broadcasting organizations of each republic. Where private media exist, these broadcasters have had difficulty in reforming themselves to meet the newly competitive environment. In most places local stations still relay some of the most popular programs from Moscow, notably key newscasts.

Although the first test transmissions in the region originated in 1922 from Tashkent in Uzbekistan, regular broadcasting began in February 1927. An external service was inaugurated in September 1947 that now broadcasts in 12 languages. Broadcasting in Uzbekistan is one of the most restricted in the region. Tashkent is the largest city and serves as the capital not only of Uzbekistan but also unofficially of the region. However, its radio and television services are exclusively government channels. There are four radio stations operating 18 hours daily. Although there are no private broadcasters, the government accepts commercials on its radio and television programs.

Broadcasting spread to Kazakhstan in 1923 when Radio Almaty was inaugurated. Private media are well developed in Kazakhstan, the largest of the Central Asian republics, and vigorous competitive media conditions have emerged, especially in the capital, Almaty. Although under restrictions and considerable informal pressure from officials, independent radio has become firmly established. Kazakh State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company is the national governmental service.

Radio Ashkhabad began broadcasting from Turkmenistan in 1927. In the 1990s, independent media have been suppressed in the country, which has the smallest population of these republics.

Radio came to Tajikistan in 1928. Broadcasting is now controlled by the official State Radio and Television Company, originating from the capital, Dushanbe. However, there are some fledgling private broadcasters struggling to get a foothold. Independent radio dates its origins from 1989, two years before establishment of the Commonwealth of Independent States. This follows a pattern familiar across the region of pirate underground stations becoming legitimate independent broadcasters after the fall of the Soviet Union.

In 1931 Radio Frunze (now Bishkek) began broadcasting from Kyrgyzstan. Pyramid Radio, the first private station, was launched in 1992. Among the five republics, only Kyrgyzstan has supported the development of comparatively free and open media. Three independent radio stations were on the air by the mid-1990s in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan's capital, and other private stations soon developed.

South Asia

  Countries in the Subcontinent were formerly British colonies, and their broadcasting systems at least initially reflected that heritage (India is covered elsewhere). Radio has always been an important medium in this region, where literacy rates are often very low and the impact of the press is limited.

Pakistan

Radio stations in what became Pakistan first went on the air in Peshawar in 1936 (an experimental station, designed with Mar­ coni's help, under the local government) and in Lahore in 1938 (part of All India Radio). Both were used for news and propaganda during World War II by the British authorities. These relatively weak stations-covering less than ten percent of the country-formed the beginning of Radio Pakistan when the country became independent in August 1947. Announcement of the new nation was made over what was initially dubbed the Pakistan Broadcasting Service. Early operations were stymied by lack of funds and facilities. A new station aired in Karachi in 1948, and new higher-powered shortwave transmitters followed a year later. By 1950, with the addition of a station in Rawalpindi, the country had five powerful stations broadcasting in 17 languages totaling more than 100 hours a day. Domestic and international radio services expanded in the late 1950s and into the 1960s with substantial budget increases.

Radio is a service of the Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation (PBC); television is the responsibility of a wholly separate service, Pakistan Television (PTV). While PTV is a limited corporation owned by the Pakistan government, PBC is a statutory corporation. By the 1990s PBC operated nearly two dozen medium wave and shortwave stations. In 1995, the Bhutto government introduced private FM station operations in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad. Calling itself FM100 on the air, the new service emphasized popular music and call-in programs. BCP added its own FM service in the same three cities in 1998.

Bangladesh

Radio service was established in 1939 in Dacca (which would become capital of the modern Bangladesh) in what was then British India. From 1947 to 1971, radio served as a vital link between densely populated East Pakistan and the larger portion of that country 1,000 miles to the west. A variety of medium wave facilities were developed, and the radio service operated largely independently of the Karachi government. After considerable fighting in 1971, Bangladesh became independent of the former West Pakistan. Radio Bangladesh, a government monopoly dependent on license fees, took over the radio facilities in Dacca, although most of the transmitters had been destroyed or seriously damaged in the strife.

The radio service, now known as Bangladesh Betar (Radio Bangladesh), operates eight regional stations effectively covering the country. As the country is mainly agricultural, farm broadcasts remain an essential program feature. While a private television station was allowed to air in 1999, radio remains a government monopoly, and news broadcasts emphasize activities of the party in power. Two thirds of all programming is music and entertainment.

Ceylon/Sri Lanka

Ceylon's first broadcasts in 1923 consisted of recorded music played over a transmitter built out of parts of a radio set from a captured German submarine. A regular broadcasting service started in July 1924 in Colombo. A shortwave station was built in Ekala, 13 miles north of Colombo, for the wartime South East Asian Command's Radio SEAC, with a 100-kilowatt transmitter, used as a relay for BBC service. The facility was transferred to the Ceylon government after the war. Radio Ceylon was founded on 1 October 1949. Commercial service began a year later when Radio Ceylon added a welcome alter­ native of music and entertainment programs. Medium wave transmitters were expanded in the 1960s. After the country achieved independence as Sri Lanka in 1972, the station became Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC).

At the turn of the century, the SLBC operated six services, broadcasting nationally in English, Sinhala, and Tamil. One focused on service to rural areas. The planned elimination of license fee revenues, however, threatened to drastically alter the funding basis of SLBC. Two community radio stations in rural Sri Lanka-Mahaweli Radio and Radio Kotmali-have attracted international attention because of their high degree of community involvement. Radio broadcasting in Sri Lanka suddenly became intensely competitive by the end of the I 990s. By 2000, some 21 private stations had been granted licenses, mostly in the capital of Colombo. Indeed, privatization proceeded so rapidly that it outpaced policy. As of 2002, a regulatory framework still had not been formulated for the country's increasingly complex broadcast situation.

Maldives

  The Maldives are a group of more than 1,100 islands in widely scattered atolls in the Indian Ocean southwest of Sri Lanka. They became an independent country in 1965. Radio Maldives opened as a government monopoly on 12 March 1964, with broadcasts in English and Dhivehi. Four years later a shortwave transmitter was put into service. In 1984 this transmitter broke down, and the station now uses two AM and one FM transmitters. The service operates for about 16 hours daily and is widely listened to. News, information, and education take up nearly half of all air time, followed by entertainment. Because of the vast distances between its island groups, Radio Maldives uses satellite relays to connect outlying atolls with the national broadcasting center in Male. There are no plans for issuance of private licenses.

Nepal and Bhutan

  Radio Nepal was founded on 1 April 1951, using a 250-watt shortwave transmitter in an old school building, broadcasting four-and-a-half hours a day. The station soon broadcast on medium wave (AM) and shortwave channels and by the mid- 1970s was up to ten hours a day. The shortwave transmission achieves complete national coverage, but the medium wave broadcasts reach only between 80 and 90 percent of the population. Because literacy is low (54 percent according to the 2001 census) and access to television is limited to the urban elite, radio plays an important role in informing, educating, and entertaining the masses. Information and education programs make up 40 percent of the total broadcast. Entertainment programs consist mainly of Nepali, Hindi, and Western music, supplemented by traditional music. News is broadcast in Nepali and English as well as 16 other languages commonly spoken in Nepal. Radio Nepal began broadcasting recently on FM, covering Katmandu and adjoining areas with a 1-kilowatt transmitter. Nepal licensed its first independent community radio station in 1996, and Radio Sagarmatha came on air in May 1997, operated by the Nepal Forum of Environmental Journalists. Radio service from India can also be heard throughout Nepal.

Bhutan was one of the last countries in the world to initiate a radio service, which began only in 1973. At that time the National Youth Association of Bhutan, under the Ministry of Information, inaugurated a low-power shortwave transmitter. This station, known as NYAB, broadcast only on Sundays for 30 minutes of news and music. An unusual postage stamp was issued with a hole in the center, representing a phonograph record of local music. The government took over station operation in 1979 as the Bhutan Broadcasting Service (BBS), initially broadcasting three hours daily. A UNESCO-supplied shortwave transmitter in 1986 allowed the first radio service that covered the country. By 1991 the service was broadcasting 30 hours a week in four languages. With further UNESCO support as well as aid from Denmark, the system was further modernized and expanded in the early 1990s. Operation relies on government financial support. Radio receiver ownership grew from about 25 percent of households in 1989 to more than 60 percent a decade later.

In June 2000 BBS introduced an FM radio service for Western Bhutan with the main transmitter at Dobchula and one relay station at Takri in the South. Within a year the FM service was extended to central Bhutan. Plans call for total FM coverage of the country by 2007.

Southeast Asia

Burma/Myanmar

  In 1926 the Radio Club of Burma was founded in Rangoon and inaugurated station 2HZ with a 40-watt medium wave transmitter. The station closed in the early 1930s. In 1938 test transmissions began from two shortwave transmitters. These were taken over by the Japanese in 1942 (there was also a Burmese resistance radio service by 1944-45) and by the South East Asia Command (SEAC) in 1945. On 15 June 1946 the Burma Broadcasting Service was founded. The military have controlled the nation since 1962 and have oppressively controlled all media. Well into the 1960s, the country still relied on the single Rangoon-based broadcast station (using both medium wave and shortwave transmitters) with a modest level of programming, the government preferring to put its media efforts into newspapers. There were no stations in other cities, nor were repeater transmitters employed, making the medium easier to control.

In 1989 the military government changed the country's name to the Union of Myanmar, and Rangoon became Yangon. The government-controlled broadcast service is known as Myanmar Radio and TV. A few opposition political radio stations operate from time to time on or near the country's borders.

Siam/Thailand

The kingdom of Siam (until 1939) was never occupied by a colonial power, unlike virtually all of its neighbors. On 25 February 1931 the first station opened in Bangkok, operated by the Office of Publicity and Armed Forces. Experimental short­ wave transmissions began from Bangkok in 1937, and the following year Radio Thailand was founded, broadcasting in English and French. A second national state-run network, Tor Tor Tor, began operation in 1952. FM service was introduced in 1956. The number of radio stations grew dramatically­ from less than 30 before 1960 to 250 two decades later and more than 500 by the turn of the century.

In 1992 a student uprising against the General Suchinda government drove the military from power, and in the aftermath broadcasting laws were completely rewritten. The new laws opened the system to private stations and provided relatively open and transparent licensing procedures. This led to a quick commercialization of radio as new private stations signed on the air.

National public radio is a service of the Public Relations Department (PRD) of the Government of Thailand. Private radio stations are operated commercially under long-term licenses by private firms, but under fairly tight government control. Military-operated stations provide another alternative to government broadcasts. Efforts to promote legislation that would change the nature of the PRD and make new rules for the operation of all electronic media have been considered regularly by Parliament since 2000. Radio Thailand has for more than 30 years been providing a special service to indigenous hill tribe peoples. Bangkok has the largest number of local stations in Asia, with more than 50 on the air.

Malaya/Malaysia

Radio service began in the British colony of Malaya in 1924 with the Amateur Wireless Society of Malaya in Singapore providing music from their amateur transmitters. Regular broadcasting appeared only in 1935 with the British Malaya Broadcasting Company. The company was sold to the colonial government on the eve of World War II. Under Japanese occupation (1942-45), the radio system provided news and propaganda but also offered a voice for local languages and cultures. The Japanese also established low-power stations in Penang, Malacca, and Seremban. Post-war radio (operating as Radio Malay) was again under British colonial control from 1945 until independence in 1957. In 1963 the Federation of Malaysia was formed, although Singapore withdrew two years later. Commercial radio and the country's first international radio service began about the same time as tension rose with Indonesia. The radio system was largely privatized in the early 1980s. Radio Malaysia, operated by the government and supported by license fees and advertising, owns 21 stations in various state capitals and in East Malaysia, using medium wave, shortwave, and FM transmitters. The service provides seven national services, most of which operate on a 24-hour basis. They include national broadcasts in Malay, English, Tamil, and Mandarin (Chinese), as well as a national FM music service, special services for aboriginal peoples, and regional stations.

Private commercial stations include the Time Highway Radio which operates a network, Mix FM, and Hitz FM.

Singapore

Long a British colony, Singapore became self-governing in 1959. The first radio stations appeared in mid-1936, operated by the British Malaya Broadcasting Service, a private commercial organization. The colonial government took over operations in 1940, and the Japanese occupation authorities ran the facilities from 1942 to 1945. Post-war colonial service expanded using both medium wave and shortwave transmitters to cover all of Malaya. Radio Singapore became a separate entity after Malayan independence in 1957 and was designated Radio-Television Singapore in 1965 and the Singapore Broadcasting Corporation 15 years later. Financial support came from both advertising and license fees.

The broadcasting service was privatized in 1994. The government closely controls all operations, though stations are privately held. Three private corporations operate all commercial radio stations in Singapore. In 2002 MediaCorp Radio owned the five top-rated stations plus seven other outlets, including Radio Singapore International, broadcasting in shortwave to the region. The other radio broadcasting companies are SAFRA Radio, operated by the Singapore Armed Forces Reservists' Association, and UnionWorks, jointly owned by the National Trade Unions Council. A not-for-profit arts and culture station is managed by the National Arts Council and is operated by MediaCorp.

Indonesia

  Radio service makes particular sense in and for a country made up of nearly 14,000 islands, some 3,000 of them inhabited by people speaking more than 275 languages and dialects. Indeed, radio's use of Bahasa Indonesia as the official national language has helped to promote national unity.

Radio broadcasting (which grew out of earlier radio-tele­ graph connections with the Netherlands) began in mid-1925 with the establishment of the Batavia Radio Vereniging in what is now Jakarta. Music and entertainment programs in Dutch were aimed at the colonials. The first Indonesian-language service came in 1933. A year later the Dutch established Nederlands Indische Radio Omroep Maatschappij, which slowly developed shortwave stations in outlying areas to tie Dutch settlers with Batavia and the home country. Indonesian listeners, dissatisfied with the Dutch-sponsored radio system, began to build their own stations and by 1938 received a subsidy from the colonial authorities. From 1942 to 1945, radio came under Japanese control, focusing on news, culture, and propaganda.

With the end of Japanese occupation in 1945, Radio Republik Indonesia (RRI) was formed, and it became a voice during the struggle for independence from the Netherlands, which lasted until 1949. RRI expanded the Japanese system and by 19 5 5 there were 25 transmitters plus some international service as well. A decade later 38 stations included the main government station in Jakarta, three more that covered most of the country, and 28 that were regional or local, though well under half the country could receive any of these signals. School broadcasts began in 1966, and a special system of rural radio forums, initiated in 1969, broadcast to farmers (often listening in community groups) in a joint venture by the government and UNESCO.

By the early 1970s the Indonesian radio system had expanded to some 50 RRI stations and another 100 regional outlets, most operated by provincial governments. By the late 1990s, after several periods of considerable political upheaval, the country enjoyed the use of nearly 1,000 radio stations including 52 RRI outlets, nearly 800 low-power (500 watt) commercial stations, and 133 stations run by local political authorities.

Brunei

  Located on the island of Borneo, Brunei was under British colonial rule from 1888 until independence came in 1984. The Brunei Broadcasting Service was founded in 1957 (two years before the country became internally self-governing) using a medium wave transmitter for less than three hours daily. Radio TV Brunei operates five FM networks (National with news, religion, education and entertainment; Pelangi aimed at younger listeners with a largely musical service; Harmony directed to family listening; the Optional service of news and entertainment in English and Chinese; and the Nur Islam service of religious programs), supported by both advertising and government funds. A private FM radio station began operation in 1999.

Philippines

  In June 1922 an American electrical supply company was granted temporary permits to operate three 50-watt stations in the neighboring cities of Manila and Pasay. The Radio Corporation of the Philippines subsequently acquired one of the stations and expanded radio with a station in Cebu in 1929. Radio generally followed the American pattern (and use of English) and focused on entertainment with some news in the years leading up to World War II. Four commercial stations, all owned by department stores, were based in Manila. During the Japanese occupation (1942-45), all but one were closed, and the survivor was used for news and propaganda.

After independence in 1946, radio expanded rapidly-there were 30 stations operating by 1950. By the late r96os there were some 200 stations (40 of them in the Manila region), those numbers having risen to 3 50 and 5 5 respectively by 1972. A few chains controlled most stations and radio advertising was widely used, though political parties supported some outlets, especially during campaigns. During the period of martial law decrees by the Ferdinand Marcos government (1972-86), many nongovernment stations were closed down or severely controlled. In the years since, private commercial stations (unusual among most Asian nations) have regained considerable freedom, though all are licensed by the National Telecommunication Commission.

Philippine radio programming has always been largely entertainment centered-especially music and soap opera drama. Radio news remains of fairly low quality, often emphasizing sensationalism. Radio Veritas is an exception-a Catholic-controlled entity operating more than 50 stations with an emphasis on quality news broadcasts. By the late 1990s there were more than 500 stations (half AM and half FM) in the country, making radio by far the most important mass medium (especially in rural areas), reaching perhaps 85 percent of the population, compared to 50 percent for television and only 25 percent for the press.

Indochina

  The three nations (Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia) that now make up Indochina became French colonies in the late 19th century. Initial radio broadcasting began under colonial authorities before World War II, set up largely to serve colonial needs and create closer ties to France. Japan occupied the region from 1941 to 1945, converting radio services to models akin to its own NHK as well as for propaganda. France tried to re-establish its colonial rule in 1946 but was eventually defeated in 1954 after bitter fighting.

Vietnam

  The colonial authorities established Radio Saigon in July 1930, using a 12-kilowatt shortwave transmitter. The colonial service was re-established in September 1945, adding an external service in French, English, Cantonese, and Esperanto known as La voix du Vietnam (Voice of Vietnam).

Vo Tuyen Viet Nam (Radio Vietnam) began in 1950 and had eliminated all French influence a few years later. South Vietnam was administered separately beginning in 1955. By 1961 there were six stations, though most programs originated from Saigon. Beginning in the early 1960s, American support helped to expand and update the radio service. By the early 1970s, Radio Vietnam provided three services to most of the country. An external service, the Voice of Freedom, was aimed at North Vietnam. A clandestine service, Giai Phong (Liberation Radio), operated from the mid-1960s (starting with less than two hours a day) under the control of North Vietnam and Radio Hanoi. By the early 1970s it had become a multilingual service providing more than 100 hours of programs per week, much of it aimed at specific ethnic groups. The Armed Forces Vietnam Network operated stations on behalf of U.S. forces from 1962 to 1973, eventually expanding to six AM-FM outlets. After the fall of Saigon in April 1975, these were closed as Vietnamese broadcasting came under control of the former North Vietnam.

In the North, radio began in Hanoi, under French colonial authorities, before World War II. The Voice of Vietnam emerged after 1955, and by the early 1960s the service had several medium wave and shortwave transmitters covering most of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam). By the 1960s perhaps 20 percent of the radio audience listened to community loudspeakers connected by wired networks to government stations. Hundreds of such wired networks connected public facilities and major rural towns. During the Vietnam War, various women cited by American listeners as "Hanoi Hannah" and "Hanoi Hattie" broadcast radio propaganda from Hanoi to American military forces operating in South Vietnam.

National radio service is provided by Radio The Voice of Vietnam, with headquarters in Hanoi. Radio The Voice of Viet­ nam has several networks for domestic medium wave and FM broadcasting, and it is responsible for international broadcasts in a number of languages. VOV airtime expanded dramatically in the 1990s, and the organization grew to about 1,500 staff members. VOV has an internet radio service for one hour daily. Each province has its own radio station with the total now at 61, and many of the larger cities have their own municipal stations. These are loosely regulated under the Ministry of Culture, Information, and Sports. As a consequence the system is surprisingly decentralized. Even with expanding television service, radio remains an important government tool in promoting various national development campaigns.

Laos

  The first regular broadcast in Laos (now the People's Democratic Republic of Laos) was inaugurated in 1951 from Vien-tiane by the state-owned Radiodiffusion Nationale Lao. By the 1970s the system (supported by both advertising and government funding) used a medium wave and shortwave transmitter plus regional medium wave transmitters in the royal capital city of Luang Prabang.

National Radio and National Television are separate organizations, though both report to the Ministry of Information and Culture. Radio broadcasts in five languages on two AM radio channels. One channel is exclusively Lao and another channel is programmed in foreign languages as well as Lao. An FM station in the capital Vientiane has recently been added mainly playing recorded Lao, Thai, and Western music.

Khmer Republic/Cambodia

  In 1946 Radio Cambodge opened in Phnom Penh using Japanese equipment. By 1955 there were four stations in the city, though only one remained three years later. Stations were controlled by the government, and during the government of Prince Sihanouk (196os-197os), they devoted up to a third of their time on the air to his speeches. In the 1970s Radio Diffu­ sion Nationale Khmere (RNK) operated the national system with 12 to 14 daily hours of programming supported in part by advertising. Various political resistance groups operated their own stations in the 1980s. In 1994 Radio FM 103 began broadcasting from Phnom Penh as a joint venture between KCS Cambodia Company and Phnom Penh Municipality. A second station opened in 1998, providing international news and music programs.

In 1994, state TV and radio were placed under the Ministry of Information and were separated into different organizations. Prior to this, all broadcasting was united in a single organization headed by a Director-General of Radio Television who reported to the Prime Minister's Office. RNK, National Radio for Cambodia, has a staff of 560 persons. Because of competition and funding issues, staff size is expected to shrink. There are two services on AM (simultaneously transmitted on two different frequencies) and another on FM. Separate local stations-one in the north and another in the west-are presently in operation.

Government stations receive only a fraction of their budget from the government; the remainder must come from advertising. There is consequently great pressure to produce greater income from advertising. But the advertising revenues have declined due to economic conditions and the fact that more and more stations are dividing the available advertising into smaller portions.

In the main cities, especially Phnom Penh, private stations present stiff challenges to the government stations. There are 15 private radio stations in operation (and five private TV stations). Two of the private stations are said to have slightly larger cumulative audiences than the government channel.

East Asia

China

  An American businessman built the first two radio stations in Shanghai in 1922 and was soon providing local newscasts. The first state-owned stations in China, in Tientsin and Beijing, were established by the Minister of Communications in May 1927. The following October, the Sun Company in Shanghai inaugurated the first private station atop its building. The number of stations in major cities in the north and east grew to total more than 70 by 1934, many of them very small, and most privately owned. Shanghai alone had 43 stations, a number of them foreign owned and serving the International Settlement. Most of China was covered by the Central Broadcasting Station, a shortwave transmitter, installed in Nanking in 19 32. Cheap crystal radio receivers were in wide use. Most programs on these early radio stations consisted of lectures and talks, some news, and music. Government policy placed severe restrictions on what could be broadcast, censoring anything found to be "contrary to public peace or good morals." By 1945 what became known as the Broadcasting Corporation of China served the country through 72 medium wave transmitters.

The Chinese Communist Party established their first radio station (called "New China") in 1945 near their base at Yunan, broadcasting but two hours a day. A second soon followed, and by 1948 there were 16 transmitters operating in Communist-controlled parts of the country. With their civil war victory in 1949 the government quickly moved to take most of the 89 existing transmitters. A handful of big-city private stations were allowed to continue in operation for several years. Radio served only part of the country, being virtually unavailable in most rural regions. An international radio service began in 1950.

By the mid-1950s, a system of wired radio networks (allowing listening only to a single station) was established, with more than 2,000 transmission centers and some 13,000 community receiving centers (loudspeakers) where group listening was encouraged if not required. In addition some 60 high­ power and 165 low-power stations were operating. A decade later nearly 9,000 transmission centers served some 25,ooo community receiving centers, virtually one for every commune in the country. Programs focused on news, information, and political lectures with considerable education and cultural content as well. Radio propaganda was used by all sides in the contentious Cultural Revolution of the late 1960s, which set back domestic radio as staff were diverted elsewhere.

By the early 1990s there were some 1,200 stations in the country in addition to the wired networks, which taken together reached nearly all of the population (official figures placed coverage at 92.1 percent). Talk radio programs on personal and consumer topics helped the medium overcome television's inroads. At the beginning of the 21st century, China had a three-tier broadcasting system, with national, provincial, and municipal networks serving a growing number of receivers. Thus, even though there are no private stations, there is a high degree of rivalry among stations. Competition has caused radio stations to adopt imaginative and highly polished production techniques, just as is occurring in other Asian countries where many private stations are vying for listeners. China Radio International has become the largest overseas broadcaster in Asia, with programs in 44 languages.

Formosa/Taiwan

  The first radio station on Formosa, then under Japanese control, appeared in Taipei in mid-1925. A network of transmitters covered the island by 1931. Only five stations remained of this system by 194 5. As the Republic of China shifted to Formosa in 1949, the Broadcasting Corporation of China (BCC) became responsible for the existing stations, though initial growth was slow. Two decades later, 33 broadcasting companies, most of them private, operated 77 stations (with nearly 200 mostly medium wave transmitters), with radio reception being widely available. In 1965 the BCC's Overseas Department was established to intensify service to overseas listeners, including those on the Mainland. The BCC's first FM transmitter began operation in 1968-by 1972 four of them broadcast classical music from as many cities. The BCC offered two national services, one in Mandarin Chinese and the other in local dialects. Several stations began to train the police and became highly popular with general audiences for their traffic reports on the increasingly car-choked island.

Only after 1993 did the government loosen its tight control of radio frequencies (pushed in part by the development of unlicensed stations presenting call-in programs), allowing more local and community stations on the air-about 150 by the late 1990s. By 2000, deregulation of radio had occurred. Some frequencies were set aside for aboriginal and minority ethnic (Hakka) broadcasts, to aid in preserving languages. With the government control loosened, radio became highly competitive. New stations such as UFO and the Voice of Taipei have become popular, exceeding audiences for the national stations. Most programs are entertainment oriented and are supported by advertising. But an educational service has existed since 1950 (with a second station added in 1966) and most stations carry a program featuring instruction in English.

Hong Kong

  Radio Hong Kong was founded in the then British colony in June 1928. A shortwave transmitter was opened in 1935. Japanese occupiers ran the radio system during the war, and it took several years to rebuild the system afterwards. In 1948 Rediffusion Hong Kong introduced wired radio services in English and Chinese. Hong Kong's first commercial radio station, Hong Kong Commercial Broadcasting Company Limited, began broadcasting in 1959. By the early 1960s, there were seven stations (two FM) on the air from morning to midnight. In mid-1997 Hong Kong reverted from British to Chinese control, but as a part of the Basic Law governing the change, media remained markedly free compared to mainland standards. By 2000, there were three companies operating more than a dozen stations broadcasting in Chinese and English. One group of six stations was owned by the government.

Korea

  In February 1927 Japanese authorities established a radio station at Kyungsung in Seoul which operated largely as a mouthpiece for their colonial policy. Over the next decade, additional stations were established throughout the country, broadcasting in both Japanese and Korean and depending on license fees to meet operational costs. After World War II, Korea was divided at the 38th·parallel, with very different government and broadcast systems.

In the South, the U.S. military government (1945-48) took over the Japanese-built stations and helped to create the Korean Broadcasting System (KBS). American music and other formats were encouraged, as was advertising support. In 1954 the first privately owned stations (operated by Christian organizations) began broadcasting. The first commercial station, the Pusan Munhwa Broadcasting Station, was established in 1959. Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) was established on 12 December 1961 as the first public broadcaster.in Korea. At various times political upheaval has affected radio operation, though never to the extent that it has with television. The first FM outlet aired in 1965, and several were on the air by 1970. MBC makes use of AM and FM with its. 20 affiliates. Television competition forced radio to develop specialized formats of all kinds in an attempt to attract listeners.

By 2000, there were nearly 100 radio stations in Korea, including 42 FM outlets and one shortwave station. In addition to those run by the KBS, many are operated by religious organizations. Music and drama predominate. The American Forces Korea Network has been on the air since the beginning of the Korean War (1950-53), providing news and entertainment for U.S. military personnel stationed in Korea. Radio Korea International broadcasts overseas in ten languages.

Radio in the Democratic People's Republic of North Korea was first introduced under the Japanese and has remained under government control. The Central Broadcasting Service took over in 194 5 and was a high priority for reconstruction after the Korean War. This included development of a wired system connecting Pyongyang with more than 4,000 "broadcasting booths" located in factories, farms, and other public places. It has been a key medium in the constant touting of the country's leadership cult. By the mid-1970s, radio service operated on seven medium wave and 12 shortwave transmitters. Radio receivers were regularly checked to be sure they could receive only the official domestic service and no foreign broadcasts.

Most programs are relayed from the capital city of Pyongyang and offer public affairs, culture, and some entertainment content, most of it with strong political overtones. Pyongyang FM's I4 transmitters offer music and propaganda-laced serial dramas to entice South Korean listeners. North Korean media remain the most tightly controlled on the continent-aided by widespread use of wired networks that prevent listening to foreign broadcasts.

Mongolia

  In 1934 a national broadcasting service began from Ulan Bator. With substantial Soviet aid, an extensive medium wave and shortwave radio system was established that by the mid- 197os featured one national service and 20 provincial stations. Two decades later, radio served 90 percent of the country's population (television could reach only 60 percent), with some towns reached by wired networks. An overseas service was established in 1964, now called Voice of Mongolia. Until the country became a republic in 1992, all stations were owned and operated by the government and carried a strongly propagandistic program schedule.

The state-controlled system was abolished in the late 1990s. A few private stations are on the air and the government has encouraged further investment. There is little legal restriction on station ownership or operation. Three independent FM radio services now compete with Mongol Yaridz Radio, which had long operated as a monopoly and still enjoys the largest audiences. Most Russian-language programs have given way to expand interest in learning English.