Principles and Techniques of Veterinary and AH Extension

Radio

EXERCISE-10: USE OF MEDIA IN EXTENSION 

It is a system of wireless communication, which is popular, useful mass medium for extension

Uses

1. Information can reach household directly and instantly throughout a region or country
2. Used for creating awareness of new ideas to large number of people
3. For publicizing extension activities
4. Enables one community or group to share its experience with others

Principle

• Sound waves created in a studio are changed into electrical waves by the broadcasting transmitter, radiated into space and then picked up by a receiving set. The receiving set transforms the electric waves back into the same sound produced in the studio.
• The script should be
  • “audience-minded, subject minded and language minded”

General Guidelines for writing a script

Write in spoken form: it should be easily read, sound conversational and easily absorbed by the listener.

• Simplicity of words and sentences
• Attract attention in the first few seconds
• Writing must start strongly and end strongly with a concluding statement. Continued interest must be maintained in between
• Repeat key ideas
• Avoid overuse of statistics; spell out large figures in the script. Avoid giving specific numbers; rather round them off.
• Give specific examples to illustrate main points
• Plan carefully
• Maintain continuity of narration in writing the script
• Limit the talk to 3-5 minutes; listener will not concentrate at one voice speaking on a single topic for much longer than that.
• Make the talk practical by suggesting action that the listener might take
• Write the script in the right style and deliver the talk after rehearsing satisfactorily

Limitation

• For battery operated radios, batteries are expensive and there may be few repair facilities for radio sets that breakdown
• From the listener’s point of view, radio is an inflexible medium, a programme is transmitted at a specific time of day and if a farmer do not switch on the radio in time, there is no further opportunity to hear it, unless it is broadcast again
• A farmer can’t stop the programme and go back to a point that was not quite understood or heard properly and after the broadcast there is nothing to rewind the farmer of the information hear.
• People generally listen to the radio in a casual way (often while they are doing something else). For this reason, radio is not a good medium for putting over long complex items of information
• There is no immediate feedback from the audience.