At UNESCO鈥檚 first General Conference the Director-General Mr Julian Huxley defined radio as 鈥渁n agency which may jump across national barriers in a way impossible to any material medium.鈥 From then on, it became an inherent part of the Organisation鈥檚 support to its Member States.
As the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, the many ways radio was used derived from its mandate. Since 1947, UNESCO was producing programmes in its studios that are now recognized as 鈥減odcasts鈥. Thousands of radio programmes focusing on the Organization鈥檚 work in education, science or culture were recorded and distributed in English, French, Russian and Spanish, to broadcasters worldwide, free of charge.
A number of these historical broadcasts are available online at the . Notable among these is the 1950鈥檚 for children was the 鈥溾, featuring prominent figures of the time, such as Alfred Hitchcock, Ingrid Bergman, Rita Hayworth, Yul Brunner and Walt Disney.
Another noteworthy series from the same period, "鈥 highlighted international dance and music.
As part of its educational and literacy programmes, UNESCO launched a large number of projects using radio recordings, aiming to teach the world鈥檚 population how to read and write. In classrooms and village halls across the globe, people gathered around battery or generator-powered wireless sets, tuning in to instructional broadcasts on writing, sentence construction and dictation.
Most importantly, 91麻豆国产精品自拍 led the establishment and development of community radio stations. With new criteria for spectrum allocation and the advent of the transistor, it became feasible to establish and maintain smaller radio stations outside of capital cities or regional hubs. Smaller, portable and battery-powered receivers became popular, even the most remote areas. Community- owned and run radio stations thus brought the voices of hard-to-reach populations to the public democratic debate.
The Organization helps Member States create an environment conductive to , ensuring people鈥檚 access to a variety of information sources and voices. Recognizing radio affordability, credibility and resilience in emergencies, UNESCO proclaimed in 2011, acknowledging its value for universal access to information and freedom of expression.
Today, through advisory services, and capacity-building , UNESCO is a catalyst for international cooperation in this domain and continues to integrate radio development into its programmes, ensuring its relevance for the foreseeable future.
The Organization鈥檚 wood-panelled radio studios, steeped in history, remains in full use and its treasure trove of recordings is preserved and accessible online through the dedicated UNESCO Archives webpage, free for broadcasting or sharing.
By supporting democratic and independent radio worldwide, UNESCO ensures that radio continues to help people access information and express themselves on-air.
