Radio broadcasting in Singapore (1946–65)



Singapore Infopedia

Background

The postwar years ushered in the adoption of radio as a form of mass media and popular entertainment in Singapore. The establishment of Radio Malaya in 1946 and its successor Radio Singapore in 1959 expanded local infrastructure and manpower capabilities in radio broadcasting and programming. Listenership increased in tandem, and the radio set soon became ubiquitous in households. Up until the arrival of television in 1963, radio played a key role in the dissemination of general and government information, providing entertainment, educating audiences and strengthening communities.1

Radio broadcasting under Radio Malaya (1946–56)
After the Japanese Occupation ended in 1945, radio broadcast was briefly under the management of the British Military Administration until the return of civilian rule in April 1946. The Pan-Malayan Department of Broadcasting was formed to assume responsibility for providing radio services to Singapore and Malaya, though the two territories were politically separately at the time. Its responsibilities were to:

  1. Deliver news on Malaya, Commonwealth and the world in Malay, English, Tamil languages and Chinese dialects.
  2. Cultivate a sense of belonging and loyalty to Malaya and to educate the public on social and racial harmony.
  3. Inculcate responsible discussion on matters of public interest.
  4. Stimulate public interest and involvement in the working of the Government.
  5. Raise cultural standards.
  6. Produce and broadcast educational programmes in support of the Departments of Education in Singapore and Malaya.
  7. Provide entertainment.2

To this end, Radio Malaya Singapore and the Federation of Malaya (RMSFOM; or Radio Malaya), a short- and mediumwave service, was launched. The network consisted of studios and transmitters across Singapore and Malaya, including headquarters in Singapore and a regional office in Kuala Lumpur. Originally located in Cathay Building, the Singapore headquarters were relocated to Caldecott Hill in 1951 after the completion of new studios and offices there.3

The Singapore Department comprised seven units: Administrative Section; Programme Division, which was responsible for the production of programmes in English, Malay, Chinese and Tamil; Newsroom, which oversaw all news bulletins in the main languages; Schools Division, which developed educational programmes that supported classroom teaching; Engineering Division, which maintained the network of studios and transmitters; Special News Service, which monitored broadcasts from abroad; and Community and Rural Broadcasting Division, which provided entertainment and government information to communities living and working in villages, tin mines, rubber estates and farms throughout Malaya.4

Rural broadcasting was initially shared between the Community and Rural Broadcasting Division and the Emergency Information Services, the agency that oversaw the government’s anti-insurgency propaganda efforts. In 1951, the latter became fully in charge. However, it was merged with the Programme Division in 1953. With this transition, the Malay, Chinese and Indian sections of the Rural Broadcasting Division became the rural programme sections of their respective programme services.5

English programmes
To cater to the multilingual population of Singapore and Malaya, programmes were broadcast in the four main languages – English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil – and several Chinese dialects. English programmes had the largest listener base. In 1946, the number of hours broadcast in English was approximately 1,000. This increased to 4,000 by 1955.6

The type of English programmes comprised “audience” shows, varieties, talks, features, discussions, drama (Radio Theatre), sports commentaries, light entertainment, classical music and traditional music, popular music and children’s programmes. In addition to borrowed recordings, the station also produced many of its own programmes that featured the cultural, economic, social and political life of Malaya. Some highlights include the broadcast of the first Singapore Legislative Council election in 1948, the installation of the Sultan of Perak in 1949 and the presentation of the Royal Charter to the City of Singapore in 1951.7

Reflecting Singapore’s status as a colonial and cosmopolitan city, the radio service covered colonial events such as the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II and performances and interviews with overseas artists and famous personalities passing through Singapore and the Federation. Besides covering grand events, Radio Malaya also explored the more ordinary aspects of life in Malaya, such as the offshore islands of Singapore, rural infant welfare centres, fish farming and the aboriginal people of Malaya. Radio Malaya’s original productions extended to musical performances and radio plays, which gave homegrown playwrights and artists such as the Radio Orchestra a platform to showcase and hone their talents. Radio Malaya also organised programmes such as “Good Cause” and “Dollars for Discs”, which raised funds for charity.8

Broadcasts extended to children and youths as well. Youth programmes consisted of forums, drama, book reviews and career talks. Children’s programmes such as “Calling All Children” and “Tic Toc Club” provided many hours of fun and learning in the form of storytelling, competitions, music, and club badges.9

Malay programmes

Malay programmes accounted for 1,919 broadcast hours in 1955. The headquarters of the Malay section was originally based in Singapore and it oversaw all Malay programming except rural broadcasts. With the setting up of the VHF (very high frequency) band that linked all pan-Malayan stations, its headquarters moved to Kuala Lumpur in 1955, and the responsibility of broadcasting was shared between the stations in Singapore and the Federation.10

Music was the most popular of Malay programmes. In particular, kronchong music, Malay folk songs and Western sambas and rhumbas arranged in the style of Malay music had mass appeal. Other crowd favourites included performances by Malay music and film celebrities; “Personal Choice”, where listeners were invited to the studios to play their choice of songs; and song request programmes, which drew letters from Thailand, Indonesia and as far as Arabia and India. To discover new musical talents, Radio Malaya organised singing competitions in Singapore and the Federation.11

Radio plays were also popular. These dramas commonly depicted everyday situations accompanied with moral lessons. Radio Malaya also aired a weekly series called “Bangsawan of the Air”, which showcased traditional Malay opera that retold epics and folklore such as Hang Tuah and Bawang Puteh.12

Besides entertainment, a significant percentage of broadcast time was allocated to cultural appreciation, general knowledge and self-improvement. These took the form of talks on subjects such as Malay language and literature, discussions on world events and Malay affairs, and women’s programmes on topics ranging from women entrepreneurship to child rearing. Evenings were normally reserved for religious programmes such as recitations of the Quran and the reading of sermons. In addition, special broadcasts were also produced to mark festive occasions such as Hari Raya, the Sultan of Johor’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations and Coronation Week.13

For rural audiences, the emphasis was on improving the standard of living. Series such as “Kampong Doctor” answered questions on health and disease, while “Kampong Forum” discussed ways to improve the village economy and “Agricultural Forum” shared advice on improving production. Attempts were also made to raise literacy through programmes that taught reading and writing Romanised Malay. Another notable initiative in rural broadcasting were field recordings of the arts and culture of Malaya. Recording teams would travel to parts of Malaya, even to remote areas, to document the intangible heritage of Malaya, such as a little-known folk song or a treasured family cooking recipe. In this way, many valuable recordings of indigenous music were made.14

Chinese programmes
Chinese programmes accounted for 4,000 broadcast hours in 1955. One of the challenges of broadcasting in Chinese was the sheer number of dialects used in Singapore and Malaya. As programmes such as news bulletins and talks had to be produced in different dialects, programming staff were not only expected to be well versed in Mandarin but also in their native dialect. At the time, Radio Malaya was reportedly the only station in the world to run daily broadcasts in seven Chinese dialects. These were: Mandarin for the younger generation, Cantonese, Amoy and Teochew for the business and industrial communities, Hakka for the mining and farming sectors, and Foochow and Hylam for coffee shops and eating houses. Occasionally, programmes in other dialects such as Shanghainese and Hinghwa were also aired. One example was “Commodity Price and Share Market Reports”, which aired daily in Amoy, Cantonese and Hakka. The report on the prices of rubber, tin, rice, sugar, pepper, flour, sago, coffee and gold was closely followed by news on businesses in Singapore, the Federation, Thailand, Burma (now Myanmar), Indonesia and Indochina.15


Modern Mandarin songs were the most popular type of music among Chinese listeners. However, as it became increasingly difficult to acquire Chinese commercial recordings from Shanghai due to the political situation in China, most recordings came from Hong Kong and Singapore, where new singing talents, especially female vocalists of popular Chinese songs, were discovered from the lively entertainment scenes. Apart from modern songs, traditional Chinese music was also aired, though art forms such as Peking opera were already losing ground among the younger generation by this time. Cantonese and Teochew provincial musical dramas had the largest following among broadcasts made in Foochow, Amoy, Hakka and Hylam. To address the shortage of dialect recordings, the Chinese Programme Supervisor travelled to Hong Kong to record the performances of professional and semi-professional opera singers.16

Among the popular music programmes was “We Sing for the Workers”, in which a five-piece band and singers visited factories to entertain workers during their lunch breaks. During these sessions, workers were encouraged to come forward to perform. These events were so popular that workers were said to take to the microphone more often than the singers from Radio Malaya. The song request programme, “Say It With Music”, was also very well received, drawing some 4,000 letters every month. Yet another programme, “Let Us Sing”, taught listeners how to sing modern popular Mandarin songs, aided with lyrics published in advance in the Nanyang Radio Weekly (南洋广播周刊) magazine. Apart from Chinese music, Western music was also featured. In the musical series “Musical New Look”, Chinese music arranged in the style of Western music was performed by the Radio Orchestra, and light classical music was introduced in the regular programme “Introducing Western Music”.17

Another crowd pleaser was serial storytelling. These stories were presented in Cantonese, Hakka, Amoy and Teochew, with Cantonese storyteller Lee Dai Soh being the most popular. The radio also aired adaptations of Chinese stage plays or original works by local playwrights in Mandarin and Cantonese. Other entertainment programmes include a monthly variety show that showcased singing, instrumental solos, humorous sketches, dancing, comedy and quizzes, and radio chess matches where listeners in coffee shops followed along on chessboards.18

Besides entertainment, programmes also sought to educate the public. These include news; women’s programmes; talks on arts, culture, science and agriculture; commentaries on sporting events such as the Asian Games and the Thomas Cup World Badminton Championship; “Radio Lawyer”; and the well-received “Radio Doctor”, whose scripts were published after broadcast in Nanyang Radio Weekly. Highlights include “At the Street Corner”, in which a mobile recording unit carried out spot interviews with artisans, hawkers, bus conductors and trishaw riders at street corners to foster understanding among different social stratas; “Meet the People”, which featured life and activities in the New Villages of Malaya; and “Coffee Shop Chat”, which provided general information and explanations on government policies. Language lessons encouraged the learning of English, Malay and Mandarin. “Simple English” was presented in Mandarin, Amoy and Cantonese; “Simple Malay” in Mandarin and Cantonese; and “Mandarin by Air” in Cantonese, Amoy and Teochew. The lessons were published in advance in Nanyang Radio Weekly so listeners could follow together with the broadcasts. There were also religious programmes such as Buddhism talks in Amoy or Mandarin, and Christian services in Mandarin, Cantonese, Teochew, Amoy, Foochow and Hakka.19

Indian programmes
Indian programmes accounted for 1,861 broadcast hours in 1955. Unlike the previous three programming sections, the Indian programming section operated as a group of semi-autonomous units in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Melaka. It was not until the setting up of the VHF band that content could be shared between stations. With this greater integration, Penang was placed in charge of the midday programmes; Kuala Lumpur, of the rural programmes; and Singapore, of the rest.20


One of the initial problems that the Indian programming section faced was the poor reception of its programmes that were designed with a Malayan background, among listeners whose loyalty laid with India. However, the sentiments changed as more Indian migrants settled permanently in Malaya. To address this issue, Radio Malaya introduced programmes that sought to instil interest and a sense of belonging towards one’s adopted country. In the early years, listeners’ dissatisfaction also extended to the standard of local Tamil musicians, writers and scholars in Malaya, who were perceived as lacking compared to those in South India. There were differences in opinion over the style of Tamil used in broadcasting. The literary style, which was suitable for public speaking, was difficult for illiterate Indians to understand. On the other hand, the use of the colloquial style of Tamil on broadcasts was frowned upon by educated Indians. After consultation with various stakeholders in the community, it was decided that a vocabulary of 3,000 words found in both the literary and colloquial styles would be used in the programmes intended for a broader audience, such as news bulletins.21

In music programming, both traditional Indian music and modern songs were aired, though the latter, especially hit tunes from Indian movies, were received with greater enthusiasm. Programmes involving audience participation such as the song request programme “The Listeners’ Choice” as well as cash prize shows “Spot the Winner” and “Spot the Singer” were equally popular. “Down Memory Lane” led listeners on a nostalgic journey of old songs, while “Tamil and Hindustani Record Reviews” educated listeners on the mints of different records. Whenever possible, famous musicians from India and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) were also invited to perform on broadcast when they were in Malaya.22

Radio plays were another popular category of programmes. The dramas featured original scripts written by staff writers or local playwrights, as well as adaptations of English plays, commonly works by Shakespeare. The plays dealt with wide-ranging themes, from the marriage of widows to citizens’ rights and civic responsibilities. As interest grew, many listeners began contributing scripts of their own, a handful of which were selected for broadcast.23

Next to music and radio plays, talks and features made up a major proportion of airtime. These took the form of straight talks, discussions, forums, quizzes, competitions, spot interviews, and field recordings. They covered a broad spectrum of subjects, from world affairs, Indian affairs, history, civics, culture, literature, geography, science, health, education, trade unionism, economy to women’s issues. Some notable programmes include “Radio Doctor”; “Radio Gardener”; “Poets’ Corner”, where poets and scholars from all over the world discuss poetic works; “The Lives of Great Men”, a popular talk series that aimed to inspire young people through the lives of outstanding historical figures; “Forum of the Air”, an unscripted discussion programme that explored contentious topics such as birth control, capital punishment and state lotteries; “Inside Malaya” and “Malaya and Us”, two weekly broadcasts that helped people understand the political, economic, industrial and social issues of Malaya; and “Kampong Gossip”, a dialogue on topical issues.24

Broadcasts of significant events include the visit of the first Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru to Penang, the installation of Robert Black as Governor of Singapore, the opening of Paya Lebar Airport, and festivals such as Thaipusam, Deepavali, Vesak Day and the Sri Thiyagaraja Festival, among others.25

School broadcasting
The objective of school broadcasting was not to replace formal teaching, but to support educators with supplementary resources. In 1949, over 500 schools received radio broadcasts, and this figure increased to 2,082 schools by 1955. The broadcasts covered a broad range of subjects – including history, geography, civics, music, language, literature, science, natural history, philosophy, hygiene, current affairs, domestic science and even road safety. Also offered were English lessons for Chinese schools and Malay classes for English schools.26


Some outstanding and innovative programmes were “Law and Order” and “Malayan Economics”, which supported Civics classes; “Scenes from Asian History”, “Stories from World History”, “How Things Began” and “Observer from the Past”, which explored different periods of history; “Music and Movement”, which taught music through rhythmical movement; dramatisations of literary texts such as Macbeth; and “Professor Shrimpwhisker’s Adventures”, which introduced simple hygiene, everyday science, civics, nature study and general knowledge through the weekly adventures of a professor and his boy assistant.27

Interschool debates and quiz competitions were especially popular among students in Singapore and the Federation. Special broadcasts were also made on Children’s Day and Empire Day, when the Colonial Secretary would give his annual address to the schoolchildren in Singapore.28

The value of the school broadcasting service was none more evident than in 1948 when schools closed during a polio epidemic. Learning continued for candidates sitting for school certificate examinations through daily broadcasts prepared by a team of teachers.29

Broadcasting during the Malayan Emergency
Radio Malaya also took on a counter-insurgency role during the Malayan Emergency, a conflict between communist guerrillas and British Commonwealth forces in Malaya that lasted from 1948 to 1960. The broadcasts, aired in English, Malay, Chinese and Tamil, featured programmes such as “This is Communism”, a weekly series describing life under communism; “Here and There in Malaya”, which informed the public on the government measures against militant communism; playlets set in the Malayan Emergency showing how people could help by providing intelligence or denying food to terrorists; popular songs written with new lyrics featuring Emergency themes; straight talks like “Truth Teller”, a popular Tamil programme that explained the Emergency in simple terms to rural audiences; and various programmes that were aired as part of Anti-Bandit Month. In 1954, Radio Malaya began air-to-ground broadcasting by “Voice” aircraft with tape-recorded messages prepared by the Psychological Warfare Section of the Director of Operations staff. The broadcasts, which appealed to terrorists to surrender, were made in almost every Chinese dialect, several Malay dialects, Tamil, Aborigine languages and even Japanese, as the aircraft flew over the jungles of Malaya.30


Broadcasting under Radio Singapore (1959–65)
Since the inception of RMSFOM in 1946, radio broadcasting had made great strides, with the number of household radio licences increasing from 11,818 in 1947 to 83,453 in 1956. These include the subscribers of Rediffusion, a cable-transmitted, commercial radio station that began broadcasting in 1949.31


In tandem with the postwar political transformation of Singapore and Malaya, public broadcasting underwent several organisational changes. In 1957, the Federation of Malaya gained independence, which separated the RMSFOM’s operations into two independent and distinct entities: Radio Malaya and Radio Singapore. Radio Singapore continued to function as the headquarters of Radio Malaya until 1958. In 1959, Radio Singapore was formally established as the public broadcaster for Singapore.32

Radio Singapore operated on the medium- and shortwave bands from transmitters located in Jurong. It offered four channels with programmes in English, Malay, Tamil and seven Chinese dialects to listeners in Singapore and South Johor. Broadcasts continued on lines similar to the previous years under Radio Malaya.33

In 1959, Radio Singapore broadcast 13,500 hours of programmes, more than half of which were allocated to music, followed by talks including adult education, dramas and documentaries, news bulletins and school broadcasts.34 In 1963, Radio Singapore became the Singapore station of Radio Malaysia when Singapore joined the Federation to form the Federation of Malaysia. That year also saw the launch of television in Singapore. With the separation of Singapore from Malaysia in 1965, Radio Singapore was renamed Radio Television Singapore (RTS) and came under the operation of the Department of Broadcasting within the Ministry of Culture.35



Author
Gracie Lee


References
1. Singapore. Broadcasting Division, Radio Singapore: A Story of Progress 1945–1959 (Singapore: Govt. Print. Off., 1959), 1. (Call no. RCLOS 791.44 SIN-[RFL]); Chan Kwok-Buna and Yung Sai-Shing, “Chinese Entertainment, Ethnicity and Pleasure,” Visual Anthropology, 18, nos. 1–2 (2005) 103–142; George Yong-Boon Yeo, On Air: Untold Stories from Caldecott Hill (Singapore: Marshall Cavendish Editions, 2019), 20–21. (Call no. RSING 384.54095957 ON)

2. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52 (Singapore: Govt. Print. Off., 1953), 55. (Call no. RCLOS 384.54095951 MDBRDB)
3. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 3–5, 38–39, 41–42.
4. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 3–5, 17; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953 (Singapore: Govt. Print. Off., 1954), 12. (Call no. RCLOS 384.54095951 MDBRDB)
5. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 3–5, 17; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 12.
6. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 3–5, 38–39, 41–42; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1955 (Singapore: Govt. Print. Off., 1956), 10. (Call no. RCLOS 384.54095951 MDBRDB)
7. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 6–10.
8. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 6–10; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 3–6; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954 (Singapore: Govt. Print. Off., 1955), 6–10. (Call no. RCLOS 384.54095951 MDBRDB); Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 3–5.
9. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 9.
10. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 5, 10.
11. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 10; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 6–7; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 5–6.
12. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 6–8; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 11; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 5–7.
13. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 10–11; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 6–8; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 10–11.
14. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 10–11; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 6–8; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 10–11; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 5–7.
15. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 11–14; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 8–9; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 12; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 7.
16. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 12, 14; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 8; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 8.
17. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 12–13; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 8–9; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 12; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 7–8.
18. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 12–13; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 8; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 12; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 7–8.
19. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 12–13; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 9; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 12–13; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 8.
20. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 13; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 10.
21. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 14–15; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 9–10.
22. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 14–15; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 10; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 9.
23. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 15; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 10; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 13; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 8.
24. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 15–16; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 10; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 14; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 8–9.
25. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 11; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 14–15; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 9.
26. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 22–24; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 13; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 22–23; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 13–14.
27. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 22–24; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 13; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 22–23; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 13–14.
28. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 24; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 13–14; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 23; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 14.
29. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 22–24; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 22–23; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 13.
30. Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Years 1946–52, 8, 10, 13, 15, 17–19; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 11; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1953, 13–14; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the Year 1954, 3, 9, 11; Malaya. Department of Broadcasting, Report of the Department of Broadcasting for the year 1955, 2.
31. Singapore. Broadcasting Division, Radio Singapore, 1–2.
32. Singapore. Broadcasting Division, Radio Singapore, 1.
33. Singapore. Broadcasting Division, Radio Singapore, 2, 7, 9.
34. Singapore. Broadcasting Division, Radio Singapore, 3–5.
35. Singapore. Broadcasting Division, Radio-Television Singapore ([Singapore: Ministry of Culture. Broadcasting Division], [1973]), [n.p.]. (Call no. RCLOS 791.44 SIN); Yeo, Untold Stories from Caldecott Hill, 20–21.




Further resources
Bradley C. Freeman and Yokanathan Ramakrishnan, Singapore Radio: Then and Now (UK: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2016), 17–34. (Call no. RSING 384.54095957 FRE)


Drew O McDaniel, Broadcasting in the Malay World: Radio, Television, and Video in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore (NJ: Ablex Pub., 1994). (Call no. RSING 302.2340959 MAC)

Paulina Ng Ting Pei, History of Radio Broadcasting in Singapore: Its Formative Years ([Singapore: National University of Singapore, Degree granting institution],1996). (Call no. RSING 791.44013095957 NG)



The information in this article is valid as at October 2020 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.

 

 

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