Towards developing a Filipino radio station based on the public service broadcast model

Abstract

Over the years, there has been an influx of migrants from the Philippines to Singapore with the current estimated number being 200,000 with Singapore being one of the top ten destinations for Filipino nationals to be deployed. However, although they have had an established presence in Singapore since the 1960s, there is no dedicated radio service to cater to the large community. Therefore, using the Filipino community as a case study in Singapore, this research thus aimed to identify the potential of developing a radio station for the Filipino community in Singapore based on the Public Service Broadcasting (PSB) Model. Our research consisted of three studies. Study One was a quantitative audience survey of 607 participants that explored the Filipino community’s radio listening needs and practices in Singapore and opinions on Singapore radio’s current programming. Study Two comprised of in-depth interviews with six interviewees from the Filipino community and the radio industry, which explored if it was beneficial and viable to have a Filipino radio station using a PSB model. Lastly, Study Three comprised of focus group sessions with the Filipino community that explored if having a Filipino radio station would be helpful for them and what their preferences were for the proposed radio station. Our collective findings demonstrated that although the benefits of having a PSB radio station for the Filipino community were salient and showed that there was a ground level preference for a PSB radio station catered towards the Filipino community in Singapore, it was determined that it was not viable to do so due to issues with funding, long-term programming sustainability and ownership. The implications of our findings for the migrant communities in Singapore and the radio industry in Singapore are also discussed.