RADIO C-A-R-N-I-V-A-L!!! Vive la difference! Turn on, tune in, 24 hours a day. 1020 AM in South Florida, WRHB today, originally WRBF,10,000-watt. A brand new Haitian radio station reaching Kendall, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Broward, and its vicinities.
I am entertained, enchanted, while listening to this station and writing a column for " The Haitian Times."
Great Kompa music with Haitian message songs having to do with love and politics. And what beautiful message songs they are. All is fair in love, war, and politics in this world of entertainment. That's a great escape from the daily routine. I find myself moving to the beat sitting in my office chair while being inspired by the words. Also a mix of English, French, Spanish, African, island songs, and others. Right on. No need to put on my tape collection due to lack of good music. No need to be annoyed by amateur speakers and the common "voye monte" in our vernacular. Very diverse, very professional, very up-to-date.
Few commercials if any, up to now. Their reports on the news for such a young station are professionally done in French and Creole, and it's the first Haitian owned radio station in South Florida, with the exception of Radio Collective which is a subcarrier. They have a mixture of English, French, Spanish, Creole programs and the successful Haitian-American singer, Wyclef Jean, is one of their sponsors. Cultural program with for instance famed Haitian writer Franketienne.
Their Haitian DJs or entertainers that I have heard, speak the English language so well that I found myself switching dial thinking I had the wrong station. To my delight I found that I was on the right one. The hosts have an easy way of passing from one language to another. The give-and-take among themselves is delightful. Their French, Creole, English pronunciation and diction are up-to-date.
I have been listening to Haitian radio for the past 60 years starting with HH2S in Port-au-Prince, in 1941. In those days they had a witty and wonderful Creole speaker called Zo. I loved Zo! Salnave was his family name I believe, and this was an event in itself then, that Creole was being spoken in the air. Parents wanting their children to speak French in Haiti did not permit them to listen to Zo. For them he was an aberration and children had to listen to him "en cachette."
One day at 9 years of age, some phones were working then, I called Zo in secret from the family home in Port-au-Prince to congratulate him. In my best recollection it was a Sunday during lunchtime, when normally the whole family of thirteen members plus, (myself, the benjamin, the "crass vente", meaning the youngest), had lunch on an imposing dining room table while listening to the traditional classical music. I did then rush after the phone call to Zo, to that grotesque Philco wooden console in the living room, and changed the dial that day to HH2S.
It was done just in time to hear Zo proudly thanking a listener who called congratulating him for his Creole broadcast. I was so thrilled and felt important having done a good deed for the day. Lo and behold, my dear mother who was a fanatic francophile changed the dial right back to classicals. Her comments were: " What is this world coming to with people calling to encourage Creole broadcasts ?" I did not dare tell her I was the culprit. "Grangou se mize; vant plen se traka: " Being hungry is a problem, but a full stomach is a problem too."
Today in South Florida we have three main stations with a majority of Haitian programs. WLQR 1320 AM, Radio Haiti Amerique 980 AM, and Radio Collective International which is a subcarrier, broadcasting on an FM frequency that can be picked up only by a specially tuned radio.
Those stations do render a service to the community and have some excellent programming, but there is always room for improvement. Such as lack of coordination in publicity, limited professionalism among some speakers, poor knowledge of the English, French, and Creole languages. For instance, Creole, although influenced by other tongues, has its rules too as a language, and it can be vulgarized to a point where one may as well speak English only. Not anyone can speak good Creole and immigrants already have a hard time learning English to be exposed to poor Kreyol. The same rules which apply to French, English, Spanish, apply to Kreyol too. "Zafe kabrit pa zafe mouton": Goat's business is not sheep's business.
As stated by Ronel Perrault, PhD, " 90% of Haitians speak Creole. We don't need to spend 300 more years to get to a 20% francophone in Haiti." Agreed. Also that " a man's education is not determined by the language that he speaks." Again, agreed. But by all means, let's respect some structures in the Creole language, or create some new ones. These are the growing pains of a young broadcasting community which should be addressed; they have a public to respect and educate.
Radio Carnival is a welcome addition in the Haitian broadcasting world, and at large. Hopefully this will bring a healthy competitive spirit with other limited, complacent, and poorly prepared programs lacking in professionalism. Radio Carnival is well placed to be ahead of the pack, being the first Haitian owned radio station in South Florida (besides Radio Collective) not depending on the whims and control of foreign owners.
Compared to America's Midwest, South Florida is a great place to listen to radio. One can turn the dial to French, Creole, Spanish, English, Yiddish, Portuguese, Arabic,Indian, and many others. A mosaic of cultures. Compared to the bible belt in middle America where one is mainly subjected, with all due respect, to evangelical programs and born agan Christians, "vive la difference!" Talk shows abound in multiple languages too.
Dr. Rudolph Moise is the CEO of Radio Carnival. He heads a group of investors who are bankrolling the nation's first Haitian-owned AM radio station. Moise: " We want this to be a competitive, very highly professional station that will bring pride to this community." He is on the right track and congratulations are in order. What is also commendable with radio Carnival, it is already reaching the community at large of non-Haitians.
Ed Lozama, Chief of Programmation, is doing a great job.
" Kimbe-la, Carnival. Chak chen pipi jan-l konnen: " Hang in there, Carnival, each dog pees the way he knows how.
