HISTORY OF PHILIPPINE RADIO

The First Radio Station in the Philippines

There is a debate on what exactly was the first radio station in the country. In 1924 an American
established the first AM radio station KZKZ.
But an archive of radio broadcast histories revealed that in 1922, an American woman named
Mrs. Redgrave made a test broadcast using a five-watt transmitter.
While little is known about Redgraves experiment, it is believed that the test broadcast made
from Nichols field (now Villamor Airbase) could be the very first radio station in the Pearl of the Orient.
First Radio Network
Henry Hermann, founder of the Electrical Supply Company (Manila) gained permission, possibly
from local government and the military to operate more than one station. The test broadcasts delivered
music over the air to wealthy residents who owned radio receivers.
This network of test broadcasts, however, was summed up into one 100-watt powered AM station
bearing the call letters KZKZ on 729 kHz.
Radio Corporation of the Philippines (RCP) later bought KZKZ in October 1924. RCP expanded
in Cebu putting up KZRC (Radio Cebu) in 1929, which is now DYRC.
Before KBP
Radio stations back then were not regulated until the year 1931. The Radio Control Board was
instigated under the US colonial government. The regulating agency took care of the license applications
and frequency allocation.
KBP came only in April 7, 1973.
Call Letters from K to D
KZ was used because the Philippines were then a colony of America. All call letters of radio
stations in the US starter either with K or W.
Francisco Koko Trinidad, known as the father of Philippine Broadcasting attended the
International Telecommunications Union (ITU) in 1947, held in Atlantic City in the US.
Trinidad proposed to use RP instead of KZ. But this was denied by the ITU and gave the letter D
as a replacement to KZ.
D Was Originally for German Stations
Professor Elizabeth Enriquez of UP Manila, on her research, explained why Philippine radio
station call letters start with D and why it actually meant Deutscheland, or the German name of
Germany.
Trinidad remembers insisting on changing the first two call letters of Philippine radio to RP, to
stand for Republic of the Philippines, in lieu of the American KZ. Koko wanted the world to know about the
newly independent republic through the radio call letters. The ITU rejected the call letters RP because of
the amount of trouble it would take to secure the approval of the entire international body, and the
international changes that might have become necessary for such a change.
However, the ITU, which decided to punish Germany for using radio for propaganda and to
advance the cause of Nazism, deprived Germany of its right to use the broadcast airwaves. The ITU then
gave the Philippines the right to use the call letter D (which had stood for Deutscheland, or the German
name of Germany)

Philippine radio signs on

Radio broadcasting started in 1922 when an American businessman in Manila opened three 50-watt
radio stations, not for commercial broadcasting but as a demonstration channel for his electrical supply
business. Two years later, the first commercial radio stations went on the air: station KZKZ owned by the
Radio Corporation of the Philippines, and KZRQ, owned by the Far Eastern Radio, Inc.
The oldest existing radio station in the country today is DZRH. It first signed on in 1939 as KZRH. The
last two letters of the call station stands for Radio Heacock , after H.E. Heacock, the original owner of the
station and one of the largest chains of department stores in the Pacific Rim.
Radio programming from the pre-war to the early post-war period was primarily entertainmentoriented and, as expected, "flavoured with colonial productions" including even canned American serials.
News and public affairs programming, including government programs, were virtually unheard until a few
years before the end of World War II. Advertising of products other than those of the station owners began
only in 1939. In 1929, the first provincial radio station, KZRC was established in Cebu City. However, it
merely relayed programs originally aired over KZRM in Manila. This Manila-centric programming was to
continue up to today.
Radio played an important role in keeping the Filipino spirit alive during World War II. The then KZRH
broadcasted the " Voice of Freedom" from its transmitter physically transferred in Corregidor. Anchored by
Norman Reyes, its stirring broadcast announcing the fall of Bataan in 1942 is a classic in broadcast
journalism "Bataan has fallen... But the spirit that made it stand, a beacon to all liberty-loving
people of the world, cannot fall."
On September 21, 1972, Martial Law was declared. This was the muzzle that silenced much of
Philippine media but also ushered in an era of alternative media. However, martial rule, too, brought about
encouraging concepts as to how Philippine broadcasting should run. For the first time, government control
on the otherwise freewheeling broadcast industry was instituted with the establishment of the Broadcast
Media Council (BMC) and the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster sa Pilipinas (KBP). The Authoritarian system
finally made its mark on the media.

TIMELINE

American businessmen introduced radio to the Philippines in the 1920s as a commercial

enterprise that would promote their consumer goods to Filipinos. Following a test broadcast by a
certain Mrs. Redgrave from Nichols Air Field in 1922, Henry Herman conducted commercial
experiments from 50-watt stations in Manila, Pasay, and a mobile unit, after the American station
KDKA launched on air. During that time, the Filipinos readily accepted radio news and
entertainment programs, and local businessmen, who recognized its profitability, established their
own radio stations to advertise their products and services.
Two years into the experiment, Hermann replaced the experimental stations with a 100-watt
station with the call letters KZKZ.
In 1924 an American established the first AM radio station named KZKZ.HENRY HERMANN
------was the founder of the Electrical Supply Company (Manila). He gained permission, possibly
from local government and the military to operate more than one station.
On October 4, 1924, with KZKZ but a few months old, he sold it to the Radio Corporation of the
Philippines (RCP)
In 1929, KZRC, Radio Cebu, opened in Cebu and introduced radio broadcasting in the province.
However, it was closed down because shortwave relay signals were unsuccessful between Cebu
and Manila. It reopened after a decade and fearlessly went on air with the guerrilla movements.

At first, sponsors did not directly advertise their products but mentioned only their names as
sponsor of particular shows, or titled the shows after their product, for example Klim Musical Quiz
or The Listerine Amateur Hour.
Radio Control Board was created in 1931The board examined applications for licenses to operate
radio, allocated band frequencies, and conducted inspections for the office of the Secretary of
Commerce and Industry
Originally, as a colony of the USA, four letter call signs beginning with KZ-- were in use. Francisco
Koko Trinidad, known as the Father of Philippine Broadcasting attended the International
Telecommunications Union (ITU) in 1947, held in Atlantic City in the US.

Before the War (Significant Dates)

In 1924 the first two call letters KZ was assigned to all radio stations in the Philippines in
accordance with the laws of the United States of America.
In 1929 KZRC, Radio Cebu, opened in Cebu and introduced radiobroadcasting in the province.
In 1931 the Radio Control Division was established. It was the regulatory body of the broadcast
industry.
During the War
During the bombing of Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, and when Japanese airplanes bombed Manila, six
commercial radio stations were established.
On December 28, 1941 The United States provided a shortwave relay station in the Philippines
and beamed to the five radio stations in Manila and to the radio station in Cebu.
January 2, 1942 A similar shortwave relay station was provided for a few more days by the navy
wireless station but was destroyed when the Japanese forces attack Cavite
February 6, 1942 Gen Emilio Aguinaldo, in a broadcast over the Japanese controlled KZRH,
urged General MacArthur to surrender in view of the obvious superiority of Japanese arms.
October 20 and 23, 1944 A temporary shortwave relay station was established in Manila with the
call sign PIAM and PIRN during the war.

After the War

When World War II was over, KZFM was the first radio station to return on the air. It reopened in
May1945 and was operated by the US Army Office of WarInformation.
1947 KZFM, renamed DZFM, became the nucleus of the Philippine Broadcasting System.