Sat, Apr 10, 2004 page16

• Sisters are doing it for themselves

  Sister Radio, the only legal Taiwanese and Asian radio station run by women for women, has become a big hit

  • By Gavin Phipps / STAFF REPORTER
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  Established to promote women's rights in the sleepy rural counties of Yunlin and Chiayi, Sister Radio (姊妹電台) has blossomed since it first broadcast to households, factories and farms on FM105.7, for what was supposed to be a trial period two years ago on March 8.

  The trial period was so successful that Asia's sole female-oriented broadcast network run by women for women became a permanent 24-hour fixture on the FM dial on Women's Day, March 8, last year. The station's popularity is now at an all-time high and even reaches audiences it never intended to reach.

  Since it began broadcasting on Web radio the station has built up a solid reputation nationwide and now attracts thousands of listeners of both sexes on a daily basis throughout Taiwan.

  

  The brainchild of ex-DPP lawmaker and longtime women's rights activist Wang Li-ping (王麗萍), the radio station offers listeners a wide selection of programs, including news, travel, music and literature. It also touches on more diverse topics such as car maintenance. It is the numerous talk and call-in shows that deal with women's rights and equality at home and in the work place, however, that remain at the core of the station's programming.

  From the beginning, the station endeavored to capture a target audience of female listeners. According to the bleach-blonde and mohawked Wang, the station's main aim was (and still is) to bring women's issues and gender awareness to the forefront in rural areas, where such concerns once enjoyed little, if any media coverage. At the same time the station readily provides information for women suffering from spousal/family abuse, to those in need of help with regard to education and other matters.

  There are plenty of resources available for women relating to gender issues in the cities, but very little in the country. Women in Taipei and Kaohsiung can pop into any one of dozens of bookstores and associations to find information, but there are very few bookstores here and the libaries offer nothing at all in the way of resources," said Denise Liang (梁瓊丹), host of Sister Radios' The Witch's Closet (魔女的衣櫃) and Witch's Delivery Service (魔女宒急便).

  

  PHOTO: GAVIN PHIPPS, TAIPEI TIMES

  As well as acting as a sorting house for information, the station works in close conjunction with women's organizations like the Yunlin County Color Purple Women's Association (雲林縣紫色姊妹協會). Cooperation with such groups has proven invaluable, as every month the station receives one or two calls from women faced with problems ranging from domestic violence to pre-marital sex.

  The station's format during the trial period proved remarkably popular and was one that the station management hoped to see continue, but Sister Radio was forced to alter it slightly after running into a couple of unforeseen, and somewhat bizarre obstacles.

  Located in the heart of pirate radio station country, Sister Radio was forced to alter the language of many of its broadcasts early last year in order to distance itself from the many illegal "fake medicine-selling underground radio stations" (地下電台賣假藥).

  

  Ex-DPP lawmaker and the founder of Sister Radio two years ago, Wang Li-ping poses next to the station's spicy logo.

  PHOTO: GAVIN PHIPPS, TAIPEI TIMES

  However odd it may seem, especially considering that Taiwanese is the most commonly used language in the Yunlin/Chiayi area, the prolific number of pirate radio stations operating in the region meant that the station had to revert to the use of Mandarin in order to gain credibility.

  "It sounds stupid, but listeners really thought that we were a pirate radio station because our programs were in Taiwanese," said Liang. "We changed the format and suddenly people began to think of us as a genuine radio station. It's an odd turn of events, but there you are."

  While radio station staff realize that by broadcasting principally in Mandarin they are distancing themselves from a large section of their original target audience, there is very little that can be done about it. A recent report states that the county's pirate radio problem is spiraling out of control. There are more than 10 pirate radio stations operating at any given time in the county, double the number of legal stations.

  One of the oddest problems faced by the radio station in its fledgling days, however, stemmed from a misunderstanding surrounding its name and logo, which is a pair of red lips in the shape of a chili pepper. Sending the wrong message to some, the station became a target for large numbers of unwanted male callers.

  Liang, or Little Witch (小魔女) as she's known to her listeners -- along with nearly all of the station's female presenters -- were inundated with calls from forlorn men asking for a lot more than an earful of the latest mando-pop hits, or to debate female issues.

  "I think because of our name and the logo these people thought we were somehow related to the 0204 sex related chat-lines. I'd get numerous calls while on air from men asking if I'd be their friend and go on a date with them," she said. "It was embarrassing to begin with because the station was new and we were trying to make a name for ourselves."

  The station still uses its spicy lips logo, but according to Liang, such calls have become more infrequent in the past year.

  "We got used to it after a time and getting rid of them became second nature. We'd politely tell them that they were live on air and that they'd made a mistake. They'd hang-up quite quickly after that."

  Initially aiming its programming toward a target audience of 30-year-old-plus females the station has slowly begun to adapt its shows in order to attract a younger audience. The introduction of music programs focusing on classical, pop, traditional and even dance music -- as well as the addition of male hosts in recent months -- has enabled the station to branch out and expand its core audience. Listening figures now point to an audience that ranges from 20- to 40-years-old and covers both sexes.

  The station is also broadcasting several programs relating to gay and lesbian issues.

  According to Liang, before the station began airing programs such as Lez Radio (拉子三缺一) local gay and lesbians felt pretty much ostracized and alone in the rural and predominantly heterosexual community. Along with airing the programs radio staff also give gender awareness lectures at local colleges.

  "Since we've been running the programs people have written in to say how much they appreciate them and they say we have given them the courage to speak out and search for their identity," said Liang. "In rural areas like this homosexuals have felt alone for a long time. Many felt that there was no way they would ever find a program to listen to that aimed at issues affecting them."

  While the station continues to thrive and fill a much-needed niche, station management is already looking to the future. And when problems surrounding broadband broadcasting are finally ironed out in Taiwan it is hoped that the Sister Radio will reach even people and spread its feminist, gay and lesbian messages of good will to an even wider audience.
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