Switzerland calling
In media history, radio was the first means of communication able to reach a large and widely dispersed audience. New technology, particularly short wave transmissions turned it into an essential vehicle for information policy between 1930 and the end of the 20th century.
In Switzerland, shortwave broadcasts began in 1932 with “Radio-Nations,” the broadcast station of the League of Nations in Geneva, which served as a relay station to transmit programmes to the Swiss colonies in the Americas. In April 1938, parliament accepted the Federal Council’s project of building a shortwave transmitter in Schwarzenburg. Put into operation in the summer of 1939, the transmitter broadcast daily programmes to the Americas from 1941 onwards. Subsequently, programmes in English, Spanish, and Portuguese were added to the broadcasts produced in the three national languages.
After the war, the shortwave service assisted in amending Switzerland’s image abroad. Its capabilities were frequently used to promote the image of a humanitarian Switzerland in the service of solidarity and peace. During the Hungarian uprising in autumn 1956, at the request of the International Committee of the Red Cross, the shortwave service restored the broken links with the local Red Cross to organise a relief campaign. During the Cold War, political news programmes enjoying great credibility conveyed Switzerland’s views on the international situation. At the same time, the shortwave transmitter was useful for promoting trade and tourism.
In 1964, the shortwave service significantly expanded its programmes, which for the first time were aimed at French speaking African and Arabian countries. The increase in radio coverage was a result of international and political developments, particularly of decolonisation. In the broadcasts for the new countries, the promotion of trade went hand in hand with the promotion of traditional elements of Swiss national identity, such as neutrality and direct democracy.
At the same time, Pro Helvetia worked with the shortwave service to create a transcription service. The aim was to improve the reach of Swiss radio programmes abroad, using local transmitters. At the end of the 1960s, the Foundation subsidised programmes, notably producing folk music broadcasts for American radio stations.
From 1978 onwards, the shortwave service continued its mandate under the new name of Radio Suisse International. The end of the Cold War and the development of new methods of communication accelerated the decline of the broadcasting station in Schwarzenburg. In 1999, the shortwave era ended, and Swissinfo, an internet platform, replaced the station. (tk)
Archives
AFS E 2001 (E), dossiers i.A.15.42.11.1
Bibliography
Drack, Markus T. (éd.) : La radio et la télévision en Suisse. Histoire de la Société suisse de radiodiffusion SSR jusqu’en 1958, Baden, Verlag hier + jetzt 2000
Mäusli, Theo ; Steigmeier, Andreas (éd.) : La radio et la télévision en Suisse. Histoire de la Société suisse de radiodiffusion et télévision SSR 1958-1983, Baden, hier + jetzt 2006