São Paulo – Since last month, inhabitants of the Bekaa valley, in Lebanon, have a new option in their radio programming. On Wednesdays, from 06:00 pm to 06:30 pm, Radio Pax broadcasts the show 3ish el Brazil (pronounced “Aish el Brasil,” which means “Live Brazil”), featuring Brazilian news, interviews and music. Broadcasted in Arabic, the show aims to promote Brazil among the Lebanese.
“Each show is developed around a main subject matter, whose choice seeks to reconcile Brazilian foreign policy affairs with a calendar of the country’s dates of celebration,” says Roberto Medeiros, minister counsellor and head of the cultural section at the Brazilian embassy in Beirut, in charge of producing the radio show. The theme of the first show was Brazil in Lebanon, and featured an interview with the Brazilian ambassador to that country, Paulo Roberto Fontoura.
3ish el Brazil is divided into six segments: 1) information on the theme of the day; 2) Brazilian songs; 3) news about the topic at hand or another current issue in Brazil; 4) interview with a prominent Brazilian, people linked to the country’s culture or a listener of the show; 5) the saying of the day, meant to promote Brazilian popular culture and familiarize listeners with the Portuguese language – the saying is said in Portuguese and then explained in Arabic; 6) question of the day, which relates to the show’s contents and offers a Brazilian music CD to the first listener who answers correctly.
“It must be stressed that this show is not an isolated activity,” says Medeiros. “It is part of a promotion strategy devised by the embassy that covers many facets, such as the actions of the Brazil-Lebanon Cultural Centre, the promotion of Brazilian authors, cuisine and cinema, translations of works into Arabic and promotion of publications for children and young adults,” he explains.
The show is still experimental, says Medeiros, because we are using it in order to better understand the characteristics of the local population and what is the best way to adapt their demands to the embassy’s promotional goals, but it is intended to become permanent. For the time being, the proposal includes the recording of 18 shows, which are broadcasted three times a month. As for the area covered by the broadcast, it is still limited to the Bekaa Valley, but the embassy plans on taking it to the whole Lebanese territory.
Disseminating the Portuguese language is also among the goals of 3ish el Brazil. “Several words in Portuguese are pronounced throughout the show, obviously within the context of the matter at hand,” explains Medeiros. “We believe that together with the songs, they will cause listeners to grow accustomed to the Portuguese language. As time passes, we hope that it will lead to an increase in the demand for Portuguese lessons in the region and for Brazilian cultural products,” he says.
The show is aired by Lebanese radio presenter Richard Ltaif, who also helps determine the tastes of the audience as the radio show plays on. “This was how we decided to include the major Brazilian cities as a topic of the show. In order to address three topics at once, we will discuss the capitals that will host the [2014] World Cup, their main featuers and the Lebanese colonies that inhabit each of them, and their contribution to local culture. Football is a topic much appreciated by the Lebanese, most of them root for Brazil,” says the minister counsellor. “In doing so, we are strengthening the ties between Brazil and Lebanon, one of the highlights of the Brazilian embassy’s work in Lebanon,” he finishes off.
Service
Radio show “3ish el Brazil”
Radio Pax: 103.1 FM
Wednesdays from 06:00 pm to 06:30 pm
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
