DJ in Macau... What a busy life!

By Eliza Ho

"DJ in Macau, what a busy life!" said Kenny Chan, who is a full time student in Polytechnic Institute and also a full time disc jockey (DJ) in Teledifusão de Macau, S.A. (TDM).

"I have been working as a full time DJ for three years and I just got into this career through the normal procedure of getting a job.... However, in Hong Kong, applicants have to compete with each other in order to get the job successfully, this kind of competition is a bit cruel," claimed Chan.

There is great difference in operation between the Macau radio channel and Hong Kong radio channels. The workloads of DJs in Macau are very heavy, as they have to do all the work starting from the preparation of the program till its broadcasting.

"I even have to invent a new program for myself, after that, I have to do the research or gather the information which is related to my program," said Chan.

In contrast, there are many departments in Hong Kong radio channels, such as a promotional department, production team and supporting team, each department is responsible for its duties only.

The other special point is that there is a DJ assistant in Hong Kong. Since many back-up tasks are undertaken by different departments, DJs in Hong Kong usually need to handle only the work when the program broadcasts.

Also, in Macau, there is no training course for DJs on the style of the talk they use during the program; however, DJs in Hong Kong have to receive a special training before they take charge of a program. "These may be the reasons why the qualities of radio programs in Macau are not as good as those in Hong Kong," added Chan.

Despite the heavy workload, Chan said that he preferred to work as a DJ in Macau rather than Hong Kong. It is because he enjoys the style of the operation in TDM, as there is more freedom for DJs in Macau compared to that in Hong Kong.

The Hong Kong radio channels are operated under many regulations. "Although the workloads here are so heavy, being a DJ is my interest. That's why I chose this career," exclaimed Chan.

Although TDM was established in October 1982, its radio channel was established in 1930. Later, after the establishment of TDM, the radio channel became one of the departments in TDM. There are two channels, Channel one is the Radio Portuguese Channel and Channel two is the Radio Chinese Channel and both of them offer a 24-hour service.