“There is a paradigm shift: no one had told us that a National Broadcasting Association with 20,000 members was established today one hundred years and one week ago to, within a few months, launch the first audiovisual medium in Catalonia and therefore in Spain: EAJ1 Ràdio Barcelona”, was the claim of Jordi Margarit, president of Ràdio Associació de Catalunya, at the gala that took place this Monday at the Palau de la Música Catalana where, in addition to presenting the awards for the 24th edition of the awards , the centenary of the medium’s arrival in Catalonia was commemorated.
Margarit paid tribute to pioneers such as Eduard Rifà or Pau Llorens and recalled how in 1926 they were forced to depend on Unión Radio Madrid and a few years later form Ràdio Associació de Catalunya. With the dictatorship, Catalan “missed the golden age of radio,” but “talent and creativity continued in the fifties and sixties to explode when democracy returns.”
The presenter Jordi Basté reviewed what radio has meant to him with memories and historical numbers shared by many of those present, among which were great voices of radio such as Luis del Olmo, Antoni Bassas, Mònica Terribas, Gemma Nierga or Toni Clapés . The first awards to be presented were the three honorable mentions for Carles Pérez (Catalunya Ràdio), Josep Genescà (Ràdio Puig-reig) and Carles Godó Vallbé, responsible for the RAC1 institutional voice and audio computer system, who thanked “the sensitivity that the jury has had to reward those who are behind and not always those who are in front”.
The award for best local program went to El Dominical, directed by Enric Sierra, deputy director of La Vanguardia. “Information is a right and local radio is a way to exercise it from the base. Therefore, if it is a right and local radio can offer it, it is a fundamental service that city councils would have to promote just as they have local police or daycare centers,” claimed Sierra accompanied by his team: Antoni Sintas, Toni Pardo, Fede Cedó, Eric Morales and Xavi Salbanyà.
After Mohamed El Amrani collected the prize for Inclusion for Where are you from? , from Ràdio 4, and David Balaguer from Innovation por La ronda perversa, from Radiofònics, was the turn for the best radio program, equally, for the Sports Transmissions of RAC1 and Tot Costa, from Catalunya Ràdio. “I understand that the three transmissions have received this award as an award for the entire RAC1 sports editorial team”, wanted to point out Joan Maria Pou, in charge of broadcasting at Barça and who went up together with Edu de Batlle (Espanyol) but without Miquel Agut, who had a Girona match. Jordi Costa and Sònia Gelmà received the ‘Tot Costa’ award.
Finally, representatives of Ràdio Barcelona, ??Ràdio 4, Catalunya Ràdio, RAC1, La Xarxa and the Federació de Ràdios Locals received a prize of appreciation for leading Catalan radio. The president of the Government, Pere Aragonès, was in charge of closing the event, who took the opportunity to highlight the “good health” of Catalan radio.
