Over the past five years broadcasting in Saudi Arabia has grown in leaps and bounds, with stations such as Mix FM, MBC Panorama and Alef Alef being set up. Dina Rida, from Mix FM, is one of a new generation of female Saudi broadcasters making a name for herself in the growing industry. The undergraduate at the College of Business Administration (CBA), where she is studying human resources, spoke to Saudi Gazette about her career and challenges facing the industry. Saudi Gazette (SG): Can you give us an overview of your career as a journalist and broadcaster? Dina Rida (DR): I first started in television and then made a successful shift to radio, unlike the case with many radio broadcasters who move into television. My first experience with television was as a guest on a program called “Youth Café” on the Saudi Channel 2 in 2008. I then worked as an interviewer at Al-Aan TV where I was one of five female Saudi interviewers on a program called “Shellatna”. It was specially designed for young Saudis. I got a break to work for Mix FM when I met Mizher Bakour, the owner of a television production company, at the Jeddah Young Business Exhibition in 2010. Bakour introduced me to the radio station owner. I was one of the first staffers who worked on pre-launch programs. Now I have two different programs: Transit from Saturday through Wednesday, aired for two hours from 4 P.M. to 6 P.M., and the other one is called “Let's Tweet” on Thursdays from 2 P.M. to 3 P.M. SG: Could you talk more about these two programs? DR: Transit is for people on the move, in their cars or having to endure a long airport stopover. It offers news and light, funny topics. Let's Tweet, as the name implies, is a weekly program that discusses the most popular hash tags on the Twitter social networking site. Sometimes I have experts talk on certain topics and answer questions from listeners. This includes businessmen, journalists, doctors, social workers and many others. SG: Do you see many more Saudi women working in the broadcasting industry. And what is the industry like these days? DR: I can see many promising young women in the industry. I would advise young women to try to get as much training as possible before starting a career in broadcasting. Most of my male and female colleagues here, and at other radio stations, are doing just great. Who could have imagined a few years ago that one day there would be so many interesting and entertaining radio programs presented by Saudi males and females. I remember when MBC FM started, it only had popular songs and a few programs broadcast by non-Saudis with mostly Lebanese accents. Nowadays, this has changed. There are scores of useful programs, all presented and produced by Saudi staff with lovely local accents. There has been a huge response from listeners, judging from the numbers of e-mails, SMSs and calls we receive. And Saudi female presenters have also been accepted by listeners. There is regular interaction between the female presenters and listeners. These presenters can do so without any fear or embarrassment, as long as they are professional. I can't remember any reports of any kind of harassment or suggestive remarks made to me or other female colleague during calls from listeners. SG: What does the broadcasting industry need to make it more professional and successful? DR: We need specialized institutions in mass media studies and specifically radio courses. If I could turn back the years, I would spend more time training. Look at the BBC academy, for example, they run many broadcasting training programs. Yes, we do have departments of journalism and media at some of our universities and colleges, here it is not enough to produce a new generation of professional television and radio presenters. SG: What is your advice to young Saudi women who want to start such careers? DR: First of all, Saudi women must forget about trying to become famous. If you are just professional you will develop a good reputation. I also advise young Saudis to get more academic training, not only on-the
