Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation
Encyclopedia
The Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation (JBC) was a public broadcasting company in Jamaica
founded in 1959 by Prime Minister Norman Manley
with the aim of emulating the success of other national broadcasting companies such as the BBC
and CBC
.
Group) and programming consisted of imported shows and music. The JBC was established by legislation in December 1958 as a 'state owned and statutory corporation' and launched on 15 June 1959 and provided a greater focus on Jamaican culture, as Jamaicans sought to celebrate their own culture in the 'dominion' era shortly before the country's independence in 1962. In the early days of the JBC, the corporation had a resident big band featuring musicians such as Bertie Cooke and Sonny Bradshaw
and a drama department producing original programmes. The JBC radio channel that began broadcasting in 1959 played a major part in the development of the Jamaican music industry, giving previously-unavailable airtime to Jamaican musicians.
JBC Television began broadcasting on 6 August 1963, on the first anniversary of Jamaica's independence. Like the radio station, the aim was to concentrate on Jamaican programming, but financial concerns saw the schedules increasingly filled with programmes imported from the US and the UK.
The links to the government, however, caused problems, with accusations of partisan journalism. A change in government in 1962 led to accusations of JBC journalists favouring the previous PNP
government, a situation that led to one of the longest strikes in Jamaican history in 1964. By the end of the strike most of the news journalists had been replaced.
When Michael Manley
(Norman's son) was elected Prime Minister in 1972, he aimed to use the JBC as a vehicle for nation building. Government funding for original Jamaican programming was increased, with news and documentary programmes such as Public Eye, and Jamaica's first soap opera
, Lime Tree Lane. By the 1980s, JBC had television, two national radio stations, and several regional radio stations. Under Prime Minister Edward Seaga
and the US-led Structural Adjustment model which encouraged the privatisation of public services, the divestment of the JBC began, first with the selling off of the regional radio stations; These became Radio Waves (HOT 102), KLAS-FM and IRIE-FM. The entire newsroom staff were also dismissed for being too critical of conservative positions, and replaced with journalists considered sympathetic to Seaga's government. Foreign programming again began to proliferate, largely sourced from the US.
The corporation remained under government control until the 1990s when a re-elected Manley removed direct political control and initiated shared responsibility for the appointment of a Director General with the leader of the opposition.
With the JBC suffering financial problems, the inclusion of advertising was considered, as was funding it via subscription cable TV, but both were rejected. In 1997 Prime Minister P.J. Patterson, under the Public Broadcasting Corporation of Jamaica Act divested the JBC, with an announcement of the creation of a new organization, the Public Broadcasting Corporation of Jamaica (PBCJ) to provide public broadcasting. The television and the Radio 2 assets were sold to the Radio Jamaica Limited (RJR) for J$70M, and the former JBC television channel was replaced by the commercial station Television Jamaica. The Radio 1 studios and licence were retained by the government but fell into disrepair. The PBCJ eventually launched in March 2006 as an and began transmissions the following month.
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
founded in 1959 by Prime Minister Norman Manley
Norman Manley
Norman Washington Manley MM QC National Hero of Jamaica , was a Jamaican statesman. A Rhodes Scholar, Manley became one of Jamaica's leading lawyers in the 1920s...
with the aim of emulating the success of other national broadcasting companies such as the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
and CBC
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
.
History
Jamaica had commercial radio stations since the 1930s, but these were controlled by foreign companies (RJR was owned by the British RediffusionRediffusion
Rediffusion was a business which distributed radio and TV signals through wired relay networks. The business gave rise to a number of other companies, including Associated-Rediffusion, later known as Rediffusion London, one of the first companies to win a terrestrial ITV franchise in the UK...
Group) and programming consisted of imported shows and music. The JBC was established by legislation in December 1958 as a 'state owned and statutory corporation' and launched on 15 June 1959 and provided a greater focus on Jamaican culture, as Jamaicans sought to celebrate their own culture in the 'dominion' era shortly before the country's independence in 1962. In the early days of the JBC, the corporation had a resident big band featuring musicians such as Bertie Cooke and Sonny Bradshaw
Sonny Bradshaw
Cecil "Sonny" Bradshaw C.D. , known as the "dean of Jamaican music", and the "musician's musician", was a Jamaican bandleader, trumpeter, broadcaster, and promoter who was a major figure in Jamaican music for more than sixty years.-Biography:Bradshaw was born in 1926 in Kingston, the only child of...
and a drama department producing original programmes. The JBC radio channel that began broadcasting in 1959 played a major part in the development of the Jamaican music industry, giving previously-unavailable airtime to Jamaican musicians.
JBC Television began broadcasting on 6 August 1963, on the first anniversary of Jamaica's independence. Like the radio station, the aim was to concentrate on Jamaican programming, but financial concerns saw the schedules increasingly filled with programmes imported from the US and the UK.
The links to the government, however, caused problems, with accusations of partisan journalism. A change in government in 1962 led to accusations of JBC journalists favouring the previous PNP
People's National Party
The People's National Party is a social democratic and social liberal Jamaican political party, founded by Norman Manley in 1938. It is the oldest political party in the Anglophone Caribbean and one of the main two political parties in Jamaica. Out of the two major parties, it is considered more...
government, a situation that led to one of the longest strikes in Jamaican history in 1964. By the end of the strike most of the news journalists had been replaced.
When Michael Manley
Michael Manley
Michael Norman Manley ON OCC was the fourth Prime Minister of Jamaica . Manley was a democratic socialist....
(Norman's son) was elected Prime Minister in 1972, he aimed to use the JBC as a vehicle for nation building. Government funding for original Jamaican programming was increased, with news and documentary programmes such as Public Eye, and Jamaica's first soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
, Lime Tree Lane. By the 1980s, JBC had television, two national radio stations, and several regional radio stations. Under Prime Minister Edward Seaga
Edward Seaga
Edward Philip George Seaga ON PC was the fifth Prime Minister of Jamaica from 1980 to 1989 and Leader of the Jamaica Labour Party from 1974 to 2005. He served as leader of the opposition from 1974 to 1980 and again from 1989 until January 2005...
and the US-led Structural Adjustment model which encouraged the privatisation of public services, the divestment of the JBC began, first with the selling off of the regional radio stations; These became Radio Waves (HOT 102), KLAS-FM and IRIE-FM. The entire newsroom staff were also dismissed for being too critical of conservative positions, and replaced with journalists considered sympathetic to Seaga's government. Foreign programming again began to proliferate, largely sourced from the US.
The corporation remained under government control until the 1990s when a re-elected Manley removed direct political control and initiated shared responsibility for the appointment of a Director General with the leader of the opposition.
With the JBC suffering financial problems, the inclusion of advertising was considered, as was funding it via subscription cable TV, but both were rejected. In 1997 Prime Minister P.J. Patterson, under the Public Broadcasting Corporation of Jamaica Act divested the JBC, with an announcement of the creation of a new organization, the Public Broadcasting Corporation of Jamaica (PBCJ) to provide public broadcasting. The television and the Radio 2 assets were sold to the Radio Jamaica Limited (RJR) for J$70M, and the former JBC television channel was replaced by the commercial station Television Jamaica. The Radio 1 studios and licence were retained by the government but fell into disrepair. The PBCJ eventually launched in March 2006 as an and began transmissions the following month.