BEN Takap, Secretary and Archivist of National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) East New Britain is working towards capturing what is happening in PNG today and preserving it for the future with the help of the Australian government’s Media Development Initiative (MDI).
In 2021, Ben joined the NBC Audio Archive – Analogue to Digital project,and underwent training on how to digitise analogue audio reels and preserve valuable audio content gathered over the years by NBC through interviews, speeches, talk shows and news coverage.
With MDI support, Ben began working in 2023 with an Australia-based digitising expert to archive up to 40,000 audio reels from across the national and provincial NBC stations.
When asked how beneficial the audio archival project he is participating in will be to the National Broadcasting and Papua New Guinea, he said, “Two hundred years from today, a person might want to know what was said in a ceremony and we want that content to be available for him or her.”
“These audio reels are PNG’s history and heritage actualities delivered through speeches, reported or described by content makers and news reporters”, said Ben.
“We are excited for the collaboration opportunities this will present in our joint campaigns to commemorate PNG’s independence jubilee.”
Ben said that it is the responsibility of NBC to improve the quality of what has been kept in analogue format through the digitising project and extending its lifespan.
For NBC, the archive unit is a good source of readily available content. What is available will be used as a source of information in future broadcasts and research.
It is a fine thing to do, to capture what is happening today and preserve it for the future.”
This World Radio Day, Australia recognizes NBC’s service as public broadcaster over the years, delivering news and information to the people of PNG. We continue to support its efforts to improve the quality of its news productions and plans for the future.
