CHRONICLE 16-17 ISSUE 08

16 The Chronicle January 24 - 30, 2017 chronicle.durhamcollege.ca Entertainment
Radio manager thinks job is a 'riot'
Salima
Kassam
details her
journey
from school
to station
Michael Mascarin
The Chronicle
During his placement, Michael
Mascarin met with Riot Radio’s
new station manager, Salima
Kassam, to find out what she does
and where she came from.
How did you arrive at Riot
Radio?
Riot Radio station manager Salima Kassam (left) meets with Michael Mascarin to talk about her roles and responsibilities.
I’m a certified teacher. I completed
my B.A. and B.Ed. at York
University in History & Philosophy.
I then went on to do my M.Ed.
at OISE in Sociology and Equity
Studies in Education and graduated
from that program in summer
2016. For two years, I worked with
Basics Community News Service,
a working-class orientated, propeople’s
media organization.
I was one of several radio hosts
for a program called Radio Basics
at CHRY 105.5 FM. I conducted
interviews with community organizations,
local artists, musicians and
activists on issues that were topically
relevant such as racial profiling,
tenants’ rights, indigenous
issues, and the 2015 TA (teaching
assistant) strike at York University.
I also wrote articles and commentaries
for publication in Basics’ free
community newspaper. I consider
myself a very creative person. In
general, I thrive in creative spaces
and love to experiment with different
mediums of expression. What
appealed to me about this position
at Riot Radio was the format of visual
radio, which I feel opens up a
lot of creative opportunities.
How long have you been
working at Riot Radio?
I have been working here for
about five months and have been
enjoying every minute of it. I have
met so many creative, talented and
intelligent students and faculty. I
suppose I’m now in that phase
where I’ve settled into my position
at Riot Radio, and am now trying
to move forward to make Riot
Radio a more effective platform for
student advocacy and engagement,
and to increase our visibility/presence
on campus.
What are your roles and
responsibilities?
team at Riot Radio. As a critically-minded
educator, I’m extremely
passionate about student advocacy,
rights and representation and nothing
excites me more than seeing
students excited about being part
of Riot Radio.
The purpose of Riot Radio is to
promote and enhance the values
and initiatives of the Student Association
through the medium of
radio broadcasting. As the station
manager I’m responsible for all
broadcasting and programming
decisions. I work to advance student
interests by giving a voice to
student issues and interests.
I oversee day-to-day operations,
including station programming,
financial management, and the
creation/implementation of policies
and procedures. I oversee and
coach a team of direct reports including
student volunteers and paid
employees. I create and manage
content – I review, approve and
decline all content and requests. I
work to build partnerships between
Riot Radio and other organizations
on and off campus. I am responsible
for monitoring viewership
analytics and setting goals for students
and the station.
Alongside the Broadcast Technician,
I am also responsible for
troubleshooting/problem solving
operational and programming
issues.
What do you like most about
working at Riot Radio?
I love that I never know what to
expect when I come in to work. I
am constantly learning and developing
new skills on the job. I love
working with students at DC and
UOIT who make up our volunteer
...I have been
enjoying every
minute of it.
It’s extremely exciting to see
students develop diverse, intelligent,
and creative content, and it’s
fulfilling to see students grow and
gain confidence throughout the
process of hosting and ‘tech-ing’.
I really appreciate the format of
a visual radio station. It provides
an opportunity for audiences to
engage and interact with radio
programs and personalities in a
meaningful way.
I like that Riot Radio has the
potential to develop a presence for
students on and off the Durham
and UOIT campuses. It can serve
as a meaningful platform to discuss
topics of concern to students, and
it can also help to create a sense
of identity, unity, and student engagement.
I like working at Riot Radio because
it has the potential to enrich
the learning experience of students
while also developing a sense of
community among them.
This interview was edited for style,
length, and clarity.