Paula Cordeiro
University of Lisbon
The video didn’t kill the radio star, but AI will.
250-word abstract
Radio has been, ever since, under threat. From the introduction of TV programming in the 1950s to IP communications and mobile devices, radio has strived and maintained its relevance in the public space and media ecosystem.
Digitalization was a process. Convergence, an experience that radio approached without fully embracing it.
Interactivity has been a promise since the early days of radio (Brecht, 1930). However, traditional radio broadcasters, web radio, and, more recently, podcasts still approach it superficially. The radio concept has been under revision, with
audio being more and more valuable in defining what we’ve known for decades. This broader notion encapsulates everything radio related and brings us back to its origin: sound. In today’s visual culture, the intimacy of sound is critical, making us wonder how sound can keep its organic nature in a digitalized context run by AI.
Radio combines sound, music, speech, sound effects, and silence. About speech, Crisell’s (1994) clearly conveys its relevance, and a famous Portuguese journalist claims that if we kill what leads us to radio, we kill radio. AI brings something new to the game. New synthesized voices sound so natural that broadcasters are already replacing the radio presenter’s speech, and AI-generated music brings a new player. Is this the final cut for the radio?
In this exploratory study, we will approach available AI services and software being used by radio broadcasters understanding its characteristics, features, and possibilities to comprehend how AI can change the radio broadcasting industry by embracing or replacing it.
100-word biography
Paula Cordeiro is an audio person. Fell in love with radio in 1991. Became a radio presenter and producer in 1994. Went from radio to teaching radio, leading a learning community of radio people, and researching radio in 2000. Fell
in love with podcasting in 2014. Started a podcast in 2016. Transformed the podcast into a digital lifestyle outlet. Became the Ombudsperson for public radio. Lead the first online lifestyle radio. Went back to teaching and researching, following the most recent trends in audio and AI.
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