Clifford Dodd
Encyclopedia
Clifford R. Dodd was an administrator and radio expert, with twenty years experience in broadcasting in Australia, before he arrived in Sri Lanka. He was sent by the Australian Government under the Colombo Plan
to work in Radio Ceylon. He was appointed Director of the newly formed Commercial Service of Radio Ceylon
.
The Colombo Plan was established in July 1951 to provide economic aid to areas of south and southeast Asia. The Headquarters are in Colombo
, the former capital city of Sri Lanka
.
went on to become legendary announcers of the Commercial Service of Radio Ceylon, among them: Vernon Corea
, Tim Horshington
, Greg Roskowski
, Jimmy Bharucha
, Christopher Greet
and others. One of Dodd's protégés, Vernon Corea was appointed as the BBC's Ethnic Minorities Adviser – the first Asian to be appointed to senior management at the BBC
in 1978. It was under Dodd's tenure that the Indian announcer Ameen Sayani
was brought into launch Binaca Geetmala
, a countdown of Hindi
filmi music on the All Asia Service. It enjoyed iconic status across India.
The training at Radio Ceylon was rigorous, Dodd wanted the highest standards in broadcasting. He has the rare honour of being immortalised in a cartoon by the famous Sri Lankan cartoonist Aubrey Collette who published a cartoon titled ' Odd Man Dodd.'
Dodd created a positive business environment in Radio Ceylon. Dodd was a charismatic figure who had firm leadership skills. His arrival in Torrington Square created a real buzz in broadcasting circles in Ceylon. Clifford R.Dodd changed the face of broadcasting in the island. He upgraded the Hindi Service of Radio Ceylon. Millions of listeners in the Indian sub-continent wrote in and tuned into the radio station, the oldest in South Asia
. Dodd was a prime mover in attracting advertisers who were aiming at the vast Indian market via the medium of radio.
Dodd returned to Australia
after his Colombo Plan assignment. He was succeeded by the first Ceylonese Director of the Commercial Service of Radio Ceylon, Livy Wijemanne
.
Colombo Plan
The Colombo Plan is a regional organization that embodies the concept of collective inter-governmental effort to strengthen economic and social development of member countries in the Asia-Pacific Region...
to work in Radio Ceylon. He was appointed Director of the newly formed Commercial Service of Radio Ceylon
Radio Ceylon
Radio Ceylon is the oldest radio station in Asia. Broadcasting was started on an experimental basis in Ceylon by the Telegraph Department in 1923, just three years after the inauguration of broadcasting in Europe.- Edward Harper :...
.
The Colombo Plan was established in July 1951 to provide economic aid to areas of south and southeast Asia. The Headquarters are in Colombo
Colombo
Colombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...
, the former capital city of Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
.
Founder of the Commercial Service
Dodd, arriving in Colombo in the early 1950s, soon created the infrastructure of the Commercial Service of Radio Ceylon and made it into a successful brand. Dodd hand picked some of the best Ceylonese talents around and trained them as broadcasters. The announcers trained in the 1950s by Clifford Dodd and Livy WijemanneLivy Wijemanne
Livy Wijemanne was a pioneer of Radio Ceylon. He was one of Sri Lanka's greatest broadcasters, on October 31, 1948, the Post Master General appointed the young announcer, Assistant Controller of Programmes...
went on to become legendary announcers of the Commercial Service of Radio Ceylon, among them: Vernon Corea
Vernon Corea
Vernon Corea was a pioneer radio broadcaster with 45 years of public service broadcasting both in Sri Lanka and the UK. He joined Radio Ceylon, South Asia's oldest radio station, in 1956 and later the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation...
, Tim Horshington
Tim Horshington
Timothy Navaratnam Horshington was a pioneering broadcaster of Radio Ceylon, the oldest radio station in South Asia. Horshington was one of the earliest Tamil announcers to be appointed to the panel of announcers in the 1950s by Livy Wijemanne and...
, Greg Roskowski
Greg Roskowski
Greg Roskowski was an announcer of Radio Ceylon during the height of the station's popularity in the 1950s in South Asia. Roskowski, born of a Polish father and a Japanese mother, was the booming voice of Radio Ceylon's morning radio programs....
, Jimmy Bharucha
Jimmy Bharucha
Jimmy Bharucha, called a 'colossus in Sri Lanka's broadcasting world' died in Colombo in June 2005.Bharucha who was educated at St.Peter's College,Colombo, had a career in broadcasting spanning 46 years...
, Christopher Greet
Christopher Greet
Christopher Greet was a hugely popular announcer and presenter of radio programs with Radio Ceylon, the oldest radio station in South Asia. Chris Greet enjoyed iconic status alongside other announcers of Radio Ceylon. Millions tuned into the radio station....
and others. One of Dodd's protégés, Vernon Corea was appointed as the BBC's Ethnic Minorities Adviser – the first Asian to be appointed to senior management at 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...
in 1978. It was under Dodd's tenure that the Indian announcer Ameen Sayani
Ameen Sayani
Ameen Sayani is a popular radio announcer from India. He achieved fame and popularity all across South Asia when he presented his Binaca Geetmala program of hits over the airwaves of Radio Ceylon. He is one of the most imitated announcers even today....
was brought into launch Binaca Geetmala
Binaca Geetmala
Binaca Geetmala was a weekly radio countdown show of top filmi songs from Indian cinema listened to by millions of Hindi music lovers, that was broadcast on Radio Ceylon from 1952 to 1988 and then shifted to Vividh Bharati network in 1989 where it ran till 1994...
, a countdown of Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
filmi music on the All Asia Service. It enjoyed iconic status across India.
The training at Radio Ceylon was rigorous, Dodd wanted the highest standards in broadcasting. He has the rare honour of being immortalised in a cartoon by the famous Sri Lankan cartoonist Aubrey Collette who published a cartoon titled ' Odd Man Dodd.'
Radio Ceylon – King of the Airwaves
South Asia
South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...
. Dodd was a prime mover in attracting advertisers who were aiming at the vast Indian market via the medium of radio.
The Introduction of tough measures
Dodd brought in tough new measures, some were not popular. He maintained that some Radio Ceylon staff, including the announcers who were on the payroll, were not entitled to permanency, or to retire on a pension. Radio Ceylon announcer, Mervyn Jayasuriya, observed: 'His credo as I have said before, was Hire and Fire.' Dodd claimed at a meeting with Radio Ceylon Director General John Lampson, and a senior civil servant Mr. M. Rajendra, who was Permanent Secretary to the Minister of Broadcasting,that an officer was entitled to a pension if that officer had served the government for one or two decades. If however an announcer lost his voice during that period, he would be unable to work, and Radio Ceylon should have the ability to get rid of him, argued the Director of the Commercial Service. Mervyn Jayasuriya who presented the case for the announcers said: "Gentlemen, just as an announcer might lose his voice and so become a liability, so can a surgeon lose his eyesight, and a Director or Administrator lose his sanity and become useless to the service of the State. Is there a little bias here, or am I just being silly?" The announcers won the day.The Father of Commercial Broadcasting in Ceylon
Clifford R. Dodd is widely regarded as the Father of Commercial Broadcasting in Sri Lanka. Under his stewardship, Radio Ceylon reached the pinnacle of fame, fortune and popularity - millions of rupees poured into the station as a result of the success of the Commercial Service.Dodd returned to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
after his Colombo Plan assignment. He was succeeded by the first Ceylonese Director of the Commercial Service of Radio Ceylon, Livy Wijemanne
Livy Wijemanne
Livy Wijemanne was a pioneer of Radio Ceylon. He was one of Sri Lanka's greatest broadcasters, on October 31, 1948, the Post Master General appointed the young announcer, Assistant Controller of Programmes...
.
See also
- Vernon CoreaVernon CoreaVernon Corea was a pioneer radio broadcaster with 45 years of public service broadcasting both in Sri Lanka and the UK. He joined Radio Ceylon, South Asia's oldest radio station, in 1956 and later the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation...
- Colombo PlanColombo PlanThe Colombo Plan is a regional organization that embodies the concept of collective inter-governmental effort to strengthen economic and social development of member countries in the Asia-Pacific Region...
- Radio CeylonRadio CeylonRadio Ceylon is the oldest radio station in Asia. Broadcasting was started on an experimental basis in Ceylon by the Telegraph Department in 1923, just three years after the inauguration of broadcasting in Europe.- Edward Harper :...
- Sri Lanka Broadcasting CorporationSri Lanka Broadcasting CorporationThe Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation came into existence on January 5, 1967 when Radio Ceylon became a public corporation. Dudley Senanayake who was the Prime Minister of Ceylon in 1967 ceremonially opened the newly established Ceylon Broadcasting Corporation along with Minister Ranasinghe...