Radio Saaz-o-Awaz
| Genre | Talk radio |
|---|---|
| Running time | 7:45 am–6:00 pm |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Language(s) | Urdu, Punjabi |
| Home station | WTOR AM770 |
| Created by | Arifa Muzzafar[1] |
| Original release | 1999 – present |
| Website |
www |
Radio Saaz-o-Awaz (Urdu: ریڈیو ساز و آواز) is a daytime-only Urdu and Punjabi language brokered radio format station which broadcasts to the Greater Toronto Area and Niagara Peninsula in Canada.
Radio Saaz-o-Awaz relies upon the border blaster signal of daytime-only station WTOR in Youngstown, New York.[2][3] The programming originates in Greater Toronto, is sent across the border to WTOR, which in turn uses a directional antenna to broadcast the programming back over the border into the GTA with minimal broadcast coverage in the United States where it is licensed.
Programs
Programming generally begins at 07:45 EST and ends at 18:00 EST.[4]
Weekdays
- 07:45-08:30, South Asian Voice (Kulwinder Chhina)
- 08:30-10:00, Khabarsar Radio (Jagdish Grewal)
- 10:00-12:00, South Asian Pulse P.T (Yudvir Jaswal)
- 12:00-13:00, Mehak Radio (Jagraj Sidhu)
- 13:00-14:00, Raonuk Punjab Di (Sodhi Nagra)
- 14:00-15:00, Nagara Radio (Charanjit Brar & Rana Sidhu)
- 15:00-17:00, Saaz-o-Awaz (Arifa Muzaffar & Majid Jamal)
- 18:00-06:00, Saaz-O-Awaz (Tariq Hussain)
Saturday
- 08:00-09:00, Rah-e-Jeewan (Pastor Jawed)
- 09:00-10:00, Intaazar (Tony & Sunny)
- 10:00-11:00, Raonuk Punjab Di (Sodhi Nagra)
- 11:00-12:00, Sur Saaz (Gurpreet Mann)
- 12:00-13:00, Ramz Punjabi (Harjinder Singh Gill)
- 13:00-15:00, Shabnam Radio (Richard Aziz)
- 15:00-16:00, Muslim Perspectives (Alim Ali)
- 16:00-17:00, Dil Ki Baat (Adnan & Dil Nasheen)
Sunday
- 08:00-09:00, Masih Ki Awaz (Kanwal Dean & David Chant)
- 09:00-10:00, Intaazar (Tony & Sunny)
- 10:00-11:00, Paigham (Samson Shahbaz)
- 11:00-12:00, Punj Dareya (Sarabjit Singh Sra)
- 12:00-13:00, Sur Saaz (Gurpreet Mann)
- 13:00-14:00, Ramz Punjabi (Harjinder Singh Gill)
- 14:00-15:00, Jago Radio (Iqbal Singh & Inderdeep)
- 15:00-16:00, Aap Ki Awaz Samina Ke Saath (Samina Jabeen)
- 16:00-17:00, Dhol Punjabi (Madhar Kartarvi)
Format
Radio Saaz-o-Awaz focuses heavily on talk radio and music, aimed specifically at the Pakistani Canadian and Punjabi Canadian population. Some programs are aimed at specific religious groups like Sikhs, Muslims and Christians. The hosts usually pay for an hour of broadcast time each and may sell commercials to support their program.[5] WTOR is a daytime-only station, signing off at sunset to protect 50,000 watt Class A clear-channel station WABC in New York City. (Canada no longer licenses daytime-only stations; the United States does allow existing stations to operate.) WTOR's 13,000 watt directional signal is aimed almost completely into the province of Ontario and is nearly completely inaudible in the United States where it is licensed (thus arguably making the station a border blaster). The transmitter is located off Langdon Road in Ransomville, New York.[6] It's only a few miles from the Canadian border, across Lake Ontario from Toronto.
Sima Birach, the owner of several brokered ethnic radio stations in the U.S., holds the WTOR broadcast license; its designated "main studio" and phone number, required until recently, are both located on the U.S. side of the border. (The main studio is nonetheless never used, and all programming originates in Mississauga.)