Dubai Radio

Although radio would seem to have been superseded repeatedly since the early parts of the 20th century when it was the leading form of up-to-the-minute entertainment and news media, it refuses to lie down and die due to its extreme convenience, and this is as true in Dubai as it is anywhere else in the world. Indeed, there are several stations on the FM band alone in Dubai, catering for all of the languages commonly spoken there – English among them. It is worth realising that the FM band is quite crowded due to this and that as a result, there is often interference on the signal. Listening to the radio in your car can therefore be a frustrating experience.

Despite the last sentence, if you have a digital radio it is still more than possible to listen to the radio while on the move, and indeed can be highly important given Dubai’s heavy road traffic. Updates are given frequently on the state of the traffic and the roads, with listeners sending in their own updates by SMS in order to give fellow motorists advance warning of any problems.

The media is still regulated strictly by the UAE government, and even privately run radio stations depend on the government’s say-so as to what they can and cannot broadcast. In the case of the death of a Sheikh or a close family member, all radio stations must cease normal broadcasting for a specified period ranging from 3 days to more than a week depending on the level of standing of the Sheikh or family member.