Kaieteur – a media empire making a positive impact

Jan 01, 2020 News

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While the past year was filled with many challenges, there were many outstanding achievements that Kaieteur News gained. Among the most outstanding achievements was the 25th anniversary celebration which incidentally coincided with the launch of our radio station [Kaieteur Radio – 99.1 FM and 99.5 FM] on April 4, 2019.

Many never expected Kaieteur News to remain vibrantly afloat to this day much less to expand into the broadcast arena.
While there were a number of factors that helped Kaieteur News to retain the status of the leading newspaper and now a fast developing radio station, it was you the readers who are recognised as the most important element as without you, all of our efforts would have been in vain.
Today, the year 2020 dawns and we hope that it brings with it peace, love and prosperity to you all. We hope that your support will remain unwavering as we commit to improving our standard of production.
It was no minuscule task to build a media empire. Rather it took a great deal of blood, sweat and tears. In the frontline all the way was our courageous publisher – Mr. Glenn Lall – who fiercely carved a path that enabled Kaieteur News to gain a lasting foothold in this industry.
He has remained resilient and it is for this reason that Kaieteur can remain committed to the cause of bringing you the facts that matter and information to build our nation.
Lall’s love for media work was ignited back in 1993 when he was invited to invest in a newspaper business.
You see, even though he knew nothing about the newspaper industry then, Lall certainly had what was required to make a business take-off – good financial standing, a clear understanding of the business environment, and the inherent desire to succeed at anything he put his hands to.
And like any good businessman worth his salt, Lall started to learn as much as he could about his new passion. He read any and everything that helped to improve his understanding of media work.
Another tactical move was to surround himself with people who were regarded as experts in the field of journalism. One such character, who has weathered the years of Kaieteur News’ evolution with Lall, is our Editor-in-Chief, Mr. Adam Harris – a veteran journalist.
Lall himself has also taken advantage of many media training programmes over the years. In fact, back in 1995, he ensured that he benefited well from a knowledge transfer programme which saw him travelling to Barbados to learn about modern newspaper technology from the Barbados Advocate publication.
Lall was particularly grateful for that experience and the many more which helped to catapult his understanding of media work.
Having been in the newspaper industry for two and a half decades now, Lall, as the publisher, complemented by the backing of his dedicated staff, has become a force to be reckoned with in the local media fraternity.
Although he was able to effectively utilise this newspaper to educate the public, he was eager to take advantage of the airwaves as well.
However, it took quite a few years before he could’ve venture into the broadcast world. But that reality finally materialised last year with Kaieteur Radio being launched with the blessings of the Guyana National Broadcasting Authority [GNBA].
“Guyanese should not have waited this long for the birth of this Radio Station. The denial of a radio licence violated our constitutional right to provide and ensure that the public had access to information,” said Lall at the launching ceremony in April 2019.
Lall said that the discriminatory denial for the licence was therefore an affront to our right to expression, “…a right which was essential to our profession. I wish to make this very clear. In fact, we were more qualified than most of those who were granted.”
He went on to note then too that “We are therefore not establishing this radio station out of financial motives. We are driven by our obligation to expand the right of free expression. Had we been granted a radio licence in 2011, Kaieteur Radio would have been by now the ‘sound of choice’ from the Caribbean all the way to Japan.
“But, like I always believe, nothing comes before its time.”
According to Lall, the launch of Kaieteur Radio represents a personal triumph. “I thank the Guyana National Broadcasting Authority for undoing the historic wrong which was committed against me and the Kaieteur News Family.”
Commenting on the evolution of Kaieteur News and the addition of Kaieteur Radio, Lall said he is convinced that his path was charted by the Creator himself, who he believes has positioned him to bring the truth to the nation.
And for heeding this call and helping to make a needed difference, he is heartened that a special place has been designated for him when the curtain eventually comes down on his existence.
“I am blessed; I know I am blessed and I know the Creator has great plans for me,” Lall said confidently even as he committed to continuing to steer the Kaieteur News and Kaieteur Radio where many, even today, would not dare to tread.

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