Welcoming everyone and introducing the work was Fr. Ricardo Campoli, of the Social Communication Sector: "It’s a great joy to greet all the participants in this workshop. In our Salesian vision, these training sessions are always very important for our radio stations. I thank all of you who represent the respective communication initiatives in your countries for this mission of proclaiming the Gospel. Radio must flourish. Let us continue to learn and strengthen ourselves. May God bless you all."
Held through GoogleMeet, the meeting featured as a speaker the Marketing Coordinator of Dom Bosco FM radio in Ceará (Brazil), Rodrigo Lima, who developed three main points: the concept of streaming, new spaces on the Internet, and advice on tools that can be used by all Salesian radio stations.
There was also a sharing of experiences and a question-and-answer session. Ramon Chavez, from Radio Manantial in Formosa, Argentina, illustrated a recurring issue: "When we do live broadcasts, on Facebook and YouTube through the OBS service, many times our videos are removed. There is a solution to this problem." The speaker then responded that production should be completely original, with live music featuring local artists, with no reproductions that might have copyright issues.
Another shared moment was with Sofia Edith Romea, journalist and coordinator of Radio Manantial, from Argentina, who evaluated the formative moment: "This space has provided us with new tools to continue reaching out to audiences, not only in our immediate environment but also in other parts of the world, so that the Salesian essence of each of our radio stations is broadcast everywhere. This will also allow us to continue to research and generate new content that adds to our daily work of evangelization. Furthermore, being able to talk about the projects that each of the Salesian radio stations in America is developing or is already doing helps us continue to grow as a community and also gives us ideas on topics or content that others can take as a reference point."
And if for Fr. João Neto, from Brazil, "this online space has inspired me to continue my mission as a Salesian communicator with greater enthusiasm," Marcos Pavel, head of listener relations at FM Dom Bosco in Ceará, "the workshop has opened up a number of possibilities for the different fronts of Salesian communication. I am sure it will not be an isolated moment, but the beginning of a new era in Salesian communication in Latin America."
At the end of the meeting, participants proposed that the Salesian network develop its own streaming platform that would receive all the Congregation's stations. Radio liaison Jocasta Pimentel also announced that until the end of 2023, there will be two workshops, as proposed, on the use of OBS and marketing in social networks. "We will work in teams, in networks, to promote moments of formation and to train our communicators to serve evangelization in the media," she concluded.
