Signal strength

Fathia Elaouni has a voice that often gets her recognised. The Radio 2M presenter has been on the airwaves since she was 17 years old. “I got involved in a local station in France, where I grew up, and was told I had a radio-friendly voice,” she says. “What started as a hobby soon became an addiction.” After working at several French stations, she moved to Morocco in the early 1990s and is now the antenna director and editor in chief of its biggest public radio station, on which she appears as a host.

Elaouni and her team report on the daily news and the topics preoccupying the nation and the hosts of the weekly shows Faites Entrer L’Invité (Let the Guest In) and L’Hebdo (The Weekly). Radio is an intimate medium: only a microphone stands between a host and the two-and-half-million listeners that Radio 2M attracts each day. “We’re in people’s homes, their cars and their ears when they take public transport,” she says. “It’s extraordinary because with just our voice we transmit information as well as our emotions. ”

Radio plays a central role in Moroccan people’s lives. It follows the oral tradition of the African conteurs, storytellers who passed down information from generation to generation through folktales, fables, proverbs and riddles. It also benefits from its ability to reach even the remotest areas of the country. Radio 2M broadcasts in the three major languages spoken across the country: Arabic, French and Tamazight.

Beyond the linguistic diversity, it’s also the content of Elaouni’s work that has earned the broadcaster a loyal listenership. Along with her team, she works to provide accurate information in a media landscape shaped by social media and evolving AI technologies that make it difficult to discern the truth. “People trust us,” she says. “If something makes it onto our shows, then it’s true. We have an immense sense of responsibility.”

Radio 2M also invites the public to call in to its shows. Through these conversations, topics that might be considered taboo in Moroccan public life, such as domestic violence or poverty, can be broached. “Our lines are open from 07.00 until midnight and people call in every day to share their most personal stories,” says Elaouni. On one of Radio 2M’s shows, Kilma Likoum (The Floor Is Yours), public figures face questions live on air. “We recently had a minister on for two uninterrupted hours. It wasn’t us asking the questions – it was the Moroccan people.” 

For the country’s elite, from politicians to medical specialists, successfully navigating appearances on the show is a badge of honour. For members of the audience, it’s proof that their voices matter. “Being able to speak openly is important,” says Elaouni. “I often get told, ‘I didn’t think that you would have let me say that,’ but as journalists that’s what we’re here for.” 

This year, Morocco moved up 15 spots in Reporters Without Borders’ Press Freedom Index Ranking, from 144th to 129th. Though there’s still work to be done to protect Moroccan journalists, Elaouni is hopeful. “There’s more freedom of speech and that can be seen by how much our listeners make their voices heard on our shows. This has opened the media’s eyes to subjects that we didn’t tackle enough in the past.” — L