"They needed someone like me", he was boasting to anyone who would listen, referring to a particular characteristic. "Besides, I had nothing better to do and I was friends with a couple of the others. But my summer was shot - and I am not getting paid for it. If they decide to continue the series, well, things will be different. If they want me, they will have to pay for the pleasure..."

At this point, I paid for my purchases and walked out of the shop. It would be all too easy to dismiss this person's harangue as mere superciliousness, were it not for the fact that I, too, have been promised 'exposure' by people who stand to make money off my work, and not pay for it. I draw a line between the voluntary work I do because I want to - and pledges that mean nothing to me.

However, this does not mean that arrogance is not rife in several sections of the media and entertainment industries. The other day I was listening to one of those disc jockeys who have a penchant for broadcasting lists of names (which, for all we know, he could have made up) to indicate who had communicated with him. He also takes live phone calls. At one juncture, a woman expressed relief at finally getting through, saying she'd been trying to do so for over an hour. "What's it to me?" (Xi tridni naghmillek jien?) was his reaction.

Then, of course, we have the self-styled 'personalities' who, when part of a panel or a guest on a programme, make it abundantly clear by their body language and comments (some of which they pass sotto voce to their neighbours, while chewing gum), that they consider themselves worth more than the sum total of the rest of the people in the studio. This, by the way, indicates not only smugness and conceit, but also a dire lack of savoir-faire.

Another indication of self-importance manifests itself after broadcasters return from their holiday. Obviously, since the show must go on, someone would have substituted them. Some of them thank their colleagues graciously - but others just pick up where they would have left off, as if by not mentioning their temporary replacement, the listeners or viewers will forget the substitute exists.

The same goes when changes in schedules are announced. "I will not be here next week. Someone else will do so instead." Again, the colleague is faceless and nameless, for reasons best known to the presenter.

• Radju Malta fills gaps in its summer schedule with programmes from archives - either its own or those of Campus FM. The person(s) who decide(s) what is used fail to realise one thing: whereas the Campus FM libraries provide such enjoyable fare as Stejjer ta' Nies Komuni, choices from the Radju Malta collection include last schedule's Sehmna Fl-Ewropa, which is literally full of yesterday's news and features that are old hat.

Unless the purpose of this transmission is to make us realise how far things have progressed since it was first broadcast, I fail to see the rationale behind it. In any case, the new season's schedule is coming into effect within days, so there will be time enough for a re-think by the time the need for another fill-in-the-blanks concern arises.

Speaking of gratitude and libraries - I was astonished to hear a Radju Malta DJ thank a couple of people who "find him the records he needs". The last time I asked, I was told that the unique, irreplaceable library at PBS was under lock and key.

There was a time when it was a point of pride for the contributors to boast that they had access to rare records that no one else did. Now that everything is on hard disc, and some presenters use their own music, this priceless collection must be registered and preserved in the same way that the archives are currently being catalogued.

• One of the (many) things that annoy me in local broadcasting is that presenters of programmes often treat their guests shabbily, either by making it clear they have been invited for the aforementioned 'exposure', or by almost ignoring them completely in favour of other guests.

It also annoying when presenters think their interviewee is not interesting enough to carry himself. So they get the in-studio musicians to peck away at their instruments in the background, or else use canned music. This is an insult to the guest and listeners.

Sometimes, however, background noise is unintentional. Several times, even when a radio tuner is digitally set, one can hear interference from another station, or snatches from another programme. There was a time when the reason given for this was that tapes were being recycled to cut down on waste and that the splicing was not being done professionally, or even adequately. But since this excuse no longer holds water, one wonders what could be causing this.

• Most people would know - he made sure of it! - that Jean Claude Micallef has moved to Favourite Channel with his breakfast show Zveljarin. This will go out from 7 till 10 a.m., and will include the largest potential weekly prize on local television. An SMS to 5061 6060 will give viewers a chance to participate in Friday's draw. Then follows a game for which the prize cache is €50,000.

television@timesofmalta.com