Community Radio and News 221 Introduction: News, Information and Community Development
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Community Participation in Australian Community Broadcasting: A Comparative Study of Rural, Regional and Remote Radio Author van Vuuren, Catharina Cornelia Maria (Kitty) Published 2004 Thesis Type Thesis (PhD Doctorate) School School of Arts, Media and Culture DOI https://doi.org/10.25904/1912/1518 Copyright Statement The author owns the copyright in this thesis, unless stated otherwise. Downloaded from http://hdl.handle.net/10072/366371 Griffith Research Online https://research-repository.griffith.edu.au NOTE This electronic version of the thesis differs slightly from the submitted print version in page formatting and pagination. The content is otherwise exactly the same. Community Participation in Australian Community Broadcasting: A Comparative Study of Rural, Regional and Remote Radio By Catharina Cornelia Maria (Kitty) van Vuuren Bachelor of Arts (Media Studies) with Distinction, RMIT (1990) Master of Environmental Science, Monash (1994) Dissertation submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Arts, Media and Culture Faculty of Arts Griffith University November 2003 Acknowledgments Thanks to my principal supervisor, Associate Professor Michael Meadows, who encouraged the exploration of alternative practices and their significance to democratisation. Dr Helen Molnar, whom I had known as an undergraduate student, briefly undertook the task of associate supervisor until her career change led her away from academia. Associate supervision was then taken up by Dr Susan Forde and her contribution is also acknowledged. Thanks to staff and associates at the Australian Key Centre for Cultural and Media Policy. The Centre, then directed by Professor Tony Bennett and subsequently by Professor Tom O=Regan, awarded me the Australian Key Centre for Cultural and Media Australian Postgraduate Research Award which made this undertaking possible. Professor Tom O=Regan came on board later as second associate supervisor providing a much-needed boost to my confidence and determination. Tom=s lively criticism honed the arguments presented in this thesis, and his insistence that together with fellow students, Maureen Burns and Tiziana Ferrero-Regis, we conduct regular thesis workshops to provide critical feedback on each other’s work was a godsend. Wendy Keys, Rea Turner and Maureen were also helpful in the earlier incarnation of the thesis workshop. Rhoda Reyes also deserves a ‘thankyou’. Rhoda arrived from the Philippines to commence her PhD at around the same time as Maureen, Wendy and myself (1997). Witnessing Rhoda=s PhD struggle to submit her thesis before her student visa ran out made me feel less anxious about my own! Finally, a big thanks to Sue Jarvis who did a fantastic job proofreading the manuscript. The impetus for undertaking this doctoral thesis came from the many people whom I have met since first becoming a community radio volunteer in 1982. To do justice to them all would be impossible. Some key individuals, however, stand out. David James, from 4ZZZ and later 8TOP-FM showed that the ability to listen and observe were key skills of the radio journalist. Volunteers at 3PBS-FM and staff and volunteers at 3CR, have contributed to the development of my ideas about community broadcasting and Andrea Shaw and Deb Welch, both formerly of 3CR were particularly influential in ideas about radio and community development. Tony Douglas from Public Radio News Services further opened the door to alternative media by encouraging me to go to South Africa as a community radio development consultant. In 1995 the South African community broadcasting sector, and in particular Tracey Naughton from the National Community Radio Forum and Martha Matlala and Moutse Community Radio, as well as the folks at Bush Radio in Cape Town, provided the inspiration to undertake yet more postgraduate study. Finally, a big thanks to my family and friends who have all been looking forward to the day that I completed my PhD. i Declaration This work has not previously been submitted for a degree or diploma in any university. To the best of my knowledge and belief, the thesis contains no material previously published or written by another person except where due reference is made in the thesis itself. Fieldwork was conducted according to ethical principles and written consent was obtained from all individuals who participated in the data collection. Signed: Date: ii Abstract This study investigates the relationship between media and democracy with a particular focus on Australian community broadcasting. I put forward the thesis that the value and purpose of community broadcasting are located in its community development function, rather than in its ability to transmit alternative information. This suggests that an analysis should emphasise community rather than media. Community development promotes the empowerment of ordinary people so that they can confidently participate in management and decision-making — that is, the procedures and norms that underpin democratic practices. In the case of community media, the relationship between democracy and media is located primarily in its volunteers. To understand this relationship, I link together concepts of the public sphere and social capital. The public sphere is understood as multiple and diverse and linked to other publics via the web of relationships forged among people with shared interests and norms. I argue that a community public sphere should be understood as a cultural resource and managed as a common property. The public sphere is thus conceived to have a more or less porous boundary that serves to regulate membership. Understood as a bounded domain, the public sphere can be analysed in terms of its ideological structure, its management practices and its alliances with other publics. This approach also allows for a comparison with other similar public spheres. The study identifies two main ideological constellations that have shaped the development of Australian community broadcasting — professionalism and community development, with the former gaining prominence as the sector expands into rural and regional communities. The ascendancy of professional and quasi-commercial practices is of concern as it can undermine the community development potential of community broadcasting, a function that appears to be little understood and one which has attracted little research. The study presents a case study of three regional and remote rural community radio stations and compares them from a social capital perspective. Social capital is a framework for understanding the relationship between the individual and the community and explores this relationship in terms of participation in networks, reciprocal benefits among groups and individuals and the nature of active participation. Demographic and organisational structures of the three stations are also compared. By taking this approach, each station’s capacity for community development and empowerment is addressed. The results of the fieldwork reveal that the success of a community radio station is related to ‘community spirit’ and demographic structure. They reveal that the community radio station in the smallest community with the lowest per capita income was best able to meet the needs of its community and its volunteers. iii Community Participation in Australian Community Broadcasting: A Comparative Study of Rural, Regional and Remote Radio. Acknowledgments i Declaration ii Abstract iii List of Tables and Figures vii Abbreviations viii Introduction: Questions of Value and Purpose. 1 Spectrum Scarcity and Community Demands 3 Service Delivery in the Interest of the Community 5 Defining Community Media 8 Overview of the Thesis 12 1. Theorising Community Media: A Commons Perspective 16 Introduction 16 From Public Sphere to Social Capital: a Theoretical Overview 17 Establishing Boundaries: The Relationship Between Community Radio and the Community 21 The Enclosure of the Public Sphere 27 The Repossession of the Postmodern Public Sphere 34 Media Participation as Authorised Representation 41 The Public Sphere in Defence of the Right to Communicate 43 Managing the Commons: Networks of Trust and Reciprocity 53 Conclusion. 61 2. Towards Community-centred Media: Ideological Tensions in Community Broadcasting 67 Introduction 67 Structural Diversity 69 Competition and Efficiency 72 Media Independence? 76 The Free Flow of Information 80 The Right to Communicate: The International Debate 83 Shifting the Media Into Community 91 Conclusion 96 3. Sector Expansion: Continuity and Change in Australian Community Broadcasting 98 The Introduction of Australian Community Broadcasting: Merging Diverse Interests 99 Sector Expansion 116 Volunteering and the Shift to the Right 119 iv Community Broadcasting as a Response to Globalisation 126 Embracing an Online World 135 Conclusion 137 4. Negotiating Community: Problems in Researching Community Radio 141 Community Media as a Multi-dimensional Research Objective 142 The Case Study Method 144 Participatory Action Research at 4OUR 149 Measures of Social Capital 159 Accomplishing Successful Community Radio Research 165 5. Reference Points for Community Radio: Professionalism, Localism and Survival 173 Case Selection Criteria 176 4OUR: Professionalism 177 2TEN: Localism 190 4RRR: Survival 202 Case Comparison and Social Capital Implications 212 Conclusion 217 6. Of Problematic Value: Community Radio and News 221 Introduction: News, Information and Community Development. 221 Analysing the News at Caboolture