View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by UC Research Repository REACHING THE COMMUNITY THROUGH COMMUNITY RADIO Readjusting to the New Realities A Case Study Investigating the Changing Nature of Community Access and Participation in Three Community Radio Stations in Three Countries New Zealand, Nepal and Sri Lanka __________________________________________________________________________ A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy By Ahmed Zaki Nafiz University of Canterbury 2012 _____________________________________________________________________________ Dedicated to my beloved parents: Abdulla Nafiz and Rasheeda Mohammed Didi i ABSTRACT Community radio is often described as a medium that celebrates the small community life and where local community members plan, produce and present their own programmes. However, many believe that the radio management policies are now increasingly sidelining this aspect of the radio. This is ironic given the fact that the radio stations are supposed to be community platforms where members converge to celebrate their community life and discuss issues of mutual interest. In this case study, I have studied three community radio stations- RS in Nepal, KCR in Sri Lanka and SCR in New Zealand- investigating how the radio management policies are positively or negatively, affecting community access and participation. The study shows that in their effort to stay economically sustainable, the three stations are gradually evolving as a ‘hybrid’; something that sits in-between community and commercial radio. Consequently, programmes that are produced by the local community are often replaced by programmes that are produced by full-time paid staff; and they are more entertaining in nature and accommodate more advertisements. The radio stations also actively seek the sale of airtime to well- funded NGOs, giving agency-driven programmes priority over local community programmes. This means the stations have become vehicles that help agency objectives. Hence, although ‘hybrid’ initiatives have merits financially, while depicting as local community representatives, they are marginalising the voices and interests of the very people that gave the radio stations their community characteristics and identity. Hence, in the interest of earning more revenue to secure market survival, the ‘hybrid’ initiatives are in fact, settling for a lesser community role. This study also shows that although management policy decisions aimed at greater financial sustainability have impacted on local community access and participation in the way they used to be, by readjusting to the new realities of modern-day communications, the three stations are also providing a second ‘hybrid’ pathway, a new interactive radio environment enabling stronger community access and participation. As this new platform facilitates unhindered local community access and participation in the radio, it is also viewed as a solution that will help them to utilise more of their on-air time for revenue-generating programmes. The new platform is also seen as the answer to reach the new generation youth and increase their participation, thereby, in fact, further strengthening community participation in the radio. ii LIST OF ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS ABC- Australian Broadcasting Corporation ACORAB – Association of Community Radio Broadcasters ACAB- Association of Community Access Broadcasters AIBD- Asia-Pacific Institute of Broadcasting Development AIR- All India Radio AMARC- World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters AOL- America Online APC- Association for Progressive Communications APM- Audio Programme Management BBC- British Broadcasting Service BBS- Bhutan Broadcasting Service BCNZ- Broadcasting Corporation of New Zealand BNNRC- Bangladesh NGO’s Network for Radio and Communication CBA- Commonwealth Broadcasting Association CBAA- Community Broadcasting Association of Australia CBS- Crescent Broadcasting Service CD- Compact Disc CDC- Centre for Development Communication CEO- Chief Executive Officer CMA- Community Media Association DANIDA- Danish International Development Agency DIB- Department of Information and Broadcasting DIY- Do-It-Yourself DVD- Digital Versatile Disc or Digital Video Disc DVR- Digital Video Recorder EAP- Edirisinghe Group of Companies EPG- Electronic service and Programme Guide EU- European Union FES- Friedrich Ebert Stiftung FM- Frequency Modulation GPS- Global Positioning System I4D- Information for Development GUL- General User Licence ICT- Information Communication Tool ICT4D- Information Communication Tools for Development ISBS- Indian State Broadcasting Service IT- Information Technology ITU- International telecommunications Union KCR- Kothmale Community Radio LPFM- Low-Power Frequency Modulation MIBS- Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Services iii MMC- Mass-Line Media Centre MNBC- Maldives National Broadcasting Corporation NAFTA- North American Free Trade Association NBS- National Broadcasting Service NEFEJ- Nepal Forum of Environmental Journalists NGO- Non-Government Organisation NWICO- New World Information and Communication Order NYAB- National Youth Association of Bhutan NZBB- New Zealand Broadcasting Board NZBC- New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation NZLPFM- New Zealand Low Power FM NZOA- New Zealand on Air PDC- Participatory development communication PEMRA- Pakistan Electronic Media Regulation Authority RBC- Radio Broadcasting Company RNZ- Radio New Zealand RS- Radio Sagharmatha SCR- Samoa Community Radio SLBC- Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation SMS- Short Message Service SOE- State-Owned Enterprise SRN- Student Radio Network TVM- Television Maldives TVNZ- Television New Zealand UK- United Kingdom UN- United Nations UNESCO- United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation US- United States VCD- Video Compact Disc VOM- Voice of Maldives WAR- Washington Access Radio WTO- World Trade Organisation WTV- World Television iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ii List of Abbreviations and Acronyms iii Chapter One: Introduction 1 1.1 Communicating through Community Media 1 1.2 The Purpose of doing this Study 5 1.3 The Research Question 11 1.4 The Three selected Stations 13 1.5 The Methodology for this Study 15 1.6 How I have outlined this Study 15 Chapter Two: The Community and the Community Media 19 2.1 Introduction 19 2.2 The Community-a Definition 20 2.3 Defining Community Media 24 2.3.1. Community Media v/s the Mainstream Media 28 2.4 Media Globalisation and Media Democratisation 31 2.4.1 Media Globalisation 32 2.4.2 Media Democratisation 34 2.5 Community Media-A Theoretical Perspective 40 2.5.1 Community Media as Radical Alternative Media 41 2.5.2 Community Media as Citizens’ Media 43 2.5.3 Community Media- through a Multi-Theoretical Approach 44 2.5.4 Community Media and Democratic Participant Theory 47 v 2.6 Theorising Community Radio 48 2.6.1 Community Radio- A Definition 48 2.6.2 The Nature of Access and Participation 52 2.6.2.1 As tool for community mobilisation and radical change 53 2.6.2.2 As a channel for celebrating community life 54 2.6.2.3 As a tool for development 55 2.7 Summary and Conclusion 56 Chapter Three: Community Broadcasting in South Asia 61 3.1 Introduction 61 3.2 Sri Lanka 61 3.2.1 Private Radio Broadcasting 62 3.2.2 Birth of Community Radio 63 3.2.3 Institutional Support for Community Radio 64 3.3 Nepal 64 3.3.1 Beginning of Private Broadcasting and Community Radio 65 3.3.2 Institutional Support for Community Radio 65 3.3.2.1 Community Radio Support Centre 66 3.3.2.2 Association of Community Radio Broadcasters 66 3.3.2.3 Communications Corner 67 3.4 India 67 3.4.1 Rural Community Broadcasting 68 3.4.2 Deregulation of the Airwaves 69 3.4.3 The Community Radio Campaign 71 3.4.4 Early Community Radio Stations 72 3.4.5 The New Community Radio Policy 73 3.5 Pakistan 75 3.5.1 Pakistan Electronic Media Regulation Authority 75 3.5.2 Community Radio 76 vi 3.6 Bangladesh 77 3.6.1 Bangladesh Betar 78 3.6.2 Community Radio Campaign 78 3.7 Maldives 80 3.7.1 Early Broadcasting - State as the Broadcaster 81 3.7.2 Beginning of Private Radio 82 3.7.3 Towards a Free and Independent Radio 84 3.7.4 Community Broadcasting - The Beginning 85 3.7.4.1 The New community radio initiative 88 3.7.4.2 UNESCO support 89 3.7.4.3 Community radio - the challenges 91 3.8 Bhutan 93 3.8.1 Media Freedom 93 3.8.2 Early Broadcasting 94 3.8.3 Private Broadcasting 94 3.8.4 Community Radio 95 3.9 Summary and Conclusion 95 Chapter Four: Community Radio in New Zealand 97 4.1 Introduction 97 4.2 The Government as the Early Broadcaster 98 4.3 “Radio Hauraki”- Emergence of Private Radio 100 4.4 Deregulation, Commercialisation and Privatisation 101 4.5 Protecting Public Interests 103 4.6 RNZ as a Community Radio Broadcaster 106 4.7 The New Community Radio Environment 108 4.7.1 Iwi Radio 109 4.7.2 Ethnic Community Radio 111 4.7.3 Non-commercial Ethnic Radio 111 vii 4.7.4 Commercial Ethnic Radio 113 4.7.5 Low-Power FM Radio or the “Guard Band” Radio 114 4.7.6 Access Radio 118 4.7.6.1 Weaknesses of access Radio 120 4.7.6.2 Access radio and NZOA 124 4.7.7 Other Community Radio Stations 125 4.8 ACAB 126 4.9 Community Broadcasting - The Next Step 129 4.10 New Criteria for Non-commercial Licensing 131 4.11 Summary and Conclusion 133 Chapter Five: Case Study as a Method 135 5.1 Introduction 135 5.2 Case Study- A definition 136 5.3 Case Study Types 137 5.4 The Three Cases in this Study 138 5.4.1 Case Selection Criteria- a Discussion