Children's Television in Ghana: History, Policy, Diversity, and Prospects in a Changing Media Environment A dissertation presented to the faculty of the Scripps College of Communication of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy Enyonam M. Osei-Hwere August 2008 © 2008 Enyonam M. Osei-Hwere All Rights Reserved ii This dissertation titled Children's Television In Ghana: History, Policy, Diversity, and Prospects in a Changing Media Environment by ENYONAM M. OSEI-HWERE has been approved for the School of Media Arts and Studies and the Scripps College of Communication by Norma Pecora Professor of Telecommunication Gregory J. Shepherd Dean, Scripps College of Communication iii ABSTRACT OSEI-HWERE, ENYONAM MILLICENT, Ph.D, August 2008, Mass Communication Children's Television in Ghana: History, Policy, Diversity, and Prospects in a Changing Media Environment (258 pp.) Director of Dissertation: Norma Pecora Children’s Television in Ghana: History, Policy, Diversity, and Prospects in a Changing Media Environment examines children’s television in Ghana with the aim of exploring the different factors influencing the diversity and market structure of the industry. In order to better understand the diversity of children’s television in Ghana Bryant’s (2007) children’s television community; Industrial Organization Model (Scherer and Ross, 1990); and government and market failure theory (Weisbrod, 1975, 1977) are adapted as the theoretical foundations needed to navigate the answers to the research questions the dissertation sets out to answer. The three theoretical frameworks provide a direction for exploring the political and economic factors influencing the diversity of television programs for children in Ghana. The dissertation utilizes three methods to obtain and analyze information and data for the dissertation. Content analysis was used to obtain children’s television data from television schedules for the three largest television stations in the capital of Ghana. The schedules for the three television stations are published in Radio & TV Guide which is a monthly entertainment magazine published in Ghana. One-on-one semi-structured interviews with a number of core open-ended questions based on the functions of interviewees were used with iv station managers, media professionals, government organization officials, content creators and non-government organization officials. Finally secondary sources such as relevant industry documents from broadcasting stations, nongovernmental organizations, and government sources were reviewed to gain data on the provision of children’s television programs and to corroborate information gained from the interviewees and content analysis data. In order to obtain both an objective and subjective determination of the diversity of children’s television in Ghana it was important to use multiple methods. Findings from the dissertation showed that there was significant diversity in the offerings of children’s content on television in the industry in Ghana. In addition the three stations provision of significant amounts programming hours for children’s television was very comparable to the amount of programming provided for children in other countries. Within the four year period studied the three free to air television stations together provided a total of 6267 hours of programming for children. The three television stations provided both educational and entertainment programs and together targeted the different age-groups of children in Ghana. There were very clear distinctions and differences between the three stations in their efforts to provide television programming for children in Ghana. However, there were clear signs of declines in the amount of programming on television for children with all three stations by the end of the study period. Future studies of the children’s television industry in Ghana may reflect results different from what this dissertation reveals. This is because the industry under v the direction of the national television station began taking steps in 2005 to revamp the industry with the aim of improving the quality of children’s television. Children’s television in Ghana has always enjoyed a strong history with its provision of quality programming for children and continues to explore ways to strengthen itself as reflected in the outcome of the dissertation. Approved:_____________________________________________ Norma Pecora Professor of Telecommunication vi DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to Patrick Osei-Hwere and Mr. and Mrs. Evans Anomah for every encouraging word and every time you prayed for my success. Thank you for all your help and support. I couldn’t have done this without the consistent inspiration and motivation I received from all of you. Thank You and God Bless! vii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This journey began over six years ago and looking ahead to the end of the road I am very thankful to God for His love, guidance and the blessing of this opportunity of higher education. Patrick my dear husband, you have been an unwavering support for me throughout this process and I love you always. Mom, Dad, Viva Dzifa Anomah and Ruby Emefa Anomah you all inspired me to excel and challenge myself and I am thankful for your love and support. I love you all very dearly and really couldn’t have done this without any of you. Osei-Hwere family, thank you all for your encouragement, prayers and support, I love you all very much. To all my friends and extended family, you have been an essential part of my life and all of my accomplishments. You have been a source of great strength and perseverance for me and inspire me unto good and great things. Thank you all for being great friends. Dr. Pecora, your guidance, support and consistent encouragement certainly led me to this accomplishment; you have been a wonderful adviser but above all, a close friend and mentor and I look forward to future collaborations with you. Dr. Duncan Brown, Dr. Arvind Singhal, Dr. Joseph Bernt and Dr. Judith Millesen, thank you for agreeing to serve on my committee. I truly appreciate all your help, support and endless contributions, thank you! To the entire faculty of the School of Media Arts and Studies and the Scripps College of Communication thank you for being great teachers. viii To the Department of Residence Life, thank you for the opportunity to make an impact and a difference in the lives of students. Thank you also for the opportunity to be a member of your wonderful department. ix TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................. IV DEDICATION ........................................................................................................ VII ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ..................................................................................... VIII LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................ XIV LIST OF FIGURES .............................................................................................. XVI INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................... 1 Rationale and Significance of Dissertation................................................... 3 Research Objectives ...................................................................................... 6 Research Questions ....................................................................................... 7 Research Format ........................................................................................... 8 Definition of Terms ....................................................................................... 9 Chapter Overview ........................................................................................ 12 CHAPTER 1: STATE OF CHILDREN’S MEDIA IN AFRICA ................................ 15 Challenges of African Media ....................................................................... 18 CHAPTER 2: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ...................................................... 30 Government Failure Theory and Market Failure Theory ........................... 31 Children’s Television Community .............................................................. 33 Industrial Organization Model ................................................................... 42 Analytical Framework for Dissertation ...................................................... 49 x CHAPTER 3: CHILDREN’S TELEVISION OVERVIEW ....................................... 53 Global Perspectives on Children’s Television Diversity ............................. 55 Types of Broadcasting Systems ................................................................... 63 Children’s Television Industry in the United Kingdom ............................. 66 Structure of the Children’s Television Industry in the U.K ........................ 67 Funding Children’s Television in the UK .................................................... 71 Children’s Television Industry in the United States .................................. 73 Structure of Children’s Television in the United States ............................. 79 Funding Children’s Television in the United States ................................... 80 CHAPTER 4: GHANA’S BROADCASTING SYSTEM ............................................ 84 Introduction to Ghana ...............................................................................