14 Media Development James Deane Conceptualizing Media Development Positioning the field of media development within a handbook focused on communication for development is not without its risks. Significant conceptual and ideological tension has tended to characterize the two fields. Communication for development has been defined elsewhere in this hand- book. Those definitions reflect its history of having emerged from diverse origins ranging from the largely US rooted modernization and diffusion of innovation theories that characterized much development thinking in the immediate decades (Rogers 1962) following World War II through to more participatory models of development originating mainly from developing countries and particularly from Latin America (Gumucio-Dagron and Tufte 2006), the Philippines (Quebral 1971), and elsewhere. Its focus has been on how communication can be used to advance the well-being (e.g., through health communication), or interests (e.g., through community radio) of people, especially those who are politically or economically marginalized. There are many definitions of media development but it can be usefully characterized as working to support the establishment and evolution of free, plural, professional and sustainable media especially in closed societies or where media freedom is restricted. Its origins are principally journalistic and its objec- tives at its purest are aimed at support to such media as an intrinsic component of an effective and function democracy regardless of broader development con- cerns or objectives. It is a field defined by its focus on support to the functioning of the media – such as through institutional strengthening, capacity building © Wilkins, Karin Gwinn; Tufte, Thomas; Obregon, Rafael, Jan 21, 2014, Handbook of Development Communication and Social Change Wiley, Somerset, ISBN: 9781118505380 The Handbook of Development Communication and Social Change, First Edition. Edited by Karin Gwinn Wilkins, Thomas Tufte, and Rafael Obregon. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Published 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 14 Media Development James Deane Conceptualizing Media Development Positioning the field of media development within a handbook focused on communication for development is not without its risks. Significant conceptual and ideological tension has tended to characterize the two fields. Communication for development has been defined elsewhere in this hand- book. Those definitions reflect its history of having emerged from diverse origins ranging from the largely US rooted modernization and diffusion of innovation theories that characterized much development thinking in the immediate decades (Rogers 1962) following World War II through to more participatory models of development originating mainly from developing countries and particularly from Latin America (Gumucio-Dagron and Tufte 2006), the Philippines (Quebral 1971), and elsewhere. Its focus has been on how communication can be used to advance the well-being (e.g., through health communication), or interests (e.g., through community radio) of people, especially those who are politically or economically marginalized. There are many definitions of media development but it can be usefully characterized as working to support the establishment and evolution of free, plural, professional and sustainable media especially in closed societies or where media freedom is restricted. Its origins are principally journalistic and its objec- tives at its purest are aimed at support to such media as an intrinsic component of an effective and function democracy regardless of broader development con- cerns or objectives. It is a field defined by its focus on support to the functioning of the media – such as through institutional strengthening, capacity building © Wilkins, Karin Gwinn; Tufte, Thomas; Obregon, Rafael, Jan 21, 2014, Handbook of Development Communication and Social Change Wiley, Somerset, ISBN: 9781118505380 The Handbook of Development Communication and Social Change, First Edition. Edited by Karin Gwinn Wilkins, Thomas Tufte, and Rafael Obregon. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Published 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Media Development 227 and training – rather than being confined to the defense of media freedom. For the purposes of convenience I have not here focused on another major set of organizations, those who exist to defend and support the rights and freedoms of journalists around the world, even though there is much cross over to the media development sector. The tensions between communication for development and media development are complex. Communication for development advocates often argue that media development should be considered as one part of the broader communication for development community seeing it as an area that clearly works with media in the interests of the public good (Feek 2008). They often find it puzzling when media development practitioners resist being categorized in this way. Media development advocates often argue that communication for development is bent on using – and for some coopting or subsidizing and therefore potentially manipulating or distorting – independent media to achieve specific development objectives. When defining or referring to communication for development, media development advocates will often simplify its role (most typically by focusing on its role in seeking to achieve behavior change within HIV programs). Communication for development advocates in turn find descriptions of their field by the media development community overly simplistic. Media development has become more tightly defined in recent years, partly due to efforts such as those led by UNESCO to create greater consistency of approaches to media development. The UNESCO Media Development Indicators (UNESCO 2008) provide a clear articulation of the central components of an established media development strategy: support for the development of a clear regulatory system conducive to freedom of expression, pluralism and media diversity; encouragement of a transparent media system capable of ensuring diversity of ownership and of a media capable of providing a platform for democratic discourse; the development of a professional media with strong training and other support institutions as well as a strong media infrastructure.1 Media development in this sense is designed to achieve a set of principally journalistic and democratic objectives rather than a set of development ones. There are different traditions within media development which stereotypically see the US as focused on support to commercial media and European media development organizations focused on public service media. Such stereotypes can be misleading. US organizations such as Internews, IREX and the International Centre for Journalists do tend to encourage liberalized media systems focusing on supporting the development of independent, sustainable, commercial media. Measures of success focus on the health of media as a set of © Wilkins, Karin Gwinn; Tufte, Thomas; Obregon, Rafael, Jan 21, 2014, Handbook of Development Communication and Social Change Wiley, Somerset, ISBN: 9781118505380 institutions in society rather than broader social or development goals. However, such organizations have also often had programs focused on support to community media or on training programs to support better coverage of specific issues such as HIV/AIDS. 228 James Deane Organizations like BBC Media Action and Deutsche Welle, which have their roots in major public service broadcasters, are often perceived as advancing a European model of media development focused on how publicly subsidized broadcasting models can be introduced in emerging democracies. In reality these organizations tend to focus on a broader range of interventions with various types of media. Many European media development organizations, such as Danish based International Media Support and the Dutch based Free Press Unlimited are also heavily focused on supporting free and independent media that is not dissimilar to US efforts. Nearly all media development organizations have had programs supporting community media, a field which is also a mainstay of communication for development concerns. Clear categorization of what is media development and what is communication for development is, therefore, often problematic and much of this chapter is focused on continuities that exist across the fields whilst acknowledging there are genuine, well-argued, and real reasons why there should be a strong conceptual distinction between the two. Tensions and Commonalities between Media Development and Communication for Development While there is significant cross-over between the communication for development and media development communities, the tensions between them are significant. There are two main international sector networks or associations with little (despite some efforts) clear collaboration between them, with the Communication Initiative (comminit.com) acting as a key fulcrum and network for the commu- nication for development community, and the Global Forum for Media Development (www.gfmd.info) providing the same function for the media development community. Several organizations, such as BBC Media Action and the Panos Institute, belong to both networks emphasizing the difficulty in sharply delineating the two fields. Both support media but also work to achieve development objectives. Indeed, many organizations belonging to GFMD work to achieve social or development objectives, and even