Development Journalism and Gender A Case Study of Broadcasting Media in Tanzania Dissertation zur Erlangung des akademischen Grades Doctor Philosophiae (Dr. Phil.) am Fachbereich Politik- und Sozialwissenschaften (Institut für Publizistik- und Kommunikationswissenschaft) der Freien Universität Berlin vorgelegt von Eva Solomon Berlin, 2014 Erstgutachterin: Prof. Dr. Margreth Lünenborg Zweitgutachterin: Prof. Elfriede Fürsich, Ph.D. Tag der Disputation: 28. November 2014 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS May I firstly thank my supervisor, Prof. Dr. Margreth Lünenborg for her guidance, advice, constructive criticisms and encouragement during the course of this study. I thank her greatly for patience and understanding, especially during the initial stages, when the project had not acquired a definite direction. I secondly thank Prof. Elfriede Fürsich, PhD., my second supervisor, for her advice and helpful criticisms to ensure that this project is a success. I am very grateful for her interest and valuable efforts in this project. I greatly appreciate thought-provoking discussions with my fellow PhD scholars on my project during PhD colloquiums. I selectively mention Saskia Sell, Annika Bach, Débora Medeiros and Yener Bayramoglu for their profound interest and contributions in this project. Vielen Dank! I exceptionally owe gratitude to Prof. Bernadetta Killian [former Dean, School of Journalism and Mass Communication (SJMC)] for her advice and encouragement to undertake PhD study. I equally thank the current management of the SJMC under the leadership of Dr. Herbert Makoye for readiness to address administrative issues regarding my study leave and fieldwork in Tanzania. In the same vein, I thank colleagues at the SJMC who shared ideas and their expertise with me whenever I consulted them. I also thank Dr. Alexander Makulilo for advice concerning PhD studies in Germany. My sincere appreciation goes to the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and Tanzanian Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (MoEVT) for granting me a scholarship to pursue PhD studies at Freie Universität Berlin, Germany. I am also indebted to my employer, University of Dar es Salaam for granting me a study leave and funding my fieldwork in Tanzania. To my parents (Mr. Solomon Joseph Daudi and Mrs. Gladys Daudi) and siblings (Estha, Salome, Joseph and Paul); I dedicate this work to you for your profound love, good wishes, prayers and encouragement throughout the course of this challenging endeavour. i ABSTRACT This qualitative study builds on theories of development communication, gender and feminism to create and explore a model for gender focused development journalism that empowers and engages ordinary men and women in development plans and processes for their advancement. The Tanzanian mainstream broadcasting media (especially radio) were used as a case study. Given its advantages of immediacy and ability to cross literacy barriers, radio in Tanzania is the most accessed medium by ordinary men and women. The case study employed a combination of interviews with former and current development-oriented journalists, journalism trainers, gender and development/media activists as well as a content analysis of selected broadcasting programmes. In-depth interviews with journalists demonstrated that the understanding and practice of development journalism during the socialistic era was undisputed among practicioners. Meanwhile, in the liberal era, the essence of the practice remained the same but the concept has been given different journalistic names and practical implementation. Retired female journalists were unanimous in their understanding of a gender focus in their reporting. In contemporary times, however, despite the fact that most journalists (men and women) are now trained on gender issues, their understanding of the concept varies. Their application of the concept in practice also seems to be diminishing. While development journalism was mainly a top-down form of communication (authoritative) during the socialistic era, in the liberal era the development-oriented journalists draw on both the Social Responsibility and Libertarian Theories of the media. The ‘state–public service’ broadcasters reflect more of the former while commercial broadcasters employ more of the latter. The programme analysis showed that a gender focused development-oriented journalism is more likely to be practiced in the ‘state–public service’ than in commercial broadcasting. Theoretically (as demonstrated in the interviews), journalists seemed to prefer a participatory stance and some even showed a critical stance; practically (as reflected in their programmes), they performed a more neutral and objective stance while leaning on sources and contributors for the critical role. This contradiction between what journalists say and what they do revolves around three major interrelated influences: political, ii economic and professional practice. These dimensions have and continue to change the media scene in Tanzania. Nevertheless, most respondents regarded development journalism practice as relevant in contemporary Tanzania. The broadcasting media (radio especially) were recommended as an appropriate outlet for the practice. In particular, some respondents recommended that Public Service Broadcasting (PSB) is an effective model that could set standards for other media to emulate. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................. i ABSTRACT ......................................................................................................................... ii LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................ viii LIST OF FIGURES .......................................................................................................... viii ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................................................. ix INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................... 1 CHAPTER ONE DEVELOPMENT JOURNALISM REVISITED ............................................................. 6 1.1 Meanings and Origins of Development Journalism ........................................................ 6 1.1.1 Towards the Definition of Development Journalism .................................................... 6 1.1.2 Origins and Influences of the Practice of Development Journalism .......................... 11 1.2 Practices of Development Journalism in Asia and Africa ............................................. 15 1.3 Development Journalism in Contemporary Africa ........................................................ 18 1.4 Criticism of the Practice of Development Journalism ................................................... 23 1.5 New Models of Development Journalism ..................................................................... 25 1.5.1 Development Journalism in the Context of ‘Participatory Communication’ ............. 26 1.5.2 Similarities between Xiaoge’s and Banda’s Arguments ............................................. 29 1.5.3 Consolidating Xiaoge’s and Banda’s Arguments on Development Journalism ......... 32 1.5.4 Similarities between Development Journalism and Other Journalism Practices ....... 34 1.6 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 38 CHAPTER TWO RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN DEVELOPMENT JOURNALISM AND GENDER 40 2.1 The Concepts “Gender” and “Feminism” and their Place in the Media ....................... 40 2.1.1 Gender-Media Relation .............................................................................................. 40 2.1.2 Feminism-Media Relation .......................................................................................... 43 2.2 Gender and Development: WID, GAD and Women’s Rights ....................................... 45 2.3 Gender Situation in the Media: A Global Perspective ................................................... 48 2.3.1 Presence of Women in the Media ............................................................................... 50 2.3.2 Improvements on the Situation of Women in the Media ............................................ 52 2.3.3 Factors behind Improvements .................................................................................... 53 iv 2.4 Relating Development Journalism and Gender ............................................................. 55 2.4.1 Similarities between Development Journalism, Feminism and Gender ..................... 56 2.4.2 Consolidating Development Journalism, Feminist and Gender Arguments ............... 59 2.5 A Conceptual Framework for GF-DJ Practice ............................................................... 60 2.6 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 61 CHAPTER THREE THE ESTABLISHMENT AND DEVELOPMENT OF MEDIA IN TANZANIA ....... 63 3.1 Pre-Independence Phase ................................................................................................ 65 3.2 Post-colonial Phase ........................................................................................................ 68 3.3 Liberal/Transition Phase ................................................................................................ 72 3.4 Tanzanian Broadcasting