"The experience of establishing community stations in Afghanistan provides four distinct, but interrelated lessons [...] The project has demonstrated that international organizations can promote community stations in impoverished, war-tron societies that have had no experience of independent or comm
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ercial media. Second, community radio can provide not only news but also a stimulus for grassroots democracy and social networks [...] Third, the Afghanistan example also suggests that community radio stations can raise modest resources locally [...] Fourth, in a politically and economically fragile environment, most community stations may require long-term financial support." (Lessons and recommendations, page 270-271)
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"Creative Associates International (Creative) launched the Haiti Media Assistance and Civic Education Program in October 2001. Known by its Creole acronym, RAMAK, which means “Rassemblan Medya pou Aksyon Kominite” or Media Gathering for Community Action, the goals of the project were to increase
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awareness of citizens’ rights and responsibilities and strengthen journalists’ reporting abilities. The project pursued these objectives in collaboration with 40 community radio stations and 22 local and regional associations of journalists around Haiti." (Introduction)
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"The focus in this article is on two different modes of 'giving a voice to the voiceless' in Southern African new democracies, namely South African community radio and its support apparatus, Democracy Radio, and the Namibian People's Parliament. South African community radio operates within a sphere
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of its own, it is supposed to be closely linked to the grassroots, while the Namibian contact programmes fall under the auspices of the Namibian Broadcasting Company. There are differences in administrative form, but both models have come up against very similar problems in the design of the content. It is easy to talk about community and grassroots orientation, but to implement such policies is difficult, especially when the basic task is to promote democracy and citizenship." (Abstract)
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"Community radio is best understood against the background of the other forms of broadcasting, namely public service, and commercial or private broadcasting. Unlike these, community broadcasting is not state-owned, but rather community-owned and managed. Neither is it aimed at profit-making, but at
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facilitating communication in communities not specifically served by the mass media broadcasters. From simple death announcements to community mobilization to clean up market places or prevent crime, to promoting cross-gender dialogue, to civic education, community radio gives voice to rural and urban oft marginalized communities. This book traces the development of community radio in Europe and the Americas, and eventual rooting in Africa, all the wile noting its great contributions to development in communities. The author presents a continental overview, and an in-depth analysis of the broadcasting in Ghana, South Africa and Zambia, each with its specific legal, politico-historical milieus and community radio case studies." (Back cover)
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"This paper tries to contribute to the discussion on how alternative, community media has altered the media scenery and affected socio-political life in Jordan in terms of the interplay between the civil society and public sphere. With specific reference to Radio AmmanNet, the first community radio
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in Jordan as a case study, and based on socio-political analysis this study will apply relevant social theories and explore the role of alternative and community media in transforming communication in media outlets from that of transmitter-receptor (one to masses) into an interactive transmittertransmitter form thereby nurturing democratic forms of communication, defending local cultural autonomy, harnessing deliberative and teledemocracy, serving as advocacy and lobbying tool promoting civil society and rebuilding a sense of community, and as a role model for regional non-democratic countries." (Abstract)
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"El programa CAESI ha sido el primer intento de trabajar un programa en conjunto entre ALER y AMARC, dos redes con mucha historia y momentos de rivalidad. Fue la primera vez en la historia que se hizo un proyecto de estas características. Se hizo en una región muy problemática, históricamente po
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stergada, invadida, fragmentada y empobrecida, con un desarrollo de medios comunitarios más rudimentario que en otras regiones del continente. Hubiera sido demasiado utópico esperar que un programa como éste resultara exitoso en todas sus dimensiones. Debe verse este primer período mucho más como un ensayo que como proyecto acabado con todas las garantías de efectividad. Por primera vez comunicadoras y comunicadores de radio centroamericanos han gestado juntos algo propio, por pequeño e inacabado que esto sea. Se ha creado por primera vez en la región un espacio propio, un tipo de consejo centroamericano de radios populares y comunitarias que en su misma práctica -y con muchos errores- está ensayando maneras participativas de tomar decisiones, de ejercer el poder, incorporando las miradas del género y de la interculturalidad. Es una experiencia inédita en el mundo de las radios comunitarias centroamericanas y excepcional dentro del mismo movimiento social de la región. Es una oportunidad que no debe soltarse con ligereza." (Lecciones aprendidas, páginas 34-35)
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"Participatory research design appears as an attractive option in the study of community media organisations. It puts the generation of the research question, the design of data collection methods, and the analysis of the results in the hands of the researched. This approach can demystify the resear
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ch process and can be an empowering experience. But, as I found out with my doctoral research, the researcher needs to carefully assess an organisation’s capacity to undertake do-it-yourself research, because, when things go wrong, this approach can also reveal conflicts within an organisation, as well as give rise to tension resulting from the divergent needs of the researcher and those of the researched. This paper describes the troubles that arose during fieldwork conducted at a community radio station, how these unexpected events forced a reformulation of the research question, and how this eventually led to an improved theoretical insight." (Abstract)
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"Gemessen an seiner Einwohnerzahl hat Australien den größten Community Radio-Sektor weltweit. Seit der Verabschiedung des Broadcasting and Services Act im Jahr 1992 und der damit verbundenen Vereinfachung der Lizenzvergabe für Community Radios steigt die Zahl von Community Radios kontinuierlich a
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n. Von dieser Entwicklung ausgehend untersucht die vorliegende Arbeit die damit zusammenhängenden Auswirkungen auf die selbstdefinierten Ansprüche des Mediums Community Radio anhand von drei Fallbeispielsendern in Sydney. Im Mittelpunkt der Arbeit steht die Untersuchung der Umsetzung der zwei wesentlichen an die Medienform Community Radio gerichteten Ansprüche: interessierten Bürgern einen offenen Zugang zum und umfassende Partizipationsmöglichkeiten am Medium Community Radio zu bieten. Daraus wurde die grundlegende Frage für diese Arbeit abgeleitet: in welcher Art und Weise wird der theoretische Anspruch eines offenen Zugangs und einer realen Partizipation von den drei Fallbeispielsendern in der Realität verwirklicht? [...] Nachdem im deskriptiven Schritt der Untersuchung die drei Fallbeispielsender anhand gleicher Kriterien beschrieben wurden, ist vor dem Hintergrund der herausgearbeiteten Eigenschaften der theoretische Anspruch nach offenem Zugang und umfassender Partizipation analytisch untersucht worden. Diese Untersuchung lässt folgendes Fazit zu: die wachsende Konkurrenzsituation durch die Zulassung eines weiteren Community Radios (FBI Radio) führt in Teilen von Sydneys zu einem erhöhten Wettbewerb. Folge ist eine zunehmende Professionalisierung, womit zwangsläufig Selektionskriterien und Beschränkungen in den Bereichen Zugang und Partizipation einhergingen. Für interessierte Bürger in Sydney, die an einer Mitarbeit am Medium Community Radio interessiert sind, haben sich die Möglichkeiten einer Mitarbeit damit nicht verbessert, sondern verschlechtert. Zugang und Partizipation ist nur noch in einem Rahmen möglich, der den theoretischen Vorstellungen an das Medium Community Radio widerspricht, wie beispielhaft anhand der beiden Radiostationen Radio 2ser und FBI Radio verdeutlicht wurde. Daraus ergibt sich eine Diskrepanz zwischen Anspruch und Wirklichkeit. Die Radioschaffenden bei den drei untersuchten Community Radios müssen einen Balanceakt zwischen den Vorschriften der zuständigen Behörden (ACMA, CBF und CBAA), dem eigenen Anspruch und der Wirtschaftlichkeit ihres Radios bewältigen, der aber in zunehmendem Maße nicht mehr gelingt. Die Grenzen zwischen Community Radios – als not- for profit Organisationen – und kommerziellen Radios verschwimmen zusehends. Community Radios, die auf Kosten der Professionalität an den Ansprüchen des Mediums nach freiem Zugang und Partizipation festhalten, stehen vor immensen finanziellen Problemen, da sie nur wenig Sponsoren an sich binden können und staatliche Finanzierungshilfen weiter gekürzt werden. Im Falle von Koori Radio konnte gezeigt werden, dass dies einen geregelten Tagesablauf und eine zukunftsfähige Planung kaum zulässt. Wie dieser problematischen Entwicklung entgegengewirkt werden kann, ist nicht klar. Die Regierung hat sich bisherigen Anfragen nach einer Erhöhung der staatlichen Unterstützung für den Hörfunktyp Community Radio verweigert. Auch die Idee der Erhebung einer Sonderbesteuerung für kommerzielle Radios, um damit Community Radios zu unterstützen, hatte bislang keinen Erfolg." (Zusammenfassung, Seite 110-111)
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"The purpose of the study is to determine the challenges and prospects of community radio in Ethiopia, taking Harar Community Radio (HCR) as a case study. This radio station is selected because it has already stopped broadcasting a few months ago. For the effectiveness of the research, efforts have
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been made to study the overall operational activities of Harar Community Radio and the attitudes of its audience toward the managing, financing and production processes. The researcher acquired the necessary data and information by employing both quantitative and qualitative methods, including document inspection. Taking sample survey as the main means of acquiring data, focus group discussion and in-depth interviews have been used to complement the study. In addition, different books and documents were revised to give depth to the research outcome. The researcher has also examined the theories of participatory communication and Jankowski’s community media research agenda to specify the research objectives and questions. The outcome of the study has pointed out that Harar Community Radio lacked many qualities of a community radio station. As the findings clearly identify, it is not possible to take HCR as a well organized community radio station. On the other hand, however, the radio station still has the support and trust of its audience." (Abstract)
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