Journal of Development

&
Communication Studies
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Vol. 2. Nos. 2/3, July-December, 2013. ISSN: 2305-7432
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Research Papers

x Starving the Messenger: A Study of Journalists’ Conditions of Service in Malawi

Levi Zeleza Manda & Noel Drake Kufaine, University of Malawi …………………………………… pp. 301-311
x Development Journalism in Zimbabwe: Practice, Problems, and Prospects
Thulani Tshabangu, Lupane University, Zimbabwe………………………………..…………………..pp. 312-328
Effect of Mass Media Intervention on HIV and AIDS related Stigma and Discrimination
Zelalem Testafye Worku, Bedir Dar University, Ethiopia……………………………………………...pp. 329-343
x Use of Community Conversation in the Fight against HIV and AIDS
Anteneh Mekuriah Restafye, Bedir Dar University, Ethiopia ………………………………………….pp. 344-358
x Recognizing the Latino Immigrant’s Space in the American Neighborhood and Creating a Community for
Peaceful Coexistence
Emmanuel Ngwainmbi, Jackson State University, MS, USA…………………………………………..pp. 359-379

Discussion Papers
x Role of Malawian languages in the attainment of socio-economic development and MGDS
Pearson Nkhoma & Wongani Mugaba, Action AID Malawi…………………………………… pp. 380-391
x Community Radio in Political Theory and Development Practice
Ericka Tucker, California Polytechnic, Pamona, California, USA ……………………………………..pp. 392-420

Book Review
x Globalization and Citizenship
Emmanuel Ngwainmbi, Jackson State University, MS, USA…………………………………………..pp. 421-424

Case Study
x Impact of AFRRI Participatory Radio Campaigns: An Extension Officer’s Testimony

Andrew Kaipanyama, AEDC, Mvera EPA, Malawi…………………………………………………pp.425-428

 Journal of Development & Communication Studies
ISSN: 2305-7432

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Economics and Political Science.
Mufunanji Magalasi
Department of Fine and Performing
Arts, Chancellor College, University of
Malawi.
Helge Ronning
Department of Media and
Communication, University of Oslo,
Norway
Francis Chikunkhuzeni
Department of Journalism and Media
Studies, The Polytechnic, University of
Malawi, Malawi.
David Mkwambisi
Department of Natural Resource
Management, Bunda College, Lilongwe
University of Agriculture and Natural
Resources (Luanar), Lilongwe, Malawi
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Department of English, Chancellor
College, University of Malawi, Zomba,
Malawi.
Faculty of Social Science, Chancellor
College, University of Malawi, Zomba,
Malawi
Lynette Steenveld
School of Journalism, Rhodes
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Africa.
Helen Hambly Odame
School of Environmental Design and
Rural Development, University of
Guelph, Guelph, Canada
Xu Xiaoge
Wee Kim Wee School of
Communication and Information,
Nanyang Technological University, 50
Nanyang Avenue, Singapore
Fetson A Kalua
Department of English Studies,
University of South Africa (UNISA),
Pretoria, South Africa.
Peter VonDoepp
Department of Political Science,
College of Arts and Science, University
of Vermont, Burlington, USA.
Catherine Mthinda
Department of Agricultural Extension
& Rural Sociology, Lilongwe University
of Agriculture and Natural Resources
(Luanar), Lilongwe, Malawi

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Journal of Development and Communication Studies pp.301-310

Vol. 2. Nos. 2/3, July-December, 2013. ISSN (Online): 2305-7432. http://www.devcomsjournalmw.org.
© Journal of Development and Communication Studies, 2013.
___________________________________________________________________________

Starving the Messenger: A Study of Journalists’ Conditions

of Service in Malawi
Levi Zeleza Manda (PhD)
Development Media Consulting, Blantyre, Malawi. Email: admanda2002@gmail.com
&
Noel Drake Kufaine
Department of Technical Education, the Polytechnic, University of Malawi. Email: nkufaine@poly.ac.mw

Abstract
This study used in-depth interviews to investigate the conditions of service and welfare of journalists in Malawi. It
found that while the Media Council of Malawi code of professional ethics and standards and in-house policies
expected the best out the journalists, the majority of the journalists, mostly junior reporters, were grossly underpaid;
far below the monthly living wage. It also found that dejection, fatalism, and individualism pervade journalists so
much so that some of them seemed resigned to their status quo. Media owners seemed unwilling to engage in any
debate about their journalist employees’ welfare. The study concludes that under such circumstances, many
Malawian journalists were likely to be tempted to take bribes and engage in other forms of corruption as coping
mechanisms.

Key words: Afriethics, umunthu, ubuntu, journalism, welfare, living wage

________________________________________________________________________

Introduction
The terms journalism, media, and press are often used interchangeably to refer to the process of
news gathering, the men and women who report the news or the institutions responsible for
informing the public of what is happening in society. Communication researchers have
investigated various aspects of journalism. However, little or no investigation has been done on
the working conditions of the Malawian journalist, which was the focus of this study.

Objectives of the study

This study was conducted on behalf of the Journalists Union of Malawi (JUMA) in 2010 to
establish journalists’ salaries and benefits in Malawi; to determine if these salaries and benefits
were reasonable vis-à-vis the cost of living; and to find out whether the journalists had signed
contracts governing their conditions of employment.

Research questions
Precisely the study sought to answer the following three research questions (RQ):
RQ 1: What are the demographic characteristics of journalists in Malawi?
RQ 2: What are the salary scales for journalists in Malawi and how do they compare with
salaries and working conditions of typical employees such as civil servants?

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RQ 3: Do Malawian journalists have written conditions of work, including contracts and

editorial policies, and if so, how strictly are they adhered to?

Literature review
Journalism as a profession has been a subject of several studies internationally, but very little has
been studied about the conditions of services governing Malawian journalists. Some studies even
question whether journalism is a trade, a mission or just a pastime. Ruhl (2000) and Schudson
(2003) “lament the ‘folkloric’ inconsistency of [journalism as a field of study] as well as the
impossibility to generate a more or less consensual body of knowledge out of the existing
literature” (cited by Deuze, 2005:443).While acknowledging lack of a body of knowledge in the
traditional physical science sense, Dennis and Merril (1995) argue that journalism is no less a
profession than others, such as law and medicine. They posit that like medical and legal
personnel, journalists are trained and posses skill that help them to identify newsworthy events.
They further argue that journalists, like other professionals, are governed codes of ethics and
standards of practice.
Elaborating the journalism-as-a-profession argument, Deuze (2005) claims that there
exist, globally, universal values that are associated with journalism praxis. He identifies five
unique characteristics of journalists as professionals. Firstly, Deuze (2005) argues, journalists
across the world and cultures espouse a social responsibility work ethic and subscribe to serving
the public, invariably calling themselves as watchdogs of society, messengers, and information
missionaries. Secondly, Deuze (2005) agrees with Ukpbi (2001), Haniztsch (2011), and Worlds
of Journalism (2011) that journalists subscribe to the ideal of objectivity, impartiality, neutrality,
factuality fairness, credibility, and balance. Thirdly, journalists uphold their autonomy,
independence or freedom from political and economic interference as an ideology, which they
strive to achieve. Fourthly, journalism as a profession revolves around the concept of immediacy
of information delivery, that is, journalists seek to deliver information as quickly as possible,
unlike politicians, doctors, and lawyers who wait until they are satisfied about the consequences
of releasing the information before they do so. Finally, Deuze (2005) argues that globally,
journalists have codes of written and enforceable codes of ethics to guide their individual and
collective behaviour.
Minnie (2001:35) argues that if professions are “defined by their claim to render a
service for the public good”, then journalism is one because it is responsible for the delivery of
information, which is one the fundamental human rights and public goods.
The moral standards set in the codes of ethics globally are very high and sometimes self-
inflicting. With a few exceptions, notably the Islamic Mass Media Charter (Jakarta Declaration,
1980) which emphasises that Muslim journalists ought to promotion of Islamic values and
Shariah, all media guidelines, from the Sigma Delta Chi of 1932, through the Swedish Code of
Ethics for the Press, Radio and Television, to the Media Council of Malawi Code of Ethics and
Standards (Media Council of Malawi, 1995), stress the same normative or deontological
prescriptions which include not only telling the truth, being accurate, thorough, honest,
respecting individual privacy, cultures and avoiding doing harm to the vulnerable, such as
children (see also BBC, n.d; MISA, 2011; Haniztsch, 2011), but also to “conduct themselves
with propriety at all times when performing their duties” and not be being associated with
situations and acts, such as receiving “favours, which are likely to compromise their professional
integrity ( Media Council of Malawi, 1995). During election campaigns, Malawian journalists are
required to “refrain from taking any individual inducement from political a political party
candidate or politician; such as transport and sustenance of overnight accommodation” ( Malawi
Electoral Commission, 2009:7).
Elsewhere, such stringent moral guidelines are, as a rule, accompanied by reasonable
salaries and benefits. However, in Malawi, most media institutions or journalists operate on
shoestring budgets and gift demanding and taking, though not empirically proven, is not
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uncommon amongst Malawian journalists. They call it chimpondamthengo, a term reminiscent

of token fees paid to local herbalists who ask for no pay from their patients. As long as it is not
demanded, chipondamthengo, is not considered as bribery or payment. It is a “thank-you” for
a job well down. By calling gift-receiving chipondamthengo, Malawian journalists act within
what is acceptable in African culture. Apropos, Sylla (n.d: 1) has argued that gift-giving in
traditional African society was and still is in some countries, not “synonymous with corruption,
or nor is it at its genesis”.
Sylla’s position resonates with Kasoma (1996)’s argument that current moral guidelines
or codes of ethics governing global journalism are essentially Euro-centric Judeo-Christian values
and that, therefore, such moral guidelines ought to be domesticated, as the Islamic Media
Charter (Jakarta Declaration, 1980) has, to account for prevailing local cultures, traditions, and
beliefs. Drawing on the tenets of umunthu or ubuntu humanist philosophy, Kasoma (1996)
proposes that African journalistic moral guidelines should be based on African communalist
values or Afriethics, where one’s moral behaviour is guided by family and community concerns
and needs. Implicit in Afriethics, is the fact that the African, and ipso facto, Malawian journalist,
could receive gifts or chipondamthengo from news sources without necessarily compromising
his or her integrity as Sylla (n.d) has argued.
As noted above, the studies into journalism concentrate on its functions, roles, practices
and ethics. Rare are studies that examine the welfare of journalists despite the fact these face
constant danger when covering political events, war, riots, and other dangerous beats. The
Hindustan (n.d) a career guide website, aptly describes the difficulty of journalism work as
follows:
Journalism is an exciting and challenging career, and is sometimes seen as a little
glamorous. While it can be glamorous or prestigious, in reality it is hard work, learning
on the run, handling the pressure of deadlines and not knowing what your working day
will be like from one day to the next. Many journalists work long and irregular hours,
with evening and late night work common. An assignment cannot be dropped just
because a shift has finished; a journalist must see it through to the end. Often they are
called back to work to cover an unexpected development, and they are frequently
required to work […] at night, on weekends, on public holidays. The unusual work hours
can make social life difficult. Besides the open-ended work hours, there are also
pressures to meet tight deadlines and to ensure the facts presented are accurate.
Despite such tough work, journalists are among the least trusted professionals, and whose jobs
are precarious. According to an IPSOS Mori study, the British public rates journalists as the
second most untrustworthy professionals (IPSOS Mori, 2011). Whittal (2008) observes that in
Europe more and more journalists are being employed on fixed terms; thus rendering journalism
a precarious job because journalists can be laid off or refused contract renewal at anytime. As
the findings of this study demonstrate, conditions of service of journalists in Malawi are probably
more precarious or worse than those of their counterparts in Europe.

Protection of journalist labour in Malawi

Several legal instruments govern and protect the welfare and conditions of service of workers in
Malawi. In addition to the Employment Act of 2000, there exist sector specific instruments,
which regulate the work and conditions of service of the army, police, civil servants, members of
parliament, and presidents. There are also guidelines pertaining to the employment of domestic
servants (Pendame, 2006). Almost all employment sectors in Malawi have trade unions which
are affiliated to the Malawi Congress of Trade Unions (Manda, 2000; Dzimbiri, 2007). However,
despite the fact that journalism has been practiced in Malawi from colonial times (Sembereka,
1980; Chirwa and Manda, 2009; Chitsulo and Mang’anda, 2011; Englund, 2011) there is no
specific law or set of guidelines governing the employment and conditions of service of
journalists. Only in 2007 did journalists establish the Journalists Union of Malawi (JUMA, which
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joined the Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) dominated Communication Workers Union
Malawi (COWUMA) to fight for the welfare of journalists in Malawi. Despite the existence of
these two trade unions, to date not much seems to have improved in terms of the welfare and
work conditions of Malawian journalists.

Methodology
Data for this study were collected using two semi-structured questionnaires. One for journalists
and the second for media owners of each the 21 radio stations, six newspapers regular
newspapers, and the Ministry of Information which is responsible for the welfare of district
information officers and Malawi News Agency staff. The target was to interview three
journalists (MANA) in all the 21 radio stations and two major newspapers and one Malawi News
Agency reporter from the districts of Zomba, Dedza and Nkhata Bay, which were identified
purposively for their adjacency to the major cities of Blantyre, Lilongwe and Mzuzu respectively
where journalists are mostly clustered. However, only fifty respondents, representing almost 25%
of the journalists’ population in Malawi, were willing to participate in the study (see Table 1 for
the distribution of respondents by age).

Table 1: Age distribution of respondents

Respondents 15-24 Years old 25-34 35-44 45+
Age Reporter 3 (6%) 25 (50% 1 (2%) -
Sub-editor - 6 (12% 5 4 (8%)
N=50
(10%)
Editor - 1 (2%) 3 (6%) 1 (2%)
Managing Editor - - - 1 2%
Total Respondents 6
3 32 9

The questionnaire was administered in situ or by email. No response was received from
the media owners or their representatives. Arrangements to hold key informant interviews with
media owners did not yield any response.
Six field data collectors were deployed in Mzuzu (two), Lilongwe (two) and Blantyre
(two). Data supervision, entry, analysis and interpretation were conducted by the authors. In
addition to administering the questionnaire, the field data collectors also asked for qualitative
explanations to get ideographic information on certain key issues such as adherence to
employee/employer contracts.

Limitations
Copies of a differently worded questionnaire were sent to media owners with the aim of
comparing journalists’ responses with employers’ views. However, despite frequent reminders,
only two media owners responded. It is not clear as to why most media owners were unwilling to
complete the questionnaire or to be interviewed. Also some journalists working outside the
mainstream media (such PROs and NGO Communication Officers) were contacted as one way
of comparing their conditions of service with those of mainstream media journalists. Only one
person responded. This one respondent’s answers were considered inadequate to provide
trends. As such, responses from media owners and PROs and NGO communication officers
were not considered for analysis.

Findings and Discussion

The sections below link the findings of the study to its objectives and research questions.

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RQ 1: What are the demographic characteristics of journalists in Malawi?

A profession of youths
Table 1 shows the distribution of the respondents and suggests that the majority of journalists in
Malawi are young (70% aged below 35 years). This age distribution is slightly lower than what
Manda & Malunda, (2003) found. Then young journalists constituted 76% of the journalism
workforce in Malawi. These young people occupy the lowest ranks (reporters) in newsrooms
with only 12% and 2% falling within the sub-editor and editor categories respectively. Only 2%
of the respondents aged over 35 years reported to be reporters. It would appear that, in
Malawian journalism, the younger one is the more likely one will be a reporter.

Radio is the biggest employer

Table 2: Media types respondents belong to

Media Type Radio TV Print Other (eg
respondent Malawi News
belongs to Agency)
(N=50) 31 (62%) 7 (14%) 9 (18%) 3 (6%)

As Table 2 indicates, the majority of the respondents (62%) worked for radio stations, 14% for
television, and 18% for the print media (newspapers) and 6% for other news organizations, such
as the Malawi News Agency or Ministry of Information district information offices. The
dominance of radio as journalist employer could be the result of the rapid expansion of the
broadcasting sector since 1998 when the Communications Act was passed allowing for the
establishment of private commercial, community and religious radio stations, thereby ending
Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC)’s three decade dominance of the radio broadcasting
landscape in Malawi. Although a number of influential online publications have emerged since
the mid 2000s, no respondent described oneself as an online journalist probably because at the
time of the study internet based journalism was still in infancy in Malawi (see Chikunkhuzeni,
2011) and had not yet evolved into a credible genre journalists would wish to be associated with.

A profession for the undereducated

In terms of academic qualifications 50% of the respondents held Malawi School Certificate
(MSCE equivalent of British Ordinary Level Certificate), 30% boasted journalism diplomas,
18% had bachelor’s degrees, and only 2% indicated having Master’s level education (see Table
3).

Table 3: Respondents’ academic/professional qualifications

Academic MSCE (O Level) College/University Bachelors Master’s
Qualification Diploma Degree Degree
(N=50) (25) 50% (15) 30% (9)18% (1)2%

Although academic qualifications are just part of what makes a journalist (Skjerdal & Ngugi,
2007) the professional and academic education levels of the majority of Malawian journalists are
still too low for a profession that requires logical thinking, analysis, contextualization, in-depth
understanding, and interpretation of events. In South Africa, a journalist is more likely to hold a
college diploma or degree. However, if recent local advertisements are anything to go by, a
journalism diploma and degree are henceforth the requisite qualifications for a journalism job in
Malawi.

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RQ 2: What are the salary scales for journalists in Malawi and how do they compare with
salaries of typical employees such as civil servants?

Majority earns less than monthly living wage

Table 4: Journalists salary ranges (2010)

Salary >MK10,0 MK10,0 MK20,0 MK30,0 MK40,0 MK50,0 MK70,00
Ranges 00 01- 01- 01- 01- 01- 0+
(MK/Mon 20,000 30,000 40,000 50,000 60,000
th)
journalists 5 (10%) 7 (14%) 12 (4% 4 (8%) 4 (8% 5 (10%) 13 (26)%
receive
N=50

Table 5: Monthly cost of living (MK) in Malawi early 2010 (MK150=1 US$)
City/Month January February March April
Blantyre 58493 55041 51846
54962
Lilongwe 52293 55612 45039 55589
Zomba 49360 51334 51689 44784
Mzuzu 47953 48681 46039 44209

Source: Compiled from Centre for Social Concern (CFSC) data (2010)

Table 6: Typical salaries for other sectors

Waiter in Shop Security
Teacher Nurse (I) Petrol/Diesel
Local Attendant Guard in
(K) (DIPLOMA Attendant
Restaurants (MSCE) Private Firm
(MSCE) ) (MSCE)
(Below MSCE) (MSCE)
K5, 000-
K15, 422 - K37, 275- K7, 000- K3, 000- K3, 000
Monthly K10, 000
K17, 203 K32, 893 K10, 000 K8, 000 K5, 000
Wage.

Note: US$ 1=MK 250 in 2010.

Table 4 summarises the typical salaries of Malawian journalists. Centre for Social Concern
(2010) estimates that for an average household of five members to live comfortably in the early
part of 2010 in Blantyre, Zomba, Lilongwe and Mzuzu, it needed a monetary income of no less
than K40, 000 in recurrent expenditure only (see Table 5). In addition, a working family needed
daily transportation costs, such as MK200 – MK220 for Lilongwe; MK120–160 for Blantyre; and
MK140 – MK180 for Mzuzu per person (CFSC, 2010). Thus, for the majority of journalists
(46%) the monthly incomes were well below the monthly living wage or cost of living. It is
worth noting that journalists are not the only employees who are grossly underpaid. Table 6
shows salaries of typical employees, in Malawi, whose academic qualifications match those of the
majority of journalists (Diploma and below). Conditions of service and salary levels match with a
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profession’s social responsibilities. Civil servants, fuel attendants, and others have no stringent
ethics and standards to observe and therefore can engage in other economic activities. Indeed,
Mkwambisi et al., (2011), Kafundu and Milanzi, (2006), have observed that to supplement their
salaries, most lowly paid urban dwellers in Lilongwe and Blantyre resort to such coping
mechanisms as urban farming, beer brewing and selling, and in extreme cases, prostitution, the
very acts that journalists are refrained from openly engaging in or due to strict deadlines cannot
do. It is not clear what coping mechanisms underpaid journalists in Malawi resort to short of
accepting bribes or soliciting chimpondamthengo (brown envelopes), also known amongst
Malawian journalists as “logistics”.

RQ 3: Do Malawian journalists have written conditions of work, including contracts

and editorial policies, and if so, how strictly are they adhered to?

Some have signed contracts

The majority of the respondents (56%) claimed to have signed work contracts while 34%
reported not to have signed any contract. Ten percent were noncommittal. Only 47% of the
respondents reported that they were aware of the presence of any editorial policy in their
newsrooms; 39% were not aware while 4% were sure that no editorial policy existed. 10%
decided not to answer the question. However, 72% of those who were aware of the editorial
policies were satisfied with the contents of the policies, which stipulated rights and
responsibilities of employers and employees and copyright ownership of published material.
Table 7: Adherence to contract conditions

Adherence to contract By Rate/Intensity Frequency %

employee Strictly 12 42.9

Somehow 13 46.4
Never 0 0
No Answer 3 10.7
N=28 employer Strictly 7 25
Somehow 13 46.4
Never 2 7.1
No answer 6 21.4

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However, as Table 7 illustrates, only 12 (42.9%) of the 28 (56%) who claimed to have
signed contracts indicated that, as employees, they strictly adhered to the contracts while
slightly above 46% thought they somehow adhered to their contracts. About 10% were
noncommittal. As for the extent to which the employer abided by the letter of the contract,
25% reported that their employers strictly adhered to the contracts, some 46% said the
employers somehow abided, while 7% were categorical that their employers did not abide by
the contracts signed. Over 21% of the respondents chose not to say anything.
It is worth noting that a number of journalists who claimed to have signed contracts
could not be drawn to explain their silence on the critical issues (such as adherence and
ownership of copyright of published materials) relating to their contracts. This could point
to uneasy employee-employer relations or journalists’ lack of interest in their own welfare. In
a country where journalism-related jobs are hard to come by fear of betrayal by the
researchers could explain why some journalists were unwilling to discuss their contracts with
academics who were researching journalists’ welfare.

Conclusion
This paper has demonstrated that incomes of journalists are not different from those of
other employees. Research has shown that salaried urban residents in Malawi devise coping
mechanisms such as street vending, urban farming, prostitution, and beer brewing
(Mkwambisi et al., 2011; Kafundu & Milanzi, 2006) to survive. It is not clear whether
journalists do resort to similar mechanisms or have other means of beefing up their incomes
to live a reasonably acceptable life free of the attractions of corruption as journalism ethics
and standards demand.
Literature on journalists’ coping mechanisms’ in Malawi is virtually non-existent.
However, Skjerdal (2011) cites a plethora of studies that have linked journalists’ poor pay
worldwide to “brown envelops” or “logistics” as bribes are euphemistically called in media-
speak. Mabweazara (2011) has noted that corruption in the media takes many forms, such as
moonlighting and mercenary activities that include the amplification of the public image of
the “brown envelope” givers, usually politicians and elite members of society, and the
symbolic annihilation of the less materially endowed ones.
From the missionary and investigative no-nonsense journalism, Malawian journalists
would generally be described as “critical change agents” (Hanitzsch, 2011; Worlds of
Journalism, 2011) committed to improving the welfare of the poor. However, some of
them seem to have resigned to their fate if information gathered through this study’s open-
ended qualitative interviews with the respondents is anything to go by. For instance one
MANA interviewee reported that although he had worked as a district information officer
for ten years, he was only there as an intern. Asked further why he did not fight for fulltime
employment, he said he did not know how to go about it, and that God would take charge
of his destiny, anyway. Another interviewee reported that he did not want to join any union
because he did not care about unions and media organisations. Yet another respondent
retorted flatly that although she was aware of the existence of an editorial policy in her
newsroom, she had had no time to read it because it did not matter much. So, unless this
sense of dejection, fatalism, and individualism that seems to shroud Malawian journalists,
and the culture of information withholding pervading the media owners are overcome, the
dream of acceptable conditions of service for journalists in Malawi will take a long time to
attain and journalists’ coping mechanisms in such a harsh economic environment as
Malawi’s will always be subject to speculation.
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Journal of Development and Communication Studies

Vol. 2. Nos. 2/3, July-December, 2013. ISSN (Online): 2305-7432.
http://www.devcomsjournalmw.org.
© Journal of Development and Communication Studies, 2013.
_____________________________________________________________

Development Journalism in Zimbabwe: Practice,

Problems, and Prospects
Thulani Tshabangu
Department of Languages and Communication, Lupane University, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe . Email:
tshabanguthulani@yahoo.com

Abstract
This paper presents research findings on development journalism in Zimbabwe. Through a case study
approach of the Chronicle newspaper coverage of the Millennium Development Goals, the paper explores
current issues in development journalism practice, problems and prospects. The main focus of the research
paper was to evaluate the validity and relevance of development journalism as theoretically conceived by
Galtung and Vincent (1992) in contemporary journalism practice. It is argued that the hackneyed concept of
development journalism remains valid and relevant in Zimbabwe and the rest of world especially if
development targets such as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are to be achieved by 2015. In
spite of its obvious merits in catalyzing development processes, development journalism is fraught with
problems to become a worthy journalism pursuit. Development journalism lacks appeal and vigor and is
almost impracticable in contemporary journalism practice. Operational environment factors such as
tabloidization; cut throat inter media competition; profit motives of shareholders; lack of specialised training
in development journalism; Westernisation and juniorisation of the journalism profession; and the
development slump undermine the practice of development journalism in Zimbabwe. However, the practice of
development journalism in Zimbabwe has a future because both the government and journalists need it to
gainfully promote the achievement of national development goals.

Key Words: Development Journalism, Emancipatory Journalism, Millennium Development Goals,

Zimbabwe
________________________________________________________________________

Introduction
Zimbabwe is party to the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which were agreed
upon by 189 world leaders in September 2000 through the United Nations Millennium
Declaration. By ratifying the United Nations Millennium Declaration member states
committed themselves to a better world, which they defined in terms of values of peace and
security, eradication of poverty, protection of the vulnerable, protection of the environment,
and respect for human rights. The MDGs represent tangible targets, and provide a coherent
framework through which governments, non-governmental organizations, and all manner of
civil society organizations can work to achieve sustainable and quantifiable development by
 313

2015. The MDGs provide concrete, numerical benchmarks for tackling extreme poverty in
its many dimensions. The eight goals include targets on income poverty, hunger, maternal
and child mortality, disease, inadequate shelter, gender inequality, environmental degradation
and the global partnership for development. The MDGs are time-bound goals set to be
achieved by 2015. If the MDGs are achieved, world poverty will be cut by half, tens of
millions of lives will be saved, and billions more people will have the opportunity to benefit
from the global economy. With barely two years left to achieve the MDGs, Zimbabwe’s
progress has been slow (UNDP and MoLSS, 2010). The media are widely regarded as
important tools for national development. Advocates of MDGs are confident that the media
can contribute and accelerate progress towards attainment of MDGs by engaging in active
development journalism.

Media and development

In order to achieve the MDGs, collective effort is required from different development
actors. Aboum (2004) identified seven such development actors with different roles and
responsibilities to make the MDGs achievable by 2015. They included: (i) Developed
countries; (ii) Developing countries; (iii) Multilateral institutions; (iv) World Bank, IMF, and
Regional Development Banks; (v) the International donor community; (vi) The poor people;
and, (vii) Civil society and faith based organisations. In identifying the seven development
actors above, Aboum (2004) excluded the media. Vernon and Baksh (2010:7) pointed out
that the universal agenda to achieve the MDGs by 2015 without the active involvement of
the media was likely to fail. They wrote;
There is need for the development discourse to be reframed in ways which help create
a better understanding of what constitutes development, and how change happens.
Because of the inertia in the aid system, this will require good leadership from within
the sector, and from politicians and in the media.
In theorising the development-media relationship, the paper brings to the fore the concept
of development journalism.

Development journalism: Origins, evolution and current Status

Development journalism has different definitions in different contexts. The concept
originated in the Philippines and was developed into a coherent doctrine in the 1960s across
Asia and the Middle East (Ogan 1980: 8). In the subsequent years, development journalism
gained universal currency with a strong following in the Second and Third World. The
conceptual basis of development journalism relies heavily on development communication
theories. In 1968, a not for profit organisation, the Thomson Foundation sponsored a
course called The Economic Writers' Training Course. The Course Chair, Alan Chalkley was
the first to coin the term "development journalist" (Ogan 1980: 11). Working with the
Philippine Press Institute, Chalkley and Erskine Childers began to conduct development
oriented seminars to encourage the Philippine journalists to report more development news.
Chalkley (1968 in Ogan 1980:7) explained that a journalist's main task was to inform and
give his or her readers the facts. His or her secondary task was to interpret, to put the facts
in their framework and, where possible, to draw conclusions. Chalkley added that the third
task of the development journalist was to positively promote facts of economic life and to
interpret those facts, to open eyes of readers to the possible development solutions. In 1968,
the Press Foundation of Asia (PFA) was formed with funding from the Ford Foundation to
promote development journalism. The PFA set up Depth-News, an acronym for
development, economic and population news. The PFA implored journalists to write
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technical and scientific articles in easy to understand terms for the ordinary people. In its
working guidelines the PFA stated that the “media are encouraged to be development
conscious, to disseminate as much information as possible about the potentials of a country
and the efforts being extended to fulfill these potentials and to encourage the public to
participate in these efforts.”
Aggarwala (1979 cited in Ogan 1980: 8) described the essence of development
journalism as to “critically examine, evaluate and report the relevance of a development
project to national and local needs, the difference between a planned scheme and its actual
implementation and the differences between its impact on the people as claimed by
government official and as it is actually is”. Development journalism also entails that the
media should critically report on the MDGs, comparing planned schemes and actual
implementation and impact. Shaw in Banda (2006: 6) defined development journalism as
consisting of ‘news’ that:
Should examine critically, evaluate and interpret the relevance of development plans,
projects, policies, problems, and issues. It should indicate the disparities between plans
and actual accomplishments, and include comparisons with how development is
progressing in other countries and regions. It also should provide contextual and
background information about the development process, discuss the impact of plans,
projects, policies, problems, and issues on people, and speculate about the future of
development. And development news should refer to the needs of people, which may
vary from country to country or from region to region, but generally include primary
needs, such as food, housing, employment; secondary needs such as transportation,
energy sources an electricity; and tertiary needs such as cultural diversity, recognition
and dignity.
Vilanilam (1979 cited in Machado 1982:11) proffered a definition of development news as:
News relating to the primary, secondary, and tertiary needs of a developing country.
Primary needs are food, clothing, and shelter. Secondary needs are development of
agriculture, industry and all economic activity, which lead to the fulfillment of the
primary needs, plus development of education, literacy, health environment, medical
research, family planning, employment, labour welfare, social reforms, national
integration and rural and urban development. Tertiary needs are development of mass
media, transport, tourism, telecommunication, arts and cultural activities.
Gunaratne (1996:5) described developmental journalism as an integral part of a new
journalism that involved "analytical interpretation, subtle investigation, constructive criticism
and sincere association with the grassroots (rather than with the elite)." According to
Wimmer and Wolf (2005), development journalism comprises the reporting on ideas,
programmes, activities and events, which are related to an improvement of the living
standard, mainly in the rural regions. (1988 in Gunaratne 1996:10) conceptualized
developmental journalism as news that related to the primary, secondary or tertiary needs of
a country's population; news that satisfied the needs of a country's population and
contributed to self-reliance; and news that related to development or to social, economic or
political problems. Kunczik (1986 cited in Wimmer and Wolf 2005) saw development
journalism as an intellectual enterprise in which the journalist should form a kind of free
intelligence and should critically examine the aims of national development and the
applicable instruments in rational discourse and solve them by using reasonable criteria free
of social constraints. Accordingly, development journalism has the following tasks:
x To motivate the audience to actively cooperate in development and,
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x To defend the interests of those concerned.

Domatob and Hall (1983 in Wimmer and Wolf 2005) state that by its name, development
journalism recognizes the reality of underdevelopment, that development is a valid social
goal and that media have a contribution to make towards it; that is, the media are expected
to actively pursue this role. The main characteristic of development journalism is the
deliberate and active role in pressing for change. It is geared towards mobilizing the people
for national development. Mwaffisi (1991 in Wimmer and Wolf, 2005;11) has argued that
development journalism "is not reporting about events, but processes, and not reporting
about personalities but issues".
In Africa, early theorists of development journalism argued that development
journalism should promote PanAfricanism. Such theorizing saw the media as a revolutionary
tool of African liberation from colonialism and imperialism. In the same vein, the media
worked as extension of government policies of social, economic and cultural development.
African theorists also argued that development journalism meant, above all, nation-building,
creation of national consciousness, and unity. The duty of development journalism was to
awaken citizens to the new cultural imagery of patriotism, nationhood, inculcate a viable
degree of ‘we feeling’, cohesion across tribal, racial, regional, religious, and linguistic loyalties.
Development journalism also entailed that the media should contribute to national
development goals, inform citizens of relevant governmental policies, introduce national
leaders, foster political stability, and promote national integration and education. Lent (1977
in Ansah 1998: 12) rationalised the argument of development journalism when he noted
that:
Because Third World nations are newly emergent, they need time to develop their
institutions. During this initial period of growth, stability and unity must be sought;
criticism must be minimized and the public faith in government institutions and
policies must be encouraged. Media must cooperate, according to this guided press
concept, by stressing positive, development-inspired news, by ignoring negative societal
or oppositionist characteristics and by supporting governmental ideologies and plans.
The late president of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah, a former journalist, believed in development
journalism. According to Ansah (1998:12) Nkrumah used his paper, Accra Evening News to
whip up support for his political party during the struggle for Ghana's independence and
rejected the idea of an independent press. He believed in activist journalism, that a journalist
should have high ideals, be a political activist and party member, and his newspaper a
collective organizer, a collective instrument of mobilization and a collective educator, a
weapon first and foremost for the overthrow of colonialism and imperialism and to assist
total African independence and unity. Nkrumah (1965 cited in Odhiambo, 1991:24) thus
claimed “the true African newspaper is a collective educator – a weapon, first and foremost,
to overthrow colonialism and imperialism, and to assist total African independence and
unity.”
Scholars such as Odhiambo (1991:28) has dismissed the nationalist and Pan African
feelings that development journalism evokes, arguing that development journalism is
obsolete when he noted:
...like the ideology of development which is its raison d' etre, development journalism,
though a welcome departure from Western mass media paradigms lacks organic
relevance to make it a legitimate professional pursuit for sub-Saharan African
journalists. This is because 'development' no longer evokes patriotism in the present
socio-political environment of the region.
 316

Galtung and Vincent (1992 cited in Banda 2006: 6) have proposed a ten point working
model for development journalism. Galtung and Vincent (1992 in Banda (2006: 6) point out
that the task of the development journalist is to “unravel the threads of the development
drama that takes place both in the centre and periphery, pick them out of the intricate web
of relationships, hold them up in the sunlight, and demonstrate the connections to readers,
listeners and viewers". They argue that “the problem, however, is that when this drama is
written out, the underlying text tends to be about the same in all cases: imperialism,
exploitation and other leftist themes”. Due to the fact that development journalism has
different connotations and meanings in different contexts, the research was premised on the
ten point development journalism model advanced by Galtung and Vincent (1992 cited in
Banda 2006:7). The ten point journalism model, by Galtung and Vincent (1992) underscores
the need for journalists to recognise the reality of underdevelopment; that development is
multidimensional and exceeds economic growth; that development should focus on local
and international relations focusing on the lives of the poor and the rich; that development
journalism is critical and investigative in nature and that development journalism is
participatory. Participation in development journalism entails creation of community media
and universal access to all media thereby generating a wide range of development visions.
Melkote (1991 in Mefalopulos 2003:48) sums up the ultimate goal of development
journalism/communication as to raise the quality of life of populations, including the
increase of income and well-being, eradication of social injustice, promotion of land reform
and freedom of speech and establishing community centres for leisure and entertainment.

Method
Data were obtained through semi structured interviews with the Chronicle journalists on their
perceptions of development journalism, critical discourse and content analysis of 1208 news
articles published in twenty-six editions of the Chronicle of 1-30 September 2010. The
research deliberately focused on September 2010 because it was a month to commemorate
the 10th anniversary of the signing of the MDGs. The month of September 2010 was also
significant in that a high level United Nations Summit on MDGs was held in New York on
22 to 23 September 2010 to review country progress on the MDGs. In essence, the month
of September 2010 was regarded as the month of the MDGs. All news stories except
advertisements published in selected twenty six editions of Chronicle were coded and analyzed
for development journalism. The unit of analysis was a news story. News items were
classified into hard news, features, opinion pieces and letters to the editor. News items were
categorized into development and non-development news. The definition of development
news by Vilanilam (1979 cited in Machado 1982:11) was adopted for this study. He defined
development news as:
News relating to the primary, secondary, and tertiary needs of a developing country.
Primary needs are food, clothing, and shelter. Secondary needs are development of
agriculture, industry and all economic activity, which lead to the fulfilment of the
primary needs, plus development of education, literacy, health environment, medical
research, family planning, employment, labour welfare, social reforms, national
integration and rural and urban development. Tertiary needs are development of mass
media, transport, tourism, telecommunication, arts and cultural activities.
The research combined qualitative and quantitative content analysis in examining the
presence of development journalism in the Chronicle coverage of MDGs. Quantitative
 317

content analysis was used to count and measure the number and prominence given to
development stories versus non development news. Qualitative content analysis was used
together with critical discourse analysis to identify the dominant discourses about the MDGs
in Chronicle. The following were research questions for content analysis:
x Did the Chronicle practice the principles of development journalism as espoused
by Galtung and Vincent, (1992)?
x What was the proportion of development news to other news beats?
x Did the Chronicle promote the eight MDGs and which of the MDGs received
more prominence?
x Which were the most quoted sources of development news?
x Did the Chronicle newspaper give equal voice and access to all the development
actors?
x What, if any, was the ideology of the development news covered by the
Chronicle?
The main purpose of carrying out the critical discourse analysis was to determine the
ideology of the development news carried by the Chronicle. As a research method, discourse
analysis was used to understand how language was used and narratives of development news
created. The researcher also used semi-structured interviews with three Senior Journalists at
the Chronicle. These were selected for the interviews because they held positions of
responsibility and had sufficient practical journalism experience. The questions for semi-
structured interviews were prepared in advance. The use of semi-structured open-ended
qualitative interviews helped the researcher in that the interviewees were allowed to stray a
little and as a result, the interviews were flexible. The first step in the data analysis was the
content analysis of stories. All data collected was analysed used interpretive techniques such
as thematic analysis or coding and textual analysis. Coding is an interpretative technique that
both organises the data and provides a means to introduce the interpretations of it. Thus
data was organised around themes important to the research questions. Interview data was
transcribed, interpreted and analysed using themes. Interview data was presented in narrative
form, with pertinent quotations used to illustrate major findings of the study. In order to
protect the identity of the Chronicle interviewees, full names will not be used in the study.

Findings

Development Journalism in Practice: The Chronicle Coverage of MDGs in

Zimbabwe

Lack of understanding of development journalism principles and MDGs

Interviews with journalists revealed that they did not have any understanding of
development journalism philosophy and principles. The study found that development
journalism was not an institutionalized concept and was not clearly articulated in the editorial
policy of the Chronicle. In instances where the Chronicle made efforts to cover development
news such coverage was not informed by any theoretical or conceptual framework. Rather,
development news was covered like any other news and traditional news values of
prominence and newsworthiness were applied in deciding whether or not to publish any
development news story. The study also evaluated journalists’ knowledge of the MDGs.
None of the journalists interviewed could state the purpose or list the eight MDGs. One of
the respondents erroneously noted that the MDGs were part of Vision 2020, a Government
 318

of Zimbabwe development blueprint that set out goals and priorities for national
development in the early 1990s. This ignorance about the MDGs confirmed earlier research
by a coalition of NGOs, the Civil Society MDG Coalition (CSMC) that pointed out that
rural communities throughout the country were ignorant of the MDGs, (News Day: 8 ; 2010
Oct 19). The study by CSMC revealed that most rural communities confused the MDGs
with a new splinter political party from the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).
“Some people in rural areas do not know what MDGs are. People think that it’s a political
party. People in rural areas are living in the dark. There is no effort to enlighten people,”
observed CSMC in a newspaper article, 2010 October 18, NewsDay (8). It was unexpected
that journalists at the Chronicle could effectively promote the attainment of the MDGs by
2015 when they themselves were oblivious of them. One of the interviewees conceded that
there was a need to create awareness of the MDGs amongst journalists before the national
media were able to promote their attainment by 2015:
We are able to write 100 development news stories without any reference to the
Millennium Development Goals. We need to fully embrace the concept of
development journalism and understand what the United Nations Millennium
Development Goals are. The challenge is that government never made any real
awareness on these MDGs from the onset.
Mwaffisi (1991 cited in Odhiambo 1991: 12) has argued that development journalism "is not
reporting about events, but processes, and not reporting about personalities but issues."

Proportion of development news to other News

Of the 1208 news articles published in twenty-six editions of the Chronicle of 1-30 September
2010, 1082 (90%) were non-developmental news. Whereas 126 (10.4%) of the stories
published dealt with development issues. Non-development news published included human
interest stories, politics, hard news, leisure and entertainment, foreign news and sport.
Development news included stories about the MDGs and news relating to agriculture and
food security, industry and economic growth, poverty and deprivation, water, shelter,
education, health and environment. The results of this quantitative content analysis meant
that on average the Chronicle ran a total of 47 stories per day, five of which were development
news and 42 non-development news. This clearly demonstrated that the newspaper covered
a significantly higher proportion of non-development news.

News sources used in development news

Of the 126 development news items analysed, it was established that government ministries
or authorities were the most quoted news sources. In 50% of the news government
ministries or authorities were quoted as the main news sources. This indicated a dominance
of government information sources in news. The most quoted government ministers were
those of Education, Sport, Art and Culture and Deputy Minister of Health and Child
Welfare. Other government ministers often quoted included Minister of Local Government,
Urban and Rural Development, Minister of Water Resources and Management and
government officials from line ministries such as the Ministry of Transport,
Communications and Infrastructure Development, Meteorological Services Department and
the Department of Agriculture Extension Services and the Department of Agriculture
Irrigation and Mechanisation. Official from local authorities such as the Rural District
Councils and the Bulawayo City Council were also quoted. 15% of the news sources were
NGO officials, 14% politicians, 14% government experts/technocrats, and 5% beneficiaries
of development and 2% Ministry of Media, Information and Publicity.
 319

Figure 1: Sources of Development News in Zimbabwe

The study confirmed findings by McDaniel (1986 in Odhiambo 1991:21) that “development
journalism is being used as a vehicle not only for publicizing government programs, but for
the promotion of government personalities”. This was particularly true in light of the
prominence given to the Ministry of Sports, Education and Culture. McDaniel (1986 in
Odhiambo (1991;11) further pointed out, politicians in developing countries “wish to be
seen as champions of development issues” and warned, “it might undermine development as
a responsibility of the whole population, picturing it instead as an activity of the influential
and politically powerful”.
15% of the development news published related to development NGOs, which was a
gross underrepresentation considering that NGOs are involved in several development
programmes. This underrepresentation of NGO sources in development news was justified
by one of the senior reporters in an interview:
We [the Chronicle reporters] are not encouraged to use NGO sources. This is because
NGOs are generally seen as agents of regime change and not bona fide development
agents. But we know for a fact that NGOs are some of the biggest development
players in the country. I cannot just write a story about the development programmes
being funded by for example DfID (UK Department for International Development),
AusAid [Australian Aid], the EU [European Union] without raising the ire of the
powers that be.
This observation resonate with findings of a study by Pratt and Manheim (1988) which
established that Third World journalists from nine-government controlled newspapers were
reluctant to use unofficial sources to increase coverage of development news, and little of
that news was critical of the government. Journalistic reliance on government news sources
 320

limited any tendency toward critical presentation and evaluation of development

programmes in the news media.

Ideology of development news

Another objective of the research was to establish the ideology of development news
covered by the Chronicle. Ideology is a system of ideas and beliefs. Giddens (1997:73) defined
ideology as “shared ideas and beliefs which serve to justify interests of dominant groups”.
The concept of ideology was elaborated by Marxist scholar Louis Althusser (1970) in his
essay, Ideology and Ideological State Apparatuses, where he defined ideology as the “imaginary
relationship of individuals to their real conditions of existence”. He argued that the state
enforced its ideology through coercive institutions, the repressive state apparatus and the
non-coercive institutions, the ideological state apparatus. The repressive state apparatus
consisted of coercive institutions such as the army, police and prisons while the ideological
state apparatus consisted of non-coercive institutions such as religion, family, school, arts
and the media. The state employs the ideological apparatuses to reproduce its ideology
through representations in the media. Tsiko (2010) quoted the Zimbabwe Independent
Editor, Vincent Kahiya as having said that development news had a political ideology. “A
development story had to be told in political language in order for the copy to be used by
editors.” According to an interviewee the Chronicle development news stories were
deliberately coated in political language so as to represent government in a positive light
noting that;
The Chronicle editorial policy is pro-government and it is difficult to be critical of
government. Development news has to be politically correct and consistent with
government ideology.
Regarding government progress towards the attainment of the MDGs by 2015, the Chronicle
blamed the West for imposing sanctions on Zimbabwe. This ideological inclination was
confirmed by one of the senior reporters when he noted that it was normal to politicize
development stories and mention that lack of development was due to “illegal” sanctions
imposed on the country by the West. The Senior Reporter noted;
A good and usable development story is one that includes the colonial historical
background, one which highlights the development gains achieved after independence
in 1980, the need for land reform, the importance of the empowerment of the black
majority and more importantly the adverse impact of sanctions imposed by erstwhile
colonial master, Britain and her allies on national development.
The Senior Reporter added that it had become part of the Chronicle’s in-house style to include
the background on sanctions in everyday copy to the extent that sub-editors did not use any
stories that had no such background. In a published essay, Government versus Independent press,
Bakhsh (n.d) noted that African journalists working for the government media bought into
the ideology of the ruling governments to the extent of fervently defending the status quo.
Bakhsh (n.d:7) wrote that African journalists have “developed a servile mentality which sees
them as footnotes to the narrow ambitions of politicians. The press in many African
countries exists only to defend the status quo; it has lost its independence and is happy to
sing praises of its master, the government’s sad song of betrayal of the dreams of the African
people.”
A critical discourse analysis of the story ‘Sanctions frustrate efforts to meet MDGs:
President’, the Chronicle, 2010 September 22(1) illustrates the point Bakhsh makes. The story
quoted President Mugabe as telling the UN High Level meeting in New York that:
 321

Despite our best efforts we fell short of our targets because of illegal and debilitating
sanctions imposed on the country and consequently the incidence of poverty in
Zimbabwe remains high. As a result of these punitive measures and despite our
economic turnaround economic plan, the Government of Zimbabwe have been
prevented from making a positive difference in the lives of the poor, the hungry and
destitute among its citizens. This is regrettable because Zimbabwe has a stable
economic and political environment. We have the resources, and with the right kind of
support from the international community, we have the potential to improve the lives
of the people.
In the story President Mugabe was further quoted as blaming Zimbabwe’s detractors and
advancing the same ideology that Zimbabwe’s lack of development was largely due to
foreign influences and sanctions:
Even our economy suffered from illegal sanctions imposed on the country by our
detractors, we continued to deploy and direct much of our own resources towards the
achievement of the targets we set for ourselves. Indeed, we find it very disturbing and
regrettable that after we all agreed to work towards the improvement of the lives of our
citizens some countries should deliberately work to negate our efforts in that direction.
In his foreword to the 2010 Zimbabwe progress report on MDGs in the UNDP and MoLSS
(2010), President Mugabe further advanced the ideology that progress on MDGs were
derailed by Western sanctions:
Zimbabwe is convinced that the MDGs are achievable as we continue to consolidate
our independence through social, political and economic empowerment of our people,
by crafting and implementing pro-poor development policies and programmes. I would
like to take this opportunity to thank Zimbabweans for the patriotism, dedication and
perseverance they have shown under the weight of illegal sanctions imposed on our
country by those opposed to our pro-poor programmes. Our people have dug deep
into their resourcefulness in achieving the success we have so far registered in our
development programmes.
It was apparent from the above that the Chronicle fostered the ideology that Western
sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe were to blame for the lack of progress towards the
attainment of the MDGs. Although the argument by government that sanctions were to
blame for lack of progress towards the attainment of MDGs could not be objectively
verified, the Chronicle identified itself with the dominant government ideology. Normative
theories of media performance suggest that the media are not only a product and a reflection
of the history of their own societies but they also play a part in that history. Bourgault (1995
in McQuail 1994: 39) noted:
The history of journalism in [Sub-Saharan Africa] in the 1970s and 1980s is a history of
a continent coming to grips with the contradictions in which it found itself. It is a
history of the struggle for the newly independent nations to forge a national
consciousness among disparate ethnic groups. It is a history of elite policy makers who
had clamoured for independence trying now to shore up the newly found freedoms. It
is a history of politicians discovering that political freedom from the colonial masters
had been easier to achieve than economic prosperity. It is a history, in fact, of the
failure of the nation-state and the modernist paradigm to satisfy the hopes of African
peoples, elites as well as masses, urbanites as well as rural dwellers.
 322

Problems of development journalism in Zimbabwe

Development journalism not institutionalized

The study found that development journalism was not an institutionalized concept and was
not clearly articulated in the editorial policy of the Chronicle. Although the Chronicle editor
policy could not be immediately availed, the researcher had the opportunity of attending a
series of editorial planning meetings commonly referred to as ‘Diary Meetings’. In these
‘Diary Meetings’ the editorial team plan for stories of the day. The reporters give their
diarized stories to the News Editor and the News Editor may assign any of the reporters to
cover a particular story. It was observed during these ‘Diary Meetings’ that reporters
preferred to cover non-development news stories hence the conclusion that development
journalism is not institutionalized. It was also noted that in instances where the Chronicle
made efforts to cover development news such coverage was not informed by any theoretical
or conceptual framework. Rather, development news was covered like any other news and
traditional news values of prominence and newsworthiness justified publication of any
development news story.

Tabloidisation of news
Tabloidisation was established as one of the key factors that hindered the practice of
development journalism by the Chronicle. Tabloidisation can be defined as involving a shift in
the priorities within a given medium away from news and information toward an emphasis
on entertainment or the emergence of pervasive sensationalism in the media. Sparks (2000
cited in Harris 2005:4) defined a tabloid newspaper as one that “devotes relatively little
attention to politics, economics, and society and relatively much to diversions like sports,
scandal, and popular entertainment; it devotes relatively much attention to the personal and
private lives of people, both celebrities and ordinary people, and relatively little to political
processes, economic developments, and social changes.” Grisprud (1992 in Harris (2005:5)
stated that well-known features of tabloidisation are sensationalism, personalisation and the
focus on private concerns. The quantitative content analysis showed that the Chronicle was
increasingly becoming sensational. For example, the Chronicle, September 11, 2010 carried a
story entitled ‘Call for AIDS levy to extend to informal sector’. This story was relegated and hidden
on the second page of the newspaper without any photograph. In contrast the first page of
the newspaper had two sensational news stories deliberately put to draw readers’ attention.
The stories were: ‘Homeless man survives 11 000 volt electricity jolt’ published with a picture of the
survivor and ‘Mystery fire terrorises Magwegwe residents’. These first page stories apart from
showing the effect of tadloidisation were bent on attracting the readers’ interest to purchase
the copy and push up sales. While the Chronicle is not tabloid in format, the newspaper had
adopted some of the tabloid styles in a fashion referred to as broadloidisation.

Commercial imperative
The Chronicle existed as a business entity. It had a commercial imperative to make profits. For
it to make profits, it had to sell to audiences and to advertisers and also push hard copy sales.
For News Editor, “development journalism does not sell.” It is for this reason that the
Chronicle had reluctantly pursued development journalism. The Chronicle had no segmented
audience that had an interest in reading issues related to the MDGs and development news.
Tsiko (2010) buttresses the above when she observed that newspaper editors in Zimbabwe
said development journalism did not help to sell newspapers as human interest, sports and
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arts news did. She cited the Zimbabwe Independent Editor who argued that political news
overrode development journalism because the country had been so politicised that if one
had put a story on development as a lead, most papers in the country would go bankrupt.

Lack of specialised training

Another major factor affecting the practice of development journalism by the Chronicle was
lack of specialisation on development news and on the MDGs. This lack of specialisation
had meant that the Chronicle did not comprehensively practice development journalism and
adequately cover the MDGs. Shah (1990) cited in Obeng-Quaidoo (1988:8) commented that
the “level of development news reported depends on the levels of training journalists
receive.” He established that journalists who receive special training on issues like rural
development, health, population and social issues tend to cover a high proportion of stories
dealing with such issues. Obeng-Quaidoo (1988:12) cited journalism scholar Walter
Lippmann who underscored the need for specialization thus:
Not every reader of every newspaper cares to know about or could understand all the
activities of mankind. But there are some readers, specialized in some subject, who have
to be alerted to important developments of even the most specialized activities. For this,
the profession of journalism is becoming specialized. The journalist is becoming subject
to the compulsion to respect and observe the intellectual disciplines and the organized
body of knowledge which the specialist in any field possesses.
The Chronicle was disadvantaged in that it had general journalists who did not have any form
of specialisation in development issues. Due to the lack of media specialisation in
development issues and the MDGs in particular, the Media Roundtable on Millennium
Development Goals concluded that media coverage of MDGs by Zimbabwean journalists
included “incorrect use of data, terms and concepts; sensationalism; focus on the problem
and not on the solution; lack of interest in development issues, prejudice against stigmatised
groups and lack of skills to handle ethical dilemmas among other issues” (Tsiko, 2010:1).

Development slump
A key factor that affected the Chronicle’s practice of development journalism was the
development slump in the country. Zimbabwe had witnessed ten years of negative economic
growth due to hyperinflation. Furthermore, the government had failed to adequately finance
and deliver on promised development projects. Against this, there had not been many
significant development projects for the media to report on. This view of the development
slump was advanced by an interviewee who said that:
Development projects have remained in limbo for a long time and there is no
development to report in the news. For instance the Bulawayo- Airport-Nkayi road has
been in limbo for a long time. The Chronicle has been reporting about the
Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project and Gwaai- Shangani water schemes since 1991
and nothing has happened to bring water to the people of Matabeleland. To date these
projects are still incomplete. If there is development slump in the country the media
cannot be expected to engage in any form development journalism.
A Senior Reporter interviewed also added that due to the development slump and the
politicization of development, media audiences were disinterested in development issues. He
said:
People are now skeptical of the development processes in this country because they
have received many empty promises of development. If you write that a certain
development project has been completed by the government half of the readers will
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believe that and half will assume it is simply government politicking, at worse they
will say its government propaganda.

Westernisation of Zimbabwean journalism

The study also found that journalism at the Chronicle is largely influenced by Westernisation
as one interviewee witnesses:
We cannot just smuggle a development news story in the name of development
journalism. Development journalism is equally dependent on news values. For a
development story to be published, it depends on who is involved, what they say and
whether what they say or do is newsworthy to be published as a development news
story.
The impact of Western news values on development journalism was elaborated by one of
the senior reporters interviewed who said the Chronicle News Editor often complained when
he repeatedly diarised a development news story in order to achieve impact. He said the
News Editor always worried of timeliness and on a number of occasions blocked his attempt
to cover the Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project by arguing that the story was tired. This
view, that journalism was a profession guided by the news values of time is extended by
American sociologist Michael Schudson (1986) who described journalists as persons with a
‘chronomentality’. Schlesinger (1977) underlined the same point when he described
journalists as ‘members of a stop-watch culture’. Patterson (1997 cited in Obeng-Quaidoo
1988:7) underlined the same point:
Journalists respond less to the pressing demand of issues than to the relentless churn of
the news cycle. Each day is a fresh start, a new reality. Novelty is prized, as is certainty.
Journalists must have a story to tell, and it must be different from yesterday’s. The
speed of the news cycle and the relentless search for fresh stories steer the journalist
toward certain developments and away from others. Controlled by the stop-watch,
dedicated to actuality, obsessed with novelty, journalists are continuously in a seemingly
losing battle to react to (the latest) events. The invisibility of issues requires journalism’s
capacity to respond.
Thus the use of Western news values such as timeliness, bizarreness had contributed to the
under representation of development news in the Chronicle. Different scholars, such as
Kasoma (1996), have even questioned the existence of an African journalism. They have
argued that journalism is largely a Western profession grounded in Western models and
theories of education. Kasoma (1996) in Bakhsh (n.d:7) notes:
The tragedy facing African journalism of the 1990s and beyond [..]is that the
continent’s journalists have closely imitated the professional norms of the (West),
which they see as the epitome of good journalism. Consequently, the African mass
media’s philosophical foundations, their aims and objectives have been blue-prints of
the media in the industrialized societies of the (West). The West has certainly
influenced African journalism.

Juniorisation of the journalism profession

Another challenge for development journalism in Zimbabwe is the "juniorisation" of the
journalism profession. Using the Chronicle as a case in point, it was noted that the newsroom
was staffed with junior reporters who had recently graduated from university and other
institutions of higher learning. These junior journalists who completely outnumber veteran
journalists had little interest in development journalism. In an interview with the News
Editor, a veteran journalist noted that the current crop of journalists at the Chronicle grew up
 325

in years of development failure in Zimbabwe and did not appreciate the meaning of
development journalism. As a result junior journalists did not find any attraction in
development journalism.

Urbanised nature of Journalism and Journalists

The urbanised nature of journalism and lack of adequate transport to cover rural areas has
led to the slow adoption of development journalism by the Chronicle. Development
journalism requires journalists to travel to rural areas to speak with people affected and in
the process gaining an enormous range of development visions and ‘how-to’ insights
(Galtung and Vincent: 1992). Dixit (1993), former Regional Director for Asia-Pacific of the
Inter Press Service (IPS) wrote an internal memo to his staff that development journalism
could not be done practically while sitting in one’s air-conditioned office. He added that
development reporting means travel and could not be done overnight on one of those
sudden deadlines. Freier (2001: 13) observed that increasing urbanisation have led to an
under representation of the rural areas in journalism;
The journalist in Africa is –even more than his/her colleague in Europe or America- an
urban animal. He/she lives in the city and reports the city. The dire conditions of
his/her poor relatives in remote areas are probably not known to her, but are the
subject of his/her journalistic endeavours. Lack of transport, poor infrastructure and
vast distances contribute to this black out.
For the Chronicle, the impact of urbanisation was compounded by the lack of transport to
cover rural areas. This had negatively impacted the practice of development journalism. The
Chronicle News Editor said they “failed to reach rural communities because we have no cars.
Our vehicle fleet is depleted. We are a government paper and we do not have any donor
funding to embark on development journalism.”

Development journalism is expensive

The remarks above by the News Editor indicate that development journalism is expensive to
cover, compared for instance with political issues or scandals. Some of the successful
development journalism projects in the past have been funded by international donor
agencies such as the World Bank and agencies of the United Nations such as the Food and
Agriculture Organisation (FAO), United Nations Educational Scientific and
Communications Organisation (UNESCO) and the UNDP. Without adequate funding,
development journalism cannot thrive. The Press Foundation of Asia which pioneered
development journalism was formed with funding from the Ford Foundation. The Andrew
Lees Trust Project Radio in Southern Madagascar which was responsible for promoting
MDGs was funded by the United Kingdom Department for International Development
(DFID) and the Panos Institute, London. Other known examples of development
journalism projects include the long-running drama Soul City of South Africa which receives
funding from multiple donors.

Prospects for development journalism in Zimbabwe

Zimbabwean development journalism has a lot of prospects as journalists themselves
acknowledge. According to the News Editor “every reader of the Chronicle has a rural origin
of some sort and would want to read about what happens back home. It is therefore the role
of development journalism to inform people about what developments have occurred back
home.” He further added that the advantage of development journalism was that it “gives
people hope of a better future, this hope of development means that life is not gloomy.”
 326

Development journalism can be used for mobilizing people to participate in development

programmes. Currently, Zimbabweans are skeptical about government development
projects. Development journalism can mobilise people around development and help people
to share information and exchange ideas in a positive and productive fashion. This dialogue
can be enriched by understanding how development issues affect people and generate how
to insights. Through development journalism, people are able to articulate and share their
own opinions, needs, problems and abilities, thereby influencing decision making processes
and policy.
Last, development journalism can change people’s life-styles. Development
journalism can focus on the long and sensitive process of changing behaviour and life-styles
by raising awareness and public understanding of issues such as HIV and AIDS. Thus, if
properly applied, development journalism can promote the attainment of goals for national
development and the MDGs. One of the merits of development journalism is that it brings
development news to the people. News about development is important in stimulating
further development.

Recommendations
The problems that journalists at the Chronicle face and contribute to their failure to engage in
development journalism despite their desire for it have been identified. The journalists and
those in training need specialised training programmes in development journalism. . This
will enable graduate journalists to gain relevant skills to cover development news. Refresher
courses for practising journalists would be useful in imparting skills on how to cover
specialised beats such as gender, environment, HIV and AIDS, poverty and other
development issues. This will also improve reportage of development news as issues rather
than mere events.
There is an urgent need to re-theorise development journalism. Some academics
prefer the term advancing journalism. This theory sees the media as an instrument of social
justice and a tool for achieving beneficial social change in line with a nationally established
policy. Due to the negative connotations associated with the term developmental journalism,
Shah (1996) suggested its replacement with the term emancipatory journalism to facilitate
recognizing a role for journalists as participants in a process of progressive social change.
Emancipatory journalism requires not only provision of socially relevant information, but
also journalistic activism in challenging and changing oppressive structures; giving
individuals in marginalized communities a means of voicing, critiquing and articulating
alternative visions of society. Shah (1996) adds that emancipatory journalism encourages
'journalists to abandon the role of a neutral observer while reporting in a manner that is
thorough, deeply researched, and historically and culturally grounded, and that promotes
social change in favour of the dispossessed.
Development journalism should be uniquely practiced to suit particular contexts.
This may necessitate that Zimbabwe develops its unique form of development journalism
that will be standardised and agreed upon by journalists from both the private and public
media. The Zimbabwean development journalism model will be responsible for advancing
commonly agreed goals for national development. Such a development journalism model
will be taught at the country’s journalism schools while short courses will have to be
organised for already practising journalists. In addition a responsible body such as the
Zimbabwe Media Commission will regulate the operations of the media to ensure that
 327

development is practiced without overstepping the bounds to become partisan. This model
for development journalism proffered for Zimbabwe will first of all promote national
healing and unity across the political divide and then prioritise the goals of national
development.

References
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[Accessed 2010 November 20].
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Journal of Development and Communication Studies

Vol. 2. Nos. 2/3, July-December, 2013. ISSN (Online): 2305-7432.
http://www.devcomsjournalmw.org.
© Journal of Development and Communication Studies, 2013.
______________________________________________________

Effect of Mass Media Intervention on HIV and AIDS

related Stigma and Discrimination in Ethiopia.
Zelalem Tesfaye Worku
Journalism and Communications Program, Faculty of Humanities, Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia.
Email: zelalemt90@yahoo.com

Abstract
This study was conducted to examine the effect of the Betegna radio (diary-show) program in mitigating the
tide of HIV related stigma and discrimination which are considered a prominent factor that worsens the
impact of the epidemic in Ethiopia. The study employed qualitative Individual In-depth Interviews and Focus
Group Discussions to generate relevant qualitative data whose analysis revealed that the program played a
significant role in empowering many members of the program’s target audience with the necessary coping
mechanisms against stigma and discriminations associated with HIV and AIDS. However, its effect was
rather lower than expected because the program was broadcast at an awkward time for some members of its
target audience and it lacked some form of entertainment.

Key words: Behaviour Change, Denial, Discrimination, HIV and AIDS, Media, Stigma.
____________________________________________________________________________________

Introduction

HIV and AIDS has become one of the tragedies of the world which threatens people of all
races, sex, colour, age and economic status. It presents insurmountable problems to human
beings.
Even though HIV and AIDS has been said to have no human and geographical
boundaries, the prevalence of its brutal impact has devastated Sub-Saharan Africa more than
any other region of the world. By the end of 2011, more than 34 million [31.6-35.2 million]
people were estimated to be living with HIV and AIDS worldwide. Among those, nearly
two-thirds (22.9 million people) were found in Sub-Saharan Africa (UNAIDS, 2012).
Ethiopia is one of the most AIDS debilitated nations in Sub-Saharan Africa. It has
been nearly thirty years since HIV and AIDS has started to affect the country at a ferocious
speed. HIV was first detected in Ethiopia in 1984 (Banteyerga et al., 2003, MOH, 2006).
Ministry of Health statistics indicate that the epidemic poses a severe threat to the
country as it affects the overall wellbeing of the community. According to the National
Single Point Prevalence, which was estimated using the existing data from Demographic and
Health Survey (DHS), the estimated national prevalence in Ethiopia stood at 2.3% with a
total of 1,116,216 people with HIV and 855,720 AIDS orphan by the year 2009 (MOH,
 330

2010). A significant numbers of people have died of AIDS in the country, and the epidemic
is still affecting and infecting large number of citizens in the country. Consequently, it is
creating a number of orphans and homeless children. It is also making elderly people
helpless (Zelalem, 2010). The epidemic still presents unique challenges in terms of effecting
positive behavioral change on the part of the public (EPHA, 2005; MOH, 2006). This
rampant epidemic is, thus, taking its toll on life expectancy in Ethiopia and is undermining
the country’s effort to curb poverty (MOH, 2006). Consequently, it climbs Ethiopia’s ladder
of concern.
Quite a number of factors can evidently be attributed for the reckless prevalence rate
of the epidemic in the country. The existence of stigma and discriminations, among other
factors, are potentially believed to fuel the prevalence of HIV and AIDS in the country
(Kidanu and Banteyirga, 2002 cited in Banteyerga et al., 2003).
It is quite evident in many part of the country that people have long been stigmatized
and discriminated only because of their HIV positive status (Banteyerga et al., 2003).
People also wrongly assume that HIV is a kind of punishment people received from
the anger of God, Allah or whatever superpower they have for their sinful and sordid actions
(Baharat et al., as in UNAIDS, 2001; Parker and Aggleton,2002). Consequently, they are
being ostracized and socially alienated. Thus, they face social agony and they are wrongly
regarded as no more part of the society at large (Baharat et al., as in UNAIDS, 2001).
This fear of rejection (i.e. stigma and discrimination), would, hence, evidently force
many of them to remain silent than disclosing their HIV status. It is lucid, however, that this
very existence of silence and denial for fear of stigma and discrimination in the society is
tolling its own significant potential in mounting the prevalence of HIV in the country
(Banteyerga, et al., 2003). It, therefore, sounds clear that there is an urgent need to form
concerted efforts among various stakeholders which are, in one way or the other, fervently
concerned with curving the magnitude of HIV related stigma and discriminations in the
society with the aim to alleviate the downbeat impact of this rampant disease.
Apparently, the role of mass media in this regard remains central. Despite the fact
that media were primarily blamed for its horrifying report that instigated fear about HIV and
AIDS on the part of the majority, it serves as one means of addressing the prevention of
stigmatizations as well as discriminations against those who are either infected or affected by
the pandemic if handled and utilized carefully and properly (Banteyerga, et al., 2003).
Among other media intervention efforts in Ethiopia, Betegna Radio diary program is
a pioneer one to be mentioned in the effort to mitigate HIV related stigma and
discriminations among the society. It tries to present a unique insight into what it really
means to be HIV positive in Ethiopia. It mainly tries to address the issues of stigmatizations
and marginalizations as well as the generally low perception of the severity and, individual
and communal susceptibility to HIV and AIDS in Ethiopia. It showcases the diaries, real
accounts, of ordinary people who want to share their experiences with listeners across
Ethiopia and the world. Their stories start from their childhood and continue through to the
events that led them to their present lives. It is, thus, claimed that the program aims at
addressing the array of social issues that revolve around HIV and AIDS in the modern world
setting, such as risky behavior, stigma, positive living, etc (www.etharc.org). This radio
program has, thus, triggered me to critically examine whether it brings a significant
difference on the part of its target public as it intends to be.

Objective of the study

 331

The major aim of this study is to explore the impact of the Betegna radio program in
alleviating the tide of HIV related stigma and discriminations, which are recognizably
believed to have its own significant potential in mounting the prevalence of the epidemic in
the society.

Research questions
To achieve this major objective, the following research questions have been designed:
1) How far appropriate the program is to the socio-cultural context of its target public?
2) How does the program try to empower the public to overcome stigma and
discrimination associated with HIV and AIDS?
3) How do the interest and attitude of the public towards the program look like?
4) How appropriate the program is to its target public in terms of its air time
availability and its consideration of their level of understandings?
5) What are the potential factors (if any) that impede the program to promote risk
reducing behavior on the part of the public?

Theoretical Considerations and approaches

HIV related stigma and discrimination: an overview

Stigma and discrimination have been identified globally as main barriers to HIV control and
prevention in every country and region of the world, posing threats to preventing further
infections, alleviating the impact, and providing adequate care, support, and treatment
(ACCHO,2006; UNAIDS, 2003; UNAIDS,2007; DFID,2007; McKee et al., 2004). And it
remains the most poorly understood aspects to date in the course of fighting HIV and AIDS
(Parker & Aggleton, 2002). Stigma is socially constructed phenomenon and is attributed to
cultural, social, and situational factor (Liamputtong, et al., 2009). It represents a set of shared
values, attitudes and beliefs that can be conceptualized both at cultural and individual level
(Parker & Aggleton, 2002). Various Scholars and institutions working on HIV and AIDS
have described HIV related stigma and discrimination in various ways but fairly with similar
meanings:
HIV related stigma has been referred as the beliefs and attitudes that deeply disgrace
a person or a group of individuals because of an association with HIV (DFID, 2007). This
belief system leads to the worst act of discrimination, which is an action or omission related
to HIV that harm and deny services or entitlement to individual or group of individuals who
are associated, one way or the other, with HIV and AIDS (Liamputtong, et al., 2009).
Likewise, the report of UNAIDS, (2003) also stated that HIV related stigma is the
process of devaluation of people who are believed to live with or associated, one way or the
other, with HIV and AIDS. HIV related stigma stems from the underlying stigmatization of
sex and intravenous drug use (UNAIDS, 2003). There is also a deep rooted prejudiced
thought that HIV and AIDS has got a lot to do with those social taboo topics of sex,
promiscuity, sham, guilty and other sordid social issues (Goffman, as cited in Brown et al.,
2001; Parker & Aggleton,2002; Liamputtong, et al, 2009). Thus, HIV related stigma, as many
would argue, is the result of the kind of association people make between HIV and AIDS,
and pre-existing prejudices, blame and fear related to sexuality, sexually transmitted diseases,
prostitutions and some other sexual deviances.
Prejudiced and stigmatized thought frequently lead people to do or not to do
something that denies services or entitlements to another person. For instance, there may be
cases which they may prevent health services being used by a person living with HIV and
 332

AIDS, or terminate their employment on the grounds of their HIV status (UNAIDS, 2003;
DFID, 2007). Stigma and discrimination can thus lead to depression, lack of self worth and
despair for PLHA (UNAIDS, 2003).
Stigma leads to the act of discrimination , which occur when a distinction is made
against the person that results in his or her being treated unfairly and unjustly on the
basis of their belonging, or being perceived to belong to a particular group(UNAIDS
cited in McKee et al., 2004:101).
HIV-related stigma discourages people living with HIV and AIDS (PLWHA) from seeking
care if they previously experienced unwelcoming treatment or if their confidentiality was not
respected (UNAIDS, 2003;McKee et al., 2004). In most part of Sub-Saharan Africa, those
people who disclose their status often become victims of violence, either from their partner
or family member or from communities where HIV is regarded with fear, stigma and denial
(Campbell, 2003).
Thus, it is apparently evidenced in most cases that when stigma exists, people often
prefer to ignore their real or positive HIV status. This would in turn lead to the risk of faster
disease progression for themselves and also to the risk of them spreading HIV to others
(UNAIDS, 2003). This very existence of fear of stigma on the part of the society can also act
as a potential impediment for the high risk segments of the society to access VCT services
and other HIV related care and treatment services (Parker & Aggleton, 2002). It is, thus,
clear that HIV infection increases as people avoid prevention behavior and getting tested.
Stigma and discrimination is, therefore, tolling tremendous costs on the lives of human
beings. It particularly plays a significant devastating role on the lives of PLHA. It also
exacerbates the wide spreading possibility of the epidemic at alarming rate.

Forms of HIV related stigma and discriminations

HIV related stigma and discriminations take different forms and can be manifested at
different levels. It is often recognized as interrelated and multi dimensional phenomena.
HIV related stigma has basically been classified in to three major forms (Thomas, 2006 cited
in Liamputtong, et al., 2009:2): Self Stigma, Perceived Stigma, and Enacted Stigma.
x Self Stigma - refers to self blame and self depreciation of those people living with
HIV and AIDS.
x Perceived Stigma- refers to the fear that individuals have that if they disclose their
HIV positive status.
x Enacted Stigma – occurs when individuals actively experienced discrimination by
others because of their HIV status.
HIV related stigma and discriminations can also be manifested at four major levels (DFID,
2007): Physical, Social, Verbal, and Institutional.
x Physical Stigma and Discriminations- subsumes physical isolation and violence.
It ranges from physical separation of sleeping quarters in the home to the refusal to
be in physical proximity in various public gatherings.
x Social Stigma and Discriminations- includes social isolation, loss of identity and
role, and voyeurism. People with HIV may face some sort of segregation from
family, community events, and encounter loss of power and respect in the
community in general. And, in effect, may lead to observable social Agony.
x Verbal Stigma and Discriminations- comprises insults, taunts, blame, gossip and
rumors on people living with HIV.
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x Institutional Stigma and Discriminations- refers to differential treatment with in

an institution resulting in negative outcomes for the person with HIV. This may go
up to losing the livelihood, employment opportunities, education and housing.

Mass Media, and HIV related Stigma and Discriminations

Mass media, among other stakeholders working on HIV and AIDS, have been forming an
important ally in the march to halt HIV and AIDS (Banteyerga et al., 2003; McKee et al.,
2004). It has been serving as a key partner in various ways with public health services
through being, among other things, a key source of correct information as well as being an
advocate for recommended health behavior (Chandra, 2004; McKee et al., 2004; Schiavo,
2007). Because of its potential outreach in wider and harder to reach geographical areas, it is
considered as a powerful connector with health communicator and their audience (Shiavo,
2009). It is particularly effective at agenda setting and contributing to the establishment of
new social norms (O’sullivan, et al., 2003).
According to surveys conducted in a number of countries, Mass Media are found to be the
primary sources of information about HIV and AIDS (Abaynesh as in Nigussie, 2008;
Omeora, et al., 2010). For example, as one survey conducted in the United States indicates,
72% of Americans identify radio, television, and newspapers as primary sources of
information about HIV and AIDS more than just their doctors, friends and families
(UNAIDS, 2004). Appropriate reporting and enforcement mechanism ranging from legal aid
service to hot lines for reporting acts of discriminations and violence can provide powerful
and rapid means of alleviating the worst effects of HIV related ostracism (UNAIDS, 2003).
Clearly, thus, one would not argue more on the enormous role of mass media if handled and
utilized carefully and effectively, in educating and empowering individuals as well as the
community at large to make key decisions to avoid contracting the epidemic and minimizing
HIV related stigma and discriminations.

Radio, and HIV related Stigma and Discriminations

Radio, as the most pervasive medium in terms of its potential outreach in wider geographical
areas as well as its capacity of being easily affordable and accessible, has been serving as the
most appealing tool for participatory communication and social change (Chandra, 2004).
It still continues to be the most popular and the most widely available medium
throughout the world to transmit information over wider geographical areas and to engage a
significant number of geographically isolated audiences (Adam & Harford, 1999). Radio is
also known to be as a well suited and appropriate medium to meet the needs of the poor and
the disadvantaged; and to reach the general population as it is relatively lower in cost and it
does not need any level of literacy (Kruger, 2006). It is also remarkably the only source of
information for most people, especially those who are in the developing world as it has many
advantages that allow it to reach much deeper in the communities than any TV, Newspaper
and Internet (Kruger, 2006; McLeesh, 2005).
Even though, currently there seem to be a high tendency of disdaining the powerful
role of radio in this era of New Media, it remains to be a powerful means of communication
to date even for those who do have access to other sources of information (Kruger, 2006).
Radio has also got the following major advantages (Adam & Harford, 1999:3-4):
x Radio can motivate people by building an aural/oral tradition and stimulate the
imagination better than video or television.
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x Radio can reach those who do not come to health facilities because of cost,
distance or embarrassment. It can convey insights gained by health workers on the
ground to wide audience.
x Radio can help inform people and raise awareness about a new idea, Product or
service that is available.
x Radio can help create a demand for services.
x Often radio listening is a group activity which encourage discussion of educational
issues after the broadcast. This is, in fact, an important stage in the process of
behaviour change.

Betegna radio program - an ‘Oral Testimony’ (diary) show

There are actually different radio program formats which are being used particularly on
issues related to HIV and AIDS (Adam & Hanford, 1999). Oral testimony program, which is
sometimes called “reality show”, presents someone’s real life experience in a captivating and
authentic tone. It is also sometimes referred to as “Radio dairy show”. It is one of the radio
program formats by which issues like HIV and AIDS, and some other pressing health issues
can be treated and addressed to the public.
Someone’s real life experience can make powerful broadcasting. For example, the
lives of PLHA; a commercial sex worker narrating her dilemma etc. (Adam &
Hanrford, 1999:43).
Among the different radio programs currently existing in Ethiopia, Betegna radio is the
pioneer one to take a forefront lead in the country’s media effort to halt HIV related stigma
and discrimination. It utilizes a dairy show radio program format, and presents a series of
self narrated stories of the everyday lives and experiences of PLHA.

Agenda setting theory of mass media

The agenda setting theory of mass media describes the very powerful influence of mass
media in shaping public’s perception of an issue. It is believed to have a special ability to tell
what issues are important to deal about. It is the label attributed to the ability of mass media
to direct attention of the public towards certain subject which it conceives important
(Davison et al., 1982). McComb and Shaw (1974) cited in Griffin (2006:395) believe that
“mass media have the ability to transfer salient of items from their news agenda to the public
agenda.” In other words, the media can have the capacity to indicate to the public what the
main issues of the day are, and influence the public to regard the issues as their main agenda
(McQuail, 2005). According to McCombs (1974) cited in Griffin (2006), there are two levels
of agenda setting: the first level of agenda setting is object salience, which is concerned with
the transfer of an attitude object in the mass media’s picture of the world to the prominent
place among the pictures in our heads. The second level of agenda setting is an attribute
salience, which is concerned with the transfer of salience of a dominant set of attributes that
the media associates an attitude object to the specific features of the image projected on the
walls of our mind. Therefore, it is pretty clear that the agenda setting role of mass media is
very crucial to our society, especially when it comes to pressing societal problems like HIV
related stigma and discriminations to let the target audience think and discuss about it for
possible collective actions.

Social Learning Theory

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The social learning theory assumes that individuals learn behaviors from one another
through observation, imitation and modeling. It explains how behaviors are learned in the
context of interaction between observed behavior, cognitive factor and external
environment. This interaction affects self-efficacy by either encouraging or discouraging the
performance of a particular behavior (Bandura, 1971). For example, a person who attends a
radio program about the testimony of HIV positive diarists’ day to day experiences of HIV
related stigma and discrimination, and the coping mechanism they employed, may model the
observed behavior because they are sufficiently attentive, and motivated, and be able to
replicate the observed behavior. By testifying the jeopardy that HIV related stigma and
discrimination has on their entire lives, these people influence the environment by making
more salient that HIV related stigma and discrimination would further fuel the prevalence of
HIV and AIDS on earth unless efforts have been made to curve it. So, listeners can take
great lessons from the experience of diarists, and thus it reinforces them to make a proper
adjustment to the desired change in behavior. The social learning theory, therefore, serves as
a basis for such pressing societal health problems to promote the desired change in behavior
on the part of the target public (Ibid).

Methodological Approaches

Study Setting and Subject of the Study

This study targeted those people in the age group of 15 to 49 years old who are residing in
Bahir Dar town as study population. The major rationale for selecting this age bracket is
because of the fact that it is the most sexually active age bracket, and it is also the most
vulnerable age group to HIV (MOH, 2009). The other rationale to select the study site Bahir
Dar is because of the fact that it is one of the leading HIV debilitated towns in the region
(MOH, 2006).
The study thus embodied People living with HIV (PLHA), commercial sex workers,
who are listeners of the program, as subjects of the study. The study also embodied
journalists working in the program. What is more, Betegna radio program appears on air
through Sheger FM 102.1, Debub radio (Awassaa), Dimtsi Woyane, Radio Ethiopia, and
Amhara radio. Among these media options through which it is being broadcast, this study is
confined merely on Amhara radio as the aforementioned subject of the study are listeners of
Betegna program through Amhara Radio. The program is being aired through Amhara radio
on every Sunday from 7:10 am to 8:00 am.

Research Design
My readings of the literatures pertaining to the nature of my study have vividly showed me
that the methodological design which is found best suited to this study is purely qualitative
design in nature. Qualitative research design helps one to understand social phenomena
from the perspective of the subject of the study (Bryman, 2004; Silverman, 2004). Unlike
quantitative research design, it helps to view the world more fully through the eyes of the
subject of the study. Moreover, Hann et al., (2006:150) also pointed out that the objective of
qualitative research design “… is to take a detailed description of people’s behavior and
thought to illuminate their social meaning.”
Qualitative research design is, thus, believed so suitable to this particular study to
explore a detailed account of the role which the program is playing on the part of its public
in terms of reducing the significant impact of HIV related stigma and discriminations.
 336

Data Collection Tools

Working within the framework of qualitative research design, this research work employed
Focus Group Discussion and Individual in-depth Interview as particular tools to generate
qualitative data to the study. In the focus group discussion, eleven groups were purposively
selected, each constituting an average of six participants. The participants were were
selected on the basis of their shared attributes (homogeneity) which were thought to be
indispensable to explore the necessary data for this study.
With the aim to further deepen, clarify and explore more insights, which this paper
could not find in the FGD, this research paper also employed individual in-depth interview.
Some informants were, thus, purposefully selected from the focus group discussions
conducted earlier. Program producers have also been considered in the in-depth interview.
All the information both in the Focus Group Discussions (FGD) and Individual In-depth
Interview were gathered and tape recorded in their mother tongue (Amharic) as many of
them cannot speak and listen to English language. Notes were also taken during the
discussion to further strengthen the recorded material. The data then were transcribed and
translated in to English. After transcribing and translating the data in to the target language
(English), it was then coded thematically with careful consideration of the objective of the
study. Finally, the coded data were analyzed using thematic analysis technique, and it was
eventually presented in a narrative form.

Ethical considerations
As most researchers argue, ethics is the most fundamental aspect that demands careful
considerations while conducting research, especially on socially sensitive issues like HIV
related stigma and discriminations. Ethics in social research carefully considers issues that
concern the behavior of social researchers and the potential consequence it brings to their
study subject (Henn et al., 2006). Ethics in social research mostly constitutes informed
consent, privacy anonymity, harm, and confidentiality (Diener &Crandall, 1978, as cited in
Bryman, 2004; Henn et al., 2006). This study also considered all the above mentioned ethical
values through to the end of this research work.

Findings

Socio-cultural Considerations
The main reason why understanding of the socio-cultural context of the target audience to
be one of the major themes of this study is because of the reason that project designers and
program producers have often been criticized for expecting members of the target audience
to adopt a behavior that cannot go with and are inconsistent with their cultural norms
(McKee et al., 2004). This inconsistency of the project with the socio-cultural context of the
target group, as has been argued, will obviously end up with minimal or no effect at all.
Thus, some informants who are believed to be highly concerned with this issue have been
interviewed to witness whether the program is well cognizant of the socio-cultural norms of
the target audience. Accordingly, most of the respondent claimed that the program is mostly
designed with careful consideration of the cultural norms of target public in particular and
the society in general.
In this regard, the senior producer and acting team leader of Betegna Radio program
had the following to say:
 337

We simply produce and present people’s experience pertaining to HIV and AIDS
directly from the horse’s mouth of those infected and affected. We do not have
much room to inject our own opinion in to the story.
Similarly, most of the informants asserted that the diarists belong to their own society and
they are well cognizant of the cultural norms of their own society. They further strengthen
their argument that the diarists are thus not outsiders who have little knowledge about the
socio-cultural norms of the society.
An HIV positive woman aged 32 who is one of the members of Tesfa Goh
Association had the following to say regarding the consideration of the program to their
socio-cultural norms:
I have never heard of both Workie (the diarist) and Tirsit (producer) saying taboo
words in the program that sharply deviate from our own cultural norms.
From the above discourses, we can understand that the program seems to be concerned to
the society’s cultural norms. It is largely covered and narrated by the diarists themselves who
are part of the target community. The program predominantly tries to use firsthand account
of the people infected and affected and present it from the horse’s mouse of the public at a
grass root level. This implies that the program prioritizes grass root level participation, rather
than imposed up on and expert dictated communication approach.
As the program predominantly involves diarists who are within the culture of the
target public and as they are believed to have relatively better understanding of their own
cultural norms than outsiders, then it is easy to deduce that it is less likely to commit any sort
of deviances that sharply negates the socio-cultural norms of the target public. Therefore, it
would not be inflated to say that the program seems duly concerned for the cultural norms
of the society, which is in fact what a well designed project on culturally sensitive issues like
HIV related stigma and discrimination should always take in to account from the very onset
of the program design.

The Program’s role of Empowerment

Empowerment of the people affected and infected by HIV and AIDS is one of the major
goals of the program as empowerment is needed to be the ultimate goal of such projects to
capacitate the target public to make key decision over any pressing societal problems.
Participants were, thus, asked whether the program brings any significant change in their life
in terms of creating good awareness as to how they can tackle the insurmountable problems
of HIV and AIDS and more specifically, HIV related stigma and discriminations.
Accordingly, most of the participants claimed that the program plays its own
significant role in their life in terms of empowering them as to how they should challenge
and cope with HIV related stigma and discriminations. Many of HIV positive participants in
the focus group discussions claimed that they used to encounter a number of horrible
experiences on the grounds of their HIV status. Before they started listening to the program,
many of them could not disclose their HIV status to their family members, relatives, and
neighbors for fear of encountering the agony of social stigma and discriminations. In this
regard, in an in-depth interview with a woman in Tesfah Goh Association who used to work
as a commercial sex worker in a Koshekosh area (a village of Commercial Sex Workers in
Bahir Dar town) mentioned that she used to remain silent for more than five years to
disclose her HIV positive status to any one with the fear that she will loss all her customers
if she happens to disclose them that she is HIV positive. Now it has been more than three
years since she started listening to Betegna radio program. She regrets that she could have
saved the lives of many if she started attending the program earlier. Soon after she started
 338

listening to this radio program, as she further mentioned, she has brought a life style change
in terms of developing her self esteem and taking care of others. She also further pointed out
that the program enabled her to be open to anyone, and in return she is getting sympathy
from others.
Similarly, an interviewee, who is HIV positive civil servant at Nigat Association
(association of HIV positive civil servant) pointed out that he was facing severe ostracism by
the community on the grounds of his HIV status. He claimed that he had been denied of
such services like house rents, sharing the same toilets together; sharing the same office; and
eating together. He also thought that this was an intentional attack against him. But some
time after he started listening to the program, he could understand how the diarists used to
encounter social stigma, and how they overcome it. The interviewee eventually pointed out
that he was able to take great lesson from the horrible experience of the diarists in the
program. As he further added, he is now publicly disclosing his HIV status and teaching
about it to his colleagues.
Likewise, other respondents in a focus group discussion among youths held at
Ghion hotel further strengthen the above idea that many people used to remain silent of
disclosing their HIV status for fear of rejection and ostracism related to HIV and AIDS. As
they further pointed out, it is evidenced in a number of cases that a husband in a family has
been hiding his HIV status to his wife and vice versa for fear of divorce and other conflicts
and blames in their marriages. But, the issues being addressed by Betegna radio program is
of concern to such matters, and is trying to address every one’s problem.
In this regard, one of the discussants in a FGD held in Abay Madoo Family Café had
the following to say:
I decided to remain silent when I was told that I am HIV Positive for the first time. I
couldn’t even tell it to my husband. I was rather blaming myself for catching the
virus. But soon after I started listening to Betegna, I have developed self confident
and could tell it to my husband in a manner he can accept it positively.
From the above assertions, we can understand that Betegna is exerting its own maximum
effort to empower people affected and infected by HIV and AIDS as to how they can tackle
HIV related stigma and discriminations.

Sense of belonging
Apart from its role of empowering its target audience, it is also found in this research work
that the program is able to create a sense of belongingness on the part of its target audience.
Many of the participants claimed that the program is predominantly of their own concern.
They all claimed that it is the only radio program that gives them a roadmap as to how they
can live a healthy HIV-Positive life. Many of the participants both in FGD and individual
interview believe that the program is designed only for HIV positive people.
In this regard, an interviewee who is a member of Nigat HIV positive association
had the following to say:
Betegna is like the food I eat; the medicine I take to be cured; the oxygen I inhale to
survive. It is all about my life. Generally, it is of my big deal.
Similarly, an HIV positive man at Tesfa Goh Association had the following to say
concerning the program’s role of creating sense of belongingness:
I have no one other than Betegna. It is more than a father, a mother, a sister and
brother. It is Betegna that makes me live a healthier life and feel better about my
future. I would have been died of if I couldn’t entangle all my life with Betegna. I
prefer missing my breakfast to missing the program.
 339

The above arguments vividly indicate that the program is so powerful to create a higher level
of attachment on the parts of HIV positive people in particular and its target audience in
general.

Edutainment Role of the Program

Participants were also asked to witness whether the program has both educative and
entertainment role to them. Accordingly, many of the participants both in FGD and
individual interview claimed that the program strives to have educative role but it does not
seem to care for entertaining its target audience while educating. Most of them claimed that
the program lacks an entertainment touch. Discussants in a focus group discussion held at
Ghion hotel claimed that the program focuses more on educating the public. And they
stressed that they could learn a lot of lessons from the program, but the way the program
addresses those educative issues are not in an entertaining manner. In this regard, another
interviewee had the following to say:
It is worthy that I can get a number of invaluable lessons from the program.
However, the way the program addresses such educative issues are usually presented
not in a manner that can ignite and hold peoples’ attention through to the end of
each program.
The above assertions clearly indicate that Betegna seems less concerned for entertainment
values. It predominantly aims at addressing educational issues pertinent to HIV and AIDS.
It, thus, seems that the program fails to entertain its target audience while educating them at
the same time.

Appropriateness of the Program’s Broadcasting Time

It seems quite worthy in this research to consider whether the broadcasting time ( air time) is
convenient to the target audience or not as it would be quite none sense to worry about
other issues unless the broadcasting time of the program is of quite convenient to them.
Participants, thus, were asked to point out whether the program’s broadcasting time is of
convenient to them or not. Accordingly, while almost half of the respondents both in
FGDs and individual interviews claimed that the program is being broadcast in their
convenient time, others, mostly those commercial sex workers, however, claimed that the
broadcasting air time of the program is not convenient for them to attend it regularly. In this
regard, a discussant in a focus group discussion among commercial sex workers held around
Koshekosh area had the following to say:
The program is being broadcasting early in the morning. Unfortunately, we
usually work in the night and we get tired to wake up early in the morning. So, most
of us are not be able to listen to it regularly. We can only listen to it when we could
not work over night.
The above argument indicated that the program seems less cognizant of the appropriateness
of the program’s broadcasting time to commercial sex workers who are actually supposed to
be the target audiences of the program. The commercial sex workers are actually one of
target groups that the program particularly aims at. So, unless the program producers and
designers are well aware of the convenient time in which they can listen to the program, they
are losing significant number of its target audience.

The consideration of the audiences’ level of understanding

It has been argued by a number of scholars in the area that a well designed and carefully
produced radio program is supposed to be well careful of the appropriateness of the
 340

program to its target audience in terms of their level of understanding. Research participants
were thus asked whether the program is appropriate to their level of understanding so as to
understand the message more fully. Accordingly, almost all of the research participants
claimed that they do not have any understanding problem. They all claimed that the program
seems to be designed appropriately meet its target audience’s level of understanding. In this
regard, one of the focus group discussants among HIV positive civil servants at Nigat
Association claimed:
The program is actually the easiest one to comprehend as the way it is produced is
well cognizant of the level of understanding of almost all of its target audience.
Similarly, another participant in a focus group discussion held at Ghion Hotel strengthen the
above idea that unlike other HIV related radio program they use to listen to, Betegna radio
program does seem to be the program of the illiterate as everyone, regardless of educational
status, can easily understand it without facing any difficulty to understand it more fully.
In this regard, the program producer also underlined that the program strives to
employ vertical versus horizontal communication approaches so as to make the program
understandable by any of its target audience. Furthermore, an interviewee in Koshekosh area
also testified the above assertions that when she started listening to the program, she starts
to feel as if she is talking with one of her friends at home while enjoying with coffee. She
also added listening to the program does mean like talking to Workie (the diarist) in person
about the possible challenges an HIV positive person would face while living with other
person, and its possible remedy to cope that up. From the above assertions it is lucid to
deduce that the program seems to be well cognizant of its target audience’s level of
understanding and is striving to make use of its level best to maintain higher level of
retention on the part of its target audience.

Conclusions and Recommendations

After analyzing all the relevant data, the following conclusions have been made:
x The research vividly showed that the program seems to be well cognizant of the
cultural norms of its target audiences. As the finding showed, the program does
not seem to entertain any sort of issue as part of its program that sharply negates
with its target audiences’ cultural norms. It seems to prioritize grass root level
participation. As a result of this, it is found out that there seem to be no room to
address issues that are inconsistent with the cultural norms of the target society.
x With regard to the potential capacity of the program in empowering its target
audience to make key decision over tackling any HIV related stigma and
discriminations, it was found out that the program seems to strive all its level best
to empower the target public with the necessary coping mechanisms. The
program, in its fight against stigma and discrimination, tries to enhance active
and participatory education at the grass root level. As a result, there seem to be a
glimmer of hope to realise the intended change on the part of the target public.
Many have showed initiative and good start to disclose their HIV status and start
to teach others. It also helps them to get VCT services as well as appropriate care
and treatment. It was also revealed that it helps PLHA to take good care of others
and play an active role in the fight against HIV related stigma and discriminations.
x When it comes to the potential hurdle that possibly impede the program to
promote risk reducing behaviour, lack of appropriate broadcasting time is found to
be a major problem for some of its target audience, particularly to the commercial
 341

sex workers. The program is available every Saturday from 7 am to 8 am which is

inappropriate time for many of the commercial sex workers to attend listening to it
as many of them will be in deep sleep after working for the whole night. So, it
seems that less attention has been given to the appropriateness of its broadcasting
time to commercial sex workers as potential target audience.
x The other important thing which was revealed under this study is that the program
seems to be duly concerned and stick to the educational aspects of addressing the
issue of stigma and discriminations associated with HIV and AIDS. It seems to be
less concerned with the entertainment aspects of addressing the aforementioned
pressing social concern.
x Based on the findings of the study, the following recommendations have been
suggested to be taken as integral parts of the program so as to effectively realize its
goal as it intends to be:
x The program should employ Entertainment-Education as a strategy to address
issues of HIV related stigma and discrimination. The intervention should
employ both entertainment and education as critical means to address the issue.
x The program should also be considerate of the appropriate broadcasting time
which invites all of its target audience to attend the program with careful
attention.

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Journal of Development and Communication Studies

Vol. 2. Nos. 2/3, July-December, 2013. ISSN (Online): 2305-7432.
http://www.devcomsjournalmw.org.
© Journal of Development and Communication Studies, 2013.
________________________________________________________________________

Use of Community Conversation in the Fight against

HIV and AIDS
Anteneh Mekuria Tesfaye
Journalism and Communications Program, Faculty of Humanities, Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia. Email:
antenhehmu@yahoo.com

Abstract
While promoting participatory communication approaches in the fight against HIV and AIDS and a
myriad other problems continues, empirical research into its effects has been dismal. This study endeavoured to
assess the impact community conversation (CC) in curbing the HIV and AIDS pandemic in Bahir Dar,
Ethiopia. Data were collected from twenty-one participants, six facilitators and a coordinator of the CC
programme using in-depth interviews and focus group discussions (FGD).The study found that the selection of
facilitators from the community; the willingness and their positive approach to the programme of participants,
facilitators and Kebele administrators were the positive factors that contributed to the proper implementation
of CCs. However, the overwhelming number of participants, some facilitators’ limited skills in moderating
discussions, the absence of relevant stakeholders, overlapping of CCs with other programmes of the Kebeles,
lack of follow up, and interference of Kebele administrators were found to be the major limitations to the
success of the CC interventions.

Key Words: Community Conversation, Participatory Communication, Alternative Media, HIV and
AIDS
______________________________________________________________________________

Introduction
Despite some positive developments, HIV and AIDS in Ethiopia remains to be one of the main
development challenges which contributes to the poverty of the individual, family, community and the
nation at large (ESPIMS, 2008). An estimated 1.1 million people are living with HIV and this makes
Ethiopian population among one of the largest HIV infected in the world (FHAPCO, 2010 and
USAID, 2011). HIV in Ethiopia continues to impact every sector of society with huge regional, urban-
rural and sex differentials (EIFDDA, 2009). In 2011, adult HIV and AIDS prevalence was estimated
1.5 percent (Central Statistical Agency and ICF International, 2012). There were about 1 million AIDS
orphans (HAPCO, 2012). These show that HIV is still more than merely a health crisis as it is
embedded in the social, cultural and economic structures of the society.
In an attempt to combat the HIV and AIDS pandemic and its threats, various governmental
and non-governmental organizations have been galvanized in efforts aimed at teaching and informing
the public about the seriousness of the disease using different communication strategies such as
Information, Education and Communication (IEC) and Behavioural Change Communication (BCC).
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The focus of such methods is mainly behavioural change at the individual level and hence they largely
rely on information dissemination using the mainstream media such as radio, television, and
newspapers.
In many developing countries such as Ethiopia, the use of these methods which largely rely on
a top-down approach does not seem to bring the desired change given the limited availability of the
mainstream media for the grassroots, the incapability of the society to afford to the mainstream media
and high illiteracy rate. In general context, such approaches which focus on top-down HIV/AIDS
communication strategies have been criticized because of their lack of involvement of their target
audiences in the definition, design and implementation of programmes (Tufte, 2005).
Therefore, in Ethiopia and some other global south countries, where the majority of the society
is said to be ‘collectively oriented’, promoting participatory communication strategies which focus on
the society’s system of beliefs and culturally relevant structures seem to have an important role to play
in combating the spread of HIV and mitigating both the health and social impact. Owing to the
emphasis that they give to two-way or horizontal communication, cultural diversity, dialogue, use of
indigenous or local knowledge, grassroots community participations and empowerment; participatory
communication approaches have especially been touted as the best method in solving the various
development problems of Third World nations (Melkote, 1991; Servaes, 1999; Jacobson, 1991;
Bessette, 2004; Mefalopulos, 2008; Diouf, 1995).
In Ethiopia, given their immense potentials in reaching the grassroots or less privileged parts of
different societies, CC have been used as a participatory communication strategy to help the grassroots
change awareness about HIV and AIDS and other related problems such as child abuse, female genital
mutilation, family planning, gender inequality, and harmful traditional practices. While promoting CCs
and other participatory communication approaches in the fight against HIV and AIDS and a myriad of
other problems continue, inadequate attention has been given towards conducting empirical research.
However, a UNDP (2004) study revealed that CCs were driving resounding results in the Southern
region of Ethiopia helping the public to abandon some traditional practices such as female genital
mutilation and extramarital sex that they identified as causes of the increase in the risk of HIV. Other
relatively current studies, on the other hand, showed that CC programmes are not as effective as they
are supposed to be. For example, a study conducted on CCs on HIV and AIDS in the Amhara
Regional State revealed that CCs achieved few outcomes such as creating awareness about the epidemic
and giving opportunity for the participants to speak. But they did not achieve their main goal of
creating social cohesion for an environment that is conducive to change to halt the spread of the virus
because of the complex social, cultural, economic and political factors (Assefa, 2009). Another study
conducted in and around Merkato, Addis Ababa, proved that CCs did not give an encouraging
atmosphere to all participants to take part in the discussions and hence the majority of the participants
did not benefit from the CCs (Tesfaye, 2010). Apart from the above studies, research information
pertaining to CCs programmes is sparse. This study, therefore, sought to close this gap by evaluating
CC initiatives at Bahir Dar, which is in the North-West of Ethiopia.

Objective of the study

This study aimed at assessing the nature of participatory communication in the CCs which the Regional
HIV and AIDS Prevention and Control Office (HAPCO) ran in Bahir Dar in 2010 and 2011. It also
examined the factors that affect the CC programmes.

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Overview of Community Conversation initiative

In the context of HIV and AIDS, Community Conversation (CC) is referred as an interactive process
which brings people together and engages them in discussions so that they can explore the underlying
causes fuelling the HIV and AIDS epidemic in their environment (UNDP, 2004). The CC initiative,
which is the subject of this study, has been run by Amhara National Regional State HIV/AIDS
Prevention and Control Coordination Office (ANRS HAPCO).The main objective of this CC
programme is to generate a deep and complex understanding of the nature of the epidemic within
individuals and communities, and to create social cohesion for an environment that is conducive to
political, legal and ethical change (HAPCO, 2010).The participants are people from different walks of
life. For the 2010/2011 CC programme, HAPCO trained 36 facilitators; four from each Kebele. A
Kebele is the smallest administrative unit of Ethiopia, similar to a ward, a neighbourhood or a localized
and delimited group of people. There are nine Kebeles in Bahir Dar. The trained facilitators were
assigned to facilitate the CCs in all the nine Kebeles. The programme is designed in such a way that
each CC group includes 70 participants and CC sessions need to be held in every fortnight.

The Use of Alternative Media

For long, much effort has been exerted for the expansion of the mainstream media in the belief that
they could bring about widespread change on the behaviour of people living in global south countries.
In contrast, alternative communication systems or the traditional media which are indigenous to
communities in many African countries did not have a place in communication for development
(Mlama, 1991). The main reason behind this, according to Melkote, is that group media which focus on
the “interpersonal networks of communication were considered to be supportive of traditional
structures and authority and hence were anti-development” (Melkote, 1991:188).
The newly emerging participatory development communications, however, has given due
attention to alternative media which are culturally and historically attached to the lifestyle of people
living in the global south countries (Melkote and Steeves (2001: 253). Their importance has been largely
acknowledged by the growing body of literature. Regarding the advantages of alternative media,
Ranganath (1980) lucidly explained that since the traditional media are part and parcel of the lifestyle of
the community they are credible sources of information. They have proved useful in generating
grassroots participation and dialogue. Many traditional media formats are flexible, which makes them
apt for the inclusion of development-oriented messages. Also, they are relatively cheap and available in
almost all cultures, command rich and inexhaustible variety both in form and theme (Ranganath, 1980
cited in Melkote, 1991:213).
Focusing on the situation of African countries, Ugboajah (1985); Moemeka (1997), and Faniran
(2008) argued that good communication in many African countries is viewed not in terms of its effect
on an individual or as a means of expressing one’s personal identity; but to a great extent as a builder of
bonds of solidarity and the integration of the individual into the group (cited in White, 2009). Boafo
(2006) also stated that traditional media cannot only be used as trustworthy channels for information
gathering, processing and dissemination, but they are also used to address local interests and concerns
using local languages and cultural contexts which the community members can simply understand and
identify with. Ugboajah elucidated that communication in the traditional societies of African countries
takes place more informally than formally. He further noted that group media in Africa have credibility;
they put stability into Africa’s indigenous institutions (Ugboajah, 1972:60).

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On top of these all, studies have substantiated the importance of group media for social change.
A study conducted in Tanzania revealed that dance as a group communication medium draws a large
audience especially women and serves as a forum for discussion and exchanging information in a
relaxing and entertaining atmosphere. This medium of communication has been used to discuss social
problems such as dissatisfaction with village leaders, scarcity of water, and school girl pregnancy
(Mlama, 1994). Indigenous African communication systems such as ritual, singing, dance, and “forum
drama” in Ghana were effectively used in health campaigns to gain the commitment of women to
vaccination and other health practices (Riley, 2005). These are just a few examples of research findings
on the effectiveness of indigenous African communication media, but, as Melkote (1991) notes, there
are many other studies which show that in many Third World settings, traditional or group media are
effectively used in development initiatives such as family planning, health, and harmony with
neighbours or other groups.
Despite their importance, group media have their own limitations if they are not used properly
because “they are particularly deficient in simultaneous dissemination of information about
development issues across wide and geographically disperse populations” Boafo (2006:21). Mlama
(1991) also underscored that not all indigenous media will always provide an effective means of
communication for development. This implies that due attention needs to be given to the selection and
use of group media.

Method
This study used a qualitative research approach to gain a deep understanding of the nature of
participatory communication in CCs and to indentify the major factors that affect the implementation
of the CC programmes.

Study area
The study was conducted in Bahir Dar the capital city of Amhara region. The city is located in the
North-West of Ethiopia. Bahir Dar was selected purposively because it was relatively easier for the
researcher to keep in touch with different CC groups. Out of the nine Kebeles in Bahir Dar, three
Kebeles namely, Tana, Shumabo and Shinbet were chosen because of the researcher’s familiarity with
these Kebeles and their previous records in running CC programmes.

Subjects, Sampling, and data gathering instruments

Facilitators (those who moderate CCs), the coordinator (HAPCO’s employee who coordinates the CC
programme), and the participants (community members who were taking part in the CCs) were the
subjects of this study. In order to find out the views of the samples, two kinds of data gathering
instruments were employed; namely, in-depth interview and focus group discussion (FGD). In-depth
interviews were made with six facilitators and one coordinator of the programme. FGDs were
conducted with twenty-one participants (who had participated in the CCs regularly) selected from the
three purposively selected Kebeles (seven from each). The FGD were conducted in three different
groups, each having seven members. In order to avoid confusion and to secure detailed information
both the interviews and FGDs were administered in Amharic, the national language of Ethiopia.

Data analysis

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The data were analyzed using thematic categories (Kvale, 1996). First, the data gathered were
transcribed and then translated back into English. After carefully examining recurrent remarks in the
FGDs and the in-depth interviews, major points or themes were identified. Then the selected data were
elaborated and related corresponding to the objectives set at the outset of the research. Where
necessary, quotes were used in the analysis. Attempts were made to analyse the data against the
backdrop of the emerging participatory communication theory. In order to meet the ethical
requirements of the research names of the samples were not used in the analysis.

Presentation and Analysis

Nature of Communication in the CCs

In order to weigh up the nature of participation in the CCs, the coordinator, facilitators and
participants were asked about the specific activities that the participants and facilitators performed
during the CC sessions, that is, the time they allotted to the conversations the number of participants
invited in one session, the places of participation and ways of setting agendas. Their recurrent remarks
have been summarized in the following section.Pertaining to the role of facilitators, the data gathered
through the in-depth interviews and the FGDs show varied answers. Almost all the interviewed
facilitators stated that during the CC sessions they facilitated discussions ‘properly’. According to them,
the main activities that they perform in the CC sessions are: giving chance for participants to set
discussion agendas, encouraging participants to ask and answer questions, giving chance for
participants to reflect their ideas, listening attentively and recapitulating important points, mediating
contradictory ideas and drawing conclusions. While some participants of the FGDs were in agreement
with what the facilitators mentioned above, some others did not agree. They pointed out that some
facilitators set discussion topics by themselves, did not encourage participants to take part in
discussions and spent most of the CC time teaching and informing the CC members about HIV and
AIDS and some other important issues.
Although all the interviewed facilitators stated that they facilitated CCs ‘properly’ some
participants’ response and the words that some facilitators used during the interview sessions (while
interviewing three of the facilitators used the word ‘teaching’ instead of facilitating) indicate that some
facilitators seemed to use the CC sessions for teaching. Similarly, while they were asked about the
facilitators roles some of the FG discussants referred their respective facilitators as ‘teachers’. This
shows that some participants thought that facilitators were there merely to ‘teach’ them about HIV and
AIDS among other social problems. This gives the impression that either some facilitators might have
misunderstood the purpose of the CC programme or they preferred teaching to facilitating.
In relation to the participants’ role, most of the facilitators (four out of the six interviewed) said
that during CC sessions, participants reflect their ideas about the topics raised, listen to others
attentively, ask and answer questions, and take an active part in the discussions. Some of the FG
discussants had the same idea as the facilitators; whilst many others contradicted what most facilitators
and some of the participants mentioned. Out of the 21 FG discussants, 17 participants pointed out that
they did not often contribute their ideas as they spend most of the CC sessions listening to few
participants who got the chance to reflect their ideas. According to these discussants, this happened
mainly because of the large number size and limited time dedicated to the discussions.
Asked about the number of participants, venue of discussion and time allocated for CC
sessions, the coordinator and five of the facilitators stated more or less the same thing. Facilitators said

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they usually invited 70 participants for one CC session and an average number of 50-60 people
attended the CCs as some participants did not manage to come for every session. The allocated time
for one CC session was one hour, but some facilitators said they sometimes extended some discussion
sessions and spent one and half hour when the issues of discussions requires more time. In most
Kebeles, the venues of discussions were Kebele halls.
Since the concept of participation is somewhat elusive, it is a bit difficult to evaluate the overall
nature of participation in the CCs. However, based on the limited discussions and the inability of most
participants to reflect their ideas, it is possible to discern that participation has not often been
meaningful. The fact that many of the participants were not able to get the chance of taking part in the
limited discussions shows that participation seems to be considered as just inclusion. Given that most
of the participants were passively listening to what the facilitators and few active participants were
saying, the nature of participation in the CCs can to some degree be characterized as passive
participation (Pretty et al, 1995; Tufte and Mefalopulos, 2009). Further, this could be seen as some sort
of controlled participation because the participants’ freedom to participate was limited by the
facilitators who chose to give some participants a chance to participate or deny others from doing so.

Factors that positively affect CC programme

First, the use of CC as participatory communication is one of the interesting aspects which contributed
positively in helping a considerable number of people to come together and to deal with their issues of
common concern. Almost all the FG discussants pointed out that the CC programme was the only
chance they had to discuss HIV and AIDS with other community members. The data show that a
number of women and youngsters liked to attend the CCs because they have got important lessons
concerning HIV and AIDS, drug addiction, street children and other social problems of their
community.
The willingness of participants to come together, devote their time and discuss issues of their
common concern could be seen as one positive factor. The interest of facilitators to devote their time
in helping their community without getting any financial support and willingness of Kebele
administrators in allowing Kebele halls as CC discussion venues were also positive things worth
mentioning about the implementation of CCs. This shows that the communities are well aware of the
benefit of gathering together and discussing about HIV and AIDS and other crucial social issues. The
presence of a large number of participants can to some extent be evidence of the fact that the CC is
liked by the majority. The FGDs reveal that many participants have a positive outlook towards the
programme as they often get valuable information on how to tackle some major problems of their
areas.
For meaningful interactions of any participatory programme like the one under study, facilitators’ skills
play a key role. In this regard, the data from the in-depth interviews and FGDs show that all facilitators
were recruited from the target community. They were selected from the Kebeles in which they are
assigned to facilitate. Given that facilitators know the cultural values, norms and the life style of the
participants, the language that they use, and the way they talk and communicate with the participants
during the CCs are facilitated by embedded cultural contexts. Hence, selecting facilitators from the
target community proves that the initiative meets one of the prerequisites of participatory
communication.

Negative factors

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Budget constraint is one main challenge of the CC programme mentioned by the subjects of this study.
The coordinator, all facilitators and many of the FG discussants pointed out that one way of making
the CC sessions attractive is by having coffee ceremonies or tea programmes. They said that previously
HAPCO budgeted for coffee or tea and many participants especially house wives and elders took part
in CC discussions with utmost interest, but later on, they stated, HAPCO stopped budgeting for such
programmes. This minimized the number of participants. According to facilitators, many participants
would like to come to the CC sessions when they are told that there is a coffee ceremony. CC
participants wanted coffee or tea not for their stimulating effects but they wanted to socialize with
other members of their community. What one female facilitator elucidated consolidates the
abovementioned idea:
Many people prefer things to be associated with their culture. Coffee is our sacred culture. We
are all associated with it. Taking this into account, in our Kebele we sometimes contributed 0.25
to 1:00 birr which is approximately 0.013- 0.054 US$ and prepare coffee ceremonies. Doing so
helped us attract a considerable number of people. However, whenever we failed to make
coffee or tea the number of participants went down. Even those who came to the CC lose their
interests (Facilitator 2).
This shows that using cultural practices such as the coffee ceremonies in which the participants are
identified will help to make the CC sessions attractive. As the female facilitator pointed out such
cultural ceremonies also help to attract a large number of participants.
The other challenge is that some participants need to be paid for participation. As the
facilitators mentioned, some NGOs pay money when they create a forum for discussion for the
community to discuss some issues. Having this experience and/or simply having heard of this
information, some participants were asking facilitators to pay them for their time in the CCs. By the
same token, some members of the community who are living in very poor conditions expected the CC
participants and facilitators to solve their individual problems. Seeing what CC participants had done
for some deprived members of the community, some people came to the CC sessions and asked
participants to solve their individual problems. These show that either some community members have
failed to understand the objective of the CCs or facilitators and other concerned bodies may have failed
to inculcate the objective of the initiative into the community. Recruiting large numbers of participants
in the CCs is another factor that negatively affected the communication process despite the fact that
some facilitators and participants did not consider this as a challenge. As noted, the average number of
participants in one CC session was 60. And one discussion session took a maximum of one to one and
a half hours. Asked about whether inviting 50-70 participants to one CC session affects the nature of
communication, facilitators gave different answers. Two of the facilitators, for example, mentioned that
they did not face any problems, while the other two facilitators stated that the large number became a
problem depending upon the topics raised. They said some topics allowed most participants to speak
out and when such topics were raised the time did not allow them to give a chance to all. Some topics
restricted most participants from speaking. The remaining two facilitators argued that it is difficult to
have lively discussions with the given number of participants in the allotted time. They pointed out that
they usually give a chance to those people who are interested to speak or are able to express
themselves.
According to the coordinator and the facilitators, the reason why facilitators called 70 people is
because they had been told by HAPCO, the sponsor of the programme. This seems to show that
HAPCO failed to understand that such large numbers did not allow participants to undertake thorough

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discussions. With the given number and time it is almost impossible to imagine lively and meaningful
discussions. Asking questions and forwarding opinions among all members is impossible in a gathering
of 50-70 people.
Most of the FG participants (16 out of the total 21) did not seem comfortable with the size of
the group. One FG participant, for example, stated that it was hard for him to get a chance whenever
he wanted to ask questions or comment on the issues raised. He added, in most cases the CCs come to
an end before he and other participants get chance to ask any questions. The size of the CC also
affected the discussions because some members did not feel comfortable to speak in the presence of
large audiences. A young woman who participated in the FGD stated:
I do not usually forward my ideas. I do not even want to ask questions when some things are
not clear to me because I am afraid of speaking in front of a large number of people (FGD 1,
Participant 4).
Moreover, since the sizes of the groups do not allow facilitators to control all participants some
members might not pay attention to the issues raised in the CCs. What is more, in CC groups which
did not have regular members, the possibility of gathering participants who did not know each other
before is large and this might also affect the nature of participation.
In participatory communication programs the informal nature of communication seems to be
taken for granted. But large groups could not allow participants to carry out informal exchange of
viewpoints. It may not allow facilitators to make the discussions informal unless otherwise they use
different techniques such as breaking down the participants into smaller groups and setting some tasks
for the small groups. In line with this, facilitators were asked whether they have been using techniques
that could help participants conduct informal discussions. Only two facilitators, out of the total six
interviewed, stated that they made an attempt to use strategies such as encouraging participants to
discuss in small groups. These facilitators, however, pointed out that they were unable to do this often
due to time limitations.
According to the coordinator of the programme, facilitators invited people from different walks
of life such as youngsters, house wives, adults working in governmental and nongovernmental
organizations, health workers, religious leaders, people living with HIV, commercial sex workers,
Kebele administrators, among others. They did this in the belief that the difference in the life style and
profession among the participants would help to have an exhaustive discussion from different
viewpoints. This, however, did not seem to work. As three of the interviewed facilitators and 17
participants of the FGDs pointed out in most Kebeles the usual participants of the CCs were
housewives and youngsters. Rarely do other institutions take part in the CCs. However, that, too, has
its own problems as a gathering of people from different professions might not always guarantee
meaningful communication. While the coordinator and four of the facilitators believed that the
combination helped the community to learn from one another, some female participants in the FGD
stated that they sometimes failed to understand each other. They mentioned that they sometimes did
not understand what some youngsters spoke about.
Given the diverse ways of life and the varied professions of the participants, agreed on the most
appropriate day of the week was difficult because although weekends are relatively convenient for most
people, as the FGDs revealed, some participants such as religious leaders, elders and commercial sex
workers did not often take part in the CCs as they were busy on these days.
Overlapping of the CC sessions with other programmes of the participants, the facilitators and
Kebele administrators had to attend was the other challenge in conducting CC programmes. As the

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coordinator and most of the facilitators stated, Kebele administrators and other bodies sometimes
called the public to take part in other activities while participants had CC sessions. Instead of gathering
the public by making their own announcements, Kebele administrators sometimes used CC sessions to
set and discuss their own agenda. Likewise, in some places Kebele halls were sometimes busy because
of the meetings that the administrators held. Such occasions discouraged participants. One of the
interviewed facilitators pointed out, thus:
In some occasions, those participants who came to the CC halls from a relatively far away areas
spent their time and money (for transportation) coming and going to CC places to no avail.
Such encounters affect our programme negatively. The worst thing is that once the CC session
was not conducted for one day for some reason, it was difficult for us to get all the participants
back by the next session. Sometimes we were forced to go door to door to get the participants
back to the CCs (Facilitator 3).
The interference of administrators to some extent shows that the CC programmes had been given less
attention by authorities. Although many of the Kebele administrations supported the community by
allowing Kebele halls for discussions and by selecting facilitators, they also seem to be the causes for
the sporadic interruption of CC sessions.
Asked about whether they had the same participants for the whole year, facilitators and the coordinator
gave varied answers. The coordinator, citing the instructions given by HAPCO, stated that ideally for
each CC programme, facilitators are expected to select 70 people and conduct CC sessions for one
year. But the data show that it was almost impossible to have the same people throughout the year as it
was difficult for most participants to take part in every session. Almost all facilitators agreed with the
coordinator. They said some participants came to the CC sessions intermittently while others gave up at
any given time due to different reasons. Some participants gave up and rejoined as they wished. Others
joined in the middle of the year or after a month or so. Most facilitators (5 out of the 6 interviewed)
said they allowed anyone who wanted to join the CCs at any time. One of the facilitators, however,
stated that in his Kebele he facilitated discussions with the same people all over the year. He said he
took the attendance register and he did not allow those participants who absented themselves for more
than two days to join the CC again.
In view of what the facilitators and participants mentioned about the difficulty of having the same
group composition for the whole year, it is possible to conclude that the sponsor organizer of the CCs
and facilitators did not study the participants living condition well before the commencement of the
programme.
The data also show that absence of stakeholders is one more challenge for the proper
implementation of the CC initiative. Facilitators and some FGD participants revealed that in some
occasions participants raised issues which were beyond the facilitators’ and other participants’ ability to
explain. For issues that could not be thoroughly discussed and dealt with by facilitators and
participants, the participation of other relevant stakeholders such as experts from the medical or other
related professions could have contributed a lot. Also, some minor problems of the community might
have been solved by the experts. The views of the experts could have also been used as an asset for
participants’ empowerment. In line with this Mefalopulos (2003) succinctly stated that projects
adopting and promoting participatory communication need to make sure that all relevant stakeholders
are not only taken on board, but involved in the conception and design of all objectives and activities.
In this initiative, it seems that not all the concerned bodies were included in the discussions despite the
fact that the programme is designed to create a forum for community participation from different

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walks of life. Absence of stakeholders made the participants not to benefit the most out of the
programme. The absence of administrators who could give immediate solutions to some minor
problems of the participants also entail that the initiative seem to have failed to give attention to the
bottom-up communication approaches which could help raise awareness amongst different
stakeholders and decision makers. Owing to the fact that some stakeholders did not been take part in
the CCs, it is possible to conclude that participants were in some cases simply heard but their dialogues
and discussions were not acted upon.
Although the selection of facilitators was mentioned as one positive point for the initiative, 15
FG discussants pointed out that they had problems with the facilitators. These discussants mentioned
that some facilitators were Kebele members and they sometimes devoted the CC time to the activities
they performed in the Kebeles. Participants said some facilitators did not seem to give much attention
to the CCs as they did not regularly come to the CC sessions. Three of the interviewed facilitators said
they were sometimes forced to do their own work while they had CC sessions to facilitate.
In relation to this the coordinator of the programme stated that the facilitators were selected by
the Kebele administrations based on the criteria set by HAPCO. It is possible that Kebele
administrators might have not used the criteria sent by HAPCO and they might have selected those
people who could help them in their other tasks too. One point worth mentioning here is that the fact
that some of the facilitators were members of Kebeles might have affected their credibility amongst
group participants.
Although having good skills of facilitating is one of the essential factors which contribute to the
effective implementation of CCs, some facilitators did not seem to have the required skills. FGDs
pointed out that some facilitators had limited skill, which was a challenge for the participatory
communication process. According to the coordinator, facilitators had been trained, but some might
have failed to help the participants because of their natural inability to express themselves properly.
One other serious problem of the CCs was the sponsor’s failure to follow up the progress of the
programme. The CCs were not conducted regularly for different reasons such as overlapping of the CC
sessions with other government programmes, absenteeism of facilitators, and public or religious
holidays. It seems that in some Kebeles, the CC sessions have not been running. This researcher
planned to use observations, but no CC session was held from March 2011 to June 2011 the date of the
data collection for this study. Ideally, the CC sessions were supposed to have been held every fortnight,
for a year but five of the FG discussants revealed the CC sessions had not been held for unknown
reasons.
The interruption of the programme shows that there are lack of follow up and commitment on the side
of the organizers of the initiative- HAPCO. Alternatively, the community did not show any effort to
come together and conduct CC sessions by themselves. These seem to entail that CCs which have been
run by HAPCO in Bahir Dar town were conducted for mere participation of the community. In most
cases when participatory communication interventions, like this one, are launched by governmental or
nongovernmental organizations, it is with the assumption that the organization first provides resources
or materials with which to help promote dialogue among the community members so that this would
help the community to solve development problems and gain control of their own lives. But in this
initiative, the continuity of this initiative seemed to be questionable as it has been dormant in most
Kebeles from March 2011 to June 2011.

Positive Developments

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The initiative has brought change to some participants’ way of thinking and acting. The data from the
interviews and the FGDs show that the programme has played an essential role in changing the attitude
of some participants to talk freely about issues that they could not raise before because of fear and
cultural taboos. While discussing HIV and AIDS, it is not uncommon to raise sex-related issues about
which the communities were not usually comfortable owing to the culture of silence and fear. About
13, FG discussants mentioned that because of the awareness that they got through the CCs they have
become courageous to speak out on sex related issues and thus contribute to the efforts which have
been made to reduce the transmission of HIV. One of the FG discussants, for example, stated:
I used to discourage my daughters not to raise sex related topics at home. As a mother, I did
not want my kids to mention sex organs which are considered taboos. But after taking part in
the CCs, I have come to know that it is almost impossible to learn all about HIV and AIDS and
other STDs without using such words. I admitted that it was wrong of me to discourage my
daughters from raising sex related issues. Now I myself have started to raise and discuss such
issues with my kids. I feel ashamed of the stand that I used to have before (FGD 2, Participant
6).
More than half of the FG discussants also stated that they are now contented to raise sex related issues
and discuss sex with their children because of the lessons they got from the CCs.
Likewise, a man who participated in one FGD stated that he has learnt a lot about HIV and
AIDS related issues. He admitted that he was not at ease to stay with people living with HIV
previously. But after he had learnt in the CCs about how the virus is transmitted he no longer
marginalized those who are living with the virus. He said he has been eating, drinking, hugging and
hanging around with those people who are living with HIV. One female FG discussant also mentioned
that there was this man that she knew who once slaughtered a sheep to celebrate Easter. When he
learned that the man who helped him in slaughtering the sheep was HIV positive, he got shocked, and
he threw the whole meet away. She stated that this man had been changed because of the important
lessons that he learnt from the CCs. These all show that CCs somehow played a significant role in
providing valuable information and empowerment for some participants.
The CCs also gave participants the chance to identify major problems of their areas and address
the problems through discussions and dialogues despite the fact that the extent seemed to vary from
one Kebele to another. In this respect, although discussion topics were often about HIV and AIDS
which were as set by the sponsoring organization- HAPCO through the facilitators, the data
demonstrate that participants identified other problems of their area and tried to discuss and mitigate
those problems. For example, one of the FG discussants pointed out:
In our Kebele, we participants in the CCs identified some elderly people who had a housing
problem. We contributed some amount of money and built four small huts. We also provided
food and shelter for some street children (FGD 3, Participant 3).
Likewise, most FG discussants mentioned that CCs made them help street children, PLWHA, elders,
young drug addicts and other needy people in their areas. The discussants said they got satisfaction
from what they did to some members of their community. Apart from this, one facilitator also pointed
out that the CC programme helped them to resolve interpersonal and group conflicts which occurred
between and among members of their communities.
The CCs thus provided participants not only the chance to get information and knowledge
which could help to protect them from HIV and AIDS, but they also helped participants contribute to
solutions to the problems the disadvantaged members of their community faced. Such activities that

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participants performed are a form of critical consciousness that ended in collective action which could
lead them to empowerment. It is, therefore, possible to say that participants were critically empowered
somehow as they were discussing about collective problems and trying to solve them.

Conclusion and Recommendations

In Ethiopia, communal gatherings seem to hold an important place in many cultures and classes as they
allow for community participation and discussion in frivolous ways. Given this fact, HAPCO’s choice
of using CC for community participation in an attempt to fight against HIV and AIDS was ideal as it
somehow benefited some members of the community. This initiative met one of the vital elements of
the participatory communication approach as it built on the existing trend of communication in
Ethiopian society. In particular, preparing coffee ceremonies during CC sessions made was in tandem
with the social and cultural identity of the community. Childers (1990) explains that the utilisation of
public cultural rituals are vital because they are often a crucial link between the construction of meaning
in everyday life and the formation of common symbols of a public sphere that people can truly identify
with.
As the findings show, CCs served some members of the community as a main source of
information and knowledge about HIV and AIDS and some other problems of their areas. Because of
their participation in CCs, some participants stopped marginalizing people living with HIV and AIDS,
others started to talk about sex related topics without fear, and still others resolved some practical
problems of their area and helped some deprived members of their community. The fact that
participants started discussing collective problems, sharing information and experiences, and solving
some problems on their own, leads to the conclusion that the CCs empowered some people.
However, the initiative was not without problems. The data show that there was no genuine
participation in most CC sessions. This is largely attributed to the general criteria HAPCO set and other
practical problems on the side of facilitators and participants. Looking at the large number of
participants in CCs (50-70 in one session), the time allotted for one session (average one or one and a
half hour), the varied mix of participants (people from different professions though this is not true in
most places), some facilitators way of setting discussion topics (choosing topics by themselves) and
places of participation (Kebele halls which are sometimes occupied by other bodies), one can imagine
that it would be difficult to pursue lively discussions in the CCs despite the fact that many of the
facilitators and some participants of the FGD believed that there existed lively discussions in CCs. Of
course, there might have been some degrees of passive and controlled participation, but taking into
account the abovementioned facts it would be hard to imagine proper interaction or meaningful or
genuine participation.
Concerning the factors that affect the CC initiative, it was found that the selection of facilitators
from the community, participants and facilitators’ willingness and their positive outlook towards the
programme, willingness of Kebele administrators in allowing Kebele halls were found to be the
underlying positive factors for the proper implementation of participatory communication in the CCs.
Whereas the presence of large number of participants, some facilitators limited skills, absence of some
stakeholders, overlapping of programmes, absenteeism of facilitators and participants, lack of proper
follow up, Kebele administrators interference, irregularity of the CC sessions were found to be the
major bottlenecks.
Looking at the current state of the initiative, that is, the fact that CCs had not been conducted
in almost all Kebeles from March 2011 to June 2011, it is possible to conclude that the CCs did not

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seem to strengthen long term relationships among the participants which could have led to sharing of
development activities for their communities. Had the communities been empowered enough, they
could have arranged CC sessions by themselves and continued their discussions without the help of
other organizations. Instead, the participants developed dependency on external agencies as they still
waited for HAPCO to run the programme for them.
Based on the findings and the conclusions drawn the following possible recommendations are
made.
ƒ Designers of the programme should either change their criterion (which they dictates
facilitators to call 70 participants for one session) and conduct CCs with a manageable groups
or they should train other facilitators so that the groups could be split into smaller more
interactive groups; thus, CCs could foster meaningful discussions in large groups. Also,
facilitators, participants, and other stakeholders need to set clear guidelines which could help
them foster lively discussions and interactions. They also need to find ways in which they can
conduct their CC sessions without the interference of other parties.
ƒ Programme sponsors need to check whether or not all the relevant stakeholders have been
taking part in the CC discussions. Hence, when some issues get beyond the participants and
facilitators capacity to explain, the presence of other stakeholders may help to get immediate
answers. Sponsors of the programme should focus on giving power to participants. This would
help participants to feel ownership of the programme so that they keep organizing the CCs by
themselves and discussing their common problems. Sponsors together with facilitators need to
follow up the continuation of the CC programme till the evaluation studies inform them that
the participants have become empowered to run the programme by themselves.
ƒ Sponsors and facilitators need to inculcate the objective of the initiative into the community so
that participants do not claim to have other incentives for their participation than discussing
and mitigating HIV and AIDS and other problems of their area. To achieve this, Sponsors need
to conduct baseline and formative studies into the participants living condition and arrange CC
sessions accordingly.
ƒ Continuous monitoring and evaluation of the programme will help to identify the major weak
and strong sides of the programme. Hence, making use of the strong sides and working on the
challenges will ultimately help improve participatory communication in the CCs.

References

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Childers, E. (1990). Excerpt from: Communication in Popular Participation: Empowering people for
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Upscaling Community conversation in Ethiopia: Unleashing capacities of communities for the

HIV/AIDS response. http://www.undp.org/hiv/docs/alldocs/Africa%20-
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Journal of Development and Communication Studies,

Vol. 2. Nos. 2/3, July-December, 2013. ISSN (Online): 2305-7432. http://www.devcomsjournalmw.org.
© Journal of Development and Communication Studies, 2013.
_______________________________________________________________________________

Recognising the Latino Immigrant’s Space in the American

Neighbourhood and Creating a Community for Peaceful
Coexistence
Emmanuel K. Ngwainmbi(PhD)
Department of Mass Communication, Jackson State University, MS, USA. Email: engwainmbi@gmail.com

Abstract
Americans in suburban communities have perceived local Hispanic immigrants in search for a better life as the cultural
other, widening the ‘space’ for mutual learning and the opportunity for building a stronger, peace-enhanced community. But
what is fueling the auto- and hetero-stereotypes of the immigrants and Americans? Using the participant observer
approach and a survey, this study compares first impressions Latino immigrants and Caucasians in a US suburban
community have about each other and investigates their comfort levels of living together. It examines communicative
adaptability, language acquisition, and cultural knowledge as constructs for negotiating community coercion and diversity
in the semi-urban locale. Analysis of data from separate questionnaires administered to Latino and Caucasian American
respondents show a correlation between the American value of equal to opportunity and Caucasian Americans’ view of
Latino immigrants. Data also reveal that both groups are comfortable living together, but auto-and hetero-stereotypes
persist among both groups. The study further offers steps for strengthening intercultural understanding between both groups.

Key words: Caucasian American, Latino, comfort level, interaction, social cohesiveness, suburban, stereotypes,
________________________________________________________________________________

Introduction
This study compared the first impressions between Latino immigrants, that is people of
Latin American descent; also anyone of Latin American origin or ancestry, including
Brazilians, Guatemalans, Mexicans, Venezuelans, Uruguayans, etc, and Caucasian Americans
living together in a US suburban community, and then investigated their comfort levels of
living together. We looked at the communicative adaptability, language, acculturation, and
cultural knowledge of both groups as constructs for negotiating community cohesiveness
among Caucasian Americans and Latinos in the suburban locale. The main objective is to
identify steps for strengthening intercultural understanding between both groups, and, thus,
construct a more open-minded, amicable suburban community. Data analysis has
discovered that both groups are comfortable staying in the same community, but auto- and
hetero-stereotypes persist among them—bringing to light Bennett’s (1986; 1993b)
ethnocentric perspective that we consider our own worldviews as central to reality. The
study also looked at Latino immigrants’ knowledge of English, and assessed whether this

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knowledge has in any way acculturated the Latino immigrants to a predominantly White
society, or has helped them in understanding Caucasian Americans. Other relevant research
questions central to the thesis of this study include:
1.) What is fueling the auto- and hetero-stereotypes of Latino immigrants and Americans, if
at all?
2.) How comfortable are Latino immigrants and Caucasian Americans living within the
same community?

Cultural Relationships between US and Latino Groups

Within the framework of intercultural sensitivity—which we used to measure
orientations towards cultural differences—it can be said that Caucasian Americans and
Latinos in US suburban communities have struggled to accept each other, making it difficult
to integrate, or adapt to each other’s cultural values. The current relationships between
Latinos and Caucasians in the US focus mostly on satisfying commercial needs, rather than
strengthening peaceful intercultural relations. Companies that sell consumer products seek
cultural values that motivate Latino consumer behavior (Lopez, 2003; Padilla, 2002; and
Korzenny, 2006). A report conducted by the Hispanic Research Inc. (2003) revealed that
companies all over the world want to tap into the skyrocketing US-based Latino population’s
purchasing power because they spend more money on consumer goods than clients in most
Spanish-speaking countries (Lopez, 2003:1). This seems to make sense when we learn from
the University of Georgia’s Selig Center for Economic Growth that between 1990 and 2002
Latino buying power increased by 118% to $452.4 billion.
On the administrative level, the US justice system has been seeking ways of engaging
Hispanics in public policy. Liberal and conservative media have joined forces with US
Democrats and Republicans in debating which policies are best suited for American
interests, as more immigrants from Spanish-speaking nations continue to infiltrate American
rural communities, both legally and illegally.

Differences between Latino Immigrants and the American Suburban Community

Schwartz, Montgomery & Briones (2006) have argued that immigrants who adopt
the values and beliefs of the receiving society may have access to a greater array of potential
personal identity elements than those who do not adopt their receiving culture’s values and
beliefs (p. 17). Within this context, formal and informal social institutions within a given
society or culture offer the most support to individuals who hold the ideals that characterize
the larger society (Côté, 1993). For example, in the United States, immigrants who value
competition and believe that success comes as a reward for tireless work may be most likely
to acquire prestigious jobs, be elected to a political office and earn high salaries.
Padilla (2002), a leading scholar in Hispano-American relations, has argued that
Hispanic culture promotes a strong sense of familism, a preference for intra-familial
relationships, and a cultural script that calls for positive interpersonal relationships. Lopez
(2002) also claimed that Hispanics in America consider themselves as one family, share
several common traits, tend to be conservative, and desire to belong to the group which they
use as part of their identity (p. 32). Even if we were to consider one’s loyalty to the group as
the maxim for determining self-identification, as Lopez suggests, or that non-acculturated

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Latinos and Latinas think as a group and protect each other’s interests, we must not expect
them to be candid when sharing their views of Caucasian Americans by simply using one
measuring tool—the survey. Conversely, perceptions of threats by an outside group may
affect race relations and members of an in-group (Blumer, 1958). Bobo & Kluegel (1993), as
well as Bobo and Hutchings (1996), also stated that perceptions could be driven by the
group’s feelings of racial alienation. Bobo and Hutchings (1996) hypothesized that
individualistic thinking is consistently more important than structural thinking, and that the
former model tends to encourage Whites to view Asian Americans and Latinos as
competitive threats (p. 967). To support their claim, they cited Blumer's group-position
model published in 1958, which emphasizes that identity, stereotypes, values, and
assessments of interests are shaped historically and involve a collective and relational
dimension between groups. This powerfully engages emergent normative ideas about
appropriate group statuses and entitlements (p. 986). Baca (2011) and Lopez (2002) saw US
Latinos as a group that does not typically support activities requiring its input on general
matters related to the public, but they have the capacity to trust members of their own
cultural group (irrespective of their social status) than members of an outside group.
Nevertheless, family values and the desire to maintain friendships are important for
US Latinos (Korzenny, 1999, p. 3). Latino culture scholar Padilla (1995) explained in his
study that Latinos prefer ethnic labels reflecting shared cultural values rather than a US
national identity. These shared values and traditions include Spanish language usage,
Catholicism, traditional male-female roles, celebrations of Latin national holidays, and visual,
performing, and musical forms.
A survey published in the Albemarle Report (2008) revealed that Latino workers
tend to identify with fellow compatriots and show more loyalty to their in-group than to
their bosses. However, problems with communication could be preventing the immigrants
from making cultural and economic contributions to the community as some do not speak
English. The language barrier itself might create a sense of mistrust and exclusion among
linguistically handicap co-workers afraid of being misunderstood.
American existentialism’s concept of freewill—the drive for the individual to
exercise liberties in space and time—is guided by a set of specific, traditional, and
fundamental principles, the foremost of which is the right to preserve and enjoy life. The
desire to protect personal interests and pursue happiness are not germane to Americans; it is
universal value, however, the American way of life culls from the premise that life ought to
be approached with objectivity and that the government ought to act only as a policing force
to protect a man’s rights (Rand, 1964). This renowned American philosopher (Rand, 1964a,
1964b) also argued that American values are based on the idea that life is the standard of
morality and the individual must choose his/her actions, values and goals by the standard of
that which he/she considers appropriate. If by objectivity Rand means rational and
evidence-based reasoning, he leaves us doubting the extent to which cracks in government
laws and its interpretation of the law mitigate rationality. Further, some court rulings have,
over the years, reflected a lack of objectivity in the judicial system, due in part to other laws
that govern individual liberties and religious rights. While the typical American approaches
life with Rand’s ruling that it is a morality of joy, and that individual success, happiness, and
fulfillment come through self application (1959, 1965), other external variables such as an

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immigrant’s social way of life have affected the American way of life. For example
Americans in cities and suburban areas have participated in cultural events such as Cinco de
Mayo— which was introduced by immigrants from Latino countries. Americans’
impressions of themselves and the impressions about Americans in other nations show that
auto stereotypes do not differ from international stereotypes (Harris & Karafa, 1999: 5-8).
On the interpersonal level, Americans tend to convey their inner feelings and intentions in a
cross-cultural setting. A recent investigation of the differences in self-disclosure and
emotional closeness in intra-cultural friendships in the U.S. and Eastern Europeans finds
Americans having a greater intent to disclose personal issues to their friends than other
Anglo cultures, but with a smaller level of emotional closeness in intra-cultural friendships
(Maier, Zhang & Clark (2012).

The Latino’s Cultural Space within the US Community

Newcomers, particularly immigrants, eventually change their behavior and attitudes
toward those of the host society. Whether this sort of acculturation has a positive or negative
impact on the mental health status of the indigenes is not yet clear. However, acculturation
remains a fundamental part of migration-induced adaptations to new sociocultural
environments among Hispanics in the US. Rogler, Cortes and Malgady (1991, p. 585-597)
found that Hispanics are more likely to acculturate, or become bicultural, than they are to
assimilate and thus abandon their original culture, but they find value in preserving their
culture despite having been in the United States for a long time. A market survey conducted
in 1999 obtained insights from US Hispanics regarding their own acculturation or
assimilation experience in the US. It showed that the longer Hispanics stay in the US, the
more they prefer to preserve their culture (Korzenny, 1999).
Other studies in social psychology reveal that elements of both the original cultures
from which immigrants hail and the cultures to which they migrate must be taken into
consideration when considering an individual's psychological acculturation (Kramer, 2000b).
Within that framework, it is understood that personal identity can help the immigrant during
cultural transition and adaptation (Schwartz, Montgomery & Briones, 2006).
This study is inspired by the notion that culturally different groups have what it takes
to develop a program that allows them to coexist in a peaceful way. It is expected that
cultural appropriation—the adoption of some specific elements of one culture by a different
cultural group (which includes the introduction of forms of dress or personal adornment,
music and art, religion, language, or behavior)—would have an impact in the way the
subjects in this study (Caucasian Americans and Latino immigrants) think of each other. In
other words, their answers are expected to reflect appreciation of each other’s worldview.
Further, acculturated Latinos and American interpersonal communication traits could
present a context for assessing a suitable climate aimed at sharing cultural space.
Some questions seek Caucasians’ opinions about Latinos and Latinas sharing space
in the same community, assuming that they are more likely to have reservations, like any
other indigenous group. Besides, after the September 11, 2001 tragedy, some media reports
and congressional debates have continued to challenge immigration policies, raising the
potential for racial tensions and suspicion of immigrants and their legality on US soil.

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Based on the U.S. Constitution, especially the First Amendment, it is assumed that
most answers provided by Caucasian subjects would reflect a democratic/liberal attitude
toward immigrants in the community.
It is within the present study’s limits to find out how well Latino immigrants’
presence in the community has been accepted. Being accepted is a desired experience
learned from childhood. “People have learned to do everything to make others develop an
interest in them”1. The need to be understood and appreciated is a common expectation for
people sharing space, irrespective of their cultural, social, or economic background.

Conceptual Foundations and Theoretical Dimensions

In this study, the terms ‘space’ and ‘neighborhood’ refer to the place where an ethnic
group puts to use its cultural, linguistic and social interests. These terms also refer to a
group’s ability to coexist with another group without yielding to the political and
psychosocial persuasions of the other. In the same way, a community of ethnic groups
coexisting in peace is one that acknowledges and tolerates different cultural practices and
beliefs.
To find the right context for measuring the quality of answers provided by the
Caucasian American and Hispanic respondents, this paper will review perceptions and
theoretical frameworks related to race relations and interpersonal exchange, including
adaptation, the Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity (DMIS), and social
exchange.

Literature Review on Human Perception

People form strikingly powerful impressions about one another and their environment with
very little information available to them. In the same way, a community can act in favor of or
against a particular individual group based on accent, whom the individual reminds that
person of, and the ethnic group or country where he/she thinks the individual originates.
Impressions formed about a group depend on previous experience and perceptions (Asch,
1943, p. 289) just as an immigrant’s impression of an indigene may later influence positive or
negative impressions of that indigene elsewhere. Within this framework, a newcomer is
conceived as someone capable of falsely distorting what is meaningful and functional to
other people through his/her own life experience (Gudykunst, 1991, 1998; Gudykunst&
Kim, 2003). Thus, it is impossible to willfully unlearn one's self within a community, and
even if it were possible it would not aid in the newcomer's adjustment process—the
newcomer needs to integrate new information, making sense of new experiences in
accordance with their pre-understanding (Kramer, 2000c, 2003).
Further studies have also alluded to a similar situation wherein the indigenous group
views itself as civilized and considers the external cultural group as uncultured or less than
human (Min-Sun, Kim & Hubbard, 2007). The tendency for people to see their own culture
as the “center of the world,” first identified by William Graham Sumner early in the
twentieth century, actualizes the naïve perceptions of immigrants by indigenes.
Ethnocentrism is a biological reality, and as such it has to be considered in determining the
acceptance or rejection of a foreign ethnic group by the local group. Carsten De Drew’s
1 See http://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/how-to-get-unstuck-in-life-fixed-versus-a-growth-mindset/.

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experiment (2010) explained that ethnocentrism is not an acquired or learned experience but
a biological reality, wherein oxytocin creates intergroup bias by motivating in-group
favoritism and out-group derogation. This is consistent with Kramer’s (2000) view that
members of a group favor behavioral patterns and traits that are identical to their own
beliefs and worldview because they trust each other. The presence of a minority group
constitutes an organic aspect of a social system, and as a newcomer enters a community both
the individual and the community are changed (Kramer, 2000a, 2000b, 2000c, 2003, 2009).
Newcomers have the capacity to change the way they are perceived by the indigenes. This
position is consistent with results of a recent experiment conducted by German behavioral
scientists (Kurschilgen, Engel & Kube, 2011) who have advanced the ways in which
individuals are perceived, influencing future behavior and cooperation.
Persons within a group can rationalize their own overt behaviors in the same way
that they attempt to explain others’ behaviors (Ward & Ostaloza, 2010) based on pre-
existing knowledge of others. So there exists a correlation between interpersonal and
intergroup formation of impressions and the formation of impressions about different
countries (Tims & Miller, 1986; Harris & Karafa, 1999). There is also the expectation that a
sociocultural group living in one community may choose to communicate its own views
differently about the outside group based on its own circumstance. Minorities concentrated
in one place are more likely to develop a strong identity that supersedes a national sense of
identification by trusting people who are different from them (Uslaner, 2012).
Indeed, the extent to which a group adapts to another group’s values or integrates
itself into the community depends on the amount of experience and exposure it has to that
culture. According to Hammer, Bennett and Wiseman’s framework (2003, p. 423),
experience does not occur simply by being in the vicinity of events as they occur; rather, it is
a function of how one construes the events after the event has taken place. A group staying
in a new community can alter its own attitudes to adjust to the psychological, political, and
cultural circumstances of the host environment. It should be noted, however, that the
processes that underlie communication between people from different ethnicities are the
same processes underlying communication between people from the same culture who are
strangers (Neuliep, 2012:1-16). Hammer, Bennett, and Wiseman (2003) provided an
important framework for understanding the lived experiences of a different cultural group.
They have claimed that a group is said to adapt to another culture when its experience yields
a perception or behavior that is appropriate to that culture During adaptation, one group’s
worldview is expanded to include relevant constructs from other cultural worldviews (pp.
421-443)
People are able to express their alternative cultural experience in culturally
appropriate feelings and behaviors. Psychological changes include alterations in individuals’
attitudes toward their cultural identities and their social behaviors in relation to the groups in
contact (Phinney, 1992; Neto, 2002). And, as Muwanguzi and Musambira (2012) recently
discovered, some immigrants have pursued a strategy of cultural integration as opposed to
marginalization, assimilation, or separation. Eventual adaptations include the individuals’
well-being and social skills needed to function in their culturally complex daily world (Yu &
Wang, 2011, pp. 191-192).

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But cultural adaptability is an inter-subjective phenomenon—the belief that contact

with cultures automatically leads to intercultural learning and to the development of positive
attitudes toward the dominant culture has already been rejected by many scholars (Allport,
1979; Coleman, 1998). The impact of external information sources and channels (like the
media) on an ethnic group’s views of another group can lead to prejudiced perceptions about
each other. Indeed, people have formed impressions of other nations and ethnic groups
based on meager knowledge delivered by the media (Harris and Karafa, 1999, p. 3, 5-15). A
group that relies heavily on media coverage as its main source of knowledge about another
group is most likely to maintain stereotypical views about that group. This is because the
media set their own news agendas and select information that they believe their target
audience wants to receive. This approach usually persuades the audience to see the group or
nation as presented through the media’s subjective lens. But as Robert Putnam (1993) has
indicated, integrated and diverse neighborhoods bring about higher levels of trust if people
also have diverse social networks. The maturity level of trust can also be measured by the
extent to which people from different cultural backgrounds tolerate each other in a defined
relationship and for a considerable length of time. For example, the number of marriages
between Latinos and Americans has increased in the last few decades, fostering cross-
cultural understanding among Latinos and Americans and Latino-American relations.
However, Hispanics and Latinos frequently differ markedly from the majority group who,
because of privilege and status, are defined as the normative group (Padilla, 2002).

Demographics and Economic Variables

The Albemarle Business Report (January, 2008) found that the population of Hispanics in
North Carolina has grown exponentially between 1995 and 2008. In 2008, the Pew Hispanic
Center recorded more than 700,000 Hispanics in North Carolina among whom more than
300,000 were reportedly unauthorized (see Box 1).

Box 1: Population Distribution of Elizabeth City versus North Carolina by race

Elizabeth North
People Quick Facts City Carolina
Population, 2011 estimate 18,698 9,656,401
Population, 2010 (April 1) estimates base 18,683 9,535,475
Population, percent change, April 1, 2010 to July 0.1% 1.3%
1, 2011
Population, 2010 18,683 9,535,483
Persons under 5 years, percent, 2010 7.5% 6.6%
Persons under 18 years, percent, 2010 22.4% 23.9%
Persons 65 years and over, percent, 2010 13.9% 12.9%
Female persons, percent, 2010 54.2% 51.3%
White persons, percent, 2010 (a) 39.5% 68.5%

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Black persons, percent, 2010 (a) 54.0% 21.5%

American Indian and Alaska Native persons, %, 0.4%
2010 (a) 1.3%
Asian persons, percent, 2010 (a) 1.2% 2.2%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, 0.1% 0.1%
percent, 2010 (a)
Persons reporting two or more races, percent, 2.3% 2.2%
2010
Persons of Hispanic or Latino origin, percent, 5.0% 8.4%
2010 (b)
White persons (Caucasians) not Hispanic, 37.6% 65.3%
percent, 2010
Living in same house 1 year & over, 2006-2010 78.9% 83.4%
Foreign born persons, percent, 2006-2010 4.1% 7.4%
Language other than English spoken at home, 8.7% 10.4%
pct. age 5+, 2006-2010
High school graduates, % of persons age 25+, 79.3% 83.6%
2006-2010
Bachelor's or higher, pct. of persons age 25+, 20.9% 26.1%
2006-2010
Mean travel time to work (mins.), workers age 19.2 23.4
16+, 2006-2010

Housing units, 2010 8,167 4,327,528

Homeownership rate, 2006-2010 47.0% 68.1%
Housing units in multi-unit structures, percent, 28.5% 16.9%
2006-2010
Median value of owner-occupied housing units, $152,200 $149,100
2006-2010
Households, 2006-2010 7,114 3,626,179
Persons per household, 2006-2010 2.45 2.49
Per capita money income in past 12 months $17,592 $24,745
(2010 dollars) 2006-2010
Median household income 2006-2010 $34,532 $45,570
Persons below poverty level, percent, 2006-2010 28.1% 15.5%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau: State and County Quick Facts. Edited for relevance: Thursday, 16-
Aug-2012

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Elizabeth City, where the two ethnic groups have been sampled, is situated in
northeastern North Carolina. A suburban community with a population of 18,683 (2001
est.), and with a metropolitan center bordered by agrarian counties such as Camden,
Hertford, Halifax, and Currituck, Elizabeth City enjoys a relatively high degree of economic
integration with its neighboring counties. According to the city’s official website, the
community does not discriminate against people from different ethnic, social, and cultural
backgrounds. The county tax rate valuation for fiscal year 2012–2013 is $0.62 per $100.
Other general factors also responsible for the growth of its population are its coastline
location; a Coast Guard Base; sixteen K-12 public schools; three universities; over 15
worship sites for Christians of various denominations; a settlement for retired persons, and
low crime rates. The Elizabeth City Chamber of Commerce Report (2012, p. 19) states that
the per capita income of the city is at $17,253, and the median household income for Latino
race householders is $27,744 in 2009, contrasted with an overall median household income
of $38,882, while the average annual wage is $28,132. The city’s relatively low cost of living
makes it a good place for immigrants from low income countries. The Albemarle (region’s)
Economic Development Commission publication for 2012 presented the cost of living index
in northeast North Carolina as 94.7, compared to 140 in Boston, Massachusetts, and 151.5 in
Newark, New Jersey, which makes the region a better place to live for immigrants from poor
countries and retired persons in America.
Income-based farming, construction, and home-cleaning jobs are considered the
greatest factors attracting Hispanic immigrants to Elizabeth City. Throughout the year,
charity organizations like the Food Bank, Salvation Army, Catholic Relief Services, and other
religious groups in the county conduct outreach campaigns to support such immigrant
families in the community. Their efforts are meant to reduce economic hardship of those
families, and from the Catholic perspective, help alleviate the suffering of people. Local
restaurants, Laundromats, convenient stores (owned by Latinos), farms, soccer fields, and
other locations where the Spanish language is spoken also offer a community spirit among
Hispanic immigrants. Such milieus are less threatening to the immigrants than those that
require them to speak English. They also offer immigrants a context to discuss their
condition, interact, and mobilize their own resources to support each other and their families
within the community. The number of convenient stores, restaurants and home cleaning
services owned by Hispanics, along with more than six hotels and 37 full service restaurants
hiring low-skilled labor may also have accounted for the surge in the Hispanic population
from 685 out of 18,000 in 2009 (3.5%), to 1,666 in 2012, with about 87% being adults. Only
1.6% Hispanics have moved to a different state since 2009 but there is no available data on
the movement of Caucasian Americans in or out of the City.
Caucasians historically control the political and legislative system and they maintain
economic control over other ethnic groups in the state of North Carolina. Although they
make up 39.5% of Elizabeth City’s population, they own the majority of land property in the
northeast, are among the wealthiest, and have the propensity to allow immigrants to enjoy
social welfare privileges reserved for low income, struggling Americans. Caucasian American
families in Elizabeth City who served in the US military programs abroad may have amassed

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cultural experiences that they could use in dealing with people from different cultural
backgrounds.

Research Methods

Participants. Seventy (70) subjects took part in the study on the weekend of July 31–
August 2, 20122. Participants were Caucasian American and Hispanic immigrant male and
female adults from all social and economic backgrounds living in Elizabeth City, North
Carolina. There were 30 Caucasian American subjects and 40 Latino subjects. Eight
questions (A1) were prepared for Caucasian Americans; 15 for Latinos. The questions were
administered when many families and workers in public institutions were on holidays.
The Caucasian Americans sampled for this study were mainly persons of Irish
heritage—Anglo-Saxon descendants who settled in Elizabeth City in 1791, and to a small
extent descendants of Western and Eastern Europeans living in Elizabeth City in North
Carolina. The sample design corresponds to purposive sampling.
To ensure greater consistency in their democratic view of immigrants and determine
whether their social class, education, and quality of life affect Caucasians’ views of persons
they suspect to be illegal, the study compared the income levels of the respondents, with
their educational levels and their initial impression of Hispanic immigrants. The previous
assumptions were: the more educated the individual, the less intense his phobia against the
immigrant, and higher income earners (the wealthy) were more likely to hold a
condescending view of low income earners, delineated in the Hispanic questionnaire as self
employed; retired; $6,000-$15,000; $18,000-$25,000 per year, respectively. The study also
aimed to know whether high income made Caucasians less threatened about the growing
presence of Latinos in the community by asking them, Do you feel too many Latinos live in this
community?

Procedures. Questionnaire A1 was personally distributed at the YMCA in Elizabeth City,

frequented by Caucasian families of Coast Guard personnel, retired persons, students,
doctors, lawyers, and instructors. Questions were also distributed at the McDonald’s
restaurant, also visited by Caucasian American retired couples, construction workers, and
families. The location was selected to ensure a proper representative sample for the study.
Hispanic immigrants who visit the local grocery shop (La Tiendita), Mamasitas
restaurant, and the Holy Family Catholic Church were contacted to fill out the questionnaire.
The questionnaire for that group, prepared in English, was given to a popular Spanish
school teacher, an educated Spanish-English interpreter3, and to the restaurant and grocery
store owners who speak fluent English and Spanish. To ensure that the questionnaire was
well understood by the Latino subjects, the interpreter transliterated the questionnaires and
offered to mark the corresponding response.
The questionnaire asked subjects to rank their experience with the language using the
following variables: fluent; Americans understand my accent and pronunciations; not comfortable-don’t
2
This was the holiday and vacation period and many people were out of town, accounting for the low response rate.
3 The interpreter, Johanna A. Broyles teaches Spanish at Northside Elementary School in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. She
is also a North Carolina Virtual Public School (NCVPS) Spanish Instructor and certified Zumba Dance Instructor.

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speak English at all; don’t understand English; worried about my accent; I fear Americans may not
understand. By asking them to describe the extent to which they learned English, indicating
their comfort levels in interacting with Caucasians, the study sought to determine which
group felt less threatened by the other in the community—Caucasian Americans or African
Americans.

Instruments and justification

Both questionnaires instructed subjects not to identify themselves and contained a
directive message to guide them accordingly: “This study is prepared to help people
understand cultural relationships in the community. Results are to be used only for analytical
purposes.”
Income levels were scaled using the socioeconomic variables—self employed,
retired; $6,000-$15,000; $18,000-$25,000 per year representing the lower class; $35,000-
50,000 per year representing the lower middle class; and $60,000 and above representing the
middle and upper class.
The educational levels for both groups were ranked as follows: None; below high school;
high school; college degree; professional.
Questionnaire A1 (QA1) asked subjects to answer the questions “completely and
with honesty, and to not include names.” Although Questionnaire A2 (QA2) had seven
more questions than QA1, both instruments solicited answers to education and income
level, indicating the degree of comfort with each other in one community. Some key close-
ended questions for Caucasian subjects were the following:
• The moment you see a Latino adult in the community, what immediately goes through your mind?
• Are you more afraid of Hispanics and Latinos than African-Americans in this community? If
so, give your reasons.
• Should social welfare privileges be made available to Latinos in this community? If so, give your
reasons.
• Do you feel too many Latinos live in this community?
• What percentage of Latinos do you think are living in this community illegally?
• How comfortable are you interacting with Hispanics and Latinos?
The study wanted to gauge the degree of consistency with which Caucasian
Americans tolerated the presence of foreigners in their midst, assuming that Caucasian
subjects might show consistent attitudes toward the American Dream which specifies that all
peoples are born equal and deserve equal opportunity to achieve their goals. It therefore
asked them to respond to several concomitant questions—Do you think Latinos are comfortable
living in this community; Do you want them to continue to stay in this community? The questions
required an affirmative response—Yes; No; I don’t know; It doesn’t matter to me.
QA2 had the following questions:
x How long have you lived in this community?
x How comfortable are you with speaking English?
x How comfortable are you interacting with non-Hispanics and Latinos?
x How comfortable are you staying in this community?
x Are you more afraid of Caucasians (Whites) or African-Americans (Blacks) in this community?
Give your reasons:

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x The moment you meet an American, describe what goes through your mind.
x What do you think Americans here think about you?
x How would you like Americans to see you? Give your reasons
x Whom do you trust more to protect you in this community?
x How familiar are you with American culture?
x Do you think Americans are happy with you living in this community next to them?
QA2 measured what Latino subjects thought of Caucasian Americans, to see if there would
be a correlation between their sentiments and those of Caucasian Americans. If both groups
held the same views about each other, especially negative stereotypes, a concrete long-term
plan, with achievable goals and timelines, would be strongly recommended for the
promotion of greater intercultural exchanges among Caucasian Americans and Latinos.
Like any minority group operating in a broader social context, Latinos are said to be
more at ease in interacting in familiar surroundings (like in Latino stores, church, farm and
Spanish cultural events, where others speak the same language). Hence, the data collected
may not be fully representative since most Hispanic immigrants work on construction sites,
plantations, and farms and they do not frequently travel to public places due to lack of
transportation, and fear of arrest, as some respondents indicated.
“How familiar are you with American culture?” aimed to know whether the respondents’
fear of, or confidence dealing with, Caucasians might have a bearing on how well they
understand the American way of life.
The study tested their first impressions of Hispanic immigrants with the American
principle of ‘Justice for all,’ to determine the seriousness with which Americans apply their
First Amendment rights. The expectation was that the free-spirited American would care less
if the immigrant did not understand American culture and did not speak English. In
response to the question, How comfortable are you interacting with Hispanics and Latinos? those
who questioned the legal status and raison d’être of Hispanics in Elizabeth City said they
were very comfortable interacting with the latter and were not afraid of sharing space with
Hispanics, when asked if they were more afraid of Hispanics or African-Americans.

Results
The findings in this study should be placed within the contextual framework of intercultural
communication scholarship, which maintains that opinions are formed based on previous
experiences (contact, treatment, interaction, etc.), and reactions may confirm or negate the
previous notions and assumptions. The interpreter reported that the subjects first hesitated
to reveal their annual income and their first impressions of Caucasian Americans. Some
subjects were also quoted as saying that by sharing their true opinions of American culture
might endanger their stay in the community.

Caucasian Subjects
Only 16 of the 30 subjects answered the first question about their initial views of
Hispanics—a test of positive or negative stereotypical perceptions.
Box 3: Summary of Caucasian Subjects’ Initial Views of Latinos :

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Another border jumper

Are they legal?
They are probably working on a farm
Immigrant
Thankful to see some diversity in the community
Hardworking, large families
This is a free country and everyone is exceptional in this country
Money or illegal
Thankful for diversity in our community
I love seeing a mix of people
Really nothing
I come from New York that has many cultures and races
I see a person

Some 37% of Caucasian subjects saw the presence of Latinos as a sign of diversity in
Elizabeth City, 20% questioned their presence. They called them ‘fence jumper,’ immigrant,’
‘illegal alien;’ 33% were indifferent. 10% believed Latinos were staying illegally in their
community. For the latter group, they believed a Latino is a human being, so there was
‘really nothing’ to prompt any bias thoughts.
An overwhelming 28 of the 30 subjects stated that though they were comfortable
with Latinos living in Elizabeth City, it did not bother them if Latinos continued living
among them. But would they support the idea of those immigrants breaking the law—
receiving Social Service benefits normally reserved for Americans and legal immigrants? The
study found a significant contrast between their positive first impressions of Hispanics and
the need to help them.
Of the 30 respondents, 18 agreed to social welfare privileges for Latino immigrants
while 10 categorically rejected the idea; several said, “It depends on whether they pay taxes.” Those
who wanted welfare services for Latinos (18) gave provisions: “As long as they work and pay
taxes;” and “They are citizens.” Two respondents shared the most liberal perspective: one said,
“Many who don’t work get welfare and at least most Hispanics I know have a great work ethic.” “This
country should care for all persons who truly struggle.” Clearly, the principals of freedom, justice and
equality for all, the positive auto-stereotype that distinguishes Americans from other nations,
is upheld.
The respondents’ response to questions about Latinos’ access to public services was
a reminder that Americans still value the First and Thirteenth Amendments, particularly the
individual’s rights to live for his/her own sake, rather than for the sake of society. An
immigrant has the right to live comfortably, irrespective of the amount of local cultural
knowledge he/she may possess about the host community.

Latino subjects
The study measured Hispanics’ initial impressions of Caucasian Americans, to see if there
would be a correlation between their sentiments and those of people in the host country. Of
the 40 subjects, 14 stated they had no prejudice against Caucasian Americans; and 20
considered Caucasian Americans as ‘friendly,’ ‘stronger than blacks,’ ‘good persons to meet,’
‘caring,’ and ‘helpful.’ 6 Latino subjects stated that Americans were ‘stupid’ and ‘unfriendly’

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To know if linguistic interference—foreign accent and ability to speak/think in

English—positively or negatively affected interactions with Americans, the study asked if
they thought Americans were happy living together. 30 subjects were comfortable
communicating in English; 6 said they were worried about their accent and feared Americans
might not understand their pronunciations, and 4 did not understand English at all.
Subjects were asked to indicate how they thought Americans viewed them by
choosing one of the following statements: I am not from here; I don’t belong in this community; I am
illegal here; I am too dependent on them; I do not know what they think. 32 of the respondents did not
know what Americans were thinking, while 8 felt that Americans saw them as immigrants.
Curiously, none thought Americans considered them as dependents on public welfare. This
positive self-portrayal is consistent with that of some Caucasian Americans whose first
impression of Latinos is that of hard-working people.

Correlation Analysis
Bearing in mind that some Caucasians expressed a condescending attitude toward the
immigrants by calling them ‘fence jumper,’ ‘immigrant,’ large family,’ the study wanted to
know if Latinos had the same stereotypes about themselves; also if there was a correlation
between Caucasian disdain and Latinos’ negative auto-stereotype. And if they had any
negative stereotypes about Caucasians it would be necessary to find their motives for staying
in the same community. Ten percent of the subjects who questioned the rationale behind
Latinos’ stay in Elizabeth City worried about their foreign accent; the rest indicated they did
not care to know what Americans thought about their linguistic/communication skills.
These results bolster the Beacco’s (1992) argument that the mere acquisition of a new
language is not enough to build intercultural competence.
28 of the 40 subjects declared their fear of Blacks and made scathing comments
(See Box 3).

Box 3: Latino subjects’ comments

about why they fear Blacks more than
Whites
• Their English is very hard to
understand sometimes
• Existing stereotypes about
Blacks
• They are more serious
• They try to steal my money
and beer
• Experience in High School
• Media
• They have robbed me
• They will steal my bike
• They are scary looking
• (They are) Racist
• They will shoot me
The study’s quest to learn the extent of
Latinos’ familiarity with American culture
was to determine if length of stay had any
bearing on their impressions of Caucasians.
This yielded no surprising reactions. Of the
22 respondents who had lived three years
and beyond in the community, none
indicated they were ‘afraid of Caucasians’
and all were so comfortable they wanted to
raise their children there.
A comparison of the immigrants’
income levels with their responses about
which local community group they trusted
for their protection revealed that 34 of the
36 subjects representing the lower class said
they trusted the police to protect them over

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charity organizations, social welfare authorities, and their fellow Hispanics. Only 4% of
middle-class participants also relied on police and fellow group members.
However, those with a set of values practicing specific customs are likely to be
perceived and treated differently by persons outside that group. The concept had to be
tested by asking Hispanics which Americans they were more afraid of—Caucasians or
African Americans.
Of the 40 respondents, 34 indicated they were more afraid of African Americans
with only 2 stating they were more afraid of Caucasians; 2 were impartial, and 2 did not
answer the question.
A cross tabulation of income level, social class, and degree of comfort interacting
with non-Hispanics revealed a startling response. 90% of the respondents representing the
lower and lower-middle class said they were most comfortable around Caucasian Americans.

Table 2: Latino Subjects’ Income Distribution versus Comfort Level in the Community
Employment Total #of Social class Fear of Caucasians(percentage)
status Subjects
Total: 40
Self employed and 12 Lower 30%
retired
$6,000-$15,000 18 Lower 45%

$18,000-$25,000 6 Lower 15%

middle
$35,000-$55,000 4 Middle 10%
$60,000-up 0 Upper 0%

Since social status had no bearing on their views of Americans, the study wanted to
know whether education level had any impact on their comfort levels within the community,
so it compared their education standard with their annual income earnings.
Indeed, Latinos want Americans to know that they are hardworking people,
determined to fulfill the American dream, as 80% of the total number of respondents
indicated on the questionnaire.

Discussion
Although the study did not take into account the importance of the Civil Rights Movement
(which led to the enactment of laws advocating equal treatment of all persons in the US) in
defining community wellness, the negative view held by some Americans toward other
minority groups cannot be ignored.
Overall, the positive stereotypes of Hispanics outweigh the negative ones—they are
not threatened by Latino immigrants’ presence in Elizabeth City and can cohabit with them
as long as they follow American laws. They can receive social welfare assistance if they have
legal status in the community, no matter how temporal it may be. Among the respondents
belonging to the middle and upper class with an annual salary of $60,000 and above, totaling

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30% of all subjects, there was a split about their first impressions of Hispanics. 10% did not
answer the question; 15% were “thankful for the diversity in our community—loved seeing a
mix of people;” and 5% were bias. One said, “They are probably working on a farm.” The
others wrote, “illegal immigrant.”
Negative stereotypes are based on some form of past experience, but the comments
about African Americans appear to be based on fear alone, as no particular reason for such
stereotypes was ever indicated. But it is not immediately clear whether Latino stereotyping of
African Americans is based on external variables such as limited knowledge, racial hatred, or
degree of contact with that minority group.

Conclusions and Future Research

Despite concerns about the Latino’s immigration status in the American suburban social
milieu, Americans have always struggled with putting their democratic principles to good
practice. However, the freedom of undertaking exemplified by Caucasians’ willingness to
cohabit with Latinos, and the latter’s embrace of Caucasians in the community enhances the
notion of the US as the land of opportunity, one that is open to people of different racial
backgrounds. But there still exist misunderstandings between Americans and Latinos that
must be addressed if Americans continue to allow Latinos to migrate to suburban
communities. Though the amount of negative first impressions held by Caucasian Americans
about Latinos and vice versa are relatively lower than previously expected, those
stereotypes—if internalized for too long—could culminate in animosity or bias behavior
toward members of each group. Similarly, local authorities and civil rights groups should
realize that while Blacks still consider Hispanic immigrants as another minority group,
Hispanics are more uncomfortable around Blacks than Whites.
Whereas African Americans make up 54% of the local population against 39.5%
Caucasian, it makes sense to conduct a study on existing relationships between Black and
Hispanic groups in order to have a better understanding of race relations in American
suburban communities.
More investigation is needed to know why Hispanic immigrants, akin to trusting
their own people, rely on the forces of law and order for their protection rather than on
philanthropic organizations like Catholic Relief Services and the Food Bank, which typically
provide them technical and financial support without questioning their cultural relevance or
immigration status.
Based on its findings, the current study posits several recommendations to increase
awareness and understanding among Latino immigrant and Caucasian American groups,
including:
1. Cultural groups from both communities in the US—Caucasian and Hispanic—should
organize events and training where knowledge on socio-cultural values of each group can
be shared.
2. More Hispano-American cultural conferences on myths and stereotypes should be
organized to allow scholars, program managers and experts on foreign relations and
multicultural communication exchange ideas and develop plans to better understand the
culture of the American suburban community.

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3. Local leaders should mobilize their constituents to manage activities and events that
promote international understanding.
4. Learning institutions, K-12 schools to universities, should enhance their curricula with
instruction on cultural exchange and community livelihood.

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Journal of Development and Communication Studies

Vol. 2. Nos. 1/2, January-December, 2013. ISSN (Online): 2305-7432. http://www.devcomsjournalmw.org.
© Journal of Development and Communication Studies, 2013.
__________________________________________________________________________________
Discussion paper

Role of Malawian languages in attainment of socio-economic

development and MGDS4
Pearson Nkhoma
PhD Researcher in Applied Social Sciences, Durham University, UK. Email: pnkhoma@gmail.com
&
Wongani Mugaba
Rural and Participatory Development Specialist, Actionaid International (Malawi.) Email: wongiewom@yahoo.com

Abstract
This paper argues that language can either hinder or accelerate development process of a poor country like Malawi, which
ranks among the 10 most impoverished countries worldwide despite implementing many development programmes and policies
since gaining political autonomy in 1964. The persisting under-development is often blamed on many factors such as
deteriorating and unfair trade, corruption and poor economic governance. However, recent studies indicate that lack of people’s
participation in development projects that affect them and communication-related inadequacies could be the root cause of
underdevelopment and persisting poverty in Malawi. While demonstrating that no meaningful participation at any
development stage can be achieved if the language used by development experts is alien to the project beneficiaries, this paper
argues that language has been a major barrier to Malawi’s development. The use of foreign languages, such as English, stalls
proper implementation of development projects because, despite possessing vast indigenous ideas, knowledge, experience and
values different from those of development experts, the majority of ordinary people are not literate in these languages and,
therefore, cannot and don’t make meaningful negotiations and contributions pertaining to the nature of development they
need. Use of English as a mode of communication in Malawi’s parliament is an example of how a foreign language can limit
the participation of the MPs in national development and law-making debates. Ironically, most development workers in
Malawi also lack core local language skills to understand and involve the people development processes and projects.

Key Words: Local languages, development, participation, Theatre for Development, MGDS, MDGs
_____________________________________________________________________________

4
The original version of this paper was presented to the 7th National Language Symposium, Sun ‘N’ Sand Holiday Resort,
Mangochi, Malawi, 12-16 November, 2007.

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Introduction
Malawi remains impoverished despite implementing many development programmes since gaining
political autonomy in 1964. The persisting underdevelopment is accredited to several factors, which
include deteriorating and unfair trade, corruption, poor governance systems and economic
mismanagement among others. However, publications indicate that lack of ordinary people’s participation
in development activities is the main cause that make development projects unable to be effective
(Chambers, 2005; Anyaegbunam et al., 2004). Through this paper, we argue that participation of local
people in both formulation and implementation phases of development projects and inadequacies in
communication can be achieved if the language used is familiar to all stakeholders particularly the ordinary
stakeholders.
With this understanding, this paper therefore seeks to assess the role that local languages can play
in addressing the poverty situation and in promotion of socio-economic outlook in the country by
promoting participation of the ordinary populace. Particularly, the paper will highlight how usage of local
languages is crucial to the success of the current overarching development strategies like the Malawi
Growth and Development Strategies (MGDSII) and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). As a
case study, we will provide a brief synopsis on how Theatre for Development (TfD) has been a success
story through the usage of vernacular languages in addressing development and social issues.
The paper is based on three main fundamental premises. Firstly, participation of the local masses
in development programmes that affect them, their communities and country at large is the significant
get-way in accelerating development. Secondly, language currently used in development strategies, which
is English, hampers mass participation because most people do not understand or get the meanings and
goals development interventions aim to achieve. Lastly, formulation of the strategies into local languages
would accelerate mass participation since they will understand the strategies thoroughly. In return, this
will accelerate the national development. In this regard, this paper aims to display the role that local
languages play in development with Malawian examples.
The paper has been divided into four main sections. The first section provides a theoretical
overview of the concepts of development and communication for development. In the second section,
we will present a brief outlook of Malawi’s economic status and development policies in usage thereby
fore-grounding the thesis of the paper. Thereafter, the third section links underdevelopment of the
country with the language factor. The third section then conceptualizes the role of local languages in
sustainable development of Malawi and drawing from participatory research methodologies in
communication for development which promotes participation of all development change agents en-
route to sustainable development. Lastly, the paper provides concluding recommendations from the
discussions on the significant impact that indigenous languages possess in socio-economic development.

Human Development and Communication for Development: A definition

Human Development
It is important that we understand the meanings (or lack thereof) of human development in order to have
a foundational basis for the role that local language can in development initiatives. In the first place, it is
necessary to state that the concept of development is highly contested with scholars not agreeing to one
definition. Tambulasi and Kayuni (2007:2, 3-4) assert that this is so because “development is
multidimensional [and hence] a topic of massive disagreements” among scholars.
However, most of these scholars agree that development can be understood as the process of
enlarging the capabilities, choices, and opportunities of people, especially rural populations and the poor,

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to enable them to lead a long, healthy and fulfilling life (Sen, 2005). As a working definition, this paper
adopts this notion since development process includes the expansion of people’s choices, capacity and
skills for gaining access to and control over the factors that affect the basic needs essential to their lives
(See Townsend, 2010; Sumner, 2007; Sen, 2001; 1985; Chambers, 1997; Freire, 1972) among other
commentators who offer interesting, detailed debates on poverty and development). Among the basic
needs include: poverty reduction, food security, availability of safe drinking water, improved sanitation,
access to primary health care, and basic education as well as opportunity to participate effectively in the
social, economic and political affairs of their societies and nations (See also Anyaegbunam, 2004).

Communication for Development

The contemporary epicenter of development is empowering people to meaningfully participate in
development plans by enabling them to come up with solutions to development challenges they face in
their communities. This results from the realization that many projects implemented in the past which
ignored the ordinary peoples participation failed (Burkey, 1993). The problem, however, is that the rural
population, who are supposed to be active actors in their own development, are often not easy to reach
and are generally illiterate (Anyaegbunam et al., 2004). Yet the language used in most forums of
development and the mainstream development strategies are versed in English.
Communication for development refers to the spectrum of communication process, strategies and
principles within the field of development which are participatory in nature. It involves organized efforts
to use communication processes to bring social and economic improvement in development (World
Bank, 2007). It includes notions of sharing ideas, interaction among all stakeholders in development.
Anyaegbunam et al. (2004: 6-8) critically define communication for development as
“the systematic design and use of participatory activities, communication approaches,
methods and media to share information and knowledge among all stakeholders in rural
development process in order to ensure mutual understanding and consensus leading to
action”.
Thus, the aim of communication for development is to find strategies for mobilizing people and
consequently resources needed for development. It facilitates people’s participation at all levels of
development efforts from problem identification to solution implementation and evaluation
(Kamlongera, 2005; 1987; Chambers, 1997; Burkey, 1993). Through communication for development,
development beneficiaries are protagonists of the projects as they come up with solutions that aim at
improving the conditions and quality of life of people struggling with underdevelopment and
marginalization in a sustainable way (Sen, 2001; Chambers, 1997; Freire, 1972). Communication for
development is a liberatory sort of education that stresses dialogue with communities about their actual
needs rather than one-way, top down approach (Freire, 1972). The framework thus addresses poverty
alleviation through a holistic approach in the context of participation, equal gender opportunities and the
sound management of the environment and natural resources in order to improve people’s livelihood.
The United Nations Declaration on the Right to Development (1986) outlines some key
propositions which are relevant to the communication for development raised above. It asserts that
development activities and proponents need to recognize that the individual is at the centre of
development (Kayambazinthu, 2003). It is through involving the local people that causes of particular
development challenges can be known. This is why it is further argued that lack of participation by local
beneficiaries in development programmes that affect them crosscuts all the other factors that have been
stimulated as the reasons why development projects have not yielded sustainable results.
People’s participation in development activities that affect them and their community is therefore a
very significant element to achieve sustainable development (Anyaegbunam et al., 2004; Chambers, 2007;
Burkey, 1993). Since it is the people who are in poverty, it follows that to understand the causes to their

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particular development problem, they must be consulted. Development projects need to involve the
target beneficiaries from problem identification to implementation of programs. This will make it possible
to identify the causes of their inefficiencies (Burkey, 1993; Anyaegbunam et al., 2004). This is one reason
why some development proponents have criticized the IMF and the World Bank for implementing
projects (like SAPs) that do not empower the target countries peoples to air out their views on how
development challenges in those individual countries can best be achieved (See Chilowa, 1991, 1994).
However, there is a common problem that needs to be tackled if communication for development
is to effectively involve the local people in development activities. The rural population, who are
supposed to be active actors in their own development, are often not easy to reach and are generally
illiterate (Anyaegbunam et al., 2004) yet the language used in most forums of development and the
mainstream development strategies are versed in English. But before we look at the problem in greater
detail, let us have a brief overview of Malawi’s economic status.

Malawi Economic status: brief history

After decades of independence, with massive development put in place, Malawi still lags far much behind
in as far as development is concerned. The country is categorized as one of the Least Developed
Countries (LDCs) in the world (United Nations Human Development, 2013). On either development
indicators and measures used and applied, the country remains desperately poor. Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) per capita of US$ 166 and Human Development Index (HDI) of 0.387 in 2001, ranked the
country at 7th and 14th from bottom of the development indexes. The average income as of 2004 was only
at US$ 160 per year with purchasing power parity of over US$ 7 billion. The country’s Third Integrated
Household Survey (IHS3) estimates that over half of Malawi’s population lives in dire poverty (Malawi
Government. National Statistics Office, 2012). If we take a poverty line of US$150 per annum, which
represents less that US$0.50 (50 cents) per day, about 80 percent of total Malawians would be rightly
classified as chronically poor.
Just like most countries in sub-Saharan Africa, Malawi is one of the countries “where per capita
income…has declined over extended period of time” (Ahmed and Cleeve, 2004:14). Development in
general has stagnated or moving in reverse and poverty in the country is by far increasing, wide spread
and deepening (United Nations Human Development, 2013; Malawi Government. National Statistics
Office, 2012).

Why Development Strategies don’t work

Desirous to remove the country from its poverty trap and address socio-economic problems, the country
has formulated and continues to formulate and implement development strategies since time immemorial.
Some of the notable strategies include Statements of Development Policies (1&2), Structural Adjustment
Programmes (SAPs), Poverty Alleviation Programme (PAP), Vision 2020, MASAF, Malawi Poverty
Reduction Strategy Paper (MPRSP) and the just launched Malawi Growth and Development Strategies
(MGDS). On the same line, since 2000 the country started to implement the Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs). All these strategies, in brief, have had as their overall objective the leading of the country
into attaining sustainable growth and social development through multifaceted activities proposed by
individual strategies.
However, despite these interventions carried so far, the country, as already asserted, still lags far
much behind to the point that socio-economic underdevelopment is not only wide-spread but also
increasing and deepening. This has tempted other scholars like Burkey to pose a question on why this is
so despite several interventions to remove the countries from underdevelopment. Burkey (1993) critically
asks:

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“We have now seen over three decades of so-called development programmes and thousands of
development projects designed and implemented [in the Third World]…yet everyone who has
any familiarity with the Third World knows that poverty is well and thriving, that the numbers of
poor are not only increasing but their poverty is deepening. What is wrong?” (Burkey, 1993: xvi).

With the case of Malawi, it is indispensable that the country is in great economic crisis in as far as
economic development is concerned partly because of inadequacies in participation and inefficiencies in
communication. From above, Malawi is poor because, among other things, factors that lead to
underdevelopment are mostly not addressed by the so called development strategies and plans. They
unknowingly focus on symptoms than causes. Only when the causes of poverty are known, can strategies
address them. Up to this far, development strategies have failed the country.

Significance of Participation in development

The question that needs to be asked would therefore be: how can the causes of socio-economic
development be known? On this, Burkey (1993) discloses that participation by the target people of
development can assist in identifying the causes of particular development challenges. The concept’s
significance dates back to Freirean writings on combating economic oppression. According to Freire
(1972:1,2&11), strategic moves to combat any form of oppression such as underdevelopment and
deepening poverty in third world previously failed because the oppressed were not central and did not
lead the fight on their own. Freire stresses that if there is improper participation, the oppressed are led
“to a pit fall” (Freire, 1972:11). Strikingly, Freire unambiguously stresses that participation requires
dialogue, which apparently demands effective communication and language which people can fully
understand.
Apart from offering a conducive environment for constructive resolutions, Freire underscores
that participation implants conscientization and morale among the economically oppressed to engage in
various liberation efforts on their own (Freire, 1972:11). Burkey, writing later, accepts that participation is
very critical in development. However, Burkey dwells much on conscientization, which he expounds as
the gaining of confidence in the poor themselves and realizations of their ability to fight and combat
poverty on their own(1993:53) as the critical benefit of participation. The generation of conscientization
and derailment of dependency syndromes in Malawi are well known problems which stem from colonial
legacies
It is thus not surprising to see scholars like Chambers (1997) and Anyaegbunam et al. (2004) and
Freire (1972) among others disclosing that one of the major factors that has slowed human development
is the lack of participation by the target development beneficiaries in the design and implementation of
policies and programmes that affect their lives. Development plans that are not a result from participation
of the beneficiaries tend, to address symptoms and not causes.

Language and Development

People’s participation can be hampered in a number of ways. However, this paper only focuses on the
language which we believe is very important aspect in bringing effective communication which can then
lead to participation of people. Participation can only be effective if there is effective communication. In
turn, effective communication results into effective participation and hence, effective solutions to
development. On the other hand, effective communication is only possible if the language used is
understandable by all parties in development.

Role of Local Language in Promoting Development

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The implementation of overarching development policies has been a major hurdle in Malawi. Over 40
year of independence, with numerous development initiatives carried in the country, Malawians still lags
in poverty. A common fact with these strategies is that they have been formulated in English. This limits
their understanding and accessibility to technocrats as a majority of the educated, who have achieved
Primary School Leaving Certificate, as per World Bank definition, finds it difficult to capture and
meaningfully digest them. This population does not make Malawi’s illiterate population pegged at about
one third (United Nations Human Development, 2013).
Currently, with the realization of how people’s participation in development is essential in
achieving the intended objectives of sustainable development, development proponents in the country are
now advocating for strategies that can empower Malawians to actively participate in development
activities of their particular communities. However, no effective participation can be achieved if there is
no effective communication between the development technicians and target beneficiaries. In other
words, if there is communication hindrance between development experts and intended beneficiaries,
local people will not be empowered to ably know the benefits of development activities that would result
into attaining the objectives of overarching strategies like the MGDS. Language used between these
stakeholders matters most as it aids communication amongst them. With this background, let’s now look
at the role that language plays in aiding participation, which in turn will result into development projects
addressing the realistic problems not symptoms as it has been the case.
Participation, admittedly can take place using any form of language. However, meaningful
participation for effective communication demands the usage of a language which is accessible to the
majority. Since most Malawians are illiterate, it is therefore a necessity to address them in the language
they understand better. Quite surprisingly, as revealed by Mtenje (2002), English usage is not well versed
even among the educated elite pushing the national literacy rates in official documents (United Nations
Human Development, 2013). The SADC Communication For Development Handbook (Anyaegbunam et
al., 2004) critically accords that meaningful participation only occurs where people understand each other
through language usage. Some local scholars have also put an emphasis on the argument that foreign
languages derail participation and effective communication by local development beneficiaries.
Communication for development strategies have recognized the importance of involving
community members as partners at the inception of the project and not as empty vessels to be filled with
knowledge (Melkote, 1991). They have also emphasized the need for dialogue before any attempts to
‘solve’ villagers’ problems. According to Kamlongera (2005), dialogue, which is the essence in any
development work demands that people communicate in languages understood by both parties. Folk
media, which should be understood within their context, have quickly been recognized as one way of
ensuring such a dialogue. Kamlongera (2005) further stresses that such an understanding should start with
the language of the people in its broadest sense, followed by that of the social-cultural matrix within
which the media operate.
This must be done to ensure that efforts aimed at improving the lives of people in developing
countries are sustainable. It is important to note that dialogue is only made possible by language. For
example, it is not possible to hold meaningful discussions about community development initiatives in a
language that is not understood by the facilitator other discussants, because the results are likely to be
biased or otherwise problematic. Fordham et al., (1995) have argued that there are few societies where
literacy does not bring more power (both personal and social), more ability to take part fully in society,
and more opportunities for personal and social development of all kinds. There is some evidence to show
that there are times when people are unable to contribute to development conversation because the
languages are carried in a second language which they do not understand. The section below gives
practical examples with the cases of parliamentary discussions and Theatre for Development (TfD). The
parliamentary deliberations provides a case study in which the language used in development deliberations
hinders development while TfD provides one in which language promotes development.

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Case Studies

Deliberations by Members of Parliament

The situation about the use of foreign languages in parliament provides a very good example in which
people are unable to participate in development because of the language of instruction. Research has
shown that some parliamentarians are unable to contribute to debates because they are carried in English,
a language which they are not conformable with.
Matiki (2001 cited in Mtenje, 2003:14) in his observation of parliamentary proceedings
analytically show that participation in debates is often limited to those who are very proficient and fluent
in the English language (See also Mugaba, 2007). Communication in the English language is thus
problematic even in cases where the speech is read from a ‘prepared-speech’. This follows that most
Members of Parliaments (MPs) who lack competencies in the language refrain from contributing to
debates.
Exclusive use of English language in debates means that the majority of the population is left out
from contributing to decisions made. The members who do not have a full mastery of the language used
are obliged to discuss bills in a language they feel comfortable to do so. This deprives their democratic
right to express their views in the house. Furthermore, this also affects the outcomes of such decisions. It
might be true that their ideas could change the whole outcome for the benefit of the country but such is
not the case. This also affects the representation of the people in particular areas. People in constituency
areas of such MPS are also not represented. And where such MPs are able to participate in such debates,
the people are left out because they do not understand what their MPs are articulating in the House.
Undoubtedly, such MPs would feel freely and more comfortable to use their mother tongue
when discussing businesses. For example, if Chichewa and other widely used languages were allowed in
parliament, MPs would be more active during business debates and be able to say more sensible things
than is the case at the moment (see Matiki, 2001 cited in Mtenje, 2003). Lifting restrictions on the use of
English would thus broaden the democratic base on that more Malawians will participate in decision
making. Given the obvious importance of the decision made in parliament like national budgets, language
of instructions in development is very crucial.
As Mtenje (2003) rightly puts it, no country in the world has achieved sustainable development
while using a foreign language. Major economic powers of the world-the US, Britain, China, Germany,
Japan and Taiwan show that none of them uses a foreign language as its official language. Even well to do
countries in Africa like Egypt, South Africa and Tanzania give witness to this.
It should therefore be appreciated that development in general cannot be realized to its fullest if
Malawi designs its development plans and agendas without taking into account consideration the use of
our indigenous languages, the languages of the masses, the majority of whom face English for the first
time. For it is only through proper communication with such masses that development messages can be
meaningfully appreciated. Since more than 57% of the literate group is somehow illiterate, it means that
development strategies in foreign languages like the MGDS alienate more than half the population that
represents the agents of development.
Development decisions affecting the communities are made by a handful of learned
individuals yet we claim to be democratic where the decisions are made by the majority population. It is
further interesting to note that the titles/names of development strategies in Malawi are in English as if
they were produced only for the donor communities and/or technocrats. As a result, most Malawians do
not know what the strategies are. Furthermore, the strategies are written in English. This entails that most
people can not streamline their day to day projects in line with the goals. It is thus not surprising to see
the country having difficulties in achieving some MDGs to do with people in communities (See MDGsII;
Ahmed and Cleeve, 2004). No wonder, other previous development policies like PAP and Malawi Poverty

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Reduction Strategy Paper performed unsatisfactorily. The people could not access the strategies and no
capture meaningful understanding of the language employed by these strategies. The MGDS if not
accessed by public, through its sole availability in English will trot the same line and fail to fully achieve its
aims.
It is also fascinating to note that in developed countries, important national events are not
conducted in a foreign language. However, in Malawi during anniversaries and other events of national
interest like parliamentary sessions are conducted in English, which is given prominence while Chichewa,
the [national] language comes second. Other local languages are further relegated to more junior
treatment during such events.

Theatre For Development (TfD)

Malawi, like most developing countries, is very much concerned with rural development. This is a very
tough task indeed and for it to be successful, several points have to be taken into consideration. First and
foremost there has to be a good communication system between the concerned parties. The development
has to ensure that his/her ideas and intentions are carefully explained and that they are fully understood
to be accepted or not. Lack of communication in any development activity can lead to unfortunate result
like active opposition. Communication is the process by which human beings shake information, ideas,
explore ideas and motivation.
There are wide ranges of techniques used in Malawi to deliver messages on rural
development. Theatre for development (TfD) is one of the tools used established to be effective in
facilitating dialogue and communication for development. Scholarly work also suggests that TfD speaks
to the majority because it uses the idiom and language of the non-elite’s (Kamlongera, 2005). TfD is
nothing other than a method of non-formal development education meant to develop the consciousness
of the rural population. It presents a praxis of development problems and mobilizes people to seek action
in order to generate people into action (Kamlongera, 2005; Freire, 1972). TfD mediates development
messages and involve the masses in development of their communities through use of theatre which uses
local languages as a mode of instruction (and communication).
TfD in Malawi can be emphasized as one method which brings about what Freire calls critical and
creative participation of the masses in their development. There are so many cases that TfD has resulted
into positive developments. Historical evidence illustrates that Chancellor College Traveling Theatre in
the 1980s visited places like Mbalachanda in Nkhatabay, Mwina in Mangochi among other areas with an
intention to share knowledge through dialogical and participative discussions as with community
members to tackle health, agriculture and domestic violence topics. At the end, problems of
underdevelopment which were being left to flourish by the extension workers whose language of
instruction was at times English were being addressed by community members. In these areas, TfD
registered positive results. People actively participated in discussions that were improvised by the artists
on sketches because the language which was used made them understand the development problems and
solutions that needed to be put in place. The language used promoted the participation of all age-groups
and all stakeholders in those development activities. Resolutions to development problems were reached
on the same places of performances (see Hara, 1988; Kamlongera, 1985;1987).

Challenges of Participation
However, involvement of people in development is not without challenges. Cooke et al. (2001) have
argued that participation, as an ambiguous concept, can be manipulated by practitioners with promises of
empowerment and transformation. Likewise, other proponents of participatory approaches (Kindon, Pain
and Kesby, 2007) are of the view that practitioners may deliberately under-theorise power differences
which may reinforces the power and other structural inequalities with the possibility of marginalization
resulting from the participatory processes while striving for consensus and collective action. Thus, it is the

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duty of development practitioners to make sure that community members fully understand the purpose of
any development projects affecting their lives (Bessette, 2004). But above all, it is the duty of practitioners
to ensure that people are protagonists of their own development initiatives. And we are of the view that
this can be realized if people and experts speak a common language-the language of the people. Experts,
without the involvement of local people, might come up with solutions to problems. However, those
interventions, as already stated, only address symptoms and not causes. The problems are left unsolved. A
lot more resources are put to solve the same problem even if it comes in similar symptoms. As a result,
development plans, without involving the participation of the target beneficiaries, are in fact more
expensive and time consuming (Bessette, 2004; Chambers, 1997).

Recommendations
From the discussion raised here, Malawi’s development is seen as being derailed because people do not
fully appreciate development programmes implemented. The rationale behind this remains the fact that
the use of English in all development plans which ironically most people even the educated elite find hard
to fully express themselves or grasp the significant issues at hand, bars the participation of development
change agents in development activities. There are insurmountable indications from our essay that many
projects have not been successful due to inadequacies in communication and participation hatched by use
of an alien language.
Mtenje (2003) adds that usage of vernacular languages are greatly limited and considered backward
in Malawi which affects effective participation and communication. However, this validity of this
argument is further questioned (see Mtenje, 2002, 2003). The role of local languages in social economic
development should not be understated. Local languages, if critically used, can prove crucial to Malawi’s
development efforts including the MGDSII. When the development policies are designed, the belief is
that all development stakeholders, including the ordinary public members will streamline and harmonize
their policies in line with them. Development needs to involve everyone in the communities.
It commonly agreed that in any socio-economic development endeavor, the sustainability of
projects can be achieved if all stakeholders, and in particular the benefiting ordinary members understand
how the projects will be implemented. Using English in projects prevents local people from streamlining
their day to day activities with overarching development plans. Additionally, planning interventions in the
language which is unfamiliar to the majority of Malawians means that the majority are unable to capture
the aims of such plans. As a result they shun away from participating.
It, therefore, follows that if the MGDS (and other yet to be formulated plans) is not translated
into the indigenous languages, it is also on the verge of falling into an unsuccessful abyss. The concrete
action that government can take to ensure that people take full ownership of homegrown development
strategies and taking full ownership of its economy and destiny is to make sure they are understood by the
beneficiaries - Malawians. One critical issue, therefore, is the need to examine and re-conceptualize the
nature of development to ensure greater participation of local people in decision-making and to locate the
issue of language rights within the context of development. This demands translation of the policies into
the indigenous languages which most Malawians feel conformable to discuss ideas . Educated elites, as
Mtenje (2002) calls them, argue that it is impossible to devise scientific concepts in local languages.
However, it is possible to devise terminologies of specialized concepts in local languages. Bamgbose
(1987), Akambadi (2001), Kishindo (1987), and Kishindo & Kazima (2000) among others have critically
and thoroughly indicated how terminologies of high specialized disciplines like health, mathematics,
agriculture can be devised in local languages. Kaphesi (2001) empirically demonstrates that contrary to
fears engulfing the education scholarship in Malawi, mathematics and science can be taught in Chiyao and
other local languages. However, some might even argue that some documents of other development
strategies have been translated into some local languages, yet nothing seem to be achieved. This is because

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the planning of such documents was solely left to experts and local languages were pushed to an inferior
position.
We, therefore, recommend that from the initial stage, local Malawians must be involved in the
planning of such interventions, while using the language they understand better. Thereafter, the strategies
need to be prepared in local languages. Translation for English languages should come second. This is to
say, English versions of such documents should sorely come second and only for donors and those who
claim to be educated enough-the educated elites, to read it local languages. Several scholars like Kishindo
(2000) and Mtenje (2003) have shown that one of the major reasons for persisting underdevelopment on
the African continent and the failure of development programmes to eradicate poverty is the Africans’
over dependence on foreign languages. But since damage has already been done on the MGDS, it is high
time that it is translated into most local languages of Malawians. Unless the concepts and terminology of
development are rooted in the indigenous language of the people, the much-expected fruits of
development will remain alien, unnaturalized by the people whom they are meant to assist (Kishindo,
2000:15; Ansu-Kyeremeh, 2005). The use of English leaves the majority out, yet we claim to be a
democratic nation.

Conclusion
In conclusion, the paper has given what others may call subjective opinions revolving on the usage of
Malawian languages as the premise of development. The crux of the matter is that the continued usage of
English as a mode of instructions condemns the overwhelming majority of the populace of Malawi on
serious development issues of national interest. This rules out potentially competent development agents
to discuss matters that affect their communities.
The essay has shown that the best way to communicate to people or indeed understand them is
through a language which is closest to their culture, a familiar language, which in other words is usually
their mother tongue or lingua franca. It is the local people who are the main agents of development and if
development messages and strategies by the government come in a language which they cannot
understand, the very much people who are needed for development will be left out. Usage of local
languages will remove the barrier to participation. Effective communication is a critical step to rooting out
abject poverty and accomplishment of sustainable development as expressed in the MGDS and the UN
MDGs. We can not talk about development without talking about the participation of the local masses.
But we must concede here that much more needs to be done. For example, there is need for up to date
empirical evidence to either support or challenge our claims.

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Journal of Development and Communication Studies,

Vol. 2. Nos. 2/3, July-December, 2013. ISSN (Online): 2305-7432. http://www.devcomsjournalmw.org.
© Journal of Development and Communication Studies, 2013.
______________________________________________________________________________

Discussion paper

Community Radio in Political Theory and Development

Practice
Ericka Tucker (PhD)
Department of Philosophy, California Polytechnic, Pamona, California, USA. Email: eltucker@csupomona.edu

Abstract

While to political theorists in the United States ‘community radio’ may seem a quaint holdover of the democratization
movements of the 1960s, community radio has been an important tool in development contexts for decades. In this paper I
investigate how community radio is conceptualized within and outside of the development frame, as a solution to
development problems, as part of development projects communication strategy, and as a tool for increasing democratic
political participation in development projects. I want to show that community radio is an essential tool of democratization
and democracy outside of the development frame. To do so, I will bring out the conceptual and structural dimensions of
community radio through examples of existing community radios, both those which are independently created and those
which have been created as development projects. These structural and conceptual elements provide community radio the
potential to realize the goals of development practice while avoiding characteristic pitfalls. These ‘pitfalls’ of development are
also pitfalls of democratization and democracy in existing democratic states, and include: depoliticization, limited
participation, particularly of marginalized groups.

Key Words: Community media, community radio, empowerment, refugee radio, democracy, development, communicative
democracy
________________________________________________________________________________

Introduction
In political theory, community radio provides an alternative conception of democratic participation and
deliberation, crucially providing a tool for increasing public deliberation and communication. In
community radio stations citizens and non-citizens can develop their political understanding and work to
bring their problems to the attention of the larger public. In this way, community radio provides a
communicative democratic answer to the problems of both development and of contemporary democratic
theory. In the first part of the paper I will set out the normative conception of ‘community radio’, that is,
what it is supposed to be and what its characteristic aims and goals are. I will then set out how it has been
employed in development projects, and how it has been

seen as a solution to what we might think of as first and second order development problems. We can
think of first-order problems as the political, social and economic problems that development is supposed
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to solve, e.g. poverty, women’s empowerment. Second-order problems are those problems created by
development actions and programs themselves, e.g. depoliticization. In the second part of the paper, I
bring the discussion of community radio into the debates over the place of communication and
deliberation in democratic practice. I propose, given the discussion of the first section, that community
radio has characteristics that can solve problems of depoliticization, participation, and lack of public
deliberation identified by democratic theorists as problems in developed democratic states.

Community Radio and Development

Key Concepts in Community Radio
“[People] live in a community by virtue of the things they have in common; and communication
is the way in which they possess things in common.” (Dewey, 1966, 4-5)

Defining Community
What is ‘community’? Is it a geographical entity, a cultural group, or a political entity? In the
quotation above, philosopher John Dewey suggests that community is something that is created through
communication. Through discussion with our neighbors, fellow citizens and those with similar interests,
cultural values, or religious beliefs or shared challenges we create ‘community’. In our current world, we
tend to talk about large scale, global, international communications via the Internet or satellite television.
Community radio is small. With the advent of low power community radio stations in the United States,
which broadcast at between 10 and 100 watts, community radio is getting even smaller. As such, it may
seem a medium irrelevant for large democracies and for projects seeking large-scale development. How
can such a small way of communicating produce any sort of appreciable outcome in a world dominated by
larger media, larger concerns, global communities?
The manner in which we communicate creates different sorts of communities. In one on one
conversation we can achieve dialogue, whereas when we watch television or listen to the radio, in most
cases, we are consumers of rehearsed information. Community radio stands in between, as a medium
where we can achieve dialogue without face-to-face. By facilitating dialogue community radio, more than
any other type of broadcast medium, creates community. I will argue that community radio stations, or
community radios as they are often referred to, are still relevant, and are enormously powerful -- not in
spite of, but because of their size -- for creating strong and democratic communities in both the developed
and developing world. In this paper, I will engage in the somewhat bloodless task of outlining the concept
of community radio – how it is theorized, how it is used in practice, and how it can be used as a useful
tool for avoiding characteristic problems of development projects based on its theoretical and structural
norms. However, at base, community radio is a medium that allows for us to engage in conversation and
dialogue that comes closest to an ideal of public deliberation, and that each of the conceptual elements
that I will analyze work together to create this important tool for human development.

What is community radio?

The ‘community’ in the case of community radio, generally refers to a geographical area over which the
signal of that radio can be heard. Geography, however, is not sufficient to make a radio station a
community radio. Community radio is properly realized when a radio station broadcasts for a diverse
geographic community, understanding that a variety of different ethnic and social groups live in that
geographical area, that there may be imbalances of power within that ‘community’ and that the airwaves
on a community radio station should be opened to those members of communities who are not heard on
other media. In South Africa, the Independent Broadcasting Authority, IBA, distributes community radio
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licenses both to “geographical communities” and to “communities of interest,” (Gumucio-Dagron, 2001,

173) for instance stations like the Moutse Community Radio station, which was started by women, but
which is run and owned by the community, women and men included. In the United States, Low Power
FM (LPFM) and Local Community FM (LCFM) licenses can be obtained by community organizations,
defined as non-profit corporations, which have been in operation for more than one year. (FCC, 2003) In
some cases, community radio stations are started in order to create or develop a community out of what
might be an unaffiliated settlement of people. Community radio stations often double as community
centers, and since they publicize community events and act as a forum for public debate and community
members’ self-expression, they help create, sustain, and define the community.
The normative political theories of community radio are remarkably consistent, from UNESCO
manuals on how to set up community radio projects (Tabing, 2002) to community radio station mission
statements in the US to the definitions of community radio given by community radio practitioners
around the world. (AMARC, 2008; KBOO, 2013; WRFG, 2013; NFCB, 2013, Prometheus, 2013) In this
section I will outline some of the main features of community radio stations, all of which form the core of
the normative conception of community radio.
Access
Community radio stations exist to provide access to the media, access to public information, and access
to a public forum to groups and individuals who have not previously had such access. This principle is
often conceptualized as providing an opportunity to hear the voices of the voiceless, for those who
generally cannot be heard in public forums. By access, community radio stations generally mean that
they provide time and space for all members of the community to speak, to discuss issues of social,
political, and economic importance, and to hear voices of dissent or of marginalized peoples.
Participation
Community radio stations are supposed to be maximally participatory. They are supposed to encourage
participation of local citizens in all elements of their operation, including management, planning,
education and production.
Training
Maximal participation is made possible by the existence of extensive training, both in terms of content
and radio production and engineering, and in the physical maintenance of the community radio
equipment. Training is supposed to provide community members with the ability to operate their
station, and to allow them to go on the air and express their views, interacting with other members of
their community. Most community radio stations have a ‘community building’ or ‘educational’ mission,
and many stations see their training programs as empowering and educating community members.
(KBOO, 2013; KAOS, 2013, WRFG, 2013; NFCB, 2013)
Not-for profit
Community radio stations are not-for-profit entities. They may receive funding from businesses, or
they may have fundraisers and sales in order to increase their funding, but the proceeds from such
commercial ventures must go to the station itself, or to any community foundation that runs the station
to be used for projects related to the station and education. (NFCB, 2013; FCC, 2013; AMARC,
2013a).
Community owned
The ideal of a community radio station is that it is started, operated, and owned by the community,
which it serves. Very few community radio stations are totally community owned, and may receive
financial support from IGOs, NGOs, local or national governments. One way that the community
owns their community radio stations is through community run non-profits, community-elected boards
of directors, and the creation of a membership-subscription service. (NFCB, 2013)
Volunteer run
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Community radio stations are non-for-profit, and they generally have a large staff of volunteers.
Because community radio stations are supposed to be maximally participatory, it is important that they
be run by a large number of people representing the community that they serve. Stations differ in the
number of volunteers and the roles they play in the organization. Volunteers may maintain the station,
build the station, produce and host programs, or manage the station. Having paid staff members does
not usually conflict with being run by volunteers.
Local
Most community radio stations have as one of their programming principles, a requirement to play
local music, to support local artists and cultural producers, and to focus on local public affairs and
news. Although this does not prevent international, regional or national coverage of news, and the
playing of music from outside the community, the importance of supporting the local community, and
of programming about and for the local community is a goal of community media. (KBOO, 2013,
KAOS, 2013, WRFG, 2013; NFCB, 2013)

Community Radio vs. Public and Commercial Media

Community Radio differs from public or national media and commercial media in the following ways:
public media are often run by governments, and so are not independent, as community radio stations
seek to be. Public media are understood as the voice of a benevolent authority, giving information to
the public. Public media are also seen as professional media, with paid staff, professional reporters,
while community media are normatively supposed to be run by the community members, which it
serves. Commercial media are different from both public and community media in that they are run in
order to make money. Public and community media may have commercials or underwriting from
business sources in order to operate, but they are generally not profit-driven enterprises. In contrast to
public and commercial media, community radio practitioners generally see community radio as
‘grassroots’ and ‘participatory’ as against the public service-commercial model, which Louie Tabing has
called a model of “Profit, Propaganda, Power and Privilege.” (Tabing, 2002)

Benefits of community radio

I will set out what theorists and activists identify as the benefits of community radio, and then go into
more detail about how this works in terms of particular projects.
● Community radio is a democratizing tool, encouraging participation and involvement in local
affairs, political and social.
● Community radio provides access to the media to communities and groups that have previously
not had such access.
● Community radio increases the political and social power, knowledge, and experience of those
who participate in it.
● Community radio offers communities opportunity for self-expression.
● Community radio creates and sustains political community through its role as participatory
public forum. Community radio stations are a forum for the discussion of community problems,
and thus are spaces where community problems can be described, interpreted, analyzed, mobilized
around and solved. Community radio creates a public, and a public sphere, where one had either
withered or had never existed before. (Calhoun, 1991; Maiava, 2002; Myers, 1995; Lang, 2002;
Kumar, 1994; Ross and Rolt, 2005; Prometheus, 2013)
● Community radio can inform listeners and participants and can focus on local issues.
Community radio mobilizes listeners and participants. (Prometheus, 2013b)
● Community radio stations can serve as spaces for dissent and opposition.
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● Community radio stations can empower marginalized groups, giving them skills in political
communication, helping them develop support networks, and programming for their needs
(linguistic, health, social, and cultural).
● Compared to other media, in terms of cost of setting up a station and the cost of a receiver,
radio is inexpensive.
● Through training, community radio stations provide participants with valuable skills, in terms of
self-expression and political communication, which can empower them. Training people to use
and to fix basic radio equipment is a standard practice of community radio stations.

Diversity in the Community Radio Model

Although there is a remarkable similarity in the way that community radio is theorized around the world,
and in different particular projects, community radio stations themselves are quite diverse in the way that
they operationalize what it is to be a community radio station. In this section, I will outline the ways in
which community radio stations differ.

Level of participation and community management

Some stations are run entirely by volunteers, some have paid staff, and some have professional
journalists. The range of management setups for community radio stations is rather large, from being
run by member elected boards, community foundations, paid staff, all-volunteer staff and
management, to being run by NGOs or by church groups or church central committees.
Level of community ownership
The goal of most community radio stations is to be self-supporting, although few reach that goal
entirely. Other sources of funding include governments, non-governmental organizations, churches,
international governmental organizations, and community funds. Many community radio stations
receive their funding from listener-subscribers. Depending on the kind of funding source community
radio stations are understood as more or less independent, and more or less community owned.
Origins
Some are started as development projects, some are started at the grassroots level by local political,
social, or religious groups who see the need to get their message out, and some are started by
community radio activists and supporters, seeing a need for community discussion and participation in
political communication in their communities. (Gray, 2002)
Programming
Normatively, community radio programming should be created by and for the community that it
serves. Although most community radio stations follow this model, there is always some mixed
programming. Music, talk, public affairs, and public information are staples of community radio
stations. Community radio stations created by development projects also tend to have a high-volume
of programming content created by development organizations. This development content runs the
gamut from dramatic soap-operas to public service announcements on topics including public health
(AIDS, Malaria, etc.), anti-violence programs, gender issues, children’s rights, notices of development
projects in the area, etc. Community radio stations also support distance education projects, by
broadcasting educational courses.
Size
There are a number of ways that the size of a community radio station could be measured: in terms of
listenership, volunteer membership, subscriber base, range of signal, or in terms of the power of their
station’s signal. Although all of these variables vary widely among community radio stations, it is
worthwhile to outline some of the differences. In the Philippines, the Community Audio Towers
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project, consisting of towers built with large cones, a PA system, and a microphone, broadcast
(although the technical term is narrowcast) to around 4,000 people in 6 communities, at a range of 3
miles. Whereas in Portland, Oregon, KBOO Community Radio broadcasts at 250,000 watts with
multiple translators to a listenership of 70,000, with an annual budget of $900,000.
Networks
Community radio stations, which are almost universally small-scale operations, cannot by themselves
shape international or even national regulations. So, how can the contributions of small community
radios reach the larger public? How can small radio stations lobby for regulatory protections, the
importance of non-profit community broadcasting licenses that are necessary for their survival and for
the expansion of community radio as a form of political and development communication?
A variety of international organizations have taken up the task of not only starting and supporting
community radio stations and participatory media organizations, but also creating networks of community
radio stations. These networks then advocate for community radio broadcasters at international meetings
and conferences where communications legislation and policy is developed. These organizations include:
UNESCOs Communication Initiative, and AMARC (World Association of Community Broadcasters).
Started in 1983, AMARC, “is an international non-governmental organization serving the community
radio movement, with nearly 3000 members and associates in 106 countries. Its goal is to support and
contribute to the development of community and participatory radio along the principals of solidarity and
international cooperation” (AMARC, 2005). One network of radio stations, the Feminist International
Radio Endeavour (FIRE), was born as a short-wave radio programme by and about women for all in 1991
but in 1998 became an international radio programmed broadcast in the short-wave radio station Radio
For Peace International, located on the campus of the University for Peace in El Rodeo, Costa Rica
(AMARC-WIN, 2013). Another important network is the Women’s Radio Fund which works “to
reinforce the socially inclusive ethos of the community radio sector, and promote access to the media by
minority, women and disadvantaged groups” (AMARC, 2013b). The Women’s Radio Fund started in 1987
and is supported by the Global Fund for Women. These organizations support the work particularly of
community radio projects. These international NGOs, networks, and associations are involved in the
important work of international lobbying for regulations which support community radio, and they are
also instrumental in creating networks between community radio stations, allowing them to share
information, programming content, funding sources, and best practices. Organizations like UNESCO also
survey and sometimes fund research projects that document the impact of community radio and
participatory media of various sorts.
Although the community radio ideal is locally based, maximally participatory community
involvement, the current geopolitical configuration and the importance, especially for poor countries, of
the international sphere and international decision-making, requires international networks as well as
IGOs and international NGOs to support the work of these very small and local activities. Further,
because of the close operation of many of these organizations with local community radio stations and
projects, such networks promote the active engagement of small local projects with other projects as well
as promote familiarity with the international scene, and introduce these local voices into the international
debate over communications and development policy. Community radio networks allow for
communication between small radio projects; thus, they allow local justice to contribute to global justice.
(Held, 1995, 2003, 2005; Holden, 2000)

Community Radio and Marginalized Voices

Local voices, marginalized populations, and their priorities, and problems need to be heard in developing
and in developed countries. Community radio is a form of participatory media with the power to reach
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and include these marginalized voices. In this section, I will describe the ways that community radio can
reach and reach out to marginalized peoples, including groups that are rural, poor, illiterate, in a linguistic
minority, refugees, and women. In this section, I will set out how community radios can serve as conduits
for information and media for expression of the views of marginalized communities.

Rural dispersed populations

Radio has the power to reach people in rural settings, people who may not meet or converge in any other
place. Much of the population of Africa is rural, and this has been pointed out as a challenge for
development projects. (Sachs, 2005) Radio already plays a significant role in political communication in
many African countries. In “Media in ‘Globalizing’ Africa: what prospect for democratic
communication?” Arthur-Martin Aginam writes, “Radio broadcasting remains the most popular form of
mass communication in sub-Saharan Africa. This is particularly so, given that the vast majority (about 80
percent) of the population lives in rural areas. Also, given the relative cheapness of the medium, the low
level of functional literacy (about 50 percent), and the prevalence of multilingual states combine to give
radio its preeminent status among other forms of mass communication.” (Aginam, 2005, 125) Similarly,
Sandip Das notes that in India, radio reaches 90 percent of India’s population. (Das, 2003) The debate
over the relevance of community radio in such circumstances is thus quite different from that of states
with urban populations. In these contexts, radio is the primary medium through which political and
development communication is possible.
There are a number of development projects which use community radio to reach dispersed rural
populations, including: Kutch Mahila Vikas Sangathan, a rural women’s radio project in Gujarat (Aginam,
2005, 96) Radio Huayacocotla, in Mexico, the ‘Voice of the Peasants’ operates on short-wave bands to
reach peasants in rural areas. (Gumucio-Dagron, 2001; Vargas, 1995) Radio Chaguarurco in Ecuador helps
empower dispersed rural peasants by airing peasant complaints about landlord and commercial
exploitation. In the words of the listeners of the station:
“The authorities, institutions and merchants are more democratic. Before it was easy to abuse a
campesino, charge higher prices, or steal material intended for public works in the communities.
Now when there is an abuse, everybody hears about it on the radio. The radio serves as a sort of
guardian in the democratic game. The radio has served to let us share experiences and problems.
People from communities tell about their experiences on the radio, and this helps the others see
the process — solutions to everyday problems are shared. The radio is contributing to the
valorisation of our culture, our music, our way of speaking. These programmes are generating
renewed pride in our own culture.” (Dagron, 2001, 157)

The Poor
The poor rarely have a voice in commercial media. Although the poor are often discussed in terms of the
‘problem of the poor’, the voices of the poor, and the discussion of the problem of poverty in the words
of the poor is rarely heard on such media. Community radio, with its focus on participation particularly of
marginalized voices, invites the poor to contribute and to participate in community radio. In Portland,
Oregon, at KBOO Community radio, a regular program on the homeless, ‘Hole in the Bucket’ encourages
the participation of local homeless organizations and individuals, providing training on interviewing
techniques and radio production to homeless and formerly homeless volunteers. In Atlanta, Georgia,
WRFG Community Radio’s “Class Chronicles” program is run by a collective of poor people and
community activists who tackle issues of interest to the poor and focus on the political aspects of poverty.
Many community radio stations are created to serve the poor, specifically. The above mentioned rural
community radio stations are examples of such stations. Radio Kwizera in Tanzania focuses on issues of
poverty and powerlessness, Radio Mampita & Magneva in Madagascar focus on community building in
poor areas, with a strong emphasis on the participation of poor people in the creation of programming.
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(Gumucio-Dagron, 2001: 204) Radio Izcanal in El Salvador is an example of a radio station that is
completely owned by its community, and was started by a small community of poor refugees in Nueva
Granada. (Gumucio-Dagron, 2001: 119) In the Philippines, the Tambuli Radio Network calls itself the
“voice of the small community for the development of the underprivileged.” (Gumucio-Gumucio-Dagron,
2001:207) Its twenty radio stations serve mainly impoverished and remote communities.

Illiterate populations and linguistic minorities

In many areas of the world, there are many spoken languages, and large numbers of illiterate or semi-
literate people who cannot absorb information through written media. In these places, there may not be
the resources available for television, and so radio has an important role to play. As a low-cost aural
medium, it can be a tool of political communication by and for illiterate peoples. Further, community
radio stations can broadcast in more than one language, providing programming in the many spoken
languages of the community, thus it can be used as a tool to serve linguistic minorities.
KBOO in Portland, Oregon, provides programming in English, Russian, Hindi, Spanish,
Portuguese, and Arabic. Mexico’s Radio Margaritas, is part of a network of community radio stations in
Mexico serving over 20 ethnic groups in total, and has a transmitter of 4000 and covering an area of
20,000 square kilometres. (Gumucio-Dagron, 2001:74.) Radio Margaritas alone reaches as many as nine
different ethnic groups, programming is done in the languages of Tojolabal, Tzeltal, Tzotzil and Mam.
Radio Zibonele in Khayelitsha, Cape Town, South Africa, trains illiterate volunteers on how to produce a
radio broadcast and to use radio equipment, empowering them to get their voices heard in their
communities. (Gumucio-Dagron, 2001: 139)

Refugees
Refugees are populations which are concentrated in a particular area or camp, or resettlement area, but for
which the term ‘community’ is often somewhat strangely applied, due to the ‘temporary’ nature of their
grouping. In recent years, refugee camps have persisted well beyond any notion of temporary, and the
need for community building and civil society structures within such camps has been identified. In 1995,
Radio Kwizera was started in Ngara, Tanzania, a town bordering Burundi and Rwanda. (Gumucio-
Dagron, 2001:163). The radio station was started by the Jesuit Refugee services, and is supported by a
number of IGOs and NGOs, including: the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR),
Red Cross, Norwegian Peoples Aid (NPA), World Food Programme (WFP), Oxfam, Réseau pour le
développement soutenable (REDESO), UNICEF and Atlas. With a focus on peace building, refugee
relocation, and reconciliation, the radio station provides 90 hours of programming each week to 250,000
refugees and the local population of Ngara and Kibondo, which is developed mostly by NGOs, but also
includes the participation and training of refugees. Sagal Radio, a refugee-run community radio station in
Clarkston, Georgia (USA), broadcasts in Afaan-Oromo, Karen, Somali, Amharic, Swahili, Bhutanese, and
English for the large and diverse community of refugees resettled in Clarkston.

Women
Women, as such, are rarely considered to make up a social group. Although their level of interaction and
joint action with other women varies cross-culturally, in many places, women are often isolated from other
women or are not socialized to cooperate with other women, or see themselves as members of a group
based on gender. While women may not see themselves as members of a gender based group, many of the
structures and problems of developing (and developed) nations affect women qua women. One of the
insights in development literature in the last 20 years has been the fact that development and globalization
differentially affect men and women. (Rives and Yousefi, 1997; Nussbaum, 1999 and 2000; Sen and
Nussbaum, 1993; Sen, 2000; Chow, 2003; Goetz, 2003; Kabeer, 2005, UNFPA, 2005; OECD 2010;
Khader, 2011; UN Women Watch, 2009; WHO 2008, 2009; CARE, 2012; Shiva, 2002, 2005; Sen, 2005;
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Glenzer, 2005; Young, 1999, 2000, 2007; Mukherjee, 1995; Nussbaum and Glover, 1995; Martinez and
Glenzer, 2005; Mason and Smith, 2003) Women without political power or organizational support from
other women similarly affected by these projects/trends cannot effectively call for political redress for
these issues by themselves. By organizing in groups similarly affected by a host of issues, women gain
numerical power. (UNRISD 2000; Glenzer 2005; Harcourt, 2006; Peters and Wolper, 1995)
Section J of the Beijing Platform for Action (developed at the 1995 Beijing conference on women)
attends to issues of women and the media. (Beijing Platform, 1995) The major concerns about women in
the media expressed in the Beijing Platform for action are the following: 1. stereotyped portrayals of
women in the media which are harmful to women and girls’ self-image, 2. the lack of access of women to
media sources, and the lack of women’s participation at all levels of media production, direction, and
ownership, 3. the opportunities that media offer women for empowerment. The Platform suggests that,
“Women should be empowered by enhancing their skills, knowledge and access to information
technology.” (J.237) One of the strategic objectives should be to, “Increase the participation and access of
women to expression and decision-making in and through the media and new technologies of
communication”’(J.1) Access to and participation in the media are seen as ways to increase women’s social
and political power. Although the strategies of the Platform are not limited to community or to
participatory media, we can see how participatory media would enhance women’s participation, and how
having local community radio stations would increase both women’s access and their participation in
media.
Community radio provides another way to understand women’s political participation. (AMARC-
WIN, 2013) Increasing women’s political participation is one of the Millennium Development Goals and
has been interpreted as increasing women’s representation in governing bodies, although this has been
criticized as tokenism, and it has been challenged that the women in these governing bodies are not
consulted or equal members. (U.N., 2005; Wood Wetzel, 2004; Parpart, 2002) Community radio stations
started by women or women’s groups within community radio stations can increase women’s political
participation in some of the following ways: increases participate in public debate, to set the terms in
local/community media, creates opportunities for leadership and decision making, creates forums for
discussions of women’s political issues and for women’s response to political decisions. Community radio
participation develops individual self-expression, speaking, argument, and writing skills, all of which are
necessary for political participation in a democracy. International networks of women’s radio
organizations bolsters the international access and power of small local radios and women’s collectives in
radio. Women can also learn a variety of skills including, technical skills/radio engineering,
reading/writing/news editing and reading skills, radio show production techniques, and collective decision
making strategies. (Jallov, 1996) Through distance education and other educational programs, which can
reach women in their homes, community radio can aid in the promotion of women’s education.
According to the World Bank, “Another cost-effective means of reducing schedule conflicts for women is
distance education, which generally revolves a combination of radio and correspondence techniques.
Radio (or sometimes television) is used for transmitting classroom instruction in all subjects, and students
supplement this with the use of textbooks and self-paced workbooks…Evidence suggests that self-study
schools can reduce costs by at least 20 to 30 percent while opening access to girls.” (World Bank, 1994,
44)
o There have been a number of grassroots and development projects focusing on increasing
women’s access and participation in community media. In “Women on the Air:
community radio as a tool for feminist messages” Birgitte Jallov writes about the use of
community radio by feminist groups in Europe in the 1960s and 70s. She identifies the
following as key reasons that community radio was a tool for feminists, how it worked to
empower women:
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ƒ Community radio increased the visibility of women and women’s experiences on

the airwaves, countering stereotypes of women in the media. (Jallov, 1996, 203)
ƒ It gave women place on ‘public stage’ and an “avenue for involvement in public
sphere.” (Jallov, 1996, 203) Jallov writes, “Community radio has provided an ideal
opportunity for women to get on the air and contribute women’s voices and
perspectives to public debate.” (Jallov, 1996, 205)
ƒ Participation in community radio allowed women to express themselves,
empowering them to make changes in their lives: “Realizing women generally are
not free to make crucial decisions in their lives, the women working in the stations
attempt to organize the experiences of individual women into a collective unit of
experience. By letting women speak for themselves, the individual experiences are
transformed into a collective understanding of their life situation. Such
understanding can contribute to further choice and action.” (Jallov, 1996, 203)
ƒ The training they received allowed them access to better opportunities: “The
training activities are used to help young city girls formulate employment options
and to consider other lifestyle alternatives than those offered by traditional role
models.” (Jallov, 1996, 205)
Moutse Community Radio in Moutse Mpumalanga Province, South Africa, was started in 1997 by a group
of rural women who had been mobilizing around issues of water shortages, and other community needs.
(Jallov, 1996, 205) Lahliwe Nkoana, one of the founders of the station reports, “Moutse Community
Radio Station (MCRS) was born of many years of our community struggle. During those years, the rural,
mostly female community campaigned for rights to water, education, health care, electricity, democracy
and an end to polygamy which discriminated against rural wives.” (Gumucio-Dagron, 2001: 172) Moutse
focuses on women’s empowerment and community development, and although women initially ran the
station, they have opened up training, management, and production positions to men in the community.
KBOO community radio in Portland Oregon has a women’s caucus and two women’s collectively run
public affairs groups which produce 5 hours of programming on local, national, and international
women’s issues. Each collective is made up of different women from different ethnic, political, social and
geographic backgrounds. Each collective produces programs of interest to different communities of
women. The women’s collectives also train their own members, engage in outreach to include young
women and women from immigrant and minority groups, homeless women, and women on public
assistance to participate in the creation of programs. KPFK Community Radio in Los Angeles has two
women’s collectives, which produce two programs: Feminist Magazine and the Radio Insurgencia
Femenina.

Community Radio and Development – Participation and Information

Participation and information are two crucial aspects of development projects. A lack of participation on
the part of the beneficiaries of a development project can break the project. Also, when possible
beneficiaries of a development project are not informed about the project, or are not informed about its
benefits, the project may also fail. So, development projects must have a communications strategy. But
why should this strategy include participatory communications like community radio? How does
community involvement in the media enhance development objectives?
In development literature, community media is viewed as both an opportunity to foster political
and social participation, and as a method of pushing information to populations who they are working
with. This second model is the one on which the most empirical research has been done, and I would like
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to look at the results of this work. How has it been used as a development strategy? Broadly, there are two
main ways that community radio is seen as a tool for development:
x The participatory strategy is a tool to promote democratic participation. Participatory
programs encourage local people to become involved and participate in their communities,
thus becoming participants in a newly democratic culture, building skills and working with
others in their community to define and solve local problems.
x The information-diffusion strategy, where community radio is used as a tool for
communicating development related information, such as health, social policy, and
environmental messages. Often these two are combined, with the second being the
primary communications agenda for development organizations.

The Participatory Strategy

While even mainstream development projects often understand the role of network building and
community building which are outcomes of strategy 1, we could say that strategy 1, the participatory
strategy, or the participatory potential of community radio is linked to a grassroots movement for
‘participatory development’ in which local communities are encouraged to join together to define their
communities problems, rather than the top-down approach of traditional development projects.
While many development projects, and the entire development framework, has been criticized as
‘depoliticizing’, participatory community radio projects bring the politics back into development, by
encouraging local interpretations and priorities in terms of social, economic, and other policies. The
political nature of community radio stations, while seen as a benefit to the anti- or participatory
development theorists, can be a problem for local stations, like that of the Bolivian miner’s radio stations,
whose last broadcasts were of gunshots as the military took over their stations by force in 1980. What is
the relation between politics and community radio participation? Democratization is the link. When local
populations work together and take power upon themselves to interpret their reality, to identify and to
solve their own problems, they take the power that was wielded by others onto themselves, creating a new
structure of power. The radio station itself, as the site of this knowledge production, itself becomes a
contested site for power.

The Information-diffusion strategy

The information diffusion strategy uses community and other media to broadcast content that is
developed by NGOs or development organizations on health, education, and social issues. The
information-diffusion strategy has probably been the most popular use of community and other forms of
media used by development projects. Most of the empirical research on community radio and
development measures the impact of particular information-diffusion strategies. (Important exceptions
include Spitulnik Vidali, 1996 and 2002) This literature suggests that using community radio as a
communication strategy is essential to any successful project. (Feek, 2005)

Community Radio and Development Problems

Community radio has been used as a development tool, and many theorists and practitioners of
community radio believe that community radio and participatory media in general have the potential to
‘solve’ some of the problems with traditional development. (Haugerud, A. and M. Edelman, 2005;
Okome, 2003; Munck, 2000; Mohanty, 2003; Mills and Lewis, 2003; Fisher and Ponniah, 2003) In this
section I will look at critiques of development, outline the problems that they identify with development,
and show how community radio as an element of development can solve these problems.
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Problems with Development

One of the dangers of any development project is depoliticization. In The Anti-Politics Machine James
Ferguson argues that part of the ‘anti-politics’ development paradigm involves a strategic
misunderstanding of local context and the political situation that sustains inequality and poverty, and thus
that it undermines its goals of ‘eliminating poverty’ by inadequate attention to the problems which cause
poverty. Ferguson’s classic statement on development as an ‘anti-politics machine’ is the following: The
development paradigm creates its own discourse which constructs an area as a particular kind of object of
knowledge. Ferguson writes that development:
“creates a structure of knowledge around that object. Interventions are then organized on the
basis of this structure of knowledge which, while ‘failing’ on their own terms, nonetheless have
regular effects, which include the expansion and retrenchment of bureaucratic state power, side by
side with the projection of a representation of economic and social life which denies ‘politics’ and,
to the extent that it is successful, suspends its effects. The short answer to the question of what
the ‘development’ apparatus in Lesotho does, then, is found in the book’s titles: it is an ‘anti-
politics’ machine,’ depoliticizing everything it touches, everywhere whisking political realities out
of sight, all the while performing, almost unnoticed, its own pre-eminently political operation of
expanding bureaucratic state power.” (Ferguson, 1990, xv)
In Ferguson’s view, focus should shift from development to empowerment. “Since it is powerlessness that
ultimately underlies the surface conditions of poverty, ill health, and hunger, the larger goal ought to be
empowerment.” (Ferguson, 1990, 279-280) A shift to empowerment language does not yet provide an
answer to the most important questions, or make ‘empowerment’ a solution for ‘development’. “The
question of the subject, the actor who is to do the ‘doing’ still remains completely unspecified.” (Ferguson,
1990, 280) I take this to be a concern with how people gain political power, sustainable political power.
On Ferguson’s view, people’s lives improve and they gain the things that they need from struggle. Women
and women’s movements have gained power when they joined together, organizing for a common cause
or for mutual empowerment, organizing and becoming parts of groups of women which aim for women’s
empowerment are traditionally powerful tools for empowerment. Ferguson cautions suspicion when
approaching larger international bodies as fostering real political change. “Organizations like the World
Bank, USAID, and the Government of Lesotho are not really the sort of social actors that are very likely
to advance the empowerment of the exploited poor.” (Ferguson, 1990, 285) There is no reason why the
international community, or the power elite in poor countries should really be working for the
improvement of poor peoples lives. Thus, development efforts have less to do with the needs of the poor
than they do about furthering objectives like social control, or expanding markets, extending spheres of
influence. Such interventions assume an all-powerful benevolent development agency, but in reality the
interventions are always “interested and partial.” (Ferguson, 1990, 280) For Ferguson, this is not
necessarily the outcome of a grand conspiracy, but rather the result of a process that attempts to
depoliticize what is an inherently political matter – why some people have more power than others.
Poverty is not a technical problem; it cannot be solved through technical means.
Like Ferguson (although outside of the development paradigm) Jürgen Habermas is also
concerned with the depoliticization of political culture by bureaucracy. For Habermas, a key element of
political empowerment is the ability to define and interpret one’s environment and political situation. (
Honneth and Joas, 1991; Dews, 1992) The power to define is the power to identify problems and work
towards their solution. Habermas is concerned with what he calls ‘the administered society’, the
bureaucratic apparatus that sees the social world in terms of problems to be solved, by experts who are
able to define both the problems and the solutions.
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Community Radio as a Solution to these Development Problems

Community radio offers promising solutions to the following set of problems: 1. Community radio
provides a means of political participation for beneficiaries of development projects, 2. Community radio
functions as a development tool that does not encourage depoliticization, 3. Community radios can
intervene into the international globalization of media resources that will become a huge problem for
developing countries in the coming years. Depoliticization is a negative consequence of development.
Unlike depoliticizing development projects, community radio aims to support and create a politicized
public, which means a public in Habermas’ sense – a group of people engaging in the process of
communicative reason, active in public debate, creates a ‘public’, which can make a political process.
(Habermas, 1990) Unlike the development anti-politics machine, community radio at its best is a politics
machine, a counter-hegemonic knowledge machine. Community radio provides a solution to the problem
of how to operationalize empowerment that does not undermine the political nature of ‘empowerment’.
Citizen participation and community identification of problems, rather than bureaucratic problem
identification and management are keystones of the community radio model. Community radio is an
instrument for constructing and uncovering community knowledge about the problems of different
groups in that community. Community radio is communicative action in process. It facilitates the making
and dispersion of local knowledge through community participation and creation of programs. Further, it
can be a tool for organizing and informing groups.
Community radio stations are tools for the kind of development that seeks to empower local
people to define and to solve their own problems, to build their community’s capacities from within.
Empowerment radiates outward from community radio stations. Members join, become aware of other
projects in their community, build connections with others, leave the radio station for these other projects,
encourage others to try their hand at broadcasting. Also, power builds upon power in the realm of
democratic participatory communication. As individuals unused to having power learn to use the power at
their disposal, the technology as well as the power to represent and analyze their situations, they become
more powerful, and less likely to accept interpretations or policies which do not agree with their
understanding of their historical, social, and political moment.

International Normative Political Theorizing about Community Radio

Currently, in a variety of international legislative and regulatory agencies, including ITU, WTO, and
organizations of the UN like UNESCO, the future of international communications policy is being
shaped. There exists a large body of international theorizing on the importance of participatory media, and
the need to encourage legislation and regulation on a national and international level to encourage such
media organizations. It is worth highlighting some of these statements of the importance of community
broadcasting. Although theorists of community radio argue that thinking on a micro level can solve more
problems than macro-level thinking about development, they are, for the most part, also well aware, that
in the current geo-political situation, it is no longer possible to focus solely on the local, or on local media
in particular. Macro-level thinking which affects the local is already happening, whether one would like to
take part or not, and so any organization focused on small scale communications projects must be aware
of the discussions about media and communications on a national and international level. Broadcast media
are subject to national and international regulation, because of the public nature of the airwaves, and the
need for regulation to determine how the spectrum is divided. Further, the existence of powerful large
transnational media corporations has led to the development of international regulations that favor such
corporations over local and national media. These developments on the international scene have led to a
great deal of normative political theorizing about the role of media in the global world, how it should be
regulated, etc.
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There has been much theorizing about the power of community media on the international level,
as a tool to fight against the hegemony of global commercial media. Several international normative
political tools, the African Charter on Broadcasting, the Windhoek declaration, and the MacBride reports,
as well as country reports, like India’s Joshi report, have argued the importance of local, community,
participatory media in creating a just global public sphere. (Joshi, 2002; Warnock, 2007) In this section of
the paper I would like to review some of this literature, particularly those statements which include some
place for community media. In addition to global threats to community radios around the world, there is
also something like a worldwide movement to increase democratic participation through the use of
community radio, and no discussion of community radio would be complete without a discussion of this
international aspect. Two documents in particular -- the African Charter on Broadcasting and the
MacBride Commission Report, “Many Voices, One World” -- outline directions that national and
international media should follow in reforming communications policies.
The African Charter on Broadcasting, “Final Report: Ten Years On: Assessment, Challenges, and
Prospects.”(3-5 May 2001 Windhoek) presents arguments for the importance of freedom of expression,
diversity, the need for 3 tiered media, public service, commercial and community, increasing the level of
participation in decision making and finally, an expansion of non-profit community broadcasting,
“Community broadcasting is broadcasting which is for, by and about the community, whose ownership
and management is representative of the community, which pursues a social development agenda, and
which is non-profit.” (UNESCO, 1991)
In “Many Voices, One World”, the MacBride commission on the future of communications policy
suggested the following changes to international media structure and policy:
1. They called for a democratization of the media:
“Our conclusions are founded on the firm conviction that communication is a basic
individual right, as well as a collective one required by all communities and nations.
Freedom of information -- and, more specifically the right to seek, receive and impart
information -- is a fundamental human right; indeed, a prerequisite for many others. The
inherent nature of communication means that its fullest possible exercise and potential
depend on the surrounding political, social and economic conditions, the most vital of
these being democracy within countries and equal, democratic relations between them. It is
in this context that the democratization of communication at national and international
levels, as well as the larger role of communication in democratizing society, acquires
utmost importance.”
2. They called for the recognition of a right to communicate:
“Communication needs in a democratic society should be met by the extension of specific
rights such as the right to be informed, the right to inform, the right to privacy, the right to
participate in public communication -- all elements of a new concept the right to
communicate. In developing what might be called a new era of social rights, we suggest all
the implications of the right to communicate be further explored.”
3. They identified the importance of communication, not only as a system of political and public
information, but for development and education:
“Communication is not only a system of public information, but also an integral part of
education and development.”
4. They identified marginalized groups and emphasized that communications policy should be made
with the needs of these groups in mind:
“Attention should be paid to the communication needs of women. They should be assure
adequate access to communication means and that images of them and of their activities
are not distorted by the media or in advertising…The concerns of children and youth,
national, ethnic, religious, linguistic minorities, people living in remote areas and the aged
 406

and handicapped also deserve particular consideration. The constitute large and sensitive
segments of society and have special communication needs.”
5. They called for an increase in local, participatory media projects:
“Utilization of local radio, low-cost small format television and video systems and other
appropriate technologies would facilitate production of programs relevant to community
development efforts, stimulate participation and provide opportunity for diversified
cultural expression.”
The MacBride report, and the NWICO conferences that promulgated this report were rejected by the US
and Britain, which shortly thereafter left UNESCO. (Hackett and McChesney, 2005; Hamelink, 2003) The
U.S. in particular, home to a strong commercial media and proponent worldwide of this media, rejected
the requirement to support community or participatory media, which would compete with US media
corporations. After the US and Britain rejected the NWICO statements, the international climate for
media democratization cooled, with governments lacking the “political will”5 to take on these challenges.
The current debates on international communications policy are less focused on democratization of the
media, and more focused on technological issues. As Anriette Esterhuysen writes on the Declaration and
the Platform for Action developed at the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) convened by
the International Telecommunications Union (ITU):
“Often [the WSIS] Declaration and Action Plan contradict one another: the principles expressed
in the Declaration are not always carried through to the proposals in the Action Plan. As Sally
Burch points out, “the first article of the Declaration affirms ‘our common desire and
commitment to build a people-centred, inclusive and development-oriented Information Society,
where everyone can create, access, utilize and share information and knowledge, enabling
individuals, communities and people to achieve their full potential in promoting their sustainable
development and improving their quality of life…’. But in its first article, the Plan of Action limits
this vision to ‘promoting the use of ICT- based products, networks, services and applications’ to
achieve development goals.” (O Siochru, 2005, 310)
This deflation of the goals of democratization of the media in the international community is palpable,
and the general feeling of community media groups after the WSIS meeting was one of marginalization,
disappointment.6 There seems to be a disconnect between groups which believe democratization to
require no participatory structures in governance or in media, for whom indirect participation, like voting,
is paradigmatic of citizen participation, versus groups who are active in promoting participatory media like
community radio who argue that development of public information, and the participation of local
communities in creating an understanding of their problems and developing solutions from their own
analysis of their problems.
These worries go to the heart of questions about the role of democracy in the world, and the role
of media in a democracy. (Shapiro and Macedo, 2000; Young, 2000, 2007; Pateman, 1970; Chatterjee
2008) Community radio theorists have argued that there can be no democracy without participation, and
that participation must happen at all levels of society.(AMARC, 2008) It may appear that in the current
international order, that participation and democracy have been separated, and further that the role of
media in a democracy is understood in such a way that ‘participation’ is less important than the kinds of
technologies used for development goals. I have surveyed arguments so far which suggest that
development goals cannot be reached without participation, and participation cannot be achieved without

5
Latin American & Caribbean Women's Open Letter to WSIS on Gender Equality & The Information Society Signed by the
participants in the Seminar, “Women Subverting the Exclusive Information Orders.” (San José, Costa Rica, 28 September
2005)
 407

a communications strategy. In the next section of the paper, I will turn to the question of community
radio in the larger theoretical issues of the role of media in a democracy.

Community Radio and Democracy

Community radio addresses two main concerns of political theory, and democracy theory: the role of
participation, and the role of information. Political communication is necessary for modern democracy,
where the community under consideration is larger than a village. However, what kind of communications
system democracy requires depends one how one understands ‘democracy’. The community radio
movement comes out of theories of democracy for which participation is a key element. Without
participation of local people in the political or social process, no just, peaceful, political process can take
place. There are competing theories of democracy, however, and it is important to understand how
different development views, and different political scientific theories of democracy suggest differential
solutions.
Within the community radio literature, there are at least two recognizable theories of democracy,
transformative and radical. (Barber, 1994; Sousa Santos, 2005; Young, 2000; Fishkin, 1991; Ghai, 2001;
Mouffe, 1992; Benhabib, 1996; Benhabib, Shapiro and Petranovic, 2007; Hendley 1993) Radical
democracy theorists argue that the key element of a democracy is participation by a large percentage of the
population, particularly those marginalized populations whose voices might not be represented in a
majoritarian or elite system. Transformative democratic theorists agree with the radical democratic
theorists that participation is important, but they argue that this participation must take place in all socially
important institutions, and not just in political processes. However, for a theory of democracy for which
large-scale participation is not a key element, participatory or local media will not be a priority.
Community radio activists and theorists argue that participation is a key element of democracy. In
order to have a participatory democracy, a particular kind of media is necessary, namely one that includes
participatory citizen and community controlled media. In the United States context, community radio, and
the radical democracy theory that supports it, exists within a larger political context where liberal
representative democracy is powerful. In the United States, which has a history of primarily commercial
media, community radio stations and participatory media in general, are seen as external to systems of
power and media, they have an outsider status, and see themselves as serving “underserved” populations,
providing a “voice for the voiceless.” With these competing norms of democracy, one that encourages
participation, and one that encourages stability, we must fight for a participatory model.

The Role of Media in a Democracy

There is not just one, but many roles that media must play in a democracy, including: problem
construction/identification for informed decision making, identification of the range of solutions for
those problems, acting as a forum for public debate, and as outlet for groups to get their concerns heard,
as a force against government corruption, exposing abuses of power, and identifying community needs, so
that these can be addressed by decision makers. Media reformers in the U.S. and worldwide argue that
some systems favor some groups, and particularly that the current system of laws and regulations of media
in the U.S. serve elite corporate interests more than the interests of the common citizen, and further, that
our current commercially dominated media depoliticize citizens, make them into passive, apathetic
consumers rather than active participants in the democratic process.
In The Virtuous Circle, Pippa Norris investigates charges that problems in the media have
contributed to declines in democratic participation in Western democratic countries. She argues that rather
than being the cause of declines in participation, media outlets can contribute to increasing mobilization
and participation of those who are already politically interested, and seem to have no negative effects on
those who are already politically engaged. Rather than focusing on the media as the cause of problems of
 408

democratic participation, she suggests that there are other ‘ills of the body politic’ that are more pressing
and more direct causes of apathy and de-politicization.
Norris argues that the ‘media malaise’ thesis forwarded by radical and deliberative democratic
theorists, which suggests that mass media (commercial media) discourage political participation, is
unsupported by empirical evidence. Rather, Norris argues, the empirical evidence on the relation between
political participation and communication shows that those who are already politically active or
participating in the political process benefit from the current system of commercial media, and those who
are not politically active do not. A virtuous circle is formed between those who are politically active
already and the news media which sustains their participation, leaving those who are uninterested in
politics to pursue their own interests, occasionally checking the excesses of those in power through
indirect participation, voting.
One needs a theory of democracy, however, to be able to read this evidence as positive with
respect to democracy, and the theory of democracy that Norris uses is that of Joseph Schumpeter. For a
Schumpeterian theory of democracy, participation on a large scale is not only unnecessary, it is
discouraged. (Schumpeter, 2008) Ruling should be left to the elites, and the masses should be kept out of
governing and busy keeping the economy growing, and attending to their personal interests. Large-scale
democracies are technocratic problems to be solved by experts, in Schumpeter’s view. Elections are the
main form of participation, and serve to check any gross excesses by the elite. Different conceptions of
democracy yield different versions of what kind of press is important. In Schumpeter’s democracy, framed
as it is as a bulwark against socialism, only those involved in governing and with an economic stake in the
political process need to be informed. Schumpeter, not Chomsky, was the originator of ‘manufacturing
consent’ as the purpose of a functioning media system. A particular kind of political communication
apparatus is necessary to sustain this kind of political system. This kind of political communications
apparatus’s aim would not be to encourage popular participation, but rather through propaganda and
persuasion to ensure stability, to check governmental excesses, and to “manufacture consent.” (Herman
and Chomsky, 1998)
Norris writes that while there has been widespread fear that newspaper subscriptions would
decline, this has not been the case. In the U.S. context this has been the case, and newspaper circulations
have been declining in absolute numbers since 1990, according to State of the News Media 2004 Report,
“Circulation began dropping at the rate of 1 percent every year from 1990 to 2002. By 2002, weekday
circulation of U.S. newspapers had dropped 11 percent in 12 years.” 7 Norris identifies the following
“contemporary challenges to democracy” (Norris, 2000, 20) as real ills in the body politic which she argues
we need to understand in order to correctly diagnose the problem of civic disengagement: “In Russia,
widespread corruption and political instability threaten to undermine electoral gains, In America, the sea
of special interest money in politics and the unending campaigns, combined with legislative do-
nothingism, fail to serve the public well. In the European Union the lack of transparency and
accountability in the policy-making process and the increasing power and scope of EU institutions are
leading to a worrying disconnect from the European public. Ethnic conflict, violence, and poverty
continue to plague many emerging democracies in Africa. Worldwide, women’s voices continue to be
underrepresented in the decision-making process.” (Norris, 2000.) Norris is not alone in this finding.
(Kerr et al., 2004; Malhotra et al., 2002; Narayan, 1997; Mohanty, 2003; Ravi et al., 2004; World Bank,
1994) Norris argues that if we stopped blaming the news media and turned our attention to the problems
themselves, we would be better off. Whose job is it to direct our attention to the problems themselves?
Where ‘our attention’ is not just the attention of academics, but of the citizenry at large? Answer: the news
media’s. This is the role of the news media. Norris’ list of problems suggests that while media or news

7
State of the News Media 2004: An annual report on American Journalism
http://www.stateofthenewsmedia.org/narrative_newspapers_audience.asp?cat=3&media=2
 409

coverage are not the sole causes of these problems, they could support the causes, and a restructuring of
media may be part of a solution to these real problems.
Media reform activists in the US have argued that the problem with the US media is multiple: it is
commercialized and sensational, there is little or no respect for the public interest, shows are of poor
quality, have terrible images of women and minorities, encourage fear, are biased, fail to report long-term
issues. (McChesney and Nichols, 2003a, 2003b, 2003c; McChesney, 1999) Although many of these are
problems of content, there are also structural problems. Structural issues include ways that access to the
media is handled by government policy that created the media, which affects this content, and affects the
ability of different groups to access the media. Media reformers have solutions to the ‘media problem’ that
they call structural reform. This means, that they want to change institutions, structures, laws, regulations
to change the way the media operates. This is sometimes put in terms of ‘regulation’ vs. ‘deregulation’.
Then there are those who like regulation, and those who like deregulation. Any media system we have
would have some sort of regulation.
Commercial media have commercial objectives. In the U.S. context this is particularly important as
U.S. media has been primarily commercial since the beginning of broadcast regulation, and throughout its
history, U.S. regulations have been changed to allow more public and non-commercial media in order to
temper the influence of commercial news media, with its focus on profit rather than the public interest.
The structural transformation of the media in the U.S. following the Telecommunications Act of 1996
may not have been as well publicized and available to Norris in 2000 as they are today. Large scale
corporate consolidation of the news media, following the lifting of ownership caps in radio, television, and
radio, have had effects on the range of voices and points of view available. Meanwhile, the proliferation in
the number of media outlets available and the extension of the airwaves in the development of the digital
spectrum have eroded the arguments that supported U.S. regulation requiring fairness and requiring that
equal time be given to events and issues of societal importance (Fairness Doctrine, Equal Time Provision).
Similarly, the argument that governments should financially support public or community media has been
undermined by the argument that there are plenty of sources of information available to consumers, and
that it is unfair that the government support some over others. After the Telecommunications Act of 1996
women’s participation in the media has dropped, and minority ownership of radio and television stations
has plummeted. (Arnold, 2007; Braunstein, 2000; Stavros, 2003; Turner, 2007; Turner and Cooper 2006;
Wexler, 2005). In the wake of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, structural changes in media
ownership rules dramatically affected minority and women-owned stations in the United States. Structural
changes created by this piece of legislation negatively affected the possibility for strong small radios like
community radios, but its wide-ranging effects show the power such regulations can have. By exempting
the media from its responsibilities here, Norris seems to remove the news media from the decision
making process; however, in mass democracy, the news media has a huge role in framing the decisions to
be made, in identifying social and political problems.
The media may not cause these problems, but they are related to the problems and could
counteract these problems if they were of a different kind. A strong and critical press could counter
corruption in Russia. This is acknowledged by corrupt leaders who have sought to silence the press in
Russia. The problems of ‘legislative do-nothingism’ could also be tempered with a strong, critical, and
independent press. The ‘seas of public interest money’ flow from the same corporations which either
owns the news media, or supports news media with substantial advertising revenue. Thus, there is a lack
of will on the part of news organizations to consistently critique structural and long-range problems of
governance. As the conventional critique suggests, because news media focus on events rather than
processes, campaigns rather than regular governance issues, news media cannot draw attention to these
‘real’ problems that Norris identifies. Norris’s book is a testament to the fact that our expectations of the
role of media in democracy have diminished. The early founders of the United States had higher
expectations and loftier goals for the news media, seeing it as a foundational element of the democratic
 410

process. However, just as Norris suggests, there have been counterarguments to this argument that media
is required for democracy. (Norris, 2002; Schumpeter, 2008; Lippmann, 1993, Dryzek, 2002; Fishkin,
1995).
The view of political communication that I am presenting, with the aim of encouraging a
participatory, citizen controlled community media, and the view of democracy which requires this kind of
political participation is very different from a Schumpeterian theory. Thus, the ‘virtuous circle’ that Norris
lauds where elites inform one another and keep the masses in ignorance is not a positive result on my
theory of the importance of participation and level of information in political communication. Habermas
presents a theory of democracy and communication that is important both for emerging democracies and
historical democracies, since the issue of pluralism and competing values exists for both, at the national
and at the international level. At the national level, almost every nation on earth includes populations with
varying ethnic backgrounds, political and social ties, either due to immigration, refugees, post-colonial
national boundaries which were in some cases drawn to include multiple ethnic groups. This diversity has
produced violence but also has created circumstances that require political solutions that acknowledge the
reality of this diversity. At the international level, where representatives from different states must work
together to develop international law and policy, diversity of opinion, historical background are simply
operating conditions which cannot be overlooked. For Habermas, political communication must play a
role in mediating this diversity of modern society.
Traditional societies could rely on a normative consensus that regulated behavior, and institutions
that compelled conformity, but the pluralism of modern complex society offers a range of views and
frameworks that multiply opportunities for dissent. Because of the complexity of the discourses making
up modern society, we need a normative standard from which to evaluate them, to make decisions, to
come to consensus, to coordinate action, and to effect social integration in a non-coercive way. Social
theorists have understood societies as wholes made up of parts, as organizations or associations to which
individuals belong, but for Habermas, such theories of societies are untenable. In place of them he
understands societies, or the ‘lifeworld’, to be “constituted from a network of communicative actions that
branch out through social space and historical time” which live off of “cultural traditions” “legitimate
orders” and “socialized individuals.” (Habermas, 1998, 80) Thus, societies cannot be understood in terms
of individuals exclusively, as individuals are just one of the types of things which make up the social world.
Of its parts, none is ontologically prior, as Habermas writes, “culture, society, and personality mutually
presuppose one another.” (Habermas, 1998, 80) For Habermas, modern societies are integrated socially,
through shared norms, values, etc., administrative powers and economic systems. Language is used for
multiple purposes, transmitting information, creative uses, and, that which is most important for
Habermas, coordinating action. Habermas writes that, “Language itself supplies the primary source of
social integration.” (Habermas, 1998, 17) For Habermas, democracy is the paradigmatic form of legitimate
political will formation, and requires public discourse for its legitimacy.
Although an extensive exegesis and interpretation of Habermas theories of the public sphere, the
role of political communication in democracies remains beyond the scope of my investigation, I want to at
least flag the importance of Habermas’s suggestive work for the philosophical project of talking about the
political communication needs of democracies, and the idea of local community media within national and
international networks as democratic spaces, both training grounds for political participation and
important forums for public discourse. For Habermas, democracy is the paradigmatic form of legitimate
political will formation, and requires public discourse for its legitimacy. What are the political
communication needs of democracies? Can local community media within national and international
networks function as democratic spaces, both training grounds for political participation and important
forums for public discourse? This appears to be a question about individual will to communicate their
interest, but also has important suggestions for communications policy, for example, a requirement to
allow public debate, and to structure the terms of public debate in such a way that all interests (or the
 411

interests of all) are represented. This suggests that there must be avenues, public media, open to the public
not just publicly financed through which individuals could get their views heard. In other words,
communicative freedom of citizens seems different than freedom of speech, and seems to suggest
something along the lines of a ‘right to communicate’.
The developing world and the developed world have communication needs and problems. In the
developed world, apathy, sensational journalism, lack of participation in government questions the future
of democratic participation. In the developing world, incursions from the global media threaten new
democracies abilities to inform their citizens and create democratic modes of communication, which could
bolster newly democratic governing practices. There is a crisis of participation and creation of democratic
spaces within new and old democracies. This is a problem of political communication and of democratic
theory. In Western democracies, and in newly democratizing countries, citizens need practice at
participation. We must develop strong norms and theories that support a participatory and publicly
accountable media in order to keep democracy functioning. Democracies in the developing world and
developed democracies share the need for communicative democratic media, locally, nationally and
globally to sustain themselves as democracies. (Archibuggi, Held, and Kohler, 1998; Tucker, 2013).

“Community radio, what is it good for?”

Opubor (2000) asks: “If community radio is the answer, what is the question?” Since community radio
stations seem to be at least partial solutions to the development problems of communication and
depoliticization, as well as globalization problems (the erosion of public discourse, democratization due to
global media) the range of places where community radio stations would be effective is rather large, from
being useful in most-developed to developing countries. The similarities between a community radio
station in Atlanta Georgia, and one in Rural Guatemala are amazing, despite the obvious differences. In
both settings, people who were marginalized and who had little access to technology before on a daily
basis become more familiar with technology, gain skills in self-expression and in political and civic
understanding, gain confidence in their ability to communicate with others, and recognize that they are
powerful through the radio station, and through this community connection.
One does not once and for all give the voiceless a voice; there are always new groups and new
people who are going to be marginalized in the world system, in national policies, and in local
communities. Community radio stations are for them, and they must be supported as part of a
development strategy on the national and international level. Making a place for community radio as a
‘third tier’ in a national or global communications policy regime recognizes that community radio has been
understood as important, in fact essential for the development of sustainable world in the era of
globalization. Community radio stations in the United States can be understood as a ‘third tier’ of
broadcasting, where the other tiers are public service (NPR, PBS) and commercial broadcasting.
Community radio stations, unlike the other kinds of media prevalent in the US, are focused on community
participation and involvement. They aim to provide a ‘voice for the voiceless’. In support of this goal, they
actively reach out groups that are underrepresented in or underserved by existing media, including: the
poor, homeless, immigrant groups, youth, linguistic, sexual and racial minorities, and women. Because of
the international dimension that I have tried briefly to bring out, this ‘third tier’ of media, community
media, need to create strong international networks to share their success and to work for international
and national legislation to protect participatory community media. Some such organizations already exist,
but particularly in the US there is seemingly little connection between these international groups and
individual community radio stations in the US. AMARC, the World Association of Community Radio
Broadcasters, routinely gives updates on Community Radio stations worldwide, but rarely on community
radio stations in the United States. The isolation and lack of networking of community radio stations in
the United States may be why some are failing.
 412

Conclusion
Discussions of community radio stations in the developing world, in the United States and in Europe echo
a similar refrain: where there is community radio, there is community involvement which can enhance
community’s capacity to act as a strong check against government and corporate power, which can
mobilize citizens around community problems and provide a forum for developing solutions to those
problems. The individuals who come to engage in community radio build not only their skills but also
their community. My experience in community radio has shown me that community radio stations have
the potential to create strong and vibrant democratic political cultures and are themselves vibrant
democratic spaces. I have seen how individuals who volunteer at such stations build their skills, and their
capacities as people and as citizens, becoming more involved in their communities and more confident in
their lives.
By presenting a normative ideal of community radio -- what it is supposed to be, and how it has
been theorized -- I hope to have set out an account of what community radio is for what followed: a
seemingly kaleidoscopic presentation of what questions community radio may answer. Theories of
participatory democracy suggest that more participation than just voting is necessary of the citizen of a
democracy. A healthy democracy requires citizens that are engaged, vigilant, and well informed.
Community radio stations provide such possibilities for citizenship and democracy. In new democracies,
or in transitional societies and situations community radio stations can help develop a participatory
democratic culture. In established democracies with a mixed media, such participatory media can serve as
a third-tier, with public service and commercial media, to continuously inject the voices of the
marginalized into the public debate, thus speaking to the needs of the poor, immigrants, and other
marginalized groups.
Critiques of development suggest that development projects fail because they fail to understand
the political situation of the country or the area in which they are operating and from a lack of
participation or awareness of what they are doing and why it is important or useful to the population it is
supposed to benefit. I have argued that community radio in particular and participatory media in general,
can have a role to play in a different kind of participatory development. Community radio stations are
political. This can be a benefit and a challenge, but it is an inherent part of what they are, they have the
power to change political configurations by providing a space for people to discuss and organize.
Community radio stations are forums where people in a community may not only solve, but more
importantly define their own community problems. In their information-diffusion role, community radios
can inform large numbers of people of news and information in the community, including development
projects and goals, which can even be disseminated in dramatic forms.
None of this is to suggest that development agencies have a genuine interest in political change in
poor areas, that they have any interest in upsetting the balance of power in rural communities or
elsewhere, or that a political democratic solution will be of interest to development agencies. I remain
ambivalent about the nature of development as it has been practiced historically, and as it is currently
practiced. The fact of the matter is that development agencies and development projects exist. If they are
to be successful in anything they do, they need a communications strategy, and if they choose community
radio then they have given the community a tool that they can use perhaps against the grain of
development paradigm by bypassing the aforementioned development problems. Community radio
stations are great tools for creating democracy in communities through creating the communication,
organizational, political-informational and technical skills of their members, whether they be cones affixed
on a tower, powerful AM or FM stations, or shortwave stations reaching across the globe. I hope this
paper can also serve as a call to research. The strongest evidence for the power of community radio as a
development tool is in its information diffusion role. However, I believe the strongest element of
community radio is its participatory nature. More empirical research on this topic is necessary.
 413

Although it would be unwise to see community radio in particular, and participatory media in
general as a panacea for the world's problems, its role and promise as a way to inform and enhance the
participatory nature of politics in particular locations and the possibility of networks of such community
media organizations should not be overlooked. In the frame of international politics, community radio
stations and participatory media in general allow us to re-conceptualize civil society as not just the sphere
of economics, but as a genuinely participatory sphere which must both be built by the community, and
build community. Through networking, community media organizations can build an alternative global
public sphere which may one day act as a third tier of media, constantly injecting the voices of the
marginalized peoples of the world in the international sphere.

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Vol. 2. Nos. 2/3, July-December 2013. ISSN (Online): 2305-7432. http://www.devcomsjournalmw.org.
© Journal of Development and Communication Studies, 2013.
__________________________________________________________________________________

Book Review

Globalization and Citizenship by Hans Schattle, Rowman &

Littlefield, Maryland, USA, 2012. 217 pages.
Emmanuel K. Ngwainmbi (PhD)
Department of Mass Communication, Jackson State University, MS, USA. Email: engwainmbi@gmail.com
________________________________________________________________________________
In recent years, the term globalization has echoed in the
intellectual chambers of political economists, international
communication researchers, and political scientists, to name a
few. There are divergent, controversial views on globalization
enough to fuel publishers’ and readers’ appetite. One view is
that local space, indigenous values, and group dynamics are
compromised and devalued by powerful external governments
and rich international companies (Ngwainmbi, 2007, 2004). On
the one hand, it has the potentiality of eroding national
sovereignty of the weakest and poorest states whilst widening
the technological divide amongst states; on the other, it tends to
provide an enabling environment for greater respects for human
rights and gender equality (Amuwo, 2002: 67). Seldom,
however, has the term been juxtaposed with ‘citizenship’, within
the context of local space and national identity or worldwide
developments. But this is exactly what Hans Schattle has
attempted to do in the 217-page book released in 2012, by an
academic press (see http://www.rowmanlittlefield.com/) that is
increasingly earning a reputation in academia and among the
ranks of scholars and professors as a publisher of “innovative,
high-quality college texts, provocative and timely titles for
general readers, and professional and scholarly books throughout the humanities and social sciences”.
So where exactly does Globalization & Citizenship stand within this intellectual universe? Answering
the question with any degree of accuracy requires having a bird’s eye view of the text itself.
The author surveys the role of media in recalling dramatic developments that have taken place in
some parts of the world in the past few years. He elucidates the impact of social media in the uprisings in
North Africa and the Middle East styled Arab Spring, and the highly controversial role of political activists
tackling migrant lives in Europe and the United States.
He also offers his own views on citizenship, and the emergence of two prominent world citizens
from different ethno-cultural backgrounds—human rights Chinese activist (Liu Xiaobo) and Australian
born Wiki-Leaks founder (Julian Assange), pointing out how they have prompted the global debate on
 422

citizenship. Schattle’s definitional frames of citizenship culls from three pre-existing concepts: the rights
and corresponding duties of the individual; democratic empowerment and participation; and sentiments of
allegiance, belonging, loyalty, and identity. While evoking the Jeffersonian model of citizenship and its
impact on the work of activists such as the Chinese activist (Xiaobo)8, Schattle points out that citizenship
is a way of life dedicated to self government, and that the 21st Century citizen engages him/herself in
transitional political and social causes around the world.Schattle truly asserts that more activists hold their
own governments as well as international institutions accountable to the principles of justice, equality, and
transparency while challenging perceived inequities in the global marketplace. While describing citizenship
as the passive legal relationships between individuals and their respective states, he argues that
globalization only has a binary relationship with the former as it evolves from one generation to the
other.Schattle’s book is one of a series of books on globalization lined up by Rowman & Littlefield
publishers, with Manfred B. Steger and Terrell Carver retained as the Series Editors on this controversial
but important subject. It should be noted that the editors themselves are the renowned volume editors of
Engels After Marx (1999), published by the Penn State University Press. Other titles within the last few
decades have handled globalization strictly from the Marxist-capitalistic perspective, leaving its socio-
cultural aspects to the imagination until Schattle entered the scene. For instance, the Brookings Institution
and Gary T. Burtless in Globaphobia: Confronting Fears About Open Trade published in 1998 discuss the
economic advantages of globalization and the challenge of improving public policies aimed at reducing
frustrations among Americans negatively affected by closer world economic integration. Thomas
Lasson’s The Race to the Top: The Real Story of Globalization (2001) addresses the effects of globalization on
large and small companies in various communities in the world. The book describes firsthand experiences
in Brazil, Hong Kong, and Thailand and focuses on individual liberties and positive results of a global
economy. Brink Lindsey’s book Against the Dead Hand: The Uncertain Struggle for Global Capitalism (2002) in
which he considers the 18th century globalization process as a precursor to the free markets and economic
integration of the mid-19th century.
Lindsey understands the present episode of globalization as the interregnum between dashed
hopes in maintaining centralized power and the promise of economic freedom. He asserts that
globalization has forced governments to adopt market-friendly against their will. But, so far, the most
significant work in the 21st Century on the global ping-pong could be Dani Rodrik’s highly controversial
Global Paradox (2012) that deals with democracy and the future of the world economy. Using the futuristic
stance, the well-cited author has forcefully argued that outsourcing could breed inequality, in his own
words “accentuate labor markets risks and erode social compact within nations” (p. x). Rodrik’s stance
that national priorities should take precedence when pitting social constructs of democracies with the
international demands of globalization has attracted the attention of political scientists, foreign relations
senior officials and lawmakers in rich nations and emerging global economies alike.
What separates Schattle’s book from Rodrik’s is that the latter targets those striving to prevent
unfair trade practices and financial crises against the backlash of open markets while the former aims to
reach undergraduate and graduate students of global political economy, international law, communication,
and public policy.
Written in simple and ornate language, the engaging narrative, organized in six chapters, with 173
pages of narrative followed by 25 pages containing only notes, an acknowledgements section, and 14
pages covering the index, Globalization and Citizenship aptly begins with the framework from which the title
comes—the dual dynamic between globalization and citizenship. It then introduces global media, the
vehicle through which citizens in Arab nations have been mobilized to cause social change. The text
presents cases in Europe and those involving citizens from different sociocultural backgrounds to explain

8In signing the Declaration of Independence, Third US President, Thomas Jefferson , had set the tone for latter democracies to
position themselves to justify the need for sovereignty and equality among all people.
 423

the paradoxical context of citizenry within the global realm, before focusing on immigration and the
‘contested American Dream”—anti-immigration sentiments. Here, the author rightly points out that, in
contrast with parts of Europe, immigrants in the USA contribute to the US economy by doing low
paying, high risk jobs shunned by native-born Americans. This practice, he argues, has kept the US
population growing at a time when birthrates would have fallen. He further states:
“The recent crest of American-style economic globalization has been accompanied by a growing
backlash (of) immigrants. Regardless of which political party has control of the White House or
Congress….populist political movements have increasingly been setting the agenda and driving the
debate on immigration” (p. 136).
Elsewhere, the book aptly points out that news about oppressive governments infringing on the inherent
dignity of many people around the world is easily disseminated, and more civil society organizations
fighting for social change are forming and flourishing, thereby curbing the rate of human rights abuse.
Again, this sociological approach to globalization is a key factor that differentiates Schattle’s book from
other recent publications. Although the book does not allude to several significant, globally mediated
events partly because it was published before the events occurred, the Syrian crisis and the 2013 Boston
Marathon bombing can be seen within the context of globalization and citizenship, if one reads Schattle’s
book.
If Schattle’s definition of citizenship is accurate, the book’s content is incomplete because it does
not include democratic changes with global implications in sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and other
regions. For example, pressure from groups and government leaders around the world, except the UK and
USA, helped end apartheid in South Africa. Even in the past few years, public demonstrations in Senegal,
Niger, and Mali with the help of news coverage from private media in those countries led to the election
of new presidents and other government officials. Democratization processes in Colombia, Argentina, and
Mexico depicted by citizens’ action and the presence of Mexican-born migrant workers in American
neighborhoods are among issues and situations that illustrate the confluence of political activity and public
space and the now-elusive relationship between citizenship and globalization.
As mentioned, this book is appropriate for social science students. However, it does not justify or
introduce the juxtaposed terms--globalization and citizenship--to give undergraduate students a clear, basic
context or central idea, as they are normally taught to expect.
Notes are provided for each chapter at the book’s end, allowing the reader to locate more information
he/she may need. However, for some, placing notes at the end of a book, rather than after the chapter
could be a distraction.
Overall, the author should be commended for having attempted to explain the relationship
between globalization and citizenship. Noteworthy are the concrete examples to be recalled by those who
watch television news or have hand-held media products. The events in the Middle East and North Africa
show how citizens connect with each other through global media platforms such as Face Book twitter,
and other social online networking communities, to redefine their space and citizenry.
Schattle has done remarkable research on the subject; his arguments are succinct and discursive
and he exudes comfort, placing citizenship within the context of a series of habits and practices, debates
and other public initiatives that people in a community engage in.

References
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 424

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Journal of Development and Communication Studies

Vol. 2. Nos. 2/3, July-December, 2013. ISSN (Online): 2305-7432.
http://www.devcomsjournalmw.org.
© Journal of Development and Communication Studies, 2013.
______________________________________________________________________________________

Impact of African Farm Radio Research Initiative

Participatory Radio Campaigns: An Extension Officer
Testimony

Andrew Kaipanyama (with input from Levi Zeleza Manda)

Agricultural Extension and Development Coordinator (AEDC), Mvera EPA, Dowa, Malawi

Introduction
The African Farm Radio Research Initiative (AFRRI) was a Farm Radio International
project funded the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in five African countries of Ghana,
Malawi, Tanzanian, Mali and Uganda, aiming at discovering and documenting best
practices in using radio to meet agricultural information needs of smallholder farmers in
Malawi (Farm Radio International, 2011) in order to have a real transformative impact
on people. Using Participatory Radio Campaign (PRC) methodology, it was implemented
in Malawi through five partner radio stations, namely Nkhotakota, Dzimwe, and
Mudziwathu community radio stations, Zodiak Broadcasting Station (ZBS), a private
commercial radio, and the public service provider, the Malawi Broadcasting Corporation,
from April 2007 to September 2010. One of the targets communities was Mvera in Dowa,
where land and soil degradation had contributed to reduced agricultural production, the
AFRRI participatory action research and radio communication/extension based project
involved, per design, three Active Listening (ALC) communities of Labvu, Makombe and
Lovimbi while Magodi and Chambakata acted as Passive Listening Communities (PLC) and
Control Communities (CC). ALC participated communities were involved in identidfyin
technologies or problems ( soil rehabilitation through vetiver grass planting and composting,
and increasing maize production through the one seed per station (1-1) planting method)
that required improvement, responsible for deciding the content, times of broadcast,
duration, and formats of the programme. They also regularly gave feedback on the
programme through mobile short messages (SMS) and interviews. PLC listened to the
programmes but were not involved in an other way while CC did not participate at all and
were deemed not to have listened to and been aware of the PRCs at all as their locality did
not receive the ZBS signal.
During and after the project implementation, the influence of the PRCs was gathered
through continuous monitoring and evaluation, summative evaluations and the final impact
evaluation undertaken by AFRRI itself.
 426

This case study presents the results of an impact evaluation conducted,

independently of the AFRRI one, by the Mvera Extension Planning Area office for its own
records.

Impact on Farmers’ Knowledge

Figure 1. Stages and duration of a four-month participatory radio campaign.

Source: PRC Manual (Ward, 2010)

As Figure 1 illustrates, the PRCs were sequenced in such a way that the first stage of the
PRCs was regarded as the introduction where facts of the promoted improvements
were presented aiming at informing communities about the improvement. Then the
campaign passed through attitude moderation and change, support for farmer decision to
adoption and practice. Thus, it was expected that famer’s knowledge and eventual adoption
of the practices would improve through attitude change. To measure this change in famers
knowledge, practices and attitude, a 9-question quiz was administered from 2nd January to 5th
January, 2011. Descriptive analysis of the survey data indicates that
x Active Listening Community respondents (ALC) 65%) had more knowledge
bout the technologies that were being promoted than their passive listening
community (PLC) (45%) and control community (CC) (22%) counterparts.
x Overall over 70% of the famers had good knowledge of the improvements
being promoted.
These differences suggest a direct link between listening to radio programs and having
relatively detailed knowledge about the improvement. Those who listen to radio campaigns
become more aware and knowledgeable about an agricultural technology and this active
participation, such as being involved in content production, being interviewed, providing
feedback, among others, seems to increase the level of awareness and knowledge.
 427

Impact on Farmers’ Attitudes

The PRCs were also meant to support farmers’ attitude change in order to clear out
misconceptions, negative attitudes as well as beliefs about the improvement that made
farmers hesitant to adopt them. The descriptive data analysis shows that
x The majority of farmers (55%) developed a positive attitude regarding 1-1 maize
planting. The general misconception was that 1-1 planting of maize was wasteful
as it required more fertilizer.
x The misconception that compost manure destroys crops, increases the
multiplication of crop damaging worms and termites regarding manure
application was virtually cleared as on average 80% of the farmers are started
applying manure. In ALC up 95% of the respondents reported to have made and
applied compost manure to their crops. Even in the PLC, 93% of the
respondents to have applied compost manure while only 35.3% of the CC
respondents had applied compost manure.
This finding suggests a link between listening to radio campaigns and suggests active
participation in radio based campaigns may not matter much. Farmers might have been
convinced that it is cheaper to make compost manure than to buy chemical fertilizers.

Impact on Farmers’ Field Practices

This outcome evaluation that farmers in ALC and PLC implemented the promoted
improvements more than their counterparts in the CC as Figure 2 shows:
 428

Conclusion
The above data indicate that AFRRI PRCs had a positive impact on the farmers in the
impact or focus areas. Communities that participated and listened actively notable changes in
knowledge, attitudes and practices were noted. The impact on PLC farmers is also worth
recording because they indicate that radio listening on its own is important in agricultural
extension. That some farmers in the control community also implemented the promoted
technologies could indicate the importance of interpersonal and word of mouth
communication in spreading technologies to communities not served by radio or extension
officers. There is need to scale up and domesticate AFRRI’s pioneering work in order to
advance Malawi’s agricultural and social development particularly in rural areas where
farming is the major source of livelihood.

References

Farm Radio International. 2011.

Agriculture Radio that Works.
http://www.farmradio.org/english/donors/publications/EightPager.pdf. Accessed
20 July, 2013.
Ward, D. 2010.
Manual for Participatory Radio Campaigns Unpublished revised manual for the
programming Stages of AFRRI Participatory Radio Campaign Number Two.
Ottawa: Farm Radio International.
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