03 Sep 2008 · community-radio
An interesting story out of Philippines. According to the Inter Press News Service Agency (IPS), “amidst the raging conflict between government forces and Muslim rebels on the island of Mindanao, the religiously mixed population in the North Cotabato region looks to a community radio station as a beacon of peace.”
Read the full story here.
Continue reading →03 Sep 2008 · community-radio
A question of questions: what do we include in the survey that we have to conduct in our target villages of Garhi Harsaru and Dhankot? In a bid to get as many inputs as possible (and at the risk of too many cooks…), I’m putting up what we’ve worked out so far. Please feel free to suggest additions, deletions, changes, and especially re-wording.
Draft Survey Questionnaire for Community Radio
Section – Media access and ownership
Continue reading →31 Aug 2008 · community-radio
Just a passing thought as I chew the back of my pencil (or the keyboard). In my online search for Haryanvi folk music (yes, I have unending faith in the power of Google to turn up anything and everything), I came across a video clip from Shubham Haryana TV. First off, I wasn’t even aware that there was such a channel. A quick browse showed me that I certainly did not get it among the plethora of regional channels that Tata Sky dished out. The clip was pedestrian - just a recording of a clutch of women, dressed in a traditional Haryanvi dress, singing folk songs. But now I’m wondering where I can get access to recordings of Haryanvi folk music.
Continue reading →28 Aug 2008 · community-radio
Here’s a video link sent by Frederick Noronha through the CR-India mailing list. Sajan is the founder of the Community Radio Forum. Currently with Doordarshan, Sajan has 15 years of experience with radio. He has also been moderator and resource person for Solution Exchange, a UN ICT for Development initiative.
The video of Sajan outlining where community radio in India stands today:
Can also be seen here.
Continue reading →27 Aug 2008 · community-radio
The Telegraph has just run a story on the Birsa Agricultural College’s radio station that was launched in March 2008. Seems that the college is so enthusiastic about the response, they now want to set up 21 community radio stations across the 21 Krishi Vigyan Kendras in the state of Jharkhand.
The report quotes BAU director R.P. Singh Ratan who said, “The objective is to ensure that farmers in all these districts are constantly updated on agricultural procedures, the latest farming technologicies and even made aware of climate changes and pest attacks.” You can read the full story here.
Continue reading →24 Aug 2008 · community-radio
Great news just filtered in. According to a report at www.indiantelevision.com Germany’s international broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Indira Gandhi National Open University (Ignou) to broadcast DW-Radio over campus radio throughout India. DW will also assist IGNOU in training operators for community radio.
As part of the partnership, the Government of India-owned Gyan Vani FM will broadcast DW-Radio programming in Hindi, Urdu, Bengali and English over campus radio at 29 associated universities. In addition, Tomorrow Today, the science magazine from DW-TV, will be integrated into the schedule from Gyan Darshan (also state-owned), the educational channel that operates nationwide via satellite and cable. Read the whole story here.
Continue reading →23 Aug 2008 · community-radio
We’re in a whirl of thinking, doing, worrying, talking, emailing. So far, it looks like that beyond our basic content components of Health (Talk to the Doc), Education (short “explainers” that elaborate on various concepts), language (English language learning), and Career Counselling (Focus on one career per program), we are also looking at modules in Legal Literacy (interesting and very relevant to our target audience), women and child rights (again we’re looking at Haryana with the worst child sex ratio in the country), and a through the day stream of entertainment.
Continue reading →22 Aug 2008 · media
Is there such a thing as book or magazine publishing 2.0? Perhaps there is a need for it. A lot of smart people are trying – some smart ideas and some not so smart. Which is which? I guess only time will tell.
To begin with, things that have displayed some degree of success on the web are being applied to the traditional format: aggregation, verticals, user-generated content, social networks, popularity rankings…
Continue reading →22 Aug 2008 · community-radio
A great example of community news broadcasts comes to us from a little village in Manipur, where some villagers have got together to do a daily morning broadcast of news culled from local newspapers. No radio, no license. They simply use a microphone, four loudspeakers and very crude PA system. Such is the broadcast’s popularity, that the villagers have taken to structuring their lives around the broadcast. Read more of this PANOS Relay feature here.
Continue reading →20 Aug 2008 · media
As products proliferate marketers will research and find the smallest niche available. First videos, then Tv programming and now 24 hour channel dedicated to babies under 3. In-womb will be next! Or is it already out there? Fortunately there are pockets of sanity – see this Associated Press Story
France’s broadcast authority has banned French channels from airing TV shows aimed at children under 3 years old, to shield them from developmental risks it says television viewing poses at that age.
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