[ecrea] New publication: What’s On Air. A study of the content of community-run FM radios in Nepal

> What’s On Air. A study of the
> content of community-run FM radios in Nepal
> by Binod Bhattarai, with Ghanendra Ojha
>
> Published by the Community Radio Support Center (CRSC)/ Nepal Forum of
> Environmental Journalists (NEFEJ)
> with Support from Free Voice (The Netherlands), 2010
>
> Full publication available at
>
> http://www.nefej.org/pdf/what_on_air.pdf
>
>
> Abstract from the foreword, by Raghu Mainali
>
> Community radio is here to stay in Nepal. We in the radio movement talk
> about serving communities, giving voice to their concerns and talking
> with communities about things that can help to improve livelihoods. We
> now have over 130 community radios all of which say they are here to do
> all of the above. As believers in the empowering role that community
> radio can play in the lives of people, the Community Radio Support Centre
> (CRSC)/Nepal Forum of Environmental Journalists (NEFEJ) decided it was
> time to look at what they have been broadcasting. We hope this effort can
> be the essential first step towards getting the wide network of radios we
> have to start focusing on the soul of radio – the content.
>
> The CRSC/NEFEJ has prepared and published a set of indicators for
> assessing community radios in collaboration with the stakeholders
> themselves. They all agree that content should be one of the most
> important basis for assessing whether the radio serves its community or
> not. This study was designed by CRSC to try to get a broad idea of the
> content of community radio in general. We hope it will be the beginning
> of interest and efforts to generate and disseminate knowledge on the A
> word on content content. That will serve as important feedback to
> stations and help them innovate, re-position and re-focus programming for
> better serving their communities. The study attempts to look into the
> nature of programs produced and broadcast by selected community radio
> stations in Nepal. It did not specifically look into scripts and/or news
> texts or the type of music and entertainment on air. The assessment was
> based on interpreting what was on their weekly program grids and
> interviews with people running the stations. If only a step towards
> quality programming on community radio, CRSC believes it is doing its
> part for the simple reason that the journey has begun.

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Nico Carpentier (Phd)
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Vrije Universiteit Brussel - Free University of Brussels
Centre for Studies on Media and Culture (CeMeSO)
Pleinlaan 2 - B-1050 Brussels - Belgium
T: ++ 32 (0)2-629.18.56
F: ++ 32 (0)2-629.36.84
Office: 5B.401a
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European Communication Research and Education Association
Web: http://www.ecrea.eu
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E-mail: (Nico.Carpentier /at/ vub.ac.be)
Web: http://homepages.vub.ac.be/~ncarpent/
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