Development of Community Media Resource Center Expectations and Experiences

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Development of Community Media Resource
CenterExpectations and Experiences

• T.R. Gopalakrishnan
• Department of Journalism/Communication
• University Of Madras
• Chennai, India
• E-Mail trg_gopi_at_ yahoo. com

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Back Drop

• Emerging Knowledge Based Society
• Discourse of Digital DivideZones of Silence
• Poverty and Gender Inequality as Central Problems
  in Development

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Role of ICTs Normative Expectations

• ICTs Can enlarge the Public Sphere
• ICTs Can support Good Governance
• ICTs Can strengthen Democratic Institutions
• ICTs are institutions to think with

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Enabling Environment

• Freedom of Expression and Right to Communication
• Freedom of Information--Freedom should be the
  Rule and Secrecy the Exception
• Exercising these rights now increasingly depends
  on access to ICTs

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Constraints on Traditional Mass Media

• Commercialization
• Concentration
• Content
• Credibility
• Communication
• Entertainment as Value

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Alternatives Key Assumption

• Poverty and Social Exclusion are manifestations
  of more fundamental Capability Deprivation
  (Sen)
• Power and Voice are central to poor peoples
  characterization of their own situation
  (Narayanan)
• Poor and Socially Excluded have Information and
  Communication Needs. Yet they often are not able
  to address them

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Strategic Thrust-I

• Creating an Enabling Legal and Regulatory
  Environment- Encouraging Diffusion of Ownership
• Creating a Sense of OwnershipCommunity Ownership
• Local Appropriation of New MediaPlanning with
  and by the People

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Strategic Thrust-II

• Fostering Horizontal Flow of Communication
  between Civil Society Groups
• Enhancing and Supporting Social and Technical
  Capability through Capacity Building
• Balancing Entertainment, Education and
  Information and Creating Locally Relevant and
  Contextual Content

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Approaches

• Regulatory Approach
• Educational Approach
• Technical Assistance Approach
• Participatory-Empowerment Approach

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Participatory-Empowerment Approach

• Capacity Building
• Capacity Building as a MeansTraining
• Capacity Building as EndsIncreasing the
  Bargaining Power of the Poor
• ICTs and Information Resources available through
  them can play a vital role in building the
  capacities of the poor

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Constraints in ICTs--I

• Constraints in Accessing ICT
• Constraints in Accessing Information
• Constraints in Evaluating information
• Constraints in Applying/Using Information

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Constraints in ICTs--II

• Lack of Connectivity and Technical Support
• Lack of Literacy
• Lack of Locally Relevant Content
• Lack of Sustainability Model
• Lack of Awareness
• Lack of Motivation
• Lack of Womens Participation

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Models

• Institutional Model Local Radio, Community
  Radio, Campus RadioVOICES
• Enterprise Model EID Parry
• Community Model TANUVAS-IDRC
• Self-held Group (SHG) Model TANUVAS-UNESCO

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SHG Model Principles in Practice

• SHG Model
• Combining Social and Technical Innovation
• Management FrameworkGroup Enterprise
• Media Mix
• Location
• User Groups
• Primary and Secondary Services Offered

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Lessons Learnt I

• Role of Local Information Brokers and Service
  Providers
• Need to Create Awareness and Generate Demand
• Overcoming Psychological Barriers TAM Model

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Lessons Learnt II

• Building Both Social and Technical
  CapabilitiesPeer Training
• Engaging the Community
• Encouraging Entrepreneurship

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Summary

• Creating an Enabling Legal and Regulatory
  Environment
• Building on Existing Grass-roots Level Community
  Intermediaries
• Fostering Horizontal Flow of Communication

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Summary

• Encouraging Local EntrepreneurshipSustainability
• Engaging the CommunitySocial Networks and Social
  Capital
• Building the Capacities of Individuals and
  Intuitionsinformation Providers as journalists

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Putting things togetherthe link?

• Freedom of Expression ( incl. Right to
  information, Communication) need not necessarily
  be enjoyed by professional journalists and media
  organizations which traditionally have the
  required technology access and institutional
  support to exercise these. New ICTs have the
  potential to extend these rights to the people
  and to the community.

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• THANK YOU