[cr-india] INTERVIEW: Radio can capture India's rich oral culture....

[Frederick Noronha]

RADIO CAN CAPTURE THE LEGACY OF INDIA'S RICH ORAL CULTURE'

Bangalore-based M.Abdul Rehman Pasha <pasha1 at vsnl.com> has long been a
broadcaster with the state-run All India Radio. Today, he is out of the
'system' and is a firm advocate of community radio.

On December 9, 2001, International Day for Children's Broadcast, Doordarshan
Bangalore invited him to be the 'morning guest' of their daily program
'Belagu' (This Morning). In the 45 minutes live interview, the channel
covered Pasha's work in radio and TV.

"At some stage I brought in the issue of community radio. I mentioned that
community radio is an extension of what the public broadcaster All India
Radio has been doing. The only difference is in the focus and nature of
ownership. It is not against or (seeking at) replacing All India Radio or
for that matter any other private radio. It is exclusively different from
the others," Pasha argues.

Pasha is the author of 'Community Radio: The Voice of the People'. He has
also written a Kannada tome. This book, entitled, 'Shishkana mattu
Tarabetiyalli Radio cum Taperecorder" (Radio cum Taperecorder in Education
and Training) has been published by "Centre for Development Communication,
Bangalore, just recently. In it he argues about the importance of
'narrowcasting' (using other forms of spreading audio programmes, such as
cassettes, due to the lack of licences to broadcast) both as a means to
Community radio as well as an end in itself.

Below are excerpts from an interview with Frederick Noronha:

---------------------------------------------------------------------
QUESTION: We've been waiting eagerly for five years and more, but community
radio has just not come about in India. Why?
---------------------------------------------------------------------

The colonial past. (We have here) a long history of radio being under the
control of the central authority. It has not been a felt need of the
communities.

Further, mediapersons and technologists have always projected radio to be a
sophisticated and expensive proposition, which can not be handled by
ordinary people. Infrastructure of scarily huge stations of All India Radio
is the only model we have in India.

---------------------------------------------------------------------
QUESTION: Is their reason for the state to fear the power of radio? Can it
be misused, say by secessionists or militants?
---------------------------------------------------------------------

If the officials nurture this kind of fear they are (being) stupid. The
secessionists, militants or subversive elements are already using radio
technology for transmission of messages and their own purposes. 

Do these officials think that such kind of people ask for the license to
broadcast their signals. How funny!

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Any suggestions to prevent possible misuse, even if you see that as remote?
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Even the production and use of explosives or weapons is permitted through
suitable regulations. Poisons and drugs are produced under licenses. The
Government knows how to ensure the safety of the people and country against
their misuse. 

This government knows how to ensure the right use of television, Internet,
telephony and such other modes, which are already permitted. This government
knows how to prevent misuse of television by heavily Western-oriented TV
channels; this government also knows how to ensure responsible-of-use in the
case of of radio by FM 91, a (Rupert Murdoch-run) Star TV associate.

I do not understand why there should be any difficulty in ensuring against
misuse of radio, especially by poor NGOs. More than half of the
developmental works of the governments are being implemented through NGOs
and other people's institutions; millions of rupees are spent through them.
How do they that the money is not used for subversive activities? OK? 

What problem does the government have in allowing the state governments,
local governments of panchayat raj institution, or universities to have
their own (low-powered) radio stations? Does the central government think
that these are all terrorist or secessionist outfits?

---------------------------------------------------------------------
QUESTION: Are you optimistic that community radio will happen in India at
all? What would be the best strategy to push for this?
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Most of our associates are debating over the issue endlessly. Except a few,
we do not have people's base. With almost all the possible frequencies for
FM broadcast being auctioned and sold out, the government have no more
frequencies to allot for others. If the people's movement was built up
before such thing happened, we could have had some hope.

As it is, I see no miracle likely to happen in the field of community radio.
If the campaigners are 'waiting' for the community radio broadcasting in
India to be 'legalized', they will have to keep on waiting forever.
We will have lot more time to debate on the issue!

There are two possibilities that could see the government waking up to the
issue.

All of us who want community radio to be realized in India, should stop
debating over the issue and discussing all sorts of technological
development from all over the world. 

Each one of us, both individuals and organizations should starts
enlightening grass roots level organizations and groups about the benefits
of community radio. 

Let's tell them how simple it is. Tell them how their freedom of expression
is being crippled by money-minded governments. If these movements develop as
people's movements and swells as a huge voice at the national level, the
government will think about it freshly.

Secondly, those of the NGOs, especially in remote areas of the country,
which are already convinced about the relevance of community radio, should
be helped to start community radio in any form. One can start the exercise
with narrowcasting (recording programmes on cassettes and passing them
around). When such community radio exercises spread all over, the government
will have to legalize them invariably.

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Don't we have enough media options in India? Why radio?
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Very simple. India has been a country with a rich oral tradition. The
original wisdom, skills, heritage of this country, which has been the
primary source of inspiration and sustenance for thousands of years, is in
oral form. 

The real people of this country learn, preserve, pass on the knowledge, or
get their amusement and entertainment predominantly through the oral
communication mode.

Writing and other modes of documentation, preservation and transmission of
knowledge, though having it own significance, the majority of people of this
country are not able to participate in the process. Hence it is not being
really relevant to them.

It is only in the oral communication mode that allows all of us, to a great
extent, to be placed on a uniform platform. On this platform, the commonman
is more likely to express himself.  

Radio/audio technique of communication excellently provides suitable
technological support to this original, time-tested mode of information
exchange. 

Television also can do this, some times more effectively, all right. But as
on today, the technology is comparatively more expensive and complicated.
So, radio, today, is still much more relevant than before, because it is the
only cost effective, user-friendly technology for mass communication.

That's why radio has a special relevance to a country like India.

---------------------------------------------------------------------
QUESTION: But TV is eroding the need for radio, isn't it?
---------------------------------------------------------------------

We do a mistake in comparing radio with TV, Cable TV and the Internet. 

Radio in the form of huge networks like All India Radio or the series of
private channels such FM 91 (India's first private station, set up in
mid-2001, at Bangalore), could be, if at all, compared with such other
media. 

For instance, though printing technology is used for newspapers as well as
to print handbills, pamphlets and wallpapers, and all these do the same job
of disseminating information, we do not compare them. We don't juxtapose one
against the other while undertaking such a comparison.

Similarly, when I speak of the radio, I speak of the basic technology.

Community radio uses the same technology as the other giant radio
stations/networks. Community radio is not meant to replace or to play
against existing radio networks. 

It's just like there are national, regional and local radio stations within
the (state-run giant) All India Radio network, catering to different levels
of needs, Community Radio is more specific and narrow-based than a local
district level radio station. The only difference, and a significant one at
that, is that this set is owned and run by local communities.

---------------------------------------------------------------------
QUESTION: What about educational radio? Can universities step in at least in
the interim?
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Not all universities have these objectives. Even those which have Journalism
and Mass Communication departments, Music and Drama departments (don't
necessary see this as a priority), 

Community Development departments have hardly reached out to the communities
around them. They remain islands. Even after the actual establishments of
agricultural or veterinary universities, these are not in the reach of the
communities that they ultimately cater their research and development.

Hence, for them, radio is not a suitable medium for transmission of messages
to possible users. (ENDS)
--
Frederick Noronha * Freelance Journalist * Goa * India 832.409490 / 409783
BYTESFORALL www.bytesforall.org  * GNU-LINUX http://linuxinindia.pitas.com
Email fred at bytesforall.org * SMS 9822122436 at attcell.net * 784 Saligao Goa India
Writing with a difference... on what makes *the* difference