[cr-india] 'Time to Free the Radio': The Hindu article by A.S.Panneerselvan

[Vinod Pavarala]

This is embarrassingly puerile! Some mainstream media outlets act like they
have just discovered radio (via the Hon'ble PM) or worse still, this exotic
entity called community radio. It is in that sense that I appreciate
Panneerselvan's effort to mainstream the issue as one of freedom of
expression.

best,
Vinod

On Wed, Apr 1, 2015 at 11:08 AM, Sajan Venniyoor <venniyoor at gmail.com>
wrote:

> On 31 March 2015 at 18:22, geeta seshu <geetaseshu at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> though the comments on the media made me cringe (on behalf of those
>> mentally defective teens with attention spans of gnats!
>>
>
> There was an editorial on CR in the *New Indian Express *on 27 March,
> promisingly titled 'Community Radio Helps to Empower Everyone
> <http://www.newindianexpress.com/editorials/Community-Radio-Helps-to-Empower-Everyone/2015/03/27/article2731561.ece>'
> *(see below). *
>
> According to the editorial writer (*ref: *mentally defective teen*), *(a)
> Modi has put radio on the forefront by (b) ventilating issues such as
> "cleanliness, school exams, specially-abled children, agriculture" and, of
> course, the widely reviled Land Bill and therefore (c) being lectured to by
> the PM on cleanliness and drug abuse somehow empowers "the last man
> standing in the remotest part of India".
>
> All this is presented without irony in an editorial in one of India's most
> respected newspapers. I have seen PIB handouts that are models of
> objectivity and balance by comparison.
>
> Sajan
>
>
> Community Radio Helps to Empower Everyone
> <http://www.newindianexpress.com/editorials/Community-Radio-Helps-to-Empower-Everyone/2015/03/27/article2731561.ece>
> The New Indian Express | 27 March 2015
>
> Narendra Modi’s “Mann Ki Baat” programme has once again put the ubiquitous
> radio on the forefront—as an unbeatable tool to reach out, connect and
> directly engage with the last man standing in the remotest part of India.
> The PM’s preference for radio also seems to have been picked up by his
> government that is starting to make significant policy moves to promote the
> medium. I&B minister Arun Jaitley’s recent announcement on simplifying
> processes and regulations for community radio stations (CRS) as well as
> introducing single-window digital systems for licensing is a step in the
> right direction.
>
> For a country like India, a powerful radio communication medium still is
> of immense importance despite the expansion of mainstream media like TV and
> Internet. Radio not only covers the length and breadth of the country but
> also drives home the message most strongly. Community radio goes a step
> forward from commercial and public broadcasting as it works directly with
> and for the community concerned to inform, assist and empower it. It
> functions in a limited geographic sphere serving the community on its home
> ground, offering information as well as dealing with local issues and
> concerns.
>
> Radio Kisan of Odisha is a sterling example of the kind of change that a
> CRS can make. Its “Ame Apanka Sathire” (We are with you) programme resulted
> in total community participation in saving flood affected farmers’
> livelihood along the Dhanua river basin in Khurda district for which it was
> awarded by the I&B ministry recently. There are around 179 functional CRS
> in India, likely to cross 400 this year. Modi has taken the lead in taking
> up issues that directly connect with and concern the society as
> cleanliness, school exams, specially-abled children, agriculture and the
> land Bill in his Mann Ki Baat sessions. The government is also showing
> intent which should be expedited so that the person at the last mile is
> empowered.
>
>
> Join the Community Radio Forum.
>



-- 
Dr. Vinod Pavarala
Professor of Communication &
UNESCO Chair on Community Media
Sarojini Naidu School of Arts & Communication
University of Hyderabad
Gachibowli, Hyderabad 500046
Phone: +91-40-23135501/23011553
http://www.commuoh.in/
http://www.uccommedia.in/
http://www.communityradioindia.org/
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