tranquileye free media papers

In May 2006 the National Campus and Community Radio Association (NCRA/ANREC) completed a study of community radio support mechanisms in several industrialized countries. This work was not exhaustive, as some countries identified as having community radio funding programs (including Denmark and Belgium) were not included because of lack of primary sources during the research period. The study was restricted to state-mandated support for community radio at the federal level. The NCRA/ANREC has identified seven industrialized countries – Ireland, the United States, Australia, France, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom – with national government-mandated community radio support programs. Support typically takes one of three forms: a direct station operational subsidy; targeted support for specific station operations (typically programming production and distribution, staff training and capacity building, and transmission and production equipment); or a combination of the two.

Reconstruction of 1994 paper prepared by M Sjöberg for AMARC Europe with the financial support of the Commission of the European Communities under the EUROFORM programme. Sheffield: AMARC-Europe, 1994.

From introduction: This report aims to give an overview of part of the European radio scene, focusing in particular on local and Community radio. The research on which it is based was carried out as part of a project administered by AMARC-Europe and funded by the EUROFORM programme of the European Commission... The project created a transnational training consortium whose aim was to enhance the viability of Community radio in Europe by fostering the convergence of skills and the strengthening of this sector of radio in regions where it is less developed... Community radio is a product of de-regulation at national level, combined with demand and the cheaper availability of transmission technology. The sector has mushroomed from just a handful of stations in the late seventies to some 1500 in 1992. There are about 12,000 broadcasting radio stations of all kinds in Europe*. Community radio will be affected by major technological changes in the 1990s. The single most significant advance will be the introduction of Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) which could be introduced as early as 1996.

By Robert G. Picard. Published in Alan B. Albarran and Sylvia M. Chan-Olmsted, Global Media Economics: Commercialization, Concentration, and Integration of World Media Markets. Ames: Iowa State University Press, 1998.

From paper: Although relatively small in geography and population, the Nordic region is a vibrant media market, accounting for an estimated $10 billion USD annually, or expenditures of $435 per
capita, on media products.

This document sets out the Commission’s revised policy for community radio. The policy it replaces has been in place since 1992 (Public Notice CRTC 1992-38). The revised policy set out in this document streamlines the regulatory requirements by focusing on programming requirements that are simple, effective and easily measured. The Commission also seeks to give the community broadcasting sector greater scope to broaden its potential revenue sources, and to lessen the administrative burden. In developing the revised policy, the Commission considered the comments submitted on its proposed policy for community radio set out in Public Notice CRTC 1999-75... Section 3(1)(b) of the Broadcasting Act (the Act) provides for a Canadian broadcasting system composed of public, private and community elements. Community radio stations are an important element of the Canadian broadcasting system. The programming of community stations complements that offered by other types of radio stations operating in the same market. It thus offers listeners a wider choice in both music and spoken word. This programming also reflects the interests of the communities served and contributes to the diversity of the Canadian broadcasting system.

In this public notice, the Commission sets out an integrated policy framework for community-based media. The framework includes a replacement for Community channel policy, Public Notice CRTC 1991-59, 5 June 1991, a new licensing framework for community-based television undertakings and a replacement for A licensing policy for low-power radio broadcasting, Public Notice CRTC 1993-95, 28 June 1993.

By Colin Fraser and Sonia Restrepo Estrada for UNESCO, 2001.

From introduction: here are more than 20,000 radio stations in the world and more than 2 billion radio receivers. Any notion that TV and other sophisticated communication technology will replace radio is unfounded, for radio is in constant expansion. Its waves reach almost every corner of our planet. It is the prime electronic medium of the poor because it leaps the barriers of isolation and illiteracy, and it is the most affordable electronic medium to broadcast and receive in... The last two decades have seen a rapid expansion in the number and popularity of community radio stations. Among the reasons for this are: the democratization and decentralization processes in many parts of the world; deregulation of the media and the relaxing of broadcasting monopolies by state institutions; and disaffection with commercial radio channels... To start a small radio station is not as complicated and expensive as many people think. There is enough experience in many countries to prove that it is within the reach of almost any community.

William F. Fore is the author of Mythmakers: Gospel, Culture and the Media. From Christian Century, 0009-5281, August 30, 2000, Vol. 117, Issue 24.

Exerpt: SINCE CONGRESS and the Federal Communication Commision deregulated broadcasting the early 1980s, control of radio and TV stations has moved steadily into a handful of multinational corporations. During that same period, ownership of newspapers shifted from families to media giants, so that now there is almost no local ownership of papers in major markets... But the FCC has taken an action that holds considerable promise to open up communication in local communities. In January it issued a "Report and Order" creating low-power FM radio service whose purpose is "to create broadcasting opportunities for locally based organizations to serve their communities." The proposal makes licenses available for more than 1,000 low-power FM radio stations--licenses that can be held only by local, community-based nonprofit entities; no commercial groups need apply. This is a landmark decision, one which can result in a significant democratizing of communication.

Introduction by Susan Forde, Michael Meadows, and Kerrie Foxwell to issue 10 (February 2005) of the journal Transformations called Media Communities: Local Voices, focusing on community and independent media.

From the introduction: It is being recognised internationally that in the face of globalisation, what needs protecting is ‘cultural diversity' rather than ‘cultural exception' and it is community broadcasting that has a particularly important role to play in this process (Dabbous-Sensenig 42). The community media sector worldwide is diverse and expanding, yet manages to maintain special links with its varied communities—described by some as a ‘participatory relationship' (Girard Passion 13). The empowering possibilities of local media have been canvassed and acknowledged globally in the past 10 years but virtually all this work has focussed on production rather than reception (Atton; Downing; Molnar and Meadows; Rodriguez).

By Dr. Jo Tacchi, CIRAC, Queensland University of Technology, and Eryl Price-Davies, Radio Broadcasting, Thames Valley University. Radio, Television And The New Media: Australian Broadcasting Authority Conference, May 3 & 4 2001.

From introduction: This paper emerges from what began as a tightly focussed project commissioned by the UK’s Community Media Association (CMA). The CMA began life in 1983 as the Community Radio Association. In 1997 it changed its name to allow for community TV, and to reflect the changing media environment and incorporation of new media technologies that might be used for community building purposes. Since its inception it has been fighting for the right to broadcast community radio. Finally, in the UK, after years of lobbying, the opportunity to change the broadcasting legislation and allow for a ‘third tier’ of radio broadcasting has arrived... Rather than spending time thinking about why it has taken so long, this paper hopes to make explicit the current concerns about the processes involved in legislating for, regulating and putting into practice such an ambition.

By Kevin Howley. Transformations (ISSN 1444-377), Issue No. 10 (February 2005) — Media Communities: Local Voices. http://transformations.cqu.edu.au/journal/journal.shtml

Abstract: This paper places a discussion of community radio in the context of ongoing debates surrounding 'globalization.'At first blush, this may seem an odd tack to take given community radio's theoretical relevance to and practical application in local settings. Indeed, community radio is generally defined in terms of its service to populations within discrete geographic locations (Price-Davies & Tacchi 50-51). Yet, as media scholar David Hendy reminds us, radio, an ostensibly local medium, is very much a global phenomenon inasmuch as radio technology is ubiquitous, the medium is pervasive in industrialised and developing societies alike, and the industry is increasingly transnational in its scale and scope.