This thesis is about how community radio stations include the community members in the operation and operation of the stations. The community radio sector has grown steadily since the establishment of the Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA), the. This thesis examines the challenge of community radio and the participation of the community members.
History of Cato Manor
The South African Indian Council (SAIC) fought for Indian ownership of the site and in 1979 Cato Manor was officially designated as an Indian site. The Cato Manor Development Project (CMDP) has been given "formal commendation as a recognized international best practice" (Robinson et al, 2004:3) by the United Nations High Commission on Habitat for their work in creating of a town within the town in the grounds of Cato Manor. Denis Beckett, on the other hand, finds elements of failure within the CMDA in his report on Cato Manor and the development association.
Conceptual and theoretical framework
While diffusion models focus on the sender of the message, participatory models claim that the receiver of the messages plays an important role in the communication process. This requires a strong awareness on the part of development workers about their role in the process (1997:234). Community radio, on the other hand, has difficulty attracting advertisers, as listeners are mostly made up of the poor segment of the population.
Media and democracy in Africa
Hyden and Leslie argue that the modernization theory of the 1960s uncritically promoted the importance of African governments playing a strong role in". Thus, with independence and political freedom in African countries, freedom of the press disappeared (Hyden and Leslie, 2003:9). 34;What happening in the economic field has immediate consequences, not only for the sustainability of the newly privatized media, but also the role they can play in it.
The aspect of power and ownership is definitely a part of this domain and is illustrated by the stories reported and the population groups covered in the media. As a result, there are large segments of the population that are not counted or heard in the media (Ogundimu, 2003:225). Thus, the business sector may demand an audience that has the ability to buy, and the media sector will have to cater to this demand at the expense of listeners.
This further limits the focus on marginalized groups and the ability of the media to cater for these groups. Free media can play a significant role in freedom of speech and the liberation of the individual's right to express himself. The IBA issued licenses to several community radio stations in the first year of the agencies existence.
However, South Africa is an exception to this due to the overthrow of apartheid and the establishment of the new democracy in 1994.
South African Constitutional Rights
Community radio stations depend on funding to promote access to information and freedom of expression. In order to fulfill the promise of the Constitution, the government must help the community-based radios by providing funding or other sources of income. Community radio in South Africa is still a fairly new concept that emerged from the grassroots movement that fought the apartheid regime in the 1980s (Teer-Tomaselli, 2001 and Louw, 1993).
The Jabulani Conference was the major breakthrough for the development of private and community broadcasting in South Africa and for the establishment of the Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) (Teer-Tomaselli, 2001 and Conference Report, 1991). The creation of the IBA confirmed the end of only state-controlled media and opened the possibility for alternative and community-based media to play a role in the media landscape. The Broadcasting Act 1999 retained the same definition of community radio as the IBA Act, but added that radio stations had to have a democratically elected board representing different sectors in the community and that radio station programs should ".
Tleane argues that the South African government's neoliberal policies can be blamed for some of the problems faced by community radio stations. This, according to Tleane, happened as a result of the neoliberal privatization project and its focus on market forces. MDDA is a potential source of community radio funds and the agency's funding criteria are: “.
The Media Diversity and Development Agency is one of these organizations in South Africa, but the amount allocated to the agencies is not significant enough to keep the high number of local radio stations running.
Methodology
The population of the focus groups was selected based on information from the manager and volunteers about radio listeners and then from radio listeners themselves. One of the volunteers helped me form the first two groups based on people who called in to his programs on the radio. It could be argued that three of the groups are populated by people who are particularly interested in the radio station.
As part of the analysis of in-depth interviews with volunteers, contact sheets were created from each in-depth interview in order to gain more knowledge about the volunteers and their specific information. At the time of the intervention delay, data collection had already begun with in-depth interviews and focus groups. While the three focus groups consisted of mostly fairly fluent English speakers, one of the groups also included people with a lower level of English proficiency.
With the help of the translators and an open and free environment, the research was not particularly hampered by the language. But for two of the groups, the translator was one of the volunteers on the radio. The focus groups were conducted in the listeners' homes, in a group room in the library and in an office in the neighborhood.
One of the interviewees even wanted to listen to the entire interview after it was recorded because he likes to hear his voice.
Findings and data analysis
Development
Primarily, radio is a source for receiving and sharing information among community members. Management says a better financial situation would allow Siyaya FM to do more for the community. Siyaya FM can be seen as a development tool for individuals who listen to and engage with radio and the community.
Therefore, it is difficult for the radio station to maintain the goal of three broadcasting months per year. Volunteers at Siyaya FM also seem to be very dedicated because they see that the radio can do something for the community and it means something to them as they are part of it. The main focus of this research is to what extent and how Siyaya FM utilizes the community members through participation with the radio.
People especially have the feeling that Siyaya FM is intended for them and are kept informed of local events via the radio. If Siyaya FM wants to remain a community radio for the community of Cato Manor and Durban, there is no alternative to turning into a commercial provincial radio station. If Siyaya FM wants to get a four-year license, the radio must assure ICASA that they can survive financially36.
Coco' tells her story about how she volunteered at Siyaya FM and what opportunities her participation in radio opened up.
Conclusion
However, on the other hand, the loyal listeners claim they have a relationship with Siyaya FM and will listen to it every time it goes on air. Therefore, the conclusion is that according to modernization theory, Siyaya FM functions more like another development', which means that the community members are not as engaged and involved as promoted by participatory approaches. It is hard to know what would be the best way to go for Siyaya FM.
There are many radio stations competing for funds, advertisers, licenses and listeners, leaving Siyaya FM with little chance to succeed and sustain. First, it is important that the radio station find out how important the radio is to the residents of Cato Manor through a proper evaluation. If the community members are not interested in the radio's existence, there is no point in keeping the radio operational.
Siyaya FM can earn from this relationship in the areas of administration, listenership and fundraising (Hadland and Thorne, 2004:56). With the help of other organizations, the radio station must apply for a four-year license and then apply for funding from NCRF to produce programs that are also of interest to the other organizations. If there is no will among community members to contribute to radio, then there is.
It should be a community initiative to be participatory and give a voice to the different groups of Cato Manor.
Downloaded on 26 June 2007 from: http://www.ccs.ukzn.ac.za/files/wolpe2.pdf Fanon, Frantz, 1963: 'The Falls of National Consciousness', chapter three in The Wretched of the Earth. Kadt, Raphael de et aI, 2004 in Theoria 103, April 2004: Editorial written by the editors of Theoria on Iris Young's chapter in the journal. Maharaj, Brij and Makhathini, Maurice, 2004: 'Historical and Political Context: Cato Manor in Robinson, Peter, McCarthy, Jeff and Forster, Clive (eds.) Urban Reconstruction in the Developing World.
Ogundimu, Fo1u Folarin, 2003: 'Media and Democracy in Twenty-First-Century Africa' i Hyden, G., Leslie, M. red.) Media and Democracy in Africa. Rawnsley, Gary, D., og Rawnsley, Ming-Yeh, T., 1998: 'Regime Transition and the Media in Taiwan' i Randall, Vicky (red.) Democratization and the Media. Servaes, Jan og Malikhao, Patchanee, 2005: 'Deltagende kommunikation: det nye paradigme?' i Hemer, Oscar og Tufte, Thomas (red.):Media &Glocal Change Rethinking Communicationfor Development.
Thorne, Karen, 1998: "Community Media - A Price We Can Afford?" in Duncan, Jane and Seleoane, Mandla (eds.) Media and Democracy in South Africa. Tleane, Console, 200 I: Hanging in the Sky: Impact on Licensing Delays in Community Radio Stations. This is a list of topics to cover in in-depth interviews and focus groups.
What is the involvement of the community in the board, leadership, management and among the volunteers.
