The use of old and new media for development is increasingly recognised as a way of

empowering different communities around the world. But what are the pros and cons of this

theory?

Sandra Vaiciulyte

London, 2012

Introduction

Transition from the twentieth to the twenty-first century has been marked with rapid

technological innovations which have brought along such concepts as globalization, global

village and information society. Sociology scholars such as Lerner, McLuhan, Melkote,

Shramm and Pieterse have been trying to put these concepts within social, economical,

political changes. Technologies have reinforced the use of media and together have brought

changes in societies and continue affecting communities around the globe. Using the main

theoretical approaches in communications and development, this paper discusses and critically

overviews the notion that the use of media in and for development is a tool for empowering,

and increasingly empowers communities around the world.

Firstly, the paper briefly overviews the historical perspective of the use of media. It allows to

see the transformation, and is important for comparing different perceptions of community

empowerment throughout the decades. The second part of the essay focuses on the relationship

between media and development. The claim of empowerment of communities around the

world indicates the need for stronger, more sensible communities and it is widely believed that

developing countries are lacking it. Therefore, the claim is assesses in the third part of the

essay by giving supporting and opposing arguments and presenting case studies.

Finally, it is concluded that the use of media to develop and empower communities is

applicable to a very limited extent. This is mainly because national/communities’ attitudes and

perceptions towards media are very important too. Therefore, different types of the media use

can be understood as possessing different potential for development and depend on local

political, cultural and socio-economic context.

The use of media from the historical perspective

In order to assess the empowerment of communities by the media it should be underlined that

the different means and purposes of the media have changed and is still dynamic nowadays. In

addition to this, a historical perspective is needed to critically overview the changes and

implications of the media and development theories.

Thussu (2006) states that one of the most significant events in the use of media was the

establishment of the newspaper industry in the nineteenth century. At that time the news were

being provided by three largest European publishers (those of France, Germany and Great

Britain) dividing the world into three spheres of clients – mainly colonial countries. While in

the beginning of their existence, the newspapers were mainly used for financial information,

the first radio broadcast in 1902 meant the new means of propaganda (Thussu, 2006).

The radio was used for mobilisation of people and formation of opinions both locally and

abroad (Thussu, 2006). The success of the radio was reached mainly because of the ability to

easily transcend borders both physically and culturally. The main Soviet, US and European

broadcasters were establishing radio transmitters throughout the world and creating radio

broadcasts in different languages. A crucial role of the radio was played during the Cold War

and especially in colonies where the fight for independence was flourishing. For the main

political powers, the emergence of the new countries meant the chance to regain and maintain

the loyalty of those countries, therefore ensuring stability of their power.

The period of the Cold War is significant in explaining the links between the media and the

changes in societies because of two reasons. Firstly, during this time the theory of

modernisation and development was born, so the North and the South was established together

with newly born mentality of superior knowledge societies and no-knowledge at all in

developing world. Secondly, international organisations began gaining significance in shaping

international communications (Chalaby, 2007) and the controversy between the top-down and

the bottom-top approaches in development (using the media) was born.

Therefore, the Cold War marked the turning point where communities shifted from passive

receivers of national and international messages into active participators and the use of media

started changing its nature. Analysing the main development theories in relation to the use of

media will give a better understanding of the obstacles and opportunities provided by the

media for communities around the globe.

The relationship between the media and development

Transition of communities from passive to active is very much related to their gradual

empowerment. However, it needs to be clarified what empowerment is in the context of

development. Empowerment can not only be expressed by different outcomes, such as “social

justice, building capacity and equity” (Melkote, 2001, p.352), in the community, but also can

be achieved and reinforced by different tools (community leaders, protests, etc.). Although

there are many definitions of empowerment, Waisboard (2001) suggests the closest definition

to the context of this paper: it is “the process, through which individuals or communities takes

direct control over their lives and environment” (p. 27). Therefore, the use of media in and for

development fits neatly in this definition and allows analyzing relation between the media and

particular case of empowerment. Nevertheless, analysis of the effects of media in development

and community empowerment needs to be positioned in time and space.

The theory of development flourished in the West after the Second World War (WW II) and is

highly associated with the need for a change in the post-colonial and the rest of the Third

World. It is also the period when the power of media has begun being seen as a powerful tool

towards development. The link between media use and development in post-war period is best

described as a top-down relationship. Propaganda via newspapers, radio or television was

thought to change people behaviour and set a “positive climate for development” (Chalaby,

2007 p. 63). However, since the WW II approaches to media and development have

continuously evolved as more research was done and projects of development often proved to

be flawed.

With the rise of technological innovations in the field of communication, media was

increasingly used as a way to communicate with the developing countries. This kind of

communication had boundaries as it only transmitted the message. However, it was understood

that to get people’s attention and empower them with particular skills, media as well as

personal communication is also needed (Melkote, 2001). Therefore, despite the extent to

which media is recognized to be powerful or only of minimal effect, the personal, cultural,

political factors are indeed important in shaping the powerful communities.

Therefore, while the approaches of communication and development differ, common

agreement on the media as a tool, enforcing greater mental capabilities, can be found in

various scholars’ works. For example, Melkote builds on Lerner’s work on media and

development and further discusses that development of media influences modernization, which

is followed by adoption of supposedly more sophisticated “structure of life, values and

behaviour” by remote communities (Melkote, 2001, p. 116). Escobar (1995) further suggests

that communities need knowledge in order to understand their needs and fulfil them,

knowledge is something that is generated after receiving information, which is provided for

them via the means of media.

Even if these notions have a strong sense of Westernization, because originally only Western

countries were thought to have the right knowledge (Melkote, 2001), they cannot be

completely rejected. Current rapid changes in technology allow those developing communities

to observe and receive information, then use the information and create knowledge by

searching how to replicate the images observed via means of media. In other words,

communities start possessing something that can be called social actualization. Therefore, by

including empowerment in the relationship between media and development, a full cycle is

created.

In order to make the cycle work efficiently the communication part has to act according to

certain qualities. Together with changes in technology, the meaning of communication has

changed too. Participation theory became the turning point in the understanding of the

empowering relationship between the media and community (Waisboard, 2001). Development

is increasingly thought to be a process reinforced by communities or, as Gumucio (2008) puts

it, citizens. These people need to participate and control societal change which rises from the

need as opposed to the must imposed by the West. The media in this process can be very

helpful indeed if it reflects the society and helps people understand their own issues rather than

directly pointing to them and requiring eliminate them.

Empowering media versus empowering technology

Waisboard (2001) also identifies the use of media as an empowering force in the sense that it

has a mobilization potential. Media can facilitate releasing this potential and is similar to

empowerment because entails communication, knowledge, planning and is usually beneficial

when achieving long-run goals. However, as opposed to planned mobilization, ad-hoc,

spontaneous and conflict based mobilization has no sustainable outcomes and can have

devastating effects.

Media can be used for both and “empowerment is possible only if community member

critically reflect on their experiences and understand the reasons for failure and success”

(Waisboard, 2001, p21). It is important to note that together with the growth of media and

technology use for development, growth of chaotic and incoherent actions is possible.

As already stated, technology has had an immense impact on communication, which is

systematically being used for development. From papers to digital media, the scope of

adapting new means of communication is increasingly growing. Communities around the

world are adopting technology quicker than in the beginning of the twentieth century. The

number of years needed to adopt a new technology dropped significantly (almost 50%) in the

last 30 years (Ofcom, 2012).

What is also true about the increasing spread of use of media and its effects on societies is that

technology is known to be more easily adopted by younger generations (Melkote, 2001,

p.125). However, bearing in mind the gap between the communities with the access to digital

media and without it (Melkote, 2001), the use of media in development is a valid notion only

when taking into consideration the already technologically empowered communities.

Despite the changes in technology, the main purpose of the media has remained the same.

Ideally, the use of media for and in development has to bring alertness and consciousness to

the community, teach how to assess the goals or inspire to take positive social actions. The

greater the ability to act and bring changes is provided for the community, the greater the

empowerment is. In order to see how theoretical empowerment is put into practice, empirical

examples need to be presented.

The effectiveness of media empowering

The paper focuses on the empowerment of communities in the Third World but it is not

entirely possible to examine their cases using identical theories of media and development.

The countries within the developing world differ culturally, politically, historically and in

many other ways. It is also unreasonable classifying similar cases, such as regional outbursts

of civil resistance against dictatorship or successful social campaigns for protection against

AIDS. It is because they are all based on the mentioned differences and, once again, cultural,

socio-political and historical circumstances.

It is also worth mentioning that because of unequal distribution of technology, different

communities throughout the world are experiencing diverse stages of empowerment. For

example, it is clear that the community just recently introduced the radio is less

technologically advanced comparing to one recently experienced Internet.

However, as the notion of empowerment is being discussed in current times it is valid to take

all kinds of media into consideration. Therefore, also, the purpose is to show how some of the

theoretical assumptions about the media used as a way to empower communities are reflected

in contemporary practice.

Empowerment strengths

The central argument for supporting the notion of the media as being capable of empowering

communities around the world is expressed by Chalaby (2007). He states that it is the growth

of digital media, falling costs of access to it and the growth of number of people who are able

to access the media that increasingly lead to facilitation of participation. It leads to what

Melkote (2001) once called the ability for communities to “manage their own development”

(p.337).

One of the examples demonstrating the way towards which the contemporary media use for

empowerment and self development moves is the Middle East. “In the Middle East, satellite

ventures have introduced innovative TV formats and driven wide changes in Arab television.

Channels like Al Arabiya have raised the standards of broadcasting journalism and the

independent voice of Al Jazeera has unsettled governments” (Chalaby, J. 2007, p.70).

Therefore, it is not biased to say that the contemporary discourse about the use of new media,

especially social, has risen dramatically since the Arab Spring in 2011. The discussions broke

on whether or not social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) are responsible for the scope of the

Arab revolution (Hothi, 2012). There are various critics on the case but they cannot deny the

fact the use of social media acted as a communication tool for political mobilization.

Interestingly, the diversity of development aspects is complemented by the recent project by

the Small Media. It assesses and evaluates the use of media and technologies in Iranian LGBT

(lesbian, bisexual, gay and transgender) community. The project shows, how increasingly used

technologies and media can assess and help solve other than traditional social problems. The

report states that the Internet in Iran is increasingly used by “Many of Iran’s diverse ethnic,

religious and social minority groups...to foster identity, community growth and stability”

(Small Media, 2012). However, it remains controversial and is still dangerous, because these

people are often being tracked down and imprisoned. This is why the Small Media is working

on finding solutions and ways to make the communication among communities more secure.

Therefore, it is increasingly believed that providing communities with communication tools,

rather than only development programmes, is a way to reinforce sustainable change. As more

projects related with the proliferation of media use are created, more possibilities to

communicate, act and become empowered are created. For example, The Internet Society

programme was created to reinforce the Internet connection and usage in developing regions.

The project not only proliferates the Internet access but also claims to deliver specific training

and access to various information resources (The Internet Society, 2012). It is an example of

how NGO’s and International Organizations (IOs) are working for the proliferation of the

media and intervene where developing countries have scarce human resources or

infrastructure.

However, Wilkins (2001) strongly suggests that these NGOs and IOs are likely to face

difficulties and struggle against local political ambience. Despite the critique, a recent

UNESCO (2008) reported on rather positive media contribution to development:

The media’s contribution to the creation and sustaining of functioning democracies and

their potential to serve as a catalyst for human development provide the justification for

UNESCO’s media development efforts (UNESCO, 2008).

Empowerment flaws

However, one should be critical when seeing only advantages or positive outcomes of the use

of media for empowerment. As already mentioned, only those who have access to information

are considered to have the power of knowledge and therefore can progress and develop. In

other words, the gap between information-rich and information-poor is growing rapidly. Also,

even if individually accessible resources of information are widespread but national and

international propaganda, state restrictions over the use of the media are still common bias.

This way the understanding of empowerment is distorted and communities may be misled.

Empowerment by the use of media is surely not enough for bringing a real change. As studies

have shown “the media had a great importance in increasing awareness but that interpersonal

communication and personal sources were crucial in making decisions to adopt innovations”

(Waisboard, 2001, p.2). Therefore Waisboard (2001) indicates clearly that the media, used for

development, has to be articulated in a way that certain communities would understand and

would be able to act upon it by sharing knowledge within communities.

Despite the fact that the role of media in developing countries is considered to strengthen civil

society, media can be used as manipulative tool for terrorist groups, digital media can be

exploited for “terrorism online, digital fatwas, cyber-war” (Howard, 2010). In addition to this,

further UNESCO indicators of media development clearly show what problems are still being

encountered by the media in developing countries (UNESCO, 2008). The problems can be

distinguished as follows:

1. Lack of pluralism and diversity of the media;

2. Absence of legal, policy and regulatory rules protecting freedom of speech and free

flow of information.

3. Underrepresentation of specific groups within community and lack of media literacy,

therefore media may not be encouraging democratic discourse.

4. No or very limited possibilities to train professionals to enter the local media and

broadcasting.

5. Lack of infrastructure such as electricity, access to telephone, the Internet, poor

reception of broadcasts.

Therefore, media use in and for development is highly dependent on infrastructure, institutions

and journalists. If the basis for accurate, clear, legitimate media is non-existent then it is really

difficult to talk about its effects and empowerment of communities.

The discussed empowerment failures are examples of the bottom-top incapacity. However,

top-down media use for empowerment is not a solution either. For example, social media is

thought to bring knowledge to developing countries about diseases, such as Aids, or

familiarise people with the ways to improving health conditions. Nowadays this kind of media

is called social marketing and is increasingly criticized for its consumerism promoting features

(Waisboard, 2001). Mainly because it suggests using products/services of certain companies

and prove to be ineffective.

The ineffectiveness is highly related to the use of media in the form of entertainment, which

does not reach alertness or consciousness, needed for community empowerment. Therefore, it

fails to achieve long-term productivity and without the needed infrastructure, certain

empowerment examples become random short-term, scattered outbursts which successfully

misused media as a tool for their goals.

Conclusion

It was argued that in the beginning of the twentieth century, media use for development had a

highly top-down approach. However, the use of new means of media changed perceptions of

communication and development. There are four points that need to be considered. Firstly,

proliferation of media and civil participation within communities managed to challenge top-

down development approach. Therefore the use of media in development can act as a pipeline

for empowering communities.

However, the second point is that the scope, pace and sustainability of empowerment vary

highly. Different communities in the Third World countries are not on the same stage of

empowerment. In other words, what in some cases might seem as a beginning of

empowerment can have no sustainability in the future. Therefore it is difficult to assess

whether or not media can truly act as an empowering force.

The third point worth noting is that new technologies, in some cases more than media per se,

are able to empower more communities around the globe. However, failure to address the

relevant problems in the use of media in/for development can cause confusion, disruption,

division in communities. The fourth point alerts that together with the positive changes, perils

of participation have arisen. On the other hand, even when participation promoting media is

vital, it faces local circumstances of lack of democracy and fear of people to participate.

REFERENCES

1. CHALABY, J. (2007) ‘Beyond Nation-Centrism: Thinking International Communication from a

Cosmopolitan Perspective’, Studies in Communication Science, 7(1), pp. 61-83.

2. ESCOBAR, A. (1995) Encountering development: The making and unmaking of the Third

World, Princeton: U of Princeton.

3. GUMUCIO, D., A. (2008) ‘Six degrees and butterflies: Communication, Citizenship, and

Change’, in A. Fowler and K. Biekart (eds), Civic Driven Change: Citizen’s Imagination in

Action. The Hague: Institute of Social Studies. pp. 1-10.

4. HOTHI, M. (2012) ‘Does social media really empower local communities?’, The Guardian, 1

March [Online]. Available at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/voluntary-sector-

network/community-action-blog/2012/mar/01/social-media-empower-communities

[Accessed 15 November]

5. HOWARD, N., P. (2010) ‘The Lasting Impact of Digital Media on Civil Society’, IIP Digital, 25

January [Online]. Available at:

http://iipdigital.usembassy.gov/st/english/publication/2010/01/20100126140433mlenuhret0

.8288081.html#axzz2B4wE0dpP [Accessed 15 November]

6. OFCOM (2011) Years taken to achieve 50% penetration [Online]. Available at:

http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/market-data-research/market-data/communications-

market-reports/cmr11/uk/1.23 [Accessed 15 November]

7. INTERNET SOCIETY, [Online]. Available at: http://www.internetsociety.org/development

[Accessed 15 November]

8. MELKOTE, S. R. (2001) Communication for development in the third world: Theory and

practice, New Delhi and London: Sage.

9. SMALL MEDIA (2012) ‘LGBT Republic of Iran: An Online Reality?’, a Small Media report.

10. Thussu, D. (2006) International Communication – 2nd edition. Arnold.

11. UNESCO (2008) Media Development Indicators: A framework for assessing media

development, France, 26-28 March 2008.

12. WAISBORD, S. (2001) Family tree of theories, methodologies and strategies in development

communication: Convergences and differences.

13. WILKINS, K. G., MODY, B. (2001) Reshaping development communication: Developing

communication and communication development. Communication Theory, 11(4), pp. 385-

396.