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    Because it all begins with talk: Community radio as a vital element in community development


    Gaynor, Niamh and O'Brien, Anne (2012) Because it all begins with talk: Community radio as a vital element in community development. Community Development Journal, 47 (3). pp. 436-447. ISSN 0010-3802

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    Abstract

    With a similar set of principles underpinning the ethos and practice of both community development and community radio, we might expect to find close linkages between community development projects and their local community stations. This article explores this supposition in the context of community radio stations and community development projects in four regions in Ireland and finds, contrary to expectations, linkages between both sectors to be relatively weak. Exploring the reasons for this, we argue that the increased and extensive incursion of the state into the community sphere has resulted in both a sectoralization of community institutions and the hegemonization of a service ethos where, in a move away from the core principles of community development, the emphasis has moved to working ‘for’ and not ‘with’ communities. Paradoxically, we find that the state plays a positive role in its regulatory function within community stations, opening the space for real and effective community management and control of local public spheres. In the context of the profound marginalization of local communities from mainstream public discourse, we urge community activists to seize the opportunities presented by local stations to open the space for community debate, deliberation and resistance, re-animating and revitalizing local public spheres.

    Item Type: Article
    Keywords: broadcasting; community radio; community development;
    Academic Unit: Faculty of Arts,Celtic Studies and Philosophy > School of English, Media & Theatre Studies > Media Studies
    Item ID: 11842
    Identification Number: https://doi.org/10.1093/cdj/bsr058
    Depositing User: Anne O'Brien
    Date Deposited: 22 Nov 2019 16:48
    Journal or Publication Title: Community Development Journal
    Publisher: Oxford University Press
    Refereed: Yes
    URI:
    Use Licence: This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here

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