In 2001 and 2002, the Media South Asia project held four thematic
workshops on issues of broadcasting and the public interest. These
workshops were attended by participants from the five main countries
of the region and were co-hosted by organisations with specialised
knowledge of the themes.
INNOVATION IN TERRESTRIAL
BROADCASTING
In May 2001, in association with the Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation
and Maharajah TV, a two-day workshop was held in Colombo on ' Innovation
in terrestrial broadcasting'. The workshop heard from Sri Lankan
broadcasters about the introduction of competition in the terrestrial
sector - both TV and radio -as well as visiting a number of Sri
Lankan broadcasters. Broadcasters from other South Asian countries
described their own media markets and the efforts of national broadcasters
to compete with the challenges of commercial and satellite television.
A final session examined the potential role of the independent sector
in the new situation.
REPRESENTING
THE VIEWER AND LISTENER
In February 2002, MSA held a workshop in Delhi in association with
the Centre for Advocacy and Research. The workshop examined the
responsiveness of the media to South Asian civil society, looking
particularly at issues of gender and marginalisation. Delegates
from different South Asian countries assessed the performance of
their own national media and of the satellite channels and outlined
their own activities. CFAR shared their ideas on media monitoring
and advocacy and the workshop explored future areas of collaboration,
with a view to strengthening civil society responses, nationally
and regionally, to the new media.
COMMUNITY
RADIO IN SOUTH ASIA
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'Community Radio in South Asia: exploring the way forward'
was the theme of a workshop held in Kathmandu in late February
2002 in association with AMARC, the Nepal Federation of Environmental
Journalists (NEFEJ), and Radio Sagarmatha, the country's first
independent radio station. The workshop, attended by radio
practitioners, NGOs and policy makers reviewedthe lessons |
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of progress in Nepal, both at Radio Sagarmatha and at smaller
stations elsewhere in the country. It also looked at Sri Lanka's
experience of community radio in the government sector and
reviewed barriers to progress in the larger countries of South
Asia. Discussion groups on policy, sustainability and advocacy
contributed to a series of recommendations for the future
development of community radio in the region. The workshop
was followed by a visit to some radio stations outside the
Kathmandu valley. |
BROADCASTING
AND DEVELOPMENT
A workshop held in Manikganj, Bangladesh, in March 2002, in association
with Proshika, a leading development NGO, and the Bangladesh Centre
for Development, Journalism and Communication (BCDJC), focussed
on practical issues of broadcasting and communication strategies
for development in South Asia. Speakers and participants addressed
ways in which broadcasting and communications can contribute to
development, the potential of broadcasting in the communication
strategies of NGOs, and the use of NGO expertise in national broadcasting.
The workshop addressed issue of gender and development from a South
Asian perspective, as well as strategies for targeting the media
and the contribution of new communications technologies to rural
development.
