The Significance of Patterns of Ownership of Commercial Radio Stations in Explaining the Content of Broadcast Radio Programming

Radio broadcast remains one of the best channels of communication, especially in the developing world. Radio’s contribution to the informational empowerment of people is limitless, and many regimes in the world have always obstructed or controlled it; therefore affecting the development and information access agenda. The communication method has shown a strong capacity to counter social, political and economic setbacks which affect many communities in the world. It enables education on social issues like high maternal deaths and infant mortality in the developing world. It is essential in the eradication of the unemployment, illiteracy, shortage of healthcare services and empowerment of the most active segments of society who are the youths in undertaking significant changes in society. This research investigates the significance of patterns of ownership of commercial radio stations in explaining the content of broadcast radio programming. Ownership model has a direct impact on the content diversity that a specific radio organization airs to the listeners.

Commercial radio, ownership, and diversity

            There are diverse types of ownership of radio broadcast organizations which also influences the level of access to information freedom of any nation. The common types of commercial ownership of radios are public, state or government, private and community radio ownership. The laws guiding types of ownership also control the contents aired on the radio platforms. Each of the ownership models has its merits and demerits to the society. Many governments in the globe have laid strict laws to prohibit certain types of radio ownership since they feel that it may lead to political revolutions and ungovernable citizenry. Freedom of media is one the greatest measure of county’s level of democracy as it leads to questioning and analysing of leadership (Manyozo, 2009, p.3).

Public Service Broadcasting (PSB)

            According to UNESCO, the Public Service Broadcasting is a broadcast firm who’s financing and control emanates from the public and are used for the good of the public. The Public Service Broadcasting radio operations are neither aimed at making profits nor propagating government propaganda and usually free from political interference and push from commercial sectors. PSB contents aim at informing, educating and entertaining the citizenry. They are allowed pluralism, diversity in programming and high level of editorial independence. It also receives sufficient funding, exhibits a high level of accountability and transparency. When managed well, the Public Service Broadcasting (PSB) can protect a country’s democracy and prevent autocracy (Megwa, 2007, p.335).

            The content of PSB radio programming displays several characteristics to its audiences. Some of the defining qualities of the structure include universal accessibility especially based on the geographic confinement. It equally attracts universal appeal or exhibits general tastes and interests of the audience. PSB recognizes specific minorities in society and contributes to the creation of the national identity and community unity. It legal frameworks denies it the privileges of associating with people of certain interests. It enjoys direct funding from the government and has the universality of payment structure (Pavarala & Malik, 2007, p.178).

            PSBs may also receive funding from different quarters, for instance, Broadcast license fees, subscribers, grants, programming fees and slightly from commercial advertisements sources. They are created under acts of parliament, and some of them work under the oversight of state organs. They have proper guarantees in the level of independence which are provided in their governing constitution. Other PSBs have detached themselves from the direct control government control, for instance, a Swedish PSB called SvT is owned by a foundation and derives its funding from the license fees collections from the public (Xiang & Gretzel, 2017, p.179). The organization’s check and balances emanate from the parliament’s oversight body. In many intermediate democracies, there are crucial tendencies to quickly modernize the public service approach especially following the long history of heavy-handed state control of media-related organizations. For instance, in South Africa, after gaining of independence the public broadcaster received statutory independence, and at one time the board members of the PSB were selected in a transparent public hearing. PSBs in many countries are still struggling to acquire true quality and definition of a PSB as the local transitional challenges still hamper many of them. Realignment to the current global challenges regarding media atmosphere is still a distinct task to radio content and programming. A 2011 research shows PSBs in Latvia operates under control of the elite as opposed to the desires of the public (Lor & Britz, 2013, p.387).

State and government Radio

            State and government radios are fully owned and controlled by the state or the government ruling the region. They receive funding from the public and perform public roles and may even act as tools for spreading government propaganda (Manyozo, 2009, p.2). They operate on a non-profit basis. True State and government radio were very common models in the Soviet Union and several countries adopted the style afterward. Radio broadcasts in multiple countries have faced several obstructions in trying to reform current standards on publicly owned radio stations (Barron, 2011, p.200). In several countries, it has been hard to distinguish between public service and government or state broadcasting. Several developing nation trace the beginning of their radio broadcast back from the colonial roots. The establishment of the broadcasts in the colonies was not founded based on democratic laws and policies, and they mainly undertook rebroadcasting the news from colonial master countries (Garnham, 2013, p.121). The media has reduced independence, and subsequent government borrowed tough control of media even after the exit of the colonialists and used the radio as the bedrock of government-propaganda. The emergence of the Public service broadcasting was due to the belief that private sector could be trusted to singly be responsible and guarantee pluralism in broadcasting.

            Research shows that many public radios in many countries have hugely failed to avail the targeted pluralism (Picard, 2014, p.338). Governments in many countries resorted to controlling the editorial teams to filter media contents to its satisfaction especially after it became eminent that government could no longer stop private broadcasters. State and government-controlled radio air the wishes of their respective governments, and they do not enjoy the similar economic outcomes as public broadcasters (Pavarala & Malik, 2007, p.178). The content lacks diversity and cannot criticize the government. They hugely act as government propaganda instruments. The radios in Nigeria are chiefly public owned as the federal and state governments manage many of them while some are in the hands of private people. The central government has two radio stations; FRCN and VON. There are several radio firms under the control and ownership of the state, for instance, Bauchi Radio, Confluence Radio Lokoja and many others. Business radios include Brilla FM (Sports), Minaj Systems Radio and several others.

Private ownership

            According to the African Charter regarding Broadcasting, grouping into three main segments is vital for the radio regimes, and they should entail public, private and community. The private radio ownership model hugely addresses the commercial segment of radio which is business and profit oriented. While there are possibilities of having other non-profit privately owned radio, many of the privately owned radio are aimed at making profits. To make profits, such organizations put the interests of the advertisers first before the interests of the audience (Picard, 2014, p.337). Their content design aim at making money. They include entertainment in their programming only to widen their audience numbers but not really to give them what they want. Many of them play to government’s tune as in many cases; the government is the main source of advertisement returns.

             Public’s trust levels for radio or media broadcasts globally are low due to the influence or perception of bias portrayed by many broadcast companies. In many cases, acting in accordance to the desires or government or advertiser is the only way to keep afloat and maintain operations especially in the current competitive world. Other modern communication forms appear to be competing with traditional communication methods triggering media houses to reconfigure themselves more robustly and actively (Mangold & Faulds, 2016, p.357).New forms of communication channels include the social media such Facebook, Google Plus, YouTube and several others. Commercial radio stations are more interested in making monetary returns than transforming the lives of people or preserving culture especially when they are confronted with the need to decide on one of them. Programs that question government decision, criticize certain societal behaviors may be terminated due to their capacity to trigger fightbacks from certain quarters. Respect for constitutional laws in many developing countries is always questionable as governments and other personalities employ such weaknesses in limiting freedom of access to information.

Community ownership

            A community radio broadcasting is a non-profit service which falls under the ownership of a community and may be managed through mechanisms like trusts, foundations, or associations. The main reason of the broadcasting is to serve and benefit a particular scope of people, and its funding emanates from the community. The content of the radio broadcast programming mainly includes what is relevant to the community. The community is defined as people dwelling in a specific geographical location or even sharing similar interests which can be enhanced through the development of the radio broadcast. Some of the common community groups include local and non-profit organization. Radios owned by educational facilities such as a university campus and cultural groupings may also fit into the definition of a community. Other common groups include co-operative societies and partnership of associations of people (Ojebode, 2008, p.90).

            The simplified reason for the establishment of community radio is to advance, encourage and protect the community’s mutual interest and missions. Many community radios have been associated with pursuing of social development. Community radio contents show diversified approach in tackling people of the similar qualities interests, values, expectations, characteristics, and goals. It is common to find a community physically domiciled in a specific geographical entity. The contents of the community radio broadcast programming work more effectively in uniting people and enhance participation of citizens in nation building and protection of their interests. The contents are designed to reflect the majority’s desires, inform and facilitates in resolutions of multitude of problems facing a group of people (Ojebode & Akingbulu, 2009, p.204).

            Human social life faces several challenges and such radios provide platforms for lively debates regarding daily life challenges. People render their vital free opinions to a new generation of people. It allows for the stimulation of cultural diversity and emancipates people who are considered weak in the society, for instance, women, the disabled, the poor and many others. Such platforms also allow for rebuking of bad leadership and intolerance. Community radios are more beneficial to the society than commercial or state-run broadcasts since external factors cannot easily sway their contents. It is easy for the government to employ pressure or pay huge sums of money to private or commercial radio to air their propaganda, as their main mission is to make money. Community-owned radios are operated on a non-profit basis, and their main objective is to present relevant and factual information to the listening community. Some of the private radios work under dictatorships of government, big recording studios and many other cartels or groupings which consume their services (Ajibade & Alabi, 2017, p.2). Radios have a special role of facilitating freedom of access to information and allowing for the participation of the audience. The running of a community must show distinction from commercial or government-run radios. Its ownership must be traceable from a community and present justifiable and show pluralism. It should portray diversified interest of a community (Myers, 2008, p.135).

            Frameworks of a community radio require it not to compete with other conventional radio stations and reduce the push to make profits. They should work in complementing other radios due to their additional merits such as flexibility and specific-orientation nature which they portray. In cases whereby the government perpetuates ill-control of both public and private radios, community radio appears to be the voice of the voiceless. Key qualities of the community radio are many. Firstly, they are communally owned (Malik, 2015, p.750). They are a horizontal organization as opposed to a vertical organization which handles community members merely as passive receivers. They have a dialogic essence which works in enhancing production of results for external evaluation and establishment of sustainable community power. Community radio shows collective agency which is the power entrenched on the interests of the majority. Content and programming of community radio exhibit social specificity, for instance, in language, traditions, culture, and resources. They also reflect initiatives founded on need basis of community dialogue as opposed to state-run radio whose main agenda is to create propaganda or political persuasion to people. The key distinction for identification of a community is a shared interest (Ojebode & Akingbulu, 2009, p.204).

            According to UNESCO, community radio should work in establishing its audience as the main protagonist and avail content programming that leads to its advancement. Community radio is highly important especially for the communities in remote or rural settings which always suffer the absence of radio signal. Some of the countries in West Africa who have adopted the community radio model include Niger, Mali, Ghana, Senegal and Burkina Faso each having 98, 88, 15, 14 and 33 radio stations respectively. A country like Nigeria receives multiple criticisms regarding the absence of community radio. Many government-run and privately owned radios are hugely found in urban centers where people are highly concentrated thus denying people in the rural signal reach access (Megwa, 2007, p.337).

            Countries are made up of diverse groupings which should always be preserved for continuity of people and culture. For instance, Nigeria has 250 ethnic groups and several religious inclinations. Some of the common religions in the country include Christianity, Islam and many local-based religions. The country also has numerous language speaking grouping and who have over 450 dialects and different traditional distinctions. In high presence level of diversity as portrayed in Nigeria’s scenario, it is wise to have community radio which addresses unique values of each group. In many occasions, public and private radios mainly hugely employ major global languages such as English, French, and country’s official language and ignore the local languages which may face elimination in future. Local language and culture are high vital in the definition of people origin and history (Ajibade & Alabi, 2017, p.1).

Conclusion

            In brief, patterns of radio ownership for commercial radio are highly vital in explaining the content of broadcast radio programming. State and government-run radio broadcast contents mainly entail contents, which praises the government of the day. They also spread government propaganda and other possibly untrue or exaggerated information which portrays government in a good picture. State or government-owned and public service radios obtain their funding from the government or public. Since some Public Service Broadcasting collect funding from the government, they may be slightly under the influence of government. Community radio receives the highest rating for airing the diversified content programming which addresses particular community and receives funding from the community. They are responsible and accountable in spreading cultural diversity, education, and social development. They also promote the use of a country’s local languages which are on the verge of extinction if other dominant languages keep receiving global attention. Private or commercial radios mainly consider profits while programming their contents. Contents with low-profit outcome may not easily be considered regardless of whether they are beneficial to the society or not.

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