edition-dw-akademie-in-the-service-of-the-public-functions-and-transformation-of-media-in-developing-countries-pdf

Status of Radio Pio XII, Vokaribe and Radio IntagCharacteristics Radio Pio XII, Siglo XX (Bolivia) Vokaribe (Colombia)Channels, distributionRadio Pio XII was founded in 1959 by OblatesMissionaries in the tin miners’ colony SigloXX of the Bolivian Andean Highlands; in the1990s, the Oblates set up additional stationsin two provincial capitals, Oruro and Cochabamba.Pio XII focuses particularly on localdevelopment issues, on indigenous peoples,and democratization. It is the only radionetwork offering continuous programmingfor the northern part of the department ofPotosi. Broadcasting is eight hours every dayin Spanish and in the indigenous languagesQuechua and Aymara. The combination ofFM, MW, and SW broadcasting together withReal Audio and a complete internet platformensures good access to the target groups.More than 50 percent of the content is locallyproduced; a lot of their news is sharedwith or taken from the Catholic nationalradio network ERBOL, which connects morethan 100 radio stations nationwide. Pio XIIproduces pilots with small FM stations inother rural communities.Urban community radio in marginalizedneighborhoods of Barranquilla on the CaribbeanCoast. After many years of experimentingwith the production of participativeaudio formats and its publication in theinternet, a group of artists and students ofcommunication got serious. They finallyobtained the authorization for a 50 Watturban broadcast station called Vokaribe in2012 and began a test run with four hoursown production three days a week. The focusis on local identities, a sense of relevance ina conflictive context, and the local cultureto mobilize citizens against violence anddiscrimination. After a technical problemwith the antenna mast in December 2012,Vokaribe stopped transmitting as FM Radioand shifted back to the internet and communitywork; re-launch is planned in 2014.Legal frameworkFormally, Pio XII is a part of the Catholicradio network but it’s generally considered acommunity radio network. New legislationin Bolivia could affect in the future the currentlicense which needs to be renewedVokaribe is one of the first community radiostations in an urban area in Colombia. TheMinistry of ICT and communication establisheda new policy in 2008 sanctioning andpromoting urban radio for the first time.Public service remitThe official mission is to “contribute to ajust, participatory and fraternal societythrough educational communication anddirect accompaniment of indigenous communities,miner’s colonies and marginalurban sites.” There are guiding principleslike the Bible as main source of inspiration,commitment to the poor, human rights, andrespect for different cultural identities. Allmedia in Bolivia have to fulfill a social function,according to the new constitution andthe Communication Law.The radio station has the goal to highlightthe “social, cultural, and political dynamics inSouth-Western Barranquilla” and to empowerand qualify social organizations for the useof community radio. Vokaribe has the slogan:Make your own Radio! Community radio inColombia has an explicit public function andmust “promote spaces of expression, information,education, communication, cultural promotion,training, discussion, and consultationleading to the encounter between differentsocial identities and cultural expressions ofthe community” (Act 1981 from 2003).248