the role of media in social development essay

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• > How Does Media Influence Social Norms? Experimental...

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Media and the microfoundations of social norms change, unesco’s campaign: a media intervention in san bartolomé quialana, research design, empirical strategy, how does media influence social norms experimental evidence on the role of common knowledge.

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 February 2018

• Supplementary materials

How does media influence beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors? While many scholars have studied the effect of media on social and political outcomes, we know surprisingly little about the channels through which this effect operates. I argue that two mechanisms can account for its impact. Media provides new information that persuades individuals to accept it (individual channel), but also, media informs listeners about what others learn, thus facilitating coordination (social channel). Combining a field experiment with a plausibly natural experiment in Mexico, I disentangle these effects analyzing norms surrounding violence against women. I examine the effect of a radio program when it is transmitted privately versus when it is transmitted publicly. I find no evidence supporting the individual mechanism. The social channel, however, increased rejection of violence against women and increased support for gender equality, but unexpectedly increased pessimism about whether violence would decline in the future.

A central concern across social sciences has been to understand the extent to which mass communication can influence social and political outcomes. Indeed, many scholars have shown that media effects abound and cover a wide area of topics, anywhere from political support and electoral behavior up to the perpetration of violence. However, we know little about the underlying mechanisms behind these effects. That is, how is it that media influence beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors? In particular, how does media influence social norms?

The process underlying media influence can be broadly decomposed into two potential effects: (1) an individual or direct effect, and (2) a social or indirect effect. In the former, media provides information about new norms and persuades individuals to accept them (Bandura Reference Bandura 1986 ; DellaVigna and Gentzkow Reference DellaVigna and Gentzkow 2010 ). In the latter, the information provided also serves as a coordination device. Coordination is needed because one can conceptualize social norms as coordination problems, that is, situations in which each person wants to participate only if others participate as well (Mackie Reference Mackie 1996 ; Chwe Reference Chwe 1998 ). As such, the provision of public information can enhance coordination on that norm through the creation of common knowledge (Mackie Reference Mackie 1996 ; Chwe Reference Chwe 2001 ).

While the individual mechanism would have an effect regardless of the dissemination method, the social one would be stronger when dissemination has a public component. Hence, I argue that information has a differential effect when it is transmitted individually and privately (e.g., through leaflets) than when it is transmitted through more social or collective outlets (such as mass media or public meetings). That is, how information is provided is important to fully understand the mechanisms behind its influence. Critically, however, media itself has a public component, and media related interventions in the literature have naturally been public. As such, by design, media is able to induce common knowledge precluding the isolation of the social component from the individual one, and thus making the task of fully understanding the microfoundations of media influence a daunting one.

This paper fills this gap by disentangling the extent to which media influence acts through the individual mechanism (via persuasion) versus the extent to which it does so through the social mechanism (via higher-order beliefs). To do so, I combine a plausibly natural experiment with a randomized field experiment, conducted in partnership with the UNESCO. Specifically, I analyze the effects of a norms campaign—a media (audio soap-opera) intervention—on a particular set of values and behaviors, namely attitudes and norms surrounding violence against women.

The issue of violence against women is an important and well-suited case for studying the influence of media. First, violence against women is a global concern. It is a violation of human rights and has extensive pernicious consequences that range from the direct physical and mental harm for women and their children to economic losses at the individual and national level. Second, in past years, development programs aimed at improving women’s economic, political, and social status have attracted substantive attention from researchers and policy-makers alike. A particularly popular type of intervention has been media and social norms marketing campaigns, with a special emphasis on “edutainment” (e.g., Paluck and Green Reference Paluck and Green 2009 ). It is crucial to enhance our understanding of the mechanisms behind these policy interventions in order to improve their design and efficacy. Finally, the case of violence against women lends itself for studying the influence of media on social norms as existing evidence points to the link between them. Jensen and Oster ( Reference Jensen and Oster 2009 ) show that the introduction of cable television in India exposed viewers to new information about the outside world and other ways of life, decreasing the reported acceptability of violence toward women. But this effect could also be explained by the publicity of the media, which can plausibly influence social norms via coordination—that is, influencing perceptions of what others think as desirable, and hence promote the rejection of violence because of the expectation that others will reject it as well.

The intervention manipulated the social context in which individuals were able to receive the program. To do so, the research was conducted in San Bartolomé Quialana, a small rural, indigenous community in Oaxaca, Mexico, during May to June 2013, where I combine (1) a plausible natural experiment on the broadcast’s reach with (2) randomly assigned invitations to listen to the program. San Bartolomé Quialana is broadly representative of rural communities, where violence against women is a serious problem (UNESCO 2012 ). With these elements in mind, an audio soap-opera program designed to challenge norms of gender roles and, in particular, discourage violence against women, was broadcasted via the community loudspeaker. This particular loudspeaker had a special characteristic, however. Topography conditions affected its reach, precluding part of the community from accessing the broadcast. This is important because only the area outside the loudspeaker’s reach provides the leverage to test the individual mechanism. Within this area, households were randomly invited to listen to the program, individually and privately, using an audio CD ( Audio CD treatment). Here, individuals were unaware of others listening to the program, precluding common knowledge creation and coordination, thus isolating the individual effect. On the other hand, the area within the loudspeaker’s reach allows us to test the social mechanism. In this area, the program was broadcasted once such that households were able to listen to it ( Village Loudspeaker treatment). In addition, households were randomly invited to listen to the program at a community meeting type of set-up. That is, they were invited to listen to the same program at the same time, but to do it physically copresent with other members of the community ( Community Meeting treatment). This treatment might facilitate the generation of common knowledge and, importantly, aims to match the invitation component of the Audio CD treatment. Overall, the design created four groups as shown in Table 1 .

Table 1 Groups Created by the Research Design

Measuring norms, attitudes, and behavior with a survey of 340 individuals in 200 households, I find that media influence is driven by social effects rather than individual persuasion. I also find that social interactions such as community meetings are not always necessary conditions for such effects. The evidence suggests that the social channel decreased personal and perceived social acceptance of violence against women and increased support for gender equality roles while also increasing pessimism on whether violence will decline in the future. In contrast, results show that the individual channel had no effect.

A competing explanation is that systematic differences may exist between the areas within and outside the loudspeaker’s reach, which could potentially affect beliefs and behaviors related to violence against women. I argue that this is not the case and show that a battery of individual and household characteristics are balanced between the two areas. Given the small size of the town and the nature of the treatment conditions, another concern is that the design could have been vulnerable to spill-overs. However, as I further discuss below, the experiment was designed to address this issue to the greatest extent possible, and most importantly, the presence of spill-overs would bias against the findings of the paper.

This study joins the growing literature demonstrating that exposure to information provided by mass media can influence a wide range of attitudes and behaviors. This paper contributes to this literature by empirically distinguishing the individual and social effects of media influence. This is important for several reasons. First, it improves our understanding of the mechanisms via which media impacts attitudes and social norms; these estimates help resolve an extant puzzle in the empirical literature on media influence. Second, such estimates are critical for thinking about questions of policy interventions. Third, it also sheds light on the way media interventions may have pernicious or unintended effects.

Norms are important because they are standards of behavior that are based on widely shared beliefs of how individual group members ought to behave in a given situation. As such, these customary rules of behavior coordinate individuals’ interactions with others (Young Reference Young 2008 ), and because of this, they are highly influential in shaping individual behavior, including discrimination and violence against a specific group, such as women. Norms can protect against violence, but they can also support and encourage the use of it. For instance, acceptance of violence is a risk factor for all types of interpersonal violence (Krug et al. Reference Krug, Dahberg, Mercy, Zwi and Lozano 2002 ). Indeed, behavior and attitudes related to violence toward women are shaped and reinforced by social norms in general, and gender stereotypes and expectations within the society in particular. These norms persist within society because of individuals’ preference to conform, given the expectation that others will also conform (Lewis Reference Lewis 1969 ; Mackie Reference Mackie 1996 ). That is, participation in such norms and behaviors (or the diffusion of new ones) is a coordination problem. This is because people are motivated to coordinate with one another when there are strategic complementarities: Social approval is only accrued by an individual if a sufficient number of people express their attitudes and behave in a similar way. Conversely, social sanctions can be inflicted on those with different expressed attitudes and behaviors if others do not join them (Coleman Reference Coleman 1990 ). For instance, these sanctions can take the form of shaming, shunning, or any other form of social ostracizing (Paluck and Ball Reference Paluck and Ball 2010 ). Other scholars argue that norms are self-sustaining irrespective of the threat of punishment. Two other mechanisms sustaining norms are (i) negative emotions such as guilt or shame that are triggered when norms have been internalized and (ii) the desire to avoid intrinsic costs that would result from coordination failure (Young Reference Young 2008 ). In short, beliefs about the acceptability of a given behavior, such as violence against women, are a key factor in explaining their occurrence (Mackie Reference Mackie 1996 ).

One might object that violence against women might be driven by different forces as it is often a private interaction in the household, and presumably people will not engage in violent acts simply because they think others do. But a person engaging in violence might often think about the overall social context. For instance, whether people who find out about these actions will understand it as a crime, and report it. Bancroft makes this point when discussing the psychology of abusive men as follows: “While a man is on an abusive rampage, verbally or physically, his mind maintains awareness of a number of questions: ‘Am I doing something that other people could find out about, so it could make me look bad? Am I doing anything that could get me in legal trouble?’” ( Reference Bancroft 2003 : 34). Furthermore, even if the physical consequences of domestic violence can be hide publicly, other behaviors surrounding gender inequality, such as early marriage or lack of financial independence, are more visible.

Because of these considerations, numerous policies and programs have embarked on ambitious campaigns to address social issues like violence against women by promoting changes in social norms. Many of these strategies take the form of media-driven information interventions, such as TV or radio soap operas (Paluck and Ball Reference Paluck and Ball 2010 ). These efforts raise fundamental questions about the extent to and the conditions under which media can influence social norms in general, and about the microfoundations of such process in particular. Media influence can be broadly decomposed into two effects: (1) an individual or direct effect, and (2) a social or indirect effect.

Individual Effect

The individual or direct effect of media relies on persuasion . The emphasis is on the persuasive power of the content, which ignites an individual learning process, updating personal values and beliefs (Staub and Pearlman Reference Staub and Pearlman 2009 ; DellaVigna and Gentzkow Reference DellaVigna and Gentzkow 2010 ). This “individual educational process” is in line with arguments put forward by social learning theory, where the educational effect of media works via educational role models (Bandura Reference Bandura 1986 ). These educational role models are able to perform an instructive function, and transmit knowledge, values and behaviors among others.

Social Effect

Media can also have an effect via a social mechanism . Here, media influence is rooted in the fact that it can provide information in a way that enhances coordination on a norm or action through the creation of common knowledge (Chwe Reference Chwe 2001 ) This is because media’s method of delivery is a public one. Information that is known to be publicly available helps individuals to form an understanding of their shared beliefs. Public information not only causes individuals to update their personal beliefs, but also allows them to update their beliefs about how widely these beliefs are shared (Morris and Shin Reference Morris and Shin 2002 ). That is, public information is used to know that others received the information, and that everyone who received the information knows that everybody else that received the information knows this, and so on, creating common knowledge. In this vein, some authors argue that “attempts to change public behaviors by changing private attitudes will not be effective unless some effort is also made to bridge the boundary between the public and the private” (Miller, Monin and Prentice Reference Miller, Monin and Prentice 2000 : 113).

Moreover, a social effect might be present even in the absence of an individual effect. That is, people might adjust their behavior and publicly expressed attitudes, but not necessarily their private beliefs. Such inconsistency between private and public is known as pluralistic ignorance , which describes situations in which most members of a group privately reject group norms, yet they believe that most members accept them (Miller and McFarland Reference Miller and McFarland 1987 ). Such erroneous social inference facilitates a social effect in the absence of an individual effect.

Consequently, I argue that the method of dissemination is a significant driver of individuals’ beliefs (and higher-order beliefs), and consequently, of their behavior. A public transmission of information—vis-à-vis a private one—facilitates the creation of common knowledge, thus increasing its influence on social norms. Footnote 1 This is the main hypothesis of this paper:

Hypothesis 1: (Common Knowledge). The effect of information on attitudes and norms is greater when the method of delivery is public.

A public method of dissemination helps bring about, but by no means guarantees, common knowledge, and coordinated action (Chwe Reference Chwe 1998 ). Individuals might not know with certainty that others received the information, and thus everyone who received such information might not know with certainty that everybody else that received the information knows that others received the information, and so on. That is, a public promotion may nonetheless be affected by uncertainty surrounding higher-order beliefs. However, this uncertainty is influenced by the type of social interactions created by the conditions under which norms’ promotion is received. In particular, certainty can be bolstered through face-to-face interactions, such as community meetings (Mackie Reference Mackie 1996 ; Chwe Reference Chwe 2001 ).

To address this heterogeneity within the public dissemination of information, I explore the extent to which different levels of uncertainty and potential social interactions moderate the diffusion of norms. Within the common knowledge framework, I analyze whether the publicness of the information is a sufficient condition for media influence and whether face-to-face interactions enhances such influence. That is, I disaggregate Hypothesis 1 into two secondary hypothesis:

Hypothesis 2a: (Public Signal). A public method of delivery is a necessary and sufficient condition for information to influence attitudes and norms (i.e., no social interaction is required).

Hypothesis 2b: (Face-to-Face). A public method of delivery of information with face-to-face interactions enhances the effect of information on attitudes and norms.

To test these hypotheses, I conducted a media intervention in San Bartolomé Quialana, in partnership with the UNESCO Office in Mexico. San Bartolomé Quialana (or simply Quialana) is a small rural, indigenous community located in the state of Oaxaca. Its key features are broadly characteristic of rural municipalities in the rest of Mexico. (Section A1 provides further details.) For the purposes of this paper, an important aspect of Quialana is its cultural homogeneity. For example, as of 2010, out of the 2470 habitants, 2412 were born, and raised in Quialana. This is important because the ability to focus on a single community, holding cultural, and social aspects “constant,” makes it easier to isolate the individual-level informational mechanisms that drive media influence on attitudes and social norms.

The Soap-Opera

The intervention consisted of an audio soap-opera designed to challenge gender role norms and discourage violence against women. Entitled Un nuevo amanecer en Quialana ( A new dawn in Quialana ) it was produced in conjunction with a regional partner non-governmental organization (NGO) and it included four episodes of ~15 minutes each, for a total running time of 57 minutes. The soap-opera was embedded in the local context, featuring common reference points such as “Tlacolula’s market,” as helping the audience to directly relate to the situations portrayed can increase its effect (La Ferrara, Chong and Duryea Reference La Ferrara, Chong and Duryea 2012 ). The plot evolved around a young couple who fell in love and started a family in Quialana. The narrative was developed such that the leading male character gradually transformed from a loving and caring husband to a violent and aggressive figure. Research shows that the male figure should not be displayed as a completely violent character from the outset so that listeners can create a rapport with him and not disregard his behavior as an exception (Singhal et al. Reference Singhal, Cody, Rogers and Sabido 2003 ). Moreover, the language of the script used injunctive norms (Paluck and Ball Reference Paluck and Ball 2010 ). For instance, instead of arguing “beating women is wrong” the soap-opera would say “citizens of Quialana believe that beating women is wrong.” This actually biases against the main hypothesis of this paper because those in the Audio CD treatment are exposed to these injunctive norms. One caveat of the narrative, however, is that it did not contain channel factors to act out these norms. Footnote 2

Un nuevo amanecer en Quialana was broadcasted using the community loudspeaker as a special event: the premier of the first-ever locally produced soap-opera, and the first time the community loudspeaker was used for entertainment purposes.

The research design combines two sources of variation. Specifically, the social context in which people are able to receive the intervention is manipulated by (1) exploiting arguably exogenous variation generated by the topography of the community (i.e., within community variation of “broadcast access”), and (2) randomly inviting households to listen to the program. I further describe each one below.

Natural Experiment: Loudspeaker, Topography, and Sound Check

While Quialana did not have a local radio at the time of the intervention, it did posses a loudspeaker—located on top of the Town Hall, in the center of the community. Before the intervention, the loudspeaker primarily and only sporadically announced sales of small-scale household goods, such as construction materials, like bricks, or other livestock. It was never used for other announcements like news, weather, etc. Perhaps for these reasons the variation in the loudspeaker’s reach (and it’s sharpness) described below came as a surprise to many of our local partners who had previously taken for granted that nearly everyone in the community had access to the occasional announcements.

Leveraging variation in the loudspeaker’s reach, I define two areas within Quialana: (1) the area within the loudspeaker’s reach , and (2) the area outside the loudspeaker’s reach . This within community variation is mainly a product of topography conditions. For example, from one end of the municipality to the other there is an altitude difference of more than 500 ft. More specifically, in some areas, the slopes become high enough that they preclude the sound to travel with clarity. Footnote 3 That is, the source of variation is not a function of distance to the loudspeaker per se , but mainly of altitude difference. That is, two households can be located at the same distance from the loudspeaker and still one of them can fall within the loudspeaker’s reach and not the other. Figure 1 shows the loudspeaker’s reach, which was determined via a sound-check process from the ground (further explained in Section A2).

Fig. 1 San Bartolome Quialana and its loudspeaker’s reach Note : Population (green), households (brown). Red line: loudspeaker’s reach. Red filled circle: Loudspeaker.

A valid concern is that systematic differences may exist between these two areas, which could potentially be correlated with attitudes and norms related to violence against women. One of the advantages of conducting the study within a single, small (slightly more than a mile long) community is precisely being able to leverage the cultural homogeneity and ameliorate concerns about such potential differences. Based on informal and formal discussions with UNESCO personnel, NGO partners, and citizens of Quialana there is no qualitative evidence of sorting into one area or another based on attitudes and behavior related to gender inequality. Qualitative analyses and focus groups organized by UNESCO suggested that violence was widespread equally across the community (UNESCO 2012 ). I complement these on-the-ground accounts with quantitative evidence. Specifically, I rely on data from the 2012 National Housing Inventory to show that a battery of individual and household characteristics are balanced between the two areas (Table A2).

While the focus on a very small community, alongside the qualitative and quantitative evidence strengthens the plausibility of the natural experiment, such interpretation might be threatened if unobservables linked to each of the two areas are also linked with attitudes and behaviors towards women. This should be taken into account when interpreting the results.

Randomization: Audio CD and Community Meeting

Within each area, households were randomly invited to listen to the soap-opera via systematic sampling with a random start, creating the Community Meeting and Audio CD treatments. Here, the experiment was able to hold the content of the media program constant while varying the social context in which it was received. In the area within the loudspeaker’s reach, households were invited to listen to the program in the cafeteria next to the Municipal building (i.e., Community Meeting ). In the area outside the loudspeaker’s reach, households were invited to listen to it in their homes using an audio CD (i.e., Audio CD treatment). The regional partner NGO served as the public face of the treatments, presented as part of an initiative to create a local radio station and as such, there was no mention of UNESCO’s involvement.

To test the individual mechanism, the invitation to listen to the soap-opera (via the audio CD) had to be privately delivered to the household. Here, caution was taken to prevent households from believing that other households were also receiving the program—although as argued before, this would bias against my hypotheses. Enumerators were trained to keep away from sight any material that would signal that other households were also being approached. Further, when reaching out to the household, enumerators emphasized that the audio CD was a pilot program, arguably a one-time opportunity to preview it and provide feedback. While not explicitly saying that the household was the only one selected to receive the audio (to avoid deception), enumerators were trained to hint at that possibility and to frame such opportunity as something very novel, exclusive and private—which might explain the perfect level of compliance. As such, audio CDs were handed out along with a short questionnaire meant as a listening-check device: the enumerator would leave the audio CD and questionnaire sheet and then stop by a couple of hours later to pick up the sheet, and based on this, compliance was 100 percent Footnote 4 . Because of this set-up and based on comments from enumerators, in some cases all family members were present at the time and reportedly all listened to it, but in other cases not every household member was present at the time, and hence did not listen to it.

To test the social mechanism, the design created a comparable treatment group, the Community Meeting , where the invitation to listen the soap-opera matches the invitation component of the Audio CD treatment. Moreover, the Community Meeting provides leverage to explore the effects of public information. By creating a very particular form of social interaction (or at least the knowledge about it), namely the community meeting, this treatment might increase the level of certainty individuals’ have about others receiving the information, and so on. At the same time, this common knowledge mechanism might be confounded by other potential interactions facilitated by the meeting, such as deliberation. To be clear, during the community meeting there was no deliberation (out of respect to other listeners, conversations were not allowed). However, deliberation and exchange of opinions could have occurred after the meeting. Inasmuch these interactions are indeed facilitated by the creation of common knowledge, the design is able to disentangle the social and individual mechanisms of media influence (however, it cannot unbundle face-to-face certainty from deliberation). Finally, people from roughly one in four households invited to the Community Meeting actually went to the cafeteria—that is, complied with the Community Meeting treatment. Anecdotally, during the broadcast people did stop by the Town Hall, just outside the cafeteria where the community meeting was taking place, and listen to the soap-opera (or a least parts of it) from just outside. Other accounts point to the fact that many simply listened to the soap-opera from their own houses.

However, to fully understand the social mechanism, I explore whether the public transmission of information is a sufficient condition to influence norms as well the extent to which the face-to-face interactions can enhance the effect on norms. To potentially address this, the design created a public treatment without imposing such social interactions: households who were able to listen to the broadcast by being within the loudspeaker’s reach but were not in the Group condition constitute the Village Loudspeaker treatment.

Finally, households outside the loudspeaker’s reach who did not receive the audio CD represent the baseline group . These four conditions are summarized in Table 1 .

An unbiased estimation of the mechanisms relies on two dimensions: one, facilitating the creation of common knowledge in the social conditions, and two, precluding it in the individual condition (i.e., no spill-overs). First, for the broadcast to facilitate the creation of common knowledge, it should be the case that people who listens to it know that other people are hearing it too. This is less of a concern in the Community Meeting treatment because information is explicitly given to the household, so they know that others are also receiving the invitation, and so on. However, a person in the Village Loudspeaker treatment might believe that she has heard the broadcast, say because she lives close to the Town Hall or because she believes she has particularly good hearing but that few of her neighbors actually have heard it. I attempt to address this in two ways. First, I include distance to the Town Hall as a control covariate in the empirical analysis. This variable is also a relevant covariate inasmuch it also works as a proxy for population density, which might be a potential confounder with respect to the perpetration of violence. Second, as discussed below, the empirical strategy relies on the estimation of intention-to-treat effects (ITT) precisely because individuals might fail to comply with the treatment—in the case of the Village Loudspeaker , individuals might not listen to the program nor realizing that others are listening to it as well, and so on. As such, it represents a conservative or lower bound estimation.

The second dimension is linked to the notion that those who receive the individual treatment should be unaware of other treatments. Given the small size of the town and the nature the treatment conditions, the design was vulnerable to spill-overs. However, such spill-overs would bias against the main hypothesis of the paper. This is because those in the individual condition might find out that other people were also receiving the soap-opera. Nevertheless, in order to minimize potential spill-overs, invitations for the Community Meeting were given out on a Friday. Both treatments were administered the next day: the Audio CD treatment was conducted on Saturday—starting early in the morning, and the Village Loudspeaker and Community Meeting broadcast was also implemented on Saturday, during the evening.

Similarly, the design faced a trade-off between minimizing these spill-over concerns and maximizing the intensity of the treatment. For the former, the ideal was to minimize the time between the treatments and the survey. For the latter, an alternative was to implement a weekly soap-opera over several weeks or months. Given that the main goal of this study was to analyze the underlying mechanisms of media influence, I prioritized addressing the spill-over concerns at the expense of a limited intensity of the treatment. Nonetheless, experiments where only one day or even 1-hour interventions were implemented have found profound effects (e.g., Ravallion et al. Reference Ravallion, Walle, Dutta and Murgai 2015 ). Given these considerations, the norm intervention was implemented as a one-day event only, and the surveys were administered over the following few days.

Outcome Measurement

The regional partner NGO also served as the public face of the survey, presented as a mean to retrieve the opinion of Quialana citizens to inform an initiative for starting a community radio. Footnote 5 In the survey, three questions measured respondents’ beliefs and estimation of others’ beliefs and actions with respect to violence against women, and three other questions measured attitudes and individual actions related to it. Hence, I evaluate six outcomes of interest, which I describe in detail below.

The first dependent variable is a measure of Personal beliefs aimed at capturing the extent to which people believe and are willing to state that violence against women is a recurring problem in the community. The question asked was “Do you think that violence against women is something that happens here in Quialana?” and it was coded from 1 (“No, this never happens here in Quialana”) to 5 (“This happens too much in Quialana”). Given the qualitative evidence that violence is pervasive in Quialana (UNESCO 2012 ). This item was designed not to capture such factual scenario, but instead the respondent’s personal beliefs about the desirability of (and hence, willingness to expose) certain actions. In other words, the intuition behind this question is to capture the shift from a perception where “husbands are never violent to their wives—they might engage in some aggressive behavior but that is not violence” to a situation in which “that” type of behavior is recognized as violence, and moreover, it is socially appropriate to judge it as serious problem.

The second variable of interest captures the Perceived social rejection . That is, the extent to which an individual believes that the community believes violence is a problem. The question was “Do you think that that the community, the neighbors, and other families see violence against women as a serious problem here in Quialana?” with responses coded from 1 (“No, they do not see it as a problem at all”) to 4 (“They see it as a serious problem that needs to change”). As in the previous question, this item aims to measure the shift in norm perception from a norm where violence is tolerated (e.g., the community experiences violence but sees it a routine and excusable) to a norm where violence is rejected.

The third variable, Expectations about the future , measures individual expectations that this type of violence will decline in the future. The question was “Do you think the next generation of Quialana males …?” with answers being coded from 1 (“Will abuse women more”) to 4 (“Will never abuse women”). That is, higher values represent more optimistic views about the future.

While these three measures are able to retrieve individuals’ perception about norms surrounding violence against women, they do not directly measure individual attitudes, beliefs, nor actions regarding gender roles or domestic violence. Outcomes four through six address this, including a behavioral outcome embedded in the survey.

The fourth outcome, Value Transmission , measures the extent to which the respondent would educate a child with gender equality values. This captures the parents’ decisions concerning which values to inculcate in their children, which are affected by perceived prevailing values in the society (Tabellini Reference Tabellini 2008 ). In particular, it focuses on attitudes toward equality regarding household chores, which is seen by many as one of the key challenges for achieving gender equality (World Bank 2012 ). The question was “Would you educate your child so that domestic chores, such as doing laundry and cooking, are as much a responsibility of the men as they are of the women?,” with the answer being coded 1 if the respondent supports this type of education, 0 otherwise.

The fifth variable captures the individual Reaction to an episode of violence . The question was “If you see or hear a neighbor’s wife being beaten by her husband, what would you do?.” Responses are collapsed into a binary variable in the following way: Reaction to violence takes a value of 1 if the respondents answers that they would interrupt the couple so to stop the violence and/or call the police so they intervene, and is coded 0 if the answer implies that they would not take any action at the moment. Footnote 6

The sixth variable retrieves a behavioral outcome. Survey respondents were asked if they would sign a petition to support the creation of a violence against women support group: the variable Petition signature is coded 1 if they signed the petition, 0 otherwise.

To account for multiple testing I also analyze an Index variable created using standardized inverse-covariance-weighted (ICW) averages of the previous variables. The scale of the resulting index is in control group standard deviations, and higher values can be interpreted as higher levels of rejection and perceived rejection of violence against women and increased support for gender equality.

Three key covariates were collected, namely gender, age, and education. A total of 200 households were surveyed; this represents about one in every three households in Quialana. When available, both the male and female heads of the households were surveyed. This generated a maximum of 340 observations. Table A8 shows descriptive statistics and Section A4 shows randomization checks.

The empirical strategy relies on estimating ITT effects. In this particular set-up, however, the invitation to the Community Meeting (i.e., the assignment to treatment) matches the theoretical motivation behind the treatment itself. That is, the invitation provides specific information about how the soap-opera is going to be disseminated (i.e., there will be a broadcast and an event where people are able to receive the program together), thus facilitating the creation of common knowledge. This also has implications for estimating local average treatment effects (LATE) as it may be read as a violation of the exclusion restriction—this precludes an unbiased estimation of the LATE, providing further reasons to focusing on the ITT estimation.

I conduct the analysis using ordinary least squares, with two empirical strategies, namely (1) Community Meeting versus Audio CD and (2) all four treatment conditions. Footnote 7

Social and Individual Mechanisms: Community Meeting Versus Audio CD

The first empirical strategy focuses on testing the Community Meeting and Audio CD treatments against each other, as follows:

The coefficient of interest in Equation 1 is α ; it captures the social mechanism underlying norms diffusion. Hypothesis 1 predicts α >0. Nonetheless, I test it with a two-sided test.

All Treatment Conditions: Full Sample

The estimates of the Community Meeting are able to isolate the social effects induced by common knowledge. However, they might be influenced by the increased certainty created by the face-to-face interaction, and might potentially be confounded by other social interactions—facilitated by the community meeting—such as deliberation. To address this and understand the extent to which a public method of delivery is a sufficient condition to influence norms, I rely on the full sample, as follows:

where Y i , h represents the outcomes (continuous variables are expressed in standard deviations of the distribution of responses in the baseline condition). The vector of controls, Community Meeting and Audio CD are defined as before. VillageLoudspeaker is an indicator for whether a household is within the loudspeaker’s reach but was not invited to the meeting. Finally, those living in the individual area without treatment represent the baseline category .

In Equation 2, the coefficients of interest are α , β , and γ . They measure the effect of the intervention and, by design, can shed light on the different potential mechanisms. Here, Hypothesis 1 predicts α > β and γ > β , and more specifically, Hypothesis 2a predicts γ >0 while Hypothesis 2b predicts α >0 with α > γ .

Community Meeting Versus Audio CD

Table 2 displays the results for each outcome of interest using two different specifications. The first one displays a specification using only the Community Meeting indicator (i.e., α ), while the second one includes the vector of control covariates.

Table 2 Community Meeting Versus Audio CD

Note : Standard errors clustered at the household level in parentheses.

Covariates: age, female, education, distance.

ICW=inverse-covariance-weighted.

+ p<0.10, *p<0.05, **p<0.01.

Results regarding to the influence on personal beliefs suggest that those invited to the community meeting were more likely than those invited to the Audio CD to state that violence against women is a recurring problem in Quialana. The parameter estimate gains precision when introducing controls but remains stable ranging from 0.33 to 0.35 SD relative to the Audio CD condition (p-value=0.065 and p-value=0.052, respectively).

When looking at the perceived social rejection, the evidence points in the same direction, with stable (0.66 and 0.65) and precise estimates.

The community meeting effects on expectations about the future are negative, very stable (−0.48 and −0.42) and statistically significant at conventional levels, suggesting that those invited to the meeting became more pessimistic about the decrease of violence in the future. This arguably perverse effect could be explained by several factors. One explanation might be that, while the community meeting induced coordination around a new injunctive norm (i.e., people in Quialana should reject violence) it also raised awareness and facilitated coordination around a more subtle descriptive norm, namely that violent behavior is prevalent in the community. This more precise belief about the current situation of the community, coupled with the fact that the soap-opera did not offer any channel factors to act upon it, might have induced pessimistic expectations for the future extent of violence. Another explanation is that, as a result of the new common knowledge, individuals may foresee an increase opposition to violence against women, which in turn may potentially lead to a backlash effect. For instance, more women may speak out and oppose violence, creating a more violent response from a subset of men. While the data does not allow me rule out or pin down a particular explanation, it nonetheless shows that this effect is driven by a social mechanism.

The analyses of individual actions also support the social mechanism. Those invited to the community meeting were 16 percentage points more likely (Model 8) than those invited to the Audio CD to say they would educate their children on gender equality values, 20 percentage points more likely to react to a violent event (Model 10), and 20 percentage points more likely to sign the petition (Model 12).

The ICW Index analysis confirm these results. Subjects invited to the community meeting have an index of responses 0.45 SD higher than those invited to the Audio CD.

To address concerns about the plausibility of the natural experiment, Table A11 replicates the analysis restricting the sample to households within 300 m of the Town Hall, finding similar results.

The overall evidence is clear. Media influence, captured by changes in beliefs, attitudes, and behavior, is primarily driven by a social channel. However, creating common knowledge might also facilitate a more precise belief of the status quo, thus setting negative expectations about future change, as suggested by the evidence on beliefs about the future prevalence of violence.

All Treatment Conditions

Table 3 displays the results for the full sample, without and with controls.

Table 3 All treatment conditions.

The analyses on personal and perceived social rejection show that the informational effects on beliefs and norms are driven entirely by the social mechanisms. When analyzing the expectations about the future, the estimated parameters for social treatments are similar in size, ranging from 0.20 to 0.24, and once again showing a negative sign. In contrast, the Audio CD parameters are positive but far from statistically significant.

These first set of results support both the community meeting and Village Loudspeaker treatments. While the analyses of individual attitudes and actions also support the social mechanism, the evidence is stronger for the community meeting—supporting Hypothesis 2b. A similar pattern emerges when analyzing the ICW Index.

Additionally, I estimated several F -test of inequality of coefficients. When comparing either one of the social conditions to the Audio CD ( β ), they tend to show a statistically significant difference at conventional levels, supporting Hypothesis 1. When pushing further the analysis of the social mechanism, the evidence shows that publicness in and of itself can be a sufficient condition to diffuse norms, in favor of Hypothesis 2a. Nonetheless, some of the evidence also suggests that face-to-face interactions can indeed enhance such effect, providing some support for Hypothesis 2b.

As before, I replicate the analysis by analyzing households within 300 m from the Town Hall, finding the same results (Table A12).

Overall, these findings again suggest that social mechanisms are the main drivers behind media influence on attitudes and norms.

A valid concern when interpreting the results is the extent to which they represent a one-off case in a unique setting. As noted before, in many aspects, Quialana is similar to many other municipalities in Mexico as a community with high levels of media consumption and issues with gender inequality and violence against women. Similarly, as a large and diverse society aiming to empower women so to overcome social challenges, Mexico has much in common with other developing and even developed countries. (See Section A6 for a more detailed discussion.) Yet, to what extent are the results from this study externally valid in the sense that they generalize beyond Quialana? While there are numerous variations in context or treatment design that could change the estimates presented here, the results nonetheless speak to a plausibly phenomenon; the notion that public information, via common knowledge and coordination, can induce differences in norms and behavior is often stated as a general proposition instead of stated as applying to a particular context (Chwe Reference Chwe 2001 ).

Three particular results merit further exploration. First, the negative results on expectations about the future was arguably surprising. Further understanding the conditions under which these type of backlashes occur and can be precluded (e.g., emphasizing channel factors ) is theoretically and policy relevant. Second, the mixed results on the Village Loudspeaker point to the need for more inquiry into the conditions under which public information is a sufficient condition to influence norms and the conditions under which securing common knowledge via social interactions is actually necessary. Third, the Audio CD results suggest that private persuasion in this context was ineffective. From the point of view where social norms are deeply embedded in a community, this result is arguably not surprising precisely because it does not have such link with the community. However, it might also be specific to the issue at hand—perhaps, in less sensitive issue areas, where social pressures might carry relative less weight, individual persuasion might be more effective.

Finally, there are potential concerns about whether the changes in reported attitudes, represent changes in behaviors, or just in reporting. Despite the behavioral evidence on the petition signature , one may be still concerned that public treatments only change what respondents think other people want to hear and see about the acceptability of violence, but does not actually change the incidence of abuse. Without directly observing people in their homes, however, it is difficult to conclusively separate changes in reporting from changes in behavior. However, if media interventions only change what is reported, it still represents social norms change and progress. Changing social norms is a necessary (Jensen and Oster Reference Jensen and Oster 2009 ) and can be sufficient step toward changing the desired outcomes (Mackie Reference Mackie 1996 ).

It is well know that exposure to information provided by the media outlets can influence a wide range of attitudes and behavior. However, less is known about the specific mechanisms behind such influence. Two broad mechanisms can account for such effects, namely an individual mechanism based on persuasion and a social mechanism based on higher-order beliefs and coordination. This paper examines these mechanisms and disentangles their effects at the individual level, studying attitudes, and norms toward violence against women.

The evidence presented here shows a very consistent story: media influence on attitudes and social norms is driven mainly by social effects rather than individual persuasion. First, I show that a public method of delivery was able to decrease personal and perceived social acceptance of violence against women and increased support for gender equality roles, whereas a private delivery had no discernible effects. I also show that public information is no panacea as it also increased pessimism on whether violence will decline in the future. Second, I present evidence that a pure public method of delivery (i.e., without social interactions) can be a necessary and sufficient condition to influence attitudes and norms.

Overall, further understanding the interaction between individual beliefs and different types and sources of information can shed light on the social mechanism purported here.

Eric Arias, Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Niehaus Center for Globalization and Governance, Princeton University, 432 Robertson Hall, Princeton, NJ 08544 ( [email protected] ). This research was carried out as part of a UNESCO Mexico program. the author especially thanks Samira Nikaein at the UNESCO Office in Mexico, Michael Gilligan and Cyrus Samii for their help and support. The author also thanks Michaël Aklin, Karisa Cloward, Livio Di Lonardo, Pat Egan, Jessica Gottlieb, Macartan Humphreys, Malte Lierl, Sera Linardi, Alan Potter, Peter Rosendorff, Shanker Satyanath, David Stasavage, Scott Tyson, participants at ISPS-Yale, WESSI-NYU Abu Dhabi, APSA, MPSA and PEIO for their suggestions and comments. All errors and interpretations are the author’s alone and do not necessarily represent those of UNESCO. To view supplementary material for this article, please visit https://dx.doi.org/10.1017/psrm.2018.1

1 Arguably, “strong” and “weak” hypotheses can be derived. The strong hypothesis would imply that only by increasing the publicness of the information above a certain threshold one should expect an effect, that is, a “tipping-point” argument (Finnemore and Sikkink Reference Finnemore and Sikkink 1998 ). The weak version would postulate that by increasing publicness one is able to increase the effect. Differentiating between these two is beyond the scope of this paper. See also Gottlieb ( Reference Gottlieb 2015 ).

2 Channel factors are small but critical factors that facilitate or create barriers for behavior, for example, the promotion of a telephone hotline number that provides information and can refer callers to service providers (Singhal et al. Reference Singhal, Cody, Rogers and Sabido 2003 ).

3 For examples, see Figures A2 and A3.

4 Almost all households played the audio CD on their own stereo systems, and when they did not have one, enumerators would offer to lend “their personal” portable CD player. The questionnaire consisted on rating the soap-opera, asking the name of the character with whom they identified the most, and providing space for comments.

5 Surveys were collected at the respondents’ households from June 3 to June 5.

6 Answers that take the value of 1 are of the type “call the police” and/or “interrupt them to stop it,” while answers coded 0 are “do nothing, because it’s a private matter between husband and wife” or “do nothing at the moment, but ask what happened later.”

7 Results using logistic models are substantially the same (see Online Appendix).

Arias supplementary material

Online Appendix

Arias Dataset

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The Role and Functions of Social Media in Socialization

Vidyawarta, 2019

12 Pages Posted: 19 Dec 2019

Dr. Rekha Pathak

Dr. D.Y. Patil College of Education

Date Written: January 30, 2019

Social Media is a strong medium of social development. It also needs some etiquette during using it. It is a facilitator for promoting cultural development of learner. Holistic development of learner depends on possible directions of social, cultural situation of our society. This paper discuss about challenges, benefits of social media. It is an exploratory research. It is based on available literature and personal experience of researcher. Here some suggestion has given for better use of social media for future direction of thinking of common peoples.

Keywords: Social Media, Social Development

JEL Classification: 120

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Rekha Pathak (Contact Author)

Dr. d.y. patil college of education ( email ).

Dr. D.Y.Patil ACS College,pimpri Behind YCM Hospital Sant tuka ram Nagar,Pimpri, Maharashtra 411018 India 9850908748 (Phone) 411018 (Fax)

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The Significance and Impact of the Media in Contemporary Society

• First Online: 10 March 2018

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Part of the book series: Palgrave Socio-Legal Studies ((PSLS))

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This chapter explores the significance of the media and the impact it has on the meaning-making processes in contemporary society. It draws on key national and international academic literature and previous studies on the role and functions of the media. This includes the key theoretical debates on deviancy amplification, folk devils and moral panics. It assesses the media’s impact on criminal justice policies and on public opinion of, and support for authoritarian ideologies and policies. In particular, it will focus on exploring how the media can influence popular culture and the impact of media portrayals of crime on societal perceptions, responses and reactions directed towards social groups, in particular children and young people ‘in conflict with the law’.

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It has long been acknowledged that the media are difficult to capture and define (Craig 2004 : 3). As outlined in Chap. 1 , the terms ‘media’ or ‘mass media’ refer to the traditional definition of the media, as consisting of newspapers (the print media), radio (broadcast media) and news bulletins and programs (televised media). While choosing to focus on the contemporary media, this book acknowledges from the outset that there is an extensive body of work existing on the historical origins of the media; mass communication and its impact, and the role of technological development (see Downing 1980 ; Frost 2000 ; Curran 2002 ).

There has been much criticism of pluralist theories on the media, including the arguments that pluralism is an ideological justification for the media and that the basis of the theory is not grounded in evidence. Rather the pluralist model assumes that the content of the media is diverse, without presenting evidence to reinforce or prove this theory (see Blumler and Gurevitch 1995 ).

Rupert Murdoch’s ownership of a range of media outlets in the United Kingdom (UK) and United States (US) is a prime example of the concentration of power and the influence of owners on media content (see Golding and Murdock 1991 ; Horrie 2003 ; Cole 2005 ). Further to this, academics such as Barker ( 1999 : 46) argue that conglomeration has aided a general concentration of media ownership, with research such as Bagdikian’s ( 2004 ) stating that the US media were controlled by 50 corporations in the 1980s, and by 2003 this had been reduced to five controlling the majority of the 178,000 media outlets. Significantly as Tait ( 2012 : 518) observes, the ‘scale and intensity’ of the phone hacking scandal in 2011, saw the resignation of the chief executive of one of the UK’s most influential newspaper groups, the resignation of one of the UK’s most senior police officers, the arrest of Andy Coulson, who had acted as the then Prime Minister, David Cameron’s head of communications, the resignation of two senior executives from key companies in the Murdoch empire, as well as the collapse of the takeover deal in relation to BSkyB and the closure of the News of the World (see also Keeble and Mair 2012 ; McKnight 2012 ; Watson and Hickman 2012 ).

As Barrat ( 1994 : 61) notes, the majority of media organisations are influenced by ‘a variety of commercial influences’, including the need to be profitable and also obtaining revenue through ‘advertising’. Some media outlets are part of the public sector, such as the BBC and they have the requirement ‘to provide a public service’, by ‘informing, educating, and entertaining audiences’ (Barrat 1994 : 61).

Tait’s ( 2012 : 520) analysis of the phone hacking scandal asserts that it has ‘revealed some fundamental issues in British political communications, the political system and the practice and regulation of journalism’. His analysis also documents ‘a secret history’ between Murdoch and British politics (Tait 2012 : 520–523).

Semiology provides a suitable vehicle for studying the meanings behind media content (see O’Connor 1989 ; Hall 1997 ; Berger 1998 ; Barker 2000 ; Schirato and Yell 2000 ). In contemporary literature it is now referred to as semiotics and was first developed by the Swiss linguist, Saussure, who proposed that meaning was ‘produced through … language systems’ (Schirato and Yell 2000 : 19). He focused on the ‘linguistic sign’, which he divided into the ‘signifier’, ‘the signified’ and the ‘sign’ (Schirato and Yell 2000 : 19).

As the findings of a number of content analysis studies highlight, the media exaggerate the levels of crime, in particular violent crime in the UK (see Ditton and Duffy 1983 ; Schlesinger and Murdock 1991 ; Williams and Dickinson 1993 ; Callanan 2005 ; Greer 2005 ; Reiner 2007 ).

Dorfman and Schiraldi’s ( 2001 ) research found that 76 percent of the public said they formed their opinions about crime from the media, whereas 22 percent reported that their knowledge of crime was formed through their personal experiences.

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Gordon, F. (2018). The Significance and Impact of the Media in Contemporary Society. In: Children, Young People and the Press in a Transitioning Society. Palgrave Socio-Legal Studies. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-60682-2_2

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The acquisition of one’s social skills in the present-day world is complicated by numerous stereotypes. From the perspective of symbolic interactionism, this process implies the creation of subjective meaning under the influence of media, which does not correspond to reality. This mechanism is illustrated by the film “Tough Guise 2,” in which any kind of virtue attributed to male citizens is replaced with perceived masculinity.

The interdependency of media and people’s views on men and women in socialization can also be described by functionalism. According to this doctrine, the stereotypes add to people’s desire to ensure the stability of their lives, whereas their credibility is disregarded. For example, the idea of youth, beauty, and sexuality ascribed solely to females undermines the efforts of their male counterparts to demonstrate these qualities.

In turn, this tendency is explained by ethnocentrism applicable to the differences between them emphasized by media. The support of this idea implies evaluating others through the lens of adopted misconceptions, and it helps understands the violence of men towards women. The former cannot form an adequate attitude towards the latter due to the learned stereotypes, and the only option for them is direct hostility.

The effects of media can also be seen in these events since they originate from the lack of resources as per the conflict theory. It is obvious that all people cannot have equal conditions, for example, at work. Meanwhile, spreading the information regarding the differences in the levels of pay contributes to the problem regarding the socialization of girls and boys growing up in this environment.

Finally, the issues emerging from the lack of understanding between men and women are worsened by the media through demonstrating the improper social norms which are adopted by them. As per the theory of sanctions, they evoke the desire in people to enforce compliance with these principles. The failure to do so is viewed as a threat, and male violence can be partially explained by this phenomenon.

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1.3 The Evolution of Media

Learning objectives.

• Identify four roles the media performs in our society.
• Recognize events that affected the adoption of mass media.
• Explain how different technological transitions have shaped media industries.

In 2010, Americans could turn on their television and find 24-hour news channels as well as music videos, nature documentaries, and reality shows about everything from hoarders to fashion models. That’s not to mention movies available on demand from cable providers or television and video available online for streaming or downloading. Half of U.S. households receive a daily newspaper, and the average person holds 1.9 magazine subscriptions (State of the Media, 2004) (Bilton, 2007). A University of California, San Diego study claimed that U.S. households consumed a total of approximately 3.6 zettabytes of information in 2008—the digital equivalent of a 7-foot high stack of books covering the entire United States—a 350 percent increase since 1980 (Ramsey, 2009). Americans are exposed to media in taxicabs and buses, in classrooms and doctors’ offices, on highways, and in airplanes. We can begin to orient ourselves in the information cloud through parsing what roles the media fills in society, examining its history in society, and looking at the way technological innovations have helped bring us to where we are today.

What Does Media Do for Us?

Media fulfills several basic roles in our society. One obvious role is entertainment. Media can act as a springboard for our imaginations, a source of fantasy, and an outlet for escapism. In the 19th century, Victorian readers disillusioned by the grimness of the Industrial Revolution found themselves drawn into fantastic worlds of fairies and other fictitious beings. In the first decade of the 21st century, American television viewers could peek in on a conflicted Texas high school football team in Friday Night Lights ; the violence-plagued drug trade in Baltimore in The Wire ; a 1960s-Manhattan ad agency in Mad Men ; or the last surviving band of humans in a distant, miserable future in Battlestar Galactica . Through bringing us stories of all kinds, media has the power to take us away from ourselves.

Media can also provide information and education. Information can come in many forms, and it may sometimes be difficult to separate from entertainment. Today, newspapers and news-oriented television and radio programs make available stories from across the globe, allowing readers or viewers in London to access voices and videos from Baghdad, Tokyo, or Buenos Aires. Books and magazines provide a more in-depth look at a wide range of subjects. The free online encyclopedia Wikipedia has articles on topics from presidential nicknames to child prodigies to tongue twisters in various languages. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has posted free lecture notes, exams, and audio and video recordings of classes on its OpenCourseWare website, allowing anyone with an Internet connection access to world-class professors.

Another useful aspect of media is its ability to act as a public forum for the discussion of important issues. In newspapers or other periodicals, letters to the editor allow readers to respond to journalists or to voice their opinions on the issues of the day. These letters were an important part of U.S. newspapers even when the nation was a British colony, and they have served as a means of public discourse ever since. The Internet is a fundamentally democratic medium that allows everyone who can get online the ability to express their opinions through, for example, blogging or podcasting—though whether anyone will hear is another question.

Similarly, media can be used to monitor government, business, and other institutions. Upton Sinclair’s 1906 novel The Jungle exposed the miserable conditions in the turn-of-the-century meatpacking industry; and in the early 1970s, Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein uncovered evidence of the Watergate break-in and subsequent cover-up, which eventually led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon. But purveyors of mass media may be beholden to particular agendas because of political slant, advertising funds, or ideological bias, thus constraining their ability to act as a watchdog. The following are some of these agendas:

• Entertaining and providing an outlet for the imagination
• Educating and informing
• Serving as a public forum for the discussion of important issues
• Acting as a watchdog for government, business, and other institutions

It’s important to remember, though, that not all media are created equal. While some forms of mass communication are better suited to entertainment, others make more sense as a venue for spreading information. In terms of print media, books are durable and able to contain lots of information, but are relatively slow and expensive to produce; in contrast, newspapers are comparatively cheaper and quicker to create, making them a better medium for the quick turnover of daily news. Television provides vastly more visual information than radio and is more dynamic than a static printed page; it can also be used to broadcast live events to a nationwide audience, as in the annual State of the Union address given by the U.S. president. However, it is also a one-way medium—that is, it allows for very little direct person-to-person communication. In contrast, the Internet encourages public discussion of issues and allows nearly everyone who wants a voice to have one. However, the Internet is also largely unmoderated. Users may have to wade through thousands of inane comments or misinformed amateur opinions to find quality information.

The 1960s media theorist Marshall McLuhan took these ideas one step further, famously coining the phrase “ the medium is the message (McLuhan, 1964).” By this, McLuhan meant that every medium delivers information in a different way and that content is fundamentally shaped by the medium of transmission. For example, although television news has the advantage of offering video and live coverage, making a story come alive more vividly, it is also a faster-paced medium. That means more stories get covered in less depth. A story told on television will probably be flashier, less in-depth, and with less context than the same story covered in a monthly magazine; therefore, people who get the majority of their news from television may have a particular view of the world shaped not by the content of what they watch but its medium . Or, as computer scientist Alan Kay put it, “Each medium has a special way of representing ideas that emphasize particular ways of thinking and de-emphasize others (Kay, 1994).” Kay was writing in 1994, when the Internet was just transitioning from an academic research network to an open public system. A decade and a half later, with the Internet firmly ensconced in our daily lives, McLuhan’s intellectual descendants are the media analysts who claim that the Internet is making us better at associative thinking, or more democratic, or shallower. But McLuhan’s claims don’t leave much space for individual autonomy or resistance. In an essay about television’s effects on contemporary fiction, writer David Foster Wallace scoffed at the “reactionaries who regard TV as some malignancy visited on an innocent populace, sapping IQs and compromising SAT scores while we all sit there on ever fatter bottoms with little mesmerized spirals revolving in our eyes…. Treating television as evil is just as reductive and silly as treating it like a toaster with pictures (Wallace, 1997).” Nonetheless, media messages and technologies affect us in countless ways, some of which probably won’t be sorted out until long in the future.

A Brief History of Mass Media and Culture

Until Johannes Gutenberg’s 15th-century invention of the movable type printing press, books were painstakingly handwritten and no two copies were exactly the same. The printing press made the mass production of print media possible. Not only was it much cheaper to produce written material, but new transportation technologies also made it easier for texts to reach a wide audience. It’s hard to overstate the importance of Gutenberg’s invention, which helped usher in massive cultural movements like the European Renaissance and the Protestant Reformation. In 1810, another German printer, Friedrich Koenig, pushed media production even further when he essentially hooked the steam engine up to a printing press, enabling the industrialization of printed media. In 1800, a hand-operated printing press could produce about 480 pages per hour; Koenig’s machine more than doubled this rate. (By the 1930s, many printing presses could publish 3,000 pages an hour.)

This increased efficiency went hand in hand with the rise of the daily newspaper. The newspaper was the perfect medium for the increasingly urbanized Americans of the 19th century, who could no longer get their local news merely through gossip and word of mouth. These Americans were living in unfamiliar territory, and newspapers and other media helped them negotiate the rapidly changing world. The Industrial Revolution meant that some people had more leisure time and more money, and media helped them figure out how to spend both. Media theorist Benedict Anderson has argued that newspapers also helped forge a sense of national identity by treating readers across the country as part of one unified community (Anderson, 1991).

In the 1830s, the major daily newspapers faced a new threat from the rise of penny papers, which were low-priced broadsheets that served as a cheaper, more sensational daily news source. They favored news of murder and adventure over the dry political news of the day. While newspapers catered to a wealthier, more educated audience, the penny press attempted to reach a wide swath of readers through cheap prices and entertaining (often scandalous) stories. The penny press can be seen as the forerunner to today’s gossip-hungry tabloids.

The penny press appealed to readers’ desires for lurid tales of murder and scandal.

Wikimedia Commons – public domain.

In the early decades of the 20th century, the first major nonprint form of mass media—radio—exploded in popularity. Radios, which were less expensive than telephones and widely available by the 1920s, had the unprecedented ability of allowing huge numbers of people to listen to the same event at the same time. In 1924, Calvin Coolidge’s preelection speech reached more than 20 million people. Radio was a boon for advertisers, who now had access to a large and captive audience. An early advertising consultant claimed that the early days of radio were “a glorious opportunity for the advertising man to spread his sales propaganda” because of “a countless audience, sympathetic, pleasure seeking, enthusiastic, curious, interested, approachable in the privacy of their homes (Briggs & Burke, 2005).” The reach of radio also meant that the medium was able to downplay regional differences and encourage a unified sense of the American lifestyle—a lifestyle that was increasingly driven and defined by consumer purchases. “Americans in the 1920s were the first to wear ready-made, exact-size clothing…to play electric phonographs, to use electric vacuum cleaners, to listen to commercial radio broadcasts, and to drink fresh orange juice year round (Mintz, 2007).” This boom in consumerism put its stamp on the 1920s and also helped contribute to the Great Depression of the 1930s (Library of Congress). The consumerist impulse drove production to unprecedented levels, but when the Depression began and consumer demand dropped dramatically, the surplus of production helped further deepen the economic crisis, as more goods were being produced than could be sold.

The post–World War II era in the United States was marked by prosperity, and by the introduction of a seductive new form of mass communication: television. In 1946, about 17,000 televisions existed in the United States; within 7 years, two-thirds of American households owned at least one set. As the United States’ gross national product (GNP) doubled in the 1950s, and again in the 1960s, the American home became firmly ensconced as a consumer unit; along with a television, the typical U.S. household owned a car and a house in the suburbs, all of which contributed to the nation’s thriving consumer-based economy (Briggs & Burke, 2005). Broadcast television was the dominant form of mass media, and the three major networks controlled more than 90 percent of the news programs, live events, and sitcoms viewed by Americans. Some social critics argued that television was fostering a homogenous, conformist culture by reinforcing ideas about what “normal” American life looked like. But television also contributed to the counterculture of the 1960s. The Vietnam War was the nation’s first televised military conflict, and nightly images of war footage and war protesters helped intensify the nation’s internal conflicts.

Broadcast technology, including radio and television, had such a hold on the American imagination that newspapers and other print media found themselves having to adapt to the new media landscape. Print media was more durable and easily archived, and it allowed users more flexibility in terms of time—once a person had purchased a magazine, he or she could read it whenever and wherever. Broadcast media, in contrast, usually aired programs on a fixed schedule, which allowed it to both provide a sense of immediacy and fleetingness. Until the advent of digital video recorders in the late 1990s, it was impossible to pause and rewind a live television broadcast.

The media world faced drastic changes once again in the 1980s and 1990s with the spread of cable television. During the early decades of television, viewers had a limited number of channels to choose from—one reason for the charges of homogeneity. In 1975, the three major networks accounted for 93 percent of all television viewing. By 2004, however, this share had dropped to 28.4 percent of total viewing, thanks to the spread of cable television. Cable providers allowed viewers a wide menu of choices, including channels specifically tailored to people who wanted to watch only golf, classic films, sermons, or videos of sharks. Still, until the mid-1990s, television was dominated by the three large networks. The Telecommunications Act of 1996, an attempt to foster competition by deregulating the industry, actually resulted in many mergers and buyouts that left most of the control of the broadcast spectrum in the hands of a few large corporations. In 2003, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) loosened regulation even further, allowing a single company to own 45 percent of a single market (up from 25 percent in 1982).

Technological Transitions Shape Media Industries

New media technologies both spring from and cause social changes. For this reason, it can be difficult to neatly sort the evolution of media into clear causes and effects. Did radio fuel the consumerist boom of the 1920s, or did the radio become wildly popular because it appealed to a society that was already exploring consumerist tendencies? Probably a little bit of both. Technological innovations such as the steam engine, electricity, wireless communication, and the Internet have all had lasting and significant effects on American culture. As media historians Asa Briggs and Peter Burke note, every crucial invention came with “a change in historical perspectives.” Electricity altered the way people thought about time because work and play were no longer dependent on the daily rhythms of sunrise and sunset; wireless communication collapsed distance; the Internet revolutionized the way we store and retrieve information.

The transatlantic telegraph cable made nearly instantaneous communication between the United States and Europe possible for the first time in 1858.

Amber Case – 1858 trans-Atlantic telegraph cable route – CC BY-NC 2.0.

The contemporary media age can trace its origins back to the electrical telegraph, patented in the United States by Samuel Morse in 1837. Thanks to the telegraph, communication was no longer linked to the physical transportation of messages; it didn’t matter whether a message needed to travel 5 or 500 miles. Suddenly, information from distant places was nearly as accessible as local news, as telegraph lines began to stretch across the globe, making their own kind of World Wide Web. In this way, the telegraph acted as the precursor to much of the technology that followed, including the telephone, radio, television, and Internet. When the first transatlantic cable was laid in 1858, allowing nearly instantaneous communication from the United States to Europe, the London Times described it as “the greatest discovery since that of Columbus, a vast enlargement…given to the sphere of human activity.”

Not long afterward, wireless communication (which eventually led to the development of radio, television, and other broadcast media) emerged as an extension of telegraph technology. Although many 19th-century inventors, including Nikola Tesla, were involved in early wireless experiments, it was Italian-born Guglielmo Marconi who is recognized as the developer of the first practical wireless radio system. Many people were fascinated by this new invention. Early radio was used for military communication, but soon the technology entered the home. The burgeoning interest in radio inspired hundreds of applications for broadcasting licenses from newspapers and other news outlets, retail stores, schools, and even cities. In the 1920s, large media networks—including the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) and the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS)—were launched, and they soon began to dominate the airwaves. In 1926, they owned 6.4 percent of U.S. broadcasting stations; by 1931, that number had risen to 30 percent.

Gone With the Wind defeated The Wizard of Oz to become the first color film ever to win the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1939.

Wikimedia Commons – public domain; Wikimedia Commons – public domain.

In addition to the breakthroughs in audio broadcasting, inventors in the 1800s made significant advances in visual media. The 19th-century development of photographic technologies would lead to the later innovations of cinema and television. As with wireless technology, several inventors independently created a form of photography at the same time, among them the French inventors Joseph Niépce and Louis Daguerre and the British scientist William Henry Fox Talbot. In the United States, George Eastman developed the Kodak camera in 1888, anticipating that Americans would welcome an inexpensive, easy-to-use camera into their homes as they had with the radio and telephone. Moving pictures were first seen around the turn of the century, with the first U.S. projection-hall opening in Pittsburgh in 1905. By the 1920s, Hollywood had already created its first stars, most notably Charlie Chaplin; by the end of the 1930s, Americans were watching color films with full sound, including Gone With the Wind and The Wizard of Oz .

Television—which consists of an image being converted to electrical impulses, transmitted through wires or radio waves, and then reconverted into images—existed before World War II, but gained mainstream popularity in the 1950s. In 1947, there were 178,000 television sets made in the United States; 5 years later, 15 million were made. Radio, cinema, and live theater declined because the new medium allowed viewers to be entertained with sound and moving pictures in their homes. In the United States, competing commercial stations (including the radio powerhouses of CBS and NBC) meant that commercial-driven programming dominated. In Great Britain, the government managed broadcasting through the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). Funding was driven by licensing fees instead of advertisements. In contrast to the U.S. system, the BBC strictly regulated the length and character of commercials that could be aired. However, U.S. television (and its increasingly powerful networks) still dominated. By the beginning of 1955, there were around 36 million television sets in the United States, but only 4.8 million in all of Europe. Important national events, broadcast live for the first time, were an impetus for consumers to buy sets so they could witness the spectacle; both England and Japan saw a boom in sales before important royal weddings in the 1950s.

In the 1960s, the concept of a useful portable computer was still a dream; huge mainframes were required to run a basic operating system.

In 1969, management consultant Peter Drucker predicted that the next major technological innovation would be an electronic appliance that would revolutionize the way people lived just as thoroughly as Thomas Edison’s light bulb had. This appliance would sell for less than a television set and be “capable of being plugged in wherever there is electricity and giving immediate access to all the information needed for school work from first grade through college.” Although Drucker may have underestimated the cost of this hypothetical machine, he was prescient about the effect these machines—personal computers—and the Internet would have on education, social relationships, and the culture at large. The inventions of random access memory (RAM) chips and microprocessors in the 1970s were important steps to the Internet age. As Briggs and Burke note, these advances meant that “hundreds of thousands of components could be carried on a microprocessor.” The reduction of many different kinds of content to digitally stored information meant that “print, film, recording, radio and television and all forms of telecommunications [were] now being thought of increasingly as part of one complex.” This process, also known as convergence, is a force that’s affecting media today.

Key Takeaways

Media fulfills several roles in society, including the following:

• entertaining and providing an outlet for the imagination,
• educating and informing,
• serving as a public forum for the discussion of important issues, and
• acting as a watchdog for government, business, and other institutions.
• Johannes Gutenberg’s invention of the printing press enabled the mass production of media, which was then industrialized by Friedrich Koenig in the early 1800s. These innovations led to the daily newspaper, which united the urbanized, industrialized populations of the 19th century.
• In the 20th century, radio allowed advertisers to reach a mass audience and helped spur the consumerism of the 1920s—and the Great Depression of the 1930s. After World War II, television boomed in the United States and abroad, though its concentration in the hands of three major networks led to accusations of homogenization. The spread of cable and subsequent deregulation in the 1980s and 1990s led to more channels, but not necessarily to more diverse ownership.
• Transitions from one technology to another have greatly affected the media industry, although it is difficult to say whether technology caused a cultural shift or resulted from it. The ability to make technology small and affordable enough to fit into the home is an important aspect of the popularization of new technologies.

Choose two different types of mass communication—radio shows, television broadcasts, Internet sites, newspaper advertisements, and so on—from two different kinds of media. Make a list of what role(s) each one fills, keeping in mind that much of what we see, hear, or read in the mass media has more than one aspect. Then, answer the following questions. Each response should be a minimum of one paragraph.

• To which of the four roles media plays in society do your selections correspond? Why did the creators of these particular messages present them in these particular ways and in these particular mediums?
• What events have shaped the adoption of the two kinds of media you selected?
• How have technological transitions shaped the industries involved in the two kinds of media you have selected?

Anderson, Benedict Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism , (London: Verso, 1991).

Bilton, Jim. “The Loyalty Challenge: How Magazine Subscriptions Work,” In Circulation , January/February 2007.

Briggs and Burke, Social History of the Media .

Briggs, Asa and Peter Burke, A Social History of the Media: From Gutenberg to the Internet (Malden, MA: Polity Press, 2005).

Kay, Alan. “The Infobahn Is Not the Answer,” Wired , May 1994.

Library of Congress, “Radio: A Consumer Product and a Producer of Consumption,” Coolidge-Consumerism Collection, http://lcweb2.loc.gov:8081/ammem/amrlhtml/inradio.html .

McLuhan, Marshall. Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man , (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1964).

Mintz, Steven “The Jazz Age: The American 1920s: The Formation of Modern American Mass Culture,” Digital History , 2007, http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/database/article_display.cfm?hhid=454 .

Ramsey, Doug. “UC San Diego Experts Calculate How Much Information Americans Consume” UC San Diego News Center, December 9, 2009, http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/newsrel/general/12-09Information.asp .

State of the Media, project for Excellence in Journalism, The State of the News Media 2004 , http://www.stateofthemedia.org/2004/ .

Wallace, David Foster “E Unibus Pluram: Television and U.S. Fiction,” in A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again (New York: Little Brown, 1997).

Understanding Media and Culture Copyright © 2016 by University of Minnesota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

The Role of Media in Promoting Social Development

The case study of snnpr (debub fm 100.9 radio) in hawassa town three sub cities, master's thesis, 2020, tefera geleso genemo (author), table of contents.

Acknowledgement

Author’s Biography

Table of Contents

List of Tables

List of Figures

List of Appendices

CHAPTER ONE 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the Study 1.2 Statement of the Problem 1.3 Objectives of the Study 1.3.1. General Objective 1.3.2. Specific Objectives 1.4. Research Questions 1.5 Scope of the Study 1.6. Limitation of the Study 1.7 Significance of the Study 1.8. Organization of the Paper 1.9. Definition of Key Terms

CHAPTER TWO 2. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE 2.0 Introduction 2.1 Media effects and Social Change: Theoretical Framework 2.1.1 Effects of Media – Theories 2.1.1.1 Two-step flow Theory 2.1.1.2 Cultivation Theory 2.1.1.3 Bullet Theory 2.2 Development as a Concept 2.3 Development Media as Theory 2.4 The Social Responsibility Theory 2.5 Empirical Data 2.5.1 Research on FM radios for Social Development 2.6 Ethiopian Mass Media-An Overview 2.6.1 Broadcast Media in Ethiopia 2.7 Historical Development of Radio Broadcasting in Ethiopia 2.8 FM Radio as an Understanding 2.9 SNNPR (Debub FM 100.9 Radio) 2.10 Development Communication: - Overview 2.10.1 Participatory Communication as a Theory 2.10.2 Communication for Social Change (CFSC) 2.11 Modernization 2.11.1 Development Journalism 2.11.2 Diffusion of Innovation 2.12 Paradigm of Contemporary Global Development 2.12.1 Democracy and Diversity of Radio 2.12.2 Radio as Participatory Communication 2.12.2.1 Entertainment – Education 2.12.2.2 Social Marketing 2.13 Conceptual Framework of the Study

CHAPTER THREE 3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 3.0 Introduction 3.1 Research Design 3.2 Operational Definitions of Variables 3.3 Population and Sample 3.3.1 Sample Design 3.4 Data collection Techniques 3.4.1 Qualitative Study 3.4.1.1. Focus Group Discussion 3.4.1.2. Interview 3.4.2 Quantitative Study 3.4.2.1 Questionnaire 3.5 Data Analysis 3.6. Source of Data 3.7 Description of the Study Area

CHAPTER FOUR 4. DATA PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION 4.1 Introduction 4.2. Response Rate 4.3 Respondents Background 4.4 Reliability of the Instruments 4.5 Validity of the Instrument 4.6 Analysis and Interpretation 4.7 Data Analysis and Interpretation of Findings 4.7.1 Effectiveness and quality 4.7.2. Media Quality 4.7.3. Media accessibility 4.7.4 Challenges of Media 4.7.5 Prospects of Media 4.7.6 Open Ended Questions 4.8 Forms and Degrees of Audience Participation 4.9 Educational Development Program types 4.10 Total Summation of Frequencies and Percentages of Respondents’ Opinion 4.11 Finding of the Research

CHAPTER FIVE 5. SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 5.1 Introduction 5.2 Summary 5.3 Conclusions 5.4 Recommendations 5.4.1 Public 5.4.2 SNNPR Radio and Television Agency 5.4.3 SNNPR Communication Affairs 5.4.4 Public at Large 5.4.5 Further Study

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

First and foremost, I would like to thank the almighty God who made me exceed the challenges and obstacles faced throughout my life by hearing more than I say, by answering more than I asked, and by giving more than I imagined. The almighty God, I really thank you for the time being you created and help me to be strong, visionary and bold enough to knock and open the doors those seems unocked and unopened.

I would like to express my sincere and heartfelt appreciation to my advisor Senait Haileselase (PhD candidate) for her close supervision, valuable ideas and invaluable contribution that helped me a lot in preparing my thesis. Really, I admire her optimist behavior, kindness and patience to see my thesis deeply and for her sincerely guidance. Likewise, I would like to express my warm gratitude for my friends Dr. Asfaw Yilma, who is working in commercial Bank of Ethiopia at head office, for his advice and review my thesis. Also Ato Hussen Nuredin the head of SNNPR Communication Affaire office who has helped me in materials and financial during my study; I will never forget, Ato Tamene Tessema, the head of the SNNPR State Office of the President, for his heart full help & encouraging activities to join the University. In addition, Ato Ayalew Arja (SNNPR, South Ethiopian people’s Democratic movement Office) for his valuable support in my research. I also want to thank Ato Aman Nurhussen (a lecturer in Arbaminch University) for reviewing my paper.

I would also like to express my deepest gratefulness to my lovely and self-reliant wife Etenesh Harka for her tireless support; strong moral and tolerance in encouraging me were long-sufferingly isolated with me to make finalizing my endeavor successfully through her encouragement, appreciation and support until the end of this study during my stay in the campus. Moreover, I would like to extend my thanks to all SNNPR media managers Ato Yohaness Ture, Ato Semnegus Sheno, and Tadesse Abate, and all the journalists and editors, Leku kebele, Philadelphia and Gebeyadar Kebele participants in this study.

Finally, I would like to thank Ato Merkneh Yacob, Hawassa town Mehal Sub city administrator during the beginning of my research that made convenient situation for my research in the sub city. Lastly, I would like to thank Markos Tantu the chairman of Mehal sub city Youth’s association and Dessalegn Dawit who were supporting me in collecting questionnaires during my study.

AUTHOR’S BIOGRAPHY

The Author was born in 1973 at Hawassa town Leku Kebele, in SNNPR region, in Ethiopia. After the completion of high school, he studied and graduated his Bachelor of Education Degree (BED) at Debub University – Dilla in English, 2003.

Thereafter, he has served as a teacher of English for the last ten and half years in Gedio Zone (Dilla), a year in Aleta Wondo town administration as an information officer, three years as mass media team leader in Sidama zone Government Communication affairs and now working for eight years in SNNPR regional Communication affairs as a public relation officer in Hawassa and totally served in government activities for twenty years and above. He has joined the Institute of Leadership and Good Governance, Ethiopian Civil Service University for his post – graduate studies in Leadership and Good Governance in September 2013.

LIST OF TABLES

Table 2.1: SNNPR Branch Radio Stations and Broadcast Languages

Table 2.2: Branch Radio Stations and Their Wave Length

Table 3.1: Population and Sample Size

Table 4.1: Response Rate

Table 4.2: Respondents Profile by age, sex, education and Categories

Table 4.3: Instrument Reliability

Table 4.4: Media Contents

Table 4.5: Processed Data summary of Media quality

Table 4.6: Processed Data summary of Media Accessibility

Table 4.7: Media Challenges

Table 4.8: Kruskal-Wallis test of Media Prospects

Table 4.9: Kruskal- Wallis test of Open Ended Questions

Table 4.10: Forms and Degrees of Audience Participation

Table 4.11: Some Educational Development programs on Debub FM 100.9 radio

Table 4.12: Feeling of the respondents on the appropriateness of the contents, quality, access, challenges and prospects

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 2.1: (Researcher’s Own Source), Media not Effective

Figure 2.2: Effective Media

Figure 2.3: Conceptual Framework of the Study

Figure 3.1: Administrative Map of Hawassa City Administration

Figure 4.1: Media Prospects

Figure 4.2: Open Ended Questions

LIST OF APPENDICES

Appendix – I: Questionnaires for Respondents

Appendix – II: Interview Questions for Radio Journalists and Editors

Appendix – III: Interview Questions for Media Managers

Appendix – IV: Focus Group Discussion Questions for Listeners

Appendix - V : Focus Group Discussion Participants

Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten

The purpose of this study was to examine the challenges and prospects, quality and effectiveness of media. In the methodology of the study, by using randomly techniques 137 questionnaires were distributed to 3 kebeles participants. Out of these, for Leku kebele 46, for Philadelphia 46 and for Gebeyadar kebele 45 questionnaires were distributed to the respondents for quantitative study. For interview,20 participants were selected purposely from SNNPR Media institution of Debub FM 100.9 radio case. Out of 20, 16 were journalists, 2 editors, and 2 Media managers. In focus group discussion, 30 participants were selected purposely and participated in the discussion, of these, 10 from Leku kebele, 10 from Philadelphia and 10 from Gebeyadar kebele. This study treated the types of educational development programs that the FM radio broadcast. In the study totally 187 participants were participated. According to the findings of this study show that using a radio broadcast mainly as a tool of motivation rather than as a tool of development which is one of the impediments and threatening aspects of the growth of broadcast system in the region. The results of the study demonstrated that the effectiveness of media, challenges and prospects that hinders practicing of media, this revealed that the perception and attitudes of all respondents did not significantly vary across their responses. The major findings of the study discloses that FM100.9 radio has created programs that are not entertaining, and not preferable to listen as Fana FM 103.4 and Hawassa University FM 97.7 radio. The FM radio station devotes a reasonable percentage of their broadcasting time to the discussion of public issues of interest, i.e. educational and socially relevant issues but the audiences were not needed to listen the media. The study employed a descriptive statistics survey method and used both qualitative and quantitative approaches. Media managers, reporters, editors, and Hawassa town three sub cities of three kebeles local people were sources of data for the study. Using randomly techniques, questionnaires were distributed to three kebele’s people and were selected using simple random sampling techniques to distribute the questionnaires prepared for them. Besides, for purposefully selected respondents for qualitative interviews were made. The quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, frequencies, percentages, tables and bar charts. For data organization, the quantitative data analysis was used by coding them and analyzed through the software of SPSS 20 computer assisted programs. Respondents in their perceptions and attitudes towards the role of Media in promoting social development (educational development) were requested. Finally, the researcher recommended that media managers, journalists and editors, regional communication affairs and the public (audiences) have to build best practices of exemplary in reducing the problem of media effectiveness (contents, quality, access) and challenges and prospects.

Key words : Social Development, Educational Development, Challenges, and Prospects of media.

CHAPTER ONE

1. introduction.

This chapter lays the foundation for the rest of the thesis. From the background, and a statement of the problem, it proceeds to the objective of the study, research questions, the scope and limitations of the study, the significance of the study and organization of the paper, then it concludes with an outline of the subsequent chapters.

1.1. Background of the Study

The media plays a big role in empowering citizens to participate in all the processes of socio-economic development.

According to Steeves (2008) the media’s role in social development for the Third world countries like Ethiopia has an excellent solution for the problem of poverty and related causes such as backwardness, hunger, diseases, injustice and exploitation. The use of mass media and its effectiveness is a prerequisite for communication and attitudinal change which are very crucial in the process of social development.

In Africa, one of the main challenges for developing contents of radio is the need to produce programs on tight budget which has an impact on educational programs like, dramas- which require retaining dedicated teams of writers, technicians, editors, the prevailing culture of African radio is that of the live broadcast, rather vehicles, etc. - are housed and funded by donor aid. These are produced in separate production houses and funded by donor aid. Much development content is produced in this way, by charging airtime to NGOs and civil society organizations to broadcast their programs. Because of this reason, the researcher expects that developmental issues are not seriously aired on the radio without tight budget; even it may affect development issues and the effectiveness of media too. On the other side, which affect the effectiveness of media, is the preparation of journalists towards media contents (Mayers, 2008). These affect the effectiveness of media.

Similarly, the effectiveness of media is growing from time to time, however, still it needs a lot to do on this agenda Servaes (2008) showed that when one sees the effectiveness of the Ethiopia media, the main factors that make the media effective is in producing better social, economic and political outcomes, but there is still a gap in reaching the society due to lack of infrastructure to access the information. In relation to the mass media landscape of Ethiopia, there are sub cities very high expectations for radio to play the central role in the dissemination of development information, among urban and rural dwellers simply because, compare to other mass media (television, newspaper or internet), “Radio is much more pervasive, accessible and affordable”. But, in the context of Ethiopia, there are some basic problems which can deter the effective and efficient use of radio for social development.

Development towards media have been witnessed that during the last ten - twelve years it has a rapid growth in the broadcasting industry of Ethiopia. The trend is mainly a result of the forces of globalization, chiefly liberalization, privatization and the free market economy. Government sets the regulatory bodies to regulate the operation of the electronic media that are also being charged with enforcing an ethical code of broadcasting. Some FM radio stations to air the programs related to the community based problems and issues, but many depend on entertainment without logical reasons. The governments of Ethiopia maintained the monopoly of the airwaves always viewed radio as an indispensable instrument in the processes of national integration. In this country where gaps existed between the illiterate and literate in both rural and urban areas, radio was/is seen as a vehicle for cultivating national consciousness (Tadesse, 2005).

The Debub FM 100.9 radio station is one of FM radios, established on March 1, 2005 by Southern Nations, Nationalities and People’s Media Agency in Hawassa, and is controlled by the Southern Nations, Nationalities and People’s Government. In the region, it has 14 Zones and 4 Special woredas’ the access of south media information has different from Zones to Zones and special Woredas’. The Media Organization has recently broadened its horizon by upgrading the quality and diversity of its services. The main Radio Station and the transmitters’ have links by 10KW and 5KW with 1500 MHZ wave length. But to strengthen its effectiveness still it has a gap to fill it. Now a day, the radio station has main radio station in Hawassa and it has 8 branch stations which broadcast programs for 18 hrs per day by Amharic language from the main station and about 47 languages out of 56 national languages in the region broadcast their programs by their own language for one hour per day on average by this channel every morning. The television station is in the way to establish in the region (SNNPR Mass Media Organization, 2012).

Even though the SNNPR FM 100.9 Radio has eight sub FM radio stations, the stations and their staff, lack special social development programming approaches. Effective FM radio broadcasting should promote social development issues, which is relevant to the community totally. In spite of the fact that development implies change and the first change that takes place is the attitude of the people who are directly affected by the development. In this case, the city of Hawassa’s three sub cities, communities are directly affected by development, if they did not bring attitudinal change.

For change radio plays a vital role in the process of development. Therefore Debub FM 100.9 radio can be trusted as a source of information and a vital player of development in the Urban and rural community. This is only possible if the broadcast content is prepared strategically and appropriately to prompt to the people to be socially engaged in development activities. The study attempts to explore the role of media in promoting the social development issues like educational development programs on the media and there are needs to be filled the gap and researched. Through this, the researcher would like to see the challenges, quality and effectiveness of FM 100.9 radio in the process of social development in the selected three sub cities of three Kebeles.

1.2. Statement of the Problem

The effectiveness of media growing is changing from time to time, however still it needs a lot to do on this agenda. Any mass media are used to educate, inform and encourage people to build a national consensus and the public also evaluates any mass media output and the extent of its influence on society or, in other words, its educational value (Nigussie, 2006). Mass media plays a great role in solving the problem of the public in the process of social development. The FM radio has benefited to the public in social development issues, when broadcasted quality contents of media messages effectively. Today the FM radio stations are established in Ethiopia, but the effectiveness of the media is different from place to place.

According to the Ethiopian Broadcasting Authority (EBA), it requires each station should air educational and socially relevant themes. Thus, they are expected to integrate educational messages into an entertainment format with the purpose of informing the audiences about development issues in the country. Additionally, any broadcasting media has the basic roles of educating; informing and entertaining people as it is known from the classic theories of public service (McLeish, 2005).

Effective media is instrumental for building democratic governance and human centered poverty reduction endeavor of a poor country like Ethiopia as state media development in Ethiopia (2007). Media effectiveness depends on the context of access to information, autonomy, reach and quality. FM radio stations are established, but today the effectiveness of the media is highly in question in demanding. Media plays a great role in promoting about social development programs and has an impact on social relations. In the recent study of Zerihun (2012), the effectiveness, challenge and prospect of electronics media is addressed the problem of media (Debub FM 100.9 radio) accessibility to the public.

Similarly, according to Aderaw ( 2008) large scale surveys, conducted by either program producers or hired external evaluators, have not been sufficient to collect detailed individual response data on the effects of radio program such as serial dramas.

In this research, the study is focused on “the role of media in promoting social development” in reference to SNNPR Radio and Television Agency of Debub FM 100.9 radio as a case study of Hawassa town three sub cities.

Therefore, the researcher has taken the following points as the rationale behind to study this research and has no detail written on this issue in the region. Hence, it is necessary to assess the effectiveness, quality of content, challenges and prospects of the media (FM 100.9 radio) experiences in promoting social development programs like education and health programs by taking sample areas as a case study of the region. The quality of the program content and the professionals that understand the environment should be considered in the study.

But today, the quality and the effectiveness of media messages have a problem in solving social development issues of the audiences as expected and the public are not benefited as well from social development programs of the radio. Because, it lacks the quality contents and its effectiveness of media message to the audiences. Because of this, the social development issues of the public are not solved in different places. The researcher hopes that, the study contributes a lot to FM radio station. But, there are many challenges to sustain its contribution like quality, contents and its effectiveness.

So, it needs to analyze what impacts it brought on people’s attitude the quality, contents and effectiveness of broadcasting message of FM 100.9 radio and what challenges and prospects are considered in the media station. The reason of the study is there are qualit y and effectiveness gap in the media institution.

1.3. Objectives of the Study

1.3.1. general objective.

The main objective of the study is:

To examine the challenges and prospects of mass media in promoting social development using the case of SNNPR Radio and Television Agency of Debub FM 100.9 radio in Hawassa town 3 sub cities.

1.3.2.Specific Objectives

The specific objectives of this study are:-

- To assess the quality and the effectiveness of FM 100.9 radio in promoting social development issues. - To identify the challenges of FM 100.9 radio programs of social development.

1.4. Research Questions

The study attempts to find out answers to the following research questions.

- To what extent FM 100.9 radio is qualified and effective in promoting social development issues? - What are the challenges of FM 100.9 radio to improve the quality, and its effectiveness?

1.5. Scope of the Study

The scope of the study encompasses the city of Hawassa which has eight sub cities and of these three sub cities is selected (Mehal, Addis ketema and Haikdar). From these sub cities the study examines three Kebeles like Leku from (Mehal), Philadelphia (Addisketema), and Gebeyadar (Haikdar) are the study settings.

The study is limited to examining the extent of the challenges and prospects of Debub FM 100.9 radio broadcasting in promoting social development issues in focusing on Hawassa city as a case study. The study also covers the perception of the radio audiences on the issues of educational and development themes aired on. In this study, from three sub cities, the researcher had taken one Kebele from each sub cities. The selected areas had taken as a sample for the whole region. The reason why these areas and the region selected that in the selected area as urban base the audiences have many opportunities to listen FM radio because of this vast audiences tilt to listen another FM radio. The audiences complain that FM 100.9 radio has given much air time to music and western cultural activities than social development issues like educational development program and also the effectiveness of FM 100.9 radio quality, content and its impact on social welfare are into consideration and allotted time to development issues are not enough. This is limited on a monthly report of SNNPR Radio and Television Agency (Debub FM 100.9 radio).

1.6. Limitation of the Study

During the time of data collection the researcher encountered some limitations such us shortage of time, respondents like journalists, editors, and media managers were busy because of different activities and meetings and some of the respondents were not willing to cooperate with the researcher to respond to the questions.

1.7 Significance of the Study

This study tried to respond how much the government/public FM Radio addresses the social development issues which meet the need of people. This research paper helps to mass media organization to improve its challenges, effectiveness and quality of the media service.

FM radios have in mobilizing the public for nation building, prepare them mentally for the changes that accompany development and reinforce national unity. In the study area, there has not been through researched in this area in SNNPR region; this study might fill the gap and can provide a point of references for similar interests in the study of FM radio’s role and its challenges and effectiveness in addressing social development issues.

As stated in to Zerihun (2012), Electronics media is one of the important tools for democratic society building. It plays an important role in all facets of social, cultural, political and economic life. But there is no enough research on the issue of improving its effectiveness and quality media service in SNNPR. Due to this reason the study has the following importance for regional government and for other stakeholders. First, it helps to afford written document/paper to SNNPR Radio and Television Agency to look towards their organization and to improve the challenges and effectiveness of the media. Second, it helps to motivate other researchers to conduct further study in the area and the third, it is hoped to become an input for the regional government to design/formulate a policy from the studied material.

1.8. Organization of the Paper

In this research thesis, it has five chapters, including the introductory chapter. Chapter two of this study organized as the relationship of development and the mass media and particularly the role of (effectiveness) of government FM radio in promoting social development, and the concepts of different scholars were seen in the organization. Chapter three of the study expresses about research methodology, the data collection and the analysis of these methods, and description of the selection of samples were gathered. Chapter four expresses about data presentation or the discussion and interpretation. At last, chapter five presents the conclusion and recommendation of the thesis.

In conclusion, the study basically focuses on three selected sub cities of Hawassa city: Mehal, Addis ketema, and Haikdar. Of these, Leku kebele from Mehal Subcity, Philadelphia kebele from Addisketema and Gebeyadar kebele from Haikdar were selected as the setting of the study. The study wants to assess the challenges and prospects of FM 100.9 radio quality and effectiveness by the basic variables: FM 100.9 radio effectiveness in its promotion of social development issues, its impacts on social development (educational development programs), quality, and the contents of the radio.

1.9 Definition of Key Terms

Educational Development Programs : The educational, instructional or informational radio programs concerning socioeconomic problems based on identifiable audience needs.

FM Radios : Frequency Modulation (FM) radio stations which have narrow and localized broadcasting, normally covering a radius of not more than 100 miles.

Social Development: is a type of social change in which new ideas are introduced in social systems. It refers to the improvement of human life condition of individual and social levels.

Effectiveness: is the extent to which the respondents have benefited immensely from mass media in terms of social development like – from educ ational development programs.

CHAPTER TWO

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

2.0 Introduction

In this chapter it has seen the development and the mass media relationship in general and radios in particular, the theoretical framework which is related to radio and development, media effects and social change (development) theory is also undertaken. The theoretical framework of media effects and social change begins with the influence of media on masses and the different scholars’ definition of social change theories has been shown, and proceeds to see development as a concept and media theory, social development responsibility theory. The empirical data and the most critical dimensions of development, including mass media in Ethiopia and FM radio’s concept and effectiveness is included, communication for development and social change, and participatory communication is under this chapter is shown. Also, it looks development paradigm with regard to development.

2.1 Media Effects: Theoretical Framework

2.1.1 effects of media - theories, 2.1.1.1 two-step flow theory.

Bob (2005: p266) explained about “a two-step’’ flow of media messages and that the audience has the ability to “select and interpret media messages”. The media messages filtered through the mass media to opinion leaders, peers or relatives, who then play roles in decisions that people make after being exposed to media messages. The radio influences the minds of the masses aroused numerous social inquiries. This theory is a popular media effects theory, and to some extent is related to the diffusion of innovation hypothesis. This theory is still a relevant theory for studying the relationship between FM radios and the development in the developing countries.

2.1.1.2 Cultivation Theory

George (1994, p17-41) said that media shape the people’s view of the world. It explains about the passage of time, the usages of media will “cultivate” inside users a distinct view of the world. This theory helps to understand that how a person’s perception shapes or sometimes it is distorted by the media. The media can be a source to change in the perceptions, attitudes and behavior of the people.

2.1.1.3 Bullet Theory

According to Melvin (2008,p163), in this theory people who are watching different movies become influenced by those movie messages. If they watch violent movies become violent and those who read immoral comic books become morally wrong. This theory shows that media effects flow directly from the media to an individual like a bullet.

2.2 Development as a Concept

Waisboard (2011) said that development has no single definition, because of different factors of the nature of concepts, the different physical environment, culture, natural resources and general ways of life.

Matterlart (1998) defines development, it is synonymous with “growth’’, “modernization”, and “social change’’. In the middle of the 20th century.

According to Servaes, et al. (1996, p82-83), development can be defined as: “a multidimensional process that involves change in social structures, attitudes, institutions, economic growth, the reduction of inequality, and the eradication of poverty”

2.3 Development Media as Theory

According to Denis McQuil (1984), the development media theory is appropriate to the media situation in developing countries for economic, political and social requirements and also the media should be constructive instead of being destructive.

The theory shows that the relationship between the national government and mass media to promote national development. The media organizations, professional, governmental agencies and officials are expected to work closely together to achieve national goals rather than assume an antagonistic relationship.

2.4 The Social Responsibility Theory

The free market approach to press freedom had only increased the power of a single class and has not served the interests of the less well-off classes. The emergence of radio, TV and film suggested the need for some means of accountability. Thus, this theory advocated some obligation on the part of the media to society. One pivotal characteristic of the view which is an emphasis on the media’s responsibility to use its powerful position to ensure appropriate delivery of information to audiences, furthermore, if the media fails in carrying out its responsibility, it may be relevant to have a regulatory instance enforce it. The power and near monopoly position of the media impose on them an obligation to be socially responsible, to see that all sides are fairly presented and that if the media do not take on themselves it may be necessary for some other agency of the public to enforce it (Seibert et al.,1956).

2.5 Empirical Data

As we know that Fm radio is the new phenomenon in our country, not many research have been conducted related the contribution of effectiveness of FM radio in social development– like education. However, the researcher wishes to cite a few local and international studies whose findings and conclusion are relevant to this research.

2.5.1 Research on FM Radios for Social Development

According to Milkissa(2010), educational and development themes and social analysis have been disseminated /aired through many popular programming formats such as talk shows, chat shows, commentaries, the magazine reports, radio drama news, phone-ins and music and special thematic programs. Of course, there are some weaknesses for which the FM radios are accused very often. Because of its Private FM radios, their profit motives, they feed the audience with too many advertisements, music and DJ jokes. In fact, these privately owned radio stations rely on local and nationally significant businesses for ad revenue. The researcher recommends that analyzing the content of FM radios in quantitative research is better to reach good performance and fill the gaps.

Similarly, in the recent study of Zerihun (2012), the problem addressed about effectiveness, challenge and prospect of electronics media in SNNPR. There has been an argument regarding the problem of accessibility of media to the public and the context in which information is disseminated by electronic media to the public especially in common consensus and democratic society building. There has been a suggestion concerning media in the region in the quality of content, professionalism, understanding the environment in which the message is transmitted, etc. Based on this, the researcher recommends that audience analysis of FM 100.9 radio needs to assess and fulfill the problem is preferable.

2.6 Ethiopian Mass Media-An Overview

Mass media are playing a great role in information dissemination. Our time witness that again and again, we hear that information is power, power to achieve sustainable development. The Ethiopian mass media are a century old, with the print media taking up the leading role in the history. The demand to be informed properly for the sake of achieving sustainable economic, political and social development and lay down a strong foundation for democracy is growing. However, the mass media are not showing a significant development, possessing a number of problems that occurred in its life cycle. Nevertheless, it is worth mentioning the historical background, in order to understand the present status of the mass media in Ethiopia, with special reference to the widely popular medium in the country, i.e. radio (Gissila, 2008).

2.6.1 Broadcast Media in Ethiopia

According to Ministry of Information of Ethiopia (1996), broadcasting, primarily the radio, reaches a much larger part of the population, both literate and illiterate, than does print, though the distribut ion is limited. Radio was first introduced in 1935, prior to the Italian invasion. However, the Ethiopian soldiers broke down the installation, so that it won’t be used by the Italian invaders. Following this, the Italians installed radio service for their propaganda, which was later on overtaken and restored by the Ethiopians after the victory, in 1941. Gradually, its transmission capacity, facilities and programming were expanded during the imperial era. In 1960, for the first time it was possible to start international broadcast to Europe, West Africa and Middle East. Meanwhile, its capacit y and quality of transmission was upgraded in reception of domestic services.

Radio Voice of the Gospel, owned by the Lutheran World Federation, operated prior to the overthrow of the Emperor in 1974. Their facilities were seized under the Derg, and it turned out to function as the voice of revolutionary Ethiopia international service. Some documents show that there is no significant difference in broadcast media, between the previous regime and Derg, mainly in contents. Compared to the development of media globally, it was mentioned as ‘backward’, monotonous and unbalanced in content (Gissila, 2008).

2.7 Historical Development of Radio Broadcasting in Ethiopia

Media has a long history in Ethiopia when we compare the history of the media establishment in Africa. During the regime of Emperor Menelik II (1885-1913) which is considered as the first legal domestic media. The Ethiopian Radio was introduced to Ethiopia in 1936 since then the station has been trying to redesign the organizational structure in order to accommodate new technology and provide quality services.

Makuria (2005:10) stated that in 1936 the Radio Ethiopia started its transmission with a 7 kilowatt short wave transmitter and hardly covered the scale of Addis Ababa. Immediately, the Italians took control of the station and used it as an instrument of propaganda. In 1941, after the withdrawal of Italian troops, the Ethiopian government used the Radio for disseminating Amharic news, government statements, declarations and music (Basic Information’s of Ethiopian Radio and television, 2000:4).

In 1963, Foreign and Domestic Broadcast Services started. For example: the Ethiopian Radio for the first time broadcast news in English to West Africa, Europe, in French, in the Middle East, East and North Africa and in Arabic to the Middle East audiences. After 1970, the Radio Ethiopia made changes by overcoming the problems of its formative years with coverage of 40 percent of the people in all major cities, towns and villages of the country under the direction and guidance of the Ministry of Information. Following the 1974 Revolution, the Dergue regime changed the name from ‘Radio Ethiopia’ to ‘Voice of the Revolut ionary Ethiopia’ so as to fit the name into the revolut ionary changes which occurred at that time. As Makuria (2005:10) indicated the name Radio Ethiopia was restored soon after the incumbent government came to power 1991.

In the regime of Haile Sellassie, Radio broadcasting was started in Addis Ababa in 1941. Shortwave broadcasting was resumed in 1941 and then in the subsequent years Radio Ethiopia operated from three locations: Addis Ababa, Harar and Asmara broadcasting in six languages and the first provisional radio station was inaugurated in 1933 in a contract signed with an Italian company (Tadesse, 2005). The first airwaves came to Ethiopian earth from their native soil at the time of Emperor Haile Silassie (1930-1974) in 1935. At the time of the Emperor, however, radio broadcasting was employed as an instrument of unification, “to help overcome the internal linguistic and ethnic divisions which geography has perpetuated over Ethiopia’s long history of independence” (Negussie, 2006: 10). Though by the late 1960s the country’s radio system had been organized under the imperial government’s Ministry of Information, radio broadcasting (as this was also true to the other mass media) was neither employed as a means of development nor in a position to exercise freedom of expression as the government was an absolute, undemocratic monarchy (Brook, 2000: 18-19).

During a Mengistu’s regime (1974-1991), the radio was employed as a major tool for propaganda and counter-propaganda purposes since “Broadcast played a primarily propaganda role, aimed at promoting national unity under state socialism” (Brook, 2000: 19). It was very negligible, radio was “used for education purposes to promote literacy campaigns, health and farming”.

At the time of the Derg virtually there had never been any remarkable change or even improvement in the landscape of Ethiopian mass media. From the technical perspective, they were still backward; from a professional point of view they were still monotonous and filled with imbalanced reports. Inefficient and slow reporting, a lack of interesting news and analysis, and insufficient technical means needed for the proper functioning of newspapers, all helped explain why the Ethiopian press was not considered a significant social institution compared with the press of other developing countries (Negussie, 2006: 13).

Since 1991, Up to 2005, there were only three broadcasting stations in the media landscape of the country, i.e. Radio Ethiopia, Radio Fana and the Voice of Wayane Tigray. It was after this time that Regional States started to establish local radio stations.

According to the report that the researcher obtained from the Ethiopian Broadcast Authority, up to February 2012, there were 26 radio stations that were operating in the country. From these seven radio stations are belonged to state media; they are owned either by the Federal Government or Regional States. In Ethiopia, there were no regional broadcast media before 1991, but now there are many government and private broadcast media, which were established in different regions like FM 97.1, 98.1, 102.1, 90.4, 96.3 in Addis Abeba and FM 100.9 of Hawassa, FM radio of Dire Dawa, Bahirdar, Mekele (dimtse weyane), and oromiya TV station of Nazret are some examples of broadcasting media established.

To put in place the legal and regulatory frameworks and institutional arrangements for media development, and broadcast law has recently been endorsed broadcasting authority was reestablished. The 1992 press proclamation, which abolished censorship, has been revised. The private print media, FM radios and community radio were granted licenses. Moreover, a number of national and regional states owned broadcast media have expanded their reaches and language diversity. Today there are many FM radio stations are established, but today the effectiveness of the media in governance is highly demanded.

2.8 FM Radio as an Understanding

The first FM station was launched in Ethiopia in June 2000, established under Radio Ethiopia. FM Radio is a device that can influence to its listeners in worldwide areas. It has the capacity to increase one’s knowledge, ideas, and understanding of any issue while maintaining personal relationships with its transmission. Its listeners interact with their environmental subjects. It can also be noteworthy, such as bringing change in a person’s attitudes, culture and can cause for social change. This study would call attention to the effectiveness of FM Radio in promoting and causing the development (Social development). The drawback of the medium is that they mostly focus kill the air time on traditional and Western music transmission. Radio has proved itself as a powerful medium in all over the world where it has become also a tool for disaster management (Sadaf Naqvi, 2011).

FM Radio can be a trusted source of information for the people, this is only possible if the broadcast content is prepared strategically and appropriately prompts for the people to be economically aggressive and engage in self-income generating activities. There is a need for the radio stations to provide development related programs and content rather than allocating a lot of time for mere music and entertainment. This means that the staffing (journalist/editors) at these local stations require special skills to design programs to accelerate development. Radio enables communities to articulate their experiences and to critically examine issues and policies affecting their lives, for example, a communit y can use the radio to highlight new educational policies. These policies can be debated upon and discussed using the radio and immediate feedback can be given to relevant authorities to take action (Amany, 2011).

2.9 SNNPR (Debub FM 100.9 Radio)

SNNPR Media Organization was established in March 1, 2005. The organization has recently broadened its horizon by upgrading the quality and diversity of its services. Now a day, the radio station has main radio station in Hawassa and it has 8 branch stations broadcasting about 47 languages of the region. The main Radio Station and the transmitters’ have links by 10KW and 5KW with 1500 MHZ wave length (SNNPR Mass Media, 2012) (See Table 2.1 below).

Source: SNNPR Mass Media Organization, January 29, 2012

The Radio Expansion Project of FM 100.9 consists of 8 additional branch stations which covers 80% of the target population. Each branch station has its own Wave length or MHZ (See Table 2. 2 below).

2.10 Development Communication: - Overview

According to Thomas (2009:3) development communication is intervening in a systematic or strategic manner with either media (print, radio, telephony, video, and the Internet), or education (training, literacy, schooling) for the purpose of positive social change. Develop communication, particularly radio, was viewed as being central to improving the economic and social lot of the poor in the southern hemisphere. Theorists like Daniel Lerner, Wilbur Schramm, Paul Deutschmann, Walter Rostow, Everett Rogers, Luis Beltran, Michel Foucault, along with other scholars, as well as agencies such as the Ford and Carnegie Foundations, UNESCO, and the UN’s Department of Economic Affairs looked at development issues, some cautiously, some critically, and others creatively.

Of these, Daniel Lerner and Wilber Schramm were influential in this regard because their work stressed the role of communication in development (Servaes, 2002, P 15-16). They theorized that communication was the transmission of information from the Western World to the Third World. They had strong belief that if traditional societies were exposed to the mass media, they would also be exposed to modern western attitudes which would make them change (Servaes& Melkote & Steeves, 2002: 15-16; 2007: 71).

2.10.1 Participatory Communication as a Theory

This focuses on the effects of individuals on mass communication with special emphasis placed on the development of the third world. Unlike other mass communication theories which deal with the effects of the few and powerful with the masses via vertical diffusion. Waisboard (2001) as cited in Ocwich (2004) defines participatory communication as the process by which people within a particular community “create and share information with one another in order to reach a mutual understanding (Ocwich 2004, p20).In the case of radios, it means debates or other active forms of participation in the decision making, production and the trashing out of numerous diverse ideas over radio. This can be on any pertinent issue affecting the community’s welfare (Thomas, 2009, p3).

2.10.2 Communication for Social Change (CFSC)

According to Elizabeth (2011) communication for Social Change uses participatory approaches. This is stressing the importance of horizontal communication, the role of people as agents of change, and the need for negotiating skills and partnerships. It focuses on dialogue processes through which people can overcome obstacles and identify ways to help them achieve the goals they set for themselves through better life.

2.11 Modernization

The concept of modernization refers to the fundamental proposition that people in traditional societies should adopt the characteristics of the modern societies in order to modernize their social, po litical and economic institutions. Studies about development were heavily dominated by modernization theory which applied insights from communication models to address the shortcoming of development and modernization in Third World countries. The modern mass media supplement and complement as mobilit y multipliers, the oral channels of traditional society, radio. As to Servaes, the mass media could speed up and ease the long, slow transformation that was necessary for economic growth and the mobilization of human resources ” (Servaes, 2002 : p20).

2.11.1 Development Journalism

Analysts and scholars who propound this idea believe that the media could be harnessed to promote social, and political development, as well as national or community building. This perspective became consistent with the dominant communication paradigm advanced by Western, mainly American communication scholars, which urged that “the mass media could play a crucial role in society and, by implication, could be an agent in the ‘modernization’ of the Third World” (Thussu, 2000: p325). This scholarship emphasizes the importance of development news on radios and other media, as opposed to infotainment (Waisbord, 2001).

The issues addressed by the media must affect the lives of the ordinary people or the majority (Fisher, 2001). The modern mass media are dousing the public with too much entertainment, sex, fashion, food, celebrity story travels and sensationalism Nordenstreng (1975) ;Thussu (2000: p325-341); (Waisboard, 2001).

2.11.2 Diffusion of Innovation

Everret Rogers defined modernization as a process of diffusion where individuals move from a traditional way of life to a different, more technically developed and more rapidly changing life. In this model an innovation, which is a new idea or practice, is communicated through certain media over time, among members of a social group with the aim of changing their way of thinking and doing things.

The model sees development as a type of social change in which new ideas are introduced into a social system to improve agriculture, health, education and politics. To put it in Roger’s own words, “development communication is a process by which an idea is transferred from a source to a receiver with the intent to change his/her behavior Rogers (1962 & 1983)developed the diffusion of innovations theory as another communication model of modernization.

2.12 Paradigm of Contemporary Global Development

Development might mean different things, to different people. But of late, global development organizations like the United Nations (UN), the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, have codified standard indicators of development. For this study, we refer to this as ‘contemporary paradigm of development’. The UN Development Program (UNDP) has a Human Development Index (HDI), a composite indicator which it uses to measure and rank the progress in different countries every year- which findings are published in its annual Human Development Report (HDR).

The HDI covers three broad dimensions of human welfare: income, education and health. These are then broken down to numerous significant indicators of human development. They include life expectancy, adult literacy, enrollment in schools, gender equality, infant mortality, maternal mortality, access to information, health services, transport and communication, child rights, democracy and food security. Other elements encompass employment, capital intensive technology, investment, and access to water and electricit y (Zinnabauer Norris, 2002).

2.12.1 Democracy and Diversity of Radio

There are key elements that determine whether a society is democratic or not. These include the rule of law, respect for human rights, transparency and accountability of local leaders, regular and free elections of leaders, freedom of expression and of the press, justice and equal opportunity for all members of the community (White, 2001). As the UNDP puts it in its annual HDR 2005: Democracy is a fundamental aspect of human development. It is both intrinsically valuable, and therefore a human development indicator in its own right, and a means towards wider human development goals (UNDP, 2005:p20). It is important to study the relationship between radio and democracy because, as Hendy (2000:p139) explains, “Radio imbues itself with an aura of democracy.”In a free society, the multiplicity of opinions and expressions through debates, talk shows, phone- in etc on radio is good for the community.

2.12.2 Radio as Participatory Communication

According to Hendy(2000: p195) quot es German playwright, Bertolt Brecht to have once urged against radio being a channel through which homes passively received information and entertainment: If listeners could transmit as well as receive, he argued, then they would become producers of radio as well as consumers, and it would be a truly public, two way forum of communication.

2.12.2.1 Entertainment – Education

An entertainment, education strategy is being implemented in much of the world is because of its grounding in development theory. It is a communication strategy to disseminate information through the media.

It is not a theory, but a strategy to maximize the reach and effectiveness of development messages through the combination of entertainment and education. The fact that its premises are derived from socio- psychology, human communication theories place entertainment-education in the modernization/diffusion theory trunk. Like diffusion theory, it is concerned with behavior change through the dissemination of information. It is based on Stanford professor Albert Bandura’s (1977) social Learning theory, a framework currently dominant in health promotion.

Entertainment-education is premised on the idea that individuals learn behavior by observing role models, particularly in the mass media. Imitation and influence are the expected outcomes of interventions. This process depends on the existence of role models in the messages: good models, bad models and those who are in transition from bad to good (Waisboard, 2002: p13). Entertainment–education refers to “the process of purposely designing and implementing a media message to both entertain and educate, in order to increase audience knowledge about an educational issue, create favorable attitudes, and change overt behavior”. Some of the educational development programs which are airing by the media are like, health education, cultural practices, agricultural development programs, etc.

2.12.2.2 Social Marketing

It is one of the approaches that have carried forward the premises of diffusion of innovation and behavior change models. Since the 1970’s, social marketing has been one of the most influential strategies in the field of development communication (Waisboard, 2002: p6).

In this marketing is an advertising technique used for selling social messages. Such campaigns can address a variety of development needs, from health issues to environmental issues. It is marketing’s response to the need to be socially relevant and socially responsible. It is the reaction of marketing as both discipline and industry to be sensitive to social issues and strive towards the social good.

Social marketing consisted of putting into practice standard techniques in commercial marketing to promote pro-social behavior. One of the standard definitions of social marketing is the one given by Andreasen (1994:110) as quoted by Waisboard. He defines social marketing as the adaptation of commercial marketing technologies to programs designed to influence the voluntary behavior of target audience to improve their personal welfare and that of the society of which they are a part.

Concept Note

It is better to check up FM 100.9 Radio whether it plays significant roles or not, or it addresses Social development issues. FM 100.9 radio gives considerable time to educate and social development issues, but, according to its contents and quality of message, it is questionable. Most programs conform to the parameters of development, when we say development, we should not only think of agriculture, health programs. Even the fact that FM radio stations have broadened the people’s horizon to access to information is in itself an aspect of development is necessary.

Effectiveness of media depends upon the context of access to inform, autonomy, reach and quality. To enhance development, promoting development issues to specific community, the media plays a significant role.

1. Media (FM 100.9 radio) 2. Social development programs (educational development) /themes/ like, health, education etc 3. Context and quality of media is/ not attractive 4. Public participation becomes less/more 5. Media does/doesn’t bring any change and people’s attitude is changed/not changed. 6. Media is not effective/most effective

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Essay on Role of Social Media

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Role of media in development: which media; what approach?

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More than twelve years after Malawi reverted to multiparty democracy and adopted a constitution that incorporated a bill of rights, the local media are, contrary to popular expectations, slowly becoming a tool for suppression of local content and local languages. This study is a content analysis of the use of local languages and local content in the Malawian major print and broadcast media. The study concludes that media pluralism has not been matched with plurality of ideas, languages and content. The result has been the thwarting of participation of the majority of Malawians in public debates that concern community and national development.

Ocholi Ikani

Over the years, it has been observed that one of the inhibiting factors on entrepreneurship development at the grass roots is lack of effective communication between rural dwellers and the public institutions created for advancement of small and medium scale enterprises in Nigeria. The paper identifies this disconnect arising from lack of effective communication strategies as a gap to be filled if entrepreneurship must impact on the living standards of rural communities. The study adopts the qualitative research methodology with an in-depth evaluation and review of the empirical studies already carried out in the field of mass media and rural development. Media effects theories such as Agenda setting and Hypodermic Needle which explain the powerful influence and control of media messages on the behaviour of listeners and readers are used to underscore the importance of the mass media as a potent tool in achieving the adoption of entrepreneurship skills and activities at the grass root level. The paper therefore recommends that policy makers should engage in proper and well coordinated enlightenment campaigns using interpersonal communication with relevant rural institutional bodies as well as the radio in promoting entrepreneurship activities at the grass root.

Levi Manda , Grace Malindi , Grace Kapatuka , Mark Ndipita , Francis Kapiri , Hector Malaidza , Gladson Makowa

Levi Zeleza MANDA

Levi Manda , Grace Malindi , Frank Tchuwa , Catherine Banda , Timothy Pasani , Dickens Mahwayo

Levi Manda , Grace Malindi , Victor Kaonga , Timothy Pasani , Dickens Mahwayo

Levi Manda , Janina Wozniak

Abstract This ethnographic study used focus group discussions to investigate and gather ideographical information about why statistics from the Nankumba region of Mangochi in Malawi, where, from 2008 to 2010, Farm Radio International implemented the African Farm Radio Research Initiative (AFRRI) - a meticulously and almost flawlessly planned hybrid maize variety promotion radio campaign - consistently showed that farmers preferred local to the promoted hybrid maize varieties before, during, and after the participatory community radio campaigns. The study found that in determining which maize varieties to opt for, farmers consider not only volume of yield per unit area but also taste, smell, flour extraction rate, and storability of the maize. The study further observes that preference of local maize varieties over hybrid is not restricted to rural farmers. Thus, farmer exposure to and participation in radio campaigns may increase awareness and knowledge as did the AFRRI campaign, but may not necessarily lead the farmers and consumers into adopting new maize varieties, technologies or innovations. Key words: radio campaign, participation, radio production, adoption, innovation, hybrid maize, Malawi

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• DOI: 10.6007/IJARBSS/V6-I11/2444
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The Role of Social Media in Development of English Language Vocabulary at University Level

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The role of social media in development of english language writing skill at school level, social media influences the process of vocabulary learning in kurdish efl university students, the role of social media on students’ english vocabulary achievement, english vocabulary development among undergraduates: social media, investigating the roles of social media on attitudes of secondary school english language learners, the role of social media in learning english as a second language: a study based on the students of national apprentice & industrial training authority (naita), trincomalee, sri lanka, the role of social network sites in developing english language skills: students’ voices, the use of social media in learning english writing, social media and its influence on vocabulary and language learning: a case study, an exploratory study of english teachers: the use of social media for teaching english on distance learning, 17 references, users of the world, unite the challenges and opportunities of social media, perspectives on technology in learning and teaching languages, the practice of english language teaching, blogs and wikis: environments for on-line collaboration., learning vocabulary through situational games by pupils of mixed ability in lower primary class., consumer generated advertising in blogs, reciprocal attention and norm of reciprocity in blogging networks, the history of linguistics in europe from plato to 1600, practical english language teaching: young learners.

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Inside Apple hardware prototype and development stages

Proto2 units of the iPhone 15 Pro featured a unified haptic volume button, developed under the codename Project Bongo

Each year, Apple's hardware prototypes undergo multiple rounds of testing to ensure that they are of sufficient quality. This can include durability testing, drop testing, water resistance testing, reliability, and design viability testing, among other things.

Apple's prototyping processes are undoubtedly complex, as tests are performed on nearly every core hardware component as a standalone item. Nonetheless, the development of Apple devices as a whole follows a more predictable pattern that is significantly easier to explain.

Initial design mock-ups

Before the prototyping and testing of individual components can begin, Apple first needs to settle on a design for its new hardware project. To accomplish this, the company's development teams create many different mockups, serving as examples of what the finished product could one day look like.

The earliest mockups are typically non-functional, as their sole purpose is to accurately represent a design concept. Because of this, they have no dedicated hardware components and generally only consist of an outside casing.

The materials used for this development stage can vary depending on the unit in question, the selected design, and its complexity. Some early mockups of the original iPhone were made of polycarbonate, for instance, while the final mass-production units were made largely of aluminum and glass.

The authenticity of early Apple mockups is often difficult to ascertain unless the units themselves have an unquestionable connection to the company or one of its employees. If a mockup has an authentic Apple asset tag or a sticker or appears in a book, for instance, then it is likely to be original.

Many of Apple's early iPhone mockups were unveiled through court documents during the company's lawsuit with Samsung in 2012.

Drop test stages

Once Apple settles on an initial design for its next product, detailed documentation, product schematics, CAD files, and measurements are sent to select manufacturing facilities and factories. These designs are then checked multiple times to ensure that there is no interference between individual components.

In some instances, brackets, mounting points, or other minor details may be altered to ensure that the components can fit together once they are produced and assembled. Once a viable test design has been created, preparation for initial drop testing begins.

In specialized areas of factories, dedicated drop-testing environments with slow-motion cameras and specialized robots are set up. To calibrate the equipment before testing, engineers sometimes use plastic slabs with the same dimensions as an upcoming iPhone or iPad .

To make initial testing possible, factories begin producing so-called "Drop1" stage devices. These consist of core structural components, such as the device housing and glass backplate, where applicable.

These core components are sometimes created in multiple colors. This is done when a key production process changes, such as when a new coloring technique or material is used for the initial batch, and the durability of it needs to be tested.

Rather than using fully functional hardware components, Drop1 test units feature placeholder parts. These are often made of machined metal and can substitute the rear cameras, the battery, or even the glass backplate in some instances.

Once the Drop1 units are assembled, they are then subjected to testing. Devices are dropped from specific height levels at specific angles, with the results being recorded and analyzed later on.

Other tests performed include dropping the device into a plastic tube with metal obstacles on the inside or submerging the device into liquid to test water resistance. For all tests, parameters, and key data points are recorded and analyzed after the fact.

The devices themselves are also photographed upon the completion of drop testing so that the resulting damage can then be analyzed. Major defects, structural problems, or issues with the PVD coating process on the casing are all noted, and feedback is sent to the necessary teams.

As changes can occur due to information gathered from the Drop1 stage, Drop2 devices are often produced with alterations or added components on the inside. Similar tests are then conducted on Drop2 stage devices, and relevant information is collected.

Proto - the first attempt at functional hardware

Once the initial drop test stages are complete, the hardware project moves into the Proto stage of development. This stage marks the first attempt at delivering a fully functional device with all the necessary hardware components.

Although Proto-stage units feature working hardware, they are merely the first incarnation of it. This means that Proto devices can have significant differences compared to their mass-production counterparts.

These differences can pertain to the outside casing, in some instances, or they can impact ports and connectors located on the inside of the device. This means that a Proto-stage device might be incompatible with mass-production parts such as screens or buttons.

Because of their differences relative to the final product, Proto-stage units are often highly collectible. They are also difficult to repair, though, as a result of said differences and incompatibility with commonly available parts and components.

As this development stage involves functional hardware, even more testing is required to ensure proper functionality and long-term durability. Because of this, factories have dedicated machines, known as test stations, which test individual hardware components and sensors within the devices.

As a result, the Proto stage often encompasses two sub-stages, known as Proto1 and Proto2, to account for any design changes and alterations that may occur due to information obtained from test results.

Proto1 and Proto2 development stage units often run the NonUI variant of iOS . This type of iOS is largely intended for hardware testing and is often used by Apple's hardware engineers and calibration equipment.

EVT - Engineering Validation Testing

The next major step after Proto is known as EVT, an acronym for Engineering Validation Testing. This development stage primarily focuses on perfecting the hardware and ensuring that no hardware-related problems persist.

The EVT stage can encompass multiple substages, which are designated numerically, such as EVT-1, EVT-2, and so on. These exist to account for specific changes made during development, which are not large enough to constitute a separate development stage.

For some devices, Apple creates letter-based EVT substages. This can happen if a major problem is noticed later in development or even on mass-production devices. This forces Apple to revert to EVT devices for additional testing and development.

In the case of the iPod Touch 3rd generation, for instance, the mass production units Apple initially shipped featured a bootrom exploit that could not be easily patched or fixed. Because of this, the company created a new batch of EVT devices with modifications and eventually shipped a new version of the iPod with an updated bootrom.

As is the case with Proto1 and Proto2 stage devices, EVT prototypes can often have noticeable design differences compared to final mass production units. EVT units also run the same general operating system variant — iOS NonUI.

In the case of the iPhone 15 Pro , for instance, EVT prototypes featured haptic buttons developed under the codename Project Bongo . Similarly, the iPod Touch 3G mentioned earlier also featured a rear camera at one point in development.

Neither of these features can be found on the final mass-production units, as the hardware was scrapped in both instances for one reason or another.

DVT - Design Validation Testing

After EVT, the hardware project moves into the next stage, known as DVT, which is short for design validation testing. This stage builds upon EVT and ensures that the product has both functional hardware as well as a viable design with no defects or structural problems.

The DVT stage consists of the same numerical (DVT-1) and letter-based (DVT-a) substages. There are no set limits as to how many substages can fall under Design Validation Testing, so it is possible to encounter prototype devices with designations such as DVT-4.

DVT-stage devices often bear a significant resemblance to their mass-production counterparts, with only minor exterior differences being present, if any. Because of this, Apple sends out DVT-stage devices to regulatory authorities, such as the FCC, to confirm compliance with existing standards and regulations pertaining to electronic devices.

Similarly, Apple also sends out DVT-stage devices to phone carriers and network providers worldwide to ensure compatibility with major cellular networks. Such devices are labeled as CRB, short for "Carrier Build," even though they are functionally identical to DVT units in every way.

CRB devices often run a unique variant of iOS known as CarrierOS. In most cases, it's a stripped-down version of the InternalUI variant. This means it includes the standard iOS user interface but with network-related test applications such as E911Tester.

In general, DVT-stage devices can run either InternalUI or NonUI versions of iOS, depending on the type of tests they're used for. The hardware of DVT prototypes differs from production units at the board level.

Unlike mass production devices, DVT and earlier unit devices are "development-fused." This ultimately means that they can run additional code, and they are easier to debug compared to production units, which is why they are used in multiple development processes.

PVT - Production Validation Testing

By the PVT stage, the complete design of the new hardware project has been finalized. PVT-stage prototypes are virtually identical to mass production units, apart from the fact that they run the NonUI variant of iOS.

The PVT stage of development primarily focuses on perfecting manufacturing procedures. With every product, Apple needs to ensure that the device can be mass-produced without any issues with the units themselves or factory equipment.

Another variant of PVT device is the so-called PRQ unit, short for "Post Ramp Qualification." These devices are tested when Apple introduces a minor change, such as a new color option after release, and they are identical to PVT and mass production units.

Because PVT stage units are effectively identical to the final product, these devices are worth significantly less to collectors. Their only redeeming quality is the fact that they run iOS NonUI.

The one exception to this rule would be PVTE stage devices, with the acronym standing for Production Validation Testing - Engineering.

Unlike standard PVT units, which are tested to ensure that mass production can proceed without issues, PVTE devices are used by Apple's software engineers. This means that they run the InternalUI variant of iOS, which features the standard iOS user interface, along with in-development features and internal settings.

As a result, PVTE units can contain early implementations of software features years away. A PVTE-stage iPhone Xs Max, for instance, contained an early version of Apple's on-device email categorization feature which only debuted five years later.

MP - Mass Production devices

Once all prototyping is completed, factories will begin mass-producing the new device ahead of launch. To ensure that the units shipped are fully functional, the hardware of each device is tested before it is sent out.

To facilitate the final test process, Apple first installs a NonUI version of iOS onto mass production units so that employees and test equipment can interact with the devices. Once quality control testing is complete, release (stock) iOS is installed, and the units are shipped out to be sold.

Every device sold legally by Apple to customers or other third parties can be considered a mass-production device. Devices produced with this purpose in mind are also considered mass-production units and are known as MP-intent.

Some of these devices inevitably fail the quality control tests due to hardware malfunctions or major defects that cannot be repaired. They are considered quality control rejects, and the defective components are generally sent out for recycling.

MP devices that fail quality control testing can still have the NonUI variant of iOS installed, making the logic board somewhat more valuable to a collector than a standard one with the release of iOS.

An MP-stage device running iOS NonUI is not worth nearly as much as DVT or an earlier device, however, because it features mass-production hardware that can be found with relative ease.

What does all of this ultimately mean?

Prototypes offer unique insight as to how devices can change during development. In some instances, Apple abruptly removed key hardware components from upcoming devices, replacing them with more conventional parts.

Apple's many different prototype stages also serve as an indication of the company's quality control practices and high manufacturing standards. New products are tested extensively, through and through, to ensure that no hardware-related problems reach end consumers.

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About the Iowa Office of Apprenticeship

On this page...

What is the iowa office of apprenticeship, what are the roles of the ioa, what's next, contact and staff information.

Iowa has long been a leader in developing Registered Apprenticeship (RA) Programs that help the next generation of workers start new careers. Iowa's approach has grown into a national model for successful RA program development. In recent years, the state has expanded its role by creating new programs in occupations that weren't previously possible and expanding the number of apprentices. 

What is a Registered Apprenticeship?

Registered Apprenticeship is an industry-driven, high-quality career pathway where employers can develop and prepare their future workforce, and individuals can obtain paid work experience that is valuable for their career

• For job seekers , becoming a Registered Apprentice means you’re on the path to a rewarding career where you’ll earn a paycheck from day one - your chance to earn and learn. Apprentices can receive progressive wage increases, classroom instruction, and a portable, nationally recognized credential.
• For businesses, starting a Registered Apprenticeship Program means you’ll build a talented workforce equipped with the skills that specifically fit your company. RA programs are valuable models that employers can use to recruit and develop well-trained workers in highly skilled occupations.

Registered Apprenticeships are industry-vetted and are approved and validated by the U.S. Department of Labor or a State Apprenticeship Agency.

Apprenticeship in Iowa

Iowa has been a national leader in Register Apprenticeship programs and has utilized an earn-while-you-learn model to reach success across the economy. However, Iowa also faces significant long-term challenges with building the workforce needed to keep the state competitive, and a modern approach is needed.

Why Apprenticeships Work

Employers can use Registered Apprenticeships as an effective human resources strategy to recruit quality candidates, train employees to the specific needs of their businesses, and retain a highly-skilled workforce. Registered Apprenticeships can also be used to upskill a current workforce or to accelerate the productivity of new hires. Through the use of standardized training curricula, employers can ensure their employees have a comprehensive understanding of both the practical and theoretical components for particular occupations. Registered Apprentices are provided with opportunities for incremental wage increases, industry-recognized credentials, and a defined career path.

New industries are offering opportunities including: information technology, financial services, healthcare, transportation, energy, advanced manufacturing, and hospitality. A Registered Apprenticeship is an appropriate option for all job seekers including women, minorities, youth, people with disabilities, and veterans.

Iowa is now entering a new chapter as it becomes a State Apprenticeship Agency (SAA). Establishing an SAA means Iowa now will have a direct office in state government that provides direct control and guidance on its RA programs. 

The Iowa Office of Apprenticeship (IOA) has been officially recognized as a State Apprenticeship Agency (SAA) by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), effective June 27, 2024. This development, and the enhanced flexibility that comes with it, will better position our state to create the workforce pipeline it needs for the future. The IOA will encourage new innovation and focus on expanding available programs to help apprentices start successful careers across Iowa.

• Overseeing and registering all Registered Apprenticeship (RA) programs in Iowa . Programs will still be governed by the same approved federal standards as before, but employers will now work directly with staff within the state's workforce agency.
• Serving as the central point of contact for all RA program sponsors, school districts, and apprentices. IOA staff will provide more direct technical assistance and program guidance, including innovative approaches that help programs not only find apprentices, but succeed over the long term.
• Ensuring that the mission of RA programs is directly aligned with the state’s workforce strategies. IOA's efforts will be directly tied to the overall efforts to help attract and retain talent that meet the needs of Iowa's critical industries. 

The Iowa Office of Apprenticeship will be connecting with RA program sponsors across the state to provide communications that support the state’s transition and document ways that the new office will support them. 

Visit this link to view more information on IOA staff and to connect with the office today.

Iowa Officially Recognized as State Apprenticeship Agency

Learn more about how the Iowa Office of Apprenticeship will oversee apprenticeship programs, support new expansion, and drive new innovation across state.