Broadcasting Pluralism and Diversity

The Training Manual on Broadcasting for Pluralism and Diversity, an initiative of ARTICLE 19 – Global Campaign for Free Expression – looks at the regulation of broadcasting in Africa and aims to provide both a tool for professional training and a reference work for people working in the media.

According to the document, the past 10 to 15 years have seen a growth in pluralism in broadcasting in Africa. From a broadcasting scene overwhelmingly dominated by government-controlled or state media, the landscape has evolved with the licensing of many private commercial and community broadcasters. This process has happened, inevitably, in a haphazard and piecemeal fashion. Many of the old government broadcasters have survived these changes and most fall well short of the ideals of public service broadcasting.

The African Charter on Broadcasting, adopted in 2001 on the tenth anniversary of the Windhoek Declaration, alongside the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression in Africa establish a series of important principles that should guide the development of African broadcasting.

These include:

• The crucial importance of independent broadcasting regulators.
• The transformation of state and government broadcasters into public broadcasters.
• The importance of encouraging pluralism and diversity in ownership of broadcasting.

The task of implementing these principles lies to a large extent with African broadcasting regulators. This manual is aimed at members and staff of African broadcasting regulatory bodies, along with others, such as journalists, broadcasters and civil society groups who are seeking to realise the ideals in these declarations.

According to the publishers, this manual can be used in three basic ways:

• As a teaching guide for trainers running courses for broadcasting regulators.
• As a learning tool by such officials – in other words, they can work through the manual on their own.
• As a reference tool by regulators who have already gone through a training course.

The manual covers the following content:

• How and why broadcasting is regulated.
• Different approaches to broadcasting regulation and the structure and function of regulatory bodies.
• Why licensing of broadcasters is necessary, the role of the regulatory authority and the licensing process.
• The limited circumstances in which regulating content is necessary, including during election periods, and approaches to addressing complex issues such as "hate broadcasting."
• The nature and importance of public service broadcasting.