Radio Studies

Radio Studies
a) At the start of Term One, I compiled a personal philosophy, which described my approach to radio journalism. I recognised the standards and procedures expected from me as a professional journalist especially that of objectivity. From the onset, I found the concept of objectivity baffling, despite of having it drilled into my head by my lecturers for the first two years of my journalism degree. The idea of a ‘truth’ that exists ‘out there’, devoid of any form of ideology seemed a bit farfetched for my liking.
During the course we formed a news agency called Frequency News. We were tasked to produce an agency document that stipulated the values we stood for and the journalistic approach that we would adopt. When it came to objectivity, many of my colleagues believed it to be non-existent, “we may try to strive for it but it is a sort of utopia or state of enlightenment that very few will achieve”. We agreed, however, that it was important for us to take responsibility for the content that we produced especially in cases where it possibly offended our readers. We also committed to ethical reporting that was characterised by:

• Professionalism
• Accuracy
• Fairness
• Thorough research
• Sensitivity




As I reflect on the statements made in my original philosophy and the agency document of Frequency News, I realise that I managed to achieved much of what I intended to do. I reported on many stories throughout the course, all of which had relevance and were of some interest to the Grahamstown community such as the amendment that was made to the awarding of child support grants and the Auditor General’s latest report explaining the shortfalls of local Emergency and Medical Services. I tried to make sure that I informed the public about news concerning public finances and economics as Frequency News committed itself to doing its best to bridge the significant gap that exists between the rich and poor within the town.

Fourth term saw an end in the radio specialisation course, making way for the Journalism, Democracy, Development and Critical Media Production course (JDD/CMP). The JDD/CMP course took me into the heart of one of Joza, one of Grahamstown’s locations. Up until this point I thought I had been practicing a fair kind of journalism in which the views of the majority were represented. This all changed when I had to take a bottom up approach to telling a news story, one which gave previously marginalised voices an opportunity to be heard. Experts and other officials were no longer my primary sources. Rather I looked to the ‘average’ citizen, more specifically, Lindiwe Mdwala who shared her compelling story about the day care centre that she founded in an attempt to keep young kids from loitering in the streets.
A public approach to journalism allowed the community to identify what stories were of more importance and relevance to its development. By doing this, I got the opportunity to listen and to tell those stories that would aid to an actual change and hopefully improvement in peoples’ lives. I felt a sense of agency-that I could make a difference which is what journalism should be about.
It is this element that I would add to my original philosophy; that practising public journalism should have a greater role in my career as an aspiring radio journalist. I should learn to listen to the public more and let them direct me on what stories are worth telling in order to improve the quality of public life and add to deliberative forms of democracy.

b) The South African radio landscape is made up of three sectors: public, commercial and community. It is regulated by ICASA which ensures that all radio stations produce programming that promotes nation building, diversity within the context of national unity and educational broadcasting. Access to all people and freedom of expression are amongst the other standards that it advocates.
If I decided to pursue a career in radio journalism I would like to find work at a public radio station like SAfm as I think there are more opportunities to practice public journalism. As a public broadcaster SAfm’s main allegiance is to the public and to serving national interest. In being dedicated to the public’s interest I see more room to engage with the public more intimately, involving them in the setting of the news agenda and reporting on stories that have a marked difference in their everyday lives.
Core editorial values at SAfm include those of equality, editorial independence, nation building and accountability (www.safm.co.za). Editorial policy necessitates that it must provide news which ensures fair coverage, impartiality, balance and independence from government, commercial and other interests (Barnett, 1999: 665). These are values that I try to maintain as an aspiring journalist. It is important that all sources be treated with equal regard, i.e. a comment from an expert is as important as that of an ordinary citizen, depending on the nature of the story. I also believe the element of accountability should drive journalists into more accurate reporting.
News coverage at SAfm is on a more national scale and as a result SAfm broadcasts to a wide audience. It reflects the diverse cultural and multilingual nature of South Africa (currently 61% black vs 39% white) which is something that attracts me even more to the organisation (www.safm.co.za). The journalism I would like to practice must be highly inclusive and representative of the interests of a large number of people.
However, there are limitations to practicing public journalism or assuming the role of facilitator at SAfm. Firstly, being a branch of the national broadcaster, the SABC, means that newsroom operations at SAfm are largely influenced by the policy objectives of the national broadcaster. This impedes on the degree of editorial independence and may potentially lead to some bias in the construction of news. Secondly, although news coverage at SAfm is on a more national scale, the economic situations of its audience tend to be more confined to a certain income group. With a target audience that falls within the LSM groups 8 -10, news at SAfm is constructed to reflect the interests of that audience. As such, issues concerning politics and other social issues, especially those relating to economics and other financial matters are regarded with more importance.
As a new entrant, I don’t see what impact I could have on an already established institutional values. However, in an attempt to negotiate around the limitations that may prohibit me from practising a more public approach to journalism I could follow up on certain community based initiatives in my own time. Perhaps visit that community as often as I can and take actions to help where required. Perhaps if I can make a small difference in certain ‘out of the office tasks’ I can start a flame in the newsroom at SAfm to give more precedence to stories that contribute to the improvement in the lives of a wider audience than their current, relatively high income earning LSM group.
References
Barnett, C. (1999). The limits of media democratization in South Africa: Politics, privatisation and regulation. Media, Culture & Society, 21, 649 -671.
http://www.safm.co.za/portal/site/safm/. Accessed on 28/04/10