Contribution of community radios in rural areas development case study of Habwa Ijambo? program aired at RC Huye

2.4.2 Role of RC Huye

As the role of the press is to inform, educate and entertain people, RC Huye also plays the role of serving its listeners since its creation in July 2003 to date. Through its news twice per a day, RC Huye inform the listeners what is happening in the country and outside through international news. Apart news this radio also inform the listeners through announcements of different kinds and advertisements. It also plays a big role in educating people through the shows which are focusing about the need of the society.

The timetable program of this radio shows that the shows of this radio focus about to all sector of life of a Rwandan. Different domains like health, social affairs, good governance and decentralisation, Justice are included in different program of the radio. This is to encourage people to participate in the development of the country by giving people time to express their views in different issues. Finally, about the entertainment, RC Huye entertain the listeners with various music, entertainments shows, listener's forum through messages etc. Sports program even though this program is about sports news, it can contribute to the entertainment of the listeners.

2.4.3. Community media incites learning from others

(Stefania, 2009) noted that Community media can contribute to full development of the community. This section provides two examples of how community media can be integrated into national media systems and how they can be sustained financially by institutions.

The first example comes from Brazil, where not-for-profit community broadcasting is recognized in law as a distinct sector from commercial media, but the regulatory provisions are too restrictive and thousands of community radio stations are facing severe repression.

Despite the fact that civil-society organisations have sat with government bodies to discuss a more equitable regulation, which resulted in a fund to support community media (awaiting approval by parliament), repression continues. The second case comes from the UK, where, thanks to 20 years of advocacy by the national Community Media Association (CMA), 8 a transparent licensing process of community broadcasters started in 2004 and is awarding not-for-profit radios with a license to broadcast. A Community Radio Fund sustained by the Ministry of Culture has been launched.

These two examples differ in many aspects, even in the definition of community broadcasting, but they provide an overview of implemented ways to allow community expression through the media - reserving for community broadcasters a portion of national airwaves and providing community-based groups with financial help to start and maintain their channels. Both are to be considered cases of legislation that still needs to be improved, but that represents a first step towards a fair-minded media policy supportive of freedom of expression.

2.2.5 Media impacts and influences

Social sciences research has a long history in exploring media effects. Perhaps the most notable of early studies were those by the Payne Fund which was set up in New York in 1928 to study the impact and influences of motion pictures on youth. The overall conclusions were that despite some public anxiety about the new medium, any influences were fairly modest and superficial in such things as fashion rather than on morals. The researchers were unwilling to attribute criminal delinquency to film - going (Briggs and Cobley, 1998).^4(*)

* ⁴ Briggs, A. and Cobley, P. (eds) (1998) The Media: An Introduction, Edinburgh: Longman.