It is therefore paramount that there be a broadcasting service that operates independently to serve the public, and in the public interest.
This role can be fulfilled by public broadcasting which is broadcasting as a service to the public. In a democracy, public broadcasting, which is funded by public money, should give the public a voice, give democracy a voice and promote the local.

Giving the Public a Voice
In a democracy citizens are entitled to participate in discourse over the main issues concerning them be it governance, corruption, health and others. With its universal access obligation, the main platform for such exchange is guaranteed by the public broadcaster. It has a duty to give voice to diverse views which are the basis for allowing well informed citizens to make their choices. This duty is very critical in elections coverage.

A public broadcaster provides a platform for diversity, tolerance and openness. A society cannot be said to be democratic when these principles are not observed. Public broadcasting gives the public a platform to participate and debate issues in a transparent and open manner.Giving Democracy a Voice A public broadcaster is a true voice of the people as opposed to the voice of the state. Thus giving democracy a voice in this context refers both to the people and the way of governance.

The emphasis here is the Voice without which a people cannot be said to be free, without which ideas cannot flourish, without which a people cannot develop, without which democracy cannot flourish. A fundamental characteristic of a democratic dispensation is the holding of elections in which people get to choose their preferred leaders and representatives. During election campaigns the issue of equal access to the media, particularly radio and television is of critical importance and often has a decisive influence on the outcome.

The role of a public broadcaster is critical in empowering the people to make an informed choice by giving them enough information on the candidates, their parties and their programmes of action. It should not stop there, after the election the public broadcaster has a duty to give the public a platform to engage their elected leaders and representatives, and make them accountable and deliver on their election promises. Biased coverage seriously erodes the principle of democracy.

Promoting the Local

We live in the era of globalisation in which the global has shrunk in terms of time and space. One of the effects of globalisation is the erosion of local cultures and languages. Deriving its mandate from the public it serves and public funding, the public broadcaster has the best capacity to promote local languages, culture, music and the arts.
Home grown content be it entertainment, or educational catering for diverse interests and tastes, can greatly contribute towards preserving the local culture. It can foster national identity and national pride, and bring the people closer together.

STATE BROADCASTING
The majority of national broadcasters in Southern Africa remain state owned. While public broadcasters serve the public interest, state owned broadcasters serve the state interest. News and current affairs programming is more often biased into serving the government/ruling party. News and current affairs programming continues to embrace the hierarchical arrangement of news where the President, Vice-President, Ministers and senior government officials are covered largely to the exclusion of other individuals and organisations especially those with a divergent view.

Content in state broadcasters must be politically correct and not injure the powers that be and therefore editorial decisions are not based on merit.
More often self-censorship prevails as journalists in the state broadcasters are labelled as civil servants who must satisfy the civil service codes as opposed to the journalistic codes. It is against this background that the Media Institute of Southern Africa has embarked on a campaign calling for the transformation of state broadcasters into public broadcasters.

CAMPAIGN OBJECTIVES
To raise awareness and understanding on:

• Public versus state broadcasting
• The need for transforming state broadcasters into public broadcasters
• The role of public broadcasters in a democracy
• Continental and regional principles on public broadcasting

Back