Uneasy allies: Community radio and communication for social change

Community radio has long had associations with communication for social change. However, the two are often linked indiscriminately, with little regard for their very different and complex theoretical and historical positions. Far from simply a tool for communication for social change, community radio brings a host of conceptual expectations. Community radio literature is broadly effusive about the purpose of the medium: ‘a voice for the voiceless’, ‘an alternative to the mainstream’, ‘by the community, for the community’. Similarly, communication for social change has historical links with international development and is subject to a range of interpretations from various disciplines. Despite the clear disconnect, there is little scholarly work that problematises the relationship between community radio and communication for social change. Do these theoretical foundations complement or compete with one another? This chapter explores how community radio and communication for social change are interpreted and operationalised in different contexts. Drawing on case studies of the Indian and Australian community radio sectors, this chapter highlights the uneasy relationship between community radio and communication for social change, and advocates for a more critical research agenda.