RTV Theory and Practice - Special Issue

developments In the dlrection of a netvvork of commerclal radio statlons and the transformation of local stations in the đirection of professional journalistic media . Little remains , considering these developments , of the original emancipatory aspirations of such stations . Although the tone of the above sketch is very clearly pessimistic , we believe a number of reservations should be made at the conclusion of this paper . First, we are most aware of the limitations of the empirical research conducted in the Netheriands. Only six case studies of local stations were completed , and the time and resources availabie for each of the cases was limited. The results cannot be extrapolated to all 160 stations in the country; nevertheless we feel the indications demonstrated in this study are highly plausible and deserve consiđered attention. It is also the case that local rađio and television stations аге stlll very much in development in the Netherlanđs , and it is very difficult to predict what changes may occur , A second reservation has to do with the central position local radio and television tend to receive in our thinking - not only for persons involved in the stations themselves but also for persons who have made a study of these small scale media . It is important to realize, however, that the object is not the media, but the end fог whlch they are intended to serve: the creation of a more democratic society through the democratization of communication . It is through critical reflection, public debate , and eventually action that steps can be achieveđ in that direction . Notes 1 ) The authors of this paper are both staff members of the Institute of Mass Communication at the Universlty of Nijmegen . Nick Jankowski has been involved in the study of commumty media since the miđ-19705; he is currently editlng a book on community radio and television in Europe . Anne-Lieke Mol conducted the emptrical research upon which this paper is based . In addition to her research and teaching activities , she works for the Media Advisory Council of the Dutch government. 2 > Distmctions аге frequently made between the terms ЧосаТ anđ 'community' when applieđ to radio nađ television, Lewis (1976), for example , reserves ЧосаТ for media operated and controlled by

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