RTV Theory and Practice - Special Issue

controlling the sector J s growth from the centre . There is the more traditional solution which harKs bacK to the pre-Thatcher years of consensus politics . This is the paternalist approach to radio. This has no chance of realization in present day Britain, but does have some support within the Home Office . The ministry is interesteđ in radio as a social tool, especially in race relations and reconstructing inner city areas . They envisage a sector protected by regulation and maybe receiving some.public funding . The growth of community businesses and voluntary organizations would be helped by a new tier of radio broadcasting . Interestingly, the only form of advertising found acceptable by listeners was local and community spots . (Barnett and Morrison 1988: 100) The Home Secretary himself hopes that community radio stations would help '. . .to strengthen that combination of local identity and cultural diversity which lies at the heart of a flourishing community'. He even sees community stations as a method of crime prevention through fostering a 'sense of responsibility'! (Hurd 1988; 64 8) The 1986 abandoned experiment can be seen as an attempt to coopt and recuperate community radio for the policing of the inner city areas. (BarbrooK 1987: 104-6) The IBA is Known to be interesteđ in setting up a community radio unit which could supervise such a form of expansion. (Broadcast 1987) Some people have suggested the reintroduction of the radio license fee to funđ these services. (Porter 1988; 12) Public service broadcasters in Ireland wanted a similar combination of state and community broadcasting as an alternative to a purely commercial expansion of radio broadcasting . (Pine and Thomas 1986: 20) However the pirates , CRA and the ethnic communities have been very suspicious of some aspects of this paternalist approach. This is because they are worried that their interests are being subordinated in favor of other political goals , such as Keeping inner city areas quiet of defending the BBC . They feel these concerns are justified when they are told that : . . the first priority of community radio campaigners should be to retain and extend public control over tne whole radio system , not to acpuiese in consigning the mass audience to the mass marKet.' (o'Malley 1988; 40) The most innovative plans for the expansion of radio have come from the community radio movement . As with marty voluntary organizations , the CRA membership covers a wide range of opinions from those who see community stations as form of self-Pelp to those who see them as a type of socialist self-management. There аге projects interested m broadcastmg to communities marginalized by the existing media and those who want to attract a mainstream audience . Despite these divergences , what unites the CRA is a commitment to the

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