Development Communication and Journalism

Written and reviewed by Anjali Sharma, Biology & Home Science faculty at UniDrill (M.Sc. Botany, Banaras Hindu University · 8 years teaching). Based on NCERT Home Science Class XII (Human Ecology and Family Sciences Part II), Chapter 13.

Who tells the village about the new toilet scheme?

A government scheme can be excellent and still fail if the people it is meant for never hear about it, do not trust it, or do not know how to use it. Somebody has to carry the message in a language and form people accept: a street play, a radio jingle, a column in a newspaper, a message on a mobile phone. That "somebody" is the field of development communication and journalism. This chapter tells you what it is, which media it uses, and which Indian examples you must know.

Why it matters

Communication creates awareness about available technologies and mobilises people to use them for the betterment of society. It links government agencies, NGOs and people. Development communication and development journalism train students to write and speak about issues of an equitable and impartial society.

Journalism is treated as an inseparable part of any democratic system. People's participation is the foundation of democracy, and the press is called the fourth pillar of democracy. The right to opinion and expression would not be real without media, including social media, and people depend on the media to stay informed.

Beyond the textbook. For the exam: the press is the fourth pillar of democracy. In reality: the phrase counts the press alongside the other three pillars, the legislature, the executive and the judiciary. The press is not part of government. Its power comes from questioning and informing, which is why it can check the other three.

Key concepts, side by side

How journalism changed after independence

Before independence, reporting dwelt on struggles, fights, assassinations, disasters, wars and whatever the colonial rulers chose to communicate. After independence, newly freed countries like India were expanding their development activities, and journalists had to take notice.

Two views. For the exam: development journalism highlights success stories of people who adopt new methods and help society. Another reading: some scholars of journalism argue that the press must also act as a watchdog, investigating failures and questioning promises, so that praising progress does not replace checking whether progress has really reached people. Both roles are seen as valuable for a healthy democracy.

Development communication: the heart of the chapter

The term "Development Communication" was first coined in 1972 by Nora Quebral. It is the "art and science of human communication" used to facilitate the development of a disadvantaged society in a planned manner, to ensure equity and the achievement of individual potential.

Its four essential features:

It is a two way process of communication between those who have information and those who do not. It assumes that people who face a problem have the innate ability to find solutions; they may need help finding resources. It treats motivation as the key element and tries to build dialogue between people and development agencies. It is a social process that seeks a common understanding, a consensus among all participants, leading to concerted action.

Pause and predict: a health department's officer simply reads out instructions to villagers over a loudspeaker and leaves. Why is this weak development communication?

Check your answer: it is one way, with no dialogue, no listening and no motivation. Development communication is two way, assumes people can solve their own problems, and seeks consensus and action.

Methods of development communication

Method 1: Campaigns

A campaign is a well organised, intensive activity on one theme for a predefined period. It creates public awareness and gives a specific message. The use of dramatics through different channels ensures attention and interest, so the campaign lasts in people's memory, stimulates action and creates a favourable environment for adopting practices. Campaigns have been run for prevention of smoking, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, and for sanitation literacy, immunisation, safe child birth and consumer awareness, such as 'Jago Grahak Jago'.

Case study: Red Ribbon Express. The Red Ribbon Express (RRE) was a nationwide multimedia campaign to break silence about HIV/AIDS, including in rural areas.

Why it worked. The train combined mass media (exhibits, screens), interpersonal communication (counselling, group sessions) and folk media (plays and songs) in one place. It also brought services and the message together in the village itself.

Swachh Bharat Mission. Launched by the Prime Minister on 2 October 2014 as a nationwide campaign or Janandolan (people's movement), it aimed to eliminate open defecation in rural areas during 2014 to 2019 through mass scale behaviour change, the construction of household-owned and community-owned toilets, and mechanisms to monitor toilet construction and use.

Method 2: Radio and television

Radio and television are the most popular, cheapest and convenient mass media for development. Broadcast journalism has an advantage over print: it reaches more people, especially those with poor literacy. Radio also costs less than television, and it is a mobile medium that goes with the listener at work or rest.

Radio carries news, interviews, discussions, documentaries, drama and quizzes. A Public Service Announcement (PSA) is a brief 10 to 60 second message between programmes, usually a jingle, giving information or suggesting action for public good, such as "obey traffic rules" or "say no to tobacco". Catchy slogans and repeated broadcasts make PSAs effective.

Beyond the textbook. For the exam: PSAs are short, catchy and repeated. In reality: the repetition is deliberate. A message heard many times in a short slot is easier to remember than a long talk heard once, which is why a good jingle can stay in your head for years and nudge you toward action, such as vaccinating a child on the day.

The old limit of radio, no feedback, has been overcome by interactive formats and by community radio (CR).

Television offers many channels at international, national and local levels, with scope for participation through talk shows, reality shows and competitions. Programmes such as 'Kyunki Jeena isi Ka Nam hai' and 'Main Kuch Bhi Kar Sakti Hun' on private channels show how education and entertainment can be combined for common good. EDUSAT, launched in September 2004, was the first Indian satellite built exclusively for the educational sector, to meet the demand for an interactive satellite-based distance education system.

Pause and predict: a village with low literacy and no regular newspaper delivery wants a low cost medium that can be carried to the field. Which medium best fits and why?

Check your answer: radio. It reaches people with poor literacy, costs less than television and is a mobile medium that can accompany a farmer at work. Community radio adds local language and participation.

Method 3: Print media

Most news in national and regional dailies is urban in approach. Reports on agriculture and rural problems get low priority, and few newspapers and periodicals operate in rural areas. Yet the power of the press cannot be denied; it is a medium of continuous education.

Project Village Chhatera (1969). It focused on a small village, Chatera, in North-West Delhi. The Hindustan Times started a regular fortnightly column describing the lives of the people. Reporters wrote sensitively about the village chaupal, people's aspirations, livelihoods and festivities, and reported problems of electricity, water supply and low rainfall with photographs. The coverage became a catalyst: local leaders attended to the problems, and the print coverage brought machines, bridges, roads and banks to the project area.

There is a shortage of development journalists who write with passion and sensitivity about the rural poor. A print journalist's working day may involve interviewing people, attending press conferences, making phone calls and sending emails to build story leads. The internet is a valuable research tool, so basic computer literacy is essential.

Method 4: Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs)

ICTs are an umbrella term for computer hardware and software, digital broadcast and telecommunications technologies. Mobile phones have helped expand markets, social business and public services, from banking and financial transactions to marketing, distribution, employment and public services. ICTs are proving economically, socially and politically transformative.

SEWA is a union of several thousand poor women working in the informal sector. Its aim is full employment and self-reliance for women workers, through work and support in income, food and social security (health, childcare, shelter). It turned to ICTs after seeing how poor access to information deepens poverty.

Sustainable development and behaviour change

In 2015, world leaders set seventeen broad, time-bound development goals, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which each country adapts to local needs. Organisations such as government departments, international agencies, NGOs and corporate bodies with social responsibility programmes need people who can devise Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) strategies, tools and training for health, nutrition, education, HIV/AIDS, natural resource management and social development. Extension programmes address poverty, food security, health and sanitation, non-formal education, environmental conservation and gender equity.

Skills and careers

The field is also called Extension Education, Extension and Development Communication, Home-Science and Communication Management, and similar names in different institutions. The core remains the same.

Exam traps

60-second revision

Where this chapter connects

• Class XI: Media and Communication Technology introduces the media and technologies this chapter applies to development.
• Same unit: Corporate Communication and Public Relations uses similar tools for organisations' own messages.
• Awareness examples: Consumer Education and Protection mentions the 'Jago Grahak Jago' consumer awareness campaign.
• Health messages: Public Nutrition and Health shows the programmes whose messages such campaigns carry.