This Wednesday morning (9 Nov) I will defend my thesis on participatory communication. The title is VOICES AND IMAGES THAT EMPOWER: Participatory Radio and Video as Processes and Tools for Dialogue and Empowerment.

My thesis is principally based on my experiences of doing participatory communication with Filipino migrant workers in Italy.  The thrust of my thesis is to examine participatory radio and video as vital processes and tools for marginalized people to enter into dialogue with each other and to empower themselves.

Participatory communication is both a means and an end, both a process and a tool.  As a means, participation is a key ingredient of, and an essential requirement for, dialogue and empowerment. As an end in itself, participation is the fundamental need and right of the people to fully and effectively participate in the determination of the decisions which affect their lives at all levels and at all times.   

Participatory communication is founded on the “action-reflection-action” and conscientisation theories and practices of Paulo Freire as expounded in his classic work, “Pedagogy of the Oppressed”.  The fundamental goal of the conscientisation process is to urge ordinary people to critically analyze their contexts and circumstances, come to understand themselves and their world, and ultimately feel empowered to better the world in which they live. In essence, participatory communication refers to the process whereby people effectively involve themselves in creating the structures and in designing policies and programs that serve the interests of all through participatory involvement, critical thinking and reflection. In more concrete terms, it means that at every stage of action, the participants have to reflect on their experiences, discuss and evaluate them, draw new learnings and conclusions, and then chart the next action. It thus requires active involvement in interaction, dialogue, sharing, group decision-making and collective action on the part of all, first and foremost of the ordinary people themselves.

The participatory model of communication views ordinary people as capable of critical reflection and analysis and that their knowledge is both relevant and necessary. It underscores the role of marginalized people as key agents of their own change. The participatory approach emphasizes dialogue rather than monologue, empowerment rather than disenfranchisement, catalyst communication rather than advocacy, sustainability rather than quick fixes.   The goal of participatory communication is to build a participative society where individual persons and communities are free and have equal access to the means to express themselves, their points of view, feelings, and experiences. But in today’s world, the media are mostly commercially-operated and are profit-oriented, not service-oriented. Commercial media are more interested in selling products and raking in profits than in fostering participation and empowerment. Thus there is an imperative need to move from profit-oriented approach to participatory approach in communication. Taking these facts into consideration, there emerge some very important questions – How can radio and video be transformed into participatory processes and tools? How can participatory radio and video be utilized to initiate dialogue and empower individuals and communities? How can participatory radio and video become viable alternatives to commercial media?

My paper explored the above questions. It particularly studied participatory radio and video as processes and tools for dialogue and empowerment. It is based on the premise that all people have a right to express themselves, to share their stories, to make public their views and become interactive participants in the processes that impact upon their lives and not be spoken for. And it is grounded on two assumptions: (1) that the process (the act of people coming together to decide who they are, what they want and how they will obtain what they want through participatory radio and video) is as important as the outcomes, and (2) that participatory radio and video can be used as tools to facilitate dialogue and empowerment. Aside from exploring ways in which participatory radio and video can facilitate dialogue and empowerment, it has also been the objective of my research to find ways how to evaluate and assess when genuine participatory communication is working or not.

In Chapter 1 of my thesis, the historical beginnings and development of participatory video are outlined, principally from the perspective of communication practitioners, grassroots people and community organizers who have researched and applied participatory video processes.  Then it examines how participatory video can be utilized as a process to involve people in an interactive way, making all needed resources directly available to them so that they will acquire knowledge and skill necessary for them to empower themselves. It will also consider how participatory video can be used as a tool to share stories, to function as a new form of literacy, to stimulate community discussion and problem-solving, to expose social injustices, to archive indigenous knowledge. 

Chapter 2 provides details as to how radio can function as a participatory process and tool for dialogue and empowerment. It begins by looking at the essential elements that make radio participatory, namely, community ownership and community participation.  Then it discusses participatory radio as a process whereby every participant must be involved in all stages, from planning the program content and style to listening and giving feedbacks. Chapter 2 also takes into account that participatory radio can be utilized as a tool for rapid diffusion of important messages, for training and educational purposes, to give marginalized people a public voice, for dialogue and debate, and to develop greater community cohesion and participation. My personal experience of being a catalyst communicator for a participatory radio process with Filipino migrant workers in Rome, Italy is presented in chapter 2.

In Chapter 3, the ways in which participatory radio and video can facilitate dialogue is surveyed.  Then it delves into how both participatory radio and video can bring about empowerment.

Chapter 4 provides answers to the following questions: How do we know whether or not participatory radio and video are working?  How do we recognize that the participatory process is being manipulated or imposed? What are the ingredients needed to sustain participatory processes?

My thesis culminates with a conclusion of my yearlong research and some suggestions for future directions of participatory radio and video.  It also offers some concluding remarks on the main hypothesis of my study – that participatory radio and video are not about doing something for the people but about the people doing something for themselves.