Malaysian Children TV Programme Foundation

The final session of the day, chaired by Mr. Sabri Rahman, featured presentations by Ms. Gael McIndoe, Head of Public Programmes, Australian Centre for the Moving Image; Mr. Vagish K. Jha, media consultant/trainer and radio activist from India, and two teenagers from Malaysia, Ms Sarah Chen Tzee Eien and Ms Marisha.

Clarifying that her organisation was not confined to film and/or television, Ms. McIndoe said it included all forms of cultural expression. Based on the idea that people should be creators, and not only consumers, of culture, the Centre actively promoted public engagement in its activities.

One such project aimed at young people dealt with digitial story-telling, drawing on experiences from their own lives. In a three-day workshop, participants began by identifying story ideas and drafting scripts, which were then discussed with each other. Based on the feedback and suggestions, and exposure to examples of effective digital story-telling, the participants then revised their scripts. They were then introduced to story-boarding and technical aspects of digital production. And, finally, they were able to produce their own digital stories.

According to Ms. McIndoe, the project helped youngsters gain and develop creative, critical and technical skills. It also encouraged collaboration. Most participants found the process inspiring and transformative, and many reported a new sense of empowerment that came with being valued as a story-teller

Mr. Vagish Jha began with a brief history of radio, particularly in the Indian context, reporting the recent resurgence of radio with the emergence of new technologies and broadcast policies. The greatest growth has been in FM radio, with nearly 400 frequencies auctioned and allotted over the past two years and most metropolitan cities hosting multiple FM channels, including some by established media houses. However, he pointed out, this proliferation has not led to genuine choice for listeners since almost all of them rely almost exclusively on popular (especially Bollywood and other film-based) music for content.

At the same time, the government has not yet legitimised community radio in the true sense of the term despite a landmark judgement by the Supreme Court of India in 1995, declaring that the airwaves are public property, and although the possibility of campus radio has been opened up. However, it has made provisions for community-based organisations to participate in radio communication and programming through the local radio stations of All India Radio, the national broadcaster. In addition, he said, technological innovation has enabled a number of small-time rural entrepreneurs, most of them young, to set up cheap, make-shift FM radio stations without the benefit of official licenses. While these one-dollar FM stations constitute a thriving – if illegal -- cottage industry, they tend to copy existing commercial FM stations in terms of programming, merely giving the customary fare a regional twist to ensure local relevance.

Mr. Jha then went on to describe a project he was involved with that set out to explore the possibilities of using digital broadcasting to address issues of reproductive health and HIV/AIDS among young people. As part of the project he designed a programme for adolescents called Umag (Zest), which aimed to stimulate debate around such issues and encourage youngsters to find realistic solutions to problems in these areas. Although the pilot episode received positive feedback from youth as well as adults, he felt that the programme was in the final analysis made by a professional for adolescents.

Following up on that experience he got involved in an experiment to launch a radio programme by, of and for adolescents. The project, situated in Bikaner district, Rajasthan, involved providing comprehensive radio training to rural adolescents so that they could develop and produce their own programmes focussing on health, development, the environment and livelihoods. The primary target group comprises adolescents in the age group 12-19 years.

All 50 of the youngsters chosen to work on the programme were from remote villages (two from each of the 22 selected villages in the border district) and while two-thirds belonged to marginalised social classes and castes, over 40 per cent were girls. Not only were they given technical training but they were put through a process that demystified technology and encouraged questioning and creative thinking, including about the issues they wished to address through radio. The young people also named the programme and got involved in audience research. Eleven months later, with five young editors, another five script-writers, ten reporters and four presenters (with several more in each category waiting in the wings), Kishor Vani is all set to go on air from mid-June 2006 and thereby become the first adolescent radio in the country.

Ms Sarah Chen Tzee Eien and Ms Marisha described their experiences as members of the Golden Kids News, Golden Kids Club and, later, the Young Achievers Club from the time they were ten years old. The Golden Kids News started off as a child-edutainment programme, which later spinned off to be a more advanced children programme on a local television station. The contract with the tv station stopped, however the development of these two as individuals, along with the other 28 selected children did not, with the formation of the Young Achievers Club as a platform to build future leaders- a long term programme which includes a series of motivational and charity activities. (pls refer to website- www.yac.com.my) They were also both selected as Malaysian delegates in the 4th Rio Media Summit for Adolescents, where they were simultaneously involved in the launch of the Malaysian Children Television Foundation.

Their participation involved a few key stages, i.e pre-production, during production and post-production. In the pre-production stage, for example, they were involved in research (going directly to the target group) and contributed ideas for programmes based on what children really want to watch and what went with their changing lifestyles. According to them, what present-day adults wanted to see when they were children may not be what today’s children want to see. Instead of hiring research companies at great expense, they suggested, it would be simpler and more effective to get children to talk to children and determine what kind of programmes they and their peers want.

During production, they were more than just “talents’’ and were instead part of the crew, learning the technical aspects of producing a show, contributing technical as well as content ideas, making suggestions about making the show more appealing to their age group, and so on. Finally, in the post-production period, they gathered feedback from each other, other friends and family members on how the programme was received, how it could improve, etc. According to them, working together as a team helped them to learn from each other. They concluded their spirited presentation by assuring the largely adult audience at the workshop that they were not there to take over their roles as media professionals: “We are here just to guide you!’’
That was an appropriate note on which to end the regional thematic meeting on media for children! Among the issues that came up in discussions through the day and will be taken on board in preparations for the Johannesburg Summit were the following:

1.      The importance of paying more attention to radio, print and, possibly, hybrid (combination) media to meet the needs, interests and concerns of the diverse populations of this region.
2.      The need for more research on different aspects of media by, for and about children in this region, with children participating in the research to the extent possible.
3.      The need to ensure that various marginalised sections of the child population, including children from indigenous and other socially and economically disadvantaged communities, and children in difficult and dangerous circumstances, have access to and can participate in media.
4.      The need to examine issues relating to media policy and regulation to promote media by, for and about children in the region.
5.      The importance of child participation and involvement – both in creating and producing their own media, and in providing inputs and feedback on child-related content in the so-called mainstream media.
6.      The relevance of co-productions and content exchanges within the region and across the world.
7.      And, finally, the exciting prospect of a World Summit on Media for Children hosted by Asia in the near future.

28 May 2006, Hotel Nikko, Kuala Lumpur
Session V

CHILD PARTICIPATION IN RESEARCH AND PRODUCTION OF PROGRAMMES

28 May 2006, Hotel Nikko, Kuala LumpurSession V

CHILD PARTICIPATION IN RESEARCH AND PRODUCTION OF PROGRAMMES

28 May 2006, Hotel Nikko, Kuala Lumpur
Session V