Building from the Pandason Cooper’s Group Presentation, radio broadcasting and community media has an important role to penetrate message into society. Broadcasting has always been “the battle arena” for meaning of those who seek "power". It consists of two poles of interest, we/society/us-the-people vis-a-vis broadcasting media owner. This battle-meaning arena ideally should stand side by side with us-the-people. Thus, it serves as a tool to encourage people for being critically conscious. Such partisanship is essential in the “battle” against the hegemonic system of domination. Gramsci suggests that us-the-people should build a counter discourse. It is a way to counterbalance the hegemony and domination.
In the broadcasting world, this task actually do bestow upon the community broadcasters. Why is that? In philosophical standpoint, community broadcasters are very different from the private ones. It is an institution formed by the citizens' initiatives. It aims to meet the needs of citizens for information on economic, social, and cultural issues. These community institutions are formed to strengthening the citizens’ critical awareness to all potentially exploitative and dominative things. On that basis, it is a must that the community broadcasters should win consensus on the Habermas’ struggle for meaning. They—the community broadcasters—should be able to reverse the dominant culture, even in more ambitious goal; they should be able to force the capitalists to meet with the community needs.
Now our question is whether our community able and willing to be bestowed with such task? Which is serving as counter hegemony. Hegemony in this case, the one comes not only from foreign but also from state domination.
By the way, I really enjoy the Pandason Cooper 360 today! Maybe after this there will be a PNN, a Panda News Network as one of the community-based media. Hahaha...just saying! (L)
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