Colonial legacies in mass education and mass communication in southern Africa with special reference to radio broadcasting in Botswana: 1920-1995

This study highlights the British and South African influence on the development of mass media during colonialism and the post-colonial eras. The ideological functions of mass education and mass communication are made explicit. Mediated mass education efforts are seen as vehicles for the dissemination of values and practices. The significance of the study lies in its contribution both to our understanding of mass communication in Africa and to our knowledge of the policy and practice of mass communication during the colonial era.;This historical study presents a comprehensive description of educational broadcasting in Botswana. The study is rooted in extensive archival research. Information is triangulated with related artifacts such as statistical data, program schedules, written narratives, and interviews. Descriptions highlight the socio-structural movements propelling the development of mass media while alluding to motivations stimulating individual contributions. This description shows Botswana as participating in the creation of their own history while at the same time being molded by it.;In establishing the connection between colonial broadcast policy and post-colonial practice, this research reaffirms the notion that communication technologies are not value free. Analysis of the historical evidence suggests a continuation of colonial patterns of programming and media development in post-independent Botswana. In particular, the British practice of using the media in support of administrative goals and programs persists. The pattern of integrating propaganda into educational programming continues, as does the pattern of financing technological change only in response to perceived threats. In addition, the administration of Botswana has appropriated the British practice of attempting to extend social control over subordinate groups through the imposition of cultural norms and values. Additional research is needed to determine the extent to which this phenomenon is common to other former British colonies. Such research should also support the ethnographic study of the ways that audiences make sense and meaning out of such productions.