Abstract
In the last decades, the media has changed from being a side-activity in development strategy to become a strong element of the modern development enterprise – often in the form of ‘communication for development’. For Martin Scott, the overly positive outlook on the benefits of communication for development that has accompanied this process has been detrimental to the critical evaluation of the relationship between media and development.
Scott’s Media and development is anything but another tribute to information and communication technology for development (ICT4D). On the contrary, Scott’s book clarifies the three fields in which media and development intersect: media for development (M4D), media development and media representation for development. He gives a critical introduction to each of these fields and makes the argument for studying them side-by-side and on an equal footing, whilst acknowledging that media can have positive and detrimental effects on levels of poverty and inequality.
Throughout the book, Scott encourages the reader to critically appraise and question the three fields. The book offers a robust and comprehensible framework to media and development, and is therefore a useful starting point for scholars and practitioners interested in critically engaging with these fields. As such, it will probably ignite more questions than answers.
First Scott looks at media for development (M4D), which he defines as the ‘strategic use of the media as a tool for delivering positive change in individuals’ knowledge, attitude and practice in order to achieve development results’ (p. 13). Scott uses several development projects as examples of M4D to effectively highlight the problematic simplification that resides in seeing a straight line of causality between providing information and achieving development. He exposes the persistence of the modernization paradigm as well as the fact that M4D can exacerbate inequalities in a context of an already unequal access to media. Scott also gives an insightful commentary on participatory communication, outlining the work of Freire and other scholars in this field to speak about how M4D is not just about poster, TV or SMS campaigns. Scott encourages the reader to think about the role of participatory communications in development, especially in the context of globalization and the spread of new technologies.
The second field Scott examines is media development. To him, the concept is complex like ‘nailing jelly to a wall’ (p. 74). He dedicates a whole chapter to thoroughly outlining the different views that exist on media development, looking at it in terms of freedom and ICT4D, as well as asking whether it is an essentially externally driven process, whether it is about bringing technology and how it is being measured. While media development can be external, internal, short and long term, measuring it is always political. In any of these views, Scott effectively outlines the problems with assuming linear causality between developing the media sector of a country and levels of poverty and inequality. Scott then looks at the empirical evidence that links media development to different aspects of development, such as democracy and good governance, economic development and freedom. Whilst showing there is evidence of correlation, direct causality cannot be affirmed.
The third aspect of the book deals with media representation of development. This involves both humanitarian communications, such as NGO fundraising campaigns, as well as the way development and the global South are represented in the media. Scott strongly argues that there is no best way of doing humanitarian communications: there is just a range of different strategies each with their own sets of compromises. Scott discusses the media’s responsibility in the ‘circulation of taken for granted assumptions about the world’ (p. 191), and assesses how the media can affect public support for government spending, levels of government aid as well as public engagement with development. For Scott, there is insufficient proof that media does not matter. He states ‘Media may matter for development but only in concert with many other different factors’ (p. 139).
Scott really finds his place at the intersection of media and development, to which he has devoted his academic career. Scott outlines how development studies and media studies can learn from each other, and that concepts and theories in one field can inform and appraise cases in the other. His overview makes the distinction between the three fields extremely clear and helps the reader identify where specific interventions may fail and offers guidance to question the assumptions behind it. The book is approachable and no particular background in either development or media studies is needed, simply an interest in the matter. Professionals of the ICT4D community and of other media and development related areas, such as journalists, policy makers and donors, would appreciate the book for the questions it raises.
The difficulty that Scott obviously faced writing this book was to give a meaningful overview of a field that is vast and multi-faceted. Although it is short, Scott puts particular effort into providing a balanced view of the different fields, whilst also challenging assumptions. Scott successfully overcomes the difficulty of keeping the book short by ending most chapters in a series of questions, which in the process leaves you with a desire to read, learn and explore more about media and development.
Scott’s book is a good start for studying media and development, as it offers a thought provoking contribution to this academic area of research. Scott achieves this through providing a convincing framework of three distinct yet interrelated fields of media and development, and there by confronts the lack of common definitions and the confusion that arises when media, communication and ICT are used interchangeably. If Scott was to consider writing a second edition, a discussion on the use of media in social movements and in grass-roots advocacy, as well as the links between the media and other aspects of development such as well-being and human rights, could be further explored.