"The democratic transition in Indonesia after the fall of the Suharto regime brought about important liberalization of the media sector. Focusing on radio as an effective medium for increasing citizen engagement with the political process and improving government accountability, USAID selected Inter ... news to provide journalism training; management, sales, and marketing training; public affairs programming; institutional support, including provision of digital recording and editing equipment, internet access, and technical help; and building media law expertise and capacity. USAID’s 2004 assessment of the nature and focus of the Internews program, its achievements and limitations, and its Summaryoverall contribution to the independent radio subsector concluded that USAID media assistance made a tangible difference to the Indonesian radio subsector. The assessment team found that the program improved and expanded news coverage and upgraded professional skills in the radio subsector. The USAID-funded Internews program also pioneered development of media law capacity and expertise. Morover, by helping citizens engage the political process through interactive radio and emphasizing local news for local communities, the program contributed to consolidating Indonesia’s democratic gains and helped subvert the top-down information flow model that characterized the Suharto era. Despite these positive developments, challenges lie ahead. Radio station owners can exert pressure on journalists to slant coverage—as can large conglomerates, the military, and other vested interests—and journalists’ low wages continue to make bribery an inescapable reality for many. Smaller stations still have limited access to newer equipment. And while physical violence against journalists has diminished, subtler forms of press control remain, including litigation and self-censorship. Overlooking such lingering and emerging issues could endanger the significant gains of the past six years." (Executive summary) more

"[...] It is too early to assess the full impact of media development efforts undertaken since February 2002, given the short timeframe and the absence of reliable audience surveys. Nevertheless, OTI and Internews deserve credit for adopting an innovative, cost-effective approach to media assistance ... that helped open up civic life in towns and villages across the country, while planting the seeds for Afghanistan’s first commercial radio market. Emphasizing sustainability and quality programming, USAID’s Office of Transition Initiatives (OTI) and Internews appear to have avoided pitfalls that have plagued projects in other postconflict settings. Internews carefully chose aid recipients, stipulated that the aid would be phased out, and organized training courses relating to core editorial and management skills. The main pillar of the assistance effort has been a loose network of community radio stations where journalists and business managers receive training, equipment, and a relatively modest level of funding. The network was launched February 2003 with a $327,897 grant from OTI. A subsequent grant was awarded to expand the network, which, by November 2004, had 25 community stations with a potential audience of 7.47 million Afghans, or 36 percent of the population. It is hoped that plans to add an AM component to the network will not prove too ambitious or burdensome for the stations. The community radio stations may sound amateurish at times, but they have helped raise community issues for public debate for the first time and held local authorities accountable. Other stations have provided an unprecedented arena for discussion of social concerns and formerly taboo women’s issues, including forced marriage and domestic violence." (Executive summary, pages ix-x) more