Skip to main content
English
Français
Español
Русский
العربية
中文
Português
O’zbek
Enter your keywords
Search
Leave this field blank
You must enable JavaScript to view the search results.
menu login
Member States
Staff
Intranet
Building peace in the minds of men and women
Toggle navigation
In brief
Introducing UNESCO
Mission and Mandate
UNESCO House
Strategic Transformation Portal
Who's Who?
Director-General
Governance
Transparency
Internal Oversight Service
Key Figures & Budget
Funding needs & data
What we do
Expertise
Education
Culture
Natural Sciences
Social and Human Sciences
Communication & Information
Major Initiatives
Revive the Spirit of Mosul
Futures of Education
Fostering freedom of expression
Building knowledge societies
Sustainable Cities
Preventing violent extremism
Our commitment to biodiversity
Advancing the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda
Specialized Areas
Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission
Global Education Monitoring Report
Global Priorities
Africa
Gender Equality
Where we work
Member States
Field Offices
National Commissions
Ocean & Climate Platform
Networks
International Coalition of Inclusive and Sustainable Cities – ICCAR
UNESCO Associated Schools Network
Education for Sustainable Development Network
UNITWIN – UNESCO Chairs
UNEVOC - International Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training
Institutes
UIS - UNESCO Institute for Statistics
IIEP - International Institute for Educational Planning
ICTP - International Centre for Theoretical Physics
UIL - Institute for Lifelong Learning
IBE - International Bureau of Education
IICBA - International Institute for Capacity-Building in Africa
IITE - Institute for Information Technologies in Education
IESALC - International Institute for Higher Education in Latin America and the Caribbean
MGIEP - Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development
Partners
Introducing Partnerships
Public partners
Business, cities, young people
UNESCO family partners and networks
NGO's and Foundations
Goodwill Ambassadors
Join us
Careers
Procurement
Fellowships
Internship
Resources
For Journalists: Press room
For Delegates: UNESCO.int
Documents & Publications - UNESDOC
Online Bookshop
The UNESCO Courier
Conventions
Official Photos
UNESCO Lists
World Heritage
Intangible Cultural Heritage
Creative Cities
Memory of the World Register
Biosphere Reserves
UNESCO Global Geoparks
UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger
Data and Statistics
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Observatory of Killed Journalists
World Inequality Database on Education
Transparency portal
Archives
UNESCO Archives
Digital Archives
Library
UNESCO Library
UNESDOC Digital Library
Multimedia collections
Home
Community Media Sustainability Policy Series
Policy Checklist
Social Media
Instagram
Twitter
Facebook
YouTube
LinkedIn
iTunes
Rss
Respectzone
Community Media Sustainability Policy Series
cmpolicyheader-01.png
© UNESCO/Joseph Poto-Poto
Policy Checklist
DEFINING COMMUNITY BROADCASTING
Specifies clearly which communities are to be served (geographic, interest)
Outlines criteria for community participation in governance and operations
Specifies how independence should be ensured
Takes into account programming, including languages used and requirements for local and community-relevant content, including relating to women, youth and other relatively-marginalised groups
View full brief
FORMAL RECOGNITION
Community broadcasting formally recognised as a sector distinct from public and commercial broadcasters
General protections for the media also apply to community broadcasters
Requirements are specific, relevant and not unnecessarily vague or onerous
View full brief
LICENSING SYSTEMS
Clear rules for licensing community broadcasters are set out in law
Licensing is competitive where demand is higher and is done on an ad hoc basis in lower demand areas
Licensing processes for community broadcasters are fair, transparent and accessible, and allow for public input, and are separate from those for commercial broadcasters
Reporting processes for community broadcasters are adapted to their capacity and resources
View full brief
SPECTRUM ACCESS
Community broadcasters are allocated an equitable portion of the frequency spectrum for broadcasting
Community broadcasters are able to broadcast over available frequencies using low-power transmitters and distribute freely over the Internet
Cable and/or satellite providers are required to carry community stations for free or for very low fees
View full brief
PROVIDING PUBLIC FUNDING
Public fund established for community media, or provision for support from an existing fund
The fund is overseen by an independent body with clear and transparent procedures and the rules prevent the fund being used to influence or pressure individual broadcasters
Community media are entitled to access foreign sources of funding
Subsidies, waivers and reductions of fees and taxes in place to support community media
View full brief
ACCESS TO PRIVATE FUNDING & SUPPORT
Community media permitted to obtain commercial sources of funding
Limits on commercial funding are in line with those on commercial broadcasters or are offset by public funding
Community media permitted to obtain advertising from public sources
Community media permitted to obtain financial and volunteer support from their communities
Community broadcasters required to report financial information to their community
Community broadcasters required to involve community in financial management
View full brief
DIGITAL TRANSITION & DISTRIBUTION
Fair portion of digital broadcasting frequency spectrum reserved for community media
Mechanism in place to support community media with digital transition costs, such as a cross-subsidy from other broadcasters
Analogue transmission preserved for community radio, at least as a temporary measure
Technical and financial support provided for online content distribution
View full brief
Defining Community Broadcasting
Formal Recognition
Licensing Systems
Reserving Spectrum
Providing Public Funding
Access to Private Funding and Support
Digital Transition and Distribution
Policy Checklist
Bibliography and Useful Resources