The storm-coverage role of ZNS Bahamas and CBC Barbados this year alone, and the recent work of ABS Antigua and Barbuda, DBS Dominica, ZBVI and Radio Anguilla, among others, during Hurricanes Irma and Maria should further reaffirm the still vital part that public broadcasting has to play in this part of the world.
The one thing that public and state broadcasters can assure is free, universal access to a strong signal. The myopic decision, then, to shut down or emasculate pubcasters in the Caribbean region says nothing about broadcasting and society and says everything about personalities and politics.
When lives are at stake, a North American/Latin American, 'leave-it-to-the-market' approach is ominously devastating. Even the good ole municipal market, the very crucible of capitalism, is made public and regulated at the 'interest, necessity and convenience' of the public.
Until our leaders figure it out, spare a thought, then, for the region's surviving 'pubcasters' who risk life and limb to save our ungrateful, cynical necks.
Nonetheless, It remains one of the greatest, most fundamental flaws in the execution of public broadcasting in these tropical climes for their state owners to mistake public broadcasting for public information.
Public broadcasting has never meant either tacit or overt promotion of the policies and programmes of the government of the day, nor was it meant to be a tool in a ruling political party's quest for re-election.
But then, this flaw was given life by an unholy alliance of myopic media managers, sycophantic workers and cynical politicians who have always believed that broadcasting was 'too important a thing to be left to the broadcasters'.
Merging public broadcasting with government information will be no less disastrous than merging a public market with a public library, but that is essentially what is happening throughout the Caribbean.
Oddly enough, there has been no society that has marched to developed nation status without either public markets, public libraries, and, yes, public broadcasting.
In 2011, I attempted to reinforce the relevance of St Lucia's public broadcaster, Radio Saint Lucia, in a presentation to RSL managers. Ultimately, tragically, the arguments fell on deaf ears, and likely, I fear, not for the last time.
Click here for the full presentation.
In 2011, I attempted to reinforce the relevance of St Lucia's public broadcaster, Radio Saint Lucia, in a presentation to RSL managers. Ultimately, tragically, the arguments fell on deaf ears, and likely, I fear, not for the last time.
Click here for the full presentation.