SAT is in the process of creating new programming and producing a mini band of programmes on DD Gujarati for one year, with the aim of becoming the pilot project for other Doordarshan Kendras. The programmes cover issues ranging from human rights to education to health care to citizen’s rights to issues of violence, coexistence, celebrating diversity, literacy, employment generation, basic values, the processes of democracy, the environment, panchayat raj, gender equity and more.
Specifically, there are four broad subject areas which have been identified in consonance with the central Government’s thrust areas and by NGOs working at the grassroots in
- Women’s empowerment: These include issues of health, livelihood, government programmes aimed at them, legal rights, dowry related issues, female foeticide, new government initiatives to empower them and more.
- Children and adolescent issues: Literacy and education, child labour, health, sexuality, career guidance, environment activism and more.
- Health: Reducing maternal mortality, anemia, encouraging breast feeding, HIV, immunization, menopause, sexuality related issues, water borne diseases, nutrition and more.
- Water: This includes the health and environmental aspects of this crucial issue for
The programming is being created by a team with a background in entertainment and a commitment to development. The project will succeed or fail on the quality and viewer friendliness of the programming and on the truth in them.
The programming targets primarily semi urban and urban audiences, and people living in city slums and lower middle class neighbourhoods. Whenever the time slots available allow for reaching rural audiences, rural issues are highlighted. The main aim is to make people proactive partners in the path to improve and empower their own lives so that they take responsibility for change while accessing financial and other help available to them.
The Partners
- The Planning Commission, Government of India, for funding
- Doordarshan as the carrier
- Dr Mallika Sarabhai and her team as the implementing agency
Program formats (genres)
- Soap operas / dramas incorporating messages on given themes – like need for education, health, gender sensitization, parenting, sex education, need for literacy and in fact all aspects of development.
- Sitcoms with episodes addressing different issues – like celebrating diversity, gender equity, violence within families, the use of punishment for children etc
- Quiz shows / game shows to ‘educate and entertain’ the viewers on subjects like environment, employment,
- Telefilms for in depth look at issues
- Talk shows / panel discussions
Impact measurement
A monitoring procedure for the programmes is being set up to evaluate the TV programmes on an ongoing basis and track the changes they are able to bring about in the viewers attitudes / opinions and more importantly, behaviour. Thus programmes will be evaluated on the following parameters,
1. Viewership of the entire programme – how frequently is it watched
2. Extent of liking the entire programme – its format, presentation, variety in content
3. Evaluation of the contents of each programme, the issues it seeks to address
4. Communication of message – what is the message being communicated to the viewers. Is the message actually being communicated the same as what the programme developers are seeking to communicate
5. Are the issues raised and the way they are addressed / solutions they provide in synch with the opinions and beliefs of the target audience
6. The ‘impact’ of the TV programme on the viewers, particularly target audience – attempt to measure the change in attitude / opinion that the program may have been able to effect and the resultant change in behaviour
Some of the impacts that can be measured in a relatively short time have been identified as :
1. How many people washed their hands after defecating or before eating, and how many after specific programming?
2. If measures of making drinking water safe are being talked about, what is the increase in people doing this in the sample?
3. How many people in the target sample audience knew about safety measures for infants and mothers before and after programming? How many have implemented these?
4. What information did lactating mothers have about breast feeding before the programme? What is their understanding and practice after the programming?
5. How many people are aware of the necessity of using iodized salt? How many more have this awareness after the programmes? How many have changed over to it?
6. How many girls and women are aware of anemia and the need to take iron once they start menstruating? How many start taking iron after the programmes?
7. What is the level of information on prevention of HIV before and after the programming?
8. How many people call our help line after inspirational and successful stories on community water management have been shown?
9. How many phone calls/letters does the helpline receive after information on government grants and schemes have been given?
Benchmark surveys will ascertain the current level of information or current behaviour in sample audiences. These surveys will be done with our partner NGOs who will also help in keeping track of programme viewing. Follow up surveys will be done after four and eight months. In some cases, as in the Valsad area where our collaborator UNICEF does extensive grass root work, there already exist benchmarks on some of these parameters, and these, being recent can be taken as starting measures.
The Outcomes
If the greatest impediment to development is an entrenched mindset, then it is to tackle this that this approach to development communication is being suggested. By measuring attitudes and levels of information that lead to different behaviour and choices, and by periodic assessments of the same as the programmes are aired, the actual outcomes can be measured.
In some fields of development, attitude change is reflected directly in behaviour change – as observed (and stated) earlier in other countries. For instance if a campaign on the necessity of immunization for children is successful, the number of children being immunized should change before and after the campaign. If a campaign to segregate and reuse garbage is successful, the locality or village will be cleaner and neater, and some amount of recycling will be visible.
In previous work on infant and maternal mortality issues conducted by the Darpana team with UNICEF in Gujarat, the percentage of children being immunized went up to 90% from a mere 50% by the end of the year long project. Messages on maternal nutrition had an 80% recall one year after our intervention. Similar measures will be put into place. Different measuring mechanisms will be worked out.
Long Term Repercussions
Popular TV programming dedicated to specific development communication targets, which is fun and participative has never been attempted with serious commitment in
A three year pilot project of this innovative nature, if even marginally more effective than current means of development communications, can lead to path breaking acceleration in empowering people nation-wide. What the programming will attempt is to put into place a mechanism that has the agility to engineer effective and enduring change with all the stakeholders as partners.
