View
212
Download
0
Category
Preview:
Citation preview
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
1/93
Radio geopolitics: broadcasting, listeningand the struggle for
acoustic spaces
Alasdair Pinkerton* and Klaus Dodds
Department of Geography, Royal Holloway, University of ondon, !gham "#$%
%!&, UK
Abstract: "his paper 'onsiders some of the interdis'iplinary s'holarship on radio and
sound more generally for the purposes of 'onsidering how geopoliti'al s'holarship
might re'onsider its predominantly visual fo'us( "he first part 'onsiders radio and its
relationship to studies of propaganda, international diploma'y and even everyday life(
"hereafter, attention is given to new themes su'h as resear'hing radio 'ultures,
)road'asting infrastru'ture and te'hnology and, finally, the affe'tive impa'ts of radio
on audien'es( "he 'on'lusion of this paper urges further 'riti'al 'onsideration of
radio, sound and )road'astinglistener engagement with the well+esta)lished
geographi'al literature on musi'(
Key words: audien'es, 'ommuni'ation, geopoliti's, listening, radio(
I Introduction
#e have some pla'es( ust stay -uiet and you.ll )e /K( #e are returning to the
airport( #e open this arti'le, as does the 011 2ommission Report 3$%%45, with the
words attri)uted to 6ohammad Atta, the alleged ringleader of the 10 hi7a'kers
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
2/93
responsi)le for the atta'ks on the "win "owers of the #orld "rade 2enter, the
Pentagon and the 'rash of United 08 in a Pennsylvanian field( "his radio transmissionmade )y the hi7a'kers on )oard Ameri'an Airlines 9light 11 was the first aural 'lue
for federal air traffi' 'ontrollers seeking to 'omprehend the unusual movements 3and
la'k of radio
'ommuni'ation5 of a num)er of planes fl ying
over the eastern part of the United :tates(
Given the su)se-uent developments, these
words, as some 7ournalists noted at the time,
have an un-uestiona)ly ;'hilling -uality. not
least )e'ause the hi7a'kers perished with
nearly 8,%%% other vi'tims( Una)le to see the
hi7a'kers or the other o''upants of Ameri'an
Airlines 9light 11, those on the ground were
reliant on listening to the o''asional 'ommuni'ations
)y the hi7a'kers( And then radio
silen'e as 9light 11 'rashed into the "win
"owers at %
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
3/93
:hortly after the impa't of the se'ond
plane into the "win "owers, terrified onlookers
were shown, via television 'overage,
e>hi)iting a range of responses from
stunned silen'e to 'rying, wailing and holding
highly animated 'onversations with
fellow onlookers( "o des'ri)e these atta'ks
*Author for 'orresponden'e? !mail? a(d(pinkerton@rhul(a'(uk
Alasdair Pinkerton and Klaus Dodds: Radio geopolitics 11
as a visual assault on Ameri'a is to miss a
fundamental point this was an audiovisual
spe'ta'le of horrifying proportions( As the
)uildings )egan to smoulder, the sight and
sound of people 7umping from the "win
"owers to their 'ertain death was 'aptured
on film( Produ'ed )y two 9ren'h )rothers
3ules and Gedeon Baudet5 who a''ompanied
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
4/93
mem)ers of the Bew Cork 9ire
Department to the "win "owers, the do'umentary
film 9/11 3$%%$5 is parti'ularly
poignant in that regard( t remains the only
footage taken inside the "win "owers on
11 :eptem)er $%%1( 9inally, the thundering
noise a''ompanying the 'ollapse of the
"win "owers and the diffusion of suffo'ating
'louds of dust 'ompleted, one might say,
the first deadly phase of this audiovisual
spe'ta'le 3De)ri>, $%%=5(
"he re'orded statements of the hi7a'kers
and other utteran'es su'h as ;let.s roll. issued
)y one of the passengers on )oard United
08 has )een mu'h analysed and de)ated )y
offi'ial investigators, politi'al leaders and
relatives of the dead( "he )ipartisan 011
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
5/93
2ommission, 'reated )y the Eush administration
to investigate the 11 :eptem)er atta'ks,
'onsidered all forms of soni' and visual
information germane to their e>tensive )rief(
6o)ile phone 'onversations )etween the
air)orne vi'tims of 011 and their friends
and relatives have provided further poignant
soni' testimony of those last minutes )efore
impa't and 'ertain death(1 "hose 'onversations
form part of what Bational Pu)li'
Radio des'ri)ed as their :oni' 6emorial
pro7e't( As 2ohen and #illis 3$%%45 re'ord?
How 'ould pu)li' radio F a medium fo'ussed
solely on aural e>perien'es F 'ontri)ute to
storytelling these tragedies After :eptem)er
11th, Bational Pu)li' Radio 3BPR5 took up
the task of aural remem)ering for the nation
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
6/93
through an unpre'edented pu)li' radio 'olla)oration,
'onsisting of at least 1%% BPR
stations and their affiliates that 'ontri)uted
and aired up to 8% hours of BPR+produ'ed
programming during the week )efore the
anniversary ie, :eptem)er $%%$I( 32ohen and
#illis, $%%4? J0$5
6oreover, BPR also produ'ed a :oni'
6emorial on the internet, hosted )y the
:eptem)er 11th Digital Ar'hive($
Radio )road'asting 3and noise for
that matter5 is playing a ma7or part in the
Ameri'an+led #ar on "error( 9ollowing
ames :idaway.s interventions on the su)7e't
matter of ;)anal geopoliti's., we should
draw attention to the manner in whi'h radio
is now routinely used )y military personnel
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
7/93
in their pursuit of those who masterminded
the 11 :eptem)er assault on Bew Cork and
#ashington, and asso'iated 'ounter+terror
strategies 3:idaway, $%%1 $%%8 Graham,
$%%=5( As part of developing new ur)an)ased
fi ghting strategies, the Ameri'an military
has 'reated a series of training environments,
whi'h in'lude ;)om)arding. U: troops
with radio )road'asting in Ara)i' for the purpose
of developing a sense of geographi'al
and 'ultural ;authenti'ity., while simultaneously
desensitiing the troops to foreign
'ultural pra'ti'es(
f we wanted to understand more fully
some of the popular 'ultural dimensions to
post+011 Ameri'a, then talk radio would )e
an e>'ellent pla'e to )egin su'h an investigation
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
8/93
3see 2roft, $%%L5( naugurated in the
108%s and 104%s, talk radio fundamentally
'hanged in the 10
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
9/93
areas relating to the #ar on "error, loud musi'
and sound more generally have )een deployed
on suspe'ted terrorists around the world in
the )elief that these soni' a'tivities will lead
to vital intelligen'e )eing divulged( n ra- and
1$Progress in Human Geography !1"
Afghanistan, 'ompanies su'h as Homeland
:e'urities :trategies n' are developing new
radio 7amming te'hnologies in the hope that
they will )e a)le to interfere with improvised
e>plosive devi'es pla'ed )y the sides of highways
and other strategi' pla'es( 9inally, the
Department of :tate is funding, via the Moi'e
/f Ameri'a 3M/A5, a plethora of new radio
stations and lo'al language )road'asting in
the hope that Ameri'a.s ;soft power. will )e
a)le to persuade millions in the Glo)al :outh
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
10/93
not to support violen'e dire'ted against
Ameri'an personnel and material interests(
#hile we have opened with some o)servations
a)out 011 and its aftermath, this
arti'le.s more general purpose is to shift the
'entre of gravity towards radio for the purpose
of )roadening popular geographi'al
geopoliti'al horions and en'ouraging further
work, whi'h has tended to )e dominated
)y so'ial and 'ultural geographi'al interest
in musi' rather than radio )road'asting, or
listening more generally 3see, for e>ample,
:mith, 1004 eyshon et al(, 100
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
11/93
reprodu'ed sounds 3Eull, $%%4? $4
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
12/93
geographers su'h as ;resear'hing radio. and
the sound ar'hive, radio and )road'asting
infrastru'ture, and radio and its audien'es(
9inally, the paper 'onne'ts up with the
esta)lished literature on musi' to 'onsider the
geographi'al impli'ations and 'onse-uen'es
of sound( #hile we spe'ifi 'ally address radio
and its geopoliti'al impli'ations, we are mindful
of a long+esta)lished )ody of literature
more generally 'on'erned with 'ommuni'ations,
te'hnology and the role of states and
empires 3for e>ample, nnis, 10J% 6attellart,
100L Hugill, 1000 6einig, $%%45(
II Popular geopolitics of radio: identity,
propaganda and soft power
:hortly after President Eush.s de'ision to
de'lare a #ar on "error, the U: :tate Department+
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
13/93
funded Moi'e of Ameri'a 3M/A5 was
given e>tra funding so that it 'ould e>pand
radio )road'asting in Ara)i', Dari, 9arsi and
Pashto( 2reated in 9e)ruary 104$, Moi'e
of Ameri'a is the one of the largest statefunded
)road'asters and rivals EE2 #orld
:ervi'e and Radio 6os'ow in terms of its
)road'asting 'overage, language provision
and weekly audien'es( n $%%$ a 6iddle !ast
Radio Betwork was laun'hed and one of
the most signifi 'ant developments was the
laun'h of Radio 9arda, whi'h is designed to
)road'ast news and musi' in !nglish and
9arsi to ran and 2entral Asia( Bew investment
in radio )road'asting and pu)li' diploma'y
was 7udged to )e 'riti'al in esta)lishing
a )roader legitima'y for more violent forms
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
14/93
of intervention( n his weekly radio address,
President Eush announ'ed on 1J :eptem)er
$%%1 that?
"his is a 'onfli't without )attlefields or
)ea'hheads, a 'onfli't with opponents who
)elieve they are invisi)le( Cet, they are
mistaken( "hey will )e e>posed, and they will
dis'over what others in the past have learned?
those who make war against the United :tates
have 'hosen their own destru'tion( Mi'tory
against terrorism will not take pla'e in a single
)attle, )ut in a series of de'isive a'tions against
terrorist organiations and those who har)or
and support them(
#e are planning a )road and sustained 'ampaign
to se'ure our 'ountry and eradi'ate the
evil of terrorism( And we are determined to see
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
15/93
this 'onfl i't through( Ameri'ans of every faith
and )a'kground are 'ommitted to this goal(8
Alasdair Pinkerton and Klaus Dodds: Radio geopolitics 18
Radio )road'asting remains part of that
;)road and sustained 'ampaign. and this is
the 'ase not only with regard to overseas
)road'asting )ut also domesti'ally, notwithstanding
the highly televised 'ulture of the
United :tates( t is important to re'all that
the weekly radio address )y the President
has )een a regular feature of Ameri'an pu)li'
life sin'e the 9ranklin D( Roosevelt administration
31088F4J5, and there are many
other e>amples we 'ould draw upon to highlight
the i'oni' role of radio )road'asting
involving !uropean politi'al leaders and di'tators,
su'h as 2harles de Gaulle, #inston
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
16/93
2hur'hill, oseph :talin and Eenito 6ussolini
as well as post'olonial leaders su'h as Behru
and his 104= independen'e )road'ast(
Ameri'a.s 'ommitment to dire't funding
towards overseas radio )road'asting in the
post+011 era was motivated )y a simple )ut
important development( :in'e the 10L%s,
the widespread availa)ility of the transistor
radio has meant that many 'ommunities,
without a''ess to television and uninterrupted
power supplies, 'ontinue to depend
on the radio for their news and other output
su'h as musi'( 6a7or )road'asting organiations
su'h as M/A and EE2 #orld :ervi'e,
as a 'onse-uen'e, have re'ognied that lo'al
language )road'asting offers opportunities
to rea'h and potentially infl uen'e audien'es
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
17/93
in 'ountries su'h as Afghanistan, Pakistan
and ran( o'al language )road'asting has
often, as a 'onse-uen'e, )een highly sensitied
to regional geopoliti'al 'hange(
/ne e>ample from an earlier era involves
M/A radio )road'asting in :panish and
Portuguese to atin Ameri'a( n 10JL, M/A
)road'asting to atin Ameri'a 'onsisted of
one hour of daily programming and was
in !nglish( 9oreign language )road'asting
had )een downgraded as M/A invested its
energies in eastern !uropean and southeast
Asian language programming( Ey 6ar'h
10L%, and in the aftermath of the 10J0
2u)an revolution, M/A :panish language
)road'asting was restored, and a year later
Portuguese language )road'asting resumed(
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
18/93
1=N of total M/A foreign programming was
dire'ted towards atin Ameri'a and a new
radio station was 'onstru'ted in 2entral
Ameri'a 39e7es, 10ed(
n the 'ase of re'ent endeavours )y the
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
19/93
Ameri'an government, any transmission
asso'iated with M/A is, for some listeners,
treated with 'ontempt and suspi'ion, )e'ause
of the 'ontemporary military o''upation
of Afghanistan and ra- 3Gregory, $%%45(
2olonial radio stations in the !nglish, 9ren'h
and Dut'h speaking worlds were fre-uently
linked to e>pressions of anti'olonial agitation
and national li)eration movements(
6oreover, as Kat and #eddell 310==? patriate )road'asters in order to
prepare themselves for the day when li)eration
would 'ome.( :u'h training would
have disastrous 'onse-uen'es in Rwanda
in April 1004 when so+'alled ;hate radio.
was instrumental in persuading thousands
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
20/93
to slaughter their fellow 'itiens( "he ensuing
geno'ide was later to en'apsulate no
fewer than
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
21/93
that popular representations of glo)al geopoliti's
need to )e investigated alongside
elite understandings( ndeed terms su'h as
;geopoliti'al 'ulture. have )een deployed in
order to 'onsider how fi lm, 'artoons, 'omi'
)ooks and television 'ontri)ute to e>pressions
of popular geopoliti's and how and with what
'onse-uen'es audien'es rea't to those media
3Dodds, $%%=5( Re'ent resear'h has demonstrated
how 'ertain kinds of emotional rea'tions
and investments may )e provoked
and mo)ilied )y parti'ular produ'tions
su'h as a fi lm like#lack Ha$k Do$n 3$%%15
or a 'omi' 'hara'ter like 2aptain Ameri'a
3Dittmer, $%%J 2arter and 6'2orma'k,
$%%L5( Geographi'al s'holars su'h as 2hris
Gi)son and his 'o+workers have helped to
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
22/93
ensure that popular geopoliti'al s'holars do
'onsider how musi' 'ontri)utes to de)ates
a)out 'ontemporary 'ommuni'ations, popular
'ulture and national identity 3Gi)son,
100L Dun)ar+Hall and Gi)son, $%%% Gi)son
and 2onnell, $%%8 )ut 'riti'ally see Power,
$%%15( Gi)son.s resear'hes into the musi' in
Australia has )een parti'ularly effe'tive in
highlighting how indigenous 'ommunities
'an e>press so'ial identities and 'ontest the
hegemoni' representations of Anglophone
and white Australia( "here is surely mu'h
more work to )e done on the popular geopoliti's
of musi' and Anglophone performers
and )ands su'h as Eo) Dylan, 6idnight /il
and Beil Coung would feature, as would parti'ular
musi'al genres, su'h as gangster rap
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
23/93
and ro'k, whi'h have 'riti'ally refl e'ted on
'onfl i'ts from Mietnam to ra-( Until re'ently
only one geopoliti'al s'holar, 6ar'us Power,
had e>plored in any detail the geopoliti'al
'onse-uen'es of radio )road'asting, in this
'ase with referen'e to 'olonial 6oam)i-ue
3Power, $%%1 'f( Pinkerton, $%%= $%%
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
24/93
as relevant( 9irst, there has )een e>tensive
interest in radio propaganda espe'ially
sin'e the 10$%s with many resear'h papers
and monographs devoted to Bai Germany,
:oviet Russia and other !uropean states su'h
as taly, :pain and the United Kingdom 3for
e>ample, 6iller, 1041 sola, 100J :hirer,
1000 6enduni, $%%45( n his )ook#acking
Hitler, Ro)ert Gellately not only shows the
importan'e of radio to fas'ist German propaganda
)ut also tra'es the penalties imposed
on those 'itiens 'aught or e>posed listening
to overseas )road'asting )y the EE2 and
others( istening was a matter of life and
death and this remains the 'ase in many parts
of the world 3Gellately, $%%$? 1
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
25/93
purposes, it has also )een a medium that governments
have sought to 'ontrol, ;to 7am.
and to limit a''ess to other forms of )road'asting(
"he apparent u)i-uity of radio
should not )e overestimated as national
governments have and 'ontinue to attempt
to engage in politi'al suppression, prohi)it
foreign )road'asting, limit ownership of
radio transmitters and 'reate 'onditions
where listening is far from mundane( nstead,
radio listening in 'ontemporary ran and
Oim)a)we and the former :oviet Union
'ould )e a dangerous, frustrating and deadly
e>perien'e( 2hina 'ontinues to 7am radio
)road'asting alongside the internet( 2u)a
remains parti'ularly a'tive in ;)lo'king. radio
)road'asting from e>ile groups in 6iami
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
26/93
and the U: government funded Radio 6arti(
Alternatively, others have pointed to the
a)ility of radio )road'asting, often in dire
'ir'umstan'es, to provide some 'omfort and
sola'e, as the Eritish 'aptive "erry #aite
a'knowledged( Held for several years in
Eeirut, #aite and his fellow 'aptives re'orded
their gratitude for EE2 #orld :ervi'e )road'asting
)e'ause it, in his words, ;helped to
Alasdair Pinkerton and Klaus Dodds: Radio geopolitics 1J
keep us alive )oth spiritually through the
work of the religious departments and
mentally through the varied 'ultural and
news programmes. 3#alker, 100$? 1LJ5( n
different ways, therefore, the geographies
of )road'asting and listening 'ontinue to
)e highly 'ontingent(
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
27/93
:e'ond, the radio studies literature has
long )een preo''upied with domesti' radio
environments in the western world and keen
to de'ipher 'odes, 'onventions, formats and
pra'ti'es of radio programming and re'eption(
#ell+known works su'h asRadio %roadcasting:
an introduction to the sound medium
have )een important in shaping future s'holarship
with its fo'us on the Ameri'an domesti'
radio s'ene and international )road'asting
3Hillard, 10
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
28/93
6oreover, the diversifi 'ation of radio )road'asting
3with the o)vious e>'eption of U:
Bational Pu)li' Radio5 has allowed for a
series of overlapping listening environments
to e>ist( "hese spe'ialied listening populations
are in some 'ases further served and
en'ouraged )y the development of highprofi
le ;sho'k+7o'k. radio presenters su'h as
Howard :tern who en7oy a highly defined
listening segment as defi ned )y ra'e, gender,
edu'ational attainment, politi'al persuasion
and age( :e'uring su'h segments is vitally
important for 'ommer'ial radio stations )e'ause
of the strong 'onne'tion with advertising
and revenue generation(
As historians of Ameri'an radio have
noted, the pla'e of this medium in national
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
29/93
life has long )een 'ontested and as su'h predates
some of the 'ontemporary 'ontroversies
asso'iated with outspoken right+wing
radio presenters 3Earfi eld, 10ual a)andonment(
#hile 7a was later aired more
generally in the 108%s and 104%s, Afri'an+
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
30/93
Ameri'an musi'ians attra'ted large num)ers
of white listeners and indeed 7a was 'redited
with playing a part in )uilding 'ross'ommunity
solidarities during the struggle
for 'ivil rights in the 10JJFLJ period(
:u'h solidarities need to )e set alongside
the produ'tion and 'ir'ulation of ra'ist representations
of Afri'an+Ameri'ans via the
radio( :hows su'h as ;Amos.n. Andy. were
hugely important, if 'ontroversial, in developing
the radio serial drama and in this 'ase
'on'entrated on the 'hanging so'ial and e'onomi'
fortunes of two Afri'an+Ameri'an
workers 3Douglas, 10005( #hile resisted and
resented )y many Afri'an+Ameri'an listeners,
radio was later to provide an important
pu)li' forum for the dis'ussion of ra'ial politi's
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
31/93
in 'ontemporary Ameri'an life( Ey 1041,
nearly every family in the United :tates
owned a re'eiver and radio 'reated an aural
pu)li' sphere for a'knowledging, in programmes
su'h as federally funded ;9reedom.s
People., the 'ontri)ution Afri'an+Ameri'an
'ommunities have made to la)our, musi',
sports, literature, military servi'e and edu'ation
3:avage, 1000? =%5( "he year 1048 was
a landmark in Ameri'an radio history, as
Ear)ara :avage noted, )e'ause funding
and )road'asting restri'tions tightened in
response to 'on'erns from Afri'an+Ameri'an
'ommunities a)out segregation and dis'rimination
in Ameri'an life( n postwar Ameri'a,
progressive dissent 'ontinued to appear on
the airwaves and radio.s pla'e in the so'ial
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
32/93
and 'ultural transformation of the United
:tates is )eginning to attra't ever more 'riti'al
attention 3see, for e>ample, Hilmes and
oviglio, $%%$5(
1LProgress in Human Geography !1"
:'holars su'h Paddy :'annell 310015,
Andrew 2rissell 3100L5, 6artin :hingler
and 2indy #ierniga 3100
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
33/93
role of radio in the making of ;e>traordinary.
rituals and 'eremonies in modern so'iety
su'h as the 10J8 'oronation of !lia)eth ,
the trial of Bai war 'riminals and the role
of radio during the se'ond world war( Radio
audien'es were often signifi 'ant, espe'ially
in 'ountries where a''ess to television was
either 7ust )e'oming widespread or had yet
to emerge( However, in a salutary study
of the role of radio in the 10L1 trial of Adolf
!i'hmann in erusalem, a team of s'holars
found that the 'overage )y sraeli state radio
was 'onsistently overestimated in fre-uen'y
and duration )y listeners( n fa't, radio )road'asting
was more sporadi' than people re'alled
and many )elieved that the medium
must have featured more strongly in daily
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
34/93
life )e'ause of the sheer magnitude of this
pu)li' event 3Pin'hevski et al(, $%%=? 1
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
35/93
in the daily ma'hination of domesti'
politi's would fail to tune in and listen to
the morning news programme ;"oday. on
Radio 4( "he so+'alled Andrew Gilligan
affair of 6ay $%%8, in the midst of 'on'erns
over ra-.s #eapons of 6ass Destru'tion
'apa)ilities, highlighted -uite how important
radio )road'asting and listening rea'tions
'ould )e( n this 'ase a well+known Radio 4
defen'e 7ournalist 3Gilligan5 used his short
early morning report to 'laim that a highly
pla'ed se'urity sour'e had told him that
the a)our government had ;se>ed up. its
dossier on ra-.s military 'apa)ilities for the
sole purpose of persuading parliamentarians
and the pu)li' that the 6ar'h $%%8
invasion of ra- was ne'essary( "he rea'tion
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
36/93
to the )road'ast was e>traordinary and led
to the EE2 )eing for'ed to apologie for the
report after the so+'alled Hutton n-uiry
found in favour of the a)our government
3see also the Beil Report, $%%45( t also,
tragi'ally, led to the sui'ide )y Gilligan.s
sour'e F Dr David Kelly( Alternatively, as
9raser 6a'Donald has noted with regard to
the nightly weather )road'ast on Radio 4,
;the 'aden'es and rhythms of the UK
shipping fore'ast have a soporifi' effe't
a familiar and 'omforting register of sea
areas and 'oastal stations that have 'ome
to define the sym)oli' )oundary of the
nation. 36a'Donald, $%%L? L$
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
37/93
'itiens in the United Kingdom(
David Hendy.s 3$%%%5Radio in the glo%al
age is argua)ly the most impressive intervention
)y a radio studies s'holar )e'ause of
his willingness to e>plore how radio )road'asting
and listening is now a glo)al phenomenon,
even if there are signifi 'ant lo'al
and regional variations depending inter alia
on the integration with internet te'hnologies,
'ommer'ialiation, listener availa)ility, politi'al
'ontrol and transnational 'onne'tions
with other )road'asters( As Hendy notes?
#hile )eing a lo'al medium par e>'ellen'e,
radio is a)le to rea'h a'ross large spa'es,
potentially threatening pla'e+spe'ifi ' 'ultures
with its homogenied 'ontent, potentially
Alasdair Pinkerton and Klaus Dodds: Radio geopolitics 1=
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
38/93
forging new delo'alied 'ommunities of
interest it has a history in whi'h nation+states
often led the way in esta)lishing servi'es, )ut
its oral 'ode of 'ommuni'ation allows it to
tie itself to 'ommunities of language, whi'h
ignore offi 'ial )orders it )etrays a 'ommer'ial
imperative to rea'h large, high+spending audien'es,
)ut it also has a 'ost stru'ture, whi'h
'reates at least the possi)ility of a 'ommunity
station surviving on the tiniest of audien'es(
t is, in short, the most adapta)le of ;media.
in fi nding its audien'e( 3Hendy, $%%%? $1J5
n this way, radio is often im)ued with an aura
of a''essi)ility and demo'ratiing potential
3listeners 'an )e 'ontri)utors and thus not
7ust passive re'eivers5 even if there is a long
history of radio )road'asting )eing either
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
39/93
tightly regulated )y states or restri'ted )y
national authorities throughout the Glo)al
Borth and :outh(
9inally, within nternational Relations
and Politi'al :'ien'e, there has )een interest
in radio as a form of ;soft power. and its role
in pu)li' diploma'y during and after the
se'ond world war( n his well+known work,
oseph Bye 3$%%4a5 has 'laimed that the
Eush administration has lost interest in 'ultural
diploma'y and what he has 'alled ;soft
power.( As he noted in an arti'le in&oreign
A''airs?
:kepti's of soft power 3:e'retary of :tate
Donald Rumsfeld professes not even to
understand the term5 'laim that popularity
is ephemeral and should not guide foreign
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
40/93
poli'y( "he United :tates, they assert, is strong
enough to do as it wishes with or without the
world.s approval and should simply not
a''ept that others will envy and resent it(
"he world.s only superpower does not need
permanent allies the issues should determine
the 'oalitions, not vi'e versa, a''ording
to Rumsfeld( 3Bye, $%%4)? 1L5
Given that :e'retary of :tate Rumsfeld no
longer holds offi 'e, this s'epti'al view may
no longer )e -uite so prevalent in the fa'e
of rising anti+Ameri'anism and the mounting
losses of U: servi'e personnel in ra-(
However, Bye dete'ted an apparent disregard
of the power of media in'luding
radio to ;persuade. others a)out Ameri'a.s
interventions in southwest and 'entral Asia(
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
41/93
As he noted, ;During the 2old #ar, radio
)road'asts funded )y #ashington rea'hed
half the :oviet population and =% to
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
42/93
words, the -uestion of legitima'y is likely to
)e 'riti'al in determining potential infl uen'e(
/ther studies on radio diploma'y and
;soft power. have in the past )een )etter at
e>amining radio )road'asting and state
'ontrols rather than listening audien'es and
potential effe'tiveness( Hale 310=J5 and
Rawnsley 3100L5 )oth 'onsider Eritish )road'ast
poli'ies and parti'ular international
'rises and 'onfl i'ts in the post+104J era( n
the 'ase of Rawnsley, for e>ample, his work
'onsiders radio )road'asting with regard to
the 10JL :ue 2risis, the 10JL Hungarian
Uprising, the 10L$ 2u)an 6issile 2risis and
the Ameri'an engagement with Mietnam( n
ea'h 'ase, Eritish and Ameri'an )road'asting
was e>amined and 7udged with regard to how
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
43/93
it reported these parti'ular 'rises and the
kinds of politi'al and )road'asting 'onfl i'ts
reports from the EE2 and M/A engendered(
"he earlier work )y Hale 'onsiders three
models of international radio )road'asting F
the Bai, the 2ommunist and the EE2( n
'on'lusion, Hale 'ontends that the EE2
remains somewhat different to Bai and
2ommunist )road'asters )e'ause it sought
sin'e the 'reation of the !mpire :ervi'e in
10$= to provide ;relia)le. news and information
even if that meant 'lashing with the
1
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
44/93
of Bai )road'asting 'ompared to the EE2.s
reputation for ;relia)le. news )road'asting(
"he Ameri'an and :oviet )road'asters were
7udged to )e single+minded in their determination
to pursue their national priorities as
refle'ted )y state+'ontrolled radio stations
su'h as Moi'e of Ameri'a and Radio 6os'ow
respe'tively(
6ore re'ent resear'h, however, would
'all into -uestion the 'laim regarding the
EE2.s reputation for relia)le and impartial
)road'asting( Although Hale 310=J? 4
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
45/93
other sour'es. 310=J? 4
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
46/93
pro+Pakistani in its reporting of parti'ular
'rises( Alternatively, there are still many
listeners who tune into the EE2 #orld
:ervi'e in )oth 'ountries and value it for its
news and 'urrent affairs reporting( Audien'e
figures alongside listener letters and email
'omments sent to lo'al EE2 offi 'es provide
some invalua)le insights into these parti'ular
listening 'ommunities(
Moi'e of Ameri'a and the EE2 #orld
:ervi'e are funded )y the :tate Department
and the 9oreign /ffi 'e respe'tively( ikewise
Radio 6os'ow 'ontinues to )e funded )y
the Russian government( #hile editorial
'ontrol and 'ontent varies )etween these
three glo)al )road'asters, former 9oreign
:e'retary Ro)in 2ook des'ri)ed the EE2.s
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
47/93
as Eritain.s ;Moi'e around the #orld. despite
its 'laims to impartiality and editorial
independen'e( "here is still a great deal of
resear'h to )e done on the impa't on listeners
and listener 'ommunities, espe'ially in the
Glo)al :outh( "he reputations and impa't
of glo)al )road'asters has )een varied even
if ea'h has the 'apa'ity to )road'ast over
large areas that far e>'eed their 'ountry.s
respe'tive national )oundaries( 6oreover,
as earlier studies did not readily a'knowledge,
listeners to the EE2, M/A and Radio
6os'ow also listen, read and wat'h other
media su'h as television and newspapers( :o,
in the 'ase of the 10JL :ue 2risis, readers of
the (%ser)er and the Guardian 3whi'h were
'riti'al of the Anglo+9ren'h intervention5
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
48/93
might have also listened to EE2 #orld :ervi'e
)road'asts )e'ause they )elieved them
to )e willing to )e 'riti'al of offi 'ial government
statements a)out the nature and longterm
purpose of the intervention 3:haw,
100L5( As Roger :ilverstone 310045 had noted,
people have their own ;media signatures.
and resear'hers need to understand )etter
how and with what 'onse-uen'es people
a''ess different forms of media(
III Media and popular geopolitics:
new directions
"he negle't of radio )y e>isting studies
of popular geopoliti's is unfortunate )ut
not unsurprising given the preo''upation
with visual media and the visual tradition of
geopoliti's more generally( As Q "uathail
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
49/93
argued in *ritical geopolitics 3100L5, the intelle'tual
tradition of geopoliti's has long )een
preo''upied with the visual whether it )e in
the form of the /lympian gae or maps and
other representations of glo)al geopoliti'al
Alasdair Pinkerton and Klaus Dodds: Radio geopolitics 10
spa'e( 2riti'al geopoliti'al s'holars have
tended to fo'us their energies on visual
media su'h as film, television and 'omi's
and te>tual produ'tions su'h as magaines
like theReader+s Digest, whi'h 'om)ine te>t
and images 3:harp, $%%%5( "his apparently
visual preo''upation needs to )e treated with
'aution, however( n one key respe't, terms
su'h as ;visual media., as 6it'hell 3$%%J? $J
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
50/93
media in'luding radio are ;mi>ed media. that
involve other senses su'h as tou'hing, looking
and listening( /ne only has to 'onsider how
radio listening often involves looking at the
radio transmitter to appre'iate that it may
well )e a 'ase of simply a'knowledging a
visual predominan'e( As a form of ;mi>ed
media., radio and fi lm 3for instan'e5 involve a
)raiding and nesting of these senses(
As noted earlier, we )elieve that this
negle't of radio is, if you forgive a visual pun,
short+sighted( "hree areas deserve further
attention Fresear'hing radio, radio and )road'asting
infrastru'ture, and listening( 9irst,
with regard to resear'hing radio, we need to
'onsider how this intelle'tual fi eld might )e
further developed( #hile radio would appear
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
51/93
to have an ethereal -uality, whi'h might make
resear'h appear at fi rst glan'e pro)lemati',
it is not impossi)le to re'onstru't the varied
geographies and geopoliti's of )road'asting
and listening( Radio, as "amar ie)es
has noted, is 'apa)le of 'reating a series of
;a'ousti' spa'es. through whi'h listeners
and 'ommunities 'an e>press their 'olle'tive
identities( n her resear'h, ie)es 3$%%L5
e>amined sraeli )road'asting and sought
to re'onstru't how listeners were 7oined together
through ethereal listening networks(
Using personal a''ounts, novels and newspaper
reports and arti'les within the sraeli
media, alongside interviews and oral testimonies,
she fo'used on how those radio
reports had 'ontri)uted to a sense of pu)li'
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
52/93
memory and 'olle'tive geohistory on the eve
of sraeli independen'e( "his task was made
all the harder in the sense that there were
no offi 'ial re'ordings of the )road'asts and
many of the interviewees were )eing asked
to remem)er asso'iated events from over
L% years ago( t is pre'isely )e'ause radio is
often not stored in the same manner as newspapers
and other printed te>ts in ar'hives
that led resear'hers to underestimate the signifi
'an'e of radio )road'asting and listening(
As ie)es noted, ;"he ephemeral -uality of
the medium, and in srael.s 'ase, the gradual
disappearan'e of re'ords and re'ordings, and
the 3partly resultant5 relian'e of historians on
print, 'ontri)ute to an in'orre't re'olle'tion
of the salien'e of radio on moulding uniform
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
53/93
pu)li' outlooks. 3ie)es, $%%L? =%5(
Her resear'h raises some interesting
-uestions a)out resear'hing radio and, for
instan'e, the relationship )etween a'ousti'
and te>tual sour'es in radio )road'asting
and listening resear'h( As :'annell and
2ardiff 310015 refl e'ted?
"here is an ines'apa)le parado> at the
heart of this pro7e't of whi'h we have )een
a'utely aware of all along F our o)7e't of
study no longer e>ists( "he early pioneers of
radio as an art form lamented the ;ghastly
impermanen'e. of their medium( Radio, and
later television, developed fi rst as live systems
of transmission and re'ording te'hnologies
'ame later( "hus, although there are some
re'ordings of the more signifi 'ant programmes
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
54/93
)road'ast from the mid thirties onwards, the
vast )ulk of output perished in the moment
of transmission( "he fleeting, unre'orded
'hara'ter of early radio seems o)stinately to
resist the possi)ility of histori'al re'lamation(
3:'annell and 2ardiff, 1001? >iii5
n their resear'h on radio, :'annell and
2ardiff draw upon radio.s te>tual presen'e
in the form of minutes of EE2 6anagement
Eoards and departmental meetings held at
the EE2 #ritten Ar'hive 2entre in Reading(
"here are also listener reports, press 'uttings
and poli'y fi les, whi'h 'an help re'onstru't
the )road'asting+listening 'onte>t so vital
for understanding the geopoliti'al and 'ultural
signifi 'an'e of radio reporting espe'ially
during moments of international 'risis su'h
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
55/93
as the 10LJ ndo+Pakistani war( However, as
$%Progress in Human Geography !1"
Dolan 3$%%85 has noted, there is an inherent
tension )etween the aural and te>tual sour'es
used )y many radio s'holars and the value
that is pla'ed on written do'umentation,
whi'h is often seen as a ;poor su)stitute for a
voi'e that 'annot )e heard. 3$%%8? L=5(
:e'ond, )road'asting infrastru'ture and
te'hnology needs to )e )etter understood
)y popular geopoliti'al writers whether it )e
asso'iated with radio, television, the internet
or television 3see Hugill, 10005( A great deal of
e>isting dis'ussion within popular geopoliti's
shows little awareness either of the media
te'hnologies and infrastru'ture ne'essary to
)road'ast or of the values atta'hed to the
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
56/93
te'hnologies themselves( "ake radio listening
as an e>ample( n the UK, if you want to
listen to EE2 #orld :ervi'e then you are
guaranteed 96 -uality listening throughout
the day and night( Eoth of us 'an and do listen
to the radio via our digital televisions )e'ause
we have a''ess to it via the 9reeview digital
platform( /ther listeners 'an a''ess #orld
:ervi'e via digital radio )road'asting te'hnologies(
"he improved audi)ility and relia)ility
has )rought new listeners to the
EE2.s international servi'es( However, other
listeners in other parts of the world are less
fortunate when it 'omes to availa)ility and
a''essi)ility( ust as there is a digital divide,
there is a radio listening s'hism( isteners
in ndia, for instan'e, are prevented from
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
57/93
a''essing EE2 #orld :ervi'e on lo'al 96
)e'ause the ndian government prevents the
EE2 from re)road'asting on these 'hannels(
As a 'onse-uen'e, the listening e>perien'e
is -uite different and listeners in south Asia
often 'omment that one has to listen to the
EE2 more ;intently. and ;'arefully. than if
you were in the UK( :easonal differen'es
su'h as the monsoon 'an also interfere with
)road'asting -uality of international radio
servi'es( "he inherent 'hallenges of shortwave
audi)ility appear to demand a more
'ommitted and 'areful form of listening
and this 'an generate different kind of audien'e
rea'tions and, as we shall note )elow,
emotional investments with the medium,
espe'ially if listeners gather 'olle'tively to
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
58/93
listen to parti'ular reports and news items(
nfrastru'tural developments su'h as
short+wave and 96 )road'asting availa)ility
need to )e )etter understood( "he physi'al
infrastru'ture of radio )road'asting is also
signifi 'ant( "he lo'ation of a radio transmitter
is 'riti'ally important in determining radio
)road'asting range and fre-uen'y( Given
radio.s 'apa'ity to trans'end international
)orders, radio transmitters have )e'ome
fre-uent o)7e'ts of geopoliti'al dis'ord( n
south Asia, for e>ample, the proposed lo'ation
of a radio transmitter )y the EE2 and
su)se-uently M/A in the early 10L%s generated
a su)stantial and highly emotive response
in ndia as lo'al politi'al leaders and
newspaper editors 'omplained that Ameri'a
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
59/93
was trying to in'rease politi'al and 'ultural
infl uen'e( At a time when ndia was a leading
mem)er of the Bon+Aligned 6ovement, this
was 7udged to )e an una''epta)le )rea'h of
this foreign poli'y disposition( "he rea'tion
in Pakistan was also highly 'harged F )oth
radio )road'asters were a''used of trying
to influen'e domesti' politi'al sensi)ilities(
2artoonists for newspapers su'h asDa$n
3Kara'hi5 re'orded the 'ontroversy visually
with at least one image 31$ uly 10L85 depi'ting
two large loudspeakers )elonging to
Moi'e of Ameri'a, lo'ated in north ndia,
)road'asting anti+Pakistani and anti+2hinese
propaganda 39igure 15(
"he geographies of )road'asting and
transmitting deserve greater attention
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
60/93
espe'ially in the Glo)al :outh( n part, this is
symptomati' of a )roader malaise whi'h 'on'erns
a tenden'y of popular geopoliti's to
'on'entrate on the e>perien'es of the !uro+
Ameri'an world and ;western. outliers su'h
as Australia and Bew Oealand( "his is not
7ust an issue for Anglophone geopoliti'al
studies )ut also for other intelle'tual fields
su'h as media studies( As 2urran and Park
3$%%%? 85 have warned, there is a real need
to ;de+westernie. media studies )e'ause it
leads to generaliations a)out the availa)ility
of media in'luding radio, the nature of
Alasdair Pinkerton and Klaus Dodds: Radio geopolitics $1
listening and 'ommer'ial relationships that
have no pur'hase in the Glo)al :outh( #hile
EE2 short+wave servi'es in 6andarin are
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
61/93
routinely 7ammed )y the 2hinese authorities,
other pla'es su'h as As'ension sland, 2yprus,
/man and a new transmitter in southern
"hailand 3repla'ing the former transmitter in
Hong Kong5 play a 'riti'al role in fa'ilitating
glo)al )road'asting( "hese transmitter
stations have a 'onsidera)le geopoliti'al importan'e
as, for instan'e, As'ension is the
key nodal point for rea'hing atin Ameri'an
and Afri'an audien'es( t also hosted the
Eritish government.s propaganda station
Radio Atlanti'o del :ur, during the 9alklands
'onfli't of 10
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
62/93
should now in'reasingly turn to understanding
)etter the role of audien'es and listening
pra'ti'es( As :tephen Earnard 3$%%%5 noted?
"hinking a)out one.s own use of a mass 'ommuni'ation
medium su'h as radio is a good
point of departure for a study of how the media
operate and wield the power they have( Until
you appre'iate your own viewing, listening or
reading ha)its, trying to understand the ha)its
and predile'tions of audien'es F and the way
the media per'eives their audien'es, respond
to, adapt and 'ater for them F is almost impossi)le(
3Earnard, $%%%? 15
"his means in part shifting the dire'tion
from further analyses of )road'asting strategies
and radio propagandaper se to )etter
Figure 1 U:+ndian mouthpie'e? M/A )road'asting anti+Pakistan and anti+2hinese
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
63/93
propaganda( Dawn 3Kara'hi? 1$=L85
$$Progress in Human Geography !1"
understanding audien'es and their rea'tions(
As the historian o 9o> 3$%%45 has noted?
n wartime, as at other moments of 'risis,
there is a need to 'reate unity or a unified
'ommunity, to make the individual'eelpart
of something greater( Radio played a key role
in )ringing people out of isolation and integrating
them with the mass Radio offered
its listeners a ;)ridge. )etween the individual
and the mass, and played an essential role in
'ommunity )uilding( 39o>, $%%4? 0J, emphasis
added5
Although she does not dwell on how Eritish
wartime radio )road'asting performed as
a ;)ridge., other sour'es 3te>tual and visual5
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
64/93
have played a signifi 'ant role in 'reating an
understanding of how individuals and families
listened to the radio(4 f they did ;feel
part of something greater. then it was perhaps
due to 'ertain forms of )ehaviour su'h
as gathering in the living room of a house to
listen to reports a)out the se'ond world war(
ikewise the radio o''upied a 'entral position
in Ameri'an life as President Roosevelt 'ommuni'ated
to over L%N of radio listeners
on the eve of the 'ountry.s entry into war(
/n $0 De'em)er 104%, Roosevelt delivered
his famous ;arsenal of demo'ra'y. spee'h to
around LJ million listeners 3Douglas, 10005(
Unsurprisingly, radio.s role in mo)iliing the
nation for war has )een mu'h 'onsidered )y
s'holars, not least )e'ause of the inherent
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
65/93
tensions of using a demo'ratiing medium
su'h as radio for the purpose of 'entraliing
'ontrol over a popula'e( #hat is 'lear from
this resear'h is that the rea'tions of listeners
were in'red+i)ly varied and depended on a
raft of fa'tors in'luding ethni'ity, gender,
so'ial 'lass and geographi'al lo'ation(
As with any medium, radio listening varied
among listening 'ommunities in the sense
of emotional investments and audien'e dispositions(
n the 'ase of post+104J south Asia,
for instan'e, listeners to EE2 #orld :ervi'e
rea'ted in very different ways to reports
a)out international events su'h as the 10LJ
Figure 2 Radio Atlanti'o del :ur ;:. 'ard 310
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
66/93
Eangladesh and the ndian !mergen'y in
the 10=%s( /n the one hand, there were those
who viewed the EE2 reporting as ;trustworthy.
and ;relia)le. 'ompared to lo'al radio
stations su'h as All ndia Radio and Radio
Pakistan, whi'h were 'ondemned as ;propaganda
mouth+pie'es. for the ndian and
Pakistani governments respe'tively( /n the
other hand, the EE2 'ould also )e 'ondemned
for )eing an unwel'ome ;'olonial. presen'e in
south Asia and intent on se'retly pursuing a
Eritish government agenda designed to retain
'ontrol over its former 'olonies( !viden'e
for these mi>ed rea'tions 'omes in part from
listener letters sent to the EE2 #orld :ervi'e
offi 'e in Bew Delhi and through interviews
with listeners, who often re'alled vividly
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
67/93
where they were and who they were with
when they first heard EE2 reports on a
parti'ular 'risis 3Pinkerton, $%%ample involving the EE2 Pashto
:ervi'e, whi'h is )road'ast primarily to
Afghan audien'es( Eefore the /'to)er $%%1
assaults, 8(J million were tuning in to hear a
soap opera entitled ;Bew Home, Bew ife.(
t was the most popular programme in the
'ountry and su'h was its popularity that the
"ali)an regime was relu'tant to impose a
)an on radio entertainment for fear of stimulating
an insurre'tion( "he EE2.s reputation
was enhan'ed and many listeners a''ordingly
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
68/93
tuned into other programmes in'luding
news and 'urrent affairs( However, that did
not mean that the Eritish military.s involvement
in the 'ountry was any less 'ontroversial
and that listeners were not perfe'tly
'apa)le of en7oying some programmes
while deriding others for )eing ;propaganda.
and ;imperialist. in nature( As listeners have
demonstrated in many parts of the world,
espe'ially with regards to international )road'asters,
listening 'ommunities 'an alter in
tone and su)stan'e(
As radio s'holars have noted, listening 'an
always )e 'onsidered in a more so'ial and
'ultural 'onte>t( As :usan Douglas 310005
has 'laimed?
the way people listened to radio was profoundly
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
69/93
shaped )y the era they )egan to
listen n other words different generations
learned to listen and use the radio differently(
:o it.s not only what people listened to
that defi ned generations( ts ho$ they listened
as well that shaped people.s memories,
asso'iations with others, their sense of who
they were and their pla'e in history( 3Douglas,
1000? L5
A fo'us on listening 3and how we learn to
listen and different modes of listening depending
on whether one is listening to news,
the weather, musi', sport and so on5 is essential
in developing a 'riti'al appre'iation of
radio( #e might, to paraphrase Douglas,
also note that the ;pla'e of geography. matters
)e'ause, as Keith ones has noted with
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
70/93
referen'e to musi' and fa'tory work in the
midst of the se'ond world war, a'ts of listening
and singing were also shaped )y geographi'al
fa'tors su'h as a''ess to radio, pro>imity to
loudspeakers, the segregated nature of the
workpla'e and the availa)ility of 'olleagues
and friends 3ones, $%%J5( f this was true
of fa'tory work in Eritain during the se'ond
world war then it is 'ertainly pertinent to
a'knowledge that listening in pla'es su'h as
ndia, Pakistan and Afghanistan was as mu'h
infl uen'ed )y prevailing weather patterns as
it was )y a''essi)ility to the radio and the
segregated nature of 'ommunal listening(
I !onclusions: towards a radio
geopolitics
"his review of some of the literature asso'iated
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
71/93
with radio needs to )e 'onte>tualied
with regard to geography.s longer+standing
engagement with musi' and sound( /ver 1%
years ago, :usan :mith 310045 was one of the
fi rst to alert geographers to a'ousti' spa'es
and the 'onne'tions )etween musi' and soni'
geographies( /ver the following de'ade and
$4Progress in Human Geography !1"
a half, others have followed and 'onsidered
in more detail the role of sound in 'reating
spa'es, )orders and power sound as a form of
memory and )elonging sound and everyday
life sound.s 'apa'ity to stimulate movement,
dan'e and performan'e the institutions and
industries that market and sell aural 'ulture
and the ma'hines and te'hnologies that
produ'e, store and disseminate sound in the
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
72/93
form of musi' and other forms of noise 3see,
for e>ample, Eull, $%%45( n short, a great
deal of literature now e>ists on how and with
what 'onse-uen'es sound is em)edded in
history, 'ultures, institutions, te'hnologies
and of 'ourse geographies(
9rom our point of view, the spe'ial issue
on soni' geographies in the 7ournal ,ocial
and *ultural Geography 3$%%J5 is ri'hly suggestive
in terms of how we might further
pursue a soni' geopoliti's( 9irst, following
David 6atless.s 3$%%J5 paper on ;:oni' geography
in a nature region., we might 'onsider
the a'ousti' e'ologies and how a soni' environment
is defi ned, valued, e>perien'ed and
'ommuni'ated( /ne e>ample that illustrates
that potential well is the impa't on the
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
73/93
9alkland slands 'ommunity in April 10
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
74/93
)e e>'hanged( 6any slanders later re'orded
that the takeover of the radio station )y
the Argentine military authorities was the
most traumati' event of the o''upation, in
a 'onfli't whi'h was later to )e mer'ifully
light on 'ivilians 'ompared to later 'onfl i'ts
in the 100%s and )eyond( #hen the lo'al
)road'asting station )e'ame ;Argentine.,
listeners relied on EE2 #orld :ervi'e for
further news a)out the military situation
affe'ting the 9alklands 3Pinkerton, $%%=5(
:e'ond, using the work of Bi'k 6egoran
3$%%L5 on the politi's of remem)ran'e
following the 11 :eptem)er $%%1 atta'ks,
popular geopoliti's should 'onsider how
prayers, readings, songs and sermons 'o+7oin
in 'omple> ways to produ'e 'ommemorative
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
75/93
en'ounters in, for instan'e, :t Paul.s
2athedral in ondon( istening, as :usan
:mith 3$%%%? L845 has noted, is mu'h more
than simply overhearing sounds, it involves
a performan'e, whi'h helps listeners de'ipher,
'lassify and interpret sound( How do 'ertain
soni' e>perien'es then )e'ome 'onne'ted to
geopoliti'al 'ultures and affe't f the 'om)ination
of musi', silen'e, praying and 'rying
have the power to move em)odied su)7e'ts,
then this deserves more detailed 'onsideration
)e'ause e>pressions of Ameri'an geopoliti'al
power in Afghanistan and ra- owe
as mu'h to strategi' planning as they do to an
affe'tive response seeking not only to punish
those who planned the atta'ks )ut also to
seek a form of uplifting denouement for a
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
76/93
'ountry and its popula'e hurt, humiliated and
traumatied )y 11 :eptem)er $%%1( #hat
is la'king from important interventions )y
s'holars su'h as Q "uathail 3$%%85, for e>ample,
is a 'learly stated 'ommitment to develop
audio+ethnographies so ne'essary to
)etter our understanding of listening pra'ti'es(
"he em)odied ha)its that 6i'hael
Eillig 3100J5 mentions, su'h as saluting the
fl ag, need to )e 'o+7oined with other pra'ti'es
su'h as singing and listening to national
anthems( ikewise, it should )e noted that
religious 'hanting and e>hortation in the
form of ;God is great. is also 'entral to the
em)odied ha)its of slami' radi'als(
"hird, we might further 'ontemplate the
une-ual geopoliti's of sound and 'onsider
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
77/93
Alasdair Pinkerton and Klaus Dodds: Radio geopolitics $J
how some 'ountries su'h as the United
:tates, Eritain and Russia have a greater
'apa'ity than others to intrude on soni'
environments( 9or instan'e, the EE2 #orld
:ervi'e, as noted earlier, while often valued
)y many listeners around the world also has
)een a deeply resented presen'e in the soni'
lives of listeners in ran, ndia and Pakistan(
During the post+'old+war era, these glo)al
)road'asters 'ontinue to use their network
of transmitters to produ'e and disseminate
news, musi' and 'ommentary to listening
'ommunities around the world( isteners
and other )road'asters are not simply soni'
sponges as, in many parts of the world, these
overseas sour'es are 7ust one radio sour'e
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
78/93
and popular geopoliti'al s'holarship needs
to understand )etter how listeners 'om)ine
different radio sour'es and other analogue
and digital media to produ'e individual and
'olle'tive media signatures(
9inally, other s'holars have pointed to
the need to 'onsider the pla'e of ;affe't. and
the manner in whi'h radio alongside other
mediated 'ommuni'ation 'an )e registered
at the level of the physi'al )ody( Affe't, as
Erian 6assumi 310
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
79/93
determine the relationship )etween the
)ody, the environment and others( Bew resear'h
in media studies is, as a 'onse-uen'e,
'alling into -uestion the notion of ;media
effe'ts. and instead 'onsiders affe'tive
resonan'e( Radio s'holars su'h as ohn
"e))utt 3$%%L?
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
80/93
espe'ially with regard to the mi'ro+)odily
geographies of listening(
!oda
/n 81 /'to)er 108
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
81/93
delivered F as a news )ulletin format(
Ackno$ledgements
#e would like to thank Alan ngram, Ale'
6urphy, 6ar'us Power, 9ran'is Ro)inson
and ames :idaway for their helpful 'omments
on an earlier draft( "he referees offered
many helpful 'omments( Alasdair Pinkerton
gratefully a'knowledges the support of the
!'onomi' and :o'ial Resear'h 2oun'il and
the Eritish A'ademy in the form of a do'toral
studentship and a Postdo'toral 9ellowship
respe'tively, and Klaus Dodds a'knowledges
the support of the everhulme "rust in the
form of the Philip everhulme Prie 3$%%J5(
"otes
1( /ne signifi 'ant differen'e )etween $%%1 and the
time of writing this arti'le 3ie, :eptem)er $%%=5 is
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
82/93
that mo)ile phone te'hnology has shifted so that
it is now 'ommon for users to )e a)le to use their
phones to photograph and video( :urvivors, within
the "win "owers and elsewhere, might have
'reated a very different audiovisual ar'hive(
$( http?www(011digitalar'hive(org 3last a''essed
1< April $%%
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
83/93
#arfi eld, R$ 10
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
84/93
studies( ondon? Routledge(
(ebri, F$ $%%=? Ta%loid terror: $ar4 culture and geopolitics(
ondon? Routledge(
(itt&er, +$ $%%J? 2aptain Ameri'a.s empire? refl e'tions
of identity, popular 'ulture and post 011 geopoliti's(
Annals o' the Association o' American Geographers
0J, L$LF4J(
(odds, K$ $%%=? Geopolitics: a )ery short introduction(
/>ford? />ford University Press(
(olan, +$ $%%8? "he voi'e that 'annot )e heard? radio
)road'asting and the ;ar'hive.(Radio ournal 1,
L8F=$(
(ouglas, %$ 1000?istening in: radio and the American
imagination( Bew Cork? Random House(
(unbar-.all, P$ and /ibson, !$ $%%%? :inging a)out
nations within nations? geopoliti's and identity in
Australian indigenous ro'k musi'(Popular 5usic and
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
85/93
,ociety $43$5, 4JF=4(
Fe0es, F$ 10 Pu)lishers(
Fo, +$ $%%4? mages of wartime radio( n 2onnelly, 6(
and #el'h, D(, editors, 7ar and the media, ondon?
(E( "auris(
/ellately, R$ $%%$?#acking Hitler( />ford? />ford
University Press(
/ibson, !$ 100
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
86/93
/raha&, %( $%%=? #ar and the 'it(y-e$ e't Re)ie$
44, 1$1F8$(
/regory, ($ $%%4? The colonial present( />ford?
Ela'kwell(
.ale, +$ 10=J?Radio po$er: propaganda and international
%roadcasting( ondon? Paul !le'k Press(
.endy, ($ $%%%?Radio in the glo%al age( 2am)ridge?
Polity Press(
.illard, R$, editor 10>:
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
87/93
geopolitics and technology( Ealtimore, 6D? ohns
Hopkins University Press(
Innis, .$ 10J%?ford?
/>ford University Press(
Isola, /$ 100J? talian radio? history and historiography(
Historical ournal o' &ilm4 Radio and Tele)ision 1J,
808F00(
+a3eel, 4$ $%%J? "he world is sound Geography,
musi'ology and Eritish+Asian sounds'apes(Area 8=,
$88F41(
+ones, K$ $%%J? 6usi' in fa'tories? a twentieth 'entury
te'hni-ue for 'ontrol of the produ'tive self( ,ocial
and *ultural Geography L, =$8F44(
Kat3, )$ and *eddell, /$ 10==?#roadcasting in the
third $orld( 2am)ridge? 2am)ridge University Press(
eyshon, A$, Matless, ($ and Reill, /$, editors
100
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
88/93
iebes, 4$ $%%L? A'ousti' spa'e? the role of radio in
sraeli 'olle'tive memory(e$ish History $%, L%F0%(
Mac(onald, F$ $%%L? "he last outpost of empire?
Ro'kall and the 'old war(ournal o' Historical
Geography 8$, L$=F4=(
Massu&i, #$ 10
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
89/93
perspecti)e on 3 years o' history4 glo%al America4
1913F04 ?olume >@Bew Haven, 2"? Cale
University Press(
Menduni, /$ $%%4? ;An unheard story "he 'hallenge
for radio studies in taly(Radio ournal $, 1JF$L(
Alasdair Pinkerton and Klaus Dodds: Radio geopolitics $=
Miller, !$ 1041? Radio and propaganda(Annals o' the
American Academy o' Political and ,ocial ,cience $18,
L0F=4(
Mitchell, *$+$4$ $%%J? "here is no visual media(
ournal o' ?isual *ulture 4, $J=FLL(
"eil Report $%%4? http?www())'('o(ukinfopoli'ies
pdfneilreport(pdf 3last a''essed 1< April $%%
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
90/93
Routledge(
5 $%%8? ;ust out looking for a fi ght.? Ameri'an affe't
and the invasion of ra-(Antipode 8J,
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
91/93
and 'ultural identity in 'olonial 6oam)i-ue(
ournal o' Historical Geography $L, L%JF$(
ondon? 6a'millan(
%aage, #$ 1000?#roadcasting 'reedom: radio4 $ar
and the politics o' race 19=F19>=( 2hapel Hill, B2?
University of Borth 2arolina Press(
%cannell, P$, editor 1001?#roadcast talk( ondon?
:age(
%cannell, P$ and !ardiff, ($ 1001?A social history o'
#ritish %roadcasting( />ford? Ela'kwell(
%harp, +$ $%%%? *ondensing the cold $ar( 6inneapolis,
6B? University of 6innesota Press(
%haw, 4$ 100L?
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
92/93
(E( "auris(
%hingler, M$ and *ierniga, !$ 100
7/24/2019 Radio Geopoliticaas
93/93
4ho&pson, A$ $%%=?5edia and the R$anda genocide(
ondon? Pluto Press(
*al'er, A$ 100$?A sky'ul o' 'reedom( ondon?
Eroadside Eooks(
*hittington, *$ $%%=? ,ound design and science
'i ction( Austin, "&? University of "e>as Press(
Reprodu'ed with permission of the 'opyright owner( 9urther reprodu'tion prohi)ited
without permission(
Recommended