Comparative Study of Church and Non-Governmental Radio Stations in Zambia-A case study of radio explorers and radio Maria in Eastern Province

This is a comparative case study of the church-run, Radio Maria and non church-run, Radio Explorers in the Eastern Province of Zambia. The work compares and contrasts the (1) content and management of the stations, (2) the process of selection of programmes and content development, and (3) accessibility. The core purpose of this intense comparison is to contribute to the further understanding of whether faith-based broadcasting or non-faith based stations offer greater community participation and sense of ownership.

To achieve this goal, the study employed triangulation. A total of 200 people were interviewed for quantitative data collection. Focus group and in-depth interviews provided invaluable additional information and insights.

The outcome of the research indicates that there is no substantive difference between the sense of ownership and management between the two stations. Quantitative findings were high for both. For example, 83 percent of the respondents said Radio Explorers was accessible and 75 percent said the same of Radio Maria. Qualitative responses in focus group discussions and in-depth interviews revealed similar patterns. However, findings indicate that church-run are more participatory than non-church run radio stations.

These findings indicate that there is essentially no difference in the operations of faith-based radio stations and the non-church stations.