Participatory Communication
Author: Thomas Tufte, Paolo Mefalopulos The vision of using new technologies to pursue better lives for humankind has always existed, and i was reinforced throughout the 20th century with each new technological advancement. In 1927 the German author Bertolt Brecht formulated a "radio theory" in which he envisioned the new technology, the radio, as a dialogical instrument for change: "Change this apparatus over from distribution to communication... On this principle the radio should step out of the supply business and organize its listeners as suppliers" (Brecht 1927). It was many ways a precursor to the theory and practice of participatory communication, as well as of interactive media such as the internet. In the years that followed Brecht's early vision, the radio lost its dialogic potential as it developed into mass mediated broadcasting instrument. However, today's rapid spread of community radio, as well as the growth of digital radio and inte...