Saving the World

Abstract

This chapter traces the beginnings of the field of communication for development (c4d), from the very early years of development aid with Harry S. Truman's “Four Points” speech to Congress in 1949 through the 1960s and the early definition of the modernization-diffusion paradigm that set the direction of c4d for at least two decades. It also examines the three founding texts of c4d: Daniel Lerner's The Passing of Traditional Society: Modernizing the Middle East (1958), Everett Rogers's Diffusion of Innovations (the 1962 first edition), and Wilbur Schramm's Mass Media and National Development: The Role of Information in Developing Countries (1964). Finally, the chapter looks at the major histories of the general field of communication study to better understand how the beginnings of the c4d field grew organically from the first period of mass communication studies in the United States. It concludes that c4d is intimately tied to the emerging mass communication field in the context of the cold war and national and international institutions providing funding for development and communication projects.

Amartya Sen's Capabilities Approach and Communication for Development and Social Change

“…CDSC research today is not as closely associated with development theory and research in other social sciences as it was during the modernization period. As McAnany suggests, “there has been relatively little input from the communication field in the published literature on general development theory” (McAnany, , p. 6). CDSC researchers seldom reach beyond the field of communication into, for example, contemporary welfare economics, theories of social rationalization, political theory, or other areas where Sen and other capabilities researchers maintain ongoing debates across disciplines.…”

“…A third reason the capabilities approach is a promising framework for CDSC research is that it provides a bridge to prominent development discourses beyond communication studies itself. According to McAnany (), CDSC research today largely eschews engagement with larger academic development discourses. He finds that “there has been relatively little input from the communication field in the published literature on general development theory” (p. 6).…”

“…He finds that “there has been relatively little input from the communication field in the published literature on general development theory” (p. 6). Today McAnany acknowledges a general social awareness of the importance of communication globally, especially of new technologies, but he also feels that world leaders and development agencies do not sufficiently prioritize communication in development efforts, “In short, there is a need and a challenge to place communication back into the work of development and social change today” (McAnany, , p. 6). Addressing communication issues within the context of the capabilities approach would be one way of addressing McAnany's challenge.…”

“…On the terminology issue, see McAnany (McAnany, , pp. 3–4), and a UN Round Table background paper, Mainstreaming Communication for Development in Policies and Programmes: Enabling Social Inclusion to Support Food Security, Resilient Livelihoods and Family Farming (Food and Agricultural Organization, ).…”