https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3650-7981
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Abstract
This article explores the British and West German public service radio’s abilities to reflect on and to address the specific needs and expectations of migrant groups in their programmes between the 1960s and 1980s. Mechanisms of social inclusion and exclusion alike can be investigated here. Empirically, it is based on comparisons of radio broadcasts on and for different immigrant communities, produced by BBC Radio Leicester on/for the post-war Asian migrants in England and by West German public service broadcasting on/for ‘Gastarbeiter’ (foreign workers) as well as for ‘Spätaussiedler’ (German repatriates from East Europe). Radio is studied as an agent of identity management and citizenship education. Not only did radio talk about migrants and migration to introduce these topics and the newcomers to the local population. It also offered airtime to selected migrant communities to cater for their needs and interests as well as to facilitate their difficulties of adjusting to an unfamiliar environment.
ORCID
Christoph Hilgert http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3650-7981
Notes
1. Cf. Cronqvist and Hilgert, “Entangled Media Histories.”
2. See, for example, Arnold, Migration; Bade and Oltmer, Handbuch Staat und Migration in Deutschland; Schönwälder, Einwanderung und ethnische Pluralität.
3. The “Arbeitsgemeinschaft der öffentlich-rechtlichen Rundfunkanstalten der Bundesrepublik Deutschland” (ARD) is the joint organisation of Germany‘s regional public-service broadcasters.
4. See Billig, Banal Nationalism, 6–8.
5. In his book “Banal Nationalism” Michael Billig explains how in modern Western nation states “there is a continual ‘flagging’” (8) of nationalism. Nationalism is no extreme separatist ideology, but “banally enhabited” (109). Mass media (among many other discourses, symbols and habits) take part in this “flagging” of nationalism as daily “banal reminders of the homeliness of the homeland” (126). Billig makes clear that “banal does not imply benign” (6), but creates mystic, potentially dangerous causes for sacrifices, e.g. in the occasion of war (175–176).
6. Arnold, Migration, 210; see also Bhachu, Twice Migrants.
7. Husband and Chouhan, “Local Radio in the Communication Environment of Ethnic Minorities in Britain,” 272.
8. Cantle, Community cohesion, 35. Cf. Jones, Race and the Media
9. See Ballard, “The South Asian Presence in Britain and its Transnational Connections”; Visram, Asians in Britain; Peach, “South Asian Migration and Settlement in Great Britain”; Parekh, “South Asians in Britain”; Spencer, British Immigration Policy Since 1939.
10. See, for example, Cottle, “Making Ethnic Minority Programmes Inside the BBC”; Malik, Representing Black Britain; Long, “Representing Race and Place.”
11. Linfoot, A History of BBC Local Radio in England mentions, for example, Radio London’s New Londoners, aimed at Asians, Caribbeans, Africans and those from eastern Europe; Radio Sheffield’s programme by the local community relations officer for Asians partly produced partly in Urdu and Bengali languages; Radio Nottingham’s Nawrang, and on Radio Leicester’s Tony and his friends, aimed at primary school children; Radio Leeds’ Jacob’s Ladder for its Jewish listeners and Radio Leeds’ programmes broadcast for Asians in Asian languages.
12. Khamkar, “A Post-War History of Radio for the Asian Community in Leicester”; Khamkar, The Evolution of British Asian Radio in England.
13. Cf. BBC, Programmes for Immigrants.
14. BBC, Report of the BBC’s Asian Programmes Advisory Committee, 1. Cf. Anwar, Who Tunes in to What?
15. BBC, General Advisory Council (Meeting minutes GAC/292), 1.
16. BBC, Report of the BBC’s Asian Programmes Advisory Committee.
17. Lewis and Booth, The invisible medium, 89.
18. Khamkar, “Interview with Michael Barton.”
19. Bonfadelli, “Rundfunk, Migration und Integration”; Hepp, Bozdag and Suna, Mediale Migranten. And, in historical perspective: Sala, Fremde Worte.
20. Mattes, “Wirtschaftliche Rekonstruktion und grenzüberschreitende Migration.”
21. Zambonini, “Medien und Integration”; Sala, “‘Gastarbeitersendungen’ und ‘Gastarbeiterzeitschriften’ in der Bundesrepublik”; Sala, Fremde Worte.
22. Bösch, “Engagement für Flüchtlinge.”
23. Marszolek, “Unforgotten Landscapes”; Röger, “Film und Fernsehen in der Bundesrepublik”; Hilgert, “Hörfunk”; Tiews, Fluchtpunkt Film; Tiews, “Zwischen Aufklärung und vertonter Ikone.”
24. Panagiotidis, Staat, Zivilgesellschaft und Aussiedlermigration 1950–1989 reminds us, how in the end state officials from local refugee offices were the ones in power to define the ‘Germaness’ of applicants. There were only few absolute measurements.
25. Panagiotidis, Aussiedler/Spätaussiedler.
26. Panagiotidis, Staat, Zivilgesellschaft und Aussiedlermigration 1950–1989; Tröster, Irene. “(Spät-)Aussiedler – ‘neue, alte Deutsche’.”
27. Sperling, “Belonging, Beyond the Nation,” 68; Hepp, Bozdag and Suna, Mediale Migranten, 13.
28. Morley, Home Territories; Hall, “Introduction”; Husband and Chouhan, “Local Radio in the Communication Environment of Ethnic Minorities in Britain”; Hepp et al., Mediale Migranten.
29. Hall, “Cultural Identity and Diaspora,” 235.
30. Cf. Niethammer, “Konjunkturen und Konkurrenzen kollektiver Identität,” 196.
31. Mercer, “Welcome to the Jungle,” 43.
32. Appadurai, Modernity at Large, 3; cf. Casillas, Sounds of Belonging, 2–9.
33. BBC, Report of the BBC’s Asian Programmes Advisory Committee: Local Radio for Immigrant Communities.
34. BBC, General Advisory Council (Meeting minutes GAC/292), 1.
35. BBC, Summary of BBC Local Radio Programmes for immigrants, 2.
36. These and the following information are based on Khamkar, “Interview with Owen Bentley.”
37. Sala, Fremde Worte.
38. DZ 155870 (DLF), “Umsiedler aus Polen suchen Anschluss an die Wohlstandsgesellschaft," Deutschlandfunk, 13.07.1971. Similar statements in: X248862 (DRadio), “Der Abschied fiel schwer – Berichte jugendlicher Spätaussiedler,” RIAS 19.12.1974 and DZ211431 (DLF), ”Junge Deutsche aus Polen – Die Kinder einer neuen Minderheit”, Deutschlandfunk, 10.05.1973. This and the following quotes from broadcasts were translated by the authors.
39. ND044940Z00 (BR), "Endstation Deutschland? Ein Bericht über Spätaussiedler," Bayerischer Rundfunk 1978.
40. DZ211431 (DLF), “Junge Deutsche aus Polen.”
41. Ibid.
42. DZ114860 (DRadio), “Wenn sie noch 'der, die, das' verwechseln – Spätaussiedler und die deutsche Sprache”, RIAS, 14.05.1977.
43. ND044940Z00 (BR), “Endstation Deutschland? Ein Bericht über Spätaussiedler”, Bayerischer Rundfunk, 1978.
44. DZ211431 (DLF), “Junge Deutsche aus Polen.”
45. ND024720Z00 (BR), “Gute Chancen für Spätaussiedler. Das Nürnberger Land überrundete Lager Friedland”, Bayerischer Rundfunk, 08.12.1968.
46. DZ211431 (DLF), “Junge Deutsche aus Polen.”
47. DZ114860 (DRadio), “Wenn sie noch 'der, die, das' verwechseln – Spätaussiedler und die deutsche Sprache,” RIAS, 14.05.1977.
48. 78223720Z00 (BR), “Deutsche ohne Heimat in Deutschland. Berichte über Spätaussiedler,” Bayerischer Rundfunk, 27.06.1978.
49. X248862 (DRadio), “Der Abschied fiel schwer.”
50. Ibid.
51. ND024720Z00 (BR), “Gute Chancen für Spätaussiedler.”
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Notes on contributors
Christoph Hilgert
Christoph Hilgert, Department of History, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1, 80539 München , Germany. E-mail: [email protected]
Alina L. Just
Alina L. Just, Cultural Heritage and Museum Studies, HafenCity University Hamburg, Überseeallee 16, 20457 Hamburg, Germany. E-mail: [email protected]
Gloria Khamkar
Gloria Khamkar, Faculty of Media and Communication Bournemouth University, Fern Barrow, Poole, Poole BH12 5BB, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. E-mail: [email protected]