Social Norms
Social norms action with informed and engaged societies
Social Norms
After nearly 28 years, The Communication Initiative (The CI) Global is entering a new chapter. Following a period of transition, the global website has been transferred to the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in South Africa, where it will be administered by the Social and Behaviour Change Communication Division. Wits' commitment to social change and justice makes it a trusted steward for The CI's legacy and future.
 
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Sex and Reproductive Health Education Project

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Sexwise was a major BBC World Service Education Initiative designed to improve knowledge and awareness of sex and reproductive health amongst listeners in South Asia. The project comprised 9 radio series and accompanying support material, and was produced in collaboration with the International Planned Parenthood Foundation, South Asia Region and its member family planning associations (FPAs). The radio programmes were produced in Hindi, Bengali, English, Nepali, Pashto, Persian, Sinhala, Tamil and Urdu. Each was uniquely crafted to suit the needs of local listeners and material was recorded on location in the appropriate countries.

Following the success of Sexwise, the BBC World Service was approached by the Ford Foundation in India to develop a capacity-building project in India which would encourage and enable local television and radio producers to develop such programming. The objectives were to:
  • Develop the professional ability of radio and television programme makers in India in reproductive health and sex education, and
  • Increase the number and reach of programmes with reliable, objective information on the subject to enable people to make informed decisions.
Communication Strategies
Radio and TV producers were invited to submit applications for the BBC training in sexual and reproductive health. 29 radio and television producers from all over the country were shortlisted from a total of 70 applicants. This included eight each from the state-owned television Doordarshan and All India Radio (AIR) and 13 independent producers. Training workshops were conducted by sex education experts. Participatory training sessions were conducted with practical exercises generating discussion on sex and reproductive health (RH) issues. Training to fine-tune professional techniques in radio and television production was also included.

After the initial workshop, proposals were invited for radio and TV programmes on the subject. Six independent producers were shortlisted on the basis of their proposals. The proposals selected were:
  1. a Hindi TV series of five-minute fillers
  2. a 26-episode Hindi talk show hosted by an AIDS non-government organisation (NGO) expert, regarded as having an Oprah Winfrey-type television personality, who will talk to urban children in the 14 to 16 age group about sex and sexuality
  3. a six-episode radio documentary programme addressing issues of pregnancy and contraception; sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and reproductive tract infections (RTIs); sex and emotions; sexual preferences; sex and power
  4. a radio documentary
  5. a three-episode video musical
  6. an English 3-set video using puppets, interviews and discussions among children to address issues related to puberty and adolescence, sex and sexuality for the 11-13, 14-16 urban and periurban age group.
Proposals were finalised through consultation and discussion at subsequent advanced workshops. The programmes were scheduled to be ready to go on air by October 1998, at which point broadcasters and NGOs were to be invited to see and hear programme extracts. The first four pilot episodes were funded by the BBC, after which the producers were expected to find their own sponsors for their programmes.
Development Issues
Sexual and Reproductive Health, HIV/AIDS, Youth.
Key Points
According to the BBC, participants were positive about the workshop, which they said provided them with accurate technical/medical information that they had taken for granted. The workshops helped demystify sex and dispelled myths and misinformation. They also highlighted the difficulty of tackling a sensitive and somewhat taboo subject without compromising the accuracy and comprehensiveness of the information. Finding a vocabulary to discuss sex and sexuality was particularly challenging, since it was hard to find words in the vernacular relating to sex and sexuality that were objective and non-derogatory and yet not medical. Another concern was to deal with the subject sensitively - given the cultural contexts - without detracting from the factual, objective information.

As a spin off from these workshops two separate workshops were planned for Doordarshan and AIR because their needs and thinking were quite different from those of the independent producers.
Partners

Population Services International. The project is managed by BBC World Service Training in consultation with BBC World Service Education. The project is funded by Ford Foundation, India, and has evolved from the BBC Sexwise programmes.

Sources

"BBC World Service Training: Sex and Reproductive Health Education Project, India".

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