March 30, 2005: Since two o’clock today, I have been to two community radio stations and two shopping malls. To look at it another way, I visited two icons of diversity and community empowerment, two ventures to disperse power and culture and diffuse it into the hands of the poor and ignored, and then on the way home I visited two outposts of the system they are raging against. That’s life in Rio for a gringo trying to do good, giving hope from in the grass roots amidst tragic situations strangely blended with luxury, class division and the seduction of convenience.

By doing good, my project here in Rio is doing good – the effect is I do things like visit radio stations and favelas and still I cant stay away from shopping malls – all my blogs have dealt with this dual existence theme.

The only thing I have to say about the shopping malls is that they were both exactly like American malls. Globalized commerce, multi-national logos and the universal lure of convenience has created nationless havens in every city on earth, offering the same consumer experience no matter which currency fills the register. In fact, they probably take dollars anyway. Benjamin Barber made this point about the intentional uniformity of malls long ago and far better in his book, ‘Jihad vs. McWorld.’

Maybe there is something about acquiring new possessions in a clean, well lit, climate-controlled environment that is innately attractive to humans. I know I was there because of convenience and coincidence.

Both malls were connected to metro stations that I used on my way home from the far off community radio stations in Rio’s outer edges. And while the two malls were similar, the radio stations were very different from each other.

The stations each exemplified the power of community radio in a different way. The first and farthest, almost an hour and a half by car from downtown, is said to be the first community radio station in Brazil, Radio Novos Rumos. Fourteen years later, some of their programs are even available online at http://www.redevivafavela.com.br/show_estacao.asp?estacao=6. They would have a live webcast but they haven’t saved the money to buy the extra computer.

The story of Radio Novos Rumos is one of a fight for individuality and the freedom to express it. A small group of friends in this working and middle class neighborhood pooled household stereo equipment and technical knowledge and started operating a pirate radio station out of a home. Despite attempts by the police and the government to shut it down, with popular support from the community, a bit of perseverance and defiance, they continued to broadcast. Now they are financially self-sufficient, with six full time staff, and are the primary radio station in their area.

In 1998, the laws changed and along with thousands of other pirate stations, they filed to become legally recognized. Since then, between 10,000 -15,000 community stations have sprung up; most of them have already begun broadcasting, but are still waiting for final approval.

One of these stations, also in Rio, is Onda Livre (free wave). They are an NGO-run, station that is heavy on talk. For a small radio station, they tackle an wide range of issues and are focused more on the educational power of radio. They have shows on race and gender, health, age, as well as music, of course, and music history.

Daily habits go a long way. An captivating radio program can be an excellent way to encourage healthy habits, like filtering water, using condoms, or not littering. In many communities around the world, the radio will be the first voice they hear raising these issues and in general, poor communities are eager to improve their living conditions. They just need help figuring out how.

Like the shopping malls, the community stations were eager to receive me, but the motives behind the eagerness had different roots. The stations did not want my money, though they both could surely use it. Rather, they greeted me with open arms because that’s just what they do. They support the community, and they knew my goal was to build a community station like theirs.

To be sure, part of it was pride at their impressive accomplishments and anyone with an under-appreciated masterpiece is happy to take it down off the wall for an admiring guest. They sat and discussed possible budgets, programs, and strategies with me because they believe more local voices, greater diversity, and more focus on the lower classes will improve their world, or at least life in Rio; it’s just in their nature as people to support diversity and healthy endeavors even with nothing in it for them directly.

The shopping malls welcomed me in order to sell me something, the same shirt they hope to sell 500 times, to help me match the person next to me on the subway. With this view of malls, it’s fair to ask why I visited one, let alone two. So I will explain. I needed a shirt, and there was a mall blocking my way to the subway station.

Then, tired and hungry, sitting on Rio’s modern subway, I answered my spiffy new cell phone in English and agreed to meet a friend for a movie. It happens that most movie theaters here are in shopping malls. In fact, I sat in the movie theater scribbling this blog on scraps of paper because the incongruity of the afternoon was almost too much to bear.

But, like I said, that’s life in Rio for a gringo trying to do good.