Pavarala , Prof. Vinod

Vinod Pavarala is a professor of communication and the UNECO chair on community media at the University of Hyderabad. For over a decade he has been one of the leading campaigners for the democratization of the airwaves in India and has played a significant role in drafting the national policy permitting community radio a space on the dial in the country. As one of the founders and former president of the Community Radio Forum of India, he plays an active role in civil society’s engagements with forging alternative media spaces for the marginalized, mostly rural, communities in India. His book, co-authored with Kanchan K. Malik, Other Voices: the struggle for community radio in India (Sage, 2007) documents community-based efforts across India to carve out an alternative public sphere. At the University of Hyderabad, he has served as head of the department of communication, dean of the Sarojini Naidu School of Arts and Communication and as director of international affairs. He serves on the academic boards of several universities and on national committees on media education.