Radio and the Redefinition of Kastom in Vanuatu

Abstract

This paper traces the development of radio broadcasting in Vanuatu, arguing that radio was critical to the development of ideas of Vanuatu-as-nation among the residents of the archipelago. From its inception, radio broadcast kastommaterial understood to derive from the place itself, such as local songs and stories- and in broadcasting it contributed to the development of a complex understanding of kastom itself. By this means kastom was defined as expressive of national unity as well as regional diversity, and as a basis of identity; the presentation of kastom on the radio has provided Islanders with a point of connection with the new context of the nation. In tracing the history and significance of the broadcast of kastom, the paper argues that radio developed a distinctive form in Vanuatu, not addressing a passive and private listener, but rather interacting with an audience that engaged with the radio through correspondence and other contributions, and through both sending and· responding to service messages. In 1994 this was overturned by creation of the Vanuatu Television and Broadcasting Corporation, which was designed to conform with western commercial models of radio. The consequent cutting of kastom programs resulted in a significant and locally acknowledged disenfranchisement of rural Ni-Vanuatu.