Rob:  On my trip to Mali, Africa, we visited with dozens of local journalists, the majority working for small privately owned newspapers and radio stations.  As Rachel Hubbard shows us, in Mali, radio is much more than just music.
Rachel Hubbard:  Since the revolution in 1991, radio has exploded in Mali.  More than 200 independent stations now service the country disseminating information on health, education, democracy, elections and agriculture.  
Malian:  When we work in the radio station, we feel America is the center of the world.
Rachel:  Most are rudimentary, powered with solar power and car batteries.  But Dennis Bilodeau says they serve an important purpose for the Malian people.  His organization USAID and some religious organizations are largely responsible for the expansion of radio into rural areas of the country.
Dennis Bilodeau:  There’s just no way for people to get access to information.  Radio makes sense, it’s low cost; we use a technology called the suitcase radio, which is about $5,000 or $6,000.  We can set up a community radio station in a matter of days, and for most places where we do this, it’s the first time ever that people have access to information.
Rachel:  With an illiteracy rate nearing 70%, radio is the sole source of information for many.  Modeba Doombea and SaDa Kamara work in the Bancoumana village radio station, neither has any kind of formal education, but they work to distribute practical information to local farmers.  
Through translation:  Our programs are based on the community's issues.  We try to provide communities with information which we have programs on, like children's rights, education, health issues, and also entertainment.
Rachel:  The Malian media including radio is lively, in part because of the country’s protection of press freedoms.  Article four of the Malian constitution says that every person has the right of thought, of conscience, of religion, of cult, of opinion and of expression with respect of law.  That is in part why Freedom House has ranked the Malian media number one in Sub Saharan Africa for the past two years.  And even though radio stations in the country’s interior primarily focus on practical information, the freedom-of-the-press protections have allowed diversity among stations in the capital, Bamako.  Radio Kayira has several outlets throughout the country.  It's widely listened to, but the manager says they use their antenna as their weapon.
Rachel translates:  We are the voice of the voiceless people.  We are here in order to defend poor people.  You know in a country, many people can have problems.  Some people are badly dismissed from their work.  It's an example among many others.  They come and explain to us their problems, and we broadcast the problem through the radio.  We are known for that.
Rachel:  While some radio stations, like Kayira, may be described as extremist with pictures of Saddam Hussein hanging on the wall, most continue to provide cultural information that in some cases has started a different sort of revolution.  Culturally, Malian women are very reluctant to speak out about taboo subjects, but Bilodeau says radio listening clubs have provided a kind of anonymity that has allowed subjects, including family planning and female genital mutilation, to be discussed by common people.
Bilodeau:  We did a survey a few years ago and wanted to know if people preferred entertainment or news on their radio station; and 92% said they need information.  This is Africa, people have their own entertainment; they have their own bands; they have their own theatrical groups; but there was no way of knowing what was happening in the world, in the country, or even just 30 or 40 kilometers down the road.  They just had no information at all.  
Rachel:  Even though Malians view their radio stations as a success in the growth of their democracy, stations continue to struggle with low revenue, leaving many who work in radio unpaid.  But they've found a way to make the system work.  Only one, out of 205 radio stations started since 1991, has gone out of business.