Title: Radio Talk Shows and Citizen Participation in Local Governance: A Case Study of UBC West, Mbarara City
Authors: Mucunguzi Bazirio
Volume: 10
Issue: 7
Pages: 295-301
Publication Date: 2026/07/28
Abstract:
Interactive radio remains the principal infrastructure of political communication in sub-Saharan Africa, yet the conditions under which talk programming converts listening into civic action remain empirically underspecified. This study examined the influence of radio talk show characteristics on citizen participation in local governance at UBC West, a regional service of Uganda's state broadcaster, in Mbarara City. Adopting a positivist philosophy and cross-sectional survey design, data were collected from 362 adult listeners selected through multistage sampling across the city's divisions and analysed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and multiple regression in SPSS version 26. Four programme dimensions were measured: accessibility, content relevance and agenda focus, interactivity and feedback mechanisms, and perceived credibility and independence. Accessibility recorded the highest mean (M = 3.86, SD = 0.594) while interactivity recorded the lowest (M = 2.68, SD = 0.836). All dimensions correlated significantly with citizen participation, with perceived credibility strongest (r = 0.681, p < 0.01) and accessibility weakest (r = 0.487, p < 0.01). The regression model was significant, F(4, 357) = 71.28, p < 0.001, explaining 42.9 per cent of variance, with credibility (? = 0.301) and interactivity (? = 0.264) dominant and accessibility contributing least (? = 0.151). The findings invert the implementation hierarchy: the best-delivered dimension predicts least, indicating that reach has been achieved while the conditions converting reach into participation remain unmet. The study contributes quantitative evidence to a literature dominated by ethnographic work, corroborating recent findings that community and public radio operate within bounded spaces where power asymmetries persist, and recommends institutionalising duty-bearer response, subsidising feedback channels, and protecting editorial independence.