How To Write a Radio Serial Drama for Social Development A Script Writer’s Manual
How To
Write a Radio Serial Drama
for Social Development
A Script Writer’s Manual
by Esta de Fossard
Population Communication Services
Center for Communication Programs
Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health
Write a Radio Serial Drama
for Social Development
A Script Writer’s Manual
by Esta de Fossard
Population Communication Services
Center for Communication Programs
Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health
All drama is a form of communication. Radio serial drama created for development
purposes, because it is received entirely through the ears of listeners, is a form of oral
communication. Those who design and write radio social dramas, therefore, can benefit from an
understanding of the theories that elucidate oral communication. More than two thousand years
ago, the Greek philosopher, Aristotle, proposed some principles of persuasive oral
communication that hold as true for today’s radio scripts as they did for the orators whom
Aristotle addressed. Among the principles Aristotle outlined in his book, Rhetoric, are that
speakers should: be credible (believable), excite the emotions of the audience, and provide proof
to support their arguments.
Aristotle’s principles were an early form of communication theory, that is, an explanation
of how people use and are affected by communication. Modern communication theorists have
expanded on the ideas of Aristotle and others in response to the growth of mass media over the
past 100 years. Although communication theories help explain how communication leads to
changes in thinking and behavior, they can never predict exactly how people will react to a
message. However, an understanding of these theories—which come from extensive and
systematic research conducted in virtually every part of the world—can help the designers and
writers of radio drama to fashion programs with the potential to bring about positive social
change. The theories can provide an understanding of how people are most likely to respond to a
communication—such as a radio drama—under given conditions.
During the design process, the design team of writers, program managers, researchers,
and other professionals can use theoretical explanations to guide program development (Chapter
1 discusses the role of the design team). Theory, for example, may help determine what type of
communication is needed to encourage the audience to make specific behavioral changes. Theory
may also suggest motivations for a character’s behavior or anticipate how listeners will respond
to a plot twist. In this way, scripts draw insight from tried and true explanations of
communication and behavior change, while ensuring that those insights become an integral part
of a compelling story.
purposes, because it is received entirely through the ears of listeners, is a form of oral
communication. Those who design and write radio social dramas, therefore, can benefit from an
understanding of the theories that elucidate oral communication. More than two thousand years
ago, the Greek philosopher, Aristotle, proposed some principles of persuasive oral
communication that hold as true for today’s radio scripts as they did for the orators whom
Aristotle addressed. Among the principles Aristotle outlined in his book, Rhetoric, are that
speakers should: be credible (believable), excite the emotions of the audience, and provide proof
to support their arguments.
Aristotle’s principles were an early form of communication theory, that is, an explanation
of how people use and are affected by communication. Modern communication theorists have
expanded on the ideas of Aristotle and others in response to the growth of mass media over the
past 100 years. Although communication theories help explain how communication leads to
changes in thinking and behavior, they can never predict exactly how people will react to a
message. However, an understanding of these theories—which come from extensive and
systematic research conducted in virtually every part of the world—can help the designers and
writers of radio drama to fashion programs with the potential to bring about positive social
change. The theories can provide an understanding of how people are most likely to respond to a
communication—such as a radio drama—under given conditions.
During the design process, the design team of writers, program managers, researchers,
and other professionals can use theoretical explanations to guide program development (Chapter
1 discusses the role of the design team). Theory, for example, may help determine what type of
communication is needed to encourage the audience to make specific behavioral changes. Theory
may also suggest motivations for a character’s behavior or anticipate how listeners will respond
to a plot twist. In this way, scripts draw insight from tried and true explanations of
communication and behavior change, while ensuring that those insights become an integral part
of a compelling story.
