SFCG’s Talking Drum Studio (TDS), a multi-media project with studios in Monrovia and up country in the town of Gbarnga, has built a national audience with its nine regular weekly programmes that address governance, reconciliation, and conflict issues.  A recent listener survey found that 83% of respondents with broadcast coverage had listened to TDS programmes.  In addition to building a strong reputation with listeners, TDS has also developed good relationships with decision-makers and civil society representatives, who make regular contributions to the programmes.

Established in 1997 as SFCG –TDS's overall goal had been transformed from reducing immediate political and ethnic violence to promoting long-term peace and stability by stressing four core themes: accountability; youth and engagement; leadership; identity; and ethnicity.

TDS uses radio as a means for promoting dialogue among polarised groups and reducing ethnic and political tension among such groups by stressing themes of non-violent conflict resolution, democratisation and reconciliation. SFCG produced radio programming reaches the widest range of listeners through culturally appropriate languages and formats. In focus group discussions, SFCG programs have received feedback indicating the positive changes they have had on their audiences, including:

Today is Not Tomorrow
SFCG's radio soap opera drama and most popular program in Liberia:
In focus groups both men and women agreed that the issues discussed on the program are extraordinarily relevant to their lives. Because of this, the respondents say that they learn how to deal with daily problems in a better way. For instance, most listeners relay that they now understand the dynamics of corruption more clearly and are better able to address it in their communities. One man even shared that when he was elected chairman of the community, he chose not to engage in corrupt activities largely because of what he learned from the drama.

Golden Kids News
A news show produced by and for children
This program gives a voice to youth that have too often been caught in the middle of violent civil war. Watch the video to the right to learn more.

One Step Beyond (OSB)
A talkshow program designed to engage with local politicians and policy makers about decision-making processes:
The program was shown to increased awareness about politics and an increased knowledge about how to engage with community issues. Listeners commented that the program helps them feel more connected to central government, as the show highlights the government's activities and uncovers its hidden secrets.

TDS Up Country
SFCG's magazine program focused on the rural areas of Liberia:
Listeners to TDS Up Country were interested in how people were coping with daily challenges, various agricultural techniques, education in the interior, women's activism in rural areas, the role of the government upcountry, and health/hygiene in the interior. Listeners also claimed that listening to this program has greatly increased their knowledge about other areas upcountry. This response was even given by those living upcountry, as they were interested in hearing about other areas outside their own community. According to some respondents, this information has even convinced some people to return to their homelands or to invest in farming in the interior.

Taylor Trial
This program follows the Charles Taylor trial in the Hague. Despite the multitude of other places to get information, a respondents claimed that TT is the easiest and the best place to find out about the trial. According to them, TT goes into more depth about the trial and provides more perspectives on the events.

Focus on Education - Let’s Learn Together!

SFCG audience surveys and other research have found that education is the number one priority for many of its listeners. To address this need, SFCG is partnering with Creative Associates on a distance education project, with SFCG responsible for the radio for teacher training component. Producing the radio program Let’s Learn Together, is a way to ensure that Liberian youth receive a quality education that serves as a source of peace and stability.

The radio show is produced in partnership with Creative Associates International and the Ministry of Education to train teachers by radio in rural Liberia. Every edition of Let's Learn Together challenges both instructors and students to expand their repertoire of teaching methods and learning styles. An interactive presentation including quiz sections, a concluding model lesson, and listener feedback sessions combine to make a potent vehicle for teacher training via the airwaves in six Liberian counties.

SFCG is taking advantage of the widespread nature of radio and oral culture in the country, as well as its own radio networks and production expertise to push for youth engagement and educational advancement. The program grows out of the Ministry of Education's Accelerated Learning Program (ALP), which targets youth and children who missed out on education during the war to be taught twice as fast as standard schoolchildren.

Let's Learn Together is contributing to this effort by stimulating teachers, students of all ages, and other community members to explore innovative and effective methods of instruction like group work, questioning, and role-playing. The techniques are quizzed and then discussed by SFCG Presenter and secondary school principal Estella Miller and Master Trainer Cora Wallace. The methods are put into practice by a model teacher in the classroom – one such lesson is included in each edition of the program, which airs weekly on 15 radio stations and reaches over 200 ALP schools. The program also includes a service learning component that goes beyond radio learning to encourage tangible actions that help communities.