Culture and Social Change Communication

Abstract

This chapter outlines the relationship between culture and social change communication. After attending to the historical context within which culture emerged into social change communication, attention is paid to the reworking of culture into the development, implementation and evaluation of development communication interventions. The chapter examines the incorporation of culture as a site of profiteering, circulated in the networks of the market. Concepts such as sustainability, participation, and engagement are critically interrogated, attending to the strategic deployment of culture by power elites to consolidate power and material wealth. The chapter wraps up with a critical interrogation of the cultural turn, devoid of analyses of power and materiality.