Giving voice to invisible women in developing countries: Rhetorical criticism of 'FIRE' as model of a successful women's community radio

There are many obstacles that hinder women's empowerment in Third world countries e.g. lack of access to education, powerlessness, and poverty. Even with the multitude of media technologies and communication means, women in the developing countries especially those residing in rural and remote areas are still voiceless compared to women in developed countries. This study focused on the Feminist International Radio Endeavour (FIRE), which began a grassroots' women community radio in 1991. Standpoint theory and Alice Walker's Womanism coupled with rhetorical criticism were used to examine FIRE's mission statements as the rhetorical artifact to determine whether or not FIRE has played any role in empowering disenfranchised women in the developing countries. In addition, this study examined how the FIRE can be modeled to set up women community radio in Africa.;The findings of this study indicated that radio constitutes the obvious place to start in terms of building basic inclusion in community, national, and global information flows. However, the question remains whether or not women's voices and concerns are well represented in the radio programs. As a recognized and successful women's community radio network, FIRE has consistently represented voices of women around the world while being completely operated and owned by women. FIRE has proven to be a perfect representative of women struggle for liberation and empowerment, especially in the African countries, given that FIRE is based in a developing country.