Media policy doctrines interests and contexts Katarzyna PlanetaBjrnskr
Media policy – doctrines, interests and contexts Katarzyna Planeta-Björnskär 3 October 2012
Policymaking can be seen as a battleground in which contrasting political positions fight both for material advantage … and for ideological legitimation, a situation in which certain ideas are normalized and others problematized. (Freedman 2008, 3)
Why media policy? Because media are an important economic sector � Because they are the agents of social reproduction � Because market mechanisms sometimes “fail” – concentration & commercialization of cultural production � Because media entail unintended social effects � Because people tend to under-invest in media products �
Shaping media and communication – four aspects � Media policy � Media regulation � Media governance � Media politics
Media policy – the domain of governments? N. Garnham : the ways in which public authorities shape, or try to shape, the structures and practices of the media. � D. Mc. Quail: projects of government and public administration which … are characterized by deploying certain means in the form of regulatory or administrative measures that are legally binding, nationally or internationally. These projects have ‘particular goals and a certain legitimation in terms of the wider “public interest”’ (in Freedman, 10) �
Different kinds of influence on media institutions (Mc. Quail, 219)
Economic factors. . . New markets open up � Mergers and acquisitions - economies of scale and scope � Concentration - horizontal, vertical, cross-media, conglomerates � Internationalisation - finding markets abroad � Convergence of markets �
Technical factors. . . New information and communication media � Digitalisation - production and distribution � Technical convergence - networks for distribution (cable/satellite. Internet) - appliances for reception, recording or storing (hard drive digital television with Internet access, music camera phone, etc. ) �
Political factors. . . Deregulation of broadcast media � Deregulation of telecommunication � Non-regulation of computer media � International dimensions of media push politics � Media policy shift from political/cultural frame towards industrial/economic frame, but also a more complicated agenda �
Media policy (Freedman) It involves political agency in the pursuit of different norms and goals, and structural aspects of institutional, economic, technological and governmental dynamics. It is a dynamic process that concerns interaction between different actors, the institutional structures they work in and the objectives they pursue. It refers to the development of norms and goals leading to the creation of instruments that are designed to shape the structure and behaviour of media systems.
Media regulation ”…the operation of specific , often legally binding, tools that are deployed on the media to achieve established policy goals” Freedman, page 14
Two questions about regulation: � Should it address not only economic but also social and cultural policy? � Should it be centralized and top-down, state-led regulation or a so called ‘administrative regulation’ or even more dispersed, discursive model?
Three trends in policy regimes (Jessop 2000): 1. De-nationalisation of the state (the dispersal of power). 2. De-statisation of the political system (from government to governance. 3. Internationalization of policy regimes.
Media governance …sum total of mechanisms, both formal and informal, national and supranational, centralized and dispersed that aim to organize the media systems according to the resolution of media politics debates network form of control; reflects the shifting locale of power towards supra- and sub-national levels and the development of non-governmental modes of organization and influence Freedman, page 14
Media politics The political system and its part in policy, regulation and governance of the media.
Media policy frames The democratic/socio-cultural frame Public sphere, deliberative politics, citizenship and individual/collective expressive use of media The economic frame National asset, economic growth, service economy, corporate media and consumer rights.
Policymaking - ideological frameworks (Lunt&Silverstone) liberal pluralism and neo-liberalism ü small, transparent and accountable government ü self-regulation of the markets ü state regulation only due to market failure and only to protect consumers social democracy (civic republicanism) ü broad political sphere – supporting engagement by civil society and the public in deliberative democracy. ü media are an important social institution – intervention is legitimate and necessary. ü accepting deregulation of the markets to stimulate innovation and competition and to protect consumers ü dispersal of state power and collaborative governance.
Four Theories of the Press (Siebert et al, 1956) The press always takes on the form and coloration of the social and political structures within which it operates. Four models: � Authoritarian (reaching back to XVI and XVII century) � Liberal/libertarian (based on the philosophy of Enlightenment) � Social responsibility (influence of Hutchins commission on the freedom of the press) � Communist/Soviet model.
Normative media theory - four models (Mc. Quail, 184) � A liberal-pluralist (market) model � A social responsibility or public interest model � A professional model � An alternative media model.
Three policy paradigms (Van. Cuilenburg&Mc. Quail, 2003)… 1 � Emerging media policy (1880 -1945) - no coherent policy goals beyond state interest and industrial-economic development � Public interest/service (1945 -1980/90) - public interest expressed in political, social and cultural terms - press concentration issues addressed - standards of press conduct
Three policy paradigms… 2 “New paradigm” (1980 -) - stress on economic goals and development of technology - public interest defined in terms of consumer interests - emphasis on freedom and self-regulated accountability - international policy convergence
Transparent policymaking? � Lobbying – deciding before decisions are made. � ICTs and access to legal proceedings: do access and possibility of contribution really mean true participation of the public in decision-making processes?
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