Broadcast Television

1
Broadcast Television

• Whither thou goest?

2
Broadcast TV Penetration

• 2nd most prevalent medium globally
• Historical roots in broadcast radio
• Virtually anywhere electricity is available,
  there are tv sets

3
Can you find evidence of electricity? TV?
4
Challenges Opportunities

• Competing ICTs
• Problems faced by broadcast TV networks in US
• Survival strategies for US broadcast TV networks

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Problems faced by TV broadcast networks in US

• Diminishing audiences
• Falling advertising revenues
• Reduced overall influence
• Telecommunications Act of 1996
• Increased competition
• TV networks targets for takeover
• Network-Affiliate tensions

6
Survival Strategies for US Broadcast TV Networks

• Expanding overseas operations
• Backlash on cultural imperialism
• Extending intl distribution via Direct Broadcast
  Satellite (DBS) networks Direct to Home (DTH)
  service in Europe, Asia, Latin America
• Expanding programming
• Entering new markets
• E.g. CIS, Eastern Europe
• Seeking partners
• Cable-Broadcast alliances

7
Direct to Home (DTH) Broadcasting

• Access limits
• Control issues
• Why international audiences tune in

8
Government Satellite TV

• Preceded by intl radio broadcasting
• Purposes instrument of foreign policy mirror of
  society symbolic presence coercer intimidator
  educator entertainer seller of goods services
• Begun in 1980s
• UK BBC World Service (protested/banned in China
  Saudi Arabia)
• US US Information Agency WorldNet Merged with
  Voice of America Radio/TV in 1998

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Commercial Satellite TV

• US CNN
• UK Independent Television News (ITN)
• Sky News
• Orbit Television (relationship with Al Jazeera?)

10
TV Public Diplomacy

• If you can write a nations the worlds?
  stories, you neednt worry about who makes its
  laws George Gerbner
• Governmental, NGO and Corporate actors all seek
  to influence public opinion via TV
• Policies news framing
• Paid advertising
• Events that will ensure media attention
• Concept of Soft Power by Joseph Nye

11
Soft Power

• Herb Schiller governments frequently benefit
  from private forms of public diplomacy
• Joseph Nye The US can benefit from the soft
  power of its cultural industries, software, and
  media

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Terrorism Public Diplomacy

• Terrorism can be considered low-level warfare
• Unlikely to achieve military-type objectives
• But very likely to garner global media attention,
  thus draw public attention to a cause
• --Terrorist act as media event

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The Case of Al Jazeera
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Questions for Discussion

• How would WST ECT theorists assess Al Jazeera?
• What should the US broadcast and satellite
  networks do with Al Jazeera materials from groups
  like Al Qaeda Chechen separatists?
• Should the US government be involved in
  establishing policy on this?

15
Future of Intl Broadcasting

• Because of the proliferation of publics,
  electronic media, groups with internationally
  focused causes to publicize
• ?Use of broadcasting likely to increase
• For explicit public diplomacy
• For less overt political purposes
• E.g. Entertaining, informing, selling goods
  advertising
• Allied Media Corp. Al Jazeera