MASS MEDIA IN GREAT BRITAIN

Both the BBC broadcast education programmes for children and students in schools of all kinds, as well as pre-school children, and for adults in colleges and other institutions and in their homes. Broadcasts to schools cover most subjects of the curriculum, while education programmes for adults cover many fields of learning, vocational training and recreation.

The Government has no privileged access to radio or television, but government publicity to support non-political campaigns may be broadcasted on independent radio and television. Such broadcasts are paid for on a normal commercial basis. The BBC is not the mouthpiece of the government. All the major political parties have equal rights to give political broadcasts. Radio and, particularly, television have their greatest impact on public affairs at election time. Each of the principal political parties is granted time on the air roughly in proportion to the number of its candidates for the Parliament.

Television and radio coverage of political matters, including elections, is required to be impartial. Extended news programmes cover all aspects of the major parties’ campaigns at national level and in the constituencies. Political parties arrange “photo opportunities”, during which candidates are photographed in such places as factories, farms, building sites, schools and youth centers. They often use these visits to make points about party policies.

Special election programmes include discussions between politicians belonging to rival parties. Often a studio audience of members of the public is able to challenge and question senior politicians. Radio “phone-ins” also allow ordinary callers to question, or put their views to political leaders. Broadcast coverage also includes interviews with leading figures from all the parties, reports focusing on particular election issues, and commentaries from political journalists.

Arrangements for the broadcasts are made between the political parties and the broadcasting authorities, but editorial control of the broadcasts rests with the parties.

Television and the other channels of mass media are playing an increasingly important part in bringing contemporary affairs to the general public.

Radio and television programmes for the week are published in the BBC periodical, “Radio Times”. The BBC publishes another weekly periodical, “The Listener”, in which a selection of radio and TV talks are printed.

By international standards it could reasonably be claimed that the four regular channels together provide an above – average service, with the balance giving something to please most tastes and preferences. Some quiz-shows and “soap operas”, or long-running sagas, attract large numbers of viewers and to some extent the BBC competes for success in this respect. But minority preferences are not overlooked. In Wales there are Welsh-language programmes for the few who want them. There are foreign language lessons for the general public, as well as the special programmes for schools and the Open University. BBC news has always kept a reputation for objectivity, and the independent news service is of similar quality.

Television is probably the most important single factor in the continuous contest for the public’s favour between the political parties. Parties and candidates cannot buy advertising time. At intervals each channel provides time for each of the three main political parties for party-political broadcasts, and during an election campaign a great deal of time is provided for parties’ election, always on an equal basis.

Minor parties get time, based partly on the number of their candidates. In Wales and Scotland the nationalist parties get TV time on the same basis as the three others. Studios and transmitters must be provided free of charge. But often a party prefers to film a broadcast outside the studio at its own expense, for greater impact.

BBC TV Europe broadcasts some of its own programmes by satellite, and from 1991 BBC TV International began to sell and distribute its World Service TV news in English and some other languages.

BBC domestic services are financed almost exclusively by the sale of annual television licenses; World Service radio is financed from a government grant, while World Service Television is self-funding. Popular television drama programs produced for the BBC are shown in America and many other countries around the world.

BBC World Service TelevisionBBC World Service Television was set up in 1991 to establish a worldwide television service. The BBC has generated its own funding fir this operation. The company at present provides three services:

•A subscription channel in Europe, based on mixture of BBC1 and BBC2 programmes, news bulletins, and weather and business reports. Viewers receive the service by cable or direct to their homes, using special decoders.

•A 24-hour news and information channel which is available throughout Asia, launched in November 1991. Funded by advertising, the service is one of the channels offered throughout Asia by the commercial company STAR TV. The cannel is compiled by the BBC and transmitted by satellite to the ground station in Hong Kong, where advertising is added by STAR TV before distribution.

•A news and information channel in Africa, launched in April 1992. The service is available to viewers who have the appropriate satellite reception equipment and in countries where national broadcasters make the service part of their regular output.

ITV

In addition there are two independent channels: ITV (Independent Television) and Channel4, which is owned by the IBA (Independent Broadcasting Authority).

The ITV has 15 programme companies, each serving a different part o the country. These companies get most of their money from firms who use them for advertising. The whole of ITV is controlled by the IBA. The magazine “TV Times” advertises all ITV programmes; ITV programmes include news, information, light entertainment and are interrupted at regular intervals by advertisements. Despite the genuine entertainment that so many of the good commercials afford, television still succeeds in crushing its viewers with ads that are too annoying, too often, and just too much. Very often commercials are infuriating as well as irresistible. Commercials are the heavy tribute that the viewer must pay to the sponsor in exchange for often doubtful pleasure. The first regular commercial ITV programmes began in London in 1955.