Broadcasting Pluralism and Diversity is a study of the policy and regulatory measures relating to the promotion of media diversity in three jurisdictions: the United Kingdom, the United States, and Australia. A central focus of the book is regulation of media ownership and control, and, taking an historical approach, the book argues that early policy and regulatory decisions continue to have a significant influence on current reforms. Whilst policy and reform debates focus on ownership and control measures, the book also argues that such measures can not be considered in isolation from other regulatory instruments, and that a holistic regulatory approach is required. As such, content regulation and competition regulation are also considered. Underlying the study is the contention that much of the policy informing pluralism and diversity regulation, although making reference to the importance of the media's role in the democratic process, has also been skewed by a futile focus on the different regulatory treatment of the press and broadcasting, which is adversely influencing current policy debates. The book argues that a different approach, using the public sphere concept, needs to be adopted and used as a measure against which regulatory reform in the changing media environment can be assessed.

Adopting a truly global, theoretical and multidisciplinary perspective, Media Pluralism and Diversity intends to advance our understanding of media pluralism across the globe. It compares metrics that have been developed in different parts of the world to assess levels of, or threats to, media pluralism.

Contends that the notions of media pluralism and diversity have been reduced to empty catchphrases or conflated with consumer choice and market competition.

Bringing together scholars, journalists, and researchers from 27 European countries, this book provides a comparative and longitudinal analysis of the evolution of conditions and standards relevant for sustainable, free, and plural media and journalism in Europe in the last ten years. Approaching the challenging and ever-changing concept of media pluralism from various complementary and sometimes conflicting angles, combining legal, economic, social, and political perspectives, chapters provide a holistic account of the concept of media pluralism, a key condition for a well-functioning democracy. This book draws on data from the Media Pluralism Monitor project, a scientific tool designed and implemented on a regular basis to document the health of media ecosystems, to provide insights into central dimensions of media systems across the EU and candidate countries. These include: the fundamental protection of freedom of expression and safety of journalists and the independence of media authorities; market plurality, transparency of ownership, media concentration, media viability, competition enforcement, and digital platforms’ dominance; disinformation, media literacy, and digital challenges; political independence, conflicts of interest, editorial autonomy, and the independence of public service media; social inclusiveness, including access to media and representation of women and community media. Offering a comprehensive overview of key areas of EU media policy, causes and solutions for the media economic struggle, and innovative examples of business models for journalism in the digital age, this book is recommended reading for advanced students and researchers of media policy and regulation, as well as policymakers.

Although there appears to be no firm legal basis in the Treaties for EU legislative action aimed specifically at protecting media pluralism, this book opens a number of promising avenues along which a viable legal regime protecting media pluralism may be achieved in the EU. With particular focus on broadcasting, the book examines existing (albeit fragmented) legislative and regulatory measures in competition law and other areas that contribute to this goal, and sets forth ways to strengthen monitoring and transparency, generate ‘soft law with hard statements’, introduce a ‘pluralism test’ in the EU Merger Regulation, promote more public service media, and foster media literacy. Among many other issues arising in the course of the discussion, the author describes and elucidates the following: various types of integration of media companies and the different ways they affect pluralism and diversity; limitations of must-carry rules and principles of interoperability; the diverging priorities of different European organizations, institutions and bodies; and contradictory lobbying efforts from industry actors. The author places herself on the culture side of the culture/commodity dilemma, showing why it is vital for regulators to preserve media pluralism by counteracting excessive media concentration and safeguarding quality and diversity of content. In this era which is transforming media and communications industries worldwide, with an ever-increasing plethora of delivery means without respect to national borders, this book is an essential resource for regulators and other concerned policymakers, as well as for lawyers working with any aspect of media.

The Euro Crisis produced the most significant challenge to European integration in 60 years testing the structures and powers of the European Union and the Eurozone and threatening the common currency. This book explores how the financial and political crisis was portrayed in the European press and the implications of that coverage on public understanding of the developments, their causes, responsibilities for addressing the crisis, the roles and effectiveness of European institutions, and the implications for European integration and identity. It addresses factors that shaped news and analysis, the roles of European leaders, and the extent to which national and pan-European debates over the crisis occurred. In doing so, it provides a clear and readable explanation of what the portrayals tell us about Europe and European integration in the early twenty-first century."

The book arises from an international research project that explores the future of media pluralism policies for online news. It investigates the latest European policies and techniques for regulatory intervention, and examines the consequences of innovative news practices asking, ‘How will automation of news affect public opinion in the age of social media platforms, and what are the consequences?’ In Media Pluralism and Online News the authors make the argument that there is an urgent need for revitalised thinking for a media policy agenda to deal with the trends to platform power and concentrated media power, which is an ongoing global risk to public interest journalism. In the transition to a media landscape increasingly dominated by broadband internet distribution and the dominance of US-centric new media behemoths Google, Facebook, Apple, Amazon and Netflix the book investigates measures that can be taken to reduce this ongoing march of concentration and the attenuation of media voices. Securing the public interest in a vibrant and sustainable news media sector will require that merger decisions assess whether there is a ‘reduction in diversity’ -- calling for a new public interest test and a more expansive policy focus than in the past. This would include consideration of the sustainability of local businesses; the encouragement of original and local news content; quality of content, in terms of the promotion of news standards; and new modes of delivery and consumption, including the ‘automated curation’ of news content by digital platforms.

The book addresses a critical analysis of major media policies in the European Union and the Council of Europe at the period of profound changes affecting both media environments and use, as well as the logic of media policy making and reconfiguration of traditional regulatory models. The analytical problem-related approach explores three problem areas: freedom of expression as a regulatory rationale, AVMS Directive and content-related regulation, and media pluralism and structural regulation. This volume offers a perspective of both "new" and "old" EU Member States on a media policy process seen as an integral part of a European communication space formation and exercise of communication rights. Book jacket.

This research examines and analyses the diversity of television content. More specifically, it provides an in-depth study of the development of television content. We attempt to study content through the concept of diversity, which is considered as being a methodological tool that records and describes trends in television programming. Through the methodological use of diversity, the rationale behind the programming structure is presented and, therefore, the structures that create and constitute the content can be shown. A detailed discussion is developed, as well as a new approach to television diversity, in light of the methodological examination.