PSB Anxiety, Far From Cute

Michael Hedges February 3, 2005

Europe’s public service broadcasters, nearly healed after the last anxiety attack, return to the analysts couch.

Gathering in Madrid, directors of Europe’s public service broadcasters (PSBs) issued a statement January 24th. They called it the Madrid Declaration on Public Broadcasting. On the surface, the statement is more re-statement of oft-heard arguments: “vital role for democracy,” “guarantee of independent information,” “social benefit.”

The event was timed officially as a show of support for Spanish PSB RTNE in their time of need as the Spanish parliament debates its future in a new broadcast law. Other countries are also facing re-writes of broadcast laws.

Not quite between the lines of the Madrid Declaration on Public Broadcasting are a few new words. One is “alternative,” as in, “…alternative to the growing trends towards concentration in the audiovisual and multimedia sectors….” A glance at recent audience figures shows PSB shares dwindling, but hardly at the bottom of the list. In radio, PSB audience shares are often dominant, with some notably growing. Being an alternative could suggest an under-dog status, somewhat unbecoming of generally well-financed institutions producing highly regarded programming distributed comprehensively.

Commercial broadcasters have presented themselves as the under-dogs since arriving on the scene. It worked, at first, but with Mr. Murdoch and Mr. Berlusconi as poster-children for private broadcasting it didn’t last long. Wait; Mr. Berlusconi is a public broadcaster, too.

Italy is also debating a new media law hastening, perhaps, a partial privatization of RAI. Wait: Mr. Berlusconi is Italy’s Prime Minister.

The Madrid Declaration on Public Broadcasting mentions the Amsterdam Protocol, the part of European Union law that calls on each State to have, hold and finance public service broadcasting. It’s old, though; written in 1997. Why bring it up now?

There’s concern, rumbling in the PSB centers, that the shifting tides at the European Commission may just leave the PSBs stranded on a cultural island, outside the now digital mainstream and, painfully, under-financed.

"I intend to be the Commissioner for innovation, creativity and inclusion."
Viviane Reding

The reference point for those broad EC rules is DG Info Society and Media, from January led by Commissioner Viviane Reding. PSBs felt comfortable when the ECs audiovisual portfolio was held by DG Culture. The change adds to PSB anxiety as the Commission’s review of the Television Without Frontiers directive will now take place in a new context.

“In future regulation,” explains DG Info spokesman Martin Selmayr, “we aim at creating a level playing field by applying regulation that is strictly technology-neutral.”

And Dr. Selmayr characterizes the dual European broadcasting landscape as “fruitful coexistence and competition.”

“The interpretative Amsterdam Protocol specifies that PSB is ‘directly related to the democratic, social and cultural needs of each society and to the need to preserve media pluralism.’ It also recognizes the competence of each Member State in the definition, organization and funding of its public service broadcasters, as well the need for the funding of PSB not to affect trading conditions and competition in the internal market in a disproportionate manner.

“As a result, PSB has an important role to play in promoting cultural diversity in each country, in providing educational programming, in objectively informing public opinion, in guaranteeing pluralism and in supplying, democratically and free-of-charge, quality entertainment. In fulfilling this task within the limits of its mandate and in due respect of competition law, PSB offers a significant contribution to both the competitiveness and the social dimension of the European audiovisual sector as a whole.”

Whereas the PSBs were once seen as – at least among themselves - above “competition,” now they’re in it.  Not all PSBs are running for cover. Danmarks Radio, for just one example, has taken on competition as a challenge and, certainly with their creative additions to digital radio, run rings around their commercial competitors. 

Speaking last week at the Club of Amsterdam Helen Shaw, former radio director of Irish public broadcasting (RTE), described a related but different shift within PSBs toward “citizens,” apart from “consumers.” PSBs have argued – plausibly – that the public service remit must not exclude them from any “citizens,” some also being “consumers.” Private sector broadcasters argue – less plausibly – that “consumers” belong to them and the advertisers who support them. This basic difference defines Europe’s dual broadcasting system. It has been an argument unresolved, each side scoring a point here or there.

PSB anxiety has certainly been heightened by turmoil over the BBC, Europe and the worlds’ largest public service broadcaster. The BBCs Royal Charter is under review, headed for a dramatic announcement in 2006. PSBs have – generally – benefited from a regulatory separation from commercial broadcasters. While the review of the BBCs charter will not lead, directly, to an end to separate rules for public and commercial broadcasters it will mark a step in that direction by applying – possibly – a strict definition of public service broadcasting’s remit.

Helen Shaw observes that the law creating the UK regulator OFCOM refers to “citizen-consumers,” commingling terms, effectively blurring the distinction but also setting the stage for that other trend worrying PSBs: one regulator. Ireland’s Broadcasting Commission (BCI) has already moved in that direction. The UKs OFCOM, uninvited, is offering its opinion on public broadcasting regulation.

“In 2005 the fight for pluralism and quality will define the struggle over the future of broadcasting,” declared the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), an ardent supporter of public service broadcasting, in a “manifesto” on January 27th. Public broadcasting faces, says the EFJ, threats from “market liberalization and political spin-doctors.”

“Private media companies, desperate to maximize market share and increase commercial revenues, are seeking the end of all public funding for broadcasting,“ warned the EFJ in its press release. “If this happens European democracy will be the loser and quality will suffer.”

Anxiety, says psychologist Howard Atkins, leads to defensive behavior. And defensive behavior can lead to self-fulfilling prophesy.