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European Journalism Centre : Innovation Journalism: Detecting Weak Signals
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Maastricht, 26 July 2007
New Media Regulation Frameworks
Eric Karstens, European Journalism Centre
Built-In Diversity: European Institutional Approaches
European Council
De-regulation;sovereignty of the
Member States
European Commission
Competition;functioning of theinternal market
European Parliament
Pluralism ofopinion, content,
and cultures
Emerging Risks: Current Regulatory Challenges
Globalisation
Influence of private equity investors; importance of US
programming
Concentration
EU-wide cross-ownership instead of national value chain
integration
EU Common Market
Response to different legacies in EU media landscapes
(especially CEE countries)
Digitalisation
Time lag between regulation of conventional and new media;
impact ambiguity
Regulatory Failure: The ProSiebenSAT.1 Example (1)
Take-over by German publishing house Axel Springer AG prohibited by both anti-trust authority and media regulation bodies on grounds of hazards to competition and pluralism
Investment by private equity funds KKR and Permira outside the scope of German media law
Quintessential leveraged buyout strategy
Dispensation with remaining journalistic, public-service-minded programmes; major staff and cost cuts
Regulatory Failure: The ProSiebenSAT.1 Example (2)
Result is worse than what was supposed to be averted in the first place
Current rules finally register as inadequate with policy makers
Hangover in German media regulation
But maybe commercial TV has finally arrived in the present?
The Two-Speed Market: Central and Eastern Europe (1)
Market sizes and economies not necessarily conducive to a diverse choice of (conventional) media
EU common market rules took effect before CEE countries had the opportunity to develop into mature media markets on their own
Public Service Broadcasting in some cases under-financed and not trusted
In-country owned conventional media sometimes still closely connected to political parties or government influence
The Two-Speed Market: Central and Eastern Europe (2)
Transfer of capital and know-how desired
Foreign counter-balance against local oligarchy
However:
Variety of content limited; dominance of US and Western European productions
Control of media taken out of the hands of the societies
Means of Deterministic Regulation
Prohibiting or prescribing easily recognisable parameters Ownership restrictions Content quotas Competition law
„Soft-policy“ approaches Direct and indirect subsidies Incentives
Issues with Deterministic Regulation
Easy accountability
Quite possibly adverse reactions of the regulated
Insufficient stimulus for innovation
Low adaptability to environmental change
Encouragement of merely subsidy-seeking products
The Rationale of Risk Management
Modern societies have inserted multiple precautionary layers between original hazards and potential victims
Fear of original dangers has been replaced by concerns about dependability of precautionary measures
When danger is manageable, averting risks becomes a moral obligation
Risk protection acquires a societal rather than individual perspective, because most risk management involves a collective effort
Personal risks tend to be forwarded to society
If risk management fails, it is perceived to be somebody‘s fault
The Definition of Risk
Which levels of risk are deemed acceptable depends on common understanding in society
Risk evaluation depends on values, political opinion, business interests, individual interests
Negotiation of acceptability and reduction of ambiguity open to interest groups in media society
Co-Regulation
Rather than imposing rules „from above“, stakeholders are invited to negotiate regulation
Make use of stakeholder expertise which otherwise might not be available or be tactically shrouded
Elicit frank input from the entire field of stakeholders
However:
Laisser-faire approach as such lacks a fundament of values and disregards long-term impacts
Objectives of Risk-based Regulation
Rely on common understanding rather than enforcement
Negotiate objectives and thresholds rather than impose rules
Encourage innovation
Retain validity of regulation even through macro-level changes
Adaptability to diverse sets of circumstances
Reconcile the different policy approaches in one common framework
Issues with Risk-based Regulation
In media society, blame-prevention tactics can become prevalent
Pressure groups can use media salience to push their agendas
Abstract framework requires sound and agreed-upon ethical foundations
Further complication of enforcement and auditability issues
Future Risk-based Media Regulation
Bottom-up approach: Assume the user‘s position
Account for political culture, level of education, and content preferences
Allow for a variety of media landscape configurations
Establish a system of indicators and render them measurable
Objective of current DG INFSO research project
