Onumadhyam :: the people's media: Fixed time for adult content on TV channels likely

who cares media?

media play a huge role in our lives. the Internet, TV, radio, newspapers, movies and books inform our ideas, values and beliefs. they shape our understanding of the world.

Noam Chomsky

". . . to take apart the system of illusions and deception which functions to prevent understanding of contemporary reality [is] not a task that requires extraordinary skill or understanding. It requires the kind of normal skepticism and willingness to apply one's analytical skills that almost all people have and that they can exercise."

what's wrong with Advertisement?

most of the income of for-profit media outlets comes not from their audiences, but from commercial advertisers who are interested in selling products to that audience. although people sometimes defend commercial media by arguing that the market gives people what they want, the fact is that the most important transaction in the media marketplace--the only transaction, in the case of broadcast television and radio--does not involve media companies selling content to audiences, but rather media companies selling audiences to sponsors.

this gives corporate sponsors a disproportionate influence over what people get to see or read. most obviously, they don't want to support media that regularly criticizes their products or discusses corporate wrongdoing. more generally, they would rather support media that puts audiences in a passive, non-critical state of mind-making them easier to sell things to. advertisers typically find affluent audiences more attractive than poorer ones, and pay a premium for young, white, male consumers-factors that end up skewing the range of content offered to the public.

Thursday, July 31, 2008

Fixed time for adult content on TV channels likely

New Delhi, May 8 (IANS)

After banning Fashion TV and AXN for showing allegedly 'indecent' programmes, the government appears to be having a rethink on the issue and is now considering allowing channels to beam adult content, but only in fixed time slots.

'The government is considering fixing specific timings for TV channels to beam adult content,' Information and Broadcasting Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi said Tuesday in the Lok Sabha.
Requests had been received on the matter for fixing specific timings for such programmes, he admitted.

The minister, however, added that all matters relating to programmes or advertisement telecast on TV channels, including requests for 'watershed' time for the telecast of adult content, have been referred to a committee.

The government has set up a committee for a review of Programme and Advertising Code under the Cable Television Network (Regulation) Act and guidelines for certification of films under the Cinematograph Act, he said.

The recommendations of the committee have not yet been received as meetings are continuing, he said.

The information and broadcasting ministry is considering a watershed 11 p.m.-5 a.m. time slot for adult programming, sources told IANS.

The ministry banned FTV's 'Midnight Hot' programme early last month on grounds that it showed 'skimpily dressed and semi-naked models that violated good taste and decency and denigrated women'.

This act of moral policing sparked outrage among liberals and the fashion community that protested the move saying that the government should not decide what should be watched on TV and this decision was better left to responsible adults.

Earlier, the government had banned AXN's 'World's Sexiest Advertisements' on similar grounds.

© 2007 Indo-Asian News Service

No comments:

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

onumadhyam

onumadhyam is a non-profit organisation working for media literacy among the general people especially among the high school students in Bangladesh.
we are working for a pro-people environment in mainstream media, both print and audio visual media.
we research for alternative media.
we always challenge media-owners to feel responsibility to the people.
we believe democracy comes through free and fair media which is only possible through free and fearless participation of people.

house 4, plot 36, road 3, mohammadia housing society, dhaka 1207. bangladesh. +8801711 222922 onumadhyam@gmail.com/ bmaruf@gmail.com

we want to

create learning material
we want to publish handbooks and other learning materials to introduce specially high school students the media jargons, terms and tools. reading and creating media language.
promote citizen journalism
we want to create space for every single pro-active citizen to talk for or against the media.
produce films
we want to make alternative films and also audio-visual works that can challenge the mainstream media content.
build media generation
we want to create a young force against the media imperialism. we want to promote analytical young voices in and out side the media world.

quick comments

A J Liebling

"freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one."

www.fair.org

"independent, aggressive and critical media are essential to an informed
democracy. But mainstream media are increasingly cozy with the economic and political powers they should be watchdogging. Mergers in the news industry have accelerated, further limiting the spectrum of viewpoints that have access to mass media."

Asjadul Kibria, journalist, bangladesh

"media is too much self-centred and focusing it's own (vested interest groups) benefit. more dengerous is so-called mainstream and leading media are evry much staisfied with their own knowledge. All these are good enough to prevent media to become pro-people in a larger extent."

public media

while media technology has advanced in the 35 years since public broadcasting was created, the need has only grown for non-commercial, not-for-profit media, available free to the public with a mission to inform, educate, inspire and engage.
the term 'public media' refers to all media outlets and formats whose mission is to serve the public, not to earn a profit. this non-commercial sector aims to educate, engage and inform audiences, and it offers an alternative to the mainstream, commercial media.

public media includes
community radio: stations that provide local coverage that's not available anywhere else;

low power fm: local, non-profit radio stations that operate at 100 watts or less and have a broadcast reach of only a few miles;

public access tv: channels that are used for public access, governmental or educational purposes, and one of the few broadcast venues open to average people;

independent publications: small-circulation magazines, newspapers and publishers;

satellite tv: viewer-supported channels offering alternative programming;

internet: soon any web site or blog could have the reach of a tv or radio station, presenting a potentially revolutionary new outlet for public media.

public media perform an essential service. low power fm and community radio stations provide information and perspectives often ignored by traditional radio.

public access tv channels allow citizens to watch their local governments in action and offer a valuable platform for free speech.

independent publications enrich our public dialogue by producing a vast range of news, information and opinion.

public media under threat
despite their value, public media are under constant threat. they are chronically underfunded and under assault by lawmakers who would silence critical voices and cripple alternatives to the commercial media. statewide franchising laws for cable television threaten to eliminate local public access channels.

we must look beyond short-term fixes. we need vibrant and sustainable public media that offer diverse fare, meet the needs of local communities and serve the public interest.