Editorial Independence Is Essential for Public Service Broadcasting Says Bangkok Workshop
09-12-2004 (New Delhi)
An all-female panel at the Regional Asian Seminar on Public Service Broadcasting
© UNESCO
“The principle of editorial independence should be guaranteed by law and executed through regulation”, said the participants in the UNESCO supported regional seminar on public service broadcasting, which was recently organized in Bangkok by the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development.
The main objectives of the seminar were to share experiences, promote the concept of public service broadcasting, to study legislative framework as well as the ethical, financial and administrative aspects for the establishment of public service broadcasting.
The seminar brought together some 30 representatives of South and Southeast Asia, who agreed on the need to persuade decision-makers, policy-makers, legislators, regulators and operators that editorially independent public service broadcasting is of crucial importance in a democratic society and to maintain the diversity in the broadcasting sector.
They further said that the dominant characteristics of public service broadcasting is that it is owned, paid for and controlled by the public and that it serves the public interest, rather than purely commercial interest or the interest of the state government, in an balanced and impartial manner needed for independent and informed decision making.
The participants called on the organizers to promote the public service broadcasting principles in such international negotiations as the GATT, WSIS and UNESCO conventional on cultural diversity for the benefit of the people in the region.
The seminar brought together some 30 representatives of South and Southeast Asia, who agreed on the need to persuade decision-makers, policy-makers, legislators, regulators and operators that editorially independent public service broadcasting is of crucial importance in a democratic society and to maintain the diversity in the broadcasting sector.
They further said that the dominant characteristics of public service broadcasting is that it is owned, paid for and controlled by the public and that it serves the public interest, rather than purely commercial interest or the interest of the state government, in an balanced and impartial manner needed for independent and informed decision making.
The participants called on the organizers to promote the public service broadcasting principles in such international negotiations as the GATT, WSIS and UNESCO conventional on cultural diversity for the benefit of the people in the region.
Related themes/countries
· Public Service Broadcasting: News Archives 2004
· Thailand: News Archive 2004
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- UNESCO New Delhi
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