Broadcasting may not be one of the sectors our nation depends on for its survival. The economy, tourism, employment and education are the priority areas for our country. However, this is certainly no reflection on its relevance in our daily life. Broadcasting is one of the pillars of democracy. And perhaps this is what makes me stress, repeatedly, that having independent media to keep government in check is essential if we wish to keep our democracy alive.
Recently we had the occasion to debate in Parliament another amendment to the Broadcasting law, through which we transposed an EU directive entitled the Audiovisual and Media Services Directive. The debate served as another occasion for a discussion on the many facets of broadcasting, particularly the National Station, PBS. Again, one would think that in an age of pluralism in broadcasting the need for a national station has been dwarfed. This is far from the truth. Public broadcasting is a need in society. Unfortunately, our idea of public service broadcasting has been tainted with sad stories of political intrusion in a sector which should be alien to politics and solely focused on the viewer’s likes and dislikes.
The question is: how can we reform our National Station and ensure that it is regained by the people rather than remaining in the hands of the state? In Parliament I stressed the point that we now have the opportunity to move in this direction through the House Select Committee which has been entrusted with the job to look into various issues of national importance including broadcasting. MPs from both sides expressed similar opinions that it is high time we take decisions in favour of a more independent PBS.
A station can be truly independent if it does not rely on the state to finance it. It will also make the necessary progress in such a competitive market if it is not made to follow the same restrictive rules applied within the public sector. For example, lately PBS needed to engage a programmes manager, a very important role within a TV station. It took it several months to fill a vacancy which rumours have it will now be filled internally. The same problem was faced when the station needed to employ a news manager.
The issue of finance is trickier. The station cannot run solely on revenue from advertising. It is also not healthy to do so. I have criticised the fact that PBS’s news service is financed through advertisements. Various current affairs programmes are also sponsored, something which is now prohibited by the EU’s directive entrenched into our law. Such financing will expose PBS to conflicts of interest. Perhaps I am still a voice in the wild when it comes to my idea that we should do away with TV licences, forget its scrapping even though it was one of the PN’s pledges in the last general election, and develop it into a public contribution in favour of an independent public station. Such funds should be utilised to cover the station’s operational expenses including salaries. Government should still fulfil its Public Service Obligation as it is currently doing because such financing does not create any conflict of interest for PBS.
That settled, we can then tackle the issue as to who should appoint the station’s chairman, board directors top executives and the editorial board. I think the country would benefit from a paradigm shift in this regard. There are various options to consider. Being a member of the House Select Committee, I would rather refrain from expressing opinions on these options, but I do augur that both political parties recognise the importance of coming up with a formula that works. The Committee’s proposal on the strengthening of the Ombudsman augurs well for other decisions that need to be taken.
Earlier on, I mentioned the need to find a better formula to finance the station. Advertising should still remain a source of income for PBS. What we need to look into is the way things are done. Today we have the ridiculous situation where PBS competes for advertising with the same producers who supply it with programmes. Moreover, the station’s advertising department is still deprived of the necessary human resources to run an efficient and effective department which manages to secure the best possible advertising deals for the station.
A reformed advertising department would need to generate around €4 million if PBS had to buy in all the production it airs. Ideally, we should reach a stage where PBS buys programmes off independent producers, leaving them more time to dedicate on improving the quality of their productions. However, this option may be shot down on the basis of a report commissioned by PBS, which shows that the production costs of buy-in programmes exceed revenue generated through advertising. In reality, what happens is that independent producers opt to either scale back on improving the programme’s quality or choose to settle for less or zero profit, as long as they produce quality programmes.
Irrespective of the formula used to fund the station, PBS has other needs to be looked into. A new Outside Broadcasting Unit needs to be purchased. The present one is old and fast becoming outdated. A new Play-out Transmission System is required, while a modern archive department needs to be set up. PBS is still without a modern and comprehensive portal – a must for all media companies nowadays. The digital switchover will bring new pressures on PBS now that it has been decided that the station will have to provide the platform for the six digital stations transmitted free-to-air to all households in Malta and Gozo. On a positive note, Government has allocated additional funds to PBS for 2010 to make up for in shortfall from advertising revenue attributed to the recession.
One hopes that 2010 will bring us closer to a reform in this sector, particularly with the advent of the digital era in the broadcasting sector. We cannot face the future with the mentality of yesterday. If we free broadcasting from the chains of a mentality rooted in colonialism we will be strengthening our democracy, making our society freer.
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