The Impact of Media Concentration on Professional ... - OSCE

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press is ridiculous. Journalists continue to fill pages. But in theirheart they know that they are neither free nor independent”.While such statements are certainly induced by the pr<strong>of</strong>essionalsituation <strong>of</strong> the individual journalist, it would be tooeasy for them to be dismissed as not being representative.Firstly, because the whole survey was exclusively built on thepersonal opinion <strong>of</strong> individual journalists and secondly, suchradical feelings were mainly received from countries where thefreedom <strong>of</strong> the press is in danger.This study does not pretend to <strong>of</strong>fer final and “scientificallysound” answers to the question <strong>of</strong> to what degree pr<strong>of</strong>essionaljournalists feel the impact <strong>of</strong> media concentration. It should,however, be taken seriously, as it sheds a bright light on thenot so optimistic evaluation <strong>of</strong> journalists <strong>of</strong> the state <strong>of</strong> theirpr<strong>of</strong>ession.Where journalists do not feel free to state their real personalopinion, and retreat to what they believe to be the expectedsocially and politically “correct” answers, the very foundations<strong>of</strong> democracy are in question.Position <strong>of</strong> the European Federation <strong>of</strong> Journalists (EFJ)by Renate Schroeder, European Director<strong>The</strong> rise <strong>of</strong> a global commercial media system and <strong>of</strong> mediaconcentration is more than an economic matter for Europeans;it also has clear implications for democratic andsocial values as well as for the role <strong>of</strong> journalists. Excessivecommercialisation and, particularly, media concentrationcan impede the right to know because it leads to a smallnumber <strong>of</strong> corporations controlling the major proportion <strong>of</strong>media outlets, thus restricting diversity and pluralism. <strong>The</strong>European Federation <strong>of</strong> Journalists representing about200.000 journalists throughout Europe is, therefore, concernednot just about the quality <strong>of</strong> journalism and journalisticwork, but also the impact on politics, pluralism andtraditional cultural values.64 THE IMPACT OF MEDIA CONCENTRATION ON PROFESSIONAL JOURNALISM
<strong>The</strong> issues that need to be considered when talking aboutjournalistic quality, ownership <strong>of</strong> media and concentrationare:• <strong>The</strong> importance <strong>of</strong> media to democratic pluralism, creativeexpression and cultural diversity within society;• <strong>The</strong> needs <strong>of</strong> owners to create viable and vigorous mediabusinesses to suit a turbulent and expanding informationmarket;• <strong>The</strong> need to maintain distance between media activityand the exercise <strong>of</strong> political power;• <strong>The</strong> needs <strong>of</strong> journalists and others to work in a pr<strong>of</strong>essionalenvironment free from undue political or commercialpressure.Much <strong>of</strong> the work <strong>of</strong> journalists and authors depends heavilyupon good conditions <strong>of</strong> freedom <strong>of</strong> expression andopinion. <strong>The</strong> problem, and there is much evidence to supportit these days, is that corporate influence in modernmedia is upsetting the traditional balance between businessinterests and editorial independence.At the heart <strong>of</strong> journalism, without being too grand, isthe notion <strong>of</strong> impartiality, tolerance and respect for the truth.But ideas <strong>of</strong> “mission”, “public interest” and ethical standardsare increasingly compromised by commercial pressure onthe news agenda in favour <strong>of</strong> business interests.At the same time social conditions and employmentrights are under extreme pressure as corporate hostility tounions and collective bargaining are having a negative impacton both quality <strong>of</strong> content and social conditions.However, it must be said that although flawed, theglobal media system can be at times a progressive force.This happens, for example, where it enters national marketsin Europe that have traditionally been tightly controlledby corrupt administrations or where there has beensignificant state censorship. Also we can all agree that thedevelopment <strong>of</strong> new technologies can <strong>of</strong>fer unprecedentedopportunities for ordinary people to participate in thedemocratic process.THE SURVEY 65
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REPRESENTATIVE ON FREEDOM OF THE ME
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ContentsPrefaceby Freimut Duve 9Int
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6. Conclusions 187AnnexQuestionnair
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advertisement is very insecure, mak
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industrial lobbying groups still di
Page 15 and 16: 1. The Imp
Page 17 and 18: sidents” had been imprisoned. “
Page 19 and 20: determined Freedom of</stro
Page 21 and 22: co-operate fully with the OSCE Repr
Page 23 and 24: Such independence, however, comes a
Page 25 and 26: and mirror of the
Page 27 and 28: 30 million rely exclusively on info
Page 29 and 30: Unchecked, concentration will reduc
Page 31 and 32: protected, a certain level
Page 33 and 34: indication of the
Page 35 and 36: time, as the concept of</st
Page 37 and 38: It appears, however, that this posi
Page 39 and 40: 1.7 New Threats on the Horizon1.7.1
Page 41 and 42: owns or controls not only the three
Page 43 and 44: Target countries sometimes interpre
Page 45 and 46: independence proposed by the OSCE R
Page 47 and 48: groups to grow. And there is the in
Page 49 and 50: areas of Central a
Page 51 and 52: Directly or indirectly Mr. Silvio B
Page 53 and 54: Yet this simple notion appears to b
Page 55 and 56: newspaper firms. Using the argument
Page 57 and 58: a contribution to democratization a
Page 59: tation of this for
Page 62 and 63: This limitation in no way indicates
Page 66 and 67: But these progressive aspects <stro
Page 68 and 69: Nevertheless, the loss of</
Page 70 and 71: may well be true for journalists fr
Page 72 and 73: Is there a works council at your ne
Page 74 and 75: will go to television, this being t
Page 76 and 77: Economic revenue (%) Fig. 61234510,
Page 78 and 79: Good relations with the business co
Page 80 and 81: Further, how can a newspaper, whose
Page 82 and 83: Service for civil society (%) Fig.
Page 84 and 85: The Norwegian medi
Page 86 and 87: Have you ever been put under pressu
Page 88 and 89: Do you feel threatened in your posi
Page 91 and 92: 4. Number of Title
Page 93 and 94: 5. Country Reports5.1 Germany5.1.1
Page 95 and 96: Süddeutsche Zeitung (463,000), Lei
Page 97 and 98: publisher, the Axel Springer Verlag
Page 99 and 100: A three directional strategy is wha
Page 101 and 102: 5.1.2 Survey ResultsBacked by tradi
Page 103 and 104: Cross-ownership has also increased
Page 105 and 106: Economic revenue (%) Fig. 61234515,
Page 107 and 108: Service for civil society (%) Fig.
Page 109 and 110: Understandably all German journalis
Page 111 and 112: Do you feel threatened in your posi
Page 113 and 114: As also seen in Germany, the data p
Page 115 and 116:
5.2.2 Survey ResultsFinland compete
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Newspaper chains were the logical r
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5.3 United Kingdom5.3.1 Country Rep
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• Daily Mail and General Trust: D
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Is there a works council at your ne
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Economic revenue (%) Fig. 61234510,
Page 127 and 128:
Service for civil society (%) Fig.
Page 129 and 130:
Do you feel free to voice and write
Page 131:
Do you feel threatened in your posi
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Newspaper reach (%)All Adults 30.1M
Page 136 and 137:
As regards ownership concentration,
Page 138 and 139:
Financial BackgroundDespite the pre
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5.4.2 Survey resultsIf Finnish jour
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of those mini-comp
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for example, is very clear on this
Page 146 and 147:
Page 148 and 149:
5.5.2 Survey ResultsAn anonymous It
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portfolio. In addition, as democrat
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Mr. Berlusconi’s TV advertisement
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5.6 Lithuania5.6.1 Country ReportCa
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is quite remarkable. The</s
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Lithuania is a small country with a
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Another tendency is that newspapers
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Only in 2003, the daily newspaper L
Page 164 and 165:
Page 166 and 167:
October 22 2003 was an historic dat
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5.7.2 Survey ResultsSince the end <
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y a mostly anonymous to the general
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On a daily, practical basis there
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Newspaper reach (%)All Adults 15Sou
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so-called “human interest” stor
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indicated that Rodipet applies a di
Page 180 and 181:
5.8.2 Survey ResultsAlthough a smal
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12345Objectivity (%) Fig. 57,114,32
Page 184 and 185:
Strengthening of d
Page 186 and 187:
Do you feel threatened in your posi
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emerging CEE countries with regard
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- Create in all OSCE participating
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Organization for Security and Co-op
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1. In which country are you working
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17. Who defines the editorial line
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29. How would you describe the situ
Page 201 and 202:
- This common code of</stro
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Personal and business interestsIt i
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Orkla Media’s
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www.osce.org/fomJohannes von Dohnan
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