Broadcasting legislation in France over the past twenty years. Main themes, shortcomings and unanswered questions - article ; n°2 ; vol.3, pg 263-290

Cathodon

Description

Réseaux. The French journal of communication - Année 1995 - Volume 3 - Numéro 2 - Pages 263-290
Summary: A comparison of two images of the French audiovisual landscape, with an interval of twenty years between them (1972-92), reveals that the development of broadcasting law during the past two decades has been broadly consistent, it has promoted the constitution of a private pole along with public services henceforth freed from political control, and the replacement of a statutory approach by regulation entrusted to an independent authority disposing of the required legal and material means. This evolution did not, however, take place without prevarication. For three steps forwards there was at least one step amiss, or even backwards. Many questions remain unanswered, whether on the role of the regulatory authority, the contents and financing of public service programmes, the status of communications firms or, more generally, the responsibilities of the public authorities in this sector.
28 pages
Source : Persée ; Ministère de la jeunesse, de l’éducation nationale et de la recherche, Direction de l’enseignement supérieur, Sous-direction des bibliothèques et de la documentation.

Informations

• Publié par: RESEAUX-_THE_FRENCH_JOURNAL_OF_COMMUNICATION
• Publié le: 01 janvier 1995
• Nombre de lectures: 5
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 2 Mo

Extrait

Cathodon
Liz Libbrecht
Broadcasting legislation in France over the past twenty years.
Main themes, shortcomings and unanswered questions
In: Réseaux, 1995, volume 3 n°2. pp. 263-290.
Abstract
Summary: A comparison of two images of the French audiovisual landscape, with an interval of twenty years between them
(1972-92), reveals that the development of broadcasting law during the past two decades has been broadly consistent, it has
promoted the constitution of a private pole along with public services henceforth freed from political control, and the replacement
of a statutory approach by regulation entrusted to an independent authority disposing of the required legal and material means.
This evolution did not, however, take place without prevarication. For three steps forwards there was at least one step amiss, or
even backwards. Many questions remain unanswered, whether on the role of the regulatory authority, the contents and financing
of public service programmes, the status of communications firms or, more generally, the responsibilities of the public authorities
in this sector.
Citer ce document / Cite this document :
Cathodon , Libbrecht Liz. Broadcasting legislation in France over the past twenty years. Main themes, shortcomings and
unanswered questions. In: Réseaux, 1995, volume 3 n°2. pp. 263-290.
http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/reso_0969-9864_1995_num_3_2_3299BROADCASTING
LEGISLATION IN FRANCE
OVER THE PAST TWENTY
YEARS
Main themes, shortcomings and
unanswered questions
Cathodon
Translated by Liz Libbrecht
Summary: A comparison of two images of the French
audiovisual landscape, with an interval of twenty years between
them (1972-92), reveals that the development of broadcasting law
during the past two decades has been broadly consistent, it has
promoted the constitution of a private pole along with public
services henceforth freed from political control, and the
replacement of a statutory approach by regulation entrusted to an
263 Cathodon
independent authority disposing of the required legal and material
means.
This evolution did not, however, take place without prevarication.
For three steps forwards there was at least one step amiss, or even
backwards. Many questions remain unanswered, whether on the
role of the regulatory authority, the contents and financing of
public service programmes, the status of communications firms
or, more generally, the responsibilities of the public authorities in
this sector.
264 BROADCASnNGLEeiSLATIONINFRANCEOVERTHEPASTmENTYYEARS
With the exclusion of border areas, the
6 BROADCASTING French had a choice of three TV channels
only and an equal number of radio sta
tions - all of them State-owned. They
LEGISLATION could, in addition, pick up three public
service radio stations and several border
stations (radios périphériques). The latter,
IN FRANCE however, had the French State as a share
holder and depended on governmental
goodwill for studio-transmitter links,
OVER THE relay stations and so forth.
Twenty years later, In April 1993, the
public sector comprises five national pr
PAST TWENTY ogramme companies (France 2, France 3,
Radio France, RFO. RFI) and a binational
company (ARTE). The directors of these
YEARS companies (except RFI) are no longer ap
pointed by the government and cannot be
dismissed by it. The content of their pr
ogrammes is henceforth beyond any mini
sterial control. They broadcast, by and Main unanswered themes, shortcomings questions
terrestrial microwave channel, three tele
vision programmes (France 2, France 3,
ARTE) and five national radio stations
(France Inter, France Culture, France
Musique, France Info, Radio Bleue), as
well as localTV programmes (RFO, France
3 regional service), local radio (decen
tralized stations of Radio France, FIP/FIR
network) , and RFI world-wide broadcasts.
Cathodon In addition, multinational public initia
tives have spawned new cable and satell
ite services (TV5, Euronews).
There is now also a private sector with In 1972 French radio and television
three national terrestrial broadcast TV were a state monopoly. A single publ
channels (TF1, Canal Plus, M6), thirteen ic body, the Office de Radiodiffusion
local terrestrial channels (five in metroTélévision Français (ORTF). control
politan France: Télé Toulouse, Télé Lyon led production, programming and broadc
Métropole, Huit Mont Blanc, Auqi TV and asting. Whereas the chairman of the
Télé Bleue; and eight in the French overboard, Arthur Conte, had been elected in
seas departments: Canal Réunion, July for a three-year term, he was unex
Antenne Réunion, TV Sud, TCI-Guade- pectedly removed from office by decree in
loupe, TCI-Martinique, ATV-Martinique, the autumn of 1973. The claimed motives
Canal-Antilles and Archipel 4), ten the- managerial inefficiency- hardly masked
matic channels distributed by cable or the wish to put an end to the Chaban-
broadcast by satellite (Planète, Canal J, Delmas governments' attempt at deregul
Canal Jimmy, Paris Première, Ciné- ation.
* Translator's note: this text was written at the beginning of 1993.
265 Cathodon
Cínéftl, Ciné-Clnéma, TV Sport, Euros- 1986 alone had been amended fourteen
port, Euromusique, Série Club), a dozen times by 1 January 1993ft Yet, if one reads
cablecast 'local channels', over 200 cable- through these texts*, there is clearly more
casting networks, 1300 radio stations - continuity than rupture. Somehow, the
partly affiliated to about ten national series of laws between 1972 and 1992
radiophonie networks (generic, such as managed to attend a phenomenal trans
RTL, Europe 1 and RMC, or thematic, formation in the broadcasting environ
such as Nostalgie, NRJ, Fun, Skyrock, ment, albeit fraught with conflict,
M40, RFM or Europe 2) - and thousands reservations and prevarication. Legisla
of telematic services. tors were divided over opposing possib
ilities. In some instances they opened About a hundred private producers rival perspectives which subsequently proved the SFP (Société française de production) to be unrealistic; in others, they adopted in the production of audiovisual works, makeshift solutions. Innovative zeal was while the operation of cablecasting net accompanied by the temptation to limit works has brought together public and ineluctable change. From one law to anprivate capital. Registered as a company, other we see both progress and areas of TDF (Télédiffusion de France) - which
resistance. It would be unfair to deny the since 1986 has no longer enjoyed the progress, but equally absurd to claim that broadcasting monopoly - offers its tech it was harmonious. The general trend nical services on a newly competitive mark pointed in a single direction, but the et. INA (Institut national de course was hesitant; for three steps fol'audiovisuel) deals with archiving, train rwards there was one step backwards and ing and research for the entire broadcast one amiss. system.
Though unrefined it may be, this com
Continuous progress parison of two images of the French broad
environment* gives a fair idea of casting Despite the difficulty of legislating in such the ground covered over the twenty-year an unpredictable field, the development period under review. It ought to encourage of broadcasting law moved, globally, in a more indulgence in those who see all
single direction. Numerous debates on legislative activity during that time as the subject have now been closed.
nothing but unsystematic agitation, the
establishment of shaky foundations, or
determined attempts by the powers-that- The difficulty of legislating
be to control a sector in which they lacked How can one move, with assurance, from technical know-how. a monopolistic system in which the ex
The frequency of legislative changes does, ecutive authority exercises direct control
nevertheless have a certain irony for over the contents of information, to a
there have been no fewer than five major pluralistic model in which a private comp
changes since 1970 (1972, 1974, 1982, etitive sector coexists with a public ser
1 986, and 1989). The law of 30 September vice freed from political constraints?
• audiovisual Translator's landscape. note: in French the PAF (Paysage Audiovisuel Français), literally the French
t Without taking Into account new measures which could have been included in the 1986 Act,
such as telepurchasing (6 January 1988), the legal registration of broadcasting documents (20
June 1992), sport-television relations (13 July 1992 Act), texts limiting advertising of certain
products, etc. The number of application decrees was even more impressive (around 300). The
collection of laws concerning audiovisual communication, published in the February 1990
government gazette, filled a thousand pagest
ф Cf., for example, comments by J. Chevalier on the law of 17 January 1989 (AJDA 1989, p. 59).
266 BROADCASTING LEGISLATION IN FRANCE OVER THE PAST TWENTY YEARS
What conclusions can be drawn from The following examples illustrate this
technological changes which, wether in point:
exceeding the boldest predictions or, al Legislators have o