Universalism in Public Service Media

"...the concept of universalism must be reconsidered, reimagined, and renewed." - Mercedes Medina

This ninth volume in the series of RIPE Readers explores the history of the concept of universalism in the context of the mission of public service media (PSM) and investigates how this mission might be operationalised in contemporary practice. As explained in the anthology, the notion of universalism was a foundational principle for legitimating broadcasting as a public trust. "Until the 1980s, this principle was the bedrock for the broadcasting mission and is still a mandated requirement for public media companies today. But in practice, the universalism ideal was largely abandoned in the 1980s as media deregulation promised more competition, innovation, and vigorous economic growth."

The book is published in support of the work of the RIPE network (which stands for Re-Visionary Interpretations of the Public Enterprise and is now known as the International Association of Public Media Researchers, or IAPMR). This international project was established to discuss, debate, critique, and conceptualise what is needed to guarantee public service in media today.

The publication is based on the RIPE@2018 Conference theme - universalism and PSM - which focused attention on challenges and opportunities involved with achieving the historic and continuing universal service mission for PSM in today's era of media abundance - one in which, thanks to the internet, anyone can create content to share. The conference theme has been more fully developed in the work undertaken to produce this collection of papers. The international contributors provide a cross-section of perspectives on three key dimensions of universalism: access and reach; genres and services; and relevance and impact.

The book may be of interest to researchers investigating the development of PSM, teachers offering courses on media development in the digital context, and practitioners searching for fresh perspectives to inspire strategic and operational innovation.

The anthology includes the following chapters:

• "Universalism in Public Service Media: Paradoxes, Challenges, and Development", by Gregory Ferrell Lowe and Philip Savage - This chapter provides an overview of the articles in this anthology as they examine the historic universalism mission and investigate aspects of continuing relevance in the enactment of public service as a primary purpose of media performance.
• "Universalism in History, Modern Statehood, and Public Service Media" by Barbara Thomass - Abstract: "Starting from a brief explanation of universalistic thinking, this contribution investigates the philosophical origins and dimensions of universalism and its historical development. It reveals contradictory implications of the concept and shows how it became a significant influence in philosophy about the state. It sketches the development from the Greek polis and the Roman Empire, via the philosophy of Enlightenment and the French Revolution to the twentieth century and the debate about universal human rights... The concept of universalism is presented as one of the grounds for welfare state policies. This establishes a background and framework for understanding the universal service obligation that remains fundamental to the legitimacy of public service media."
• "Universal - But Not Necessarily Useful", by Peter Goodwin - Abstract: "This chapter scrutinises the universal service aspect of public service broadcasting historically. It argues that it was always limited to two quite narrow principles: geographical universality and universality of appeal. Both principles were, from the beginning, vague or ambiguous in definition and operated with caveats and exceptions. Even in the rough and ready fashion in which they did operate, both principles have become increasingly irrelevant in practice. Therefore, the universal service mission is an anachronistic starting point for addressing the very real challenges and opportunities that advocates of public service media must address today."
• "Universality of Public Service Media and Preschool Audiences: The Choice against a Dedicated Television Channel in Flanders", by Karen Donders and Hilde Van den Bulck - Abstract: "In 2017, Flemish public broadcaster Vlaamse Radio en Televisieorganisatie (VRT), that serves the approximately 6.5 million people of the Flemish community in Belgium, proposed launching a separate television channel for preschool children, making use of existing brand Ketnet Jr. VRT argued such a service was necessary given the different needs of preschoolers compared with older children, and the limited reach of their online offers within certain social-political strata. A universality rationale thus underlined VRT's plans. This chapter analyses the process, contents, and outcome of the public value test procedure applied to this proposal. The focus of the analysis is on whether universality arguments were seriously taken into account by the regulator and government, or made subordinate to competitors' logic..."
• "Historical Dimensions of Universalism at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation: Some Implications for Today", by David Skinner - Abstract: "This chapter explores the ways in which the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) has embraced the idea of universal service. While the CBC was not legislatively mandated to elements of universality until 1968, throughout its history, Canada's public broadcaster has striven to provide what are seen today as key elements of this ideal. But the large size of the country, coupled with its small population, the regional, linguistic, and heritage diversity, the vagaries of funding, and relations with the private sector, have made meeting those goals challenging..."
• "Multichannel Strategy, Universalism, and the Challenge of Audience Fragmentation", by Julie Münter Lassen - Abstract: "Technology and the political climate made it possible for the Danish public service media institution, the Danish Broadcasting Corporation (DR), to expand its television channel portfolio from two to six channels between 2006 and 2009. For a decade, DR has been operating one primary television channel and five others with relatively narrow profiles. This chapter considers whether DR might be undermining its own legitimacy as a provider of a universal service by pursuing this multichannel strategy. Although the entire population can access all of DR's content, the multichannel strategy positions DR as part of a development that is fragmenting the public into discrete taste groups..."
• "A Question of Value or Further Restriction? Public Value as a Core Concept", by Christiana Gransow - Abstract: "Inaugurated by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), a systematic assessment of a new service with regards to its public value is part of the governance system in public service media. The concept was applied throughout Europe over the past decade, in combination with the ex ante test. The procedure exists in 14 European media systems and just under 90 services have been reviewed. This chapter critically analyses the conceptual understanding of public value and addresses how public broadcasters define the key term in practice. Four case studies illustrate the variability of the concept..."
• "Challenges for Public Service Radio in Small Nations: Lessons from Scotland", by Aleksandar Kocic and Jelena Milicev - Abstract: "Scotland does not have any public service radio on a local level, except for a few bulletins or programmes offered by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Radio Scotland on an opt-out basis. Scottish commercial radio stations do cover local issues, but only in the form of brief hourly news bulletins without any in-depth coverage. By neglecting local news, BBC Scotland fails to meet one of its key obligations as a public service broadcaster – universality of content. Through a review of the existing literature on the role of media in democracy - and in particular the role of local radio - interviews with academics whose expertise lies in the fields of media policy and regulation, and focus groups with members of the public, this study formulates proposals on how to achieve universality in this key area of news provision in Scotland."
• "Whose Voices and What Values? State Grants for Significant Public Content in the Russian Media Model", by Olga Dovbysh and Tatiana Belyuga - Abstract: "This study explores how the public service function of media can be implemented in a media model where the institution of public service broadcasting has not been established thus far. Analysing the Russian media model, we investigate how paternalistic state support is related to the commercial logic of mass media. Taking the example of state grants for significant public content, we reveal what topics and whose voices are gaining visibility in mass media. The analysis of state grants revealed the limitations of public accountability in grant competition, the overlap of public interest with state interest in grant projects, and a lack of problematisation in supported projects..."
• "Public Service Media in the Era of Information Disorder: Collaboration as a Solution for achieving Universalism", by Minna Aslama Horowitz and Gregory Ferrell Lowe - Abstract: "Viral false information, siloed information habits, and growing distrust in the media are amongst today's most alarming challenges to digital media markets. These phenomena impact trust in media at all societal levels - global, regional, national, and local. They are enabled by economic, sociocultural, and technological transformations that have destabilised media systems and involve commercial, governmental, and civic stakeholders. The consequences significantly impact the lives of ordinary citizens. In today's context, the ability of public service media organisations to fulfill a mandated universalism mission and counter these trends requires a new approach that prioritises and operationalises collaborative efforts."
• "Personalised Universalism in the Age of Algorithms", by Jannick Kirk Sørensen - Abstract: "In this chapter, I address a complex relationship in linking the principles of universalism and personalisation as a tension of considerable importance in contemporary media use. The paradoxical aspects of this relationship are especially evident when treated in the light of ideal types and praxis in legacy public service broadcasting (PSB) and digital public service media (PSM). The relationship is viewed from five angles, culminating in discussion about the materiality produced by shifting technologies in the digital environment and its bearing on the ideological concept of public service in media. The author introduces a new orientation for PSM: personalised enlightenment."
• "Datafication, Fluidity, and Organisational Change: Towards a Universal PSM 3.0", by Lizzie Jackson - Abstract: "This chapter reviews a range of the organisational structures necessary to deliver datafied, fully nuanced content to audiences. These structures can be found in high technology clusters worldwide, and with them, the delivery of digital content to a mass, group, or individual to suit personal preferences is possible via a wide range of platforms. Such fluidity of delivery is likely to increase the universal appeal of public service media (PSM) content and thereby raise the potential for a well-informed national (and international) citizenry. The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's response to the increasing datafication of media by significant commercial firms, such as Netflix and Amazon Prime, was to adopt a mobile-first policy in its Hamilton newsroom, a neighbouring urban community to Toronto. Although the transition was found to be highly disruptive for producers and publics alike, local audiences substantially increased, including younger audiences."