II.

Why Regulation Exists

Historically, there are two reasons for the regulation of broadcasting: shortage of frequencies; and the supposed power of the broadcasting media. Regulation therefore applies to both the allocation of frequencies and the content of broadcast programmes.

A.

Frequencies

Broadcasting, whether by the medium of radio or television, uses radio frequencies, which form part of the electromagnetic spectrum. These are in demand not only for broadcasting but for government and military purposes and for public services such as the police. They must be allocated with care in order to avoid interference by one user with another in the same transmission area.

Throughout the history of broadcasting, the supply of frequencies has fallen short of the demand. Advances in technology and improved efficiency in managing the radio spectrum have steadily increased the number of frequencies available, but there are still not enough. The existence in many areas of “pirate” stations, which make unauthorized use of frequencies and cause interference to legitimate broadcasts, illustrates the problem. With the arrival, however, of transmission systems using techniques of digital compression (see Data Compression), which promise to make possible a virtually unlimited number of broadcasting channels, this situation is expected to change radically.

B.

Content

Partly because there are not enough frequencies to go round, governments in all countries and of all political standpoints have felt it necessary to control the content of broadcasting. Unlike newspapers or books, which involve an act of choice on the part of their readers, radio and television programmes of all kinds are within reach of anyone with a receiver, including children. These mass media are therefore widely thought to have greater power than other means of communication to affect the way people think.

As broadcasting has expanded—in many countries it is now a major economic force as well as the main source of public information and entertainment—so the regulatory arrangements have become more complex. Even where broadcasting is not directly under government control, restrictions are placed on the ownership of television and radio stations to ensure that they do not become concentrated in too few hands or dominated by foreign interests. Broadcasters are subject to codes, either imposed or voluntary, on reporting controversial matters of public debate, on showing violence and sexual activity, and on other aspects of programme-making. (They may also have to bear obligations from which the print media are free, such as transmitting educational programmes.)