Media and democracy<\/p>\n
The House of Representatives this week began debating the
\nlong-awaited Bill on Broadcasting, a bill this nation urgently
\nneeds to provide a legal framework for the broadcasting industry.
\nThe document was drafted by the government, and as Minister of
\nInformation Harmoko told the House's plenary session when he
\nintroduced the bill on Monday, it is the result of extensive
\ndiscussions with mass media experts as well as representatives of
\nthe broadcasting industry.<\/p>\n
So much has changed in these last five to 10 years that
\nreviewing the current legislations as well as the various
\ngovernment rules affecting the broadcasting industry has indeed
\nbecome imperative. For one, we have witnessed the introduction of
\ncommercial television in Indonesia, in a medium which has long
\nbeen the monopoly of the government with TVRI. There is a growing
\nnumber of foreign stations beaming their programs straight into
\nIndonesian living rooms. And then there is the arrival of the
\nInternet, a new phenomenon which is still baffling regulators
\naround the world.<\/p>\n
In more advanced countries, radio, television, and the print
\nmedia are widely recognized as important democratic institutions.
\nThe legislative document now in the hands of House members
\nimplicitly recognizes this factor when it states, in the opening
\nparagraph, that "radio and television as electronic communication
\nmedia have a formidable ability to influence people's opinions,
\nattitudes and behavior."<\/p>\n
Having recognized their influence over public opinion, the
\nbill then fails to address this theme in full. Instead, the 58
\nchapters of the 39-page document concentrate on regulation of the
\nindustry, mostly through the licensing mechanism.<\/p>\n
One of the most pressing issues in Indonesia's broadcasting
\nindustry is ending the monopoly that TVRI and its sister station,
\nradio network RRI have over news broadcasting. While TVRI and RRI
\ndeserve praise for bringing the news to millions of households
\nacross Indonesia every day for all these years, most people agree
\nthat a choice of news sources is essential in any democracy.
\nBefore the bill was unveiled, there was a growing expectation
\nthat commercial stations would soon be providing viewers with a
\nwider choice of news sources.<\/p>\n
Sadly, the bill does not propose ending the government's
\nmonopoly; indeed, on this matter, it is rather vague. A single
\nchapter is devoted to this issue, and it only states that private
\nnetworks may broadcast news only "with the consent of the
\ngovernment".<\/p>\n
This reminds us uncomfortably of the 1982 Press Law which
\nsubjects newspapers to the same treatment, requiring the print
\npress to obtain a publishing license from the government. While
\nthe press law is ironically more explicit than the Bill on
\nBroadcasting in recognizing newspapers' role in democracy, this
\nhas not stopped the government from revoking licenses by invoking
\nthe 1984 Minister of Information Decree that gives the government
\nthat power. How many newspapers and magazines have been abruptly
\nshut down this way, when the government could have taken legal
\naction, which is permitted by the 1982 Press Law ? Many would
\nconsider this a better way to go about things, as it gives
\nnewspapers a chance to defend themselves.<\/p>\n
Given that the broadcasting bill was drafted by the Ministry
\nof Information which oversees the country's entire media
\nindustry, it is of course understandable that it should be more
\nconcerned about regulating the industry. The growing public
\nunease about pornography and violence on television, and the
\ncurrent debate about the dubbing of all foreign programs into
\nIndonesian, in the name of cultural pride, underpin this
\nattitude.<\/p>\n
Yet a law should not simply give a list of don'ts. It should
\nalso provide guarantees to those affected by the law: in this
\ncase, both the broadcasting industry and the public.<\/p>\n
Regulation and licensing are necessary to ensure order, but
\nHouse members should not lose sight of the bigger picture. This
\nbill could do our nation a greater service by allowing television
\nand radio to play their part in our democracy. The government
\nmight also draw some lessons from the press law, and avoid the
\npitfalls that led to the closures of some newspapers and
\nmagazines.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/media-and-democracy-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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