Dear Gaby:
I just spent a week in Canada, and noticed a long-time trend affecting
community media, and specifically aboriginal community media. (As you may
know I wrote my MA thesis (1989) on comparing policy and implementation in
Canada and India. ) My earlier work was on satellites and broadcasting, but
my current concern is with broadband and wireless. Separating broadcasting
may seem like a good idea, but the real planning decisions are being made
elsewhere in the newer digital industries where capital is moving.
Here's what I noticed
1. In Canada, although the CRTC is involved, it's other areas of government
and corporate industry that are really making the decisions for the next
generation of web-based communications in aboriginal communities. For
example, initiatives to expand broadband capacity is tied to the
planning/goals of the telcos. Please make sure that your comparisons also
assess the whole area of public-private partnerships which is now the
neo-liberal mode.
2. Parallel to this, is the privileging of regional or national level
planning initiatives. EG. there are already aboriginal groups who are
modelling excellent community based communications, (Isuma and Knet).
However, their work may be supplanted by a model that favours a regional or
national grid, or even one based on individual consumers as opposed to a
more community access model.
These two ongoing trends: corporate-led planning, and national/regional
initiatives are certainly the mode in the US, as you know.
I don't have all the info about Canadian aboriginal communications, but
could direct you to those who do.
Dorothy Kidd.
On Sun, Jun 13, 2010 at 8:06 PM, G <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Dear OURmedia friends,
> (apologies for cross-posting)
>
> Urgent question regarding independent regulation agencies.
>
> In Japan, the government (constantly changing though the members are) is
> considering finally (!) an independent broadcasting agency (so far airwaves
> directly regulated by ministry of interior). A civil society group called
> ComRights is feverishly gathering information on good examples (and some
> bad
> ones) of independent regulating agencies from around the world. Does anyone
> know of existing comparative studies or have on hand detailed info about
> the
> independent regulators (independent from the government) of specific
> countries?
>
> Japanese colleagues are already currently collecting info from US, UK,
> France and Germany (and I have found some comparative data on EU country's
> regulators), but hints for good examples in other countries would be
> welcome
> and some notably bad ones too (word so far is: FCC is not so good- though
> unfortunately now being considered as the main model- the planned
> regulatory
> agency is even dubbed 'Japanese FCC', OFCOM is better, the regulator in
> Germany's Northrhine-Westfahlia is pretty good. Any insights on that?).
>
> We'd be interested also on information on how regulators relate to the
> community media sector(s) in each case (I've found some information on that
> in comparative community radio reports).
>
> Please feel free to pass this question on to other people and lists who you
> think may have leads, but when forwarding please cut out my e-mail address
> in the header and instead include the signature below.
>
> Gabi
> ghprof(at)me.com
>
> PS: They are for now looking at broadcasting authorities ONLY, as the
> convergence law draft is on hold for the moment and industry bodies
> 'self-'regulate internet, game industry, etc. But obviously many countries
> regulators cover multiple platforms, and this may also happen in Jp
> eventually.
>
--
Dorothy Kidd
Professor
Department of Media Studies
University of San Francisco
2130 Fulton St.
San Francisco
94117-1080
415-422-5061
[log in to unmask]
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