The international conference 'Press and Press Support in a Digital Age' in The Hague, The Netherlands, organized by The Netherlands Press Fund, was a meeting place for scientists and policy makers on matters concerning support measures from governments in several countries for the press and related research on media pluralism and diversity. Managers of media and press policies, academic experts on communication policies, NGO's, funds, editors and publishers of newspapers, magazines, web-only outlets from all over the world came together to discuss their struggles for diversity in the news and opinions supply.
The underlying idea was that a well functioning information supply is essential in a democratic society and that there is a task for the government to stimulate innovation as a duty of care based on the freedom of speech and right of information.
In this publication are combined the presentations of the conference, concentrated around issues as the role of government in safe guarding the quality and pluralism of the press, the instruments of governmental press policy, the research on press and media pluralism, the innovation in the newspaper industry, the consequences for the media, minorities and the youth, and the role of the European Union regarding the press policy.
The contributions of the speakers and the participants of the conference proofed to be a very successful and historical first step to an international network of exchanging information on policy and research.
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CONTENTS
Part 1 - introduction
Preface
- Dr. Wim Noomen, chairman of the board of The Netherlands Press Fund -
Cornerstones for Dutch press policy. Foreword - Dr. Ronald Plasterk, Minister of Education, Culture and Science of The Netherlands -
Welcome to The Hague, the international city of justice, peace and security
- Dr. Wim Deetman, mayor of The Hague (1996 till 2008) -
You are not alone — Introduction to the conference theme
- Dr. Wim Noomen, chairman of the board of The Netherlands Press Fund -
Part 2 - the role of government in safeguarding the quality and pluralism of the press
The new balancing act
- Dr. Caroline Nevejan, member of the Council for Culture and chairman of its commission eCulture -
Government policies for a free and diverse press — Press subsidy modalities and justifications
- Professor Peter Humphreys, University of Manchester -
The case for press support revisited
- Professor Denis McQuail, Hon. Fellow, AmsterdamSchool of Communication Research, The Netherlands -
Conditions for a new communications policy
- Professor Jo Bardoel, University of Amsterdam and Radboud University Nijmegen, interviewed by Dr. Wim Noomen, chairman of The Netherlands Press Fund -
Do Subsidies avoid market failure? — Theorizing financial subsidies to newspapers in Europe
- Professor Paul Murschetz, professor for Media Management and International Bussiness, Cologne Business School, European University of Applied Science, Cologne, Germany -
Part 3 - Instruments of governmental press policy
The Belgian Case — Role of the government in safeguarding the quality and pluralism of the press
- Professor Els De Bens, professor emeritus University of Gent and chairperson of the Flemish Media Council, Belgium -
The Portuguese case and experience — Trends in press market and the state support
- Joao Paulo Faustino, former vice-president of the Portuguese Press Association, guest researcher at JonkopingInternationalBusinessSchool (Sweden) and editor of the magazine Media xxi -
Press subsidy in Austria — Instruments of governmental press policy
- Brigitte Zauner-Jelemensky, Austrian Communications Authority -
Press support in Norway — Instruments of governmental press policy
- Tor Erik Engebretsen, director Grants & Analysis, Medietilsynet (Norwegian Media Authority), Norway -
Newspaper support system and media situation in Korea
- Heng-Hoon Chang, chairman, Korea Commission for the Press, Korea -
Slovenia — No strategy behind state subsidies to the media
- Sandra Basic Hrvatin, Faculty of Social Sciences and Brankica Petkovic, Peace Institute, Ljubljana, Slovenia -
South Africa case study — An approach to media development and diversity
- Lumko Mtimde, Chief Executive Officer, Media Development & Diversity Agency, South Africa -
Press and press support in The Netherlands — Innovation in the press industry and the right of information
- Dr. Lou Lichtenberg, managing director Stimuleringsfonds voor de Pers (The Netherlands Press Fund), The Hague, The Netherlands -
The media policy of The Hague
- Rabin S. Baldewsingh, vice-mayor of The Hague, The Netherlands -
Part 4 - research on press and media pluralism
On Measuring Media Diversity and Assessing Media Opinion Power
- Professor Jan van Cuilenburg, professor University of Amsterdam and member of the Board of Commissioners of the Dutch Media Authority, The Netherlands -
The Netherlands News Monitor
- Dr. Otto Scholten (also director Press Institute) and Dr. Nel Ruigrok of the Netherlands News Monitor, The Netherlands -
Swedish press policy making and the role of research
- Professor Karl Erik Gustafsson, professor of Mass Media Economics, mmtc, Jönköping International Business School, Sweden -
Ethnic minorities and media use — Contours of research in Europe with special emphasis on the Low Countries and on news preferences
- Dr. Leen d’Haenens, Catholic University of Leuven/ Radboud University Nijmegen and Hasibe Gezduci †, CatholicUniversity of Leuven -
Part 5 - innovation in the newspaper industry
Reliable Surprises — A major function of newspapers – and recent newspaper innovations
- Professor Klaus Schoenbach, professor University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, and Zeppelin Universität Friedrichshaven, Germany -
Innovation in the Dutch newspaper industry
- Kees Spaan, president of the Dutch Newspaper Publishers Association (ndp), The Netherlands -
All together now — How newspapers can master the e-paper era
- Jan Bierhoff, director European Centre for Digital Communication, The Netherlands -
Talking about being connected — Innovation and transformations in the local press
- Paul Bos, director of the Association of Local Media nnp, The Netherlands -
Research on press and innovation in Flanders
- Professor Caroline Pauwels, professor and head of the Department of Communications at the Free University of Brussels and director of Studies on Media, Information and Telecommunication (smit), Belgium -
Towards an innovation platform for journalists
- Vladimir Bartelds, Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, Communication and Media, and manager of the Project Innovation Platform of the National Union for Journalists, The Netherlands -
Part 6 - Consequences for the media consumer: minorities and youth
Media and minorities in the digital Age — Cultural diversity, from the margin to the centre
- Carmelita Serkei msc, member of the Management Team of Mira Media, head of the unit Education and Profession, Research and Development, The Netherlands -
The giant hidden in plain sight — Ethnic media in America
- Andrew Lam, editor New America Media, usa -
Young readers and newspapers — How can a project as Newspapers in education contribute to a qualitative press policy to preserve future newspaper readership?
- Professor Karin Raeymaeckers, professor at the Department of Communication Sciences at Ghent University, Belgium -
‘Checking, snacking and bodysnatching’ — How young people use the news and implications for public service media journalism
- Professor Irene Costera Meijer, professor of Journalism vu University Amsterdam and Lector Media & Civil Society Windesheim School of Media, The Netherlands -
Towards a ‘digital generation?’ — Trends in media and ictuse among the young and old
- Professor Frank Huysmans, Netherlands Institute of Social Research (scp) and professor Media Studies, Library Science, University of Amsterdam (UvA), The Netherlands -
Part 7 - the role of the european union regarding press policy
The three-step approach of the European Commission for advancing the debate on media pluralism within the eu
- Adam Watson Brown, head of Sector Media of dgInformation Society Division B1B of the European Commission -
Views on European media policy
- Valtteri Niiranen, director European Newspaper Publishers’ Association enpa -
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PREFACE
On the 3rd and 4th of October 2007 The Netherlands Press Fund organized the international conference ‘Press and Press Support in a Digital Age’ in The Hague, The Netherlands. The Netherlands Press Fund is an independent governmental agency which aims at increasing the diversity of the press by financially strengthening the position of print media and promoting research into the press industry. The conference was meant to be a meeting place for some 150 scientists and policy makers on matters concerning (a) support measures from governments in several countries for the press and (b) related research on media pluralism and diversity. Managers (political, technical) of media / press policies, academic experts on communication policies, ngo’s, funds, editors and publishers of newspapers, magazines, web-only outlets from all over the world came together in a rare opportunity to network and discuss their common struggles for diversity in the news and opinions supply. In this book the board of the Press Fund publishes the integral texts of the papers and other contributions of the 36 invited speakers of this conference. After an introduction by the Dutch Minister of Education, Culture and Science, dr. Ronald Plasterk, this publication presents the texts of speeches about The Hague as the international city of peace, justice and security, international trends in press policy, the role of the government in a changing media world, press subsidy modalities and justifications, and steps for advancing the debate on media pluralism in Europe. In following chapters this book continues with the presentations of speakers at parallel sessions of the conference, concentrated on issues like the role of government in media in principle, instruments of governmental press policy, consequences for minorities and youth as media consumers, research on pluralism, press innovation, and the role of the European Union. With the contributions of the speakers and the many other participants to these themes, the conference proofed to be a very successful and historical first step to an international network of exchanging information on policy and research. Such a meeting underlines the conclusion that this experience is very morish. But how to proceed now? Putting this question is at the same time a challenge to answer it. We certainly hope that the exchange of information between all the countries involved will go on. For that purpose we are looking for possibilities to continue the website www.presssupport.org in a more interactive way, to keep the information up to date and to offer possibilities to correct wrong or insufficient data immediately. This conference might also have paved ways for organizing further expert meetings on a more practical basis in different countries, in order to stimulate further the exchange of ideas on concrete policy actions and further research especially relevant in ongoing discussions about the public domain. And last but not least it may be recommendable to strengthen the contacts with the European Union and European institutions, considering the growing internationalisation and even globalization of media. So many countries, so many customs, but in spite of, or thanks to so many varieties we undoubtedly can, may and will learn from each other.
Dr. Wim Noomen,Chairman of the board of The Netherlands Press Fund
CORNERSTONES FOR DUTCH PRESS POLICY Foreword
Dr. Ronald Plasterk,Minister of Education, Culture and Science of The Netherlands
The media play a prominent role in our modern western society. During their lives, people spend more time engaged with the media than they do with work, education and other activities. Only sleeping takes up a larger amount of our time, but that is beside the point here. For a parliamentary democracy, having an independent, critically minded media is essential. If the parliament is the heart of our democracy, the media are its lungs, so to speak. Media supply the oxygen that feeds democratic debate and keeps this discourse going. Media enable ordinary citizens to stay abreast of current political and social affairs and to form an educated opinion about what is going on. My approach to the media policy is to ensure that ordinary citizens have access to a broad and pluriform supply of media. The focus here is on independent and accessible media of a high quality, covering a wide range of topics, so that the public is exposed to all relevant views on current affairs in our society. Worldwide trends such as digitisation, commercialisation and internationalization have set new requirements for the media policy pursued by the government. They require a policy that is not limited to particular types of media – such as the broadcast media or the press – but that extends to the full range present on the media landscape. In my view, this concerns both production and distribution, both public and commercial broadcasters, newspapers, magazines and books, as well as articles written by journalists on the internet. I call it the “broad media policy”. Keywords for this focus are: independence, quality, diversity and accessibility. Newspapers play an important role in providing ordinary citizens with information. Newspapers are quintessential in fulfilling the functions that are essential for the proper functioning of our society: they provide a space where news and information, debate and opinion can come together. Because they appear every day, newspapers are the best way to stay abreast of current social and political developments. Owing to their still wide circulation, newspapers enable many people to inform themselves and form opinions. Newspapers also provide a stage for social debate, whether it is focused on the presence of Dutch troops in Afghanistan, on the future of Europe or on the scores of the Dutch national football team. A recent study has shown that newspapers are still the leading news providers in the Netherlands. They score the highest on the provision of information and score higher than other types of media in their capacity to reach people. These are all reasons why the government considers a vigorous press to be absolutely essential. What does the government do to promote the press and to keep it vigorous? This can be summarised in two directions: firstly, by enabling daily newspaper companies to develop into multimedia companies and secondly, by providing financial support to newspapers and newsmagazines via the Dutch Press Fund. With respect to the first direction: since mid 2007 we have substantially increased the possibilities for media cross-ownership. This enables companies not only to be engaged on the newspaper market, but also to be active in radio and television. To prevent too much editorial power being held by too few parties, limitations have been set on this expansion. For instance, a daily newspaper company may not control more than 35 per cent of the total Dutch newspaper market. A company that is active in two or three of these markets may not control more than 90 per cent of the aggregate markets (i.e. a combined total of 300 per cent). This guarantees that at least three players remain active on each of these three markets. With respect to the second direction: the Dutch Press Fund can provide financial support to newspapers and newsmagazines, but this support can only be provided on a temporary basis. We want to prevent newspapers and newsmagazines from becoming dependent on government support, because that would be fatal to their independence. The Press Fund can also provide support to magazines targeting ethnic minorities and to journalistic information products offered on the internet. In this way, the government hopes to promote new developments in the area of news and information. After all, we are not just aiming to maintain existing newspapers and magazines; that would be nothing more than a form of historical edifice funding or maintaining the status quo. To promote dynamism in the news market, it is important that, in addition to long existing newspapers, new initiatives are given support. After all, apart from maintaining existing houses, new construction projects have to be launched to keep a city a viable place to live. In all of this, it is crucial for the government to stay away from meddling in the content of the press. To do so would quickly lead to a conflict with people’s freedom of expression, which is a cornerstone of the Dutch Constitution and of the European Convention on Human Rights. That is why the Dutch Press Fund has filled an important role for nearly 35 years, independent of government. This conference book of the Dutch Press Fund provides a good opportunity to share various experiences in Europe with press policy. We will undoubtedly learn that each European country approaches this policy differently. Each country has its own history and its own political and social circumstances, which have led to the policy pursued there in its current shape. We can learn from one another’s experiences and insight, with the common goal of promoting the independent and pluriform provision of news and information - a goal which is so essential to our parliamentary democracies.
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Vergroot
