RTV Theory and Practice - Special Issue

and still is - beyond the financial ability of most stations . In recent уеагз political support for allowing advertising on the local stations has increased. However, the media law introduceđ at the beginning of 1986 made no provision for such a possibility. One final ■ development worthy of mention in this overview is the emergence of low power ether radio . After frequency allocation was regulated at the European level and after a technical experiment to đetermine signal strength and distribution of transmitters , the Dutch government has begun issuing licenses for this medium . It is estimated that some 500 transmitters can be situated around the country without causing signal interference . At present about 20 stations have acpuired transmitters , but within a уеаг this number is expected to increase to several hundred . The reason for the overwhelming interest in this version of local radio has to do with the potential for greater reception of programming . All of the radio receivers not connected to cable nets - саг radios, portable radios and radios distributed around the living environment - can be tuned into the local, ether -distributed programming . Whether this potential for greater reception will become actuality is , of course , the major unKnown in this đevelopment. DEHOCRATIZATION OF COMMUNICATION This development of local radio can be examined from many perspectives . As noteđ earlier , we have chosen for the perspective of democratization of communication. To phrase democratization of communication dates back , as a formal concept, to publication of the Macßride Report (1970) when concerted attention was given to the concept. The phrase was đefined in that report as a process whereby : (a) the indiviđual becomes an active partner and not a mere object of communication; (b) the variety of messages exchanged increases; anđ (c ) the extent and quality of social representation of participation in communication are augmented (Mac Bride , 1970:166) The phrase remained at the forefront of discussions , particularly regarding the New World Communication Orđer . A decade later another effort was made to link the two concepts đemocracy anđ communication - during the 2 sth conference of the International Association for Mass Communication Research (IAMCR) held in Paris in 1982. The theme of that conference was

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