Public Broadcasting Versus the Murdoch Model

link here to article

This article is about the BBC's problems in the UK. It is primarily funded by public subscriptions to its TV service. It is also an enemy of the conservative government because of what they call a liberal bias. Murdoch doesn't like the BBC as a competitor either because it is supported by taxes and he must find advertisers to pay for his conservative publications. This raises two questions: what is meant by a liberal bias in the news, and what is the better model for producing the news? Liberal bias has come to mean taking an objective view of world events when government, or other powerful institutions, prefer a more supportive role. It can even mean favoring scientific information and data when reporting on events over claims that are only supported by popular opinion which is molded by the Murdoch's of the world. The BBC, and NPR in the US which is also funded with taxes, are not dependent upon the market model that dominates the media. Therefore, it is more difficult for advertisers to influence content and it is not essential to build the largest possible audience in order to increase advertising revenues and please stockholders. The market model is pitted against the public model and conservatives will always find reasons to prefer the market model. They are doing that with healthcare in the US, and many would turn public education over to the market model. We really have to ask ourselves whether the market model is the answer for everything and whether the public is better served by information channels that are not dependent upon the profit motive.