concentrate on Mandarin and Cantonese. Mandarin, if not the lingua franca, is at least universally understood, and the importance of Cantonese is increasing as the South becomes the economic power house of the whole country. A growing number of Chinese, especially among the elite, now speak English as a second language.
As a function of the media environment in Japan, the BBC's role there cannot be that of a short wave broadcaster, so we would not argue for the reintroduction of short wave transmissions. We believe, however, that a stronger BBC presence in Japan is desirable.
mening?
As far as Korean is concerned, the BBC regards the present period before unification as the right time to offer some sort of programming. It is during this critical transitional phase that important decisions for the future of a united Korea are taken. Free information is an indispensable part of this process: it makes democracy possible and it is one of the cornerstones of a free economy. In South Korea, all available data point to a relatively saturated radio environment, with almost no tradition of short wave listening. There are a number of FM stations with a sizeable audience. For the North, reliable data about the ownership of radio sets or short wave listening cannot be obtained.
As FM is the only way of reaching Japanese and Korean radio audiences effectively, the best option would be to hire time on FM transmitters which cover large populations.
-
In our contacts with the other major European international broadcasters we have found that there is a common European and specifically European Community interest in these audiences. The pooling of resources and expertise, with the BBC playing a central co-ordinating role, may well be the right way forward for this target area. Together with Radio France Internationale, Deutsche Welle and Radio Nederland Wereldomroep we are therefore exploring ways of setting up a jointly run FM station in Japan and/or Korea. We are expecting the European Community to provide some funding for this venture.
и
dimand?
PROGRAMMES FOR THE REGION
There are two main tasks for the BBC in China: the first is to provide a window on the outside world and this, so our Chinese listeners tell us, is especially important in times of international crisis. Secondly, our programmes about events in China are perceived as a reliable source of domestic news. Both aspects of our role, the international and the domestic, take on a particular significance in China because they give the listeners a range of information from which to form their own opinion.
To strengthen our regional reporting we propose to set up production centres in Hong Kong and Peking.
B-16
Ub as felis in the bulget.?
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.