The media in Pakistan has opted for a strong pluralism - yes voluntarily. If there is one thing, Pakistanis cannot complain is availability of multiple choices in media viewing and listening.
The year 2002 will be remembered in the county as the landmark year of emerging media abundance with private television and cable channels and alternative media flooding people with more information, than they have been trained to handle in the past. The emerging media abundance in Pakistan coincides with restoration of civilian rules and a fairly broad based media policy. The media scene will keep on hotting up and become sustainable as it sheds more and more influence on people's opinions and choices.
The government in a very strange but welcome manner has accepted the reality. Instead of curbing the ever increasing impact of private sector media, the government has opened up the skies for international electronic broadcasters, given full freedom to print media and with utmost positivity set on strengthening the state media ie PTV and PBC. The state media has been given a mandate to develop its capacity of objectivity, fairness and impartiality to promote the values of peace in an age of media abundance. The onset of private TV channels has ended the monopoly of PTV and the FM radio stations, which have cropped up in a very challenging way.
This has definitely brought about a change in broadcast standards in the country. Two big changes have occurred: One the promulgation of access to information law in the year 2002 and permission of cross media ownership in the country in 2003. The government has been brave to accept the onslaught of media power. It has not reacted in coercive manner but has padded its own media to enter the arena of competition - the best way to survive.
The establishment of FM 100 radio channels in the private sector in the year 1994 and the start of its transmission in 1995 was a novel phenomenon in the history of the country. Then there had been a considerable growth of FM radio stations in the private sector.
The state again reacted positively by launching Pakistan Broadcasting Corporations' own FM 101 channel. It was quite amazing that the government perceived the challenge well in time and reacted accordingly to tap economic potential of FM broadcasting. Instead of broadcasting programmes nation-wide through a huge network, radio channels are moving towards localised set ups offering specialised services for different targeted audiences.
Pakistan has undergone rapid technological changes over the last two decades in the advancement of electronic media. The development of Mass Media cannot be attributed solely to the efforts of State as a number of other players have also contributed substantially in this field.
The Television and Radio Broadcasting has been a state monopoly ever since inception and they expanded side by side with the private sector and the International Broadcasters who entered into this area through satellite in early nineties. In transmission, the greatest impact on media environment has been popularity of satellite dishes, which provided people access to entertainment and international news channels.
Satellite dishes were very popular in the early 1990s, which was followed by cable TV networks that witnessed a mushroom growth throughout the country during the last 10 years. Currently, the people of Pakistan have free access to multiple entertainments and News Channels. On the Government side, a number of developments have also taken place, which contributed significantly in the expansion of this sector.
In the year 2002 Freedom of Information Act was introduced which is now in force and provides people the right to obtain un-classified official information. In the same year, Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) was established through an Ordinance which is now completely functional and licensing the private Radio & TV Stations and Cable Operators. More than 58 private FM Radio Stations are functioning in addition to 6 working in public sector. Besides, hundreds of cable operators throughout the country provide satellite TV channels to the viewers. The government has also allowed 15 TV channels in private sector, so far.
The number of radio receivers has risen to 9.4 per 100 as compared to 6.4 per 100 persons in 1980, number of TV receivers were 1.1 per 100 in 1980. Now they are 8.8 per 100 persons. But unfortunately the newspaper access has not increased because of low level of literacy, population growth and high cost of newspapers. The above scenario clearly manifest that media monopoly is a past story.
The globalisation of media has compelled state-owned media, the private sector and the international broadcaster to compete in the field with their fullest capabilities. The government has also chalked out a comprehensive long- term plan for the mass media, which could survive in a highly competitive environment and meet technological challenges of today and the future.
During the last six years a number of policy initiatives and development goals have been floated. The latest and current Plan, in force, is Media Term Development Framework, which in the form of a rolling plan accommodates successive Public Sector Development Programmes (PSDPs).
The thrust in the years ahead would be on expansion of Mass Media outreach, opening up of new radio and TV channels in private sector under a transparent mechanism, modernisation and updation of existing Radio and TV infrastructure in Public Sector and licensing the upcoming electronic media under the widely accepted codes of ethics and most desirable regulations through PEMRA. The Cabinet has put the cross media ownership policy in action recently. This is a direct reflection of the government's desire to encourage the Private Sector in nation building efforts through speedy flow of information to all segments of society.
MASS MEDIA AT A GALANCE:
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MEDIUM NUMBER
Local TV Channels 5
Radio Stations 25
FM Radio Station in Private Sector 58 (38 in process)
FM Radio Station in Public Sector 6
Dailies 1003
Weeklies 1649
Monthlies 2706
News Agencies 9
Regional Papers 60
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