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Public Service Broadcasting and Media Systems in Troubled European Democracies pp 89–107Cite as

Palgrave Macmillan

Public Service Media in a Divided Country: Governance and Functioning of Public Broadcasters in Belgium

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Abstract

The chapter explores the governance and functioning of public broadcasters in Belgium. Belgium is a federal state and as part of the unique structures in place, extensive policy competences rest with the distinct language communities. Among others, cultural and media policies are the autonomous responsibility of the French-, Dutch- and German-speaking communities. Whereas public service broadcasting commenced under the auspices of the Belgian state, its regionalisation became a fact throughout the 1960s and 1970s. The aim of the chapter is to sketch the governance and functioning of public service broadcasting in a divided country where not only policies, but also markets and audiences are very much separate. It pays attention to the importance of public broadcasters as institutions contributing to the cultural awareness of the Flemish (Dutch-speaking) community in particular and, at the same time, the downsides of a separated public service broadcasting regime in an already divided country.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Free University of Brussels (VUB), Brussels, Belgium

    Karen Donders & Tim Raats

  2. Drexel University, Philadelphia, USA

    Hilde Van den Bulck

Authors
  1. Karen Donders
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  2. Hilde Van den Bulck
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  3. Tim Raats
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Karen Donders .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. LSE, London, UK

    Eva Połońska

  2. Department of Media and Communications, LSE, London, UK

    Charlie Beckett

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Donders, K., Van den Bulck, H., Raats, T. (2019). Public Service Media in a Divided Country: Governance and Functioning of Public Broadcasters in Belgium. In: Połońska, E., Beckett, C. (eds) Public Service Broadcasting and Media Systems in Troubled European Democracies. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-02710-0_5

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