What caused the British media to become more independent of governement?

Authors Avatar

What caused the British media to become more independent of government?

 [1500words]


What caused the British media to become more independent of government?

Currently, according to the BBC, “The British media are free and able to report on all aspects of British life. The variety of publications reflects the full spectrum of political opinion, as well as the British public's voracious appetite for newspapers,” (BBC, 2010), however, during the 17th century, the British press was strictly controlled. It was not until, in 1695, when Parliament decided against renewing the Licensing Act, that newspaper circulation increased and censorship was reduced. Thus a free press was allowed to grow (The British Library, 2010). In this essay I will present key dates for significant changes within the timescale of these differences, and attempt to explain what social and political changes occurred, which have helped to bring about this supposed independence of media in Britain today.

The Liberal interpretation of media history, or at least one strand of it, makes the argument that the freeing of the press led to wider social democracy and empowered the public. The extension of parliamentary franchise between 1832 and 1928 took away property restrictions and gave women an equal vote, allowing for more and more people to be actively included in politics (Curran, 2002:136). These significant social changes led to mass democracy, and therein, a need for a larger number of voters to be informed. It seems that there was a responsibility, felt by those who could, to inform the voter; government should be based upon public opinion, so “the world would be better managed if the sum of general knowledge and understanding were greater” (Matheson, 1933:87). This illustrates the view taken by those running and working for the BBC around the time of its reincarnation to a corporation. So not only did the media bring forth equality, it also continued to function in a way that endeavoured to inform the contemporary British citizen by allowing for them to have informed opinions.

Join now!

The earlier freedom of the press added to democratisation of politics and created a domain for government criticism and political discussion. In 1695, the 1662 Licensing of the Press Act expired and it was decided by Parliament not to renew it (The British Library, 2010), allowing for a press that is freer from censorship and is capable of having a much larger circulation, in turn creating mass audiences. In 1772 came a further leap forward, as newspapers were allowed to report on the formal debates within parliament (Curran, 2002:136); this made politics a more public phenomenon and rendered the government ...

This is a preview of the whole essay