A Political Economy of the Emerging Television News Industry in Bangladesh

Resumo

This article aims to critically examine how the unprecedented expansion of television industry in Bangladesh became possible over the past decade, and how the increasingly market- liberalization trend of this country constitutes the structure, content and process of news production amongst the TV channels. This is the first time South Asia has experienced the phenomenon of a TV media 'boom' in Bangladesh, in spite of the background of politically violent and prospective new democracy. However, the escalating commercialization is triggering a divide between the actual role of television and the potential role it could play in a
progressive society.  Since the government  permitted private broadcasting satellite TV channels in 1997, a massive investment in the production and advertisement sector has been systematically facilitated by the dominant political and commercial elites of the country. The number of television networks has increased by 19 over last 11 years. In this perspective, this
article traces the answers to the questions - why and how a country with $440 per capita GNP should need 19 television channels? What is the power-structure behind the abnormal growth of TV industry? Who invests and what are the sources of asset? Aiming what profit? What backing keeps these channels running? How are the owners’ political and business networks
affecting the fate of news content? The paper also highlights a contradiction between the television industry of Bangladesh and the international economic powers. On the one hand,
the reformation pressures from many donor agencies indirectly influenced the recent Caretaker government to eliminate corruption, and ensure an untroubled access for the
international corporation’s investment and business. As a part of this operation, Ministry of Information has shut down several corrupt-licensed TV channels. On the other hand, this
article explores, advertisement and investment supports from the translational corporations have ultimately encouraged the political tycoons to expand their television outlets, and now these channels have been used as local and global business-lobbying-corruption-powerhouse. Subsequently, this paper also  argues with evidence that the alarming drift of corporate takeover of news-slots through 'Corporate-Branding' and 'advertiser-media-partnership'
inexorably shapes the selection and production of news. Finally, an empirical analysis of this article reveals a power-exercise-web between government, corporations, media owners and
newsmakers which is radically dividing the most popular mass media of Bangladesh and transforming it into a market-oriented class media.