• communication between the media and consumers based around a dominant ideology
• media creates new ideologies
• Habermas – development of early modern capitalism created public debate
• people need to be informed and aware of things to form a democracy
• public space between private domain and the government
• source of public information

DENNIS MCQUAIL:

Mass media in the public interest

• The media can be held accountable for what they do
• something’s in the public interest if it serves the ends of the whole society rather than those of some sectors of the society (Banfield 1955)

JAMES CURRAN:

key concepts in liberal democracy :

• media = public watchdog
• public representative
• source of public information

• Public service broadcasting is unresponsive to popular demand

PSB

regulation – free market? or state control