Public Service Broadcasting

Public Service Broadcasting is a major tool in initiating informed social change in people and nations through mass media. It is intended to meet community needs which exist beyond traditional, geographical, and institutional boundaries. It has traditionally been the dominant form of broadcasting in much of the world and even though with commercial broadcasting taking over much of public service broadcasting due to high viewership and resulting revenues, its importance cannot be undermined in India.
Before talking about the role of public service broadcasting in India, it is essential to understand the meaning of such broadcasting in clear terms. Unlike private commercial broadcasting, public service broadcasting must be concerned about a broader set of clientele and a much larger mandate. It has to meet the complete media needs of all, including those of a villager sitting in the remotest hamlet of the country who has very few media options. It has to cater to persons who are either watching television or listening to radio, on a community set, in an isolated part of the country. In India, where there is multiplicity of ethnicity, religions and languages, it becomes imperative for such a service to take into account the media needs of the minority audience, whether they are ethnic, religious, or linguistic. The public service broadcaster needs to be concerned with developing taste, promote understanding, spread literacy and development, create informed debate and empower the disadvantaged - major issues that a commercial broadcaster rarely addresses. This, then, is the real raison d'être of public service broadcasting.
The significance of public service broadcasting is immense in India due to several reasons. Firstly, pure commercial broadcasting does not meet the full needs of informing, educating, and entertaining the vast sections of population in any nation, especially those living in remote corners of towns and villages in many countries. Television rate