Satellite Communication and Society in the Third World
EDU E. AKPAN
REG NO: 05423047
DR. AGBER
COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY (THA 718)
FEBRUARY, 2007
SATELLITE COMMUNICATION AND SOCIETY IN THE THIRD WORLD
INTRODUCTION
The importance of communication in any country whether developed or developing is so obvious. Every human society, from the most primitive to the most advanced; depend on some form of communication network. It will be virtually impossible for any group of people to define their collective identities or make decisions about their common and binding interests, without communications. In fact, the inter-relationship between the economic development of a country and effective communication services is so interwoven that it is difficult to tell which one comes first. Suffice it to say however, that most developed nations have the more developed infrastructures and services.
BRIEF HISTORY OF SATELLITE COMMUNICATION
According to James Wood in his book: Satellite Communications Pocket Book (Wood, 1994), there have been four epochs in communication broadcasting which are categorized as follows: • • • • The wire age between 1840 -1900 which is described as the period of undersea telegraph The wireless telegraph age; this was the time of long-wave telegraph and transmitters The age of sound broadcasting which began in 1920 The age of broadcasting from 1930 to the present day
Additionally, we have the satellite age which came into fullness in 1965. The era is commonly referred to as the age of fibre-optic communications. The satellite technology emerged following the dream of a science fiction writer: Arthur L. Clarke. In 1945, he saw the possibility of a spacecraft in orbit about 36,000 kilometres (22,000 miles) above the equator (a dream fired by the war-time rockets used by the Germans).
In 1964, the International Telecommunications Satellite Organization (INTELSAT) was formed. The INTELSAT devised a system, which linked the continents to ensure same day news coverage from virtually
REG NO: 05423047
DR. AGBER
COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY (THA 718)
FEBRUARY, 2007
SATELLITE COMMUNICATION AND SOCIETY IN THE THIRD WORLD
INTRODUCTION
The importance of communication in any country whether developed or developing is so obvious. Every human society, from the most primitive to the most advanced; depend on some form of communication network. It will be virtually impossible for any group of people to define their collective identities or make decisions about their common and binding interests, without communications. In fact, the inter-relationship between the economic development of a country and effective communication services is so interwoven that it is difficult to tell which one comes first. Suffice it to say however, that most developed nations have the more developed infrastructures and services.
BRIEF HISTORY OF SATELLITE COMMUNICATION
According to James Wood in his book: Satellite Communications Pocket Book (Wood, 1994), there have been four epochs in communication broadcasting which are categorized as follows: • • • • The wire age between 1840 -1900 which is described as the period of undersea telegraph The wireless telegraph age; this was the time of long-wave telegraph and transmitters The age of sound broadcasting which began in 1920 The age of broadcasting from 1930 to the present day
Additionally, we have the satellite age which came into fullness in 1965. The era is commonly referred to as the age of fibre-optic communications. The satellite technology emerged following the dream of a science fiction writer: Arthur L. Clarke. In 1945, he saw the possibility of a spacecraft in orbit about 36,000 kilometres (22,000 miles) above the equator (a dream fired by the war-time rockets used by the Germans).
In 1964, the International Telecommunications Satellite Organization (INTELSAT) was formed. The INTELSAT devised a system, which linked the continents to ensure same day news coverage from virtually
Bibliography: Hamelink, C. J. (1983). Cultural Autonomy in Global Communication. New York: Longman. MacBride, S., & Et-Al. (1980). Many Voices, One World. Paris: The UNESCO Press. Roach, C. (1990, July). The Movement for A New World Information and Communication Order: A Second Wave? Media, Culture and Society (Vol. 12), pp. 283-307. Wood, J. (1994). Satellite Communication Pocket Book. London: Wordsworth Publishing Company.