The Broadcasting Act 1990 is a law of the British parliament, often regarded by both its supporters and its critics as a quintessential example of Thatcherism. This article is about the year. ... The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories. ... Margaret Thatcher Thatcherism is the system of political thought attributed to the governments of Margaret Thatcher, British Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990. ...

The aim of the Act was to reform the entire structure of British broadcasting; British television, in particular, had earlier been described by Margaret Thatcher as "the last bastion of restrictive practices". It led directly to the abolition of the Independent Broadcasting Authority and its replacement with the Independent Television Commission and Radio Authority (both themselves now replaced by Ofcom), which were given the remit of regulating with a "lighter touch" and did not have such strong powers as the IBA; some referred to this as "deregulation". The ITC also began regulating non-terrestrial channels, whereas the IBA had only regulated ITV, Channel 4 and the ill-fated British Satellite Broadcasting; the ITC thus took over the responsibilities of the Cable Authority which had regulated the early non-terrestrial channels, which were only available to a very small audience in the 1980s. individually-donated time and energy direct government payments or operation indirect government payments, such as radio and television licenses grants from foundations or business entities selling advertising or sponsorship public subscription or membership fees charged to all owners of TV sets or radios, regardless of whether they intend to receive... British television broadcasting has a range of different broadcasters, broadcasting multiple channels over a variety of distribution media. ... Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, LG, OM, PC, FRS (born 13 October 1925) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990. ... The Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) was the regulatory body in the United Kingdom for commercial television (ITV and Channel 4 - cable and satellite television were the responsibility of the Cable Authority) and radio broadcasts. ... The ITC has been superseded as the British commercial television regulator by Ofcom (the Office of Communications). ... The Office of Communications, usually known as Ofcom, is the UKs communications regulator. ... The Office of Communications, usually known as Ofcom, is the UKs communications regulator. ... ITV (Independent Television) is the name given to the original network of British commercial television broadcasters, set up under the Independent Television Authority (ITA) to provide competition to the BBC. In England, Wales and southern Scotland, the channel has been rebranded to ITV1 by ITV plc, the owners of the... Channel 4 is a public service television broadcaster in the United Kingdom (see British television). ... BSB logo British Satellite Broadcasting (BSB) was a company set up in 1986 to provide direct broadcast satellite television services to the United Kingdom. ... The 1980s decade refers to the years from 1980 to 1989, inclusive, informally sometimes including the years 1979, 1990 and 1991. ...

An effect of this Act was that, in the letter of the law, the television or radio companies rather than the regulator became the broadcasters, as had been the case in the early (1955-1964) era of the Independent Television Authority when it had fewer regulatory powers than it would later assume. 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1964 (MCMLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1964 calendar). ... The Independent Television Authority (ITA) was a body created by the Television Act 1954 to supervise the creation of Independent Television (ITV), the first commercial television network in the United Kingdom. ...

In television, the Act allowed for the creation of a fifth analogue terrestrial television channel in the UK, which turned out to be Channel 5, now renamed Five, and the growth of multichannel satellite television. It has sometimes been described, both as praise and as criticism, as a key enabling force for Rupert Murdoch's ambitions in Britain. Terrestrial television (also known as over-the-air, OTA, or broadcast television) is the traditional method of television broadcast signal delivery, by radio waves transmitted through open space, usually carrying unencrypted signals. ... Five, formerly known as Channel 5, is the United Kingdoms fifth national analogue terrestrial TV channel. ... Artists impression of a Boeing 601 satellite, as configured for digital television transmission by SES Astra Satellite television is television delivered by way of communications satellites, as compared to conventional terrestrial television and cable television. ... Rupert Murdoch Keith Rupert Murdoch AC, KCSG, (commonly known as Rupert Murdoch) (born 11 March 1931) born in Australia of Scottish and some claim Jewish ancestry, but this is unfounded. ...

It reformed the system of awarding ITV franchises, which would prove controversial when Thames Television was replaced by Carlton Television, for what some felt were political reasons (see Death on the Rock), and when TV-am, admired by Mrs Thatcher for its management's defiance of the trade unions, lost its franchise to GMTV (the by then former Prime Minister personally apologised to the senior TV-am executive Bruce Gyngell). It also allowed for companies holding ITV franchises to take over other such companies from 1994, beginning the process which has led to the creation of ITV plc. Thames Television was an British television production company, and between 1968 and 1992, it was the weekday ITV company serving London. ... Carlton Television was the United Kingdom Channel 3 (ITV) licensee for London and the surrounding areas, Monday 9:25am, to Friday, 5:15pm (and for legal formalities still is; see below). ... Death on the Rock was a controversial and BAFTA award winning episode of Thames Televisions current affairs strand This Week. ... TV-am was a breakfast television station that broadcast in the United Kingdom from 1983 to 1992. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... Good Morning Television (GMTV) is a national British breakfast television station owned by ITV plc (75%) and The Walt Disney Company (25%). It has held the license for the breakfast Channel 3 franchise since 1993, when it outbid the previous 6am-9. ... Bruce Gyngell (b. ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal. // Events January Bill Clinton January 1 : North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) goes into effect. ... ITV plc is a British media company which operates the oldest and largest commercial terrestrial television network in the United Kingdom. ...

In radio, it allowed for the launch of three Independent National Radio stations, two of them on mediumwave using frequencies formerly used by the BBC, and the other on FM using frequencies formerly used by the emergency services. It set out plans for many more local and regional commercial radio stations, generally using parts of the FM band not previously used for broadcasting, which have since come to fruition. Its plans for expanding community radio would only really be developed in the 2000s. Mediumwave radio transmissions serves as the most common band for broadcasting. ... Founded in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company Ltd (a privately owned company), subsequently Incorporated and nationalised in 1927 as The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC, also informally known as the Beeb or Auntie) is the largest broadcasting corporation in the world. ... FM radio is a broadcast technology invented by Edwin Howard Armstrong that uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. ... Logo used by the Independent Broadcasting Authority for promoting Independent Local Radio services. ... Community radio is a type of radio service that caters to the interests of a certain area, broadcasting material that is popular to a local audience but is overlooked by more powerful broadcast groups. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

The Act passed through Parliament despite opposition from much of the Labour Party and from some members of the ruling Conservative Party, who saw it as representative of a decline in standards, and on occasions saw it as enabling what was, for them, an unwelcome Americanisation. Notably, Douglas Hurd has since criticised the Act's aftereffects, describing it as "one of the less successful reforms of those years". These Tories would have described their position as paternalistic as a term of praise, while supporters of the Act would use it against them as a term of abuse. Since Tony Blair became leader, the Labour Party's broadcasting policy has generally shifted much more towards that expounded in the Act. The Labour Party has, since the early twentieth century, been the principal left wing political party in the United Kingdom (see British politics). ... The Conservative Party is the second largest political party in the United Kingdom in terms of sitting MPs, and the largest by of public membership. ... The Right Honourable Douglas Richard Hurd, Baron Hurd of Westwell, CH, CBE, PC (born March 8, 1930), is a senior British Conservative politician and novelist, who served in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major between 1979 and his retirement in 1995. ... Image of traditional cultural paternalism: Father Junipero Serra in a modern portrayal at Mission San Juan Capistrano, California Paternalism refers usually to an attitude or a policy stemming from the hierarchic pattern of a family based on patriarchy, that is, there is a figurehead (the father, pater in Latin) that... Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953), generally known as Tony Blair, is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the UK Civil Service, Leader of the UK Labour Party, and Member of the UK Parliament for the constituency of Sedgefield in...

The then Home Secretary, David Waddington, described the Act as heralding "a massive expansion in choice", and supporters of the multichannel age in British broadcasting have praised the Act, and later regulation influenced by it, for such reasons. Supporters of the previous, more regulated system have strongly criticised the Act, and some have blamed it for what they see as a "dumbing down" of British television and radio. Like many other reforms of the Thatcher years, it has a tendency to polarise opinion very strongly. The Secretary of State for the Home Department, known as the Home Secretary, is the chief United Kingdom government minister responsible for law and order (except in Scotland). ... David Charles Waddington, Baron Waddington, PC (born August 2, 1929), is a Conservative politician in the United Kingdom. ... Dumbing down is a usually derogatory term which refers to the simplifying of a subject, often education, news and TV amongst others. ...

Trivia

A sketch in the second series of A Bit of Fry and Laurie, in which a Conservative government minister is strangled while Stephen Fry screams at him "What are you doing to the television system? What are you doing to the country?", is an attack on the Act and the perceived motivations of those who supported it. They would later attack what they saw as the Act's malign aftereffects in the sketch "It's A Soaraway Life", a parody of It's A Wonderful Life evoking a world in which Rupert Murdoch had not existed. This article is about the television series. ... Stephen Fry on the cover of his autobiography (US Edition) Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English comedian, author, actor and filmmaker. ... Its a Wonderful Life is a 1946 Frank Capra film, produced by his own Liberty Films and released originally by RKO Radio Pictures. ...

Links

http://www.transdiffusion.org/emc/thirdprogramme/torycasting.php - an account of the Act (among other things) from a perspective generally critical of the latterday Tory party.