Editorial
Autonomy for BTV
Should not be elusive anymore
It is good news that the caretaker government is taking measures to provide autonomy to the only state-run television channel Bangladesh Television (BTV), thereby presaging the end of the government's hold on it. The sea change will come through necessary amendments in line with the recommendations of the commission formed by the Awami League government in 1996. It will also be based on a review of the existing law -- the Bangladesh Television Authority Act (BTA) 2001.
There is no denying that BTV has been suffering from severe ownership crisis over the decades. Though a state-owned enterprise, it was blatantly exploited by the political elements in the governments of the day for narrow partisan gains. And because of the obvious slant, BTV used to be treated by the people as an extended part of the government in power. As a result they rejected news and views aired by the channel outright. Total autonomy henceforth has been a long-standing demand of the people of the country.
The urgency of making BTV autonomous, modern and credible is prompted by the fact that private television channels are doing a wonderful job of making the news items authentic and entertainment programmes as varied and enjoyable as possible. Therefore, it is not surprising that today private enterprises and corporate houses are rushing to these channels to advertise their products. The phenomenal growth rate of the front-ranking private television channels explained what freedom could do for attaining credibility and commercial viability.
All said and done, we hope this time the authorities will do the job properly because our experiences show that in the past all the successive governments had given their pledge to implement the reforms as per recommendations of the committees but on the ground things remained unchanged. The concept of 'free media' thus remained only in the files of the government. The good name that BTV once enjoyed has to be salvaged through ensuring autonomy and competence at all level. The existing infrastructure facilities should be fully exploited to make it a viable enterprise.
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