Trace the changes that have been happening in the medium of television. Discuss.
Answers
1) Television programming was introduced as experiment in India to promote rural development in 1959.
2) Later Satellite Instructional Television Experiment broadcasted directly to community viewers in rural areas of 6 States between 1975 to 1976.
3) In May 1975 television station was set up under Doordarshan in four cities - Delhi, Mumbai, Srinagar and Amritsar and 3 more stations in Kolkata, Chennai and Jalandhar were added within a year.
4) During 1984-85 the number of television transmitter increased all over India covering a large proportion of population.
5) Various soap operas were aired and the epics like Ramayan, Mahabharat was broadcasted.
6) Post globalisation there has been revolutionary change in television.
7) In 1991 there was one state controlled TV channel called Doordarshan but by 1998 there were almost 70 channels.
8) By mid of 1990 the privately run satellite channels have multiplied.
9) The growth of private satellite television has been one of the defining development of contemporary India.
10) The number of homes with access to satellite TV jump from 40 million in 2002 to 61 million in 2005.
11) Coming of transnational television companies to India was a new change in the history of media and when Star TV was localised then it started many programs especially for Indian viewers.
12) Most television channels along with the news channels came on the format of 24X7 and then the same trend was adopted by the sports channel and other Lifestyle channels.
13) Due to the introduction of satellite TV the television has become the most popular media for Mass Communication.
Changes that have been happening in the medium of television:
(i) Beginning of television programming in India and its progress upto 1975: Television programming was introduced experimentally in India to promote rural development as early as 1959. Later the Satellite Instructional Television Experiment (SITE) broadcast directly to community viewers in the rural areas of six states between August 1975 and July 1976. These instructional broadcasts were broadcast to 2,400 TV sets directly for 4 hours daily. Meanwhile, television stations were set up under Doordarshan in 4 cities (Delhi, Mumbai, Srinagar and Amritsar) by 1975. Three more stations in Kolkata, Chennai and Jalandhar were added within a year. Every broadcasting centre had its ownmix of programmes comprising news, children’sand women’s programmes, farmer’s programmes as well as entertainment programmes.
(ii) Progress of television from 1975 to 1990: As programmes become commercialised and were allowed to carry advertisements of its sponsors, a shift in target audience was evident. Entertainment programmes grew and were directed to the urban consuming class. The advent of colour broadcasting during the 1982 Asian Games in Delhi and the rapid expansion of the national network led to rapid commercialisation of television broadcasting.
During 1984-85 the number of television transmitters increased all over India covering a large proportion of the population. It was also the time when indigenous soap operas like Hum Log (1984-85) and Buniyaad (1986-87) were aired. They were hugely popular acclaim and attracted substantial advertising revenue for Doordarshan as did the broadcasting of the epics Ramayana (1987-88) and Mahabharat (1988-90).
(iii) Progress in Indian television medium from 1991 or after adopting liberalisation till date:
(a) Private television channel and networks upto 2001: In 1991 there was one state controlled TV channel Doordarshan in India. By 1998 there were almost 70 channels. Privately run satellite channels have multiplied rapidly since the mid-1990s. While Doordarshan broadcasts over 20 channels there were some 40 private television networks broadcasting in 2000. The staggering growth of private satellite television has been one of the defining developments of contemporary India.
(b) Setellite Subscription: In 2002, 134 million individuals watched satellite TV on an average every week. This number went up to 190 million in 2005. The number of homes with access to satellite TV has jumped from 40 million in 2002 to 61 million in 2005. Satellite subscription has now penetrated 56 percent of all TV homes.
(c) Programme in regional languages by popular channel: The Gulf War of 1991 (which popularised CNN), and the launching of Star-TV in the same year by the Whampoa Hutchinson Group of Hong Kong, signalled the arrival of private satellite Channels in India. In 1992, Zee TV, a Hindi-based satellite entertainment channel, also began beaming programs to cable television viewers in India. By 2000, 40 private cable and setellite channels were available including several that focused exclusively on regional-language broadcasting like Sun-TV, Eenadu-TV, Udaya-TV, Raj-TV, and Asianet. Meanwhile, Zee TV has also launched several regional networks, broadcasting in Marathi, Bengali and other languages.
(d) Cable Television industry and further expansion of TV: With Doordarshan was expanding rapidly in the 1980s, the cable television industry was mushrooming in major Indian cities. The VCR greatly multiplied entertainment options for Indian audiences, providing alternatives to Doordarshan's single channel programming. Video viewing at home and in community-based parlours increased rapitly. The video fare consisted mostly of film-based entertainment, both domestic and imported. By 1984, entrepreneurs in cities such as Mumbai and Ahmedabad had begun wiring apartment buildings to transmit several films a day. The number of cable operators from 100 in 1984 to 1200 in 1988 to 15,000 to 1992 and to about 60,000 in 1999.
(e) Coming of transnational television companies: The coming in of transnational companies like Star TV, MTV, Channel [V], Sony and others, worried some people on the likely impact on Indian youth and on the Indian cultural identity. But most of the transnational television channels have through research realised that the use of the familiar is more effective in procuring the diverse groups that constitute Indian audience. The early strategy of Sony International was to broadcast 10 Hindi films a week, gradually decreasing the number as the station produced its own Hindi language content. The majority of the foreign networks have now introduced either a segment of Hindi language programming (MTV India), or an entire new Hindi language channel (STAR Plus). STAR Sports and ESPN have dual commentary or an audio sound track in Hindi. The larger players have launched specific regional channels in languages such as Bengali, Punjabi, Marathi and Gujarati.