SSRC

The diversity and localism principles have a central place in assessing media performance and formulating and evaluating media policy. Questions regarding the meaning and usage of these principles recently have come to the forefront of media policy debates, due in large part to the ongoing discussion surrounding the Federal Communications Commission’s June 2nd, 2003 decision to relax a variety of media ownership regulations. Much of the discussion and debate that has taken place in the aftermath of this decision has focused on its implications for diversity and localism. It is this renewed interest in the appropriate meaning and application of the diversity and localism principles that provides the backdrop for this paper and for the Media Diversity and Localism conference. This paper will provide a brief overview of the current policymaking environment and the place of the diversity and localism principles in it.