The Media System of Malta
Damian Guzek
Pełny tekst artykułuReferring to the criteria of Hallin and Mancini, the author discusses the media system in Malta, especially the legal framework of media functioning within the political system, the particular approach to news, and the institutions which supervise the audiovisual and telecommunications sector. In many aspects, Malta is still under the influence of British solutions, but relations with the sphere of politics require qualifying this media system in the model of polarized pluralism. This seems to be confirmed in the Maltese radio belonging mostly to the Catholic Church, and a large portion of television channels being the property of political parties. The media in Malta play a key role in informing and shaping contemporary social values, and to an increasing degree by means of the Internet – an example being the debates from 2010 and 2011 on the legalization of divorce, where its influence on the development of public opinion was displayed.
KEYWORDS
Malta, media system, press, radio, television, Internet