A Study on the Actualizing the Public Interest of the Agricultural Broadcasting Channel in the Multi-Channel Age

다채널시대 농업전문방송채널에서의 공익성 실현 탐색 연구

Since the 1960s in Korea, major broadcasting channels broadcasted farm television programs, however, airing of these programs were reduced in the 1990s. This was due to the declining number of farmers, and the low popularity rating of farm television programs. To cope with the situation, agriculture businessmen, farmers, and the officials concerned tried to acquire the independent farming television channel in cable television and satellite television, In 1998, one cable television channel started broadcasting, while another channel in satellite television began its broadcasting in 2001. One of the major concerns of the people in the broadcasting was actualization of the public interests in the new media multi-channel age. Recognizing this point, the study explored a few areas of concern such as conceptualizations of the public interest of the people in the digital age, examination of the surroundings of program production and marketing, and survey the media use behavior of target audience - rural residents; In the concept of the public interest, there are two points of view; market focused and democratic principle oriented. As the digitalization of broadcast advances and the logic of economics prevails, it is difficult to offer the public broadcasting service to farmers, however, democratic principles should be more emphasized. The rural resident prefer major terrestrial television channel to cable television and satellite television channel, and in media use behavior, the medium of major terrestrial television would be more useful for farm broadcasting.