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Minding the TV business

Mar 3, 2003  •  Post A Comment

As Electronic Media transforms itself into TelevisionWeek, it seems an appropriate time to reflect on what we do in this editorial space each week.
It is this publication’s mission to cover every aspect of the TV business as thoroughly and accurately as possible. The scope and diversity of our business makes it a significant challenge.
It’s even tougher to try to speak as the voice of television. After all, the industry can hardly be described as having a single voice. On any number of issues, our readership is likely to include representatives of opposing positions-networks and station groups, cable operators and satellite providers, ad sellers and ad buyers, companies with interests in movies and those in consumer electronics, vertically integrated conglomerates and independent producers.
As difficult as it is to sort out these diverse interests and coalesce their perspectives into a single position on a key topic each week, we think it is a worthwhile undertaking. We feel the industry’s opinions can and should be heard, and we accept, as part of our mission, the task of trying to translate the industry’s varied points of view into the best course of action for everyone-a course of action that is fiscally as well as socially responsible, that aims to ensure the survival and prosperity of the television business without sacrificing public interest.
We recognize that many of our readers are under tremendous pressure to produce results and make money in both the short term and the long term. We understand that some get caught up in an industry that makes enormous demands and requires extraordinary efforts. We have seen that those who don’t measure up quickly may never even get into the game.
It is exactly those pressures that often make it difficult for an individual or a company to take a stand on a significant issue of concern to the whole community. They don’t have the time or they are concerned that whatever they say might offend someone they have to do business with in the future.
That is why it is our job to take those stands on your behalf, and to listen when you give us feedback about what we have done or said.
The opinions we state are just that, opinions. And it is the nature of an opinion that it will not please everyone. With that in mind we welcome opposing opinions. We invite your feedback, whether you agree with us or not. It is our hope that our editorials will provoke dialogue and that this page will continue to be a forum for discourse on a wide range of topics of relevance to television.
The transformation of Electronic Media into TelevisionWeek comes at a time when the industry itself is transforming, with media consolidation and changes in technology rapidly redefining how we do business. But what hasn’t changed is the role of television as an integral member of society. What we do as an industry matters because television matters. It affects lives. Clearly television is about more than entertainment or making a buck. And TelevisionWeek is here to reflect the best of our business, to inspire thought and to encourage understanding.
We are a trade paper, and that means we are all about you. We hope our opinions and our pages reflect what you are all about. We believe there is still a place for a voice that speaks to the best of our industry. We hope you agree.