Media Regulation and Democracy: A Minimalist Approach

• Author / Creator

  Ostrem, Jacqueline Grace

• While many scholars have argued that media deregulation has a
  deleterious effect on democracy, all have done so in a way that assumes the truth
  of a particular normative theory of democracy. This thesis instead describes the
  minimal requirements for a democratic public sphere and compares deregulated
  media to that standard, using the United States as a case study. The conclusions
  explore the causal relationship between deregulation and those results by delving
  into the economic forces at work within the media market. Popular contemporary
  objections are considered, including the potential contribution of the Internet.

• Subjects / Keywords

  • Media
  • Democracy
  • News
  • Public sphere
  • Regulation

• Graduation date

  Fall 2011

• Type of Item

  Thesis

• Degree

  Master of Arts

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/R3GT5C

• License

  This thesis is made available by the University of Alberta Libraries with permission of the copyright owner solely for non-commercial purposes. This thesis, or any portion thereof, may not otherwise be copied or reproduced without the written consent of the copyright owner, except to the extent permitted by Canadian copyright law.