ABSTRACT
The process of media reform in post-communist East Central Europe has been a function of the struggle for power. Emergent political parties have competed not only for votes, but for authority over political institutions and the processes of their democratic reconstruction, with electoral victors claiming prerogatives over reform. This chapter focuses on the news media because they are a critical element of both functioning democracy and the transition to it. In societies undergoing rapid change, as those in East Central Europe are, governmental stability and effectiveness are weakened as new social and political conflicts arise during the process of change. The news media are also important in sustaining democracy because they help establish society-wide expectations and boundaries of what is and is not political. This creates for politicians and citizens the ability to know where to focus the society's political energy. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
