ABSTRACT
The information society is dawning upon all industrialized nations. It carries with it great promise, as well as an unknown social challenge. It could make known social institutions obsolete, while maintaining old social orders. In economic terms, it signifies a move away from an industrial economy to a services-oriented economy (Bell 1973) where information has become a key commodity. In technological terms it is usually associated with the convergence of traditional technologies and the introduction of new ones such as the Internet and digital broadcasting. This chapter takes a new look at public broadcasting and describes what its practitioners have done so far on the Internet. Public broadcasters’ appearances on the Internet are then measured against their operational roles, as defined and understood with respect to the preinformation society technologies, radio and television.
