Chile. The Chilean Government presented the 10 main measures of the Media Strengthening Agenda, the product of interministerial work between the Ministry of the General Secretariat of Government (Segegob) and the Undersecretariat of Telecommunications (Subtel), belonging to the Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications, together with the different unions of the world of communications.
Segegob and Subtel have been working together on a series of measures and initiatives that seek to strengthen the role of the media in the country. This has materialized in different working groups with representatives of radio, television and community-citizen media.
"The Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications -through Subtel- has worked together with the Ministry General Secretariat of Government in a series of measures that seek to strengthen the role of the media. This is how we arrived at this Media Strengthening Agenda, which highlights the role played by the media, both community and citizen, in the care and strengthening of democracy. We are talking about concrete actions, for example, the extension of the FM band. We hope that with this measure new radios can join the work of broadcasting, contributing to the plurality of voices and, above all, to regional and local empowerment, "said Minister Juan Carlos Muñoz.
"The work around this agenda seeks not only to strengthen the radios, channels, whether national, regional, community, independent, which are part of a diverse ecosystem that exists in Chile, but also to be able to expand the participation and presence of other voices in this space. This has been a commitment that we have expressed from day one and we have advanced through working groups that we have with the National Television Council (CNTV), where the channels are, particularly community channels, and also through the Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications, with Subtel, to achieve that objective, "said Minister Vallejo.
In turn, the Undersecretary of Telecommunications, Claudio Araya, said that "the media, in its different formats, reach all corners of the country fulfilling an essential task: connecting people. This agenda is composed of different measures that reflect a deep work of conversation and planning with different actors in the world of communications. Together we have been building what we present today. We hope to continue deepening and advancing this agenda that strengthens the role of the media in the country and especially that of citizen and community media."
Top 10 measures for strengthening the media
The measures and initiatives presented by Segegob and Subtel consider permanent working groups together with media associations and associations; the bill for the decriminalization of unauthorized broadcasting; the expansion of the FM band; funds to finance transmission systems; pre-feasibility analysis for community Digital TV concessions; ChileValora profiling; the project "Strengthening public and community media in Mexico and Chile"; the amendment to the bankruptcy rules of the "Fund for the Promotion of Social, Regional, Provincial and Communal Media"; the community network of educational radios; and the delivery of satellite kits for the migration from analog to digital television through the work of the National Television Association of Chile (Anatel) and the associated channels, TVN, Mega, CHV and Canal 13.
The activity was attended by the president of the CNTV, Mauricio Muñoz and representatives of Anatel; ARCHI, ANARCICH; AMARC; ARCATEL; Signal 3 La Victoria and community channels.
