University of Cologne 

Extended version of a paper that the author, Research Associate at the Institute, presented at the International Media and Communication Conference "Comparing Media Systems. West meets East", which took place on 23-25 April 2007 at the University of Wroclaw, Poland. He sums up his findings as follows: "The general economic conditions for the financially independent and competitive public service broadcasting do not exist, moreover the society is split and it lacks an essential discourse culture. Although public service broadcasting would be significantly important in this situation, in order to resolve the historically developed linguistic and cultural-splitting of the Ukrainian people, it cannot be established as long as the required basic societal reforms, especially concerning the strengthening of the influence of the civil society, have not been completed. (...) In fact, it requires and allows for little steps to establish an elementary, narrow-functional and little-funded first instance public service broadcasting, which could act as the speaking tube of the civil society, which in turn, could positively change the preconditions for the establishing of such a civil society."

Table of Contents:

1. Preface
2. General Preconditions for the Implementation of Public Service Broadcasting
3. The History of the Unsuccessful Implementation of Public Service Broadcasting in Ukraine
4. Preconditions for Public Service Broadcasting in Ukraine
5. Summary and Outlook