UNIVERSITY of STIRLING Mbnica Terribas I Sala Thesis Entitled

L UNIVERSITY OF STIRLING Mbnica Terribas i Sala Thesis entitled: TELEVISION, NATIONAL IDENTITY AND THE PUBLIC SPHERE Scottish -A comparative study of and Catalan discussion programmes - Submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy September 1994 Oh, que cansatestic de la meva covarda,bruta, tan salvatgeterra i com magrada?ia d'allunyar-men nord enlla.... Perb no he de seguir mai el meu somni, i ein quedargaquffins a la mort. Salvador Espriu (1913-1985) A la meva fanulia, per vetllar l'esquitx. To Mark, the Bremen musiciansand el Llampec, for their patience. Acknowledgments This study would have never been possible without the co-operation and support of a greatmany peopleboth in the Catalanand the Scottishtelevision industries. To the teams of both Scottish Women and La Vida en un Xip, I owe special gratitude for the time spent and the information given. I hope that if this study helps to improve the understanding of the national identity question in Scotland and Catalonia and also increasethe democracy of our mass media, all those to which I have troubled may feel compensated. I would particularly like to thank the British Council and Caixa d'Estalvis i Pensionsde Barcelonafor the funding of this thesis and their human support during my two years in Scotland. This study owes its inspiration to Joaquim M. Puyal i Ortiga, whose ideas and efforts television democratic to encouragedt5 me to explore as a medium which everyoneshould have access. However, this thesis would have never beenfinished without the patience, guidancez: I and encouragementZ) of my principal supervisor,Philip Schlesinger,Cý who always believed in it. Special thanks to my secondsupervisor Mike Cormack for his criticisms and support. I would also like to thank Xavier Altarriba, Alastair Hetherington,C, Josep Gifreu, SalvadorGiner, Manuel Par6si Maicas and SebastiASerrano for their advice and encouragement. And thanks to Mark Grindle, Graham Haylor, Ana Roque and Kay Weaver,for trying to make senseof my English expression. In Catalonia, family, Xavier Bosch their my my godmother and gave0 me all attention and support. I know for sure that without their comfort this project would have been abandoned longZ7 ago.Cý No thesis would see the lightC) without some rest: to the Scottish hills, the herons,the squirrels and to Mark, for having taught me how to love them. And to Colin and Caroline, for having offered me their refuge. - III - UNIVERSITY OF STIRLING Mbnica Terribas i Sala Abstract of thesis entitled: TELEVISION, NATIONAL IDENTITY AND THE PUBLIC SPHERE Scottish Catalan -A comparative study of and discussion programmes - Submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy September 1994 -iv- Abstract TELEVISION, NATIONAL IDENTITY AND THE PUBLIC SPHERE -A comparative study of Scottish and Catalan discussion programmes - This project examinesquestions of national identity and democracyin television through the analysisof the production processesof audiencediscussion programmes. The study of television debates,as public spacesthrough which membersof particular communities discusstopics of common concern, shed some light on two different questions. On the one hand, this project explores whether the (re)construction of national and cultural identity intervenesin the processof programme-makingwithin statelessnations. On the other hand, audience discussion programmesare examined to assesswhether they can function as democraticspheres of social representationin the media. : C, These two strands of research are developed through ethnographic-3 insights into two television debates:Scottish Women- produced by the commercial company Scottish Television (STV), and La Vida en un Xip - transmitted through the. Catalan public television channel TV3 and produced by the production company DCo. S.A. A comparativestudy of thesetwo programmesand their respectivebroadcasting contexts is provided. Also, the distinctive political status of Scotland and Catalonia within their respective states- Britain and Spain - and the European and international contexts, is examinedin relation to the media. The debates the identity discussed current concerning0 nationalism, nation and national are basis on the of culture as the essential element of the nation-buildingZ> process. This study explores the process of cultural identity fonnation in Scotland and Catalonia and the role of their respectivemedia structuresas potentialactors in the (re)constructionof collective identities. Thus, the analysis of television production is regarded as a key instrument with which to assesshow this medium intervenesin such processes. Audience discussionprogrammes are examinedas television formats with the potential for providingtý a democratic public spherein the media. An expansion of the concept of the public sphere,its transformation and its role in contemporary societiesis, therefore, essentialto develop this argument. Also, the relation betweentelevision debatesand the is through Scottish community explored t) a survey carried out amongsttý participants of Womenand La Vida en un Xip. This work provides media studies with some keys to evaluate the role of television debatesin the delicate political make-up of two nations without a state, Scotland and Catalonia. Questionsof national and cultural identity are crucial to the policy-making of their respective broadcastingC, industries. Yet, such questionsare difficult to distinguishCý and define in their programming. The comparative analysis of the two case studies revealsthat every personinvolved in television making reflects to a certain extent his/her own perceptionsof the country, and therefore, television debatesmirror. the ambiguities that may lie behind them. This study provides some clues to reformulate the concept of the 'public sphere'on the basis of a 'dissection' of television production procedures. The findings also reveal the economic,political and social criteria that develop audiencediscussion programmes into spheresof entertainment rather than rational communicative environments in which a public spherecould function. The conceptsof national identity and the public sphereare framed in the context of contemporarysocieties, in which post-modemvalues are eroding the role and interestof the individual in the political process. - vi - Contents TELEVISION, NATIONAL IDENTITY AND THE PUBLIC SPHERE A comparative study of Scottish and Catalan discussion programmes - Acknowledgments iii Abstract iv Contents vii List of Tables and Graphics xi Chapter 1. National Identity, Media and the Public Sphere 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Nati onal Identity and Nationalism 6 13 Cultural Identity and the Media in StatelessNations 12 13.1 Levels of identity and 'cultural damage' 13 13.2 Cultural identity, 15 mirror and miragerý 133 Cultural discourse:the casesof Scotlandand Catalonia 21 13A Cultural identity and the media 28 1.4 Public Sphere,Media and Audience Participation 32 1.4.1 Public sphereand 'communicative space' 33 1.4.2 Public sphereand broadcasting 39 1.43 Audience participation and public space 41 1.4.4 Audience discussionprogrammes 48 1.5 Conclusions 55 Notes 57 Chapter 2. Television in Scotland and Catalonia 60 An overview of their respective broadcasting contexts 2.1 Introduction 60 2.2 Broadcasttelevision in the United Kingdom 62 2.2.1 British audienceand programming policies 68 2.2.2 The Scottish massmedia 70 2.2.2.1 Broadcastin in Scotland 70 11 2.2.2.2 Structureof television in Scotland 71 2.2.23 The Scottish industry 'goes south' 75 2.2.2.4 Parochialism vs. distinctiveness 76 - vii - 23 Broadcast television in Spain 81 23.1 Some key historical facts 82 23.2 Spanish television and its regulation 83 23.3 The media system in Catalonia 88 23.3.1 Television in Catalonia 88 23.3.2 Competition, audience and programming policies 91 2.4 Small broadcasters on the European audio-visual scene 94 2.5 Conclusions 99 Notes 102 Chapter 3. Unfolding the project: an account of the methods 105 3.1 Introduction 105 3.2 Ethnography and Comparison 107 3.2.1 The researcher as an insider 108 3.2.2 Ethnography 109 3.23 Comparison 112 33 Research process 115 3.3.1 Research phases in Scotland 115 33.2 Research phases in Catalonia 116 3.4 Research methods 118 3.5 Limits of the project 122 Notes 125 Chapter 4. SCOWNh Women (1987-1993) 126 A television debate with a troubled title 4.1 Introduction 126 4.2 From CurrentAffairs to Light Entertainment 127 4.2.1 Watching Scottish Women 128 4.2.2 History and evolution 129 4.2.3 STV, Skyline, STV 132 4.3 Setting up a series 136 43.1 A women's approach 137 43.2 Choosing topics 139 4.33 The 109 issuesof Scottish Women 141 4.3A Editorial focus 144 4.3.5 Production process 148 43.5.1 Skyline: a databaseand a seatingplan 148 43.5.2 'Opening the participation a wee bit' 151 43.6 At the studio 153 43.6.1 Pre-recording tasks 153 43.6.2 Recording: the 155 Cý word and the camera 4.3.63 In the gallery 157 43.6.4 In the scenery 158 43.7 Editing 161 - viii - 4.4 Impact and prospects 162 4.5 A Scottish perspective on Scottish Women 165 4.5.1 Scottishness? Some responses from media professionals 166 4.5.2 Scottish Women and STVs policies 169 4.53 Participants and nationalism 170 4.5.4 Topics and identi ty 172 4.5.5 'A great sense of solidarity' 173 Notes 177 Chapter S. La Vida en un Xip(1989-1992) 178 Social debates through fiction and reality 5.1 Introduction 178 5.2 A product of a craft audiovisual industry 179 5.2.1 Social debates through fiction and reality 180 5.2.2 Evolution of the show 183 5.23 El Xip, a programme for TV3 185 5.23.1 TV3 programming policies and El Xip 186 5.23.2 DCo. S.A., the programme-makers 188 5.2.3.3 El Xip, the deal 190 5.3 Making the show: 'la cuineta' 192 5.3.1 Purposes and 'Common sense' 192 53.2 La Granja and the link gag 193 5.33 Choosing topics 194 5.3.3.1 The 143 issues of La Vida en un Xip 195 533.2 Editorial decision-making 198 5.3.4 Coordination 208 53.5 Last an-angements 209 5.3.6 Live 210 5.4 Responseand impact 211 5.5 El Xip, Catalanidentity and the 'intemal debates' 217 5.5.1 The internal debates 218 5.5.2 The Catalans think..

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