Abstract
Proposals for a 'New World Information and Communication Order' (NWICO), during the late 1970s and early 1980s, stirred up a hornets' nest of controversy in the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). On the one side it was seen as a demand for a fair and balanced flow in international news. On the other, fears were expressed that it was an invitation to states to control the free collection and distribution of news. At the centre of the turmoil were the transnational news agencies, such as Reuters, Associated Press, Agence France Presse, and their television counterparts, Visnews and World Television News. Criticizing them for lack of fairness and balance, the non-aligned nations established their own national and international agencies and news pools, which often were attacked, in turn, as 'government-controlled'.
This issue of Trends reviews the debate on international news flows then goes on to survey some studies evaluating the actual state of international newsgathering, gatekeeping and transmission, the level and effects of the dominance of Western news agencies, and alternatives to those agencies in the developing world.
Recommended Citation
Kumar, Keval J. and Biernatzki, William E. S.J.
(1990)
"International News Flows,"
Communication Research Trends: Vol. 10:
No.
4, Article 1.
Available at:
https://scholarcommons.scu.edu/crt/vol10/iss4/1