Kirche, Europäische Union und Medienpolitik.

Abstract

Der europäische Integrationsprozeß stellt auch die Kirchen in den verschiedenen Ländern Europas vor neue und vielfältige Herausforderungen. Dabei geht es nicht nur um Modelle und Strategien für eine
Neu-Evangelisierung Europas als Antwort auf eine wahrgenommene Werte-und Kulturkrise in den europäischen Gesellschaften! und um Fragen nach dem Beitrag des Christentums zum Aufbau einer europäischen Identität, sondern auch um grundlegende und praktische Probleme der europäischen Gemeinschaftsbildung in verschiedenen Politikbereichen, zu denen die katholische Kirche in Europa Stellung bezogen hat und weiterhin Stellung bezieht. (...)

English 

Martina Höhns: Church, European Union and Media Palieies

European Union Media Policies have a growing impact on the national media system and are increasingly challenging the churches, particulary due to the apparent consequences for their media work and their understanding of communication. The article gives reasons for the growing importance of European media policies. Then its basic orientation which regards media as a service and economic good, ignoring the cultural dimensions is questioned. Apart from the European television directive which was amended in June 1997 and which has created a legal framework for cross-frontier broadcasting, the article describes what emphasis is currently being laid in European media policies. It is shown that European media policies can no Ionger be regarded as an isolated issue, but that the Community's policies in the field of telecommunication as well as the planned promotion of new information and communication technologies in the so-called information society have to be taken into account, too. The conflict between European integration and German federalism becomes particularly evident in the field of media. The Catholic Church has made various attempts to perceive, analyse, and - if necessary - to comment on this development. Apart from the European Episcopal Committee for Media (CEEM) of the Council of the European Bishops' Conferences, the Commission of the Bishops' Conferences of the European Community (COMECE) is continuously malring efforts in this respect. Some reports and statements on European media policies have already been presented, particularly by COMECE. The international Catholic media Organisationsfor broadcasting (UNDA), film (OCIC) and press (UCIP) as well as the orders and particularly the ecumenical European working group ,Media, Culture and Society' also help to sensitire the media work of the churches as to the challenges which it will be faced with in view of the development in Europe.