Media Institutions as a Research Field: Three Phases of Norwegian Broadcasting Research

Abstract

The article discusses the background and origins of research on media institutions as a field, and especially assesses the development and status of Norwegian research on broadcasting institutions. It is demonstrated how the field has developed, both quantitatively and qualitatively, through three key phases: the era of broadcasting monopolies; the "newmedia situation" in the 1980s and 1990s; and the era of convergence; globalization andcommercialization from the late 1990s. A key purpose is to discuss the theoretical perspectives and implicit and explicit assumptions upon which the research is based. Further, the article points to shortcomings and gaps in our knowledge of how media institutions evolve and operate. In closing, it is suggested how the field may maintain its relevance in an era where the very concept of a “broadcasting institution” is becoming more blurred.