Mills, Brett
According to Brett Mills (University of East Anglia) there is a growing need for a broader, more inclusive definition of public service broadcasting, as there has been a ‘worrying normalisation of a limited definition of PSB’ in both academic and policy contexts, which ‘runs counter to public conception of the term.’ Mills points out that the provision of PSB can only function if its services are universal, not only in terms of access but also in terms of content. ‘A universal PSB enables all citizens to see their lives reflected and valued within content, and this is only possible if PSB encompasses as wide a range of genres and programming.’ Yet, discourses on PSB function often ‘hierarchise’ different kinds of PSB provision, and there is a worrying trend that some genres are seen as more public service than others.