Abstract EN:

The ecuadorian media landscape is characterised by the absence of a public service because the media are essentially private. The absence of adequate basic regulations by law in combination with a situation of constant political and economic crisis have resulted in an economic and geographic concentration (the media are concentrated in the two biggest and most important cities : quito and guayaquil). The tv sector is purely commercial and has grown in quantitative but not qualitative terms. With a programme modelled after that of the united states the tv concentrates mainly on entertainment. Nevertheless it provides the setting for information and news programmes which represent very important local productions. The tv as well as the ecuadorian press are still urban media. Despite a strong consumption of local newspapers, a national press of high quality exists. Since the indigenous population lives marginalized in the rural areas, the radio is the most important media in these zones, especially the alternative radio which main objective is education. The radio permits to reach a large number of people at low cost. At the same time the radio is used by the social and indigenous movement. The non-existence of a film industry in some way has helped to the development of a video scene, especially an alternative video sector, while large cinema productions remain the dream of a few idealistic producers. New technologies are developing as fast as in the industrialized countries but are only available to a small population group and not to the general public. Although the government has traditionally shown respect for the media, journalistic activity is confronted with numerous constraints: lack of professionalism and independence, low salaries, withhold of information, and auto-censorship.