Forum Highlights.

The opening session of the U.N. World TV Forum, "Digital Divide Challenge," encompassed speakers and representatives from the U.N., Forum organizers PAI and Mediaset, the EBU, Microsoft, BBC and others. Harri Holkeri, president of the U.N.'s General Assembly, asked, "How can the Internet be successful if people are illiterate?" He said that "education is number one" and suggested that digital technology be used to teach people to read.

The keynote event was moderated by Zimbabwe-based Jennifer Sibanda, executive director of the Federation of African Media Women. Sibanda noted that the poor and illiterate are at the greatest risk of being left out. "The digital revolution should be people-centered" with women and girls playing an integral part, she observed.

The keynote speaker, secretary-general of the U.N. Kofi Annan, observed, "No society ever flourished by keeping its information to itself." Annan believes information technology could be used to facilitate long-distance learning. "Without digital knowledge, countries cannot play a part in the new global economy."

Greg Dyke, director-general of the BBC, said that with fragmentation in the digital world, advertiser-funded broadcasters are finding themselves in an increasingly difficult market. "They believe public funding undermines their business models," he said. "It does." Dyke also pointed out that the BBC specializes in indigenous programming while theirs is general.

"Public broadcasters are needed now more than ever before....There is a digital divide in every nation. Everyone should be served, not just those who can afford it." He stressed that radio, TV and online content should reflect regional differences. "The world," declared Dyke, "is not 'globalizing.' It's 'Americanizing.' The world shouldn't reflect only one set of values. Pluralism matters. The largest player shouldn't dominate news matter."

Even though the term "Digital Divide" was never clearly defined at the TV Forum, there were disputes over how soon the Divide could be bridged.

Sergio Vento, Italy's representative to the U.N., stated, "There are no easy recipes for closing the digital divide" and he cautioned, "We need to move quickly to forge a strategy aimed at using the new digital television technology to close rather than widen the technological gap ... the digital society is growing at an exponential rate."

Fernando Espuelas, chairman of Uruguay's StarMedia Network, agreed that the digital divide must be bridged quickly. He said: "I think we have a moral imperative to bring this powerful new wave to everyone. Two years -- we don't have any more time than that." Espuelas continued, "I don't believe government is the only answer." He suggested partnerships between private enterprise, government and non-government organizations. He later asserted, "I disagree with Greg [Dyke, BBC]. Free market is the answer" for how to start shrinking this divide.

Giuliano Berretta, director-general of Paris-based Eutelsat, countered some of Espuelas' assertions. "It's an illusion to believe the divide will be bridged soon or easily," he said. "Two years is an illusion. It's like giving gas coupons to people who only ride bicycles." Berretta also pointed out that there are divides even in Western countries, such as an age divide due to the complexities of the Internet and PCs as well as socioeconomic divides. Berretta recommended that computer software manufacturers simplify the language of computers before sending them to developing countries.

At the "Innovative Programming in News" roundtable later in the day, panelist Merrill Brown, senior vp and editor in chief of MSNBC.com, also affirmed that the digital divide would not be bridged any time soon, emphasizing that "patience is required. TV took a while to be distributed widely. This medium [Internet] is five years old. This culture has no patience for anything."

Roundtable moderator Danny Schechter, executive editor of Mediachannel.org, kept the discussion moving briskly to allow time for audience comments and questions at the end. This way, he noted, there could be some "actual participation at the Forum."

Televisa's information vp, Leonardo Kourchenko, noted that sound bites have gotten progressively shorter on average: 8 seconds in the U.S., 15 seconds in Britain and 30 seconds in Japan.

Steven Lang, executive producer of South Africa's SABCnews.com, brought attention to the fact that "the information-rich side is well represented but the information-poor lack representation here at the Forum and on task forces."