The current legal framework of language promotion in Catalan local TV,
by Bruguers Jardí

Linguistic advice is an important challenge for local TV channels

The Directorate General for Language Policy is not the only authority responsible for language policy on mass media. The General Language Policy Plan approved on March 6, 1995 refers to two other directorates general and to one secretariat general dealing with the process of linguistic normalization in the mass media: the Directorate General of Cultural Promotion, the Directorate General of Radio and Television (now Directorate General of Media) and the Secretariat General for Sports.

The General Plan for Language Policy establishes the goals, directives, actions and forecasts of results relating to language policy processes for the period 1994-2004. Chapter IV, section 3, states the goals and actions regarding the mass media and cultural industries. The specific goals for radio and television are those drafted in points 325 and 326. None of these goals and actions deal with the quality of the language.

The "Oxygen of Language" makes clear to some extent that there are several different approaches to the concept of language policy and therefore to the role that mass media in general and local medias in particular must have within this process. The Philological Section of the Institute of Catalan Studies has also given its own opinion on language promotion and linguistic normalisation, whether in terms of quotas, or - of full extension of social use regarding both extent and quality.

4.2. The process of language promotion in the media: the role of the standard language

The Philological Section of the Institute of Catalan Studies http://www.iec.es/inici.htm approved on September 21, 1990, the statement entitled The Catalan language and the mass media. The statement begins with the defence of a common and legitimized variety of the Catalan language, i.e. the standard language, which allows the unity of Catalan language.

«Totes les llengües de cultura són identificades per una modalitat comuna, que, a través d’una certa abstracció, permet als seus parlants expressar-s’hi amb espontaneïtat i amb comoditat, per tal que aquesta és la modalitat apresa a les escoles, divulgada a través dels mitjans de comunicació de massa, emprada en els afers públics i conreada per literats i científics. Aquesta és la modalitat legitimada de la llengua i tothom pot emparar-se’n i identificar-s’hi, per més que ja no s’hi recullin trets locals no pertanyents a l’estructura essencial del sistema. Això vol dir, doncs, que fins a un cert punt, en els nivells formals de l’expressió i de la comunicació tothom renuncia a determinades formes particulars de llenguatge, en benefici de la unitat de la comunitat parlant. La modalitat esmentada és de tots, i ensems no coincideix completament amb el parlar de cadascun dels qui se’n valen com a llengua pròpia. Aquesta modalitat és sancionada per la normativa gramatical i lexicogràfica, la qual es basa en la història literària, la dialectologia i el desplegament de la cultura». (16)

In the third point of the declaration it is explained that when the time came to establish a policy of language promotion — a policy which, it states, obviously has to entrust the chiefs of mass communications media and the educators with an important role in the process — there was an outbreak, for what are described as non-scientific reasons, of particularist tendencies and urges to simplify regarding the language question, which consequently led to an acceleration in the process of language replacement.

In keeping with the general spirit of the declaration, the Philological Section articulates a concept of linguistic normalisation which is strictly linked to the diffusion of the standard language and the extension of its use, that is to say, a language quality model. As well as attributing the mass communications media a very relevant role in its diffusion. On the other hand, the Philological Section declarations do not clear any of the institutions, organisations and groups involved in the process of linguistic normalisation of their share of responsibility. In fact at the end of point 7 it states: «Tots els qui han assumit alguna responsabilitat en les tasques de desenvolupament i de normalització de la llengua s’han de sentir, doncs, interpel·lats per aquesta realitat i han d’obrar en conseqüència». (17)

TV set of Gavà TV during the recording of the programme "Paraules"