Vote on media law receives much response, according to Fög
Of the four proposals for the federal referendum on February 13, the law on media promotion has met with the greatest response in the Swiss media arena. This is the conclusion reached by the Fög research institute in an analysis.
Although the package of measures in favor of the media receives the strongest attention, it performs poorly compared to the response to previous proposals. This is the conclusion of the Research Center Public and Society Fög of the University of Zurich.
Significantly more attention was paid, for example, to the Covid 19 law, which was voted on in November last year, or the "No Billag" initiative of 2018. In the case of the media package, the tone is slightly positive, as is the case with the initiative for a tobacco advertising ban.
In contrast, the initiative for a ban on animal and human experimentation is clearly rejected. In the case of the abolition of stamp duties, on the other hand, the tone is ambivalent. That is, the increasing and decreasing votes balance each other out.
Differences between language regions
A comparison of the two major language regions shows that the media law is more present in the German-speaking media of Switzerland. The tone of reporting is more positive in French-speaking Switzerland than on this side of the Röstigraben, the Fög continues.
There are also differences in tone regarding the abolition of stamp duty, which receives slightly more support in the media in French-speaking Switzerland than in German-speaking Switzerland. The other proposals meet with approval (tobacco advertising ban) or rejection (initiative for a ban on animal and human experimentation) in both language regions.
The media package is a special bill for the media because many media houses are affected by it. Nonetheless, a relatively "routinized" form of voting coverage can be observed here, as is typical for many votes. (SDA)
