Electronic media have undergone substantial growth and change in the past two decades, and the structure of the programming industry has also changed, with the competition for programming becoming more intense. At the same time, government has moved toward deregulation in this area, with the result being increasing concentration, commercialization, and vertical integration of the different sectors of the electronic media, i.e., cable, broadcasting, programmers, and networks. The technology of the electronic media long ago outstripped the abilities of current governmental, educational, and social institutions to deal with it. The impact of television ultimately affects an individual watching a program, but the decisions behind those programs and the structure of the decision-making entities bear close scrutiny if we are to have some understanding of and control over the electronic media. With the marriage of marketplace and the broadcasting industry, television has been very effective at creating a "pseudocommunity," or an illusion of community and belonging, immediacy, and sincerity. One of the greatest dangers of the pseudocommunity is that it undermines those activities and values that contribute to real community. Deregulation has also had a substantial impact on the broadcast industry, bringing volatility, concentration, and an explosion of the demand for programming. These changes have had a particularly strong and negative impact on the nature of local programming. A major debate now centers on what exactly the television industry is and what types of regulation, if any, should be undertaken. However, the need is to come up with policies based on principles that grow out of the role we want the media to play in our society. (24 references) (EW)