Editing Commercial broadcasting (section)

=={{anchor|Some features of commercial broadcasting}}Features==

=== {{anchor|Massive practice of advertising}}Advertising ===
Commercial broadcasting is primarily based on the practice of airing [[radio advertisement]]s and [[television advertisement]]s for profit. This is in contrast to [[public broadcasting]], which receives government subsidies and usually does not have paid advertising interrupting the show. During [[pledge drive]]s, some public broadcasters will interrupt shows to ask for donations.

In the United States, [[non-commercial educational]] (NCE) television and radio exist in the form of [[community radio]]; however, [[premium cable]] services such as [[HBO]] and [[Showtime (TV network)|Showtime]] generally operate solely on [[Cable television in the United States#Subscriber fees|subscriber fees]] and do not sell advertising. This is also the case for the portions of the two major [[satellite radio]] systems that are produced in-house (mainly music programming).

Radio broadcasting originally began without paid commercials. As time went on, however, advertisements seemed less objectionable to both the public and government regulators and became more common.  While commercial broadcasting was unexpected in radio, in television it was planned due to commercial radio's success. Television began with commercial sponsorship and later transformed to paid commercial time. When problems arose over patents and corporate marketing strategies, regulatory decisions were made by the [[Federal Communications Commission]] (FCC) to control commercial broadcasting.<ref name=Boddy/>

=== {{anchor|Paid-for services}}Paid programming ===
Commercial broadcasting overlaps with paid services such as [[cable television]], [[cable radio|radio]] and [[satellite television]]. Such services are generally partially or wholly paid for by local subscribers and is known as [[leased access]]. Other programming (particularly on cable television) is produced by companies operating in much the same manner as advertising-funded commercial broadcasters, and they (and often the local cable provider) sell commercial time in a similar manner.

The FCC's interest in program control began with the chain-broadcasting investigation of the late 1930s, culminating in the [[Blue Book (FCC)|"Blue Book" of 1946]], ''Public Service Responsibility For Broadcast Licensees''. The Blue Book differentiated between mass-appeal sponsored programs and unsponsored "sustaining" programs offered by the radio networks. This sustained programming, according to the Blue Book, had five features serving the public interest:
*Sustaining programs balanced the broadcast schedule, supplementing the soap operas and popular-music programs receiving the highest ratings and most commercial sponsors
*They allowed for the broadcast of programs which, by their controversial or sensitive nature, were unsuitable for sponsorship
*They supplied cultural programming for smaller audiences
*They provided limited broadcast access for [[non-profit]] and civic organizations
*They made possible artistic and dramatic experimentation, shielded from the pressures of short-run rating and commercial considerations of a sponsor.<ref name=Boddy>Boddy, William. ''Fifties Television: the Industry and Its Critics.'' University of Illinois Press, 1992. {{ISBN|978-0-252-06299-5}}</ref>

Commercial time has increased 31 seconds per hour for all prime time television shows. For example, ABC has increased from 9 minutes and 26 seconds to 11 minutes and 26 seconds.<ref>{{cite journal |id={{ProQuest|225346067}} |last1=Fleming |first1=Heather |title=PSA slice shrinks as commercial pie grows |journal=Broadcasting & Cable |location=New York |volume=127 |issue=13 |date=31 March 1997 |pages=19–22 }}</ref>

=== {{anchor|Sensationalism}}Ratings ===
Programming on commercial stations is more ratings-driven&mdash; particularly during periods such as [[sweeps]] in the US and some Latin American countries.