Presenting an Optimal Model for Media Governance of Television Programs in the National Media

This study aimed to develop an optimal model for the governance of television programming within the National Media organization. The core issue addressed was the discrepancy between decisions announced by management and the actual content broadcast. Adopting a qualitative approach, the study employed the systematic grounded theory method (as developed by Strauss and Corbin). Data were gathered through 29 specialized interviews with National Media executives, producers, and experts, and subsequently analyzed using open, axial, and selective coding. The findings reveal that the governance of television programming is trapped in a vicious cycle: inefficient policymaking and a centralized, rigid management structure (causal conditions)—occurring against a backdrop of detachment from the audience and a shifting media ecosystem (contextual conditions)—are further exacerbated by the interference of external actors and the prioritization of economic logic over cultural mission (intervening conditions). In response, media practitioners—faced with arbitrary programming schedules and diminished motivation—adopt certain strategies, which ultimately lead to audience attrition, a decline in quality, and a loss of institutional authority (consequences). However, divergent evidence suggests that this crisis is heterogeneous and context-dependent, varying in intensity across different channels and time periods. The proposed optimal model entails breaking this cycle through interventions at three levels: the macro level (establishing a roadmap and ensuring transparency), the meso level (implementing participatory management and meritocracy), and the micro level (optimizing programming schedules and conducting audience analysis).