「萬惡」電視何以誕生？臺灣有線電視生成階段（1980－1993）的重新檢視

The Birth of “Vicious” TV: Re-examining the Early Stage of the Development of Taiwanese Cable Television (1980-1993)

臺灣有線電視前身「第四台」出現在1970年代，1993年正式立法之後，有線電視不但成為臺灣最主要的電視服務形式，也被認為是近二十年來臺灣「媒體亂象」的重要根源。本文重新檢視1980年到1993年之間，「第四台」的生成狀態，以更準確掌握有線電視演變成晚近臺灣傳媒問題亂源的原因。本文透過新聞文本分析、文獻整理以及閱聽人訪談等方法，獲致以下研究發現。首先，臺灣有線電視初期發展環境，是由缺乏傳播建設理念、立場搖擺不定、施為前後矛盾的國家機器，以及貶抑有線電視發展，並限縮公眾對新興電視服務想像的主流論述所構成。第二，上述兩個條件架構了第四台非法、中小規模、低技術水準的產業格局和社會角色，進而建構出「類攤販」性格，且延續到立法之後。第三，當時一般閱聽人對替代性的影視產品其實並無強烈與具體需求，加上主流論述無法提供想像和參考的論述資源，其消費模式反而逐漸被早期有線電視的服務內容形塑，進而與國家機器、產業資本共同穩固了往後有線電視產業和服務的樣貌與特性，同時也構成了當前臺灣媒體問題的重要根源。 “The fourth channel”, regarded as Taiwanese cable television's predecessor, appeared in the 1970s and rapidly expanded in the 1980s. After formal legislation in 1993, cable television not only became Taiwan's most important form of televized broadcasting services, but is also considered as the main cause for nearly two decades of Taiwan's “media disorder”. This article re-examines the political and social environments and industrial state of “the fourth channel” between 1980 and 1993, in order to more accurately explain why cable television evolved into a key problem of Taiwanese media, using document analysis, news text analysis, and audience in-depth interviews to explore the issue in three aspects. First, contradictory state policies and unfriendly mainstream discourse together established the early stages of development. Second, the interplay of these two conditions forced “the fourth channel” industry to evolve into a small- to medium-sized enterprise model and the corresponding operational practices, which were sustained after the legistation period. Third, at that time the general audience had no concrete and strong needs nor imagination for alternative televized services, but their consumption trend was gradually shaped by the service provided by “the fourth channel”. Along with the state and the industry, it then helped stabilize the later characteristics of Taiwanese cable television service.