This paper analyzes in a long-term perspective the evolution of the international system between the 1920s and the 1980s in the particular case of broadcasting frequency regulation. It addresses the constructing of ＂...This paper analyzes in a long-term perspective the evolution of the international system between the 1920s and the 1980s in the particular case of broadcasting frequency regulation. It addresses the constructing of ＂Airy Curtains＂--the immaterial equivalent to the Iron Curtain-along ideological frontiers by focusing on the International Telecommunication Union＇s frequency allocation conferences throughout the ＂Cold War＂. The question is raised： Which changes in the construction of ＂Airy Curtains＂ and the international system are observable in a long term perspective？ The paper answers this question by telling a story of specialization and differentiation of the international system. At the core of the paper the tensions between experts and diplomats in the negotiations on international regulations are discussed. The paper argues that in three periods the governance changed from an expert matter over a conflictual diplomatic period into a system where ＇Cold War engineers＇ and the ＇Engineering diplomats＇ took a pragmatic approach to the ideological conflicts and the political demand for Cold War broadcasting by a decoupling of politics and technology. In that context decision-making changed from ＂conference diplomacy＂ in the beginning to a complex process where many problems were solved outside the conferences themselves.展开更多
文摘This paper analyzes in a long-term perspective the evolution of the international system between the 1920s and the 1980s in the particular case of broadcasting frequency regulation. It addresses the constructing of ＂Airy Curtains＂--the immaterial equivalent to the Iron Curtain-along ideological frontiers by focusing on the International Telecommunication Union＇s frequency allocation conferences throughout the ＂Cold War＂. The question is raised： Which changes in the construction of ＂Airy Curtains＂ and the international system are observable in a long term perspective？ The paper answers this question by telling a story of specialization and differentiation of the international system. At the core of the paper the tensions between experts and diplomats in the negotiations on international regulations are discussed. The paper argues that in three periods the governance changed from an expert matter over a conflictual diplomatic period into a system where ＇Cold War engineers＇ and the ＇Engineering diplomats＇ took a pragmatic approach to the ideological conflicts and the political demand for Cold War broadcasting by a decoupling of politics and technology. In that context decision-making changed from ＂conference diplomacy＂ in the beginning to a complex process where many problems were solved outside the conferences themselves.
