12 ethical commitment to quality information, and its essential role in the promotion of human rights and in the denouncement of violations of these rights. 60. Currently, there is a great deal of discussion about the regulatory framework of communication or of the media, between those who defend its need and those who reject this with the justification of cherishing a communication free of any and every type of State interference or censure. 61. However, various countries have already enacted laws designed to regulate the exercise of mass communication, although it is necessary to consider that this regulation could be used for different purposes, which include in particular: (i) the promotion of democracy in the area of communications to prevent certain groups from controlling the production of information in the country; (ii) the defense of free competition with regard to communication companies; (iii) the defense of the rights of journalists and others responsible for obtaining and distributing news; (iv) the delimitation of the right to freedom of expression, in order to avoid abuses that violate the rights of others. Evidently, the regulations could also be used in order to exercise control over the content produced, censuring the media, and this is precisely the argument most used by those who oppose regulation. 62. The countries that possess regulations include: Argentina, the United Kingdom, the United States and Uruguay (the most recent). In Argentina, the media has been regulated since 2009 when the “Media Law” was enacted. The law defined the rules for television and radio stations, regulating the communication services, aimed at developing mechanisms for the “promotion, deconcentration and encouragement of competition in order to lower the cost of, democratize and universalize” communication. 63. In the United Kingdom, the regulation relates to the conduct of journalists as regards the limits to be observed in the exercise of the profession so as not to violation the rights of others, such as the right to privacy. It emerged in response to public demand as a result of the scandal that, in October 2013, exposed the invasion of privacy of many citizens by the British tabloids who had used illegal listening devices and hacked private telephones and social network accounts. 64. In the United States, the regulation has a much more limited purpose than the defense of democracy or of individual rights to privacy, and is designed to ensure freedom of competition in the sector, guaranteeing that no company can control a certain market, monopolizing the production or distribution of information. 65. In 2014, the UNESCO Communication and Information Sector published a report on: “World trends in freedom of expression and media development: regional overview of Latin America and the Caribbean,”31 in which it analyzed issues such as the freedom, pluralism, independence and safety of the media in the countries of the region. 66. One of the aspects addressed was the regulatory framework. In this regard, the report noted that there was a growing tendency to regulation communication; however, in each country this regulation had a different goal. The report underscored the adoption of new laws in order to revise the media laws left over from military dictatorships that no longer corresponded to the reality in the countries, either through the implementation of public policies aimed at broadening access to information or through the emergence of “alternative” sources UNESCO. World trends in freedom of expression and media development: regional overview of Latin America and the Caribbean, 2014. 31