I think one of the points to remember is that Star Wars has science-fiction trappings, but is really more analogous (or supposed to be) to old Samurai stories or even sword and sorcery. I think the poster’s point about a sort of “Intergalactic Mass Media” is a good one – there wouldn’t be one here anymore than there would linking medieval Europe or Japan.
For all the issues with the prequels, Lucas does a good job of remaining somewhat consistent with that vision, establishing that even at the height of the Republic (in Episode 1) it’s reach and influence (and therefore that of the Jedi) are pretty limited to a relative handful of developed, participating planets. The majority of locales we see in Star Wars otherwise are backwaters, living in the shadow of the Republic.
