Slovenia: Media freedom groups support legislative efforts to depoliticize public media
The undersigned international organizations for media freedom and journalists today emphasize their tentative support for the reform of the Law on Radio and Television Slovenia (RTV SLO) and the urgent need to depoliticize the public media and their supervisory bodies in the face of constant threats to their independence. Our organizations welcome the new coalition government’s initiative to reduce the influence of politics on the broadcaster’s operations and promote an environment conducive to its public service mission.
The events of recent years at RTV SLO have clearly shown why such changes are absolutely necessary. Under the previous government, leading politicians created a climate of hostility towards the public media, including the smearing of journalists and aggressive accusations of political bias, which is reflected in 2021 mission report of the undersigned organizations and the fall of Slovenia to the 54th place of Reporters Without Borders 2022 World Press Freedom Index. This was accompanied by politicized appointments to the program board and supervisory board of RTV SLO, occasionally with legal but questionable practices. Politically connected employees of these two bodies then used majority voting to confirm controversial decisions about staffing and the ruling SDS-friendly programs, especially on public television. These appointments, often of unqualified candidates or individuals with links to the previous government, were pushed through despite much criticism.
Since then, staff have accused directors and management of canceling shows, removing editors, pressuring or reassigning reporters and trying to create a political shift in news and current affairs programming. The trade unions representing RTV SLO have repeatedly protested against, in their opinion, unjustified interference with editorial freedom, and the largest journalist unions have repeatedly called on the general director and director of the television to resign. As a result of these near-daily infighting, which has escalated in recent months, more than 30 employees have resigned, resulting in a devastating drop in ratings and a loss of public trust. Recently, 38 colleagues received warnings about the possible termination of employment due to public support for colleagues in the studio. Negotiations to resolve the situation remain unsuccessful. Such a situation threatens the journalistic mission of RTV SLO and undermines the public’s right to information.
It is clear to our organizations that there is an urgent need to work to eliminate the root cause of these problems: the disproportionate influence of all forms of politics on the management structures of RTV SLO. While previous governments have pledged to amend the 2006 Law on RTV Slovenia to reduce political representation in the councils, the proposals have always fallen flat when the realities of governance set in. This lack of political will to resolve the situation left RTV SLO at the mercy of political forces and open to successive periods of instability after election cycles. While concerns about management independence are nothing new, changes made under the previous government have left the issuer in its most challenging position in decades. We therefore welcome the legislative initiative of the new coalition government under the leadership of Prime Minister Robert Golob to resolve this emergency situation.
The draft proposals would restructure the two current governing councils into a single, 17-member decision-making body. Representatives of civil society and employees of RTV SLO would be appointed to this new RTV Council. The National Assembly, which currently appoints the majority of MPs, would have no role. Under the revised system, the council would be run by a four-member board of directors headed by a president who would take care of funding and programming. Appointments would be made on a staggered basis. If the changes are approved, the mandate of the current members of the current programming and supervisory board, the general director, the director of television and the director of radio would end, but they would remain in office until the establishment of a new board. Existing editors would remain in their positions, except in cases where it is determined that they do not enjoy the confidence of the majority of employees in their editorial office.
The overall assessment is that this draft of amendments is a justified and principled attempt to revise the outdated legislative framework, depoliticize the broadcaster and create a more favorable environment for the free performance of RTV SLO’s journalistic mission. If approved, the new system of governance would severely limit the ability of any government, current or future, to use its parliamentary majority to fill councils with like-minded people and interfere with the work of the public media. The governance model described is representative and would reflect a wide range of civil society groups.
We note, however, that it is regrettable that the parliamentary committee for culture did not first conduct a public hearing of the bill, or did not request an assessment of the draft from the Council of Europe or international media organizations and journalist organizations/unions. Although we are aware of the need to urgently regulate the situation at RTV SLO, such changes to the legislative framework should be prepared in an open and transparent manner and with the full cooperation of civil society and journalistic organizations. In order to ensure the full functional independence of this new world, it is essential that all candidates meet strict professional criteria, are selected according to clear and transparent rules, and are committed to ensuring pluralistic and professional programming. Candidates from civil society must not be directly or indirectly connected to political parties. It is also essential that the new finance committee will operate entirely in the public interest. Questions also remain regarding the management of RTV SLO during the transition period. Nevertheless, in our opinion, the draft amendments are in line with European standards on the management of public media and should have a generally positive effect.
The law was adopted by the National Assembly on July 14, 2022. The changes will be preceded by an amendment on November 27 in a referendum initiated by the opposition. If it is accepted, this should ensure the stability of RTV SLO in the short term. Even then, it should not be seen as an antidote to all the challenges currently facing public media. The process of depoliticization will be long and demanding. It is also crucial that this legislation is accompanied by a bylaw that will ensure long-term sustainable financing and lay a solid economic foundation for RTV SLO to recruit and train a new generation of professional journalists, restore public trust and cope with challenges. of the future. This accompanying bill must follow quickly and establish the autonomy of editorial decision-making and modernize the institution’s organization.
This reform is an important first step forward. If passed, this legislative change will lead to the fulfillment of the key recommendation of the European Commission’s report on the rule of law 2022 on Slovenia, which called for stronger mechanisms to strengthen the independent management of public media. Applying these standards would also be a boost to media freedom by the new government, which has made public media reform a priority during the election campaign. Our organizations will continue to closely monitor the situation and call for an end to all politically motivated pressures on the editorial autonomy of public media in the country.
Signed:
Balkan Free Media Initiative (BFMI)
European Center for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF)
European Union of Journalists
Free Press Unlimited (FPU)
International Press Institute (IPI)
OBC Transeuropa (OBCT)
Public Media Association (PMA)
Reporters Without Borders (RSF)