6 January 2015
Nastoyashchee Vremya, a new Russian-language television program, launched yesterday in Latvia, expanding its reach to audiences in five countries bordering Russia. The show is a joint production of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and the Voice of America.
“The aim of the program is to provide audiences in countries neighboring Russia with an alternative point of view on current events in their countries, in their region, and in the world,” said Nenad Pejic, RFE/RL editor in chief and co-CEO. “It is committed to providing professional, intelligent journalism, and is guided by the belief in the power of good journalism to promote peace and democracy,” he said.
The 30-minute program, a dynamic mix of live news coverage, interviews, original features, and political satire, will air nightly at 11:00pm on Latvia’s private Russian-language channel, TV5. In a press release announcing the program, Baiba Zuzena, the head of TV5’s parent company MTG TV Latvia, explained, “The broadcast of ‘Nastoyashchee Vremya’ on TV5 is not an attempt to convince someone of something, but an opportunity we present to our viewers. Everyone can decide for himself or herself what information to believe, but it’s important that Latvians hear every side and be aware of every point of view.”
Nastoyashchee Vremya, or Current Time began airing in October 2014 and is now carried by TV channels and internet portals in Georgia, Lithuania, Moldova, and Ukraine, in addition to Latvia.
On January 1, Latvia assumed the presidency of the Council of the European Union for the first six months of 2015, during which it has pledged actively to promote media freedom, the EU’s Eastern Partnership program, and democratic institutions.
11 November 2014
UK media regulator Ofcom has declared Russian news channel RT, an AIB Member, to be in violation of its regulations, accusing the broadcaster of bias in its coverage of the Ukraine crisis.
Ofcom’s reprimand comes just two weeks after RT’s launch of its new British news channel, RT UK. Ofcom has summoned representatives from RT to a meeting to discuss the issue the issue further.
The Ofcom report outlined four incidents in early March 2014 in which it found RT’s reporting of the civil strife in Ukraine to be insufficiently impartial. Ofcom declared the Russian broadcaster was in breach of Ofcom’s Rules 5.1, 5.11 and 5.12:
- Rule 5.1: “News, in whatever form, must be reported with due accuracy and presented with due impartiality”.
- Rule 5.11: “In addition to the rules above, due impartiality must be preserved on matters of major political and industrial controversy and major matters relating to current public policy by the person providing a service (listed above) in each programme or in clearly linked and timely programmes”.
- Rule 5.12: “In dealing with matters of major political and industrial controversy and major matters relating to current public policy an appropriately wide range of significant views must be included and given due weight in each programme or in clearly linked and timely programmes. Views and facts must not be misrepresented”.
In the report’s concluding remarks, Ofcom said:
Ofcom emphasises that there is no requirement on broadcasters to provide an alternative viewpoint on all news stories or issues in the news, or to do so in all individual news items or programmes. It is also legitimate for news on a licensed service to be presented in broad terms from the viewpoint of a particular nation-state. We recognise that TV Novosti, providing a service with a Russian background, will want to present the news from a Russian perspective. However, all news must be presented with due impartiality: that is with impartiality adequate or appropriate to the subject and nature of the programme. In particular, when reporting on matters of major political or industrial controversy and major matters relating to current public policy in news programmes, broadcasters must ensure that they reflect an appropriately wide range of significant views and give those views due weight. Presenting news stories with due impartiality in news programmes very much depends on editorial discretion being exercised appropriately in all the circumstances.
In the same report Ofcom also cited a breach of rules by BBC Radio 1 for interviewing an alleged Islamic State fighter on its Newsbeat programme on 13 June. Ofcom considered the story inappropriate for Newsbeat’s youthful demographic.
Ofcom’s report, which includes lengthy analysis of both cases, can be read here.
16 October 2014
Yuriy Artemenko at a meeting in Zaporizhia of media representatives (photo courtesy of NRADA)
The Ukrainian media regulator has moved to ban the broadcast of Russian TV channel 365 Days and Belarusian channel Belarus 24.
On October 15, the Ukrainian National Council for Television and Radio Broadcasting decided to ban the two channels. 365 Days is a Russian history channel. Belarus 24 is the state television and radio channel of Belarus.
In a briefing in Kiev, National Council head Yuriy Artemenko said the decision was based on both channels’ violating clauses of the European Convention on Transfrontier Television (full text of the Convention). Artemenko said the Council will now turn to the courts, to request an official ban of the channels across Ukraine.
The Council’s Deputy Chairman, Grygoriy Shverk, said court hearings against six Russian TV channels were currently underway in the country.
According to a statement on the Council’s website, the decision to ban Russia’s 365 Days was prompted by a complaint and by monitoring conducted by the Council. The Council specifically cited an episode of the programme History of Russia, XX Century, “On the Threshold of Victory”, broadcast by 365 Days on September 9, which it said presented false information about historical events in Ukraine, incited national hatred and had the potential to harm the development of children and adolescents.
Selective monitoring of Belarusian channel Belarus 24 also revealed anti-Ukrainian propaganda and a distortion of information on political developments in Ukraine, said the Council’s site.
Article 24 of the European Convention on Transfrontier Television provides for the settlement of disputes and alleged violations:
1 When a Party finds a violation of this Convention, it shall communicate to the transmitting Party the alleged violation and the two Parties shall endeavour to overcome the difficulty on the basis of the provisions of Articles 19, 25 and 26.
2 If the alleged violation is of a manifest, serious and grave nature which raises important public issues and concerns Articles 7, paragraphs 1 or 2, 12, 13, paragraph 1, first sentence, 14 or 15, paragraphs 1 or 3, and if it persists within two weeks following the communication, the receiving Party may suspend provisionally the retransmission of the incriminated programme service.
3 In all other cases of alleged violation, with the exception of those provided for in paragraph 4, the receiving Party may suspend provisionally the retransmission of the incriminated programme service eight months following the communication, if the alleged violation persists.
9 July 2010
As you will have seen, we have extended the deadline for entries to be submitted to the 2010 AIBs, the international media excellence awards, until 1600GMT on 16th July due to numerous requests. Broadcasters, content producers, providers of technology and others are responding to the extra time granted with large numbers of entries arriving at AIB headquarters every day.
So far companies in 21 countries have entered – from Argentina to China and from Australia to the USA. From phonecalls made to the AIB, we also know that many more entries are on their way.
It is particularly pleasing to see new companies entering for the first time – companies like KI.KA (Der Kinderkanal von ARD und ZDF) in Germany, TV Antena 1 in Romania, Russian Travel Guide Co Ltd Russia, Conker Media Ltd UK, Press TV Iran and eTV South Africa.
It is still not too late to enter if you are a producer or broadcaster of international TV or radio programmes (whether using terrestrial broadcasting, satellite, online or mobile) or if you produce the technology to power broadcasts, or if you run marketing programs for broadcasts (see the categories page on the website for the full list of different awards).
But with only one more week to the deadline, you will have to hurry so if you still want to enter go to the entries page for full details
