‘Democracy Depends On Country Having Impartial Public Broadcasting Service,’ PN MP Says
One PN MP has raised serious concerns about the impartiality of Malta’s public broadcasting system in Parliament, saying that it has become ‘impossible to tell whether it is a public broadcasting or a state broadcasting service’.
Graham Bencini made his case in a speech during a parliamentary session held on Wednesday and stated that many Maltese would today struggle to tell the difference.
“PBS should serve the public and its needs,” he said, “contrary to state broadcasting that is simply propaganda made to manipulate, rather than enlighten.”
On the day, he made reference to two independent studies that classed PBS as a ‘state-controlled media’. A status he described as “the worst of seven categories in the report.”
“They came to this conclusion because they found that certain editorial aspects of PBS are controlled by the state.”
“The editorial independence of public broadcasting is essential for a strong democratic environment in our country.”
A ‘political imbalance’ allegedly dished out by PBS even led Malta’s Nationalist Party to open a constitutional case against them last February. But it wasn’t the only issue.
Bencini also said that censorship also hampered the independent delivery of accurate news to viewers.
“We need to strengthen structures that instill a culture of journalistic independence and thinking,” he added. “Structures that keep PBS and the government apart.”
Last August, the Times of Malta had reported on how journalists from TVM stated that Malta’s public broadcaster had become like a “government noticeboard”, with little opportunity for journalists to carry out investigative work and follow stories that upset the powers that be.
They said that rather than carrying out proper investigations, their work was limited to “he said, she said” reporting, leading to a lack of enthusiasm among journalists.
Political interference at the national broadcaster is not a new phenomenon, and it has been largely accepted that its reporting will tend to favour whichever party is in government.
This unspoken rule is yet another example of the need for reform across Malta’s broadcasting sector, including PBS and both political party stations.
That same year, Lovin Malta filed Constitutional proceedings arguing that a law approved by Parliament in 1991 allowing the Broadcasting Authority not to enforce impartiality rules on political party stations goes against the Constitution.
In Bencini’s speech, he urged parliament to study systems used abroad and to adopt measures that could be used to venture towards neutrality and impartiality.
“At this stage, I am not proposing we adopt another model. But there are other models we can learn from. Democracy in our country depends on it.”
“If our government truly believes in democracy, then it can show it through actions, not words.”
Do you think major changes are needed in Malta’s Public Broadcasting Service?