An order by the Broadcasting Authority to exercise “caution” when reporting on Roberta Metsola in the run-up to June’s MEP elections could have a “chilling effect on journalists,” the European Parliament Office in Malta has argued.
The Valletta-based office and its head, Mario Sammut, said the BA directive unjustly targeted a single candidate in the June elections and by doing so risked making it impossible for the European Parliament to fulfil its mandate in Malta.
Last week, the Broadcasting Authority issued directives about how broadcasters should report on the June elections.
Among other things, the authority said that reports from the European Parliament or any report which has to do with the President of the European Parliament had to be reported with caution.
“Any such reports should focus on the news value of the story and whether the issue is a current and topical one,” the BA said.
Broadcasters that breach the directives can be sanctioned by the regulator.
The directive, which effectively targets Metsola and her role as EP president, immediately drew a sharp condemnation from both the EP Office and Metsola’s party, the Nationalist Party.
Both immediately asked the BA to suspend the directive, which covers the period between April 29 and June 8 – the day the electorate goes to the polls to choose their European Parliament and local council representatives.
Metsola also hit out at BA, saying the directive was “dangerous“.
On Monday, the BA – whose board is made up entirely of political appointees from Malta’s two main parties – said its directive only meant to ensure a “level playing field” among all candidates.
But on Wednesday, EP office head Sammut said the directive did the opposite.
“The wording of the directive does not correspond with your stated intentions – rather it does the opposite and makes a level playing field impossible,” he said in a letter addressed to the BA chair.
The directive, he added, was unprecedented and could “serve to curtail” information from the EP.
This practice had never been adopted during national election campaigns when it came to the national parliament and the Speaker of the House.
“The impact of the directive as currently worded could noticeably impinge on the ability of the EP to fulfil its mandate in Malta.
“lt gives the BA the power to sanction media houses that in their view report on the activities of the EP and its president. This could have a chilling effect on Maltese journalists.”
He reiterated his call for the immediate suspension of the directive that would allow for a legal review to ensure that the parliament’s rights are “fully respected and that Maltese citizens remain entitled to the same information as every other European citizen”.
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