The BC will monitor 15 TV and radio stations during the presidential electoral campaign

According to the law, the Council must monitor the TV and radio stations that have the status of national providers, but it can modify the list. At the meeting, some members suggested replacing some stations. 

“I think we need to broaden the list by introducing providers who will have an impact and will be actively involved in the electoral campaign. For example, I would suggest RTR Moldova and Televiziunea Centrală, which will definitely have a serious performance during this campaign,” said Corneliu Mihalache. “I would add BTV – the regional station from Balti, and would exclude Moldova 2, which repeats newscasts from Moldova 1,” said Larisa Manole.

“I would suggest excluding CTC Mega, given that this station has previously sent a letter announcing they were giving up newscasts for financial reasons. Indeed, this station has no newscasts at the moment,” said her colleague Lidia Viziru. Corneliu Mihalache suggested excluding radio stations from the list, but Ion Robu said that “Radio Moldova must stay, because it has a great impact on the electorate.”

Thus, during the campaign the BC will monitor the newscasts of Moldova 1, Publika TV, Prime TV, Primul în Moldova, TVR Moldova, Canal 2, Canal 3, TV8, NTV Moldova, Jurnal TV, Radio Moldova, Pro TV Chișinău, BTV, RTR Moldova, and Televiziunea Centrală.

In an interview for Media Azi, the BC President Dragos Vicol said that the monitoring of only main newscasts is enough for a “complete picture.”

“Everything that is discussed in talk shows, debates, and other electoral materials, and not only, is reflected in a proportion of 99.99% in newscasts. Topics are resumed. From this point of view, we will waste a lot of useful time if we monitor absolutely all prime-time content to the detriment of the quality of examination of these materials. Moreover, the recommendation to monitor only the main newscasts is in line with the recommendations of international experts, who told us that newscasts should be monitored so that there is a tangible picture of what is happening in the elections. It is not the BC’s know-how, but a practice taken from the recommendations of the Council of Europe experts,” Vicol explained.

At the meeting, Council members also set the first monitoring period to be from October 2 to 15, and the second – from October 16 to November 1 inclusive, in the context that, according to the law, the BC must submit monitoring reports every two weeks.