Strasbourg, 08/06/2016 (Agence Europe) - In the framework of expert-level dialogue with the Polish authorities, the Council of Europe (CoE) asked Eve Salomon, legal expert on media legislation and regulation, and Jean-François Furnémont, founder associate of Wagner-Hatfield and former chair of the European Platform of Regulatory Authorities (EPRA), to prepare an expert opinion on the draft legislation on major public service media.
This report, which has been available on the CoE website since Monday 6 June, calls for improvements in a number of areas.
On governance, the text stresses the need for transparency in the selection and appointment of members of the national media council, who must be able to demonstrate that they have the required skills, be independent of any political influence and represent the diversity of Polish society. This diversity should be reflected in the editorial content, which must be unbiased and balanced, the experts stressed. As for the protection of journalists, the current proposal on the collective dismissal of mid-level executives should be abandoned, they argue, also calling for more solid and proportionate financing principles for royalties. A full impact assessment has already been recommended on the issue.
A meeting was held on 17 May of this year between the experts of the CoE and the deputy minister for culture and national heritage, Krzysztof Czabanski, who is steering the reform. A joint press release described the meeting as “constructive”.
Thorbjorn Jagland, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, described the publication of this expert opinion as a “sign that Poland is working with the CoE on this very important issue” and welcomed “the prospect of continuing this dialogue”. (Original version in French by Véronique Leblanc)