PBS bans Reporter from discussing EP elections but not WE
Reporter presenter Saviour Balzan has written a letter to PBS Chairman Claire Thake Vassallo to protest against the discriminating manner in which the PBS Editorial Board, led by Professor Joe Pirotta, had banned Reporter from interviewing the parties’ Secretaries-General and the newly-elected MEPs.
On the other hand, Balzan explained in his letter, this decision did not apply to other current affairs programmes on PBS like Bondi+ and Xarabank, among others.
In fact, Bondi+ on Monday had PL and PN secretaries-general Jason Micallef and newly-elected MEPs Louis Grech and Simon Busuttil as guests, while Xarabank was also slated to discuss the EP elections.
“This order from the PBS Editorial Board has nothing to do with policy but with a wish not to have free discussion and reporting on politics by Reporter,” Balzan insisted.
He recalled how last October, the PBS Editorial Board had already ordered Reporter not to broadcast interviews with EP candidates.
“On the other hand, interviews with candidates or about the elections can be broadcast on TVM as long as they are programmes produced by Where’s Everybody or the PBS newsroom,” Balzan added.
Balzan explained how he has been presenting reported on PBS for a number of years. “That we operate while respecting the station’s ethos and respecting truth is important. And that is what I have tried to do.
“But that now the Editorial Board imposes this order is unacceptable, furthermore when I know that TVM viewers want to hear more independent voices more than ever,” Balzan insisted in his letter to the PBS Chairman.
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