Simkovicova: STVR Will Be Depoliticised and More Independent Than RTVS

Bratislava, July 3 (TASR) - Slovak Television and Radio (STVR), which replaced Radio and Television Slovakia (RTVS) when a new law came into force on July 1, will be depoliticised and more independent than its predecessor, said Culture Minister Martina Simkovicova (a Slovak National Party/SNS nominee) on TASR TV on Wednesday. In her opinion, the way RTVS operated wasn't economically sustainable in the long term, while the staging of discussion programmes was biased and remained so even after the change in government. "What we saw for the previous four years was the promotion of one spectrum of opinion. The other spectrum of opinion wasn't respected," stressed Simkovicova. Simkovicova also considers the new method of electing the director general to be part of the depoliticisation process. While the director of RTVS was elected directly by MPs by majority vote, the STVR law transfers this power to a nine-member board, of which five members are elected by parliament and four are nominated by the Culture Ministry. "STVR will remain as a single institution, but both Slovak Television and Slovak Radio will have autonomous powers within it. We don't want Slovak Radio to get the short end of the stick," said the minister. The Ethics Commission will be an advisory body of the STVR Council. According to Simkovicova, it will be apolitical and will act only within the scope of the law. In her opinion, the observance of ethical standards is commonly checked by large corporations in the West. "It will be about communication, but not only about the spectrum of Bratislava and its surroundings; it will be about the whole of Slovakia," she stressed. am/df