Our weekly round-up of public service media related stories and headlines from around the world.

Click on the tab menu below to reveal the latest regional stories.


What we're listening to...


Leyla McCalla Revives Haiti’s Rebel Radio Station 

WUNC: Radio Haiti-Inter was the first independent radio station on the Caribbean island. Founded by activist and journalist Jean Dominique, it broke the mold and achieved mass popularity by standing up to government corruption and media suppression in the language of the people, Haitian Creole.

What we're watching...


How media coverage affects public reaction to COVID-19 

CBC News: With a huge influx of information about COVID-19, how should the media be informing people without causing a panic? Al Tompkins, a senior faculty member at the Poynter Institute, says headlines and image selection are key.

New: Sign up to our Global Call Out

Promote, support and advocate for public service media

Global Headlines


Click on the tab menu below to reveal the latest regional stories.

ETHIOPIA: Communications Shutdown Takes Heavy Toll

HRW: The Ethiopian government should immediately lift the shutdown of internet and phone communications in the Oromia region. The two-month-long shutdown has prevented families from communicating, disrupted life-saving services, and contributed to an information blackout during government counterinsurgency operations in the area.


GHANA: Making the RTI Law functional in Ghana: 5 key issues, 5 key recommendations (Opinion)

My Joy Online: It has been one month since the government of Ghana affirmed that the newly passed RTI is operational. Adizatu Moro Maiga of the Media Foundation for West Africa’s Media and Good Governance programme raises red flags on deficits in the implementation and functionality of the RTI law.


GUINEA-BISSAU: Soldiers shut down state radio and TV in Guinea-Bissau 

RSF: Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls for an end to the military occupation of the state-owned national radio and TV stations in Guinea-Bissau and urges the authorities to guarantee the safety of their journalists so that they can resume broadcasting.


NAMIBIA: Auditor general gives NBC adverse audit opinion

The Namibian: For the last nine years, auditor general (AG) Junias Kandjeke has given state-broadcaster, the Namibia Broadcasting Corporation (NBC), adverse audit opinions for failing to present him with a fair reflection of the entity’s financial position.


NIGERIA: Erring Broadcasters To Pay $13.6K Fine For Hate speech – NBC

Via Broadcast Media Africa: The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has issued a warning that the airing of hate speech by Nigeria’s media houses would now attract a fine of $13 600.00.


NIGERIA: NBC Grants 65 Radio, Television Licences

Via All Africa: The National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has announced the issuance of 65 new broadcasting licences.


NIGERIA: Nigeria’s Premium Times faces cyberattacks, intimidation of journalists after publishing leaked documents

CPJ: Samuel Ogundipe, a reporter with the privately owned online newspaper, told CPJ in a phone interview that he went into hiding on February 28 after receiving several threatening phone calls, his professional email was hacked, and he was warned by a source within the Nigerian security forces that he may be arrested as part of an effort to identify the source for a series of reports published in Premium Times. Premium Times editor-in-chief Musikilu Mojeed has also faced intimidation attempts since the reports were published.


SOUTH AFRICA: Ex-SABC boss Chris Maroleng wants R16m or his job back

City Press: Ex-SABC boss Maroleng accuses CEO of using flawed disciplinary process to fire him.


SOUTH AFRICA: SABC Responds To Former Coo’s Defamatory Media Statements

SABC: The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) refutes the unfounded and defamatory allegations made by its former Chief Operations Officer, Mr Chris Maroleng in his recent interviews on several media platforms and in other reports related to his dismissal.


ZIMBABWE: Zimbabwe Parliament Grills Baz Over Radio Stations Licensing Criteria

MISA Zimbabwe: The Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe (BAZ) board on 5 March 2020 was grilled by the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Information, Media and Broadcasting Services following government’s intention to license Zimbabwe’s first-ever community radio stations.


REGIONAL: Fighting Corruption in West Africa: The Media’s Role (Analysis)  

MFWA: Transparency International’s recently released Corruption Perceptions Index report for 2019 reveals that an overwhelming number of countries have fallen short on battling corruption. In West Africa, the numbers are even more staggering.

CHINA: China’s coronavirus cover-up: how censorship and propaganda obstructed the truth (Opinion)

The Conversation: China’s political leaders will be hoping that when concerns about the coronavirus eventually start to recede, memories about the state’s failings early on in the outbreak will also fade. 


CHINA & US: US-China media row deepens as Beijing hints at revenge over curbs on state media 

The Guardian: Official news agency protests against Washington’s cap on US-based Chinese nationals working for state-owned outlets. 


HONG KONG: Hong Kong TV channels no longer required to air programmes from public broadcaster RTHK

HKFP: Hong Kong television broadcasters who hold free TV licences will no longer be required to air RTHK’s programmes, the Communications Authority announced on Wednesday. The authority lifted the requirements on commercial broadcasters TVB and HK Television Entertainment Company Limited (HKTVE) following a revocation request submitted by TVB on January 9.


HONG KONG: Hong Kong ‘war on humor’ pits public broadcaster versus police

Nikkei Asia Review: A spat between the Hong Kong police and the city’s public broadcaster over a comedy show upended a decades-old industry practice this week and raised fresh concerns about free expression.


INDIA: Delhi violence: Prasar Bharati CEO declines BBC invitation over ‘one-sided’ coverage

Scroll.in: Shashi Shekhar Vempati also questioned why the BBC is ‘damningly silent’ on the ‘brutal targeted murder’ of Intelligence Bureau officer Ankit Sharma.


INDIA: India temporarily bans 2 news channels over coverage of Delhi riots

CPJ: The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting issued two orders today, one to each broadcaster, ordering the stations to stop airing any programs for 48 hours as a penalty for their coverage of riots in Delhi, which the ministry alleged was biased and constituted incitement, according to the orders. The bans went into effect on March 6. 


INDIA: Kashmir sees surge in intimidation of journalists, violation of sources

RSF: After yet another example yesterday of intimidation of journalists by Indian security forces in the northern state of Jammu and Kashmir, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is providing a summary of recent cases of police harassment of media personnel and violation of the confidentiality of their sources in the Kashmir Valley.


JAPAN: Earthquake-related programs, NHK, Fuji and Yahoo collaborate  (Japanese – Paywall)

Asahi Shimbun: NHK, Fuji Television, and Yahoo will collaborate across media boundaries to produce and broadcast programs. The joint project is “What can the media do at that time?” NHK will broadcast a debate program on general television on the 8th, and Fuji will broadcast a documentary on the 11th. Yahoo provides big data analysis such as search words at the time of the earthquake.


JAPAN: NHK chairman contradicts own statement about board meeting

Asahi Shimbun: The chairman of Japan Broadcasting Corp. (NHK) changed his story about discussions at a board meeting but denied exerting pressure concerning a TV program that infuriated the Japan Post Group.


JAPAN: RSF urges Japan to stop pressuring the media on Fukushima-related topics

RSF: As Japan commemorates the 9th anniversary of the Fukushima disaster, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) urges the authorities to let journalists freely report on the topic.


KAZAKHSTAN: Supporting media reform in Kazakhstan (Publications)

Article 19: ARTICLE 19, in conjunction with its local partner Adil Soz, has published two legal briefings on the topic of media freedom in Kazakhstan. Each of the briefings provide guidance for journalists and policymakers in Kazakhstan, who are seeking to reform the restrictive media legislation in the country, and to promote and protect freedom of expression and media freedom.


MYANMAR: Myanmar army sues Reuters for criminal defamation: police 

Reuters: Myanmar police said the army had filed a lawsuit against Reuters news agency and a local lawmaker for criminal defamation, weeks after the military objected to a news story published about the death of two Rohingya Muslim women as a result of shelling in Rakhine state.


PAKISTAN: A rowdy public debate   

Dawn: Back in 2005, private news channels were still a new phenomenon in Pakistan and there were just a handful of them. Hence, the channels were experimenting with show formats and topics; and one such experiment on Geo had Hina Bayat, who now acts in dramas, hosting a show on ‘social’ issues.


PAKISTAN: YouTube Becomes Refuge for Pakistan Journalists Battling Censors

NDTV: Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists, the top media-representative body, and press clubs across the country are protesting against censorship.


PHILIPPINES: House hearing on ABS-CBN franchise renewal (WATCH) 

Rappler: The House committee on legislative franchises is finally holding its first hearing on the bills that would renew the franchise of media network ABS-CBN on Tuesday, March 10.


TAIWAN: Disinformers are targeting Taiwan as a country where coronavirus is out of control

Poynter: While struggling to fight the new coronavirus, Taiwan is also witnessing a serious digital attack driven by malicious disinformers.


TAIWAN: RSF urges Taiwan to amend a regulation restricting the possibility to report on suicide cases

RSF: RSF urges the Taiwanese Ministry of Health and Welfare to amend a regulation that, if adopted, would prevent media from covering suicide cases.


VIETNAM: Vietnamese blogger who was abducted in Thailand sentenced to 10 years in prison

CPJ:  A Hanoi court sentenced Duy Nhat, a blogger with the U.S. Congress-funded Radio Free Asia’s Vietnamese language service, to ten years in prison after a half-day trial for “abusing his position and power while on duty” as a reporter, a crime under Clause 3, Article 356, of Vietnam’s penal code, according to news reports

AUSTRALIA: ABC South East NSW team on covering bushfires as family, friends and community were threatened

ABC News: Over 20 years in journalism, ABC South East NSW Breakfast presenter Simon Lauder has witnessed the devastation wrought by bushfires up close.


AUSTRALIA: Closure of AAP is yet another blow to public interest journalism in Australia

Asia Pacific Report: Australia’s news landscape, and the ability of citizens to access quality journalism, has been dealt a major blow by the announcement the Australian Associated Press is closing, with the loss of 180 journalism jobs.


AUSTRALIA: News Corp finds someone to blame after pulling the plug on AAP (hint: it’s not News Corp)

The Guardian: The demise of AAP has unexpectedly ignited a war of words between media companies over who is to blame. According to News Corp – one of the major shareholders who actually took the decision to close AAP – the shuttering of the vital news service is the fault of digital giants Google and Facebook … and the ABC and Guardian Australia.


AUSTRALIA: Pillar of Australian journalism falls

RNZ: Hundreds of media jobs will go across the Tasman when Australia’s national news agency AAP closes in June – and some working for its offshoots here will be affected too. Mediawatch asks its long-serving chief editor why “Australia’s news media engine” is closing and the impact it will have on news. ​


AUSTRALIA: Save our screens: 3 things government must do now to keep Australian content alive (Opinion)

The Conversation: Last week, free-to-air broadcaster Seven, embracing the spirit of a petulant teen, stomped its foot and announced it would no longer follow the rules regarding its Australian children’s content obligations.


AUSTRALIA: ‘You don’t save money moving house’: ABC boss resists call to shift

Sydney Morning Herald: ABC managing director David Anderson says calls for the public broadcaster to move out of its offices in Ultimo, Sydney and Southbank, Melbourne are not realistic as it cannot afford to invest “hundreds of millions” into relocating. Mr Anderson said the taxpayer-funded organisation was keen to better represent households in the outer suburbs of cities but noted this would present an additional cost and would not be an efficiency measure. 


NEW ZEALAND: Australian investigative journalist working for Al Jazeera barred entry

Pacific Media Watch: An award-winning journalist whose reporting on a murder and corruption investigation got her deported from Malaysia has been prevented from boarding a flight to New Zealand, even though she has been back to Malaysia since, reports Newsroom.


NEW ZEALAND: Funding for iwi radio stations under scrutiny

RNZ: Te Māngai Pāho cannot increase funding to iwi radio without more money from the government, its chief executive has said, in response to criticism over the small amount of funding those stations receive.


NEW ZEALAND: RNZ Concert and new RNZ music station documents revealed

RNZ: Fresh details have come to light detailing RNZ’s multi-media youth radio station that had been proposed to replace RNZ Concert on FM.


NEW ZEALAND: TVNZ and RNZ might soon become siblings. Ireland has some advice (Opinion)

The Spinoff: The proposed merger of RNZ and TVNZ has one clear international precedent – Irish national broadcaster RTÉ. Michael Andrew asks what New Zealand can learn from the Irish model.


SAMOA: Samoan journalists group to file complaint against online news service

RNZ: The Journalists Association of Samoa, or JAWS, is filing a complaint against a New Zealand-based online news service with the Samoa Media Council for alleged breach of professional standards. A journalist from an online service is being accused of offering a bribe to a police officer to allow him to continue live streaming a domestic violence incidence over the weekend that ended with two people dead.

CYPRUS: IPI condemns bomb attack on Cyprus media agency offices

IPI: The International Press Institute (IPI), the global network of editors, media executives and leading journalists for press freedom, today strongly condemned the bomb attack outside the offices of Cypriot news agency MC Digital Media.


CZECH REPUBLIC: Czech TV looks to 2024

Broadband TV News: The Czech public broadcaster Ceska Televize (CT) has approved long-term plans until 2024. In a statement, it says they guarantee economic and program stability and show that it is also able to meet the requirements and objectives of the Czech Television Act in this period.


DENMARK: DR strengthens coverage of the EU’s importance in Denmark (Danish)

DR: A new editorial board in Denmark will focus on what EU cooperation means in Denmark: what enables, realizes and prevents the EU.


FRANCE: French Language and Francophonie Week from March 14 to 22, 2020 (French)

Radio France: At the initiative of the Ministry of Culture, the Week of the French language and the Francophonie invites word lovers to celebrate every year, everywhere in the world, the richness of our language by readings, dictations, meetings, exhibitions, shows and workshops. Organized around March 20, the date of the International Day of La Francophonie , the 25th edition of the Week will be held from March 14 to 22, 2020 sponsored by Emmanuelle Laborit and Abd al Malik.


GREECE: EU and Member States must create safe environment for journalists reporting in Greece

IPI: Physical attacks, online harassment and censorship: In recent days, media freedom organisations have shed light on threats against journalists reporting on the arrival of migrants into Greece. These attacks are taking place in a context of violence against migrants and those supporting them, such as NGOs and self-organised groups.


HUNGARY: Amnesty International claims to be censored by Hungarian public media (Spanish)

La Vanguardia: Amnesty International (AI) denounced on Monday that the Hungarian public media censor the content of their communiqués, in violation of current legislation on press freedom.


HUNGARY: State media journalists received instructions for reports on migration, EU politics and Greta Thunberg

EFJ: Politico Europe revealed on 2 March that internal emails were sent to Hungarian state media staff to inform about new editorial rules when reporting about Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, “sensitive topics” and when quoting human rights organisations’ reports. 


ITALY: Rai counters coronavirus with kids content push

Kidscreen: The pubcaster is launching new content across its channels, and teaming up with celebs, to entertain and educate children, says Rai’s Luca Milano.


MOLDOVA: Populists shrug off protests in Central and Southeast Europe

SEENPM: The media in the Republic of Moldova is still in a severe state, as revealed by the 2019 Moldovan Press Status Index (MPSI), published by the Independent Journalism Center (IJC) on Wednesday, February 26.


POLAND: Polish president OKs $510M for public media amid campaign

Associated Press: Poland’s president has signed a bill earmarking nearly 2 billion zlotys ($510 million) to fund public television and radio, broadcast outlets that have become mouthpieces for the country’s right-wing government and given the president positive coverage as he campaigns for reelection.


RUSSIA: Russian Regulator Accuses BBC Of Broadcast Violations

RFE/RL: Russia’s communications regulator has accused the BBC World News channel of violating broadcasting requirements within Russia, in an intensification of a dispute over media between Moscow and London.


SLOVAKIA: Journalists Tell Slovakia’s PM-elect: ‘Thanks, but No Thanks’

IPS News: Plans announced by Slovakia’s prime minister-elect to fund investigative journalists to act as corruption watchdogs on government and state bodies have been dismissed as “a road to hell” by local journalists.


SPAIN: RTVE women charge 3264 euros less than men a year (Spanish)

PR Noticias: The wage gap is a reality that also affects journalism professionals, both private and public media. One of the examples is the salary inequality between men and women living in the RTVE workforce.


SWEDEN: “Free Word Day” on tour to Swedish sixth graders (Swedish)

Sveriges Radio: During the year, Sweden’s Radio, SVT, UR and local newspapers across the country together invite sixth graders to “Free Word’s Day” – a day on freedom of speech and media freedom. The first tour stop is in Karlstad on March 18.


SWEDEN: Updates of MedieSverige 2019 (Report)

Nordicom: To all readers of MedieSverige 2019, Nordicom’s comprehensive overview of today’s media landscape in Sweden, the search for updates is over.


SWITZERLAND: SRG sells Radio Swiss Pop to BNJ Suisse

Telecompaper: Swiss public broadcaster SRG SSR said that it has sold the radio station Radio Swiss Pop to BNJ Suisse for an undisclosed sum. 


UK: Netflix could never replace BBC, says Tony Hall 

The Guardian: The BBC director general, Tony Hall, has said there is no way Netflix could replace the public service broadcaster, pointing out that the streaming service does not provide news coverage or distinctive regional British content.


UK: The Lords are BBC fans (German)

Deutschlandfunk: Public service broadcasting is under fire in the UK. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is sympathetic to the call to abolish the license fee. However, a debate in the upper house showed that the BBC enjoys a lot of support there.


UK: UK report shows surveillance efforts involving journalists

CPJ: Authorities in the United Kingdom should refrain from surveilling members of the press and should provide more transparency about surveillance efforts involving journalists, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.


GENERAL: IJ4EU relaunches: 1 million euros for investigative journalism in Europe (Funding opportunity)

IPI: The Investigative Journalism for Europe (IJ4EU) fund will distribute 1 million euros to cross-border investigative journalism projects in EU member states and candidate countries in 2020, the organisations managing the fund announced today.


GENERAL: Journalists’ organisations demand fair share in EU Copyright Directive submission

EFJ


GENERAL: UHD TV ‘not highest priority’ for European public broadcasters

Digital TV Europe: Building infrastructure for and launching UHD TV services is not the highest priority for European public broadcasters and in many cases is being aligned with migration of infrastructure to IP, according to a survey by the EBU.


GENERAL: Women journalists and the threats they face: A look across Europe 

ECPMF: The murders of women journalists Lyra McKee, Daphne Caruana Galizia, Viktoria Marinova and Kim Wall, and of Jan Kuciak’s fiancée Martina Kusnirova, are a grim reminder that women are at risk when they speak out against corruption or speak up for people who are marginalised in society.

BRAZIL: Women journalists integrate 8M acts across the country (Portuguese) 

FENAJ: “Fight like a journalist”. That was the message that women took to the streets this March 8th, in the face of so many attacks on the profession, especially on women. 


COLOMBIA: The Press Freedom Foundation has requested UNP to protect Gonzalo Guillén, Julián Martínez and Diana Zuleta (Spanish) 

El Heraldo: FLIP, the Press Freedom Foundation has asked authorities to investigate the harassment of the journalists of La Nueva Prensa and La Oreja Roja. FLIP said that there was a cyberattack against the La Oreja Roja and that the harassment of  journalists Gonzalo Guillén, Julián Martínez and Diana Zuleta began after they broke the Ñeñepolítica scandal. 


COLOMBIA: Women and media: a pending conversation (Spanish) 

FLIP: In 2020, 25 years of the Beijing Platform for Action, the roadmap adopted by 189 countries to achieve gender equality. There are still several pending challenges regarding women and the media.


COSTA RICA: Javier Corral is sued for attacks on press freedom (Spanish)

Informador: The general director of El Diario de Juárez, Osvaldo Rodríguez Borunda, filed a lawsuit against Governor Javier Corral Jurado for the alleged threats and acts of harassment, discrimination and attacks on press freedom and the right to information that the official has exercised against the media. 


CUBA & US: Cuban journalist who received asylum in U.S. is released from detention center after ICE loses appeal

Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas: On March 4, Cuban journalist Yariel Valdés González (29) was released after spending almost 12 months in different detention centers of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). 


CUBA: Independent media in the firing line in Cuba

Jamaica Observer: Monica Baro’s investigation into cases of lead poisoning in Havana won her a prestigious Latin American journalism award but few friends in the Cuban government, which views independent media outlets like hers with growing suspicion. 


GUATEMALA: Guatemalan journalist Bryan Guerra shot dead in Chiquimula

CPJ: On February 27, unidentified individuals shot Guerra, a reporter at the cable news channel TLCOM, in the city of Chiquimula, about 61 miles east of Guatemala City, according a report by news website Nómada. Guerra was driving a motorcycle and was shot from a moving vehicle, according to that report.


GUYANA: Journalists in Guyana threatened for post-election coverage

Loop: The Guyana Press Association (GPA) said it is concerned about threats to local media professionals after their coverage of events that followed March 2 Regional and General Elections.


MEXICO: Mexico – Death threats and attacks between journalists and bloggers during a López Obrador press conference (Spanish) 

Notimerica: Journalists and bloggers who attended a press conference hosted by President Obrador experienced physical and verbal aggression from other members of the media. 


NICARAGUA: Nicaragua records 61 cases of violence against journalists between December 2019 and February 2020

Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas: Between December 16 of last year and February 29 of this year, 61 cases of violence against journalists were documented. 


VENEZUELA: Venezuela sees more violations to freedom of expression in 2019 than in the last eight years

Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas: 2019 was the year with “the greatest historical setback” in terms of the deterioration of freedom of information and expression in Venezuela, according to the Press and Society Institute (IPYS) Venezuela. In its 2019 annual report, “Voces en el paredón” (Voices in the firing line), the organization recorded 1,032 violations to freedom of expression and access to public information for journalists and citizens.

IRAN: HRC43: Oral statement during Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on Iran (Statement)

Article 19: We share the Special Rapporteur’s deep concerns about the repression of human rights defenders, and dissenting voices in Iran, facilitated by the continued abusive application of a restrictive legal framework, and abuses by the security forces. 


SYRIA: A matter of life or death: Syrian journalists have nowhere to turn (Opinion)

Open Democracy: In Syria, journalists report the news while facing threats from all sides of the war. Now we must do our part to protect them.


SYRIA: Idlib: Battle on the Ground, Battle on the Airwaves (Watch)

Al Jazeera: Turkish and Russian media put their own spin on the battle in Idlib.


TURKEY: EU leaders must call on Erdoğan to release journalists imprisoned in Turkey

IFJ: The presidents of the European commission and council, Ursula von der Leyen and Charles Michel, will meet Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Monday evening over his decision to open his border to migrants travelling to Europe. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ and EFJ) call on European leaders to demand that Erdogan release 94 journalists imprisoned in Turkey for doing their job.


TURKEY: Turkey detains 2 Odatv journalists for naming intelligence officer killed in Libya

CPJ: On March 4, police in Istanbul arrested journalist Barış Terkoğlu, news editor of the opposition news website Odatv, and police in Manisa arrested Hülya Kılınç, a reporter at the website, according to a report by Odatv. 


YEMEN: In Yemen, the internet is a key front in the conflict

Coda Story: Price hikes and slow broadband speeds have cut off many Yemenis from a world beyond the war.


GENERAL: Traditional media too trusted to disappear say leading editors

ZAWYA: Sharjah Press Club hosts media professionals at a discussion on the future of news. 

CANADA: Applications open for 2020 EU-Canada Young Journalist Fellowship (Opportunity)

CISION: The European Union Delegation to Canada and the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) are thrilled to launch the 2020 edition of the European Union-Canada Young Journalist Fellowship.


CANADA: CBC Sports is committing to gender-balanced coverage

Times Colonist: CBC Sports announced Friday a commitment to providing gender equal coverage in its original content.


CANADA: CBC won’t add conflict of interest disclaimer to Oland documentary

CBC News: CBC has no plans to add a disclaimer or pull The Oland Murder, a four-part documentary series that aired last week and was co-produced by the daughter of Dennis Oland’s defence lawyer. 


CANADA: Women taking the lead – today, and every day (Blog) 

CBC/Radio-Canada: With International Women’s Day just around the corner, I’ve been thinking about what gender parity means – to me, to people in the workplace, and to society in general. Part of our job at CBC/Radio-Canada is to reflect our country not only in our content, but in our workforce. 


US: CPB Public Media Thought Leader Forum: How to Click with Tweens and Teens

CPB: How public media can engage pre-teens and teens was the main topic of the 2020 Public Media Thought Leader Forum, sponsored by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and held in Crystal City, Virginia prior to the National Educational Telecommunications Association (NETA) Conference in January.


US: NPR, stations prepare for possible impact of coronavirus: ‘This may be a marathon, not a sprint’ (Paywall)

Current: As they cover the global outbreak of the new coronavirus, NPR and stations are also taking steps to mitigate risks. 


US: PBS cancels spring meetings due to coronavirus concerns (Paywall)

Current: PBS has canceled both of its major spring conferences due to concerns over the global outbreak of the coronavirus. PBS TechCon, which focuses on broadcast and digital technologies, was scheduled for April 15–17 in Las Vegas. The Annual Meeting, where PBS presents major programming and engagement initiatives, was to be held in Seattle May 11–13. PBS declined to provide an estimate of the costs of canceling the conferences.


US: Public Media’s Support Letters Circulating in Congress

Protect my Public Media: In response to the Administration’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 budget proposal to eliminate federal funding for public media, tens of thousands of communications were sent to Congress and the Administration in support of public media funding.


US: Tavis Smiley Ordered To Pay PBS $1.5 Million For Violating Network’s ‘Morality’ Clause

NPR: Tavis Smiley has to pay up. A Washington, D.C., jury decided on Wednesday that the former public television host violated the morals clause of his contract by carrying on sexual relationships with multiple subordinates. 


US: Working Together To Alleviate ‘News Deserts’ (Opinion)

NPR: Last week, I wrote about the listeners we heard from who want to hear more varied perspectives — from outside the DC beltway and the coasts, from rural areas — and some developments that I find hopeful. Here’s one more.

Business success of paperless papers may signal next step in mainstream news

CBC News: Can traditional broadsheets survive without print or paywalls? New evidence says yes. 


Cilla Benkö on International Women’s Day: I hope that I’ll never feel entirely satisfied (Opinion)

EBU: Swedish Radio was named Sweden’s most gender-equal workplace in 2019. But it hasn’t always been this way. In many ways, the media world that I entered in 1985 was a completely different one, writes Swedish Radio’s Director-General and EBU Executive Board Member Cilla Benkö in connection with International Women’s Day on 8th March.


Happy International Women’s Day! Less than a third of the top editors at major news outlets around the world are women

Nieman Lab: “There are fewer women in top roles than there are women in the profession as a whole — in line with previous research documenting vertical segregation in the news industry.”


IPI World Congress

IPI: The International Press Institute will celebrate its 70th anniversary at Columbia University, its founding location. IPI is honored to be hosted by Columbia University and the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism where IPI was founded in 1950 by 34 editors from 15 countries to defend journalistic quality and independence. 


OTT churn on the rise

Broadband TV News: Churn among all OTT services in the US reached 35% in 2019. This, according to Parks Research, was up from 28% in 2018. Parks Associates’ consumer data notes churn among vMVPDs (virtual multichannel video programming distributors or online pay-TV providers) was 81% in 2019. 


Radiodays Europe Lisbon 2020 Postponed (Event update)

Radiodays Europe: Radiodays Europe has for 11 years been the meeting place for the world of radio and audio, for all broadcasters both public and private and for companies from around the world. Radiodays Europe Steering Board have decided that due to the increasing health risks in many countries associated with Coronavirus COVID-19, Radiodays Europe is postponed until the end of 2020.


Sensationalist coronavirus reporting a ‘bigger contagion’ than the virus itself

ABC News: Irresponsible coverage of the coronavirus crisis is contributing to unnecessary fear and panic, according to a journalism expert, with public overreaction potentially a bigger risk to Australia than the virus itself.


Surge of Virus Misinformation Stumps Facebook and Twitter (Paywall)

The New York Times: Secret labs. Magic cures. Government plots. Despite efforts by social media companies to stop it, false information about the coronavirus is proliferating around the world.


Women struggle to reach the top in global news outfits (Paywall)

Financial Times: At 168 largest media outlets across 10 countries only 38 had a female editor. 


PSM Weekly is available via email. You can subscribe by signing up to our mailing list at the bottom of the page or email editor@publicmediaalliance.org.

All PSM Weekly stories are provided for interest and their relevance to public service media issues, they do not necessarily reflect the views of the Public Media Alliance.

All headlines are sourced from their original story.

If you have any suggestions for our weekly round-ups, please email PMA at editor@publicmediaalliance.org.


Header Image: Students Experimenting With Video Software stock photo. Credit: TommL/iStock 

Sign up to PSM Weekly

Receive our weekly round-up of public service media headlines and PMA news straight to your inbox.