ERC sets out principles applicable to journalists' right of access to public places

Following a request for information from the Portuguese Journalists’ Professional License Committee on journalists' right of access to spaces open to the public, ERC’s Regulatory Board, on 9 November, adopted the Decision ERC/2023/408 (DJ) summarising the legal framework and the general principles applicable to the exercise of the right of access that have been governing ERC's decisions.

The regulator explains in the document that the right of access to information is the very core of the freedom of the press and journalists’ fundamental right. As general principle, journalists performing their work, and because of it, therefore have freedom of access to the information sources needed to achieve the right to information in its threefold form: the right to inform, to obtain information and to be informed.

ERC's new Regulatory Board takes up office

The members incorporating the next cycle of ERC´s Regulatory Board took up office before the President of the Portuguese Parliament on the December 14th at 12.00 pm in the Parliament premises.

The Board is now composed of the following five members: Helena Sousa (Chairman), Pedro Correia Gonçalves (Vice President), Telmo Gonçalves (Member), Carla Martins (Member) and Rita Rola (Member).

ERC's Plan of Work for 2024 is now available

ERC has today published its plan of work for 2024, detailing its priorities for the next financial year.

Investment in Institutional Advertisement drops 6 million in 2022

In 2022, services under the direct administration by the Portuguese State, public bodies, and national public corporate sector entities reported to ERC, via the Institutional Advertisement Digital Platform, the execution of 112 advertising campaigns totalling EUR 6 462 708,69 million. This represents a decrease of almost half of the amount of EUR 12 507 407,87 million intended for these campaigns in 2021. Television was the most prominent medium.

The funds available for regional and local media reached EUR 2 384 267,78 million, which corresponds to 36.9% of the total amount invested in the purchase of advertising spaces. In 2022, there was a 37 percentage increase in the funds for regional and local media as compared to 2021, despite the overall decrease in advertising investment.

Media transparency: public consultation on the criteria for assessment of requests for confidentiality

The Regulatory Authority for the Media (ERC) launched a public consultation on the guidelines for the assessment of requests for confidentiality submitted to it under the transparency legal framework.

The Transparency Law (Law No. 78/2015 of 29 July) provides that the data supplied to ERC via the Transparency Portal must be published, with the sole exception of cases in which “fundamental interests of stakeholders” are invoked. In order to appreciate these cases, ERC has internally defined “Guidelines for the assessment of requests for confidentiality”, which were adopted in 2019 by ERC’s Regulatory Board. These criteria, which guided the examination of 130 requests for confidentiality between 2020 and 2023, are now submitted to public consultation.

ERC report looks at television coverage of 2022 parliamentary elections

The Regulatory Authority for the Media (ERC) recently published a report describing how prime time news programmes on RTP1, RTP2, SIC, TVI and CMTV television channels have covered 2022 parliamentary elections during the electoral period (from 16 to 28 January 2022). In parallel, the report also looked at the type of participations of the different candidacies in talk shows and debates on RTP3, SIC Noticias e TVI24/CNN Portugal television channels during pre-campaign and election campaign phases.

Radio stations meet Portuguese music broadcasting quotas in 2021

ERC has analysed the performance of national, regional and local radio programme services during 2021 with regard to their obligations to comply with the Portuguese music broadcasting quotas laid down by the Radio Law.

The analysis focused on the programme services registered to ERC’s “Radio Portal” platform. The study examined both monthly samples from 130 local radio programme services providing regular reporting, and the monthly monitoring of the southern regional radio programme service (M80) and of five national programme services (Antena 1, Antena 3, Rádio Comercial, Rádio Renascença and RFM).

Investment in Institutional Advertisement increased by EUR 10 million in 2021

In 2021, services under the direct administration by the Portuguese State, public bodies, and national public corporate sector entities reported to ERC, via the Institutional Advertisement Digital Platform, the execution of 93 advertising campaigns totalling EUR 12 507 407,87 million. This represents an increase of almost EUR 10.5 million compared to the figure of EUR 2 031 906,18 million intended for these campaigns in 2020. Television was the most prominent medium.

The funds available for regional and local media reached EUR 3 090 278,51, which corresponds to 25% of the total amount invested in the purchase of advertising spaces. In 2021, there was a seven percentage point decrease in the funds for regional and local media as compared to 2020, despite the overall increase in advertising investment.

ERC's Plan of Work for 2023 is now available

ERC has today published its plan of work for 2023, detailing its priorities for the next financial year.