TVR Moldova Is Publicly Warned, and RU-TV Moldova Is Fined 15 000 Lei. What Are the Reasons?

During the meeting held on October 28, the Broadcasting Council examined the results of monitoring TVR Moldova and RU-TV Moldova audiovisual media services, and sanctions were applied against them due to breaches of the legislation detected during the control.

TVR Moldova was monitored on the basis of the petition by Ecaterina Gancota, Director of the Rehabilitation Center for Children. The petitioner claims that, in the report titled “Hospital Patients Risk Being Hungry” broadcast on September 29, the channel provided false information, and this fact could affect the image of the institution she conducts.

According to the monitoring report presented by Victoria Stetcaia, Deputy Head of the Media Service Control Department, the petition requests that the BC monitor the quality and veracity of the report. The monitoring reveals that the authors of the report failed to ensure accuracy and correctness, thus breaching the provisions of Art. 13 of the Code of Audiovisual Media Services (CAMS). The same article provides that the information shall be obtained from reliable sources, have sufficient factual confirmation, demonstrate credible and impartial approach to the events, and reflect different opinions in a balanced way; the authors of the report also failed to comply with these provisions, according to the broadcasting authority.

TVR Moldova was sanctioned and publicly warned.

At the same meeting, RU-TV Moldova channel was fined 15 000 lei for practicing its activity without a broadcasting license. Derogations from the legislation were detected as a result of Ruslan Mihalevschi’s application. In this case, the BC members examined the results of the control regarding the activity of Euroshow Grup, the audiovisual media service provider which is the founder of RU-TV Moldova, from the point of view of compliance with the provisions of the broadcasting license legislation.

The control stated that the term of validity of the broadcasting license issued for RU-TV Moldova channel had expired on May 14, and the BC had informed them about the expiration of the broadcasting license and the need to submit the original document to the BC. However, according to the BC, RU-TV Moldova continued broadcasting between May 14 and October 10. The service was rebroadcast via the media service distributors’ cable networks.

For this reason, Euroshow Grup Company was fined 15 000 lei. RU-TV Moldova was given 15 days to comply with the legal requirements to cease broadcasting, but it would be allowed to resume it upon obtaining a new broadcasting license.