Updated 2.55pm, adds Casa comments
TVM allocates more airtime to the government compared to the opposition since it is ultimately the government that organises most events, the minister responsible for state broadcasting said.
Owen Bonnici was reacting to statistics published by the Nationalist Party, which showed that Labour Party politicians were far more likely to be given sound bites on the national broadcaster.
The statistics show that PL politicians were given 351 sound bites between March 2023 and February, while PN politicians had 27. The PN said the statistics were proof that the state broadcaster was censuring anyone who criticised Robert Abela's government.
But the culture minister said any such calculation should take into account how many events the opposition holds compared to the government.
“When you have a government that is working and holding events and important press conferences daily, and you have an opposition that is asleep, it's obvious to see more coverage of the government compared to the opposition.”
He said a more profound exercise should consider this instead of just citing the raw numbers.
"If you make this analysis, you will realise that what I am saying is correct," he said.
The PN has long criticised PBS for favouring the government and has taken the broadcaster to court several times. PBS has a legal obligation to be impartial.
Asked to respond to claims of bias by TVM, Bonnici said: "I don't get involved in the way the (PBS) newsroom is run, and God forbid the minister of the day gets involved directly or indirectly in the newsroom's editorial discretion. Our duty is to provide them with the needed resources".
Addressing the European Parliament on Tuesday, MEP David Casa said:
"We will no longer accept that the public broadcaster acts as government propaganda, or that newspapers are subjected to a mountain of pressure lest they do their job of reporting what is in the public interest.”
He appealed for a strong vote on the European Media Freedom Act, dubbing it a “strong tool in our arsenal able to put an end to practices that are hostile to journalists”.
“Democracy falters when journalists are threatened,” declared Casa.
He recalled Daphne Caruana Galizia’s final interview, given 10 days before her assassination, in which she lamented the intense pressure exerted by the government over her employer’s finances, insisting she lose her job because of what she wrote.
Casa called out the Maltese Government for its "despicable attitude" toward journalists, even after it had been found responsible for creating the atmosphere that enabled Caruana Galizia's assassination.
“Finally we have another shield for journalism, and so I appeal for a strong vote and for us to continue this fight with all our strength,” he said.