COUNCIL ON TELEVISION AND RADIO RECOMMENDS PRE-ELECTION DEBATE ONLY ON PUBLIC TV

The Council on Television and Radio recommends that electoral debates be conducted only on the public television channel. The Council sent such a recommendation to the CEC, which is to approve the Regulation on “Media Coverage of the Presidential Election Campaign”.

“Given the situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the large number of daily infections, as well as the practice of other countries, the regulations should indicate that public debates during the presidential election campaign should be organized by a public TV provider, and these debates will be rebroadcast in the regime of real time by the rest of the TV channels so that candidates to presidency do not travel to other TV channels during this period,” the Council's decision says.

The final decision on the coverage of the election campaign in the media has not yet been made. It must be approved by the Central Election Commission, taking into account the recommendations of the Council on Television and Radio. The proposals drew criticism from politicians, political scientists and TV channels, which do not intend to rebroadcast the debates of the public TV channel.