The Regulatory Authority for the Media (ERC) considered that the restructuring of the Portuguese news agency Lusа is not in conformity with the applicable regulatory framework nor with good practices for the independent operation of a public media outlet. In the deliberation published today, the regulator warned that this non-conformity will have significant effects on the public perception, nationally, in Europe and internationally, regarding the levels of independence of Lusа from political power.
The Journalists' Union filed a complaint with the ERC on April 13 regarding the new statutes of Lusа, arguing that these altered the governance model and increased the risks of external interference, particularly due to political influence and control over the editorial line. The union noted that the new statutes expanded the number of members on the Board of Directors to three, all appointed by the Government on behalf of the sole shareholder, the State, without guarantees of transparent criteria or broad public scrutiny.
The ERC considered that the amendment of the statutes is a matter of statutory reserve enshrined in the Constitution, and the deliberation of the State does not appear to be a sufficient instrument for that regulation. The regulator also noted that the application of the Advisory Council, presented as a mechanism to mitigate the risk of governmentalization, was postponed until the election of the next board of directors (2030-2033), leaving the current four-year period (2026-2029) unprotected. The three executive administrators were elected the day before the prior opinion requirement of the Advisory Council came into force.
In addition to the complaint with the ERC, the Journalists' Union also filed a complaint with the Ombudsman against the Government for considering that the new statutes of Lusа undermine constitutional principles of freedom of information.
