IJC notes some electoral competitors are favored at certain channels

The Independent Journalism Center notes that certain changes have occurred in the policy of the monitored mass media institutions. “If we speak about the broadcasting media, the situation has change from the first two weeks of the monitoring, when most mass media institutions covered the electoral campaign correctly and equidistantly. Although there are fewer problems related to deontological principles and standards, except one TV channel, we find that some candidates are being favored at some channels, judging by the number of news related to these candidates”, said during a press conference Nadine Gogu, IJC director. According to the monitoring report, the private channel with national coverage Prime TV is reflecting the electoral campaign according to professional standards. However, IJC notes that PDM candidates are being favored during the news. Another private channel with national coverage, NIT, continues to openly support PCRM, not only through the amount of broadcasted materials about this party, but through the approach to many subjects as well. Most of the NIT news were biased and used caricatures and archive footage to denigrate some politicians. N4, a channel with national coverage, is slightly favoring PLDM through electoral materials and news promoting Prime Minister Vlad Filat. Euro TV and Jurnal TV have a balanced editorial policy, respecting professional and deontological principles. “The monitored newspapers seem to focus less on informing about the elections and more on the analysis of the campaign. There are more opinions that news. Readers may thus be deprived of information that could help them know and use their rights as voters better”, said Petru Macovei, mass media expert. He mentioned that Adevarul, Timpul de dimineata and Jurnal de Chisinau covered the campaign impartially and didn’t infringe journalistic ethics. However, Moldova Suverana and Nezavisimaya Moldova have overtly promoted PCRM and led a campaign against PL, PLDM and PDM. Macovei explained that both newspapers presented one-sided materials, based usually on one source, sometimes more, but still reflecting the same point of view. The style, especially in opinion columns, is often pejorative. The Independent Journalism Center launched within the Civic Coalition for Free and Fair Elections the second report of monitoring the mass media coverage of the electoral campaign. It reflects the period between May 2 and 15. The report was developed within the project “Mass media monitoring during the electoral campaign”, financed by the East-European Foundation with funds from the Swedish Agency for Cooperation and International Development and Denmark’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.