Politicians Get The TV They Want

Michael Hedges August 30, 2012 Follow on Twitter

In the best of times, public broadcasters hold broad support from listeners and viewers as well as politicians. For a generation the former State agencies enjoyed stable, often substantial funding and a measure of independence. Dismal economics feeding political turmoil is turning back the clock.

Spain’s public broadcaster RTVE will return bullfighting to television screens next week. Six years ago the previous center-left government of Jose Luis Zapatero (Socialist Worker’s Party – PSOE) banned bullfight telecasts as inappropriate for young viewers. The current center-right government of Mariano Rajoy (People’s Party – PP) takes a different view.

In February Culture and Education Minister José Ignacio Wert promised to allocate government funding to promote the “cultural asset.” When the Rajoy government began reshuffling government ministries and agencies, including RTVE, Sr Wert was initially tapped by Sr Rajoy to take over the public broadcaster, which had been without a permanent president since the abrupt resignation of Alberto Oliart in mid-2011. After several months of the RTVE presidency rotating among management board members, lawyer and career politician Leopoldo González-Echenique was named RTVE president by the political coalition in June. He had led communications policy for the previous government of José María Aznar (PP), who joined the board of News Corporation since leaving office.

RTVE’s editorial guidelines excluded bullfighting in 2010 as promoting “animal violence.” That exclusion was softened after Minister Wert’s comments to note the “relevance of the world of bullfighting and its socio-cultural influence.” Cash-strapped RTVE will need only absorb production costs as bullfight promoters and unions have waived rights fees.

Every change of government in Spain results in new management at RTVE, often extending to news departments and journalists. Sr González-Echenique replaced both public radio RNE director Benigno Moreno and public television TVE director Santiago González. The new TVE director is Ignacio Corrales, long associated with national radio network Cadena Cope. Manuel Ventero, a RTVE lifer, is the new RNE director. Sr. González had announced his resignation in May to join production house Secuoya as CEO.

TVE news director Julio Somoano, also new to the job in June, has moved swiftly to replace several high profile news anchors, including most recently morning news anchor Ana Pastor. Sr Somoano replaced Fran Llorente, who had served as news director since 2004, with notable support from People’s Party and center-right Convergence and Union Party members of the TVE administrative board. Sr Llorente was credited for bringing credibility back to TVE news for which the People’s Party long called for his head.

Ana Pastor, called “the scourge of all politicians” by Cadena SER (August 4) for a hard-hitting interview style, was fired earlier this month. Other journalists and news department heads from the previous administration have been replaced. Ms Pastor declined a late night talk show, said a RTVE press statement when news of her dismissal became public. “Whatever they say, you know that journalism was overthrown,” she said, quoted by Cadena SER.

Spain’s media has been in considerable pain, austerity taking a huge bite. Ad spending has tumbled, forcing newspapers to cut staff and private broadcasters to consolidate. But public broadcasting has bourn the brunt with budgets cut nearly 40% and becoming a political football. Or maybe a better analogy would be that indelicate sport of goring an animal.

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