The Parliamentary Commission on Media will start a new session of consultation with stakeholders regarding the approval of the current draft that will regulate audiovisual services. Currently two main laws regulate broadcasting in the country, the Law on Public and Private Radio and TV Broadcasting and the Law on Digital Broadcasting, merged in one. Even though the second law passed in 2007, it has not started implementation yet, in the absence of a Strategy on Digital Broadcasting. The new draft aims to merge regulation in only one law, which would cover all concerned areas. The workgroup that has worked on the draft has had several sessions of cooperation and exchange with Council of Europe, European Commission, and OSCE experts through the process. Some of the sensitive aspects that are expected to be discussed in this framework include the impact of switchover to digital on the media and on the public, the media ownership provisions, the formula for election of members of regulatory bodies, the competencies of regulatory bodies, etc. The first public discussion session took place in July and September 2011. The work group has worked to reflect the remarks and suggestions of stakeholders and those of international experts.

media transparency, media ownership, media links to politics, advertising market, self-regulation and media ethics, and media regulation. The second study was “Media vs. politics: Transition to (in)dependence,” presented by Besnik Baka, researcher. This study focused on the specific relation of media outlets to politics and the different factors that affect media independence in this realm, such as political pressure, media clientelism, state advertising for the media, the link between media owners and politicians, etc.
The roundtable continued with an open discussion of the participants, highlighting such issues as the need for a more balanced view on the role of media owners, the transformation of the profession of journalist in this age and the current situation in Albania, the impact of technology on the profession, the role of emergence of electronic media, the status of the public broadcaster, etc.  The need for greater transparency on the media financing sources, for audience research and print media circulation, the implementation of the Labour Code for media employees, and for establishing self-regulation were some of the recommendations of the participants for improving the role of the media in the society. The roundtable was organized by Albanian Media Institute, with the support of Friedrich Ebert Foundation.

 A training course on ethics in the blogosphere was organized at Albanian Media Institute on January 9-12, with the participation of journalists from print, electronic, and online media. The trainer started by discussing the role of blogs as a different way of disseminating information, as well as blogging as an additional element in promoting free speech and serving as democratic platform. The lecturer made an analysis of Albanian media websites that have their own forums and blogs.
The lecturer and participants focused especially on potential cases of violation of ethics, use of hate speech, open-minded discussion vis-à-vis propaganda, accuracy vis-à-vis gossip, public interest versus sensationalism, etc. The lecturer then introduced Albanian journalists to main principles of blogging as a new form of reporting and debate. The participants became familiar with the main sites which create the best place and services for them, in the way that they can create their own web-blogs. They also focused on and discussed different kinds of blogs, their structure, and the different journalism communities making use of blogging. Participants also discussed how the traditional media, in addition to new media, should or could cope with the ethical problems that emerge from use of technologies and blogging in particular. This course was organized by the Albanian Media Institute, with the support of UNESCO.

  Training course in ethics in the blogosphere

Training course on access to information issues

A training course on access to information legislation, implementation, and challenges for journalists and the public was organized at the Albanian Media Institute on January 16-18, with the participation of journalists and editors from mainstream media. The participants were introduced to the main aspects of Albanian legislation on this area and discussed the way the law is implemented, its main deficiencies and the existing attempts to amend the law in several aspects. Specific attention was paid to the amendments pending in the parliament on the law on access to information, such as the issue of timelines, costs, establishment of information offices, etc. Participants also became familiar with some lawsuits and trials against public institutions related to compliance with the law on access to information. This course was organized by Albanian Media Institute, with the support of the US Embassy.