MBC calls on Broadcasting Commission to revise report

Maldives Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) has called on Maldives Broadcasting Commission (Broadcom) to revise its report ‘Broadcast Content and Complaints during Presidential Election 2013’.

This came in a statement issued by MBC today regarding Broadcom’s report published yesterday, based on its findings after monitoring broadcast content during the elections.

In the statement, MBC said that this action by Broadcom, an institution set up by law to regulate broadcasters and work towards sustaining and encouraging free and fair broadcasting services, was regrettable; and urged Broadcom to revise the sections of the report that were misleading and undermined the rights of a group that had carried out honest and impartial work.

MBC said that the general news and current affairs content broadcast during the election period was fair but it was possible that, based on newsworthiness, more news was shown of candidates who conducted more campaign activities, but even this was done in a manner that would not result in undue advantage to, or violation of the rights of, any particular group.

Broadcom said in its report yesterday that even MBC’s Television Maldives (TVM) was not fair in its campaign-related coverage during the presidential election.

The report states that with 9.68 percent TVM gave least on-air time to Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) presidential election candidate Mohamed Nasheed, and second least on-air time to independent candidate former President Dr Mohamed Waheed.

TVM allocated most on-air time to Jumhooree Party (JP) candidate Gasim Ibrahim (18.24 percent), followed by Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) candidate Abdulla Yameen (16.34 percent).