Bernese Grand Council Commission for Indirect Media Promotion

This was announced by the Commission for State Policy and External Relations (SAK) on Wednesday. The Grand Council will discuss the law in the fall session in the second reading.

In the spring, the council had referred all articles on media promotion back to the commission. At the time, the council was told that the situation had changed as a result of the people's "no" to the federal media package. Against this background, the cantonal provisions were to be reviewed again.

The SAK continues to believe that media diversity in the Canton of Berne should be promoted with a view to regional reporting. It unanimously proposes that the Grand Council approve the amended law.

For the first reading, a majority of the commission was still of the opinion that direct media promotion should not be explicitly excluded even in the German-speaking part of the canton. It has now abandoned this position.

From the point of view of the commission majority, it is better for the independence of the media if there is no direct funding. As is well known, this is also the view of the government council. A small minority of the commission at least does not want to exclude direct funding, because this would allow the canton to intervene directly in an emergency situation.

Agency promotion

In the individual support measures, a minority wants to mention news agencies in the law as an example of institutions that could be supported. The majority rejects this: It is unclear whether and to what extent support for agencies would benefit the smaller, regional media.

The Commission has added further indirect funding measures. These include contributions to training and continuing education as well as temporary funding for project-related media offerings. (SDA)