Government covered more in public TV

TIRANA, Feb 17 – A report by the National Council of Radio and Television (NCRT) showed that the governing Democratic Party of Prime Minister Sali Berisha took up most of the news time at the public television station TVSH.
The NCRT has presented its annual report to the parliament, a regular procedure for the previous year.
In its conclusions of the 98-page report, the NCRT notes this disturbing phenomenon saying that Berisha is covered in political activities broadcasted 24.6 percent of the time available to reflect his activities, a few points higher than a year ago.
During the main news edition in 2007 the time available for the governing Democratic Party had been 8.1 percent, while in 2008 it had increased to 9.2 per cent.
Concerning the opposition Socialist Party, the figure had decreased from 17.9 percent in 2007 to 16.3 percent in 2008.
Almost the same conclusions were drawn for the public radio Tirana station.
Recently, the Socialist Party has consistently denounced such a phenomenon.
The NCRT has also noted that in 2008 there was an increase in the number of operators that have submitted annual balance and of operators with declared profit, compared to 2007.
Another phenomenon is the tendency of radio stations to be more regular in comparison with television stations in paying financial obligations and annual license fees.
Revenue from advertising recorded a slight decline in comparison to 2007, only 1 percent less.
The NCRT has registered 170 radio and TV stations across the country.